Question 1

What is the main purpose of the memorial God commands in this passage?

Accepted Answer

The memorial is meant to keep God’s rescue of Israel fresh in their minds and in their children’s minds. God is about to bring them out of Egypt, where they had been slaves, and he wants that saving act remembered every year. The Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread are not just one-time events but a regular feast to the Lord. By keeping this feast through all generations, Israel remembers that God judged Egypt, passed over their houses because of the blood, and personally brought them out. It turns their history into worship.

Question 2

Why did God command Israel to eat unleavened bread for seven days?

Accepted Answer

God ties the unleavened bread to their hurried escape from Egypt and to a life set apart for him. They had to leave so quickly there was no time for bread to rise, so they ate it without leaven. He then turns that into a pattern: for seven days no leaven is to be found in their homes, and anyone who eats leavened bread is cut off from Israel. This pictures a clean break from their old life and from sin’s spreading influence, calling them to sincerity and holiness as his rescued people.

Question 3

Why was the punishment for eating leaven during this feast so serious?

Accepted Answer

The text says that anyone who eats what is leavened during these seven days “shall be cut off from Israel,” whether they are native-born or a stranger. On its own, avoiding leaven might seem like a small thing, but here it is tied to remembering God’s redemption. God himself set up this sign around their rescue from Egypt. To ignore it was to treat his salvation and his word lightly. So the heavy penalty shows that obedience to what God links to his saving work is not optional, and that belonging to his people means honoring the way he tells them to remember him.

Question 4

What is the meaning of putting the lamb’s blood on the doorposts and lintel?

Accepted Answer

The blood on the doorposts is a visible sign that the house is under God’s protection. God says that he will pass through to strike the Egyptians, but when he sees the blood on the lintel and the two side posts, he will pass over that door and not allow the destroyer to enter. The lamb’s blood does not change God’s mind; it marks out those who trust and obey his word. It sets a clear difference between Israel and Egypt. This act points to the way God saves by the death of another in their place and how safety is found where his sign of sacrifice is applied.

Question 5

Who is the ‘destroyer’ mentioned in this passage, and what does he do?

Accepted Answer

The passage speaks of “the destroyer” as the one who would come into houses to strike the firstborn. He is an agent sent by God to carry out the judgment on Egypt. God says he will not allow the destroyer to come into the houses where the blood is on the doorposts. So the destroyer is not acting on his own, but under God’s command. His role shows how real and severe God’s judgment is. At the same time, the way he is held back by the blood shows how sure God’s protection is for those who are marked out by the sacrifice he has appointed.

Question 6

Why were the Israelites told not to leave their houses until morning?

Accepted Answer

After sprinkling the blood on the lintel and doorposts, the people are told not to go out of the door of their house until the morning. The house, marked by the lamb’s blood, is the place of safety while God passes through the land in judgment. To go out would be to step away from the protection God has provided. This command teaches them to stay under the shelter he has given, trusting his word rather than their own ideas of safety. It also keeps them separate from the Egyptians during the night when judgment falls, marking them as a distinct, guarded people.

Question 7

What are the ‘holy convocations’ on the first and seventh days, and why are they important?

Accepted Answer

The first and seventh days of the feast are called “holy convocations,” meaning set-apart gatherings for worship. On those days no regular work is to be done, except what is needed to prepare food. These days bookend the week of unleavened bread. They slow the people down so they are not caught up in ordinary business, but instead assemble to remember and honor God’s rescue. The break from work shows that this is God’s time, not theirs, and that their freedom began and ends with his action. It shapes the rhythm of their life around his saving work and his worship.

Question 8

What were parents supposed to tell their children about this Passover service?

Accepted Answer

God expects children to ask, “What mean ye by this service?” When they do, parents are to answer clearly: this is the sacrifice of the Lord’s Passover. They are to tell how God passed over the houses of Israel in Egypt when he struck the Egyptians but delivered their homes. In other words, the feast is not just ritual; it is a chance to retell the story of judgment and mercy. This shows that God wants every new generation to understand, not just copy, the worship they see. Teaching gives life to the ceremony and ties the family’s story to God’s saving acts.

Question 9

How does this passage point forward to Jesus and his sacrifice?

Accepted Answer

This passage lays patterns that later point clearly to Jesus. There is a spotless lamb whose blood brings protection from judgment, a people marked out by that blood, and a meal eaten in light of God’s rescue. The people must stay under the sign of the blood to be safe. The feast is called a memorial forever, keeping God’s salvation before them until a fuller rescue comes. In the same way, Jesus is described as a lamb without blemish, whose blood saves from a deeper judgment. The Passover shapes how we understand his death as the way God passes over sin.

Question 10

How should believers today respond to the call to remove leaven from their houses?

Accepted Answer

The specific command about cleaning out every bit of leaven belonged to Israel’s Passover practice, but the passage shows the heart behind it. Leaven spreads quietly through a whole lump of dough, so it became a picture of how sin and hypocrisy can spread. God tells them to get rid of it completely during this feast that remembers their rescue. Believers today can see in this a call to deal seriously with sin, not to keep a small part hidden away. Responding rightly means examining our lives, turning from what corrupts us, and living as people whom God has freed.

Exodus 12:14

And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.

The Feast of Unleavened Bread

Feast of Unleavened Bread

metadata.crossReferences

Exodus 12:14

And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the Lord throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.

share.title

share.allVerses

share.verseWithContext

share.currentVerse

The Feast of Unleavened Bread

Feast of Unleavened Bread

metadata.crossReferences