²¹ Then ^(A)Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, “Go and ^(B)take for yourselves ^[a]lambs according to your families, and slaughter ^(C)the Passover lamb. ²² And ^(D)you shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood which is in the basin, and ^[b]apply some of the blood that is in the basin to the lintel and the two doorposts; and none of you shall go outside the door of his house until morning.

A Memorial of Redemption

²³ For ^(E)the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians; but when He sees the blood on the lintel and on the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will ^(F)not allow the ^(G)destroyer to come in to your houses to strike you. ²⁴ And ^(H)you shall keep this event as an ordinance for you and your children forever. ²⁵ When you enter the land which the Lord will give you, as He has ^[c]promised, you shall keep this ^[d]rite. ^26 (I)And when your children say to you, ‘^[e]What does this rite mean to you?’ ²⁷ then you shall say, ‘It is a Passover sacrifice to ^(J)the Lord because He passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt when He struck the Egyptians, but ^[f]spared our homes.’” ^(K)And the people bowed low and worshiped.

²⁸ Then the sons of Israel went and did so; just as the Lord had commanded Moses and Aaron, so they did.

²⁹ Now it came about at ^(L)midnight that ^(M)the Lord struck all ^(N)the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of ^(O)cattle. ³⁰ And Pharaoh got up in the night, he and all his servants and all the Egyptians, and there was ^(P)a great cry in Egypt, for there was no home where there was not someone dead.