Exodus 12:1–20 “Unleavened Bread”

Exodus 12:1-20 NIV

Suggested Praise Songs:

• BETHEL MUSIC – No Longer Slaves
• Give Us Clean Hands – Chris Tomlin
• Chris Tomlin – Lord I Need You)

Resources for Family Worship (with Children):

• The Story of Passover: How God Saved His People! | Kids Bible Stories – Lesson for Kids
• Pharaoh Pharaoh – Song for Kids
• Let’s go Deep Deep Deep – Christ Kids Action Song
• Won’t Worry ‘Bout A Thing | Shipwrecked VBS | Group Publishing – Song for Kids
• Discussion Questions for Children & Youth arelocated in the section after Explanation, Meditation, and Prayer (at the end of this email/blog).

Explanation:

Before bringing the final plague, God gives Moses specific instructions about the Passover (v.1). The Lord commands that the month in which the Israelites leave Egypt is to mark the beginning of their year (v.2). Each household of Israel is to select a lamb or a young goat on the tenth day of that month (v.3). If a family is too small to eat an entire animal, they may share with a neighboring household (v.4). The animal must be a “year-old male without defect” (v.5).

On the fourteenth day, at twilight, the animal is to be slaughtered (v.6), and its blood is to be applied to the doorposts and the lintel of each home (v.7). That night, the meat must be roasted over fire and eaten with “unleavened bread” and “bitter herbs” (vv.7–8). The meat must be roasted, not boiled or eaten raw, and anything left over until morning must be burned (vv.9–10). When eating, they are to do so “with your cloak tucked into your belt, your sandals on your feet and your staff in your hand. Eat it in haste” (v.11). That night, all the firstborns in Egypt will be struck down, but the Israelites will be spared from this plague (v.12). The destroyer will pass over any house that has the lamb’s blood on its doorframe (v.13). The word “Pesach”—that is, “Passover”—comes from this act of passing over. God commands Moses that after leaving Egypt, the people must keep this day holy every year (v.14). After the Passover, the following seven days must be observed as the Festival of Unleavened Bread. This command was given to be kept after the Israelites left Egypt. On the first day of the festival, they were to remove all yeast from their homes thoroughly. During this period, anyone who eats bread made with yeast will be cut off from Israel (v.15)—a very serious command. The first and last days of the Festival of Unleavened Bread are to be treated like Sabbaths. No work is to be done on those days, and the people are to gather and worship together (v.16). God solemnly repeats the command not to eat any leavened bread from the beginning of the Passover until the end of the Festival of Unleavened Bread (vv.17–20).

Meditation:

In the commands regarding the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread, God repeatedly warns against eating bread with yeast (leavened bread). Matzah—that is, unleavened bread—has no fragrance or taste. Eating only unleavened bread for a whole week is certainly inconvenient. In addition, it had to be eaten with bitter herbs. This was meant to help them remember the historical event of their urgent flight from Egypt. For those who did not understand its meaning, it would have been a difficult ritual to endure.

God commanded them to eat only unleavened bread for one week and remove every trace of yeast from their homes. This was not because yeast itself was inherently bad, but because of its symbolic meaning. Since a small amount of yeast can make an entire batch of dough rise, it was often used as a metaphor for ideas, influences, or cultural trends that gradually infiltrate and affect everything.

Therefore, God’s command to remove all yeast from the house during Passover was a call to purge the pagan ideas and cultural influences of Egypt that had deeply seeped into the Israelites’ hearts and minds. By eating unleavened bread for one week each year, they were to remember that God expected holiness, purity, and sincerity from them. If one were to seek leavened bread despite knowing its meaning, it would reflect a disregard for God’s will.

The Apostle Paul applies this truth to the life of a Christian: “Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch—as you are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore, let us keep the Festival, not with the old bread leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (1 Corinthians 5:7 8). Although the Passover and the Festival of Unleavened Bread are annual events, in their deeper meaning, every day is to be lived as Passover and Unleavened Bread for those who belong to Christ.

Prayer:

Lord, our Passover Lamb, we thank You for making our very being holy and pure like unleavened bread. Help us to live this day as a pure and sincere offering, like the bread without yeast. When the leaven of sin tries to seep into our hearts and minds, may the Holy Spirit awaken us and guard us. In Jesus’ name we pray. Amen.

Discussion Questions for Children & Youth:

Key Point: God rescued His people from slavery in Egypt and asked them to remember it by celebrating Passover with unleavened bread. Unleavened bread reminds us to remove sin and bad influences from our hearts and live with sincerity and truth daily.

• For Preschool-Elementary
  • Why did God ask the Israelites to eat bread without yeast (unleavened bread)?
  • What does it mean to have a “clean heart” for God?
  • Can you think of something to clean out of your heart to follow God better?
    
• For Youth
  
  • Why do you think God was so serious about removing all the yeast from the homes during the Festival of Unleavened Bread?
  • What are some “yeasts” (bad attitudes, habits, or distractions) that can slowly grow in our hearts or minds without noticing?
  • How can we practice sincerity and truth in quiet or small ways in our daily lives, especially when no one else is watching?