EXODUS 12
43 And the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “This is the statute of the Passover: no foreigner shall eat of it, 44 but every slave that is bought for money may eat of it after you have circumcised him. 45 No foreigner or hired worker may eat of it. 46 It shall be eaten in one house; you shall not take any of the flesh outside the house, and you shall not break any of its bones. 47 All the congregation of Israel shall keep it. 48 If a stranger shall sojourn with you and would keep the Passover to the Lord, let all his males be circumcised. Then he may come near and keep it; he shall be as a native of the land. But no uncircumcised person shall eat of it. 49 There shall be one law for the native and for the stranger who sojourns among you.” 50 All the people of Israel did just as the Lord commanded Moses and Aaron. 51 And on that very day the Lord brought the people of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their hosts.
– Exodus 12:43-51
EXODUS 12 THE DECREE OF THE PASSOVER
A poem by ILMA inspired by these verses
The Lord God instituted the Passover and made a decree of it
No foreigner or hired worker may eat of the meal
Unless a bought slave has been circumcised, he cannot partake
It shall be eaten in one house and not take any flesh outside
There shall be no bones broken from the lamb
All Israelites shall keep these bones with them
Strangers who come can only partake if all males are circumcised
Then they can be allowed to come and be part of the Passover.
In 1 Corinthians 5:7-8, we can surmise why the Passover is very important for us all Christians. It says “7 Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” The Passover meal is a foreshadowing of the coming of Christ, the perfect lamb of God. It may seem like a ritual for the Israelites, but it is to commemorate the sacrifice that Christ was going to go through in order for all those who believe in him to have a clean slate again and be freed from sins’ shackles.
REFLECTION
- Why do you think foreigners and hired workers were prohibited to partake of the Passover unless they were circumcised?
