Passover, the feast of salvation, begins tonight at sundown. As many around the world and those of us in America are locked down in our homes, we can’t help but notice the similarities to the time when the Israelites were told to stay in their homes; sacrifice a lamb without blemish; take of its blood and sprinkle it on the door posts of their homes; eat the lamb with unleavened bread and bitter herbs, with their loins girded, shoes on their feet, and staff in hand. For the Lord passed through the land of Egypt with the plague of bringing death to the firstborn, except those with the blood of the lamb on the doorposts. It was the final plague visited by the Lord on Egypt. Exodus 12:11 says, “It is the Lord’s Passover.”
The importance of Passover for Christians is that Christ, the lamb of God, was crucified on the day of the feast. Christ told his disciples in Matthew 26:2, “Ye know that after two days is the feast of the Passover, and the Son of man is betrayed to be crucified.” He then held an early Seder (Passover feast) in which he spoke of the wine as his blood and the bread as his body. The events of the evening followed where Christ was taken in the garden, brought before the priests who sought a false witness to put him to death, but as Matthew 26:60 says, “But found none.” He was taken before Pilate who also could find no fault in him, but allowed the people to decide if he should be crucified.
There is much discussion about the timing of the resurrection of Christ, but it follows the Hebrew calendar perfectly. The Hebrew calendar starts its days from sundown to sundown, making its timing far different than the Gregorian calendar that we follow. The sacrifice of the Passover lambs needed to be completed before sundown on Nisan 14 (which is Wednesday on the Hebrew calendar this year). The Messiah was nailed to the cross, suffered, died and was buried before sundown at the beginning of Nisan 14. He remained in the grave until sometime after sundown, the beginning of Nissan 17 and the dawn of the first day of the week.
Today, like the Israelites in the first Passover, we are in our homes to avoid a deadly plague. People are seeking signs that these are the end of days. Many are making new prophecies, and reading conspiracy into every event. Let’s be clear: Numerous prophecies must take place before the end. In Matthew 24, Christ outlines many of them, the specific details of which are found in the books of the prophets. Let us also remember that the Israelites were not removed from the plagues against Egypt, which are very similar to the plagues in Revelation, and the Lord led them out after the last plague. While COVID-19 may be a type and shadow of what is to come, it is not a Revelation judgment. It is, however, a solemn time to honor Christ’s work on the cross for the salvation of mankind, beginning with Passover.
