THIRD QUARTER 2025
SABBATH SCHOOL INSIGHT #5
AUGUST 2, 2025
"PASSOVER."

 

The Promise and Prophecy

Nine plagues had fallen on the land of Egypt, but God would rather it had been none. It was 430 years ago when God reaffirmed the Everlasting Covenant to Abraham. The patriarch would have a child of promise, Isaac.  And through Isaac would come the Child of promise, Jesus, and He would be the Exodus for the world (Genesis 15:5, Romans 4:18, Galatians 3:16). This promise was as much for Egypt as it was for Abraham and his posterity (1 John 4:14).

On that day, in the land of Canaan, God asked Abraham to gather a heifer, a goat, a ram, a turtle dove, and a pigeon, and divide and separate them, as God Himself would come down and pass between the pieces.  This was His pledge that He would be faithful to His promise and the everlasting covenant. He would be divided when Jesus would step out of heaven to become one with humanity and give Himself to bear the sins of the world, becoming our Passover (1 Corinthians 5:7).

At this very place God prophesied to Abraham that His posterity, and by extension the Seed, would go into a foreign land and be oppressed there in servitude, and then be delivered from their bondage by Him (Genesis 15:13,14, Exodus 6:6). This God would do to restore them to the land of promise (Genesis 15:16).

It was with this promise and prophecy in mind that Abraham's descendants went into Egypt due to a great famine.  Joseph was the forerunner to prepare the way by circumstances that we will not repeat here.  Joseph was aware of these promises.  He undoubtedly shared them with the Pharaoh of his time, who not only knew Joseph but also was familiar with his God. It was this knowledge that led Pharaoh to extend trust and responsibility to Joseph and kindness and provision for his family in the land of Goshen.  And Joseph, by faith, reminded his brethren of the prophecy.

“By faith Joseph, when he was dying, made mention of the departure of the children of Israel, and gave instructions concerning his bones” (Hebrews 11:22).

“And Joseph said to his brethren, ‘I am dying; but God will surely visit you, and bring you out of this land to the land of which He swore to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob.’ Then Joseph took an oath from the children of Israel, saying, "God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones from here” (Genesis 50:24,25, NKJV).

The Last Plague Comes After a Long Period of Warning, Demonstration, and Mercy

Now, generations later, comes Moses, who was called by God to lead His people out of bondage and into the promised land. So Moses came to Pharaoh and simply said, "Thus says the LORD God of Israel: 'Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness’” (Exodus 5:1).  And this Pharaoh who knew not Joseph declared, "Who is the LORD, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I do not know the LORD, nor will I let Israel go” (Exodus 5:2).

Thus, God started with a simple request, which was followed by a rod changing to a serpent, and then successive plagues, each preceded by a simple request and an opportunity to yield to the word of God. Each successive plague communicated clearly to the Egyptians that their magicians and gods were not going to save them.  Each plague hardened the hearts of Pharaoh and the people, settling them into a place of unbelief such that many could not be moved.

But each of these encounters was given by God to create an opportunity for them to turn back and come to a place of belief in Him. Each was redemptive.  Each was given in mercy.  Each was a roadblock along the way, providing opportunity for Pharaoh to turn back from the end result of unbelief and sin. “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23).  And this is what the final and ultimate plague was all about. 

Faith is the Substance

In contrast, each plague brought Israel from a place of unbelief and hardness of heart, to a place of faith. They began with these words after Moses’ first appeal to Pharaoh, "Let the LORD look on you and judge, because you have made us abhorrent in the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants, to put a sword in their hand to kill us” (Exodus 5:21).  By the end of the ninth plague the people hearts grew to see the faithfulness of God and His word such that when Moses called all the elders of Israel together and gave them direction for the passover given by God their response was this. “So the people bowed their heads and worshiped. Then the children of Israel went away and did so; just as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did” (Exodus 12:27b, 28).

And thus, “by faith, he (Moses) forsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for he endured as seeing Him who is invisible. By faith, he kept the Passover and the sprinkling of blood, lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them” (Hebrews 11:27,28). We can also know that the people kept the Passover by faith as well, because the next verse says this: “By faith they passed through the Red Sea as by dry land, whereas the Egyptians, attempting to do so, were drowned” (Hebrews 11:29).

Christ our Passover

The tenth plague was an opportunity to see the power of God in all its fullness.  But His power is not seen in the way most might describe it. “For I have no pleasure in the death of one who dies," says the Lord GOD. ‘Therefore turn and live!’” (Ezekiel 18:32). The power of God is seen in the Passover “Lamb that was slain from the foundation of the world” (Revelation 13:8). It is also seen in the life-giving blood of that Lamb that was spread upon the doorposts of homes.  It was seen in the bread without leaven as the Lord Himself was without leaven.  And it can be seen by the eating of the Lamb and unleavened bread, representing the indwelling of Christ, His life, His mind, and His faith taken in and lived out in the lives of His people.

These were included in the Passover instructions given to the people, the only safety from the destroyer that would pass through Egypt that night.  And that which the Passover symbolized is the only means by which man might be saved.

“The lamb was to be eaten with bitter herbs, as pointing back to the bitterness of the bondage in Egypt. So when we feed upon Christ, it should be with contrition of heart, because of our sins. The use of unleavened bread also was significant. It was expressly enjoined in the law of the Passover, and as strictly observed by the Jews in their practice, that no leaven should be found in their houses during the feast. In like manner the leaven of sin must be put away from all who would receive life and nourishment from Christ. So Paul writes to the Corinthian church, ‘Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump.... For even Christ our Passover is sacrificed for us: therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.’ 1 Corinthians 5:7, 8.

“Before obtaining freedom, the bondmen must show their faith in the great deliverance about to be accomplished. The token of blood must be placed upon their houses, and they must separate themselves and their families from the Egyptians, and gather within their own dwellings. Had the Israelites disregarded in any particular the directions given them, had they neglected to separate their children from the Egyptians, had they slain the lamb, but failed to strike the doorpost with blood, or had any gone out of their houses, they would not have been secure. They might have honestly believed that they had done all that was necessary, but their sincerity would not have saved them. All who failed to heed the Lord's directions would lose their first-born by the hand of the destroyer.

“By obedience the people were to give evidence of their faith. So all who hope to be saved by the merits of the blood of Christ should realize that they themselves have something to do in securing their salvation. While it is Christ only that can redeem us from the penalty of transgression, we are to turn from sin to obedience. Man is to be saved by faith, not by works; yet his faith must be shown by his works. God has given His Son to die as a propitiation for sin, He has manifested the light of truth, the way of life, He has given facilities, ordinances, and privileges; and now man must co-operate with these saving agencies; he must appreciate and use the helps that God has provided—believe and obey all the divine requirements.

“As Moses rehearsed to Israel the provisions of God for their deliverance, ‘the people bowed the head and worshiped.’ The glad hope of freedom, the awful knowledge of the impending judgment upon their oppressors, the cares and labors incident to their speedy departure—all were for the time swallowed up in gratitude to their gracious Deliverer. Many of the Egyptians had been led to acknowledge the God of the Hebrews as the only true God, and these now begged to be permitted to find shelter in the homes of Israel when the destroying angel should pass through the land. They were gladly welcomed, and they pledged themselves henceforth to serve the God of Jacob and to go forth from Egypt with His people.

“The Israelites obeyed the directions that God had given. Swiftly and secretly they made their preparations for departure. Their families were gathered, the paschal lamb slain, the flesh roasted with fire, the unleavened bread and bitter herbs prepared. The father and priest of the household sprinkled the blood upon the doorpost, and joined his family within the dwelling. In haste and silence the paschal lamb was eaten. In awe the people prayed and watched, the heart of the eldest born, from the strong man down to the little child, throbbing with indefinable dread. Fathers and mothers clasped in their arms their loved first-born as they thought of the fearful stroke that was to fall that night. But no dwelling of Israel was visited by the death-dealing angel. The sign of blood—the sign of a Saviour's protection—was on their doors, and the destroyer entered not.” —Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets, pp. 278, 279.  

What Shall We Say Then?

It is important that we understand the Passover lamb and the blood of that lamb did not save the people that night, for “the blood shall be a sign for you on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you; and the plague shall not be on you to destroy you when I strike the land of Egypt” (Exodus 12:13).  For Moses and the people lamb and the blood were but a sign or token of the reality—Christ Himself who would give His life for the sins of the world.  It was He who is the Passover and the Exodus for them and for us.

The lamb slain and the blood slain was the sign of their faith in the Everlasting Covenant first announced to Adam and Eve and given to Abraham and his promised son. It was the reality in Christ to which they looked to and in which they put their faith, and it is that same reality now to which we look.  Waggoner puts it this way:

“In the blood of Christ, that is, in His life, we have redemption, even the forgiveness of sins; because God hath set him forth, 'to be a propitiation through faith, by his blood, to show his righteousness, because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime, in the forbearance of God.’ Romans 3:25. God passes over sins, not in that He compromises with them, but because ‘the blood of Jesus Christ His son cleanseth us from all sin.’ 1 John 1:7. The life of Christ is the righteousness of God, for out of the heart are the issues of life, and the law of God was in His heart as perfect righteousness. The application of the blood or the life of Christ, is therefore the application of the life of God in Christ; and that is the taking away of sin.

“The sprinkling of the blood upon the door posts signified what was said later: ‘The Lord our God is one Lord; and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thine heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy might. And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart; .... and thou shalt write them upon the posts of thy house, and on thy gates.’ Deuteronomy 6:4-9. The righteousness of the law of God is found only in the life of Christ. It can be in the heart only as the life of God in Christ is in the heart, to cleanse it from all sin. Putting the blood on the posts of the door of the house was the same as writing the law of God on the posts of the house and on the gates; and it indicated nothing else but dwelling in Christ—being encompassed with His life.

“Christ is the Son of God, whose delight was found in doing His Father’s will. As He was the Passover of the children of Israel in Egypt, so He is ours, because His life is everlasting and indestructible, and those who are dwelling in it by faith share its safety. No man nor devil could take His life from Him; and the Father loved Him, and had no desire to take His life from Him. He laid it down of His own free will, and took it again. He laid it down that we might take it, and He took it again, that He might take us with it. The dwelling in Him, therefore, which was signified by the sprinkling of the blood upon the door posts, means being made free from sin, and so being saved from the wrath of God which cometh upon the children of disobedience.” —Ellet J. Waggoner, The Everlasting Covenant, pp. 197,198.

 Every particular was essential then, and every particular is essential now.  May we believe and take hold of our Passover and His full salvation that alone will pass us from death into life.  May this be said of us: “By faith, theyforsook Egypt, not fearing the wrath of the king; for they endured as seeing Him who is invisible. By faith, they kept Christ their Passover and abided in Him and He in them lest he who destroyed the firstborn should touch them” (Hebrews 11:27,28, paraphrase supplied).

 

~Kelly Kinsley