Death and Unleavened Bread

With Questions and Proposed Answers

 

Background and Printed Text: Exodus chapters 11 and 12

 

Exodus 11:1 And Yehovah said unto Draw [Moshe], “I will bring one further strike upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward, he will send you from this. He finished according to his sending. Thrusting, he will thrust you from this!

 

² “Speak thou, na, in the ears of the people. And they have asked a man from with his neighbour and a woman from with her neighbour utensils of silver and utensils of gold.” ³And Yehovah gave favour of the people in the eyes of Egypt. The man Draw [Moshe] is also very big in the land of Egypt, in the eyes of the slaves of Pharaoh, and in the eyes of the people!

 

⁴And Draw [Moshe] said, “So said Yehovah, ‘As halving the night, I am exiting in the midst of Egypt. ⁵And every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die—from the firstborn of Pharaoh sitting upon his chair unto the firstborn of the slave-woman who is after the millstones, and every firstborn of beast.’ ⁶And a big scream will be in all the land of Egypt that was not like him, and will not increase like him. ⁷And a dog will not cut his tongue to all the children of Israel to/from a man and unto a beast, so that ye will know that Yehovah will segregate between Egypt and between Israel! ⁸And all these thy slaves will descend unto me. And they will worship to me to say, ‘Exit thou!—thou and all the people that is with thy feet!’ And afterward I will exit.” And he exited from with Pharaoh via heats of nose!

 

⁹And Yehovah said unto Draw [Moshe], “Pharaoh will not hearken unto you so that my wonders are multiplied in the land of Egypt.” ¹⁰And Draw [Moshe] and Oy!-Conception! [Aharon] did all these wonders to the faces of Pharaoh. And Yehovah gripped the heart of Pharaoh. And he did not send the children of Israel from his land.

 

Chapter 12

Exodus 12:1 And Yehovah said unto Draw [Moshe] and unto Oy!-Conception! [Aharon] in the land of Egypt to say, ² “This month is the head of months to you. He is the first to you to the months of the year.

 

³ “Speak-ye unto all the congregation of Israel to say, ‘In the 10th to this month, and they have taken to them a man a lamb for the house of fathers, a lamb for a house. ⁴And if the house will-be-too-little from being from a lamb, and he will take, and his neighbour near unto his house, via the blanketing of beings.’ Ye will blanket a man to the mouth of his eating concerning the lamb.

 

⁵ “A perfect male son-of-a-year lamb will be to you. Ye shall take from the sheep and from the goats. ⁶And he shall be to you for a guarding until the 14th day to this month. And ye shall slaughter him between the evenings—all the congregation of the witness of Israel.

 

⁷ “‘And they shall take from the blood. And they shall give upon two of the doorposts and upon the lintel, upon the houses in which they will eat him.

 

⁸ “‘And they shall eat the flesh in this night roasted of fire. And they shall eat him, Matzahs upon bitternesses.’ ⁹Ye shall not eat from him raw and boiling, boiled in water, but rather fire-roasted, his head upon his knees and upon his approach.

 

¹⁰ “And ye shall not make-remain from him unto morning. And ye shall burn the remainder from him unto morning in fire.

 

¹¹ “And ye shall eat him thus: your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your walking-staff in your hand. And ye shall eat him in haste—he is the Skip-Over to Yehovah!

 

¹² “And I will cross-over in the land of Egypt in this night. And I will smite every firstborn in the land of Egypt from Adam and unto cattle. And I will do justices via all gods of Egypt. I am Yehovah!

 

¹³ “And the blood shall be to you for a sign upon the houses where ye are. And I will see the blood. And I will skip-over above you. And the strike will not be in you for a slaughter when I smite in the land of Egypt.

 

¹⁴ “And this day shall be to you for a remembrance. And ye shall solemnize him a solemnity to Yehovah to your generations. Ye shall solemnize him, a statute of Hider!

 

¹⁵ “Ye shall eat Matzahs seven days. Indeed, ye shall make-cease leaven from your houses in the first day. For every eater of vinegar, and that being shall-be-cut-off from Israel from the first day unto the seventh day.

 

¹⁶ “And a calling of a Holy-[One] is in the first day. And a calling of a Holy-[One] shall be to you in the day seven. He will not do any errand in them. He alone shall do for you only what he will eat for every being.

 

¹⁷ “And ye shall guard the Matzahs. For in this selfsame day I made-exit your armies from the land of Egypt. And ye shall guard this day to your generations, a statute of Hider. ¹⁸Ye shall eat Matzahs in the evening in the first, in the 14th day to the month, unto the day one and twenty to the month in the evening.

 

¹⁹ “Leaven will not be found in your houses seven days. For every eater from vinegar, and that being—in a sojourner and in a native of the land—shall be cut-off from the witness of Israel! ²⁰Ye shall not eat every vinegar! Ye shall eat Matzahs in all your dwellings!”

 

²¹And Draw [Moshe] called to all elders of Israel. And he said unto them, “Draw-ye and take-ye a flock to you—to your families. And slaughter-ye the Skip-Over! ²²And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop. And ye shall immerse in blood that is in a basin. And ye shall cause-to-touch unto the lintel and unto two of the doorposts from the blood that is in the basin.”

 

“And ye, ye shall not exit—a man from the opening of his house—unto morning. ²³And Yehovah will cross-over to smite Egypt. And He will see the blood upon the lintel and upon two of the doorposts. And Yehovah will Skip-Over above the opening. And He will not give the Slaughterer to come unto your houses to smite.

 

²⁴ “And ye shall guard this speech for a statute to thee and to thy children unto Hider. ²⁵And he shall be when ye shall come unto the land that Yehovah will give to you just-as He spoke. And ye shall guard this service!

 

²⁶ “And he shall be, for your children shall say unto you, ‘What is this service to you?’ ²⁷And ye shall say, ‘He is the Sacrifice of Skip-Over to Yehovah Who Skipped-Over above the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt in His smiting Egypt! And He rescued our houses!’”

 

And the People bowed. And they worshipped. ²⁸And they walked. And the children of Israel did just-as Yehovah commanded Draw [Moshe] and Oy!-Conception! [Aharon]—they did so!

 

²⁹And he was in the half of the night. And Yehovah smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sits upon his chair unto the firstborn of the captive who is in the house of the pit, and every firstborn of cattle! ³⁰And Pharaoh arose that night, and all his slaves, and all Egypt. And a big scream was in Egypt. For there is not a house where there is no death there!

 

³¹And he called to Draw [Moshe] and to Oy!-Conception! [Aharon]… night!… and said, “RISE-YE! EXIT-YE FROM THE MIDST OF MY PEOPLE!—also ye! Also the children of Israel! And walk-ye! Serve-ye Yehovah as ye spoke— ³²also your flock! Take-ye also your herd just-as ye spoke! And WALK! And bless-ye also me!”

 

³³And Egypt was strong upon the People to hurry to send them from the land. For they said, “All of us are dead-[ones]!”

 

³⁴And the People lifted his dough before he will ‘vinegarize,’ their kneadingtroughs bound-up in their clothes upon their shoulder. ³⁵And the children of Israel did as Draw [Moshe] spoke. And they asked from Egypt utensils of silver and utensils of gold and clothing. ³⁶And Yehovah gave the favour of the People in the eyes of Egypt. And they asked them. And they rescued Egypt.

 

³⁷And the children of Israel journeyed from Raamses to Succot as 600,000 feet of the valiant-ones, beside a little-one. ³⁸And also a great mixture ascended with them, and a very heavy flock and herd of livestock!

 

³⁹And they baked the dough that they made-exit from Egypt, discs of Matzah. For it was not ‘vinegarized;’ for they were forced from Egypt. And they were not able to WHAT?WHAT? themselves. And they also did not make victuals for themselves.

 

⁴⁰And the settlement of the children of Israel where they lived in Egypt is 30 year[s] and 400 year[s]. ⁴¹And he was from the end of 30 year[s] and 400 year[s]. And he was in this selfsame day. All armies of Yehovah exited from the land of Egypt! ⁴²He is a night of guardings to Yehovah to make-exit from the land of Egypt! He is this night to Yehovah, guardings to all the children of Israel to their generations!

 

⁴³And Yehovah said unto Draw [Moshe] and Oy!-Conception! [Aharon], “This is the statute of the Skip-Over: Every son of a foreigner will not eat in him. ⁴⁴And every slave, a man bought of silver and thou hast ‘fronted’ him, then he will eat in him. ⁴⁵A sitter and a hireling—he will not eat in him. ⁴⁶He shall be eaten in one house. Thou shalt not make-exit outside from the house from the flesh. And ye shall not break a bone in him. ⁴⁷All the witness of Israel—they shall do him!

 

⁴⁸ “And if a sojourner will sojourn with thee and will do Skip-Over to Yehovah, ‘front’ to him—every male! And then he will approach to do him. And he shall be as a native of the land. And every foreskin shall not eat in him! ⁴⁹One teaching will be to the native and to the sojourner sojourning in your midst.” ⁵⁰And all the children of Israel did just-as Yehovah commanded Draw [Moshe] and Oy!-Conception! [Aharon]—they did so!

 

⁵¹And he was in this selfsame day. Yehovah made-exit the children of Israel from the land of Egypt upon their armies!

 

 

 

I. Finished! (verse 1)

 

Yehovah told Pharaoh, “I will bring one further strike upon Pharaoh and upon Egypt. Afterward, he will send you from this.” Yehovah then added, “According to his sending, he finished.” This will be the last of Pharaoh’s refusing to send the Israelis.

 

Yehovah told Moshe how Pharaoh will deal with the Israelis: “Thrusting, he will thrust you from this!”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Why did Yehovah view what He was about to do as a strike? It was as if Yehovah were using expressions of an air attack! It will be an act of war, and it will be a deadly attack!

 

2.    Why did Yehovah attack Egypt when the Egyptians couldn’t do anything about what their leader caused? The Egyptians could have done something; they could have gone to the Israeli settlement, and they could also have done what the Israelis did to avoid being slaughtered. It was up to the Egyptians to find what was about to occur and to find ways to avoid it.

 

3.    To what does this refer in “Afterward, he will send you from this”? This refers to the slavery to Egypt—what is later called the house of slavery.

 

4.    What does “He finished according to his sending” mean? Identify the pronouns (He and his). He refers to the strike that Yehovah has been bringing on Egypt. This will be the last attack. His refers to Pharaoh; once Pharaoh sends the Israelis, the strike against Egypt will stop.

 

5.    Explain “Thrusting, he will thrust you from this”: Pharaoh will throw the Israelis out of the house of slavery!

 

 

 

II. Utensils of Silver and Gold (verses 2-3)

 

Yehovah gave Moshe an assignment for the Israelis to do. He must speak this in the ears of the people of Israel. Each man and woman must ask from an Egyptian neighbour for utensils of silver and gold.

 

Yehovah gave favour into the eyes of Egypt toward the Israelis; otherwise, they wouldn’t have given precious valuables.

 

Moshe is very big in the land of Egypt, in the eyes of Pharaoh’s slaves, and in the eyes of the people!

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    How could Moshe speak in the ears of the people of Israel? Wouldn’t that take years? It would if he had to do it alone. He had many who told the Israelis what he said. They were like his personal loud speakers.

 

2.    Did the Israelis only have to ask for utensils of silver and gold? What is a utensil? A utensil is any instrument (like a medical instrument), vessel (like a vase) or tool that can be used. In Hebrew, this word can also indicate items of jewelry and other such useful items.

 

       The Israelis only had to ask for them from their neighbours. That is all Yehovah required.

 

3.    What happened when “Yehovah gave favour of the people in the eyes of Egypt”? The Egyptians now desired to support and aid the Israelis. When the Israelis asked for valuable items like silver and gold utensils, the Egyptians desired to give these things to them.

 

4.    Did the Egyptians feel threatened into giving these items? The Egyptians felt threatened, but not by the Israelis. They felt threatened by Yehovah. Instead, they truly desired to give valuable items to the Israelis (even if one purpose of their giving was to appease—that is, to try to make peace with the Gods of Israel).

 

5.    What does “Moshe is very big in the land” mean? This means that he has very high rank and much importance in Egypt.

 

6.    Moshe was very big in the eyes of what groups? Moshe was very big:

 

• In the land of Egypt
• In the eyes of the slaves of Pharaoh
• In the eyes of the people (of Egypt)

 

 

III. The Firstborn Warning (verses 4-8)

 

Moshe came to Pharaoh. He gave him terrifying information for the next . He told them, “So said Yehovah, ‘As halving the night, I am exiting in the midst of Egypt.’” Halving the night refers to midnight.

 

Yehovah’s speech continued, “And every firstborn in the land of Egypt shall die—from the firstborn of Pharaoh sitting upon his chair unto the firstborn of the slave-woman who is after the millstones, and every firstborn of beast.” Yehovah will kill every firstborn in Egypt!

 

“And a big scream will be in all the land of Egypt that was not like him, and will not increase like him.” The Egyptians will respond with screams to all the dead firstborn. While these screams will occur through Egypt, Yehovah explained what would happen in Israel: “And a dog will not cut his tongue to all the children of Israel to/from a man and unto a beast, so that ye will know that Yehovah will segregate between Egypt and between Israel!” (The dog cutting his tongue refers to barking.)

 

“And all these thy slaves will descend unto me.” Yehovah gave this speech to Moshe! All Pharaoh’s slaves will descend unto Moshe! “And they will worship to me to say, ‘Exit thou!—thou and all the people that is with thy feet!’” The slaves of Pharaoh will beg Moshe to leave with all the Israelis, including the entire people at Moshe’s feet!

 

Moshe continued, “And afterward I will exit.” Moshe then left Pharaoh with great anger!

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What does “As halving the night” mean? To halve something is to split it in half. If the night is halved, that takes place at midnight. This is the Hebrew way to speak of midnight.

 

2.    Where is Yehovah going if He is exiting in the midst of Egypt? He is exiting from the heavens to go into the middle of Egypt.

 

3.    What will Yehovah do in Egypt? The next statement tells what He will do, since every firstborn in the land of Egypt will die.

 

4.    Why is Yehovah attacking the firstborn, when some of those are little children and babies? Yehovah is the giver of life. He can also remove life if He determines to do so. Israel is Yehovah’s firstborn:

 

       Exodus 4:22 So says Yehovah, “Israel is my son, my firstborn.”

 

       The Egyptians have been holding and mistreating Yehovah’s firstborn, and won’t release Israel. Therefore, Yehovah will take the lives of the firstborn throughout Egypt to secure the release of His firstborn. Yet, Yehovah will give a way for the Egyptians to avoid losing their firstborn (by placing the blood on the upper lintel and two sideposts).

 

       Little children and babies who die, not having sinned against Yehovah, will be given everlasting life. Thus, they will go to Paradise. Their deaths are usually terrible for the parents, but the consequences of war are so often terrible. Egyptian refusal to send the Israelis out was an act of war against Yehovah, and Yehovah gave many opportunities to the Egyptians to make peace with Yehovah. Some Egyptians took their families and joined with Israel. They did what the Israelis did with the blood, and their children were not harmed.

 

5.    What does “the slavewoman who is after the millstones” mean? This refers to a female slave who has been assigned to grind things (like wheat) using millstones—large round stones that are shaped like a wheel and that move against other stones so that anything that gets between the stones are ground to flour. The work is hard and dangerous. Her firstborn child will also be killed if she doesn’t place the blood as commanded.

 

6.    Isn’t Yehovah’s killing a slavewoman’s child cruel, since she doesn’t have freedom? In war, slaves of enemies also suffer if they don’t heed warnings of coming attacks. Yehovah gave the warning of this attack. Yehovah also knew every person in Egypt. If there was one slavewoman who feared Yehovah, Yehovah would make certain that this slavewoman would be able to do what was necessary to save her firstborn. No person is beyond Yehovah’s ability to help, and no person is beyond Yehovah’s ability to communicate. Saving lives is the entire purpose of all these things.

 

7.    What are the purposes of all these attacks, besides convincing the Egyptians to send the Israelis? One of the purposes of all these attacks is to save lives. Yehovah did not desire to slaughter Egyptians in order to take His property (Israel) from Egypt, if such a slaughter could be avoided. If the Egyptians will refuse, Yehovah will increase the pressure on them. Since they didn’t send the Israelis after all those huge and very painful attacks, Yehovah finally slaughtered their firstborn. He could have determined to slaughter all the Egyptians, but lives are very important to Him. Thus, He only went after some of the Egyptians: the firstborn. Had they still refused, Yehovah would have slaughtered more. Had they instead sent Yehovah’s property, He would not have slaughtered any. Whenever Yehovah slaughters, He always seeks to slaughter the fewest possible. He only slaughters as a last resort. He gives much warning before He slaughters.

 

8.    Why didn’t Yehovah slaughter the leaders of Egypt who held the Israelis instead of going after little children? Had Yehovah slaughtered the leadership, Egypt would have fallen into chaos (that is, into a mess where no one would know what to do or how to govern the land). That might have led to violence; it would have been much worse for the Egyptians and for everyone.

 

       When the text refers to the firstborn, don’t only think of children and babies. Think of teenagers who are firstborn, and adults who are firstborn, and old men who are firstborn. All firstborn will die including firstborn of their animals.

 

9.    Will firstborn die if they are females? I know of one text that gives me a clue that only males were involved, though it isn’t a proof:

 

       Exodus 13:15 Pharaoh hardened to send us. And Yehovah killed every firstborn in the Land of Egypt from the firstborn of Adam and unto the firstborn of beast. Therefore I am sacrificing every burster-through of the womb to Yehovah—the males. And I will redeem every firstborn of my sons!

 

10. What does “a big scream will be in all the land of Egypt that was not like him, and will not increase like him” mean? The big scream is from the sorrow, terror and great sadness of the Egyptians finding their firstborn dead. The last part, “and will not increase like him,” means that the Egyptians will never have this great of a scream again. It will be the worst that Egypt will ever suffer.

 

11. What does “a dog will not cut his tongue to all the children of Israel to/from a man and unto a beast” mean? While the screams are occurring among the Egyptians, the dogs that are to the Israelis (that the Israelis own) won’t even bark! They won’t bark at any person, and they won’t bark at any animal! They will be perfectly silent!

 

12. What is the purpose for Yehovah causing the dogs owned by the Israelis to refrain from barking? The areas where the Israelis will live will be very quiet. That way, the Israelis will hear the terrifying screams of the Egyptians. The Israelis will therefore fear Yehovah and His power. That will save some of the lives of the Israelis in future days when Yehovah gives commands to them, since the Israelis will hearken to Yehovah’s commands, thinking of the terror Yehovah brought to the Egyptians who refused to send Yehovah’s property!

 

       Yet, the text gives another purpose for the dogs not barking: “so that ye will know that Yehovah will segregate between Egypt and between Israel!” (To segregate is to separate and treat as separate. Segregation can be cruel, or it can be life-saving, depending on who is doing the segregating and for what purpose it is being done.)

 

13. Who is speaking in these verses, and to whom is he speaking? Moshe is speaking, and he is speaking to Pharaoh! All of this speech is being told directly to Pharaoh so that Pharaoh can avoid what is about to occur!

 

14. Who is me in, “And all these thy slaves will descend unto me”? Me refers to Moshe! Yet, it almost sounds like it is referring to Yehovah. This is because Yehovah designed it this way so that hearers (like Pharaoh and his slaves) will feel like they are speaking with Yehovah, and not just with Moshe.

 

15. If Pharaoh’s slaves will descend and worship to Moshe, what is happening, and why are they doing this? They are coming to Moshe, they are bowing to him, and they are lying flat in front of him to beg him to exit Egypt, and to beg him to take the Israelis with him to leave Egypt!

 

16. What does “that is with thy feet” mean? It is as if Moshe is a huge being, and all the people of Israel is one little being who follows Moshe, staying by his feet. This is like what a small dog will do who loves to be with a master.

 

17. What does “he exited from with Pharaoh via heats of nose” mean? This means that Moshe left Pharaoh furious, as if he were an angry bull that is snorting and huffing from rage.

 

18. Why was Moshe so angry? Moshe was so angry because he knew that so many Egyptians were about to be killed, and needlessly killed! If Pharaoh had only hearkened, so many lives would have been saved, and so much grief would have been avoided. Pharaoh had experienced all those signs and miracles; yet he still played a fool. Moshe didn’t desire for the Egyptians to be harmed. He didn’t hate the Egyptians. He wanted them to live.

 

 

 

IV. The Recap (verses 9-10)

 

Yehovah told Moshe again, “Pharaoh will not hearken unto you…” Yehovah then told Moshe what the result of Pharaoh’s refusal will be: “…so that my wonders are multiplied in the land of Egypt.”

 

The text now gives this information about all that has been done and will yet be done: “And Draw [Moshe] and Oy!-Conception! [Aharon] did all these wonders to the faces of Pharaoh. And Yehovah gripped the heart of Pharaoh. And he did not send the children of Israel from his land.”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Yehovah said, “Pharaoh will not hearken unto you so that my wonders are multiplied in the land of Egypt.” Hadn’t His wonders already been multiplied in the land of Egypt? What did Yehovah mean? When I read this carefully, I thought, “Yehovah has future events in mind.” I propose that Yehovah will again multiply His great wonders in Egypt in a very distant future set of events. This time, however, the Egyptians will hearken to Yehovah, fearing a repeat of these terrible events of history. At that time, if I am right, Yehovah’s wonders will be for the Egyptians instead of being against them; they will help the Israelis escape from another enemy who has taken over Egypt as a pharaoh of Egypt.

 

2.    Do Egyptians today know about these events that occurred in Moshe’s day? The Egyptians of today consist of a number of different religious groups. Some are Muslim; some are Coptic Christians, some hold other faiths or no faith at all. Those who are Coptic Christian (a very different form of Christianity than what is usually practiced in Europe, the Americas, and etc.) include some who read their Bibles and know about these events. Those who are Muslim include some who have heard about these texts, but those in the various Muslim faiths almost never read what we call ‘the Old Testament,’ thinking that the Jews have changed it to read the way they want it to read. Thus, what they know of these events is from the Qur’an (the Muslim holy book, which is very different from the Bible), and the Qur’an doesn’t give the details of these events. The Egyptians as a whole probably know about as much of the Bible and its events as folks do here, which is just about nothing. Yet, they are probably aware that the Bible speaks of these events, and they probably have stories about them.

 

3.    Again, what happened when Yehovah gripped the heart of Pharaoh? Yehovah held on to Pharaoh’s mind so that Pharaoh remained firm in the way he already thought. Pharaoh thought that Egypt would be destroyed if the Israelis left; he thought Egypt couldn’t afford to be without the Israelis. He also didn’t want to be the leader of Egypt who was held responsible for sending the Israelis. Thus, Yehovah helped Pharaoh remain firm by gripping and steadying his mind. Yehovah didn’t cause Pharaoh to stand against Yehovah’s commands; He never is involved with helping anyone sin.

 

 

 

V. New Year (chapter 12, verses 1-2)

 

Yehovah commanded both Moshe and Aharon to give this command to the Israelis: “This month is the head of months to you. He is the first to you to the months of the year.” This month is the month in which the spring of the year occurs.

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What does “This month is the head of months to you” mean? This means that the Israelis must recognize this particular month as the first month of the year. Whatever is head is first.

 

2.    Why did Yehovah repeat what He said by saying, “He is the first to you to the months of the year”? Yehovah knew that the Israelis would not see the first command (“This month is the head of months to you”) as a command to view it as the first month if they didn’t desire to do so, but rather to view it as the most important month. Thus, He worded it in two different ways to be certain that the Israelis knew exactly what He meant. (In spite of this, the Israelis don’t view it as being the first month, instead choosing a pagan new year as the beginning of the year!)

 

3.    Exactly when is this month? Does it refer to one of the months of the year that we use? The Israeli months go by the moon. Every new moon (when the light from the moon is the smallest wedge, after which the wedge will grow larger until the moon is a full moon) is the beginning of a new month. These moons do not match the twelve months of the year that many use throughout the world. Therefore, the only way to tell when this first Israeli month occurs is to watch the moon. This month occurs in the early spring of the year. If you have a calendar that lists Jewish holy days (and many do), you can see when Passover will next occur. Go back 14 days, and you will see that it will be a new moon. That is the first day of the first month that Yehovah described.

 

4.    Why did Yehovah choose this month to be the first month of the year? Besides the fact that this was the very month in which the Israelis became Yehovah’s people free from Egyptian slavery, I propose that it will be the first month of the Millennium when Yeshua, the Messiah and Salvation of Israel, will begin His rule over Israel and over all kings and lords.

 

 

 

VI. One Lamb (verses 3-4)

 

Yehovah commanded Moshe and Aharon to speak unto all the congregation of Israel, and to say the following: “In the 10th to this month, and they have taken to them a man a lamb for the house of fathers, a lamb for a house.” They will be slaughtering, cooking and eating this lamb.

 

“And if the house will-be-too-little from being from a lamb, and he will take, and his neighbour near unto his house, via the blanketing of beings.” Thus, if one house of persons has too few folks to eat an entire lamb, a house of persons and a neighbouring house of persons will together take one lamb so that one lamb will ‘blanket’ (will cover) the eating of both houses. Yehovah explains and commands: “Ye will blanket a man to the mouth of his eating concerning the lamb.” Thus, the Israelis will make certain that they will know how much all the members of a house can eat so that they can determine if two houses will come together to eat one lamb.

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    How could Moshe and Aharon speak unto all the congregation of Israel? They spoke to the elders, and the elders told the Israelis. It would have taken a long time to speak to all the individuals of Israel. Yehovah also made certain that Moshe and Aharon spoke to the congregation of Israel of the future. Their communications will continue to the congregation of Israel throughout time on earth.

 

2.    What does “they have taken to them a man a lamb for the house of fathers” mean? The first part, “they have taken to them,” means that the Israelis have gone to a flock, and they have chosen and acquired the lamb for themselves. The next part, “a man a lamb for the house of fathers” shows that an Israeli man must obtain the lamb for the entire household of fathers (which includes parents and guardians). One person will acquire the animal for the house (whether the house only has family, or whether the house also has guests who are staying with the family).

 

3.    Should more than one lamb be acquired if the household is very large? No. The text states, “a lamb for a house.” More than one lamb will ruin the picture being shown. Besides this, one lamb will take care of quite a few eaters.

 

4.    What does “if the house will-be-too-little from being from a lamb” mean? If the number of eaters will be too few, so that most of the lamb will go uneaten, the house is described as being too little “from being from a lamb.” Every house must be from a lamb as if the lamb is the source of the house, as if the house came from inside the lamb. (The lamb will be a type—a picture of the Messiah of Israel. Those who are in the Messiah will be covered by Him.)

 

5.    What will they take in, “And if the house will-be-too-little from being from a lamb, and he will take, and his neighbour near unto his house”? The two houses will take one lamb together. They will share one lamb.

 

6.    What does via the blanketing of beings mean? That means that the lamb must cover (blanket) the number of beings (folks who will be eating the lamb). If there are too few folks, several households will share the one lamb as long as the lamb will cover all the eaters.

 

7.    What does the instruction, “Ye will blanket a man to the mouth of his eating concerning the lamb” mean? The coverage of the lamb must be enough so that each person will have enough to eat.

 

8.    Why is it so important that each person will have enough lamb to eat? What does this picture? Eating the lamb pictures eating the Messiah and Saviour of Israel. Yeshua explained this:

 

       John 7:57 “He who eats me, he also shall live because of me.”

 

       In order to understand eating Yeshua, think of this: The Bible describes a person as being like a tree. Think of a fruit tree. Eating of the fruit from that tree is eating the flesh of that tree (as in the expression, the flesh of the fruit). Yeshua’s fruit includes Salvation—saving the lives of others so that they will live. This very thing happened in this event in Exodus. Eating the lamb was what saved their lives (read on to see this). Each person must have enough to eat since this pictures the lamb who is sufficient to save the lives of every person who eats.

 

 

 

VII. Male Yearling (verses 5-6)

 

Yehovah now explained how to determine what lamb is acceptable: “A perfect male son-of-a-year lamb will be to you. Ye shall take from the sheep and from the goats.” Thus, a goat is also an acceptable animal.

 

Yehovah commanded the Israelis to guard the animal until the 14th day of this first month. They then must slaughter him “between the evenings.” All the congregation of the witness of Israel must do this slaughter.

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Why must the lamb be a perfect male son-of-a-year lamb? The lamb must be perfect because it pictures the Messiah of Israel who must be perfect and is perfect. The lamb must be male because Yeshua was born a male. The lamb must be a son-of-a-year lamb because the Messiah will be the son of a particular year:

 

       Isaiah 63:4 “The year of my redeemed is come.”

 

       This animal must be a lamb because the Lamb of God will remove the sin of the world.

 

2.    What does “to you” mean in “A perfect male son-of-a-year lamb will be to you”? Most who understand Hebrew think that to you means yours, and that it shows ownership. It has a meaning that is different from this, however. To you can show something like ownership, but it can also show usage and relationship. If one says in Hebrew, “This is my car,” the person is really saying, “This is the car of me.” If a person were to say, “This car is to me,” the person would be indicating, “I have use of this car.” If a person were to say, “This is a brother to me,” the person would be saying, “This person is in every way a brother as far as I am concerned,” whether the person is a brother by blood or not.

 

       When Yehovah said that the lamb “will be to you”—that is, to the Israelis, it implied that the lamb was given to them for their usage and benefit.

 

3.    Why did Yehovah give the option of taking the lamb from the sheep and from the goats?

 

• Both are flock animals. The Messiah will come from the flock of Israel.
• Both are animals of lower values than the larger cattle. The Messiah will come from the lower ranks of society, and will be valued very little.
• Both are animals that are easily captured and slaughtered. Messiah will be easily captured and slaughtered once His time has come.
• Both are clean animals—that is, they are land animals that the Israelis can eat, having both divided and entirely split hooves, and bringing up a pellet from one stomach to another to re-digest.
• Both are gentle animals as lambs.
• Both are animals that children almost never fear, and which many children can quickly learn to love.

4.    How many days must the Israelis keep the lamb? They must keep the lamb from the 10th day of the month to the 14th day of the month. This is about four days.

 

5.    What does “he shall be to you for a guarding until the 14th day to this month” mean, and what is the purpose of this? The Israelis must guard the lamb; that is the assignment Yehovah gave them. Thus, the Israelis will form a relationship and a connection with this lamb just before they slaughter it.

 

       The word guard is the same word used throughout the Hebrew part of the Bible to describe ‘keeping’ things—like the commandments of Yehovah. It means more than keep, however. It shows learning, studying, knowing and remembering, as well as keeping something from danger. This lamb is so important to Israel!

 

6.    Why does the text only refer to one lamb in all of its parts as if there is only one lamb in mind? This is a vital part of the picture that Yehovah is drawing for the Israelis and all other readers using the words He is using. This lamb points to one and only one lamb: the Lamb of God. Thus, the wording will only refer to one lamb, though the Israeli families will take many lambs, each picturing this one Lamb.

 

7.    Why did the Israelis have to guard this lamb if they were only going to slaughter him in the end? Both the guarding and the slaughtering of the lamb show a picture of the Messiah of Israel. Yeshua, Who is this Lamb of God, will be protected by Israel—that is, by Israelis (by Miriam and Joseph), and this guarding will continue until it is time for Him to be sacrificed. Later, during the Tribulation, the Israelis will be guarding this Lamb by guarding Israelis who need guarding (like children, the very old, the mentally retarded, those who have physical difficulties so that they can’t walk on their own, etc.). They will be guarding Yeshua—that is, they will be guarding Salvation (saving the lives of others) until the Great Passover of the Tribulation occurs. Those who are guarded will be taken to Mount Zion, a safe place. They will then recognize that Yeshua (Salvation Himself) is the sacrifice to take the places of the Israelis so that they won’t die; they will participate in the slaughter of Yeshua, their sacrifice, in a form that is a type: by slaughtering and eating the Passover animal that Yehovah will provide.

 

8.    What occurs on the 14th day of every Israeli month? The 14th day of every Israeli month is a full moon! Every Israeli month is either 29 or 30 days, and every month begins with a new moon. The following is a picture of just eight of the 29 ways the moon will look.

 

 

       Start at the new moon, which appears almost like it is invisible, and go clockwise. The next moon will be the waxing crescent moon. The word waxing means getting bigger. The word crescent means that only a slice that is shaped as you will see is visibly lit up on the moon. If you look closely at night at the moon, you will see the outline of the entire moon, but only a portion will be lit brightly in a crescent moon. Finally, after 14 days, the moon will be a full moon—the entire side facing the earth will be lit up brightly. Yehovah made sure that the events that are about to be described in these texts occurred during the full moon. That gave much light in the desert at night.

 

9.    Who is him in, “And ye shall slaughter him between the evenings”? Him refers to the lamb (of the goat or sheep) that the Israelis have been guarding. They must now slaughter that lamb, and they must do it between the evenings.

 

10. What does “between the evenings” mean? The first evening in ‘evenings’ is that of the 14th day. Since the day begins in the evening in the Bible, that means that as the sun sets on the 13th, and thus begins the 14th day, that is the first evening. The second evening is when the 14th day ends, and the 15th day begins. They must slaughter this lamb somewhere in that 24-hour period.

 

11. Why must they slaughter the lamb exactly between these evenings? A future event will occur that will take place exactly between these evenings toward the end of the Tribulation. That event will be just before a great slaughter (of bad guys). The Israelis must obey this text at that time in order to live. This is why Yehovah is so specific and so insistent that this action will take place at the right time. What we are reading in this text is what will occur in the future, far from now. It happened in the past so that the Israelis would know what to do and how to do it (if they properly learn). The future event (many centuries from now) will be even more important than the past event, since many more lives will be in danger, and the slaughter will be far greater for those who don’t do what this text states.

 

12. Who will do the slaughter of the lamb, according to this text? According to this text, all the congregation of the witness of Israel will do this slaughter.

 

13. What is “the witness of Israel,” and what does that mean? Israel—the entire people—is being viewed and treated as if it is one person—one being. It is also being called a witness, singular. Yehovah treats entire groups as individuals in far more cases than what most readers of the Bible are aware. He also holds members of groups responsible for what the group does, and what individuals in the group do. Groups can be entire races or families. They can be those who work together, or they can be those who are socializing together. If anyone participates with others in a group, and one person in that group is doing wrong as a part of that group, Yehovah holds the group responsible for what the one person did as a representative of that group.

 

       A group is one witness if the entire group has seen an event. If any of the group didn’t see the event, those persons not seeing it are not in the group that saw (a subgroup of the whole group). Israel is one witness. It was one witness in history when Moshe led the entire group out; we are reading about this. It will be one witness during the Tribulation, since all will see the works of Yehovah.

 

       A witness is a person who experienced something through the senses—hearing, seeing, touching, smelling, tasting, and who, then, can express what directly occurred to that person. In this case, the entire group is a witness to what Yehovah did or will do. The word testimony refers to expressing what one experienced according to the senses above.

 

       No person is permitted to testify regarding himself/herself as far as personal feelings are concerned. Testimonies of oneself are not Biblically permitted. Thus, a person cannot say, “I became a believer, and now I am a changed person!” That testimony is a lie or worse; it is a false testimony. Another only can testify in such matters.

 

       The witness of Israel, then, will be all Israel acting as one being that experienced one or more experiences, and that will tell about it/them. That one being will do the slaughtering of the one lamb.

 

14. This event with one lamb can only occur under what one condition? The one condition is that all of Israel sees things the same way, being unified.

 

 

 

VIII. The Given Blood (verse 7)

 

After slaughtering this perfect one-year-old male goat or sheep lamb, they must take some of the collected blood, and they must give that blood “upon two of the doorposts and upon the lintel, upon the houses in which they will eat him.”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Why must they take from the blood (instead of taking all the blood)? This shows that the blood could easily cover far more households than what it will be used to cover.

 

2.    Why does the text say that they will give the blood upon the doorposts and lintel instead of saying that they will splatter the blood there? The blood must be given; it is a gift. It is not a violent placing of the blood where it will be placed, but a deliberate gift of the blood that will be placed.

 

3.    Why did they have to place the blood particularly upon two of the doorposts and upon the lintel, and what is a lintel and what are doorposts? The following shows a picture of them:

 

 

       When they placed the blood on these parts of the door, the blood dripped. This is the form it showed:

 

 

       If you look at this, you will see what was being pictured:

 

 

       This showed how the Lamb of God would be given to cover two of the doorposts and the lintel of all of the House of Israel.

 

4.    Why did they have to eat the lamb? Why couldn’t they just slaughter the lamb, and place the blood? Yeshua much later explained this:

 

       John 6:53 Yeshua said therefore to them, “Faith! I say to faith you: unless ye shall have eaten the flesh of the Son of Adam and shall have drunk His blood, ye haven’t life in yourselves. ⁵⁴He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has everlasting life. And I will raise him up in the last day. ⁵⁵For my flesh truly is food, and my blood truly is drink. ⁵⁶He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me and I in him, ⁵⁷as the living Father sent me. And I live because of the Father. Also, he who eats me, he also shall live because of me. ⁵⁸This is the bread that descended from the heavens—not as your fathers ate the manna and died—he who eats this bread shall live forever.”

 

       Eating of the flesh of Yeshua is eating of the fruit that He produced, that fruit being His righteousness. (Persons in the Bible are compared to trees. Think of an apple tree. When the apple tree grows fruit—that is, grows apples, if you pick and eat the apple, you are eating the flesh of the tree—the fruit of the tree. No one bit Yeshua’s arm or leg to eat his flesh; instead, He produced fruit that led to life as if He had been a fruit tree. Drinking of His blood is taking advantage of His heroism, since the life of the flesh is in the blood. No one drank His blood that dripped. If a person saves the life of another, the one whose life was saved has drunk the blood—that is, the life of the person who did the lifesaving. Thus, anyone whose life is saved by Yeshua has drunk His life: His blood.) Eating the lamb pictures eating the flesh of the Messiah.

 

5.    Why did they have to eat the lamb in the same houses where they placed the blood? What this pictures is so important. Placing the blood will stop the Slaughterer from taking lives from inside the houses. Eating the lamb will picture eating the fruit of righteousness of the Messiah that will lead to being everlastingly saved from death. If anyone ate the lamb outside of the house where the blood was placed, it would picture eating Messiah’s righteousness, but not being protected from death—not taking part in Messiah’s heroism by which He died to save the lives of others. Being in the house and under the given blood but not eating the lamb would picture being saved from death, but not participating in Messiah’s righteousness by which one can live. Both pictures must go together!

 

6.    Did the Israelis understand these things when they did what Moshe said to do? No, they didn’t! They didn’t understand any of these things. They could have thought them through, but they didn’t have much time. They could have figured them out later, or they could have asked Moshe (or others who were wise).

 

7.    Do the Israelis and other folks (like those who claim to be Christian) understand these things today? Some understand a few parts of these things; most don’t understand and don’t care about these things.

 

8.    Must a person understand these things in order for them to work for the person? The Israelis didn’t understand, and these things worked for them while they physically lived. (They didn’t obtain everlasting Salvation from obeying these instructions, since they didn’t have faith.) A person for whom these things will bring everlasting life will be interested in them, and will desire to understand them. If a person doesn’t care, these things will do the person no good. One who desires the Truth of the Gods of Israel will show that desire, and it will be strong. The same thing was true of the Israelis when Moshe was commanding them to do these things that saved their firstborn from death.

 

 

 

IX. Roasted Lamb and Matzahs (verses 8-9)

 

The Israelis must roast the sheep or goat lamb, and they must eat the meat of the lamb in this one night. Yehovah then commanded, “And they shall eat him, matzos upon bitternesses.” (Matzos/matzahs are pieces of unleavened bread.)

 

There are two ways the Israelis are not to eat the sheep or goat lamb: “Ye shall not eat from him raw and boiling, boiled in water, but rather fire-roasted…”

 

The entire lamb must be roasted with “his head upon his knees and upon his approach.”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Why did the flesh have to be roasted (instead of baked, boiled, or treated in some other fashion)? The word roast is directly related to two other words in Hebrew: shadow and sinking. If I were to translate this with the word shadow in the place of the word roasted, the text would read: “And they shall eat the flesh in this night. My shadow is fire!” I propose that this describes the way that the Lamb of God, the Messiah, will destroy His enemies at the very end of the Tribulation. Types in the Bible (that is, pictures of more important things) include using such word puns and word plays to describe what will happen. When Messiah is in the process of returning to Mount Zion, He will fly over enemies of Israel who are in the Land of Israel as an invading army. His shadow will indeed be a fire; as He flies over, He will burn them to death. Since Yehovah designed the Hebrew language, He also gave words their definitions. In this case, the word roast and the word-phrase my shadow are both spelled exactly the same. They look like this:

 

 

       Yehovah always gives very specific commands (like roasting this lamb rather than cooking it in some other way) in order to teach very specific things. Many of those things are yet to come!

 

2.    What are matzahs? They are like big crackers (if they are cooked until they are crispy) made of only unleavened flour (water being added to make dough). They aren’t all that special alone, but if butter and honey, cream cheese and honey, or peanut butter and honey are put on them, they are quite good!

 

3.    What do matzahs picture? They have no leaven. Leaven in the Bible is a type (a picture) of sin because it makes a small amount of dough puff up to look very big. Yeshua mentioned what it pictured:

 

       Matthew 16:12 They then understood that He didn’t commanded them to beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

 

       Luke 12:1 He began to say unto His disciples first of all, “Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy!”

 

       1 Corinthians 5:8 Therefore, we shall guard the solemnity—not with old leaven, and not with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but rather with the matzah of purity and Truth!

 

       Now, since matzah is made of flour (that is, separated and small particles from wheat seeds) mixed with water and baked, it pictures a leaven-free group that is held together by the waters of lives. If the group is leaven-free, it is without sin. Therefore, matzahs picture groups that do not have sin among them.

 

4.    What does “And they shall eat him, Matzahs upon bitternesses” mean? If they must eat the matzahs, they must make these groups that are without sin part of themselves; these groups are being offered up for them! Some of these groups will give their lives so that the Israelis will live.

 

       If they must eat them upon bitternesses, that tells me that those who are eating from the sacrifices of these groups will later realize with great bitterness that the Messiah of Israel came at a previous time, and did the very same thing that these groups have done: He gave His own life so that the Israelis will live. This will cause these Israelis to have great sorrow and bitterness over having missed the Messiah the first time:

 

       Zechariah 12:10 And I will pour upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of favour and of supplications. And they shall look upon me whom they have pierced. And they shall mourn for Him as one mourns for an only-[one] and shall be in bitterness for Him as one that is in bitterness for a firstborn.

 

       Thus, the Israelis will realize the Truth of the Messiah of Israel. This will occur far in the future, during the Tribulation.

 

5.    What is wrong with eating from the lamb either raw or boiling, boiled in water? The Hebrew word for raw means restrained, forbidden, disallowed, held back. The Hebrew word for boil also means to cook. The work that the lamb does must not be the cooking of some person, and it mustn’t be demonstrating that anything was held back, restrained or forbidden. This is the work of God. If it is boiled in water, it will be diluted. This also must not occur. This must be from the fire of Yehovah, and from His wrath against sin. It cannot involve anything that a human does; this is strictly and only the work of Yehovah and the Messiah. The words for raw, boiling, and boiled in water all show what must not occur to the sacrifice of the Lamb.

 

6.    Why is fire-roasting so important? It pictures the fire of Yehovah and His wrath for sin. Yehovah’s fire is pictured during roasting, and it isn’t pictured if the lamb is raw, boiled, or boiled in water.

 

7.    The text next states, “his head upon his knees…” What does this mean? The head of the lamb must be upon the lamb’s knees as if the lamb is in a praying position. The word for knee is directly connected to the word for kneel, and can be a picture of praying. It also pictures bowing, showing willingness (as if the lamb had volunteered).

 

8.    The text also states, “his head … upon his approach.” What does that mean? To approach something is to come near to it. The lamb will be approaching Yehovah in this picture. He is on his way to Yehovah as a sacrifice. The head of the lamb is therefore not removed and discarded, but is also roasted.

 

9.    Could the Israelis eat the head and every part of the lamb? Absolutely! They could eat any and every part of the lamb that they desired to eat.

 

 

 

X. No Remainder (verse 10)

 

Yehovah gave two commands regarding any leftovers from the lamb: “And ye shall not make-remain from him unto morning,” and “ye shall burn the remainder from him unto morning in fire.”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What does “And ye shall not make-remain from him unto morning” mean? It means that leaving any leftovers for the morning is wrong! They must have absolutely no leftovers from the lamb!

 

2.    What were they commanded to do with leftovers? They had to burn the remainder of the lamb in fire some time before the morning came.

 

3.    Why did they have to get rid of lamb leftovers? The opportunity to sacrifice the lamb only occurs in the very short time period given. After that, the sacrifice of the lamb won’t be possible. Yehovah has given this time period to the Israelis during the Tribulation. They will know when this is; it will be up to them to obey. Thus, eating the lamb within a certain amount of time is a vital part of the picture of the lamb being available for only a short time!

 

4.    Why did they have to burn the remainder of the lamb (instead of throwing the rest away, giving it to friends, or burying it)? Throwing it away would give the wrong picture: as if the lamb could be discarded. Giving it away to friends would give the wrong picture—that it could be shared outside of the time that it was offered to the Israelis. Burning it with fire continues the roasting process until it is totally gone, and this gives the right picture that there is only a certain time in which folks can take advantage of the sacrifice of the lamb.

 

5.    Why does the text say, “ye shall burn the remainder from him unto morning in fire” instead of this: “ye shall burn the remainder from him before morning in fire”? Burning the lamb unto the morning shows that it is still being burned the night before, and up to the morning. Burning it before morning doesn’t give the same picture.

 

6.    Look carefully at verse 10. It starts with this: “And ye shall not make-remain…” Verse 9 above starts with this: “Ye shall not eat from him…” Above that is verse 8, though, that starts with this: “And they shall eat the flesh…” Verse 7 also has they, and verse 5 has you and ye. Why does the text keep switching from you and ye to they and them? In other words, why do the pronouns go from being as if the speaker is speaking directly to the Israelis to speaking about the Israelis? Sometimes, Yehovah is telling Moshe what to say; sometimes, Yehovah is speaking directly to the Israelis as if Moshe isn’t even there (though they only heard Moshe’s voice). When a prophet speaks, the prophet sometimes brings a message from the source (from Yehovah), and sometimes the prophet speaks as if he/she is the source (Yehovah)!

 

       We have also considered another very important reason for this regular switching. The commands that use they and them were for Moshe to deliver to the Israelis to do at the time of Moshe. The commands that use ye, you and your were for the Israelis to do both at the time of Moshe and in the far-future events during the Tribulation. Two events are always in mind in these texts. The future event is far more important for the Israelis than the event in Moshe’s day, since the future event will be when all of Israel finally believes Yehovah, and all of Israel will be saved from death!

 

 

 

XI. Dress Code (verses 11-12)

 

How must the Israelis be dressed while eating the lamb? “And ye shall eat him thus: your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your walking-staff in your hand.”

 

How quickly must the Israelis eat the lamb? “And ye shall eat him in haste.” Why must they be dressed like this and eat the lamb so quickly? “He is the Skip-Over to Yehovah!”

 

Yehovah next told what He will be doing at the same time that these other events will be occurring: “And I will cross-over in the land of Egypt in this night. And I will smite every firstborn in the land of Egypt from Adam and unto cattle. And I will do justices via all gods of Egypt.”

 

Yehovah then gave His signature: “I am Yehovah!”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What three items did the Israelis have to have or wear while eating the lamb? They had to have the following three:

 

• Their loins had to be girded
• Their shoes had to be on their feet
• The walking staff had to be in their hand.

2.    What does “loins girded” mean? The loin is the kidney. Girding means wearing, but also includes the idea of something being tight—not too tight, but to the right tightness. Belts are used for girding for this reason.

 

       When loins are girded, the person is ready to do hard work and/or warfare. In this case, the hard work included walking miles and carrying much.

 

3.    Why did they have to have (or have to wear) these three things?

 

• They had to have their loins girded because they were about to begin a journey that would last for days.
• They had to have their shoes on their feet for the same reason: they were about to begin a journey that would last for days.
• They had to have their walking staff in their hand (singular) for the same reason: they were about to begin a journey that would last for days.

4.    Why is hand singular in “and your walking-staff in your hand”? This one word being singular changes everything. The command, “And ye shall eat him thus: your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your walking-staff in your hand,” isn’t to individual Israelis; it is to Israelis that form one group that will behave as one person. The entire group will be girded, will have shoes on, and will have just one walking staff in the group’s hand! Another text in the Bible has the very same type of wording, but it doesn’t refer to Israelis. It refers to folks in Ephesus:

 

       Ephesians 6:13 Therefore, take the whole armour of God unto you so-that ye will be able to withstand and to stand in the evil day, having done all. ¹⁴Stand, therefore, having your loins girded about with Truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness, ¹⁵and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace— ¹⁶above all, taking the shield of faith with which ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked-[one]. ¹⁷And take the helmet of Salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, ¹⁸praying always in the Spirit with all prayer and supplication, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints…

 

       There is one shield and one helmet in the text above.

 

5.    Why did the Israelis have to eat the roasted lamb in haste? There was no rush on this night, as you will see as you read. There will be quite a rush when this event again occurs during the Tribulation. There will be little time for a long meal. All will have to eat in a hurry, since they will be leaving in a hurry right after they have eaten!

 

6.    What does “he is the Skip-Over to Yehovah” mean? This refers to both the event and to the lamb (as if they are both one event). The lamb is the skip-over—meaning that Yehovah skips over those whom He would otherwise visit and slaughter. Had the blood not been placed on the upper lintel and the two sideposts of the door, Yehovah would not have skipped over. He would have slaughtered the firstborn in that place.

 

       The words skip over are normally translated as Passover, but that isn’t quite the right word. Yehovah is doing an action that is like skipping. He is skipping from house to house, from chamber to chamber—wherever humans are, in this night in order to slaughter all firstborn of man and animal. If He sees that blood of the lamb, He skips over that place.

 

       It is the Skip-Over to Yehovah, since it for His usage; it belongs to Him!

 

7.    Why does the text now state that He will cross over instead of skip over? Yehovah will cross over the entire land of Egypt in one night, skipping over every place of lodging. This is probably where someone got the idea of Santa Clause visiting every roof to bring presents, but it is instead the opposite regarding Yehovah: He is visiting every home to kill the firstborn in every home unless the blood of the lamb has been placed.

 

8.    What does “I will do justices via all gods of Egypt” mean? What will happen? Yehovah has so far done justices via almost all the gods of Egypt: the lice god, the frog god, the river god, the cattle god, the sun god, etc. There is one god that He so far hasn’t touched, however: the god of the firstborn child. He is about to do justice via (by means of) this god, too; He will show that this god has no power to keep the firstborn child alive just as the other gods had no power to stop those creatures over whom they were supposed to rule!

 

9.    Why did Yehovah now state, “I am Yehovah”? He is stating His own identity to remind all that He isn’t one of the gods like the Egyptian gods. His Name means, “I will be! I am! I was!” Thus, unlike the Egyptian gods, He will not be shown as without any power, and He won’t disappear. (The Egyptians stopped worshipping the gods that Yehovah ruined. They picked up other gods, but they quit these first gods.) Yehovah always will be!

 

 

 

XII. Blood (verse 13)

 

He now explained the purpose of the blood: “And the blood shall be to you for a sign upon the houses where ye are. And I will see the blood. And I will skip-over above you. And the strike will not be in you for a slaughter when I smite in the land of Egypt.”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What was the purpose for the blood, according to verse 13? It was for a sign. A sign is either a miracle or very close to a miracle that stands for something else very specific. In this case, it was very close to a miracle that all the Israelis (and even some Egyptians) actually obeyed, and placed the blood the way Yehovah commanded them to do it! Again, it will be for a sign toward the end of the Tribulation, since Yehovah will miraculously provide the animals for the Israelis no matter where they are located so that they will be able to place the blood as commanded. (In the meantime, placing the blood isn’t done, since sacrifices today are not being done by Israel; there is no place to properly do the sacrifices, and there are no priests who are permitted to do the sacrifices. Yehovah has temporarily disallowed them, since the Israelis refused to obey all the Teaching of Yehovah.)

 

2.    Who will see the blood? Who will skip over above the Israelis? Yehovah will see the blood! Yehovah will skip over above the Israelis! This is so important because so many who read the Bible (and who don’t read the Bible) think that some angel of death or the Death Angel passed over the Israelis; that just isn’t true. It was Yehovah Who passed over them looking for the blood placed on the houses.

 

3.    If Yehovah is so kind, gentle and good, why would He do a slaughter in the land of Egypt? The Egyptians are holding Israel, Yehovah’s firstborn son! Yet, they worship their own firstborn sons and the god of their sons! Yehovah is therefore going to remove their sons so that they will finally see that Yehovah is God over Israel’s firstborn sons! All races can learn that going after Israel to make them slaves and to try to kill their sons (as Pharaoh did when commanding the slaughter of Israel’s sons) will bring death upon those races! Yehovah will avenge His own!

 

 

 

XIII. Memories (verse 14)

 

A new Holy Day will be born: “And this day shall be to you for a remembrance. And ye shall solemnize him a solemnity to Yehovah to your generations. Ye shall solemnize him, a statute of Hider!” This Holy Day is called Passover in English.

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Why does Yehovah sometimes command that a day be for a remembrance? Is it just because it was an important day in the past? No! Yehovah commands to remember certain events in the past because more important events like it will occur in the future! Just remembering past occasions isn’t very important. Remembering past occasions in order to prepare for future ones that are much bigger and more significant is very important!

 

2.    What does solemnize mean? It means to treat and consider something as a serious occasion (even if it does involve great joy and celebration). Anything that is solemn is serious, and not to be treated as if it were unimportant.

 

3.    What must the Israelis do if they will solemnize this day? They must do the following:

 

• They must remember this day—that is, when it took place
• They must remember this day—that is, what happened on it
• They must learn what they can about this day, and they must learn what is right about it (not what is traditional, but what is true)
• They must teach it to their children
• They must do whatever Yehovah says to do on this day if they are able to do so (that is, unless Yehovah has temporarily disallowed them from doing what should be done, as He has many centuries by removing their ability to do sacrifices, since this is a sacrifice)
• They must consider what this means for a future event that will be its fulfillment. Yehovah’s solemnities always have to do with future events.

4.    What does to your generations mean? It means as long as the Israelis have generations (that is, as long as this planet lasts and life on the planet continues).

 

5.    Why is this a solemnity to Yehovah instead of being a solemnity to the Israelis? If it belonged to the Israelis, they could celebrate it in any way they chose. Since it belongs to Yehovah, the Israelis and all who desire to celebrate this solemnity must do it and treat it as Yehovah the owner desires for it to be done and treated.

 

6.    What is Hider? I propose that Hider refers to a time limit: that is, until revealed time is about to change over to unrevealed, and this hidden time, the Hider referring to that time. I also propose that Yehovah Himself is the Hider, since He has intentionally made Himself invisible so that humans normally don’t see Him. (That way, they can live by faith; if they saw Him on a regular basis, living by faith would be impossible.) If I am right, and Hider refers to Yehovah, the text indicates that the Israelis will solemnize this lamb (the Skip-Over) because it is a statute of Hider—of Yehovah!

 

7.    What is a statute? It is a rule that is firm, as if it were engraved (chiseled) in stone. (It isn’t the same as a statue which is an image.)

 

 

 

XIV. Matzahs (verse 15)

 

The Israelis must eat only unleavened bread if they eat any bread during the next seven days. They must cause all leaven to cease from their houses in the first day. Yehovah then warns, “For every eater of vinegar, and that being shall-be-cut-off from Israel from the first day unto the seventh day”—that is, anyone who eats any form of vinegar during the seven days will be cut off from Israel!

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Why must the Israelis eat matzahs seven days? There are seven days in the year: Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday and Saturday. Those same days repeat, but no matter what the year is, there are only these same seven days in the year. However one can behave during seven days, then, that person can behave for the entire year. If matzahs picture a group that is without sin, and if eating the matzahs pictures taking advantage of that group by making that group part of the person who eats the matzah, if this is done for seven days, it pictures becoming part of that group throughout the year, and thus permanently. Living without sin for seven days shows that one can and must live without sin throughout a year, and thus for the rest of one’s life.

 

       1 Corinthians 5:7 Purge out the old leaven so that ye will be a new lump as ye are unleavened. For even Messiah our Passover is sacrificed for us! ⁸Therefore, we will keep the solemnity—not with old leaven and not with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the matzah of sincerity and Truth!

 

2.    Do the seven days include the day of the Skip-Over? No! This is a separate event that begins directly after the day of the Skip-Over!

 

3.    How can the Israelis “make-cease leaven” from their houses? They must physically remove all leaven and all leavened items from their houses by searching for leaven and leavened products. They must then get rid of those products (not just store them somewhere else until after the seven days).

 

4.    What does this ‘making cease’ leaven picture? It pictures getting rid of all wickedness from their houses! That means that all humans must stop sinning from that day forward.

 

5.    What does vinegar picture? It pictures malice, which leads to violence. Malice comes from bitter hatred, and is the strong desire and intent to do harm to others and to see harm done to others. It can be physical, and it can be in the form of words (as gossip, for example).

 

6.    What does eating vinegar picture? It pictures participating in malice! Thus, it pictures those who participate in gossip and in harm to others: being mean!

 

7.    What will happen to every Israeli who eats vinegar during these seven days? That Israeli will be cut off from Israel. Since eating vinegar pictures participating in malice, and since seven days pictures the entire year, and thus the rest of one’s life, being cut off from Israel pictures everlasting damnation! Yehovah will destroy the Israeli who doesn’t cease from malice! (Many texts in the ‘New Testament’ refer to this very topic!) This is why Yeshua taught,

 

       Matthew 6:12 “‘And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. ¹³And don’t lead us into temptation, but rather, deliver us from the evil-[one]! For the kingdom and the power and the glory is Thine forever!’ Faith! ¹⁴For if ye forgive men their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you. ¹⁵And if ye don’t forgive men their trespasses, your Father won’t forgive your trespasses!”

 

       Anyone who holds malice toward another will never forgive the other, and won’t desire to be forgiven by the other person.

 

8.    How many of the Israelis must do these commands? They all must obey these commands! (They won’t all obey these commands until near the end of the Tribulation many centuries from now. At that time, Yehovah will remove every Israeli who won’t obey these commands so that those who are left are the ones who will obey these commands. Until then, Israel will be in constant danger from Yehovah and from enemies. Yet, everyone who takes a stand against the Israelis will be taking a stand against Yehovah.)

 

 

 

XV. Callings (verse 16)

 

Yehovah now told the Israelis, “A calling of a Holy-[One] is in the first day.” He didn’t explain in this text whether that meant that a Holy One will do the calling or whether the Israelis will call the Holy One.

 

Yehovah continued, “And a calling of a Holy-[One] shall be to you in the day seven.”

 

Yehovah then referred to one person using the pronoun he: “He will not do any errand in them. He alone shall do for you only what he will eat for every being.”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    This text refers to two callings of the Holy One. What are these events? Are they the same event? The way the Hebrew language works is similar to the English language regarding the word calling. “A calling of the Holy One” can mean that the Holy One is calling, and it can mean that the Israelis are calling the Holy One! I propose that the calling of the Holy One (of Israel—the Messiah) that takes place in the first day will be when Messiah calls the Israelis. I propose that the calling of the Holy One that takes place in day seven will be when the Israelis call the Messiah!

 

2.    What does “He will not do any errand in them” mean? This means that He, the Holy One of Israel, won’t take action during these days, and the Israelis likewise must refrain from doing any errand. Them refers to the first day and day seven.

 

3.    What does “He alone shall do for you only what he will eat for every being” mean and show if the reader takes it literally? The first He, “He alone shall do…,” refers to the Holy One of Israel. He shall do for you—for the Israelis. What will He do? It is what He will eat for every being—that is, He is the One who ate death for everyone so that they will live. Yeshua not only tasted death, but He ate death so that the Israelis can eat from the Tree of the Lives, and live.

 

 

 

XVI. Guarding (verses 17-18)

 

Yehovah’s commands to the Israelis continued: “And ye shall guard the Matzahs.” It is as if the Matzahs are in danger! But why must they guard the matzahs? “For in this selfsame day I made-exit your hosts from the land of Egypt. And ye shall guard this day to your generations, a statute of Hider.” (A statute of Hider is a statute that continues until the planet ends.)

 

Yehovah even told them when to eat the Matzahs: “Ye shall eat Matzahs in the evening in the first, in the 14th day to the month, unto the day one and twenty to the month in the evening.”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What is involved with guarding the matzahs, and why do they need guarding? Most Bibles will use words like observe or keep instead of guard. These words give a wrong impression to a reader. Yehovah meant to guard. Observing something can mean looking at it or remembering it to do something in particular. If a person observes Easter, for example, that person will hide and participate in hiding candies and eggs, going on hunts, dressing up children, etc. Keeping something can mean to make an object one’s own possession. Guarding it, however, is making certain that it is unharmed and not taken away. This is what Yehovah commanded.

 

       It seems strange that any human should have to guard matzahs since they are crackers. If one considers the type, however, guarding makes sense. One piece of matzah typifies one group of persons who are all without malice and wickedness; they have had their sins removed, and they are now living righteously and saving the lives of others. They need to be guarded, since they are working for the saving of the lives of Israel. Guarding them is protecting them; the Israelis who do this will be joining them! Thus, they will also become part of the groups that are saving the lives of others.

 

2.    What armies are these? The Israelis exited from Egypt as an army. The angels of Yehovah are another army, and they angels accompanied the Israelis. Other armies of Israel also exited with the Israelis, including future generations of Israeli armies. (Something like this is discussed in Hebrews when the offspring of the Israelis paid tithes to Melchizedek through Avraham centuries before those Israelis were born.)

 

       Hebrews 7:5 And faith, they who are of the sons of Levi who receive the office of the priesthood have a commandment to take tithes from the people according to the Torah—that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Avraham. ⁶And he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Avraham and blessed him who had the promises. ⁷And without all contradiction, the less is blessed by the better. ⁸And men who die receive tithes here, but he of whom it is witnessed that he lives receives them there. ⁹And as I shall so say, Levi, who receives tithes also paid tithes in Avraham! ¹⁰For he was yet in the loins of his father when Melchisedek met him!

 

       The armies that came out of Egypt included all Israel’s future armies.

 

3.    How long did it take the armies of the Israelis to exit from Egypt? It took them no more than one day! These armies included all the Israelis (including children). “For in this selfsame day I made-exit your armies from the land of Egypt.”

 

4.    Why must they guard this day to their generations? They must guard this day so that they won’t forget, and so that they will know that this day in the future will be to the saving of their lives. Thus, they must be aware of the timing of this day so that they can obey the commands in the future when it is lifesaving again.

 

5.    When the Israelis exited from Egypt, where did they go? What is very important is where they didn’t go. They didn’t go into the land of the Palestinians.

 

       Exodus 13:17 Elohim did not lead them the way of the land of the Palestinians. For he is near. For Elohim said, “Lest the People will be grieved in their seeing war, and they shall return to Egypt.” ¹⁸And Elohim circled the People the way of the desert of the Ending Sea.

 

       He also didn’t bring them into the land of the Canaanites since they, also, would have made battle. Instead, He brought them through the desert, and they came over to what is today called Saudi Arabia.

 

6.    How many days must the Israelis eat matzah, according to this text? I propose that it this way:

 

• From the evening that starts the 14th day to the evening of the 15th day (1)
• From the evening that starts the 15th day to the evening of the 16th day (2)
• From the evening that starts the 16th day to the evening of the 17th day (3)
• From the evening that starts the 17th day to the evening of the 18th day (4)
• From the evening that starts the 18th day to the evening of the 19th day (5)
• From the evening that starts the 19th day to the evening of the 20th day (6)
• From the evening that starts the 20th day to the evening of the 21th day (7)
• From the evening that starts the 21st day, throughout the day (8)

       If this is correct, they must eat matzahs seven days plus the day before the seven days (Skip-Over Day itself). That totals to eight days. The two events run into each other, but they (Skip-Over and The Seven Days of Matzah/Unleavened Bread) are two separate events.

 

 

 

XVII. No Vinegar, No Leaven (verses 19-20)

 

“Leaven will not be found in your houses seven days.” (Yehovah is serious when He commands!) “For every eater from vinegar, and that being in a sojourner and in a native of the land shall be cut-off from the witness of Israel!” Yehovah states this warning again: “Ye shall not eat every vinegar!” He tells what they must eat: “Ye shall eat Matzahs in all your dwellings!”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    No leaven must be found in the houses of the Israelis for which seven days? The seven days that start after Skip-Over are the days in which no leaven must be found.

 

2.    Why must no leaven be found during those seven days? This shows that the Israelis themselves (represented as matzah) are totally without malice and wickedness.

 

3.    What is wrong with eating vinegar? What does this typify? Nothing is wrong with eating vinegar except during these days! If any of the folks mentioned eats vinegar during these days, Yehovah will put an everlasting death penalty on that person!

 

4.    What is a sojourner? This is a person who is journeying from one location to another, the two locations being quite distant from each other. (Therefore, the person’s journey will take longer than a day or two; the journey can take months or years!) A sojourner is usually from another race and land.

 

5.    What is a native? That is a person who lives in the same land and among the same peoples in which he/she was born. The opposite is being a sojourner (who now lives in a different land and among different peoples than those in which he/she was born).

 

6.    What does “shall be cut off from the witness of Israel” mean? This is another way of saying that the person will be damned! Being cut off has the idea of permanence; the person is permanently kept from being with a group (in this case the group being the witness of Israel). The only way that can occur is if the person doesn’t take part in the first resurrection (the resurrection of Saints).

 

       The witness of Israel refers to Israel as one person who is witnessing what Yehovah/Yeshua is doing. A person who is cut off from the witness of Israel is no longer a witness of these things. Thus, the person will be in a place that doesn’t permit being an eye-witness (for example) of the important and huge works of God.

 

7.    Why will Yehovah cut off even sojourners from the witness of Israel if they eat vinegar? Since vinegar typifies malice (and its accompanying violence), eating it leads to malice (and its accompanying violence). Any person who eats malice, and thus becomes malicious—that is, becomes cruel and mean—will be cut off from the witness of Israel (and from life). Thus, sojourners and natives alike have the very same requirement to be rid of vinegar!

 

8.    How many types of vinegars are included in this restriction? Every type of vinegar is included!

 

9.    If you look at a Passover section (in the spring of the year), you will find several products that are “kosher for Passover” that include vinegar. What does this text have to say about these products? Yehovah has strictly forbidden all forms of vinegar from the days of matzahs (Unleavened Bread); I take that to mean that He doesn’t desire that these be used on the Skip-Over (Passover) event, as well as the seven days following since matzah (unleavened bread) is the only type of bread permitted on both occasions.

 

10. In how many of the dwellings of the Israelis must matzah be eaten? It must be eaten in all their dwellings! Yehovah has commanded them to make these groups that are without malice and wickedness a part of themselves!

 

 

 

XVIII. The Skip-Over (verses 21-23)

 

Moshe now called to all the elders of Israel. He commanded them: “Draw-ye and take-ye a flock to you—to your families.” Thus, Moshe made the elders responsible to both draw—that is, to remove from the larger flocks—and to take a flock for them and their families. The elders had to then slaughter the Skip-Over!

 

Moshe told them what to use to move the blood from the collection pot to the lintel and the two doorposts: “And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop. And ye shall immerse in blood that is in a basin. And ye shall cause-to-touch unto the lintel and unto two of the doorposts from the blood that is in the basin.” (Hyssop is a plant.)

 

Moshe’s commands were now warnings: “And ye, ye shall not exit—a man from the opening of his house—unto morning.” Why must they not exit? “Yehovah will cross-over to smite Egypt. And He will see the blood upon the lintel and upon two of the doorposts. And Yehovah will Skip-Over above the opening. And He will not give the Slaughterer to come unto your houses to smite.”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Moshe called to all elders of Israel, telling them to draw and take a flock to them—to their families. What did drawing and taking  a flock to them show? The word draw is related to the word for Moshe, but it isn’t the same. It is mashakh which can include seizing—taking by force, as well as doing something like getting water out of a well with a bucket. The word take is similar; it can mean to receive as a guest, or it can mean to arrest by force. Moshe was a prophet, and he was prophesying what the Israelis will do in the future. Some of the Israelis will seize and take fellow Israelis (and others who are with them), since humans are often compared to and viewed as sheep and goats—members of a flock. Other Israelis will draw out—that is rescue, and will receive—that is, take into their homes, Israelis and others whose lives need to be saved. Those who take folks by seizure will be doing violence, and will sacrifice innocent persons by slaughtering them or aiding in their arrests and deaths. Those who take folks in to save their lives will be heroes and heroines, and they will be saving parts of Yehovah’s flock from slaughter. Both will be taken to the families of the Israelis, and both those who are sacrificed and those whose lives are saved will benefit the Israelis who turn to Yehovah in faith.

 

2.    The text continues, “And slaughter-ye the Skip-Over.” Why didn’t it say to slaughter sheep and goats? There is only one Skip-Over: Messiah Himself! This command is for the Israelis to slaughter Yeshua! They had to slaughter Him in order for them to be saved from death! He never commanded the Israelis to slaughter the flock.

 

3.    What is hyssop? I tried to find the plant identified as hyssop. Different persons thought different things about it. One text describes it in the following way:

 

       1 Kings 4:33 And he spoke of trees from the cedar tree that is in Lebanon even unto the hyssop that springs out of the wall.

 

       Knowing that hyssop springs out of the wall is a vital clue. The following is from the website aish.com regarding plants that grow in Israel and spring out of the wall:

 

       There are a number of species of plants growing out of the stones in the Wall:

 

       1. Henbane. This is the most common plant in the Wall. The Hebrew name for this plant is Shikaron, which is a form of the word for drunkenness. The name is possibly derived from the poisonous, intoxicating substance contained in the plant.

 

       2. Podosnoma. This is the second most common plant in the Wall. It is a typical rock plant, and is able to penetrate stone with its roots in order to extract water.

 

       3. Sicialian Snapdragon. These plants are found mostly on the higher sections of the Wall. It often takes root in cracks between the stones of a wall, and on fences.

 

       4. Horsetail Knotgrass. The Talmud (Shabbos 14:13) mentions that an antidote for snake bite was prepared from this plant.

 

       5. Thorny Caper. This plant produces flower buds that were used in ancient times as a spice after marination. In the summer, buds open every day to produce flowers and fruits.

 

       6. Phagnalon. This smaller plant is found scattered throughout the Wall.

 

       I cannot tell which plant hyssop is, and I was unable to find a source I could trust that seemed to know this.

 

       I also considered that it must be a type. This is what I wrote:

 

       (Technical derivation and explanation) Hyssop must be a type, an item that is real in itself while picturing another item that is both real and more important. Finding an object’s type can be difficult, requiring much thought. When the antitype (the answer to the type) isn’t intuitive, I start with a consideration of the definition of the object’s name. The Hebrew word for hyssop is , ayzov, so I started by searching both and its root, . I found no such root. When this occurs, I next begin dividing the word to see if it is a contraction of two words. The word for fly (as in housefly) is , zvoov, an onomatopoetic word (a word that sounds like what it is) that describes the sound of the flying of a housefly. The  can be a contraction for the prefix , ē with the following acceptations: where? whence? which? how? or for a separate, complete word meaning not; alas! woe! When I combined the unabbreviated forms, I got , ēzavoov with two possible acceptations: “Where is a fly?” (a perfect name for a fly swatter) or “not a fly!” which would convey the same idea as “Where is a fly?”. Since one false god is named , Baal-zvoov, or as translators have penned it, Beelzebub, meaning Lord Fly, I determined that this was not unreasonable. During the Millennium, all demons will be locked up in Sheol. Thus, Satan (who is personally identified as Lord Fly) will not be found on the surface of the earth or in the heavens during that time. I propose, then, that when the blood of the True Sacrifice at Passover is applied just before the Millennium, that will finally place Satan and all the fallen angels into their prison, so that the question, “Where is a fly?” or the statement, “Not a fly!” will be literally fulfilled. If this is the case, meaning hyssop is actually prophetic: “There is no fly!”

 

4.    Why must they take a bunch of hyssop? Using a bunch of it will certainly splatter the blood so that it will drip. A bunch is a banded group of the plant; a bundle bound with cords. If bunch is put with hyssop, this, then, can typify what will happen: “There is no fly; he has been bound with cords.” The blood of the sacrifice accomplished this, and the Lamb (of God) accomplished this.

 

5.    The next statement is this: “And ye shall immerse in blood that is in a basin.” Explain this curious wording: Readers will know that the command is to immerse the hyssop in blood that is in a basin. Yet, more careful readers will see that immerse is exactly what baptize means. If the life of the flesh is in the blood (which is what Leviticus 17:11 states), the Israelis are being commanded to immerse (others) into the life of the Messiah—to place them into Messiah. Another text states,

 

       2 Corinthians 5:17 Therefore, if any man is in Messiah, he is a new creation. Old things are passed away! Behold, all things are become new!

 

       Since everyone in the house where the blood will be placed is inside that blood, all will be in that salvation—that is, being saved from death.

 

6.    What is a lintel? It is the piece of wood that is part of a door’s frame that is directly above the door. (See the picture of a door above.) The Hebrew word for lintel comes from a verb meaning to peer down as if one is leaning over to see far down.

 

7.    What are doorposts? They are the side beams of a door frame (see the door picture above). The Hebrew word mezuzah is this word (though most Jewish folks who practice any form of Judaism think that it refers to the little scroll [containing the Shma and some other texts] that is attached to the doorpost.) I propose that this word comes from the Hebrew word nazah, meaning sprinkle, spatter, splatter, etc. The doorposts go down to the ground. Thus, if I combine the lintel with the two doorposts, this combines peering down and splattering—exactly what Messiah will do toward the end of the Tribulation to Israel’s (and His) enemies.

 

8.    What does the touching of the lintel and the doorposts using the hyssop bunch dipped in blood show? This shows that the blood will either be applied saving lives, or that because of the blood of the Lamb, a great slaughter of enemies will occur. The form of the cross (as shown above) appears when this is done.

 

9.    Yehovah commanded the Israelis to not exit from the opening of the house unto morning. Houses didn’t have indoor plumbing; there were places outside where folks used what we call ‘the restroom.’ What were they supposed to do if they had to use the restroom? From the earliest times, different cultures had chamber pots—places where they took care of their needs without going outside, and they would then empty them in the morning. This wasn’t a difficulty.

 

10. Why couldn’t they go outside of the house until morning? Being in that house was a picture of being in Messiah’s blood that was already shed, and thus not being in danger of being slaughtered by Messiah where those slaughtered lost their own blood from the vengeance of the Lamb of God. If they went out, they would be slaughtered along with the enemies of Israel!

 

11. Did the Israelis remain in their houses during the first Skip-Over (about which we are reading)? The reader must read ahead to find out. The Israelis were told to leave at midnight; they could not stay unto the morning. Therefore, these commands are for a future event!

 

12. Verse 23 stated that “Yehovah will cross-over to smite Egypt.” Is that what He said He would do? Explain. He said that He will smite the firstborn of Egypt, humans and animals. That isn’t the same as smiting Egypt. This, again, must be a future event. (Many Egyptians will help the Israelis in that event, and Yehovah will send Egypt a Saviour.) If I am right about that future event, the Egyptians who believe Biblical texts will also apply the blood; those who don’t will be slaughtered.

 

13. What will cause Yehovah to skip over above the opening of a house? Seeing the blood upon the lintel and upon two of the doorposts will cause Him to skip over. It will be as if He saw His own Son as the opening of the house.

 

14. Why does the text refer to the opening instead of the door? What is the difference between an opening and a door? The difference between an opening and a door is this: a door is meant to keep from passing into or out of a place; an opening is meant to permit passing into or out of a place. They have the opposite goals!

 

       The text refers to the opening because it is the way in and out! It pictures a way of passage, and not a way of blockage.

 

15. Who is this Slaughterer? This is none other than Yeshua Himself. (It certainly isn’t the Death angel.) Yehovah stated that He (Himself) will smite the firstborn. No angel of death is involved in this.

 

16. Why does the text use the word give instead of send? The word give is used far more in the Hebrew language of the Bible than in English. Giving implies sending, but much more. When giving is for good and benefit, it shows a gift. When it is for destruction (as in this case), it shows that the action (of the Slaughterer, in this case) is very personal. Yehovah isn’t just sending an impersonal slaughterer to come unto the houses of the victims; He is giving that slaughterer as a personal messenger from Him! This is far more frightening, as it should be. Since He isn’t giving, in this case, the Israelis are being spared a very terrifying action of fury on Yehovah’s part.

 

 

 

XIX. Guarding Speech and Service (verses 24-25)

 

Moshe next warned the Israelis to guard this speech that he had been giving to them. They must view this speech as a statute “to thee”—that is, to the people of Israel as one unit—“and to thy sons”—that is, to all the sons of the people of Israel—unto Hider.

 

When the Israelis finally will “come unto the land that Yehovah will give to you just-as He spoke,” the Israelis must guard this service!

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Why is guarding this speech so important to Yehovah and for the Israelis? This speech and its details will save the lives of many when this Skip-Over occurs in the future. What they don’t know about this speech will be what will get them killed; what they do know about it and what they make certain to obey will be what will save their lives!

 

2.    Why can’t they just forget the speech itself, but keep it recorded in the Bible, only studying it in detail just before it will occur? Wouldn’t that be the same thing? The generations between the first Skip-Over and the End Times Skip-Over will be involved in unrelated slaughters by not guarding this speech. This has already occurred many times, and it will occur many more times. Nearly all Israelis alive today (and nearly all who claim any faith in the Bible, including all of Christianity) think that these events are only historical, and have little or no future parts to them. Thus, they don’t guard this speech; if they celebrate these events at all, they just celebrate some type of ‘freedom festival.’ They don’t fear this Slaughterer, and they don’t consider what Yehovah was instructing in these events and what He was warning. Since the Israelis take these things so lightly, they have no real idea of what they show or teach in every generation, and they come up with wrong teachings about Yehovah and His character because of this. (The rest of the world claiming faith in the Bible does no better, but the greatest danger is first to Israel and will always be first to Israel.)

 

       Waiting to remember these things until the last generation is therefore a very bad idea!

 

3.    What is a statute? It is a rule made as if it is in stone. Yehovah gave these rules to save lives. They are ways to have peace with Yehovah and with neighbours. Not following these statutes can result in needless death.

 

4.    What is Hider? I have proposed that it refers to the boundary between events revealed in the Bible and events that go way beyond the Bible’s descriptions. The Bible tells about the creation of the heavens, the land, man and the living things on the land and in the waters. It tells about events all the way up to the creation of the new heavens and the new earth. What occurs between these two periods of time is revealed; the rest has been kept hidden. Anything that is to Hider continues up to the point of the creation of the new earth.

 

       I have also proposed that Hider refers to Yehovah Himself, since He hides himself so that humans can live by faith. If He didn’t hide Himself, no one would be able to have faith, since faith always includes what isn’t seen. If something must be done unto Hider, in this case, it must be done unto Yehovah and unto the time when Yehovah no longer hides Himself.

 

5.    Again, why must the Israelis guard this speech unto Hider? They must guard it because it gives instructions for events that will take place toward the end of this earth’s existence, and nearer to the time of the creation of the new earth! (These events must wait for many centuries.)

 

6.    What “shall be” when the Israelis shall come unto the land that Yehovah will give to them? The events prophesied in the Skip-Over will be when the Israelis will come unto the land that Yehovah will give to them. Those events haven’t happened yet; this speaks of the Israelis coming unto that land far into the future from now. That is when they will guard this service!

 

7.    What is a service? (This doesn’t refer to a ‘church service.’) It is something that a slave does, since this is directly related to the word for slave. (Anyone who truly serves another is a slave to the one being served unless the person is hired and paid to do the work.)

 

 

 

XX. The Question (verses 26-27)

 

Moshe prophesied that the Israelis’ sons will say unto the Israelis, “What is this service to you?” The Israelis must answer, “He is the Sacrifice of Skip-Over to Yehovah Who Skipped-Over above the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt in His smiting Egypt. And He rescued our houses!”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What do the children mean by the question, “What is this service to you?” The children won’t just be asking, “What is this service”—meaning, what does this mean? Instead, they will desire to know how this service is pertinent to their parents—that is, “What does this have to do with you? Isn’t this something historical?” Thus, the children will desire to know why their parents are doing these things that were commanded so many centuries ago.

 

2.    Look at the wording of verse 27. Yehovah commanded the Israelis to say to their children, “He is the Sacrifice of Skip-Over to Yehovah Who Skipped-Over above the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt in His smiting Egypt,” speaking of them. He then commanded them to say, “And He rescued our houses”—speaking of us. Why did Yehovah tell them to word it this way? This wording recalls the historical event when Yehovah skipped over above the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt when He smote Egypt, and it prophesies the future event when Yehovah rescued (in the future) the houses of the Israelis who will be properly telling of this event when it will occur. Both are in the past tense because Yehovah will be skipping over at the time when the children are asking the question!

 

3.    Where will all these houses that were rescued (in the future) be located? They will be located all over the earth, wherever Jews are still located and where they will do as Yehovah commanded at that time.

 

 

 

XXI. Perfect Obedience (verses 27-28)

 

Moshe had called the elders. The People of Israel now bowed, prostrated—that is, they lay flat and face-down to the ground, and then they got up and walked to their places. The sons of Israel did exactly as Yehovah commanded Moshe and Aharon! They did so!

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What is the difference between bowing and worshipping? Bowing is bending the knees and lowering one’s face toward the ground or floor. Worshipping is laying face down and flat on the ground or floor. Bowing isn’t going down all the way; worshipping is.

 

2.    To whom did the people bow? They bowed toward Moshe and Aharon, and I expect that they also bowed toward the elders of Israel who carried this speech to them.

 

3.    Whom did they worship? They worshipped—that is, they lay down flat before the same persons: Moshe and Aharon, and I am thinking toward the elders of Israel. They didn’t worship Yehovah; most of them didn’t believe in Yehovah. The word worship in the Bible has nothing to do with religion. It wasn’t used as it is used today. Worshipping showed humility, willingness to serve and obey, and very great respect (if it wasn’t being faked).

 

4.    Where did they walk? They walked back to their homes. They had to obtain the flock animals; they had to keep them with them for the set number of days; they had to slaughter them; they had to do all those things that had been commanded. None of the commands was hard, and the event must have been very exciting!

 

5.    Why does the text twice say that the children of Israel did as Yehovah commanded Moshe and Aharon? This is a rare event in the Bible! All those Israelis all did what they were commanded to do! They gave no argument, and they all did the right steps! This is amazing, and worth telling twice!

 

 

 

XXII. The Half-Night Smiting! (verses 29-30)

 

At midnight, when the night is split in half, Yehovah smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt! He smote Pharaoh’s firstborn “who sits upon his chair” and all other firstborn ones right down to the firstborn of the captive who is in the house of the pit (the prison). He also smote every firstborn of cattle!

 

Pharaoh got up that night, as well as all his slaves and all of Egypt. There was a very big scream in all of Egypt since there wasn’t a house where there wasn’t death in that house!

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What is the half of the night? This is midnight. It is the time exactly between sunset and sunrise.

 

2.    Who is he in, “And he was in half of the night”? He refers to the event that took place.

 

3.    Why did Pharaoh arise that night? What awoke him? Yehovah had warned that He would do this (in Exodus 11). I propose that Pharaoh set slaves to watch over his firstborn in case there was some attempt to attack and kill him; Pharaoh obviously didn’t believe that Moshe’s God would do this.

 

4.    Why did the slaves arise that night? Besides being awakened by the person who discovered that Pharaoh’s son was dead, the slaves were awakened because of Pharaoh’s sorrow and mourning, and because the slaves themselves suffered losses from their families. Firstborn slaves were dead, too!

 

5.    Was Pharaoh himself a firstborn? I cannot tell if he was or if he wasn’t. Yehovah didn’t kill him; that could mean that he wasn’t a firstborn, or it could mean that Yehovah preserved him because He said He would kill his son, and not him—He would kill from his son down to the lowest-ranking person in Egypt.

 

6.    Why was there a big scream in all of Egypt? All were screaming, making one scream. Some screamed because of the terror of finding a dead child, a dead baby, a dead adult, a dead teenager, or a dead old man; others screamed because of the great mourning over one loss or several losses in the house and in the fields. All screamed because they were terrified of the power that they didn’t understand and the fear that more might be killed. It was a terrible night that left Egypt in shock for weeks. Yehovah did a terrorist attack on Egypt, and the Egyptians had no way to recover from it or to retaliate from such power.

 

7.    How many Egyptian houses were completely free from anyone dying in that night? Not one house was without at least one dead person; some houses had several dead persons (of all ages).

 

8.    Were all the dead males? Yehovah only said firstborn, but the word used for firstborn is masculine (becor). If it included feminine forms, it would have to use the masculine and feminine form, or at least the feminine form too (becorah). Thus, only the firstborn males died; no females died.

 

 

 

XXIII. The Command to Exit (verses 31-32)

 

Pharaoh called to Moshe and Aharon in the middle of the night. And he said, “Rise-ye! Exit-ye from the midst of my people!—also ye!—also the sons of Israel! And walk-ye! Serve-ye Yehovah as ye spoke—also your flock! Take-ye also your herd just-as ye spoke! And walk! And bless-ye also me!”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Were Moshe and Aharon close to where Pharaoh was when Pharaoh called to them? They must have been close; otherwise, it would have taken hours to send for them. Instead, it took a very short time.

 

2.    Why does the text say “… night! …”? Biblical Hebrew is a very brief language; Yehovah uses the fewest words necessary to clearly tell readers what He communicates. This tells readers that Pharaoh called to Moshe and Aharon while it was still night; that showed great terror on Pharaoh’s part. He normally left business until daylight, taking his time and being ‘cool.’

 

3.    The words and wording that Pharaoh used to tell Moshe, Aharon and the Israelis to leave show what about Pharaoh’s mental state? The wording shows that Pharaoh was confused, terrified, no longer willing to play games over Yehovah’s commands to send the Israelis, and that Pharaoh was fearful for his own life.

 

4.    Pharaoh said, “RISE-YE! EXIT-YE FROM THE MIDST OF MY PEOPLE!—also ye!” To whom is Pharaoh referring by the first ye, and to whom is he referring by the second ye? Pharaoh is speaking about Moshe and Aharon; yet he is really speaking of all the Israelis. Since Moshe and Aharon were already standing before him, telling them to rise doesn’t make sense for them, but it does for all the Israelis. The second ye refers to just Moshe and Aharon, since Pharaoh added, “Also the children of Israel.” He later adds flock and herd to those who must leave with them.

 

5.    Why did Pharaoh command them to serve Yehovah? Pharaoh now feared that more harm might come to Egypt if the Israelis didn’t serve Yehovah.

 

6.    Pharaoh twice commanded, “Walk!” What did he mean? We would say, “Leave!” or “Go!” The word in Hebrew for walk has a different meaning, however. It involves more than just transporting or being transported from one place to another; it involves all behaviours while continuing to live. Pharaoh now desired the Israelis to do exactly what Yehovah had told them to do.

 

7.    Why would this man whose son was newly slaughtered by Yehovah now command, “And bless ye also me”? He feared that the Israelis might do otherwise—that they might curse him; he wanted to secure a blessing from them while he could. He finally truly feared for his own safety.

 

8.    Was Pharaoh now a believer in Yehovah? No! He was not! He certainly believed that Yehovah existed, but he wasn’t a believer in Yehovah. There is a great difference between believing that God exists and believing in God.

 

 

 

XXIV. Sending Israelis with Fear (verse 33)

 

All of Egypt greatly urged the Israelis to leave! They now wanted to send them from the land, and they wanted them to go as soon as possible. The Egyptians thought, “All of us are dead-[ones]!”

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Why did the Egyptians so strongly urge the people of Israel to leave the land? They were terrified that Yehovah might kill them all!

 

2.    Were they right to fear that Yehovah might kill them all? They were right! That is what He will do to the enemies of Israel during the Tribulation—that is, to those who remain enemies (and don’t turn to become friends)!

 

3.    Were the Egyptians being mean or cruel when they hurried the Israelis to leave the land of Egypt? No; they weren’t insulting them or belittling them; they wanted them to go because they feared the Gods associated with the Israelis!

 

 

 

XXV. Dough, Valuables and Rescue (verses 34-36)

 

The people of Israel was used to preparing flour to make bread on a daily basis. Bread was a very important part of the diet of the Israelis. When the Egyptians awoke them and urged them to quickly leave, one of the valuables that the Israelis knew they had to carry was the dough being prepared to make bread. The entire people lifted the people’s dough before the dough will become sourdough (which is very delicious if properly made). This is described as vinegarizing in the text. The Israelis also took their kneadingtroughs with them, binding them in their clothes upon their shoulder.

 

The children of Israel did as Moshe spoke by asking Egypt for utensils of silver and utensils of gold, and clothing. Yehovah gave to the Israelis the favour of Egypt when they asked the Egyptians. This act of receiving gold, silver and clothing rescued Egypt.

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What kind of bread were the Israelis making in verse 34? They were making sourdough bread. (Ask your instructress to help you make sourdough bread this way.)

 

2.    How did they carry the dough? They carried the dough wrapped in cloth. (If it weren’t wrapped in cloth, bugs would be easily able to get into it.)

 

3.    How did they make dough in the first place? They had to mix flour with water. Thus, the question becomes, How did they make flour? They grew wheat, of course. When the wheat produces wheat berries (wheat seeds), they separate the wheat berries from the chaff—the parts surrounding the wheat berries that are not part of the berries. (Wind can easily separate the chaff from the berries.) They then take the berries and grind them to powder. The quickest way was using millstones—stones that easily crushed the dried wheat berries to powder if the stones were shaped like wheels and turned against another hard surface. A much harder way is shown next. The dried wheat berries were ground to powder with much labour if the stones were shaped like rolling pins that someone had to roll against a hard surface.

 

 

From http://hubpages.com/hub/Under-the-Mill-Stone; see this interesting web page!

Can you see the emotion in this woman’s face? 

 

 

From fordenwatermill.co.uk; an interesting mill in Great Britain–see the web page!

 

       Once the flour (powder) was mixed with water and the dough was made, it could then be protected with cloth until yeast (that makes the dough rise) found its way into the dough through the cloth; the yeast would then eat part of the flour and give off gases that cause the dough to rise. The dough didn’t have time to acquire the yeast, so it was unleavened.

 

4.    What does “before he will vinegarize” mean? The word vinegarize is a made-up word. It describes the process of the yeast going beyond just leavening the bread all the way to making vinegar in the bread (and thus, sourdough bread). As the bread leavened, some of the yeast began to produce vinegar. The bread was very good!

 

5.    Why did they bind up their kneadingtroughs in their clothes and upon their shoulder (as if they all shared just one shoulder)? Kneadingtroughs were very important to them. They didn’t want to lose them; they were hard to make. Their clothes were layered so that they could tie objects that were important to them in their clothes while they walked.

 

       They are described as having just one shoulder in common; they were behaving as a group. There might be one kneadingtrough for a large family; they could share carrying the kneadingtrough as if they had a common shoulder.

 

6.    If they asked for these utensils from Egypt, whom did they ask? Yehovah had told them to ask their Egyptian neighbours for these items.

 

7.    Silver is valuable, and gold is even more valuable. Isn’t clothing very inexpensive? It was extremely expensive and very valuable in those days. Garments then cost more than a new car does today—especially if they were fine garments. The Israelis were asking for very expensive items from the Egyptians.

 

8.    What does “Yehovah gave the favour of the People in the eyes of Egypt” mean? This means that Yehovah caused the eyes of Egypt—the eyes of the Egyptians—to favour the people of Israel so much that they willingly gave gold utensils, silver utensils, and very valuable clothing to the Israelis.

 

9.    What were the Egyptians thinking that they became willing to give valuables to their slave neighbours? The text doesn’t say except that the Egyptians thought they were all about to be killed by Yehovah. The only way they knew to appease (that is, to calm down) Yehovah from His great wrath against Egypt for enslaving His property was to give valuables to the Israelis upon request. If this is correct, this was their gift to Yehovah. On the other hand, the Egyptians may have been thinking about this slave people, and the individuals at their doors took their hearts (minds).

 

10. Did Yehovah make the Egyptians change their minds by using His own power to overrule what they were thinking? No. The miracles of the plagues did that. Instead, He gave favour in the eyes of the Egyptians.

 

11. Why does the text describe favour being given in the eyes of the Egyptians? The Egyptians looked at the asking Israelis, and favour filled their minds. It is as if they suddenly had an affection for those who came to their doors. (Humans can favour on sight.) This may have been the first time that they truly saw the Israelis (instead of seeing a bunch of slaves).

 

12. Who rescued Egypt, and how did this occur? The common Egyptian citizens gave to the Israelis. Yet, the ones who rescued Egypt were the Israelis by asking for these items. The Israelis had been slaves to the Egyptians without cause. The Israelis were the property of Yehovah. Therefore, the Egyptians were using Yehovah’s property by force without paying them for their services. Yehovah was about to destroy the Egyptian economy, and that would have meant that the Egyptians would have become slaves to others. When the Israelis asked for the items, they were taking payment for the services rendered for four hundred years—pennies on the dollar; yet payment. That stopped Yehovah from destroying Egypt. Thus, the Israelis rescued Egypt.

 

 

 

XXVI. The Multitude’s Mix (verses 37-38)

 

The children of Israel journeyed as a giant group. They went from Raamses to Succot in the first leg of their journey. There were 600,000 feet of valiant ones that were walking. This number didn’t include the count of little ones. The Israelis were joined by a great mixture of other folks. They traveled with a heavy flock and a heavy herd of livestock.

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    How far is Raamses from Succot?

 

(Both maps from Access Foundation, Zaine Ridling, Ph.D., Editor)

 

       It is about 20 miles.

 

2.    How many valiant ones traveled, according to this text? The text states that there were 600,000 feet of the valiant ones. Since folks normally have two feet each, this gives the impression that there were 300,000 persons who were valiant. If the text is referring to 600,000 persons on foot, that would be a very different number. I will assume that it is 300,000 persons who are valiant.

 

3.    Why did Yehovah describe it this way instead of giving the number of persons, and why is this important? Wording it the way He did shows that they walked—they didn’t ride, and they weren’t carried. 600,000 feet is a large number of feet to be crossing at the same time. Since these were the valiant ones, that was an army of 300,000 that was crossing Egypt in the night. This is what the Egyptians had feared.

 

       Also, describing it this way is from a young child’s perspective. (Children look at feet when they are very young.) A young child saw all those feet walking in the night.

 

4.    Why does the text mention the number of valiant ones instead of the entire population? The valiant ones are the ones who will later be trained to fight in war. They don’t include the following parts of the population:

 

• The women (though there will be plenty of valiant women among the Israelis)
• The younger teenagers (boys and girls)
• The children (boys and girls)
• The babies (boys and girls)
• The very aged men (who might have been valiant, but now are more fragile)

       Speaking of the valiant men gives the number of the army of Israel.

 

5.    What was the total population of the Israelis leaving at this time? The reader must calculate, since this total isn’t given. Valiant ones will certainly be less than a fourth of the population—more like an eighth, if that. If we assume that they are an eighth of the population, 8 X 300,000 = 2,400,000. Thus, more than 2,000,000 Israelis left.

 

6.    Why does the text say, “beside a little one” instead of, say, “besides the little ones,” and why doesn’t it mention the women, the teenagers, the elders, etc.? The word beside means apart from, in addition to. The number of little ones was very large. Biblical Hebrew switches to the singular form when mentioning a uniform group that is very large.

 

       The text didn’t mention the women, the teenagers, the elders, etc. because it didn’t need to mention them. By speaking of the little one traveling with the valiant ones, it shows all between, and that everyone traveled. A reader will realize that any little one will be traveling with a woman, since the little one will be breastfed.

 

7.    Of what did this great mixture (that ascended with the Israelis) consist? It consisted of many Egyptians and persons from many other races who experienced the plagues and the works of the power of the Gods of Israel! Egypt was a very great country with very great building projects occurring (before the plagues nearly destroyed the land). Others from many other races therefore came to Egypt to participate in its work. The great mixture was from these other races.

 

8.    What is a very heavy flock? Since heavy also means important, this was a huge flock (of sheep and goats) that the Israelis owned. (They knew their own sheep and goats, and the sheep and goats knew their own masters; sorting them out after they journeyed could be done later. Right now, it appeared to be one huge flock.)

 

9.    What is a herd of livestock? This was a major cattle drive! Again, the animals would be sorted out later; right now, they came together to form a very large herd of cattle and all types of livestock (I propose that horses, camels, asses, etc. would have been with these animals). The Israelis were slaves; yet they still acquired animals for milk, food, and for other reasons.

 

 

 

XXVII. Eating Matzah (verse 39)

 

The group became hungry. They baked the dough that they had brought from Egypt; they were discs of matzah (unleavened bread). None of the bread was ‘vinegarized’—it hadn’t leavened, and it hadn’t gone to sourdough. The Israelis had been forced from Egypt.

 

The Israelis were not able to “What?What?” themselves—they hadn’t had time to ask questions about how they were supposed to provide anything for themselves. They hadn’t had opportunity to make victuals for themselves.

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What are discs of Matzah? To find this out, take some flour (not self-rising flour, but plain flour—either whole wheat or regular)—say, about a cup of flour. Mix it slowly with water so that you end up with a ball of dough that isn’t too wet; keep kneading it with your hands until it is a dough ball. (If you get it too wet where it is just very sticky, add dry flour until it isn’t so sticky.) Now, clear and clean a section of a counter where you can roll out the dough, and find a rolling pin. Drop some of the dry flour on the counter (I like to use a flour sifter for this, since I don’t need much, but the sifter spreads it very well). Place your dough ball on the flour that you dropped onto the counter, and begin to slowly stretch out and squeeze the dough to form what looks like a piece of rope. Then lay it on the counter and use the rolling pin to begin to flatten the rope. Make it very thin. Make sure it doesn’t stick to the counter; if it does, carefully lift it and drop some more flour onto the counter to keep it from sticking. You spread flour on the rolling pin to keep it from sticking, too. Once it is very thin, take a fork and make holes all over the flat disc of matzah—that is what you have. Now, with parental help (if you aren’t old enough to do this or if you don’t have permission), warm up the oven to about 350 degrees, and place the disc on a cooking sheet—it is usually made of aluminum. Put your disc into the oven until it is lightly brown, though you may want to bring it out early so that it is softer. Try it; it won’t have much flavour. Now, put some butter and honey on it; it will be very good. Try cream cheese and honey; it will be even better! You are eating part of a disc of matzah!

 

2.    What does “they were not able to WHAT?WHAT? themselves” mean? They didn’t have time to ask, “What about this?” and “What about that?” “What will happen to us?” “What will happen to our cattle?” “How will we survive?” “Where will we live?” They didn’t have time or the opportunity to ask the many questions that they had. This is called What?What?-ing oneself in Hebrew!

 

3.    What are victuals? They are prepared foods. The word victuals is pronounced vittles in some cultures.

 

4.    Why didn’t they make victuals? They didn’t have time! The Israelis didn’t realize that they were going to be evicted as an entire group that night!

 

 

 

XXVIII. Exiting after Centuries, and Guarding (verses 40-42)

 

The children of the man whose name was Israel settled in Egypt and remained in that same location for 430 years. At the very day that period of time ended, all the armies of Yehovah exited from the land of Egypt. That very night is a night of guardings to Yehovah to cause an exit from the land of Egypt. This is the very night that belongs to Yehovah that all the children of Israel must guard to their generations!

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    How long did the Israelis live in Egypt? They lived a total of 430 years! That is more than four centuries!

 

2.    The text states, “And he was from the end of 30 year[s] and 400 year[s].” Who was from the end of 430 years? He refers to the event that is being described. It took place at the end of 430 years.

 

3.    What does “And he was in this selfsame day” tell the reader? In the very day when 430 years ended, this eviction from Egypt took place!

 

4.    What are these armies of Yehovah that exited from the land of Egypt? These armies include the following:

 

• The army of the Israelis (though this army doesn’t yet know how to fight; Yehovah will teach that)
• The army of angels that ministered to the Israelis
• Armies of Yehovah that will be born from the Israelis in future generations

       I suspect that there are more armies than these, but I can’t think of any more that exited. This wording tells me that a future exit of armies from the land of Egypt will occur!

 

       The armies of the frogs, the lice, the locusts, the hail, the lightning, etc. had already exited from the land, and now the Israelis were also exiting. Yehovah has many armies that He can use when He desires to use them!

 

5.    What does “He is a night of guardings to Yehovah to make-exit from the land of Egypt” tell the careful reader? This will tell the careful reader that such an exit will happen again in the future. This night must be guarded (and thus remembered and watched). Yet, the wording is that it is a “night of guardings”—that is, a night when the Israelis must be on guard for various dangers. Now, the text doesn’t stop there; it states that it is a “night of guardings to Yehovah to make-exit from the land of Egypt! Thus, Yehovah will be doing guardings—guarding various Israeli groups that will escape from the land of Egypt in the future when that land will have another pharaoh—a terrible pharaoh who will seek to destroy Israel! That pharaoh will be called by several different titles, the most famous title being the antichrist. He will take over Egypt, and will set about to keep the Israelis (who are in Egypt at that time) in Egypt in order to kill them when he figures the time is right.

 

       (Another event that will take place at another time will again find the Egyptians themselves helping the Israelis. At that time and in that day, the Egyptians will camouflage the Israelis so that they will leave in plain sight before this future pharaoh’s army, the soldiers not knowing that the Israelis are leaving. Yehovah will guard the Israelis so that they won’t be noticed while they leave.)

 

6.    On which night will these guardings take place? This will occur in a far future century, and on the very night of the Skip-Over! Yehovah will be doing guardings, guarding all the children of Israel from that time forward and to all their generations! The Israelis will finally be free from double adversities (from twice the amount of attacks from enemies)! (The word Mitzraim, which is Egypt in Hebrew, means double adversity.)

 

 

 

XXIX. The Statute of the Skip-Over (verses 43-47)

 

Yehovah communicated information about the statute of the Skip-Over to Moshe and Aharon:

 

• Every son of a foreigner will not eat in him.
• Every slave that has been bought using silver and who has been ‘fronted’ (circumcised) will eat in him.
• A ‘sitter’ (squatter) and a hireling (person hired from another land) will not eat in him.
• The Skip-Over must be eaten in one house.
• The meat from the Skip-Over must not be taken outside of the house.
• No one is permitted to break a bone of the Skip-Over.
• Everyone who is part of the witness of Israel shall do the Skip-Over.

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Why can’t a son of a foreigner eat in the Skip-Over? The wording, son of a foreigner isn’t the same as a foreigner. Yehovah didn’t say, “Every foreigner will not eat in him.” The foreigner in the Bible refers to foreign and false gods. The son of a foreigner is a son of a false god. This refers to any person from any race who is related to his/her (false) god as one who believes in Yehovah is related to Yehovah! Such a person is foreign to Yehovah, and will not eat that lamb.

 

       If a person from a foreign land desires to eat the Skip-Over lamb, that person first must change from being the son of a foreigner.

 

2.    What does “fronted him” mean? This refers to circumcision—removing the foreskin of the male’s penis. The foreskin is considered the most front portion of a male’s body.

 

3.    The text states, “every slave, a man bought of silver and thou hast ‘fronted’ him, then he will eat in him.” Must the slave believe in Yehovah to eat the Skip-Over? No. The Israelis themselves didn’t believe in Yehovah (with a few exceptions), and they could eat the Skip-Over. The slave that has been purchased using silver pictures a person from another race who has been redeemed (that is, purchased from a captive state). Silver pictures redemption. That slave must be circumcised; then he can eat. Those two are the only requirements.

 

4.    Suppose that a slave has been captured in a war, and therefore wasn’t bought using silver; can he still eat the Skip-Over lamb? He must first be bought of silver! This text doesn’t describe how that occurs, and it doesn’t describe who gets paid. I propose this: Whenever any ruler in Israel commands that a census be taken, everyone counted must pay a half-shekel of silver. This newly captured slave is now numbered among the Israelis; I propose that the master must pay a half-shekel of silver (to the Temple treasury) to redeem this slave. If I am right, he has now been “bought of silver.”

 

5.    What is a sitter? It is what we call a squatter—a person who is from a foreign land (in this case) who is just dwelling in the land of Israel. This person has no investment in Israel, and isn’t becoming part of the people of Israel. He/she cannot participate in eating the Skip-Over.

 

6.    Why can’t a sitter eat in the Skip-Over lamb? The person is just like the son of a foreigner, but is temporarily located in Israel. The Israelis must not mistreat the person, but the person isn’t truly invested as a neighbour. The sitter pictures a person who is just there, but isn’t willing to give himself to save the life of another.

 

7.    What is a hireling? This is a person who is from another land and has been hired to work in the land of Israel. This person cannot participate in eating the Skip-Over.

 

8.    What is wrong with a hireling eating in the Skip-Over? The hireling shows a picture of a person who is hired, and therefore isn’t truly invested in the work that the person does. A hireling shepherd, for example, won’t risk or give his own life to save some sheep; a real shepherd would!

 

9.    Suppose that a sitter or a hireling truly desires to eat in the Skip-Over: is there a way that the person can? Absolutely! The person must have a change of status! If, for example, the person becomes a citizen of Israel by becoming part of the people of Israel, fully investing himself/herself in Israel, that person is no longer a ‘sitter’ (squatter) or a hireling. That person is now a brother Israeli.

 

10. Why must the Skip-Over be eaten in one house? It cannot be taken outside or to another house, and those eating it cannot go outside. This pictures what will happen in the End Times. Those Israelis and others who are invested in the Israelis will have to stay where they are; Yehovah will provide the Skip-Over animal. They must prepare the animal and stay in one house together. They will be safe; Yehovah is doing the guarding. If they go outside, however, they will be proving themselves outside of the House of Israel, and therefore they will be killed. That flesh (meat) that has been provided is for that one house, and it isn’t for surrounding houses. Those houses must take Yehovah’s provision in the very same way.

 

       The Skip-Over lamb pictures Yeshua, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Removing Yeshua the Lamb from the House of Israel changes everything and makes the sacrifice of Yeshua invalid. (Many churches today teach a salvation that has nothing to do with the House of Israel; that salvation isn’t valid.)

 

11. What is wrong with breaking a bone in the cooked lamb? This is prophetic; it describes what didn’t happen to Yeshua when He was sacrificed: none of His bones was broken!

 

12. Explain “All the witness of Israel—they shall do him”: Him refers to the lamb. The witness of Israel is when all Israel is a single witness of an event or events. All the Israelis that make up this single witness must do him—must sacrifice the Lamb of Yehovah. That is the only way that the sacrifice will be beneficial to Israel and to the rest of the world.

 

 

 

XXX. Statutes Regarding the Sojourner (verses 48-50)

 

If a sojourner (a traveler from another land) will sojourn with the people of Israel and will do Skip-Over to Yehovah, every male in the group with the sojourner must first be circumcised. Only then is he allowed to approach to do the Skip-Over. The sojourner will then be as the native Israeli. No foreskin is permitted to do the Skip-Over.

 

There is one teaching to the native and to the sojourner who sojourns in the midst of the Israelis.

 

All the children of Israel did exactly as Yehovah commanded Moshe and Aharon. They really did!

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    Who can be a sojourner? A person is a sojourner who is a non-Israeli and who is traveling through Israel to reach a destination. This is quite different from being a foreigner in the Bible, though a sojourner will be a non-Israeli. (Israelis can travel, of course, and thus can sojourn, but they still are not considered sojourners in the way that this text speaks of sojourners.) The faith of a sojourner is not an issue in this text.

 

2.    The text states, “if a sojourner will sojourn with thee…” Does the sojourner have to stay with an Israeli (that is, lodge in the Israeli’s tent or house) in order to qualify? Where the sojourner lodges at night has nothing to do with this text. The sojourner can lodge (spend the night) in the tent or home of an Israeli, or can use his/her own tent; he/she is still sojourning “with thee.”

 

3.    Who is thee in “if a sojourner will sojourn with thee”? Thee refers to Israel (as if Israel is one person).

 

4.    What must the sojourner do in order to do Skip-Over to Yehovah? The sojourner himself must be circumcised, and every male in his group must also be circumcised. If other males in his group refuse to be circumcised, none of the males in that group will be permitted to do Skip-Over to Yehovah. (If one person desires to do this, and at least one of the other males refuses, the one person who desires to do the Skip-Over can separate from the others while sojourning in Israel; that way, there will be two different groups of sojourners.)

 

5.    Why must every male in the group submit to circumcision if just one desires to do the Skip-Over? Yehovah is teaching about group responsibility. One member of a group must have the same goals as the rest of the group, or must leave the group during the Tribulation. If one person becomes heart-circumcised—that is, if one person determines to be rid of sinful desires in order to save the lives of others, he/she must not stay with a group that isn’t determined to do the same things. (That will end with violence and with the deaths of innocent folks.) This command pictures things to come, like one of those things I have described.

 

6.    What must the person approach in order to do the Skip-Over? Every Skip-Over refers to the lamb; every Skip-Over is a sacrifice. An Israeli and a sojourner must approach the altar of Yehovah in order for the lamb to properly be the Skip-Over. (Slaughtering a lamb to eat it without using a priest and without doing a sacrifice is fine, but it isn’t a Skip-Over.) One who approaches an altar of Yehovah is approaching Yehovah.

 

7.    Is Yehovah calling an uncircumcised person a foreskin? Yes!

 

8.    Why does Yehovah have one teaching (Torah) for the native and the sojourner instead of different teachings for the two groups? This again reflects the Tribulation and the events that will occur in it. Groups of ‘good guys’ at that time will consist of both Jewish and non-Jewish folks (just as there were folks from other races who joined themselves to the Israelis in Egypt when they first went out from Egypt). The one teaching is one set of instructions and warnings for both, since the dangers will be the same for both and the need for heroism will also be the same for both.

 

9.    Again, what is so amazing about the children of Israel doing just as Yehovah command Moshe and Aharon? It was so amazing since the Israelis almost never do things totally together, and they almost never perfectly obey what Yehovah tells them to do through prophets whom He has sent. This was also very strange considering the protests and hatred that the Israelis gained for Moshe and Aharon after their words to Pharaoh greatly increased their workloads!

 

 

 

XXXI. The Israelis Finally Exit upon their Armies (verse 51)

 

In that very day, Yehovah exited the children of Israel from the land of Egypt upon their armies!

 

 

 

Questions

 

1.    What took place in this selfsame day? The text is about to inform the reader what took place!

 

2.    How did they exit upon their armies? The Hebrew word translated upon can also mean to become beside someone or something. Think of it this way: “The man came upon a rider of a horse, and he called out to him.” The word upon can show coming into contact with or becoming close to someone or something. If this is the case, the Israelis now saw each other in a very large group; they saw their own armies.

 

       Yet, the Israelis will be riding upon armies that are designated for them during the Tribulation! One of those armies will be the angels of Yehovah who will transport them using flight! Yehovah will have a number of armies who will aid the Israelis when the Israelis are ready to do what is right.