The Passover - Pesach

The Passover has already started and the pandemic is all over the world, as in the days of Israelites. The Lord insisted me to write about the Sacrificial Lamb, but I have to begin with Passover to tell about Him. As we know the ten plaques tormented the Egyptians but the Israelites are safer in the hands of the Lord, even though they were living in the land of Goshen, Egypt.

These plaques happened mainly for one reason - LET MY PEOPLE GO! The big history in short - Joseph one of the sons of Jacob became the Prime minister of Egypt. And later there was a Pharaoh who came to reign who didn't know about Joseph and the Israelites, made them slaves. Now God heard the cry of His people and raised a deliverer called Moses to free the Israelites from the hands of the Pharaoh.

God sent Moses to deliver these people. And so he told Moses to tell Pharaoh to send His people to worship the Lord in the wilderness. But Pharaoh, instead of sending them, made their life harder by giving them more work. So the Lord sent ten different types of plaques to torment the Egyptians. So every time there was a plaque, Pharaoh changed his heart and asked Moses to pray and stop the plaque. After the plaque was gone, he would not allow them to go. Adonai, the Lord hardened the heart of Pharaoh to show His Mighty hands. So this happened nine times, as far the ninth plaque is stopped by Moses.

In all these plaques, none of them affected the Israelites. Then came the tenth plaque that blow the Egyptians very bad, that made the Pharaoh send the Israelites out of Egypt. In all these plaques the Lord punished the gods worshipped by the Egyptians. Here comes the 10 plaques of Egypt and it is recorded in the Book of Exodus chapters 7 -12 in the Bible:

1. The River Nile was a god to the Egyptians as it is the primary water source for them and the new-born babies of Israelites were thrown into the Nile and fed by the crocodiles. So the Lord turned the Nile into blood. Not only the Nile but also every water sources like ponds, streams, canals, even the vessels of wood and stone, in which water is stored. So He deprived them with their water supply. The fishes in the river died and smelled so bad that they could not drink. Exodus 7:19-21

Seven days passed after the Lord struck the Nile. Then came the 2nd plaque..

2. Frogs - The Lord sent Frogs everywhere in the whole Egypt from the Nile to the palace, bedrooms, house of all people, their ovens, kneading bowls. Pharaoh asked Moses to intercede to Adonai but after the plaque is stopped and he got a relief, his heart was hardened once again.

The magicians of Egypt were able to do the first 2 plaques as a magic when Moses and Aharon did it. But from the third plaque, they were not able to repeat it, as they said- "This is the finger of God".

3. Lice - this 3rd plaque came from the dust and covered the whole land of Egypt.

Before the 4th plaque, Adonai the Lord said that He will distinguish His people and the Egyptians by setting them apart from these plaques.

4. Insects - Then a terrible swarm of insects covered the land, and ruined the entire land. Then Pharaoh told Moses to worship in Egypt. But Moses told that they could do where Adonai asked them to do in the wilderness. Then he asked Moses to intercede and once the insects were gone, he hardened his heart once again.

5.Dead Livestock - The hand of Adonai came upon the horses, cattle, donkeys, camels and flocks that they suffered from a devastating illness and all the livestock of Egyptians died except that belonged to the Israelites. Pharaoh investigated about that and remained stubborn.

6. Boils and Sores - Then the Lord made all the Egyptians suffer with infected sores and boils and told Pharaoh that He could have stretched His hand and struck him and his people and wiped them off the earth, but He had kept him alive to show His power and resound His name throughout the earth.

7. Hailstorm & Fire - Then Adonai warned them of tomorrow this time, nothing had happened like this before since Egypt was founded because He was going to send heavy hailstorm and told them- hurry to bring everything indoors including all the livestock and humans. Throughout Egypt hail with fire struck everything in the field -people, animals, plants, crops and trees. But in the land of Goshen, where the Israelites were, there was no hail!

As usual Pharaoh asked Moses to intercede and Moses said as soon as he had gone out of the city, he will intercede and Pharaoh will know that the earth belongs to Adonai. Once again Moses went to Pharaoh and 

even Pharaoh's servants told him to let the people go to worship their God. So, Pharaoh let only the men, not the women and children to go to worship Adonai. When Moses asked for all of them - women, children and men, Pharaoh drove him out of his presence.

8. Locusts - Adonai brought locusts into the territory and it covers the whole land that one could not see the ground and it ate anything that escape the hail. So the food resource of the Egyptians is cut off. After this plaque, Pharaoh hurried to summon Moses and Aharon to intercede and take away this deadly plaque. So Adonai reversed the wind and took all the locusts and drove them into the sea of Suf. But Adonai made Pharaoh hard-hearted.

9. Darkness - There was 3 days of thick darkness. Egyptians could not see each other but the Israelites have light in their homes. Then Pharaoh called for Moses and told to leave behind the flocks and herds and you all can leave to worship Adonai. But Moses told they needed their flocks and herds to sacrifice for Adonai. Pharaoh drove away Moses saying that the day he saw Moses again, Moses will die.

10. Death of First-born - Adonai told that this plaque would make Pharaoh drove all of you out of Egypt. And Adonai told Moses to tell all the Israelites to ask their neighbor to give gold and silver jewelry. All the first-born of Egypt, from Pharaoh to the slave girl and livestock are killed as Adonai pass through the land of Egypt executing judgment over the gods of Egypt and Egyptians.

Before the Lord execute this judgement upon the Egyptians, He gave the Israelites to follow the

regulations that would save them from the destruction. And He told them to begin their calendar from that month, as He said it would be their first month of the year for you. So that is the Hebrew Calendar followed since then.

This is Adonai's Pesach - Passover!

Adonai told them, in the 10th day of that month, to take a lamb or a kid lamb either from sheep or goats according to the size of their families and neighbor. And in the 14th day of that month, all the assembly of Israel should slaughter at dusk and they had to smear some of the blood on the two sides and top of the door frame at the entrance of the house where they would eat it. They had to eat with their belt fastened, shoes on their feet, staff on their hand and to eat it hurriedly.

Adonai said -  When I saw the blood on your door, I would pass over and death blow would not strike you, when I strike the land of Egypt. And this would be a day for you to remember and celebrate as festival to Adonai for seven days, from generation to generation by this perpetual regulation. So there are two festivals in those 7 days  - Feast of Unleavened Bread and Pesach.

As Adonai said, at midnight He strike all the first born of the Egyptians from Pharaoh's palace to prisoner in dungeon, and the firstborn of livestock, for there was single house in Egypt without dead in it. But He saw the blood of the lamb and Passover the house of Israelites and spared them.

Then Pharaoh sent for Moses and Aharon by night and told them to leave with the people and herds to serve Adonai and bless him, otherwise they all would die! Then the Israelites asked the Egyptians for gold silver jewelry and clothing, they gave them all they asked for. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.

With a strong hand Adonai brought the Israelites out of Egypt, out of the abode of slavery!

Everything in the Old testament is the shadow of the New testament. Passover - Pesach is the salvation from the wrath of the Lord by faith in the blood of the sacrificial lamb. The Sacrificial Lamb is none other than Yeshua HaMasiach! The Unleavened Bread or the bread of affliction represents Sanctification!

Let us continue this on our next posts - The Sacrificial lamb. See you there!