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The Passover

12 (A) Some time later the Lord said to Moses and Aaron:

This month[a] is to be the first month of the year for you. Tell the people of Israel that on the tenth day of this month the head of each family must choose a lamb or a young goat for his family to eat. 4-5 If any family is too small to eat the whole animal, they must share it with their next-door neighbors. Choose either a sheep or a goat, but it must be a one-year-old male that has nothing wrong with it. And it must be large enough for everyone to have some of the meat.

Each family must take care of its animal until the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, when the animals are to be killed. Some of the blood must be put on the two doorposts and above the door of each house where the animals are to be eaten. That night the animals are to be roasted and eaten, together with bitter herbs and thin bread made without yeast. Don't eat the meat raw or boiled. The entire animal, including its head, legs, and insides, must be roasted. 10 Eat what you want that night, and the next morning burn whatever is left. 11 When you eat the meal, be dressed and ready to travel. Have your sandals on, carry your walking stick in your hand, and eat quickly. This is the Passover Festival in honor of me, your Lord.

12 That same night I will pass through Egypt and kill the first-born son in every family and the first-born male of all animals. I am the Lord, and I will punish the gods of Egypt.

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Footnotes

  1. 12.2 This month: Abib (also called Nisan), the first month of the Hebrew calendar, from about mid-March to mid-April.

The Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread(A)

12 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron in Egypt, “This month is to be for you the first month,(B) the first month of your year. Tell the whole community of Israel that on the tenth day of this month each man is to take a lamb[a](C) for his family, one for each household.(D) If any household is too small for a whole lamb, they must share one with their nearest neighbor, having taken into account the number of people there are. You are to determine the amount of lamb needed in accordance with what each person will eat. The animals you choose must be year-old males without defect,(E) and you may take them from the sheep or the goats. Take care of them until the fourteenth day of the month,(F) when all the members of the community of Israel must slaughter them at twilight.(G) Then they are to take some of the blood(H) and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. That same night(I) they are to eat the meat roasted(J) over the fire, along with bitter herbs,(K) and bread made without yeast.(L) Do not eat the meat raw or boiled in water, but roast it over a fire—with the head, legs and internal organs.(M) 10 Do not leave any of it till morning;(N) if some is left till morning, you must burn it. 11 This is how you are to eat it: with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste;(O) it is the Lord’s Passover.(P)

12 “On that same night I will pass through(Q) Egypt and strike down(R) every firstborn(S) of both people and animals, and I will bring judgment on all the gods(T) of Egypt. I am the Lord.(U)

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Footnotes

  1. Exodus 12:3 The Hebrew word can mean lamb or kid; also in verse 4.