What are the differences between the Passover and the Lord's Supper? The apostle Paul referred to "the last supper" of Jesus Christ as "the Lord's supper" (I Corinthians 11:20) in teaching Gentile Christians to observe the symbols of Christ's death. WHEN should the Passover, or the "Lord's supper" be observed? At the beginning of the fourteenth of Nisan (Abib); coinciding with Jesus' famous last supper - or at the end of the fourteenth, on the beginning of the fifteenth, when the Jews celebrated the Passover during the time of Christ? Here is the TRUTH about the Passover and the Lord's supper from the pages of your own Bible!

       When God commanded Israel to observe the first Passover it was an utterly unique occasion in all history. The first Passover was a monumental historical occurrence; an absolutely unique event which had never happened previously, and which has never happened since.

      For centuries, Israel had been a nation of slaves. Knowledge of annual seasons, the weekly cycle, the seventh day Sabbath had become submerged in a tidal wave of paganism; they were completely ignorant of God's sacred calendar; Almighty God had to reveal to them the months of the year, the annual holy days and their deep significance, as well as the weekly Sabbath.

      Notice, "And the Eternal spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you." God called the name of the first month "the month of green ears." Its name was Abib (Exodus 13:4) and was later called Nisan (Nehemiah 2:1; Esther 3:7).

      This marked the beginning of the sacred year of the Hebrew calendar, commencing with the month of spring harvest.

      The Israelites were instructed to single out an unblemished lamb or kid (Exodus 12:3-5) from their flocks, keeping it "...until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening" (Exodus 12:6).

      Much controversy has occurred over the meaning of the phrase "in the evening" from a Hebrew expression meaning "between the two evenings." This will be thoroughly explained later.

      God instructed "And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door posts of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.

      "Eat not of it raw, nor sodden [boiled] at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof.

      "And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire" (Exodus 12:6-10).

      Obviously, since they were to eat the flesh "in that night" (that is, the night following the slaying of the lamb "in the evening") the lamb had to be killed a sufficient period of time prior to its actual eating to allow for its preparation according to God's explicit instructions.

      God told Moses and Aaron to instruct the Israelites that this unusual meal was to be eaten as if in great haste, with trepidation, as if poised for immediate flight!

      It was the usual practice to allow an animal to hang in a cool place after being slaughtered; the aging and then the butchering of the meat perhaps coming several days or even a week or more later depending upon the climate.

      Thus, the eating of this lamb (or kid of the goats) within only hours of its slaughtering, was obviously a very hasty meal; something unusual, symbolizing a meal eaten during a time of emergency.

      The Israelites were told "And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hands; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the Eternal's Passover.

      "For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment; I am the Eternal.

      "And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where you are: and when I see the blood, I will PASS OVER you, and the plagues shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt" (Exodus 12:11-13).

      The girding of the loins was accomplished by tucking the skirt-like apparel worn during that day into a leathern girdle, or thick belt. It was always done just prior to running, or walking rapidly. It was an unusual command to eat the meal with their "shoes on their feet," for shoes were not generally worn indoors. Such a custom prevails to this day in Middle Eastern and Oriental countries. Foot gear was worn out of doors, but, upon entering a dwelling, was left outside, or in a foyer. As is evidenced in the later custom of "foot washing" (in connection with the celebration of Jesus Christ of His last supper) servants would provide water and wash the feet of important guests, who would then slip their feet into slippers or sandals, or perhaps go barefoot on the skins or carpet on the floor of the domicile.

      A staff, cane, or walking stick would normally be left near the door, or perhaps in the foyer. However, they were explicitly commanded to eat this meal one-handed - with their walking staffs in their hands - as a symbol of great haste!

      Consider all the elements of this meal: It was to be eaten very soon after the slaughter of the animal (extremely unusual); their canes or walking sticks in their hands (very unusual); and they were not to take time to visit, enjoy a drawn-out meal like a family occasion, but were to eat the food quickly ("ye shall eat it in haste!") all which showed an extremely hastily-eaten meal done as if in trepidation, prior to immediate flight!

      As will be seen later, the chronological events leading up to and concluding in the famous "last supper" of the Lord Jesus Christ are positively established. There is no question whatever concerning the time of the "Lord's supper''; its relationship to the Passover, and the time when the paschal lambs were slaughtered.

      However, because some have assumed the Israelites did not exit Egypt on the same night of the eating of the paschal meal - after the "passing over" of the death angel - ; because it is further assumed that the Israelites spent the entirety of the following day "spoiling" the Egyptians and it is further falsely assumed that the Exodus commenced the following night, many have become confused about when the Exodus occurred, and when the paschal meal took place.

      For example, those who assumed they were partaking of the New Testament symbols of the body and the blood of Jesus Christ (unleavened bread and wine) coincident with the ancient Passover supper began to believe there were eight days of unleavened bread, not seven! Their confusion stems from their assumption that the New Testament observance of Christ - His famous "last supper" -coincided exactly with the ancient Egyptian paschal meal! But, as you shall see clearly, it did not!

      Following this assumption, many have partaken of the symbols of unleavened bread and wine on the Passover (Lord's supper), and then wondered about the custom of putting leavening out of their homes on the following day. Having once eaten unleavened bread in connection with the ceremonies commemorating Christ's death, they feel "strange" eating anything leavened on the following daylight part of the fourteenth of Nisan - prior to the actual beginning of the SEVEN days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

      Some have said, "But it doesn't feel 'right' to eat hotcakes the next morning, or a cheeseburger the next afternoon, after we have already eaten unleavened bread on the night of the Passover!"

      Simply because they do not understand the clear difference between the time of celebrating the ancient Passover in Egypt and Christ's last supper - a difference of around seventeen to twenty four hours - a vast difference in ceremony, symbols, and typology, they mistakenly have pangs of conscience from eating anything leavened on the daylight part of the fourteenth of Nisan - hours before God says the Days of Unleavened Bread are to commence.

      But God said "seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread!" He further said "In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, UNTIL the one and twentieth day of the month at even!" (Exodus 12:18). Obviously, if you count inclusively (commencing with the fourteenth day - meaning at its beginning) you are dealing with eight days!

      But if you are commencing the eating of unleavened bread "at even on the fourteenth, meaning just before the going down of the sun; meaning that your meal, while it may have commenced just barely before sunset, continues on into the evening hours, or the BEGINNING of the fifteenth, then there is no problem whatever! You have SEVEN full days and perhaps a couple of hours - not eight days.

      The "problem" for many sincere persons was in their misunderstanding of the truly New Testament character of Christ's famous "last supper"!

      That there are only seven days of unleavened bread is perfectly clear. (Exodus 12:15, 19).

      That the ancient Israelites were to eat the paschal lamb and the unleavened bread "IN THAT NIGHT" (Exodus 12:8), meaning on the beginning of the fifteenth is also clear! To understand the sequence of events on the very first Passover, one has but to read the scriptures carefully, comparing all relevant scriptures, and avoid erroneous assumptions. Now, from the pages of your Bible, let's see what happened during that first Passover; let's come to understand WHEN the exodus occurred!

Between The Two Evenings!

      God instructed the Israelites, "And ye shall keep it [the paschal lamb] up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening... and they shall eat the flesh in that night..." (Exodus 6-8).

      Wide divergencies of opinions have obtained resulting from the use of the Hebrew expression "in the evening" which, technically, means "between the two evenings." Some, including Lightfoot, took the expression to mean after the going down of the sun, but prior to full dark. If they were in error, they had thus placed the slaying of the paschal lamb and the eating of the Passover meal at the close of the thirteenth, and at the beginning of the fourteenth! Remember, God begins the days with sunset. Thus, if they were to kill the paschal lamb on the fourteenth "between the two evenings," and IF "between the two evenings" meant after sunset but prior to full dark, then the paschal lamb would have been eaten in the late evening after the thirteenth, just after the beginning of the fourteenth!

      Speaking of the precise meaning of the phrase "between the two evenings," Kitto's Encyclopedia of Biblical Literature says "Tradition... interprets the phrase between the two evenings to mean from afternoon to the disappearing of the sun, the first evening being from the time when the sun begins to decline from its vertical or noontime point toward the west; and the second from its going down and vanishing out of sight which is the reason why the daily sacrifice might be killed at 12:30 p.m. on a Friday (Mishna, Pesachim, v. 1; Maimonides, Hilchoth, Korban, Pesach., 1.4). But as the paschal lamb was slain after the daily sacrifice, it generally took place from 2:30 to 5:30 p.m. We should have deemed it superfluous to add, that such faithful followers of Jewish tradition as Sandia, Rashi, Kimchi, Ralbag, etc., espoused this definition of the ancient Jewish canons, were it not for the assertion which is made in some of the best Christian commentaries and which is repeated in the excellent article Passover in Smith's Dictionary of the Bible, that 'Jarchi and Kimchi hold that the two evenings were the time immediately before and immediately after sunset so that the point of time at which the sun sets divides them.' Now Rashi most distinctively declares, 'From the sixth hour (12 o'clock) and upwards is called between the two evenings because the sun begins to set for the evening. Hence, it appears to me that the phrase between the two evenings denotes the hours between the evening of the day and the evening of the night. The evening of the day is from the beginning of the seventh hour (immediately after noontime), when the evening shadows begin to lengthen, whilst the evening of the night is the beginning of the night' (Commentary on Exodus 12:6). Kimchi says almost literally the same thing: 'Between the two evenings is from the time when the sun begins to incline towards the west, which is from the sixth hour (12 o'clock) and upwards. It is called between the two evenings because there are two evenings, for from the time that the sun begins to decline is one evening, and the other evening is after the sun has gone down, and it is the space between which is meant by between the two evenings' (Lexicon s. v.)...

      "Eustathius, in a note on the seventeenth book of the odyssey, shows that the Greeks too held that there were two evenings, one which they called the latter evening at the close of the day; and the other the former evening, which commenced immediately after noon" (Vid. Bochart Hierozoic, Part I, lib. ii. cap. I, oper., tom. ii. p.559, edit. 1712).

      Now, let's examine the irrefutable internal biblical proof about what time of day is meant by the phrase "between the two evenings," translated "in the evening" in Exodus 12:6.

      God said, "...and they shall eat the flesh in that night" (Exodus 12:8) proving that the killing of the lamb (or kid) took place a few hours prior to the going down of the sun. The paschal meal was concluded in the early hours of the fifteenth of Nisan (within only a few hours after sunset). "SEVEN DAYS shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day shall ye put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day (obviously counting inclusively; seven days in all), that soul shall be cutoff from Israel" (Exodus 12:15). To embrace only seven days, the Days of Unleavened Bread HAD TO BEGIN ON THE FIFTEENTH, and the process of putting leavening out of their houses had to be completed ON THE FOURTEENTH, prior to the preparation for the paschal meal.

      Otherwise, if the original Passover had taken place just after the thirteenth, just at the beginning of the fourteenth, you have EIGHT DAYS of unleavened bread!

      But the Bible says there were to be only SEVEN DAYS of Unleavened Bread!

      Notice further proof: "In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month AT EVEN, he shall eat unleavened bread, UNTIL the one and twentieth day of the month at even." If you begin counting WITH the fourteenth or at the end of the thirteenth, including the whole day, look what you have:

       Do you see? It follows that the expression "on the fourteenth day of the month at even" means AT THE END OF THE FOURTEENTH, just as the fifteenth is about to BEGIN, or there would be EIGHT days of Unleavened Bread.

      The first Day of Unleavened Bread is the FIFTEENTH, not the fourteenth.

      But the paschal meal was to be in preparation, including the putting away of leavening, and the killing of the lamb (or kid) very late on the fourteenth! Therefore, the Israelite's homes would be unleavened for a full SEVEN DAYS, plus only a few hours, late on the fourteenth, prior to the beginning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

      God said, "SEVEN DAYS shall there be no leaven found in your houses" (Exodus 6:19).

      Notice further proof: "Observe the month of Abib [green ears], and keep the Passover unto the Eternal thy God: for in the month Abib the Eternal thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt BY NIGHT. Thou shalt therefore sacrifice the Passover unto the Eternal thy God, of the flock and the herd, in the place which the Eternal shall choose to place His name there.

      "Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with it; SEVEN DAYS shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction; for thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt IN HASTE:... and there shall be no leavened bread seen with thee in all thy coast seven days; neither shall there anything of the flesh, which thou sacrificedst the first day AT EVEN remain all night until the morning."

      Here is further proof that the sacrificing of the lamb was LATE ON THE FOURTEENTH, just before the going down of the sun beginning the fifteenth - which was the first day of seven days of unleavened bread.

      Notice, God said nothing should remain of the flesh they had sacrificed - when? After the thirteenth, at the beginning of the fourteenth, perhaps 27 hours BEFORE the fifteenth, or the first day of unleavened bread? NO! - which they had sacrificed, "THE FIRST DAY [OF THE FEAST - OF THE SEVEN!] AT EVEN remain all night until the morning!" (Deuteronomy 16:14).

When Was The Exodus?

       Much confusion has existed in the minds of many over just when the exodus from Egypt occurred because of a false teaching about the "spoiling" of the Egyptians and a misunderstanding over the command to remain indoors that night of the plague against the firstborn, and the actual passing-over of the death angel.

      Various arguments have been presented attempting to justify the position that the original Egyptian Passover was identical in frame of time with the "last supper" observed by Jesus Christ with His disciples, i.e., at the beginning of the FOURTEENTH of Abib!

      The Most important arguments set forth to justify this belief are:

      (1) The Israelites were told not to go out of their doors "until the morning." Thus, even though the death angel had already passed over the houses of the Israelites at midnight; even though the death angel had already slain countless thousands of the firstborn of Egypt; even though Pharaoh called for Moses and Aaron by night, shortly after midnight, and were URGENT upon the Israelites that they leave then, it is believed by some that the Israelites staunchly refused to cross over the threshholds of their doorways until the daylight hours of the following "morning," meaning the daylight part of the FOURTEENTH!

      (2) Communication would have been very difficult. Perhaps more than TWO MILLION Israelites would have exited Egypt, on foot. Since no mass communication media existed, it would have been impossible to marshal such a force, scattered as they were throughout the land of Egypt, then commence a forced nighttime march within hours after the slaying of the firstborn.

      (3) God prophesied that the Israelitish women would "spoil" (the erroneous phrase "borrow from" appears in the King James version) the Egyptians of jewelry of all sorts, and would therefore "take wages from" or "plunder" the Egyptians. It is argued they scarcely could have done this in haste, only moments after hearing of the death of the firstborn, and that, in any case, Egyptian women would hardly have given away their personal jewelry within moments or hours after the death of their own sons, especially to the very individuals whom they held responsible!

      At first blush, these arguments seem cogent.

      Especially, if one has reasoned from the obviously unmistakable fact that Jesus Christ of Nazareth observed His last Passover or the "last supper'' (referred to by the apostle Paul as "the Lord's supper." I Corinthians 11:20) after the going down of the sun on the thirteenth, or at the beginning of the FOURTEENTH!

      But this necessitated the assumption that by the time of Christ, the Jews were observing the Passover ON THE WRONG DAY!

      However, such a supposition is devastating to arguments set forth by theologians who present a strong case for the weekly Sabbath, offering as supportive evidence the fact that time could not have been "lost," because to the Jews were given the oracles of God, the sacred calendar, and the knowledge of the weekly Sabbath! It is argued that it would have been impossible for a scattered race, numbering into the millions of human beings, to have all "forgotten" the weekly Sabbath or the weekly cycle at the same time!

      How ludicrous it would have been for Jesus Christ to have missed the opportunity to straighten out His own disciples, and Christians for all time, on the fact that the Pharisees and Sadducees were observing the Passover on the wrong day! But no, Christ told His disciples that these leaders of the Jewish religious community "sat in Moses' seat" and urged His disciples to obey the theological edicts of such spiritual leaders, even if they did not emulate "their works."

      It is true that there were chapters in history when the Israelitish nation, as a whole, abandoned the practice of the observance of God's annual holy days. It is equally true that, upon restoration of such knowledge, they were meticulously careful with regard to the date.

      No, the Jews did not forget the correct date for the Passover.

      Now, let's investigate each of these arguments in depth.

      (I) "The Israelites were told not to go out of their doors 'until the morning,' so even though the death angel had already passed over the houses of the Israelites; even though countless thousands of the firstborn of Egypt had already been slain, the Israelites would have staunchly refused to cross their thresholds until the daylight hours of the following morning." But it is clear that the entire tableau of the paschal supper is rendered completely artificial and unnecessary if this assumption if true.

      Remember, the Israelites went out of Egypt BY NIGHT!

      "Observe the month of Abib, and keep the Passover unto the Eternal thy God: for in the month of Abib the Eternal thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt by night!" (Deuteronomy 16:1).

      We know, then, unequivocally and without a shadow of a doubt, that the Israelites first exited their hovels in Goshen to journey from "Rameses to Succoth" (Numbers 33:4, 5) BY NIGHT!

      Remember, God begins the days at sunset. Thus, the nighttime portion of a day is the first part of the day, commencing the previous sunset. Now, on what day of the month of Abib did the Israelites depart Rameses?

      "And they departed from Rameses in the first month (Abib), on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the morrow AFTER THE PASSOVER the children of Israel went out with an high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians" (Numbers 33:3).

      Thus, it is clear they went out of Egypt ON THE FIFTEENTH, and AT NIGHT! That means they exited Egypt sometime during the nighttime hours of the fifteenth of Abib, "on the morrow" following the passing over of the death angel!

      Notice the language of the original Passover instructions: "And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening [of the fourteenth!]. And they shall take of the blood, and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door posts of the houses, wherein they shall eat it.

      "And they shall eat the flesh in that night [AFTER sundown, during the dark hours of the late evening, following the sacrificing, or killing of the lamb 'at even' meaning late on the fourteenth], roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

      "Eat not of it raw, nor sodden [boiled] at all with water, but roast with fire; his head with his legs, and with the purtenance thereof.

      "And ye shall let nothing of it remain until the morning; and that which remaineth of it until the morning ye shall burn with fire.

      "And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hands; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the Eternal's Passover" (Exodus 12:6-11).

      To kill, prepare, and eat a hasty dinner of roast lamb would require at least a few hours. It would be difficult for hundreds of thousands to do so in less time, especially when the killing of the paschal lamb involved some degree of ceremony, such as selecting a killing ground, carefully gathering the spilled blood in basins, going through the ritual of dipping branches of hyssop into the basin, carefully painting the door posts and lintels with the blood.

      The animals were only to be "field dressed," not completely butchered; notice that they were to be roast with "the head and the purtenance thereof" meaning that the animals were not to have been carefully quartered, or butchered in any fashion, but roast whole.

      Since the killing was to take place "in the evening" or the waning hours of the afternoon, and the roasting to begin soon thereafter, it would have been but a matter of a couple of hours or so after starting the roasting fires that the animals would have been ready for hasty consumption.

      Here was the enactment of a great emergency! They were to eat (in the case of males who carried walking staffs) with their shoes on their feet, their skirts tucked into their leathern girdles as if ready for instant flight, and to eat one-handed, with their staff in their hand, and partaking of the roast meat with the other hand! They were to eat it in trepidation, in fear, and in great haste!

      Notice further, "And it came to pass, that at midnight (on the FIFTEENTH!) the Eternal smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle.

      "And Pharaoh rose up in the night, he, and all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt; for there was not a house where there was not one dead.

      "And he called for Moses and Aaron by night (note! The death angel had already passed! Now, even though Moses and Aaron had been included in the command that they were not to go out of their doors until 'the morning' following the passing of the death angel to insure they were not themselves slain, Pharaoh calls for these two leaders, as representatives of all the people. They obeyed, for the danger was now passed-over! They exited their homes, and went to Pharaoh's palace!) and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people, both ye and the children of Israel; and go, serve the Eternal as you have said.

      "Also take your flocks and your herds, as ye have said, and be gone, and bless me also.

      "And the Egyptians were URGENT upon the people, that they might send them out of the land IN HASTE; for they said, We all be dead men.

      "And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders.

      "And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses; and they borrowed (had borrowed; see Exodus 3:21-22; 11:2) of the Egyptians' jewels of silver, and jewels of gold and raiment;

      "And the Eternal gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians so that they lent (gladly gave) unto them such things as they required. And they spoiled the Egyptians.

      "And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand on foot that were men, beside children.

      "And a mixed multitude went up also with them; and flocks, and herds, even very much cattle.

      "And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought forth out of Egypt, for it was not leavened; because they were THRUST OUT of Egypt, and COULD NOT TARRY, neither had they prepared for themselves any victual!" (Exodus 12:29-39).

      Here was the logical sequence to their enactment of a meal eaten in great trepidation, as if poised for instant flight! For, within a few hours after midnight, they were IN GREAT FLIGHT! Notice the words of the holy scriptures! The Egyptians were "urgent" upon them. They were "thrust out." "Neither could they tarry." "They had prepared themselves no victuals." They were to eat "in haste."

      As you can see from this language, it makes no sense whatsoever to insist that the Israelites spent the daylight period following the night of the passing over of the death angel, "spoiling" the Egyptians during a full day and then begin the Exodus the following night!

      Almighty God means what He says!

      God did not intend that the Israelites "playact" in preparing an extremely hasty meal, eating it with their loins girded as if in preparation for instant flight; virtually eating it with one hand, while the other clutched a walking stick or cane; eating it in trepidation and fear as if they were to leave at any moment - and doing all of this in vain, knowing full well they were going to spend the entire daylight period of the following day, more than twelve long hours, in "spoiling" the Egyptians!

      No, the language used in scripture such as being "thrust out," and the Egyptians being "urgent" upon them to leave - the plain fact that they had "prepared themselves no victual" when there would have been plenty of time to do so had they remained alt during the following day, PROVES, conclusively, that the Israelites left Rameses during the early pre-dawn hours of the nighttime on the fifteenth of Abib!

      Obviously, the command not to exit their doorways "until the morning" was lifted after the death angel had passed! The plague was now over. Moses and Aaron, as a type of the whole nation of Israel, were hastily summoned to Pharaoh's palace. Though they were indoors, in their own respective homes, having eaten of the paschal lamb as had all the others, with the blood clearly sprinkled on the door posts and lintels of their houses, it was now perfectly safe to exit their homes, since the death angel had now passed over and was gone from the land!

      There is a further possibility to be considered. The expression "brought you out" is figurative, rather than literal; metaphorical, rather than chronological. While it is most logical, according to all the language of the Bible, that the initial removal from Rameses to Succoth commenced in the wee hours of the morning, the expression "brought you out" may well have included all of God's miraculous manifestations during the plagues, the death angel, and the whole process of releasing Pharaoh's grip on the Israelites - "bringing them out" from slavery, rather than referring to a narrow time frame.

      The language of Numbers 16:1 is illustrative of this: "Observe the month of Abib, and keep the Passover unto the Eternal thy God; for in the month of Abib the Eternal thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt by night."

      Whichever of the two possibilities is true; whether the Israelites were on the move from Rameses to Succoth by 2:00 or 3:00 in the morning, or whether they waited until about 5:00 or 5:30 (whenever the first rays of sunlight might have appeared at that season), it is very clear they left ON THE FIFTEENTH. (See accompanying charts.)

      (2) "Communication would have been very difficult."

      It is nonsense to assume there was any difficulty whatsoever with communicating within only a matter of minutes, or at the most an hour or so, with the entirety of the slave nation of Israel.

      When God first appeared unto Moses, commissioning him to lead the people of Israel out of Egypt, it was understood that the purpose was for the observance of a sacrificial offering to God - the institution of an annual holy occasion!

      God had said, "...I will bring you up out of the affliction of Egypt unto the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, unto a land flowing with milk and honey.

      "And they shall hearken to thy voice: and thou shall come, thou and the elders of Israel, unto the King of Egypt, and ye shall say unto him, The Eternal God of the Hebrews hath met with us: and now let us go, we beseech thee, three day's journey into the wilderness, that we may sacrifice to the Eternal our God.

      "And I am sure that the king of Egypt will not let you go, no not by a mighty hand.

      "And I will stretch out my hand, and smite Egypt with all my wonders which I will do in the midst thereof: and after that he will let you go" (Exodus 3:17-20). Thus, all the leaders were involved fully.

      As Moses was journeying back to Egypt he was met by Aaron (Exodus 4:27), who was told all that had transpired between God and Moses.

      "And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel: and Aaron spake all the words the Eternal had spoken unto Moses, and did the signs in the sight of the people... and afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the Eternal God of Israel, Let my people go, that they may hold a feast unto me in the wilderness" (Exodus 4:27-30; 5, 1). The people all knew, in advance, that the exodus could occur at any time.

      Following the plague of the frogs, Pharaoh said "...I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the Eternal" (Exodus 8:8).

      The point is, the elders of Israel were fully informed from the very beginning of Moses' and Aaron's attempts to extricate the people of Israel from Egypt, even before the outpouring of the first plague! Constantly, reference was made to the Israelitish request that they may "Journey three days into the wilderness to hold a feast unto the Eternal!" (see Exodus 10:9, 25).

      By the time of the killing of the paschal lamb, the Israelites had already "borrowed" ("taken wages of" or "spoiled") the Egyptians.

      Remember, the Israelites lived in Goshen. A policy of "apartheid" or complete segregation between the captive Israelites and Egyptians was generally in effect. In the main, the Israelites traveled to their places of work during the day, and retreated to their own hovels and ramshackle dwellings (as would be befitting es) by night.

      They had witnessed all the plagues falling upon Egypt, and had noted, with terror and awe, the incredible difference between themselves and the Egyptians; that the terrible plagues of lice, boils on cattle, flies, frogs, the rivers turning to blood, etc., befell the Egyptians in Egypt proper, but did not touch the Israelites living in the area called "Goshen."

      With the systematic organization of the tribes according to various elders (Exodus 6:9-27); with repeated announcements that at any moment Pharaoh was going to let them go into the wilderness; expecting such a decree to be issued from moment to moment for the better part of a week, surely rapid communication through the elders to the lowliest individual could be accomplished in a matter of very few minutes, at the most, perhaps an hour or so!

      No, the argument that communication would have required a full twelve hour daylight period following sunrise on the morning after the passing over of the death angel is superficial, and erroneous.

      Now, let's examine the next argument: (3) "Spoiling the Egyptians would have consumed the entire daylight hours of the day following the passing over of the death angel."

      This assumption is ludicrous, in the light of clear statements in scripture. Notice well, "And I will give this people favor in the sight of the Egyptians: and it shall come to pass, that, when ye go, ye shall not go empty: But every woman shall 'borrow' (require-ask-take wages of) of her neighbor, and of her that sojourneth in her house, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold, and raiment: and ye shall put them upon your sons, and upon your daughters; and ye shall spoil the Egyptians" (Exodus 3:21, 22),

      This promise from God was given to Moses while he was yet in Midian - BEFORE HE RETURNED TO EGYPT! It was given long before the beginning of the plagues, and was surely communicated by Moses to the people!

      Now read Exodus 11:2, 3, "SPEAK NOW in the ears of the people, and let every man borrow [take wages of] his neighbour, and every woman of her neighbour, jewels of silver, and jewels of gold.

      "And the Eternal gave the people favour in sight of the Egyptians..."

      This was hours BEFORE the Passover; after the plague of the locusts, and the plague of three days' darkness. The Israelites were plainly told to "spoil" the Egyptians long before the death angel was to pass over.

      It becomes clear, then, that; (I) The paschal lamb was sacrificed at some time after midday, and prior to the going down of the sun on the fourteenth. (2) It was eaten after sundown, at the beginning of the fifteenth. (3) The death angel passed over the Israelites at mid-night, killing the Egyptian firstborn. (4) Moses and Aaron, no doubt accompanied by a number of the elders of Israel, were summoned to Pharaoh's palace immediately following the killing of the firstborn. (5) Pharaoh was urgent upon them to get out immediately. (6) The people had been well-prepared in advance for just such an announcement. (7) They had "spoiled" the Egyptians well in advance - there was no need for any delay. (8) Moses and Aaron, and the elders of Israel who appeared before Pharaoh did so at night, but after the death angel had passed, thus proving the command not to go out until "morning" had been lifted OR, the expression "brought you out by night" may be metaphorical, and the bulk of Israel remained indoors until first light. (9) They left immediately, for their bread was not leavened, neither had they prepared themselves any victual.

      Study the accompanying charts, together with all scriptural references, to create in your mind a vivid impression of the entire week of Unleavened Bread, and how the whole process of the Exodus took place.

ABIB 14th: EXODUS WEEK
(Preparation for Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread)

ABIB 15th: EXODUS WEEK
(First day of Unleavened Bread - Annual holy day; Leviticus 23:6)

ABIB 16th: EXODUS WEEK
(Second day of Unleavened Bread)

ABIB 17th: EXODUS WEEK
(Third day of Unleavened Bread)

ABIB 18th: EXODUS WEEK
(Fourth day of Unleavened Bread)

ABIB 19th: EXODUS WEEK
(Fifth day of Unleavened Bread)

ABIB 20th: EXODUS WEEK
(Sixth day of Unleavened Bread)

ABIB 21th: EXODUS WEEK
(Seventh and day of Unleavened Bread; Leviticus 23:8)