Gleanings from Exodus to Easter

Exodus 12:3,6,24:  "Tell the whole community of Israelites that on the 10th day of this month, each man is to take a lamb for his family...The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect...Obey these instructions as a lasting ordinance for you and your descendants."

We call it the Triumphal Entry, the day on the Jewish Calendar when God ordained for the generations to come that people select their lambs without defect for the Passover, just 4 days away.  As many were selecting their lambs this day Jesus, the Lamb of God, would be "selected" by the crowds as He entered the City on a donkey.

Exodus 12:8,14:  "That same night (Passover) you are to eat the meat roasted over the fire, along with bitter herbs and bread made without yeast...for the generations you shall celebrate it as a festival to the Lord - a lasting ordinance."

Although most assuredly served at the last Passover meal Jesus shared with His disciples, the lamb is not mentioned at all in any of the four gospel accounts.  The bitter herbs, the unleavened bread, the cup - all mentioned, but not the lamb.  Perhaps because as each one wrote looking back to that evening, the Lamb was so obviously present in the person of Jesus.

Exodus 6:1,6,7:  "Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Now you will see what I will do to Pharoah:  Because of My mighty hand he will let them (my people) go; because of My mighty hand he will drive them out of his country...Therefore say to the Israelites:  'I AM the Lord, and I will bring you out from the yoke of the Egyptians.  I will free you from being slaves to them, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with mighty acts of judgement.  I will take you as My own people and I will be your God.'"

About 100 years before Jesus' day, the rabbis developed a set order of celebration for the Passover meal (called a Seder).  There would be 4 cups of wine shared at different points during the meal which would correspond to the 4 promises, or "I wills", of God in the passage above from Exodus 6.

1.  Cup of Sanctification (I will bring you out).

2.  Cup of Deliverance (I will free you from being slaves).

3.  Cup of Redemption (I will redeem you with a mighty outstretched arm).

4.  Cup of Ingathering (I will take you as My people).

From piecing together the gospel accounts of that meal, along with the letter to the Corinthians, it appears that it was the 3rd cup Jesus offered to His disciples that last night when He said, "This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of Me."  It is the Cup of Redemption that Jesus offered to His disciples, and to us, the third cup - "I will redeem you with a mighty outstretched arm" - and He did just that hours later as the mighty arm that stretched out the heavens in creation, now stretched out on a Cross of redemption.

Exodus 12:21-23,42:  "Then Moses summoned all the elders of Israel and said to them, 'Go at once and select the animals for your families and slaughter the Passover lamb.  Take a bunch of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin and put some of the blood on the top and on both sides of the door frame...When the Lord goes through the land to strike down the Egyptians, He will see the blood...and will pass over...He will not permit the destroyer to enter your houses and strike you down"...Because the Lord kept vigil that night to bring them out of Egypt, on this night all Israelites are to keep vigil to honor the Lord for the generations to come."

Passover - a night of remembering, a night of watching.  A meal shared with family and friends recalling the mighty deliverance of God so many centuries before; then staying up together through the night in obedience to God's command to honor Him by "keeping watch."  Jesus said to His disciples in the Garden, "My soul is overwhelmed with sorrow to the point of death.  Stay here and keep watch with Me."  They grew tired and fell asleep.  How my heart aches for my Lord knowing there was no one to "keep watch" with Him.  And my heart aches because I know if I had been there I too would have failed Him.

Exodus 12:12,13:  "On that same night I will pass through Egypt and strike down every firstborn...and I will bring judgement on all the gods of Egypt.  I AM the Lord.  The blood will be the sign for you on the houses where you are; and when I see the blood I will pass over you."

The 10th plague - the death of the firstborn.  

Judgement executed on the gods of Egypt.  

Victory in the blood of the lamb. 

1500 years later there would be the death of another Firstborn, Jesus Christ.  The perfect Lamb of God would shed His blood on a cross and execute judgement on the enemy.  Oh celebrate the covering of His blood offered freely to us!

Wait...what about that 4th cup from Passover - the Cup of Ingathering?  It is not mentioned in the gospel accounts.  Jesus said to His disciples as He invited them to drink of the Cup of Redemption, "Drink from it all of you.  This is My blood of the new covenant which is poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.  I tell you the truth, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it anew with you in My Father's kingdom."  (Matthew 26:27-29)

The 4th Cup, the Cup of Ingathering:

"Hallelujah!

For our Lord God Almighty reigns.

Let us rejoice and be glad

and give Him glory!

For the wedding of the Lamb has come 

and His bride has made herself ready."

Revelation 19:6,7

"Now the dwelling of God is with men and He will live with them.

They will be His people and He will be their God.

He will wipe away every tear from their eyes.

There will be no more death or mourning or pain,

for the old order of things has passed away."

Revelation 21:3,4

The Spirit and the bride say, "Come!"

Revelation 22:17