It was God's commandment that the Israelites remember the Passover throughout all generations. It was through the Passover that God demonstrated His hand of deliverance and salvation to them. The Passover marks the beginning of months in the Hebrew Calendar (Ex 12:2). The festival of the Passover has been a Jewish tradition for thousands of years and is used to retell how God delivered the Jewish nation from the bondage of enslavement.

God commanded that the Israelites take a young male lamb without blemish and take it into their homes on the tenth day and kill it at twilight of the 14th day (this is done that the family may observe that it is a lamb without blemish and develop affection for the animal) (Ex 12:3-6). They are to take the blood of the lamb and put it on the two door posts and lintel of the house (the cross piece of the door) and then cook the animal and eat it with bitter herbs. The bitter herbs represent the bitterness of slavery (Ex 12:7-11).

Unknown to the Israelites, God was setting up a prophetical model of a future event. God would offer Himself as a sacrifice for the atonement of sin. Like the blood on the door posts, Jesus would be nailed to a wooden cross, and thereby receiving God's judgment for sin upon Himself. Jesus fulfilled the sacrificial aspects of Passover. Like the lamb that was to be taken into the house by the Israelites, Jesus entered Jerusalem on a donkey five days before Passover that He may be found to be sinless (no blemishes). Pilate declared he found nothing in Him and Israel cried to have Him crucified:

John 19:6 - As soon as the chief priests and their officials saw him, they shouted, "Crucify! Crucify!"
But Pilate answered, "You take him and crucify him. As for me, I find no basis for a charge against him."

The Last Supper was a Passover seder (the Jewish Passover supper). During the meal, Jesus broke unleavened bread and said, “This is my body which is given for you.” He then took the cup and said, “This is the new covenant in my blood.” The next day He was crucified on the cross as the the Lamb of God and rose again on the third day.

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The Cross Was a Significant Part of The Exodus

After the Israelites departed Egypt, God led them into the wilderness to demonstrate to them the need to trust in Him and to serve Him. After reaching Mt. Sinai, God gave them the Ten Commandments (His covenant with Israel). The Ten Commandments were carried in the Ark of the Covenant. When the Israelites were encamped, they would erect the Tabernacle, which housed the Ark of the Covenant. The Israelites are instructed to encamp around the the Tabernacle (described in Numbers Chapter 2).

Most people believe that the Christian cross (as a symbol of religion) has its origins in the New Testament. However, this is not so as the cross is described in the Old Testament (See encampment of the Israelites).

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Last Updated 10-26-2003

The Genesis Files