Almost everyone on the planet has heard of the Exodus story. We sing songs about Moses speaking to Pharaoh, telling him to “let YHVHs” people go”, and there are scores of movies about it as well. Anyway, while at our Passover Seder last night, part of the way through it, it hit me a little different. Have you ever had one of those moments where something you thought you knew hit you in a different way, and you realize that what you thought you knew, you really didn’t? I hope I didn’t lose you guys with that.
Well, having read this story countless times, I really thought I had this thing on lock, but by the time I left our Passover Seder, my mind was blown. Nowhere in the history of mankind has there ever been a story of this magnitude. We read that YHVH called Moshe to be His representative as He delivered His people Israel from Egypt. He tells Moshe that this will not be an easy task, and that Pharaoh will not be easily persuaded at releasing Israel out from under his control. In fact, things will get much worse before they get better.
YHVH instructs Moshe to give Pharaoh the opportunity to release His people without consequence, but he refuses. In fact, he questions “who is YHVH”? I don’t know Him”. Moses then pronounces a judgement upon Egypt. The way this goes down confirms Amos 3:7, in that YHVH informs His prophets of a pending judgement, so that they may warn the people, giving them a chance to repent beforehand. In any case, the pleas went un heeded, and in turn, a judgement was pronounced on all of Egypt. After a period of suffering, YHVH causes the plague or judgement to end, and sends Moshe to speak to him yet again.
Nine times this happens, and nine times he refuses to submit. This brings us to where I want to get to. YHVH tells Moshe, there is yet one last plague to go, and this one is worse than the last nine. After the 10th plague, Pharaoh will actually demand that you leave, and all Israel with you. In preparation for what was to come, YHVH speaks to Moshe about the institution of Passover. There are some things that Israel needed to do, to ensure that they were not impacted by what was about to happen.
From the text we read earlier, they were instructed to get a lamb, one that was perfect, and was also a year old. It was to be killed, and it’s blood was to be dashed on the door posts of the people’s houses. This would ensure that as the Messenger of Death came through the land, He would pass over the houses that had the blood sprinkled on it, and move on to those houses without the blood. The people were also to eat of the lamb that had been slaughtered, and this would be an institution for all time. YHVH wanted these events to be remembered for all generations in that there connected to something He had planned to do later.
We are all aware that Yeshua was YHVH’s Passover Lamb. And much like the lambs chosen by Israel, He too had to be perfect, without blemish, and a yearling also. The Passover Lamb was to represent what Yeshua would be for us, and only by recalling the events of the Exodus would His sacrifice make sense to us. Let’s fast forward to Yeshua in the Garden of Gethsemane. We understand that the wrath of YHVH was against mankind because of sin, and due to this, death was inevitable. There had to be a perfect sacrifice in place to protect us, hence Yeshua. The 10th cup represents death. death was a thing that Yeshua never had to face before. Death is the end. The concept of hope becomes lost in death. The connection between us and YHVH becomes severed in death. For this reason, Yeshua was really dreading what was to come. It was not the actual idea of death, but rather the severed ties between He and His Father due to death.
Nonetheless, He understood that it was His Father's will that it went down this way, that through this act, mankind could once again be redeemed. It was the love for His Father, and for us, that He gave Himself in this manner. And just as His blood had been spilt on that cross, it would cover us who were connected to Him in relationship in the same way the blood of the lambs sprinkled on the doorpost did for all Israel. Just as the 10th cup had been pronounced over Egypt, we know that according to the book of Revelation that the cup of His wrath will soon be poured out on a grander scale, and as it was in Egypt, only those covered with the blood of Yeshua will be spared. If you have not been covered by His blood, there is no time like the present to do so. Blessings!
