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These small group studies take us through almost twenty of the key events in the Old Testament. Our Old Testament Survey contain outlines, cross-references, Bible study discussion questions, and applications.  Visit our library of inductive Bible studies for more in depth inductive studies on this and other books of the Bible you can use in your small group.

Exodus 12 Bible Study – The Passover

Exodus 12:1-51 – The Passover

Discussion Questions

• What comparisons can you find between the Passover and Jesus’ death on the cross?
• What about the Passover lamb?
• What about the blood?
• What’s the relationship between the ordinance of the Passover and the ordinance of the Lord’s Supper?
• Does God’s attitude towards the celebration of the Passover also extend to the Lord’s Supper?
• Then how should we treat the Lord’s Supper?
• What significance does the Passover have for us today?
• Why is it important that this plague wasn’t extended to the Israelites as well?
• Do you think the firstborn includes adults or is it limited to children?
• What can you see about Pharaoh’s response to this last plague?
• What principle can we learn from this?
• What is significant about the rules for a foreigner to partake of the Passover? (Salvation was available to those outside of Israel. But they had to be saved through God’s way, not their own.)

Cross-References

1 Peter 1:19 – Without blemish, like a lamb.

John 19:31-36 – No bones of Jesus were broken.

Luke 22:19 – Do this in remembrance of me.

Matthew 26:28 – My blood of the covenant, poured out for many for the forgiveness of sins.

Deuteronomy 6:12 – Take care lest you forget the Lord, who brought you out of the land of Egypt.

Psalm 77:11 – I will remember the deeds of the Lord; yes, I will remember your wonders of old.

Numbers 11:5 – We remember the fish we ate in Egypt at no cost.

Verse by Verse Commentary

1. Birth of a Nation (v. 1-2)

God tells Moses that this month shall be the beginning of months — the first month of the year for Israel. This shows us how important this event is. Before this day, the Israelites were a tribe of sojourners, then immigrants, then slaves. Now they are going to be a nation with their own calendar. It marks their independence and their birth as a nation. Like our calendar is marked in two parts, B.C. and the Year of Our Lord, their history was marked in two parts — before the Passover and after the Passover. Their faith in God’s promise and obedience to His command would result in their deliverance and freedom.

Just as the Passover marked their birth as a nation, so when we accept Christ we are born again. Our lives can also be divided into two parts. The first part is marked by slavery to sin and bondage to this world. Then Christ delivers us. He sets us free. He gives us a future. He makes us born again. Everything changes — the old has passed away and the new has come. Our spiritual journey with God begins. Our born-again day is our spiritual birthday, day one of a new calendar.

Application: If you have been born again already, think back and thank God for that day and the changes He has made in your life.

2. The Passover Lamb (v. 3-11)

God gave very specific instructions for the lamb to be selected and sacrificed. These were not arbitrary rules. Each characteristic was purposely chosen by God to point forward to the Messiah who would come.

• Without blemish (Exodus 12:5, 1 Peter 1:19) — just as Christ was perfect, with no sin.
• Male (Exodus 12:5) — as Christ was male.
• Every person and household had to have their own lamb. Each person ate of it. In like manner, each person must repent of their own sins and trust Jesus personally.
• No bones could be broken (Exodus 12:46, John 19:31-36).
• No leftovers. All signs of the lamb were to be gone by morning. Jesus was taken down from the cross before nightfall, which was unusual because the next day was the Sabbath.
• They were to eat it in haste. If they delayed, it would be too late. In similar manner, salvation is urgent. You must make haste to believe while there is still opportunity.
• The blood of the lamb was to be displayed publicly on the doorposts of the houses as a reminder of the faith and obedience of those within. The blood showed that they had made the sacrifice and were under God’s protection. In similar manner, Jesus bled on the cross in public for all to see. His blood cleanses those who trust in Him.
• Jesus died during the festival of the Passover, like the Passover lamb.

3. The Personal Connection to the Lamb (v. 3-6)

Did you notice how long after they selected the lamb they were to keep it before killing it? On the tenth day they selected the lamb, and on the fourteenth day they killed it — four days later. Some translations actually say to “take care of it” for that amount of time.

By requiring families to care for the lamb separately from the flock for four days, God ensured that the sacrifice felt personal. It was not just a nameless, faceless lamb from among many. It was a lamb that had been with them. It would live with them in their house for four days. They would feed it and care for it. Perhaps they would grow fond of it. They would see its personality and know that it was innocent of what was going to happen. All of this was designed by God to make them understand that the sacrifice was personal. This innocent lamb was taking the punishment for their sins.

During those four days they would be reminded each time the lamb bleated that it was going to die for them. That lamb’s sacrifice was directly connected to their own deliverance. It wasn’t just some lamb somewhere who died for some person somewhere. That specific lamb died for them. And it died by their own hand.

Just as those lambs were a personal sacrifice for individuals, so Jesus is a personal sacrifice for each of us. Jesus did not die for a bunch of nameless, faceless people. He did not just die for the world in general. He died for you personally as a direct substitute. And just as those people killed the lamb, so we are responsible for Jesus’ death. We were not there, but our sins put Him there. Like the Passover lamb, Jesus lived in and among them before they turned on Him and killed Him.

But here is a difference between Jesus and the Passover lamb. The Passover lamb could not choose his fate. Jesus did. He gave up His life to bring us out of slavery to sin. He gave up His life to bring us freedom. He knew what it was going to cost and He went willingly. He did it because He loves you.

In order to receive this salvation, you must have a personal connection to the lamb. He is not just a sacrifice for the world. He is your Passover lamb. You must come to Him and ask Him to save you, admitting that you cannot save yourself.

4. The Condemnation of Those Without the Lamb (v. 12-13)

The people who believed in God and obeyed His commands would be spared. The people who did not believe in God and did not obey His commands would be condemned. Their gods were proved powerless. Their hope in other means of salvation would be dashed. They would be judged.

This will be the same fate of all those who do not come to Jesus, the Lamb of God, for forgiveness of sins.

5. The Passover as a Memorial (v. 13-20)

The Passover and the Exodus were the most important events in Israel’s history — their Independence Day. Through the events surrounding the Passover, God revealed Himself to His people. They saw firsthand God’s power, authority, sovereignty, rule over nature, defeat of His enemies, and His personal grace and care for His people.

But people have short-term memories. It was so easy for them to forget what God had done on their behalf. Therefore God instituted the Passover so that they would remember. If they remembered and appreciated what God had done for them, they would be much less likely to stray. But when they forgot God, they went after the world and idols.

God took a very serious attitude toward the celebration of the Passover. It was not a light matter, and those who broke it would be treated severely. God doesn’t want us to treat the Lord’s Supper casually either. It is a very serious thing. It is also extremely important that we regularly celebrate it as Christ Himself commanded.

This was such an important memorial that God specifically commanded it to be taught to their children. We must also faithfully teach about Christ’s death to the younger generation. Don’t leave their education to the world.

The concept of remembering is very important in the Bible. God repeats commands many times. He repeats His covenants. He reminds His people of what He has done for them. The same lessons and principles are taught again and again. The reason is simple — we are forgetful. We forget the good things God has done for us. Other times our memories twist the facts.

Look at how the Israelites would remember their time in Egypt later on. Numbers 11:5 — they remembered the fish they ate in Egypt at no cost, the cucumbers, melons, leeks, onions and garlic. Egypt was so wonderful! That was a serious case of selective memory. We do the same thing. We forget God’s mercies, forget to say thank you, and forget the consequences of sin when we repeat it again.

On the night before Jesus died, He was celebrating the Passover with His disciples. But when Jesus was eating it, He did something remarkable. He changed the festival. He took the bread and told them it now represented His body. And the drink represented His blood. Before they remembered the Exodus. Now they were to remember Jesus. The original Passover pointed to and prepared the way for Jesus. He is the once-for-all-time Passover lamb. He is the unifying element which connects the Old Testament and the New. In a way, every time we partake of the Lord’s Supper, we are celebrating the Passover — not the Passover in Egypt, but the greater one. When because of Jesus’ sacrifice, God passed over us in judgment and instead judged Him.

Application –

What can you do to make sure you don’t forget God’s commands, answered prayer, and work in your life? Here are a few ideas:

• Keep a journal. Include special thanksgivings, blessings, or answers to prayer inside. Review it from time to time.
• Record special moments of God’s grace in your life with pictures and make a memorial photo album.
• Write down and share your testimony with others. The more you talk about God’s work in your life, the more you will be aware of it and the more you will remember it.
• Plan a spiritual retreat. The first and last days of the festival were holy — the people were to rest from their labors and focus fully on God. We also need times to rest and focus on Him.
• Consider how your family holidays can be designed to better remember God’s work. One example: have a Christmas Eve service at home, read the Bible stories about Jesus’ birth, and take communion together.

6. The People Obeyed (v. 21-28)

Moses relayed God’s commands to the elders, and verse 28 tells us that the people of Israel went and did exactly as the Lord had commanded. They obeyed to the letter. Why? It was because of faith. They believed in God. They believed in His power. They believed He was going to do what He said. Their faith resulted in obedience.

This step of obedience was the most important thing they ever did in their lives. Disobedience would have resulted in death for their firstborn son. God takes obedience seriously. In the Garden of Eden, God told Adam and Eve that if they disobeyed and ate the fruit, they would surely die. And they did.

The people also worshiped. No one argued. No one came up with other plans. Instead they submitted to God’s plan. They recognized who God is. In a time of turmoil, before the hasty preparations, they bowed their heads and worshiped, giving God the glory He deserves. Worship should not be optional or something you do only if you have enough time. There is always time to worship.

7. The Death of the Firstborn (v. 29-36)

God carried out this judgment just as He promised. Pharaoh had many chances to let the people go, but in his overwhelming pride did not do it. Here we see that those who lift themselves up in pride will be brought low by God. Great was Pharaoh’s fall. His firstborn son died. He had to pay the consequences for his sin. (Amenhotep II, thought to be the Pharaoh of the Exodus, was succeeded not by his firstborn son.)

The sheer extent of the consequences of sin can be seen as well. No one and no house was immune. It was everywhere.

God poured out one of the worst judgments in the history of the world. All of the previous plagues combined were minor compared to this. Those were temporary and their effects could be reversed. But this was irreversible. There was no going back. Pharaoh and the Egyptians had been given not 1 or 2 or 3 chances, but 9 chances. Now there would be no more.

This judgment was final. Death was final. No one was immune. Rich and poor, strong or weak, it affected every family. The prisoners could not cling to the hope of obscurity to escape judgment. And the nobles could not cling to power, strength, or riches to save them. All their hopes, all their beliefs, all their illusions of safety were dashed in an instant.

Pharaoh finally was willing to let the people go. This time he didn’t offer a compromise. He did it completely on God’s terms. And he — considered to be divine — asked Moses to bless him. This was a complete reversal of Moses’ first encounter, where Pharaoh arrogantly asked who Yahweh was.

Before, the people of Israel were restrained from going. Now they were forced to leave. Before, they were slaves and brutally treated. Now they were honored and enriched with numerous valuable articles.

8. The Departure and the Rules of the Passover (v. 37-51)

After hundreds of years of slavery and ten terrible plagues, the people of Israel were finally free. They left immediately with no delay. They were ready!

These verses also show the stringent rules placed on who could and could not celebrate the Passover. Basically, anyone who didn’t follow God’s law and assimilate themselves into the nation of Israel was not allowed to partake of it. God’s judgment cannot pass over us by anything we do. We must trust in Him and show this by following the commands He has laid out for us. If we have faith in Him and desire to follow His way, God will not judge us — just as He didn’t judge those who originally were strangers to Israel but who followed God’s law to become part of it.

9. How the Passover Points to Christ

So many close similarities between the Passover and Christ’s death are not the result of chance. Just as the lamb was the substitute for them, so Jesus, the Lamb of God, is for us. Just as it was unblemished and male, so was Christ a perfect man with no sin. Both are a memorial, remembered for their huge impact on the lives of God’s people.

Passages like this one were meant to prepare people for the coming of the Messiah. By studying the Old Testament, we can understand the background behind God’s work in the New Testament. This is one reason why it is so important to read the Old Testament and why it was given. We can also learn why God had the Bible written over such a long period of time.

The judgment on Egypt is much like the final judgment that every person will face. No one will escape. Rich or poor, powerful or weak, every person will face God. The judgment handed down on that day will be final. God does give second chances, and third chances, and on and on throughout our lives. On that day, those chances will run out. Judgment will be final. The punishment will be irreversible.

The only hope is Jesus Christ. He is the way, the truth, and the life. Those who believe in Him will be spared. Those who do not will be condemned.

Key Takeaways — BROS

Believe – There will be a final judgment. It will be far worse than the ten plagues which God poured out on Egypt. There will be no more chances. The only way to avoid it is to believe in Jesus. Perhaps you have never yet placed your faith in Him. Trust in Him now.

Remember – Our lives get busy. Day after day is filled with the mundane and the stressful. And we take our eyes off of Jesus. We forget or take for granted what He has done, both in the Bible and in our lives. Don’t forget. Write down what God has done for you. Share your testimony. Make a memorial. Bring Christ into your festivals and your fellowships.

Obey – God calls us to be “doers of the word and not hearers only.” That means that whenever you study the Bible — in church, in Bible study, or in personal devotions — you should always ask yourself, “what should I obey?” Start making that a habit, and you will start to change little by little.

Share – As they passed on what God had done for them to their children, so we should pass it on to others — our physical children and spiritual children. After asking yourself “what should I obey?” ask yourself “who can I tell?” Make a habit of passing on what you learn from Scripture to others. Share answered prayer. Share testimonies of God’s power at work in your life. And share the gospel.

Comment – What did you think of this Bible study on Exodus 12? We would love to hear your thoughts. Share below in the comment section.