But, as he who hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of life, Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy… For as much as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver and gold, from your vain manner of life received by tradition from your fathers, But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot (1 Pet. 1:15–16, 18–19).

Of all the feasts of Israel, none foreshadows our redemption in Jesus Christ in such beautiful detail as the festival of Passover. Congruently, the holy standard of living to which God calls us is exemplified in the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Origin and Description of Passover
and the Feast of Unleavened Bread
Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread are biblical feasts instituted by God and given to the nation of Israel. Their roots are found in the story of the Exodus (Ex. 12:1–13:10). The children of Israel were enslaved in the land of Egypt for 400 years. Then God raised up Moses to lead them out of slavery, into freedom, and toward the promised land. Israel’s release from their captors did not come easily, however. Pharaoh’s heart was hardened, although the Lord had demonstrated His power over the gods of Egypt through nine plagues. The tenth and last plague broke the will of the stubborn king and served as the historical origin for the Passover holiday.

The enslaved Israelites were instructed by God, through Moses, to select an unblemished male sheep or goat yearling, one to each household, on the tenth day of the month of Nisan. They were to keep it until the 14th day of the month, at which time they were to sacrifice it at twilight. They then took the blood of the lamb and applied it to the doorposts and lintels of their homes. That night, as each household ate the Passover lamb with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, the Lord went through the land of Egypt and struck down the firstborn male of every household and beast. All those whose homes did not have the blood of the Passover lamb applied to the doorposts of their homes were judged. All those who did apply the blood to the doorposts were saved. God said, “the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are; and when I see the blood, I will pass over you” (Ex. 12:13).

Since that first Passover night, Jewish people have kept the holiday annually throughout their generations, as God instructed them (Ex. 12:14). But there was only one Passover—only one time when God judged the land of Egypt—only one time when the children of Israel had to apply the blood of the Passover lamb to their homes. All other Passovers since then have been memorials of what occurred on that first Passover. The holidays of Passover and Unleavened Bread were therefore established by God for the purpose of remembering (Dt. 16:1, 3). The people of Israel were to remember how God had set them free from the land of slavery.

Although the term Passover actually refers to the sacrificial animal, Passover is also used in the Bible as a synonym for the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Lk. 22:1). The Feast of Unleavened Bread is one of the three pilgrim feasts that all Jewish adult males were commanded to celebrate annually in Jerusalem (Ex. 23:14–15).

Observance of Passover
and the Feast of Unleavened Bread
In biblical days the Feast of Unleavened Bread was observed for seven days from the 15th through the 21st of Nisan (March-April) [Lev. 23:6]. Today Israelis and Reform Jews still keep the feast for seven days, while most Jewish people in the Diaspora observe the feast for eight days.

The first and last days of the festival were considered holy days during which, like the Sabbath, no work was to be performed. Only labor necessary for daily sustenance was permitted (Ex. 12:16). Orthodox Jews today apply the work prohibition to the intermediate days of the festival as well.

While the Temple stood, special burnt offerings, grain offerings, and sin offerings were presented to the Lord during the days of Unleavened Bread (Num. 28:17–25). Since the destruction of the Temple in 70 A.D., these offerings have not been included in the holiday’s festivities.

Of course, a key element in the observance of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is the bread itself. Bread eaten during the seven festival days could not contain any leavening or fermenting ingredient (Ex. 12:18–20). Furthermore, all hametz (food products containing leaven) had to be removed from the home. To accomplish this mandate, specific rituals were developed. The process is called nullification.

The procedure for nullification begins even before the festival arrives. It starts with a thorough spring cleaning of the home. Old dishes and cutlery are stored away, and fresh Passover ones take their place. All food products that contain any trace of leaven are discarded. Only goods marked “Kosher for Passover” are purchased. People who have large quantities of leavened products in the home and would suffer significant financial loss by destroying them are permitted to sell them to non-Jewish people and buy them back after the holiday.

The next step in the process of nullification takes place on the evening of the 14th of Nisan. Using the light of one candle, a search for leaven is conducted throughout the house. Any leaven found—which usually includes a few strategically placed crumbs here and there—is swept into a wooden spoon with a feather. The father then recites a prayer nullifying the leaven: “Any leaven and leavening which is in my possession and which I have neither seen, nor destroyed, nor known of, is to be as naught, and as ownerless as the dust of the earth.” The next morning, the prayer is repeated as the feather, wooden spoon, and any leaven that turned up during the search are burned, thus ending the process of nullification.

Next week we will continue the with Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread.