Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary on the Whole Bible
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Exodus
Book: Exodus
Chapter: 12
Overview:
The beginning of the
Year changed, The
Passover instituted.
(1-20) The people instructed how to observe the
Passover.
(21-28) The
Death of the
First-born of the Egyptians, The
Israelites urged to leave the land of
Egypt.
(29-36) The
Israelites' first
Journey to
Succoth.
(37-42) Ordinance
respecting the
Passover.
(43-51)
1-20 The
Lord makes all things new to those whom he delivers
from the
Bondage of
Satan, and takes to himself to be his
people. The time when he does this is to them the beginning of a
new
Life.
God appointed that,
On the night wherein they were to
go out of
Egypt, each family should kill a
Lamb, or that two or
three families, if small, should kill one
Lamb. This
Lamb was to
be eaten in the manner here directed, and the
Blood to be
sprinkled
On the
Door-posts, to
Mark the houses of the
Israelites from those of the Egyptians. The
Angel of the
Lord,
when destroying the
First-born of the Egyptians, would pass over
the houses marked
By the
Blood of the
Lamb: hence the name of
this holy
Feast or ordinance. The
Passover was to be kept every
Year, both as a remembrance of
Israel's preservation and
deliverance out of
Egypt, and as a remarkable
Type of
Christ.
Their safety and deliverance were not a reward of their own
Righteousness, but the
Gift of
Mercy. Of this they were
reminded, and
By this ordinance they were taught, that all
blessings came to them through the shedding and sprinkling of
Blood. Observe, 1. The paschal
Lamb was typical.
Christ is our
Passover, 1Co 5:7.
Christ is the
Lamb of
God, Joh 1:29;
often in the
Revelation he is called the
Lamb. It was to be in
its prime;
Christ offered up himself in the midst of his days,
not when a
Babe at
Bethlehem. It was to be without
Blemish; the
Lord Jesus was a
Lamb without spot: the
Judge who condemned
Christ declared him innocent. It was to be set apart four days
before, denoting the marking out of the
Lord Jesus to be a
Saviour, both in the purpose and in the promise. It was to be
slain, and roasted with
Fire, denoting the painful sufferings of
the
Lord Jesus, even unto
Death, the
Death of the
Cross. The
wrath of
God is as
Fire, and
Christ was made a
Curse for us. Not
a bone of it must be broken, which was fulfilled in
Christ, Joh
19:33, denoting the unbroken strength of the
Lord Jesus. 2. The
sprinkling of the
Blood was typical. The
Blood of the
Lamb must
be sprinkled, denoting the applying of the merits of
Christ's
Death to our souls; we must receive the
Atonement, Ro 5:11.
Faith is the
Bunch of
Hyssop,
By which we apply the promises,
and the benefits of the
Blood of
Christ laid up in them, to
ourselves. It was to be sprinkled
On the
Door-posts, denoting
the open profession we are to make of
Faith in
Christ. It was
not to be sprinkled upon the
Threshold; which cautions us to
take heed of trampling under foot the
Blood of the
Covenant. It
is precious
Blood, and must be precious to us. The
Blood, thus
sprinkled, was a means of preserving the Israelites from the
destroying
Angel, who had nothing to do where the
Blood was. The
Blood of
Christ is the believer's protection from the wrath of
God, the
Curse of the
Law, and the
Damnation of
Hell, Ro 8:1.
3. The solemn
Eating of the
Lamb was typical of our
Gospel duty
to
Christ. The paschal
Lamb was not to be looked upon only, but
to be fed upon.
So we must
By Faith make
Christ our own; and we
must receive spiritual strength and nourishment from him, as
from our
Food, see Joh 6:53,55. It was all to be eaten; those
who
By Faith feed upon
Christ, must feed upon a whole
Christ;
they must take
Christ and his
Yoke,
Christ and his
Cross, as
Well as
Christ and his
Crown. It was to be eaten at once, not
Put By till morning. To-
Day Christ is offered, and is to be
accepted while it is called to-
Day, before we sleep the sleep of
Death. It was to be eaten with
Bitter herbs, in remembrance of
the bitterness of their
Bondage in
Egypt; we must feed upon
Christ with sorrow and brokenness of
Heart, in remembrance of
Sin.
Christ will be sweet to us, if
Sin be
Bitter. It was to be
eaten standing, with their staves in their hands, as being ready
to depart. When we feed upon
Christ By Faith, we must forsake
the rule and the dominion of
Sin; sit loose to the world, and
every thing in it; forsake all for
Christ, and reckon it
No bad
bargain, Heb 13:13,14. 4. The
Feast of unleavened
Bread was
typical of the
Christian Life, 1Co 5:7,8. Having received
Christ Jesus the
Lord, we must continually delight ourselves in
Christ Jesus.
No manner of work must be done, that is,
No care
admitted and indulged, which does not agree with, or would
lessen this holy joy. The Jews were very strict as to the
Passover,
So that
No Leaven should be found in their houses. It
must be a
Feast kept in
Charity, without the
Leaven of malice;
and in sincerity, without the
Leaven of hypocrisy. It was
By an
ordinance for ever;
So long as we live we must continue feeding
upon
Christ, rejoicing in him always, with thankful mention of
the great things he has done for us.
21-28 That night, when the
First-born were to be destroyed,
No
Israelite must stir out of
Doors till called to march out of
Egypt. Their safety was owing to the
Blood of sprinkling. If
they
Put themselves from under the protection of that, it was at
their peril. They must stay within, to wait for the
Salvation of
the
Lord; it is good to do
So. In after-times they should
carefully teach their children the meaning of this service. It
is good for children to ask about the things of
God; they that
ask for the way will find it. The keeping of this solemnity
every
Year was, 1. To look backward, that they might remember
what great things
God had done for them and their fathers. Old
mercies, to ourselves, or to our fathers, must not be forgotten,
that
God may be praised, and our
Faith in him encouraged. 2. It
was designed to look forward, as an
Earnest of the great
Sacrifice of the
Lamb of
God in the
Fulness of time.
Christ our
Passover was sacrificed for us; his
Death was our
Life.
29-36 The Egyptians had been for three days and nights kept in
anxiety and horror
By the
Darkness; now their
Rest is broken
By
a far more terrible calamity. The
Plague struck their
First-born, the joy and
Hope of their families. They had slain
the
Hebrews' children, now
God slew theirs. It reached from the
Throne to the
Dungeon:
Prince and peasant stand upon the same
level before
God's judgments. The destroying
Angel entered every
dwelling unmarked with
Blood, as the
Messenger of woe. He did
his dreadful errand, leaving not a
House in which there was not
one dead. Imagine then the cry that rang through the land of
Egypt, the long, loud shriek of
Agony that burst from every
dwelling. It will be thus in that dreadful
Hour when the Son of
Man shall visit sinners with the last
Judgment.
God's sons, his
First-born, were now released. Men had better come to
God's
terms at first, for he will never come to theirs. Now
Pharaoh's
pride is abased, and he yields.
God's
Word will stand; we get
nothing
By disputing, or delaying to submit. In this terror the
Egyptians would purchase the favour and the speedy departure of
Israel. Thus the
Lord took care that their hard-earned
Wages
should be paid, and the people provided for their
Journey.
37-42 The children of
Israel set forward without delay. A mixed
multitude went with them. Some, perhaps, willing to leave their
country, laid waste
By plagues; others, out of curiosity;
perhaps a few out of
Love to them and their religion. But there
were always those among the Israelites who were not Israelites.
Thus there are still hypocrites in the
Church. This great event
was 430 years from the promise made to
Abraham: see Ga 3:17.
So long the promise of a settlement was unfulfilled. But though
God's promises are not performed quickly, they will be, in their
season. This is that night of the
Lord, that remarkable night,
to be celebrated in all generations. The great things
God does
for his people, are to be not only a few days' wonder, but to be
remembered throughout all ages; especially the work of our
Redemption By Christ. This first
Passover-night was a night of
the
Lord, much to be observed; but the last
Passover-night, in
which
Christ was betrayed and in which the first
Passover, with
the
Rest of the Jewish ceremonies, was done away, was a night of
the
Lord, much more to be observed. Then a
Yoke, heavier than
that of
Egypt, was broken from off our necks, and a land, better
than that of
Canaan, set before us. It was a
Redemption to be
celebrated in
Heaven, for ever and ever.
43-51 In times to come, all the
Congregation of
Israel must
keep the
Passover. All that share in
God's mercies should join
in thankful praises for them. The New
Testament Passover, the
Lord's
Supper, ought not to be neglected
By any. Strangers, if
circumcised, might eat of the
Passover. Here is an early
indication of favour to the
Gentiles. This taught the Jews that
their being a nation favoured
By God, entitled them to their
privileges, not their descent from
Abraham.
Christ our
Passover
is sacrificed for us, 1Co 5:7; his
Blood is the only
Ransom
for our souls; without the shedding of it there is
No remission;
without the sprinkling of it there can be
No Salvation. Have we,
By Faith in him, sheltered our souls from deserved vengeance
under the protection of his atoning
Blood? Do we keep close to
him, constantly depending upon him? Do we
So profess our
Faith
in the
Redeemer, and our obligations to him, that all who pass
By may know to whom we belong? Do we stand prepared for his
service, ready to walk in his ways, and to separate ourselves
from his enemies? These are questions of vast importance to the
soul; may the
Lord direct our consciences honestly to answer
them.