Biblical Question

What is the meaning of the Passover?

Retrieved texts include Luke 22:1, Hebrews 11:28, Exodus 12:27, 2 Chronicles 35:6.

The texts do not directly address broader modern formulations; NO DIRECT REFERENCE IN SOURCE TEXTS and INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE apply beyond retrieved passages.

Related Questions
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Expanded Query
Passover | Pesach | deliverance from Egypt | redemption | lamb of God | atonement | sprinkling of blood | covenant | exodus | memorial feast | salvation type | prefigurement of Christ's sacrifice
Answer

THEOLOGICAL ANALYSIS: The Meaning of the Passover

1. QUESTION

What is the meaning of the Passover as attested in the biblical texts provided?

2. PRIMARY TEXTUAL EVIDENCE

Foundational Definition

"That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD'S passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped." — Exodus 12:27 (KJV)

Designation as the LORD's Observance

"And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD'S passover." — Exodus 12:11 (KJV)

"In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S passover." — Leviticus 23:5 (KJV)

Sacrificial and Blood Elements

"Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover." — Exodus 12:21 (KJV)

"Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them." — Hebrews 11:28 (KJV)

"And they killed the passover, and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the Levites flayed them." — 2 Chronicles 35:11 (KJV)

Christological Application

"For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us." — 1 Corinthians 5:7 (KJV)

3. LINGUISTIC/HISTORICAL DATA

From the texts provided:

  • The term "passover" is explicitly connected to the verbal action of God "passing over" the houses of Israel (Exodus 12:27)
  • Temporal specification: Consistently dated to "the fourteenth day of the first month" (Leviticus 23:5; Numbers 28:16; Numbers 9:5; Ezekiel 45:21)
  • Association with unleavened bread: Luke 22:1 and Ezekiel 45:21 indicate the Passover was closely linked with the Feast of Unleavened Bread
  • Sacrificial animals: Deuteronomy 16:2 specifies offerings "of the flock and the herd," while Exodus 12:21 specifies a lamb

4. SCHOLARLY POSITIONS (As Suggested by the Texts)

The provided texts indicate two dimensions of meaning:

| Dimension | Textual Basis | |-----------|---------------| | Historical-Commemorative | Exodus 12:27 presents it as a memorial of divine deliverance from Egypt and judgment upon the Egyptians | | Typological-Christological | 1 Corinthians 5:7 explicitly identifies Christ as the Passover sacrifice, suggesting the original event prefigured redemption through Christ |

The texts do not provide sufficient material to adjudicate between various scholarly positions on how these dimensions interrelate.

5. SOURCES

  1. Exodus 12:11 (KJV)
  2. Exodus 12:21 (KJV)
  3. Exodus 12:27 (KJV)
  4. Leviticus 23:5 (KJV)
  5. Numbers 9:5 (KJV)
  6. Numbers 28:16 (KJV)
  7. Deuteronomy 16:2 (KJV)
  8. 2 Chronicles 35:6 (KJV)
  9. 2 Chronicles 35:11 (KJV)
  10. Ezekiel 45:21 (KJV)
  11. Luke 22:1 (KJV)
  12. John 6:4 (KJV)
  13. 1 Corinthians 5:7 (KJV)
  14. Hebrews 9:19 (KJV)
  15. Hebrews

INSUFFICIENT EVIDENCE: retrieved texts do not resolve this question explicitly.

Sources
Luke 22:1 (KJV) — score 0.578
Now the feast of unleavened bread drew nigh, which is called the Passover.
Hebrews 11:28 (KJV) — score 0.577
Through faith he kept the passover, and the sprinkling of blood, lest he that destroyed the firstborn should touch them.
Exodus 12:27 (KJV) — score 0.558
That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD'S passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped.
2 Chronicles 35:6 (KJV) — score 0.539
So kill the passover, and sanctify yourselves, and prepare your brethren, that they may do according to the word of the LORD by the hand of Moses.
Ezekiel 45:21 (KJV) — score 0.538
In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten.
John 6:4 (KJV) — score 0.530
And the passover, a feast of the Jews, was nigh.
1 Corinthians 5:7 (KJV) — score 0.529
Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us:
Hebrews 9:19 (KJV) — score 0.529
For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,
Leviticus 23:5 (KJV) — score 0.527
In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD'S passover.
Exodus 12:21 (KJV) — score 0.525
¶ Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel, and said unto them, Draw out and take you a lamb according to your families, and kill the passover.
Exodus 12:11 (KJV) — score 0.520
¶ And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD'S passover.
Deuteronomy 16:2 (KJV) — score 0.515
Thou shalt therefore sacrifice the passover unto the LORD thy God, of the flock and the herd, in the place which the LORD shall choose to place his name there.
2 Chronicles 35:11 (KJV) — score 0.515
And they killed the passover, and the priests sprinkled the blood from their hands, and the Levites flayed them.
Numbers 28:16 (KJV) — score 0.507
And in the fourteenth day of the first month is the passover of the LORD.
Numbers 9:5 (KJV) — score 0.507
And they kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month at even in the wilderness of Sinai: according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so did the children of Israel.
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