Israel
was commanded to observe the special days listed in
Leviticus 23, which included the weekly Sabbath as well as
the seven annual Sabbaths. Significantly, these times are
for many more people than just Israel. The Feasts will be kept by
everyone worldwide in the coming Millennial kingdom. It’s no
wonder— Yahweh commanded
them forever.
In addition,
Exodus 12 speaks of a special night to be observed. Notice:
“It [is] a night to be much observed unto Yahweh for
bringing them out from the land
of Egypt: this [is] that night of Yahweh to be observed
of all the children of
Israel
in their generations”
(Ex. 12:42).
The Jewish Tanakh reads a bit differently:
“That was for
[Yahweh] a night of vigil to bring them out of the land of Egypt;
that same night [Yahweh's], one of vigil for all the
children of Israel
throughout the ages.”
A Night to Leave?
Some have understood this verse to mean that the night to be
much observed was the night
Israel left Rameses in Egypt
to begin their trek to the Promised Land. That is, the
beginning of the 15th of Abib, the High Sabbath, the first
of the days of Unleavened Bread.
The setting sun, which ended Abib 14, saw all Israel gathered at Rameses with all
their belongings, their livestock, and all their family
including children and the aged. This first High Sabbath was
to be a memorial for leaving Egypt. They were
prepared for the march to the Promised Land. The last day of
Unleavened Bread is marked by the Israelites' crossing over
the Red Sea and being completely free of
Egypt. Thus, the seven days
of Unleavened Bread memorialize Israel's exit
from bondage.
The Israelites kept Passover properly at the beginning of
the 14th just after the setting sun, doing so until the
captivity.
The
Encyclopaedia Judaica
reads,
“The Feast of Passover consists of two parts: the Passover
Ceremony and the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Originally, both
parts existed separately, but at the beginning
of the exile they were combined” (Vol. 13, “Passover,” p.
169).
Today the Jews
keep a Seder service with the family at home on the 14th of
Abib, and on the beginning of the 15th they gather at the
synagogue to observe what they call “Passover” on the first
day of Unleavened Bread.
Israel
left Egypt by night the next night after
Passover, Deuteronomy 16: 1. The first annual Sabbath
during Unleavened Bread commemorates leaving
Egypt. However, the verses
dealing with this first high Sabbath nowhere mention a
special night of watching, or a vigil during normal hours of
sleep. Nor do we find examples of Yahweh's people
remembering this
preservation-night
of Yahweh.
Preservation and Beginning
Just as ancient
Israel
kept vigil the night the destroying angel was about,
Yahweh's people were to observe a night of vigil on Passover
night as well. Evidence is clear that the Passover night is
the “night much to be remembered.”
Keil and
Delitzsch agree that this speaks of Passover night, and
state, “Because [Yahweh] had preserved the children of
Israel that night from the destroyer, it was to be holy to
them,
i.e.
to be kept by
them in all future ages to the glory of [Yahweh], as a
preservation”
(Old
Testament Commentaries).
A brief review of the situation will help us gain a deeper
perspective of this momentous occasion.
This event is really the birth of the nation of Israel. The first three plagues came
upon everyone in the
land
of Egypt.
Yahweh sequestered the land
of Goshen (where the Israelites were) from Egypt.
Henceforth Israelites were not affected by any more than the
three plagues.
The Israelites
had been told to take a yearling from their flock and kill
it at the going down (Heb.
bo) of
the sun, ending the day. At sunset the 13th ended, and the
next day,
Passover, the 14th began.
Throughout
Goshen
preparations for the Passover were well under way. The lamb
had been set aside since the 10th of that month. Firewood
collections and roasting pits were ready.
Some of
the Israelites with
small families arranged to join neighbors, Exodus 12:1-4.
The lambs were
killed between the evenings (of sunset and dark) and the
blood collected in a basin and smeared on both the
lintel
and doorposts. The lamb was then roasted whole over the
glowing coals in the pit already prepared.
Several hours later the blackened carcass of the lamb was
placed on the table in their houses as the Israelites
gathered to eat of its flesh with unleavened bread.
Everything was
done hurriedly, with trepidation and fear. At midnight
the destroying angel would come and kill all unprotected
firstborn of the land, both man and beast.
They WOULD Remember!
The night
of the Passover was a very solemn,
somber
night of abject fear and trembling. The Israelites
knew judgment was coming and were praying they would be
“passed over”
by the destroying angel and allowed to survive the night.
Huddled in their houses, the Israelites prayerfully trusted
that the destroying angel would see the blood at their door
and spare them by “passing over” their houses.
Sleep was hard
to come by that Passover night because of the anguished
cries in
many Egyptian houses upon discovering their dead firstborn.
All Israelites were warned to remain within the protection
of their blood-marked houses the entire
night.
“Weeping may endure for a night, but joy comes in the
morning,” (Ps.30:5).
What a night to remember!
The “Watch” Word
The command we wish to focus upon is found in Exodus 12:42:
“It [is] a night to be much observed
(Strong's
Exhaustive Concordance
No. 8107) unto Yahweh
for bringing them out from the land
of Egypt: this [is] that night of Yahweh to be observed
of all the children of
Israel
in their generations.”
Strong's
No. 8107 is
shimmur,
from No.
8104;
an
observance.
Strong’s
says of No. 8104
shamar:
“A
prim. root; prop.
to
hedge about (as with thorns),
i.e.
guard;
gen. to protect, attend to,
etc.:
-beware, be circumspect, take
heed, keep, mark, look narrowly,
observe, preserve, regard, reserve,
save,
sure, wait, watch.” Clearly
the
meaning is watchings.
The
Tanakh on
Exodus 12:42 reads,
“That was for [Yahweh] a night of vigil to bring them out of
the land of Egypt; that same night is [Yahweh's], one of
vigil for all the children of lsrael throughout the ages.”
The Passover night’s activities made up the key events
leading to the release of Israel from Egypt. It is much observed because
it was the death of the firstborn that caused Pharaoh to
release Yahweh’s people, bringing them out of
Egypt.
Watching at Passover in the New Testament
Following the
celebration of the Passover
with His disciples, the Savior
went
with His disciples
to
Gethsemane to pray. It was the night
of the
Passover.
“And when they had sung a Psalm, they
went out into the mount of Olives”
(Mat.
26:30). It was the
custom at Passover to sing the Great
Hallel
(“praise”), Psalms 113 to 118.
When they came to Gethsemane,
the Savior asked the disciples to sit there while He went a
bit further with Peter, James and John to pray. He then says
to them,
“My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even
unto death: tarry here, and watch with Me”
(Mat. 26:38).
Then we read,
“And He came unto the disciples, and
found them asleep, and said unto Peter, What, could you not
watch with Me one hour? Watch and pray, that you enter not
into temptation: the spirit indeed [is] willing, but the
flesh is weak”
(Mat. 26:40-41).
This happened three times. Yahshua expected His disciples
to stay awake and watch with Him. But instead they slept.
Was it not on this night, the 14th, when ancient
Israel
had been afraid to go to sleep while the destroying angel
was going about Egypt slaying all the firstborn of man and beast?
How fitting
that the Savior should
ask His disciples to watch with Him
so they could recall at a later
time
the
agony He went through
in
preparing
for the excruciating ordeal and
the
final victory that followed.
Be Awake, Alert
The underlying
Greek word translated “watch” in both the
Complete Biblical Library (CBL)
and
Strong's
is
gregoreo,
(CBL
No. 1121) and (No. 1127 in
Strong's,
from
No. 1453). The word means to be vigilant and wide awake; to
be alert: be or stay awake, to keep awake, be alert, i.e.
watch.
It is translated be vigilant, awake, be watchful.
Yahshua wanted His disciples to be alert and watchful that
night after they celebrated the Passover. It was the same
night some 2,000
years earlier that Israel kept vigilant all night,
fearing
the destroying angel.
It was
a night much to be remembered, for on this night the world
under Satan thought it had triumphed by taking prisoner
“Yahweh's Lamb that takes away the sins of the world.”
Instead, the Jewish authorities and the Romans played right
into Yahweh's hand. Within twelve hours He would be nailed
to the tree at Calvary
and put to death.
People, People Everywhere
A question
arises as to why there were so many prominent people about
this late on Passover night.
Was it only because there was a scheme afoot to get rid of
the Nazarene? Or was there another reason that even the
young damsels were up and about? Notice the Bible’s account:
• “Now Peter sat without in the palace: and a damsel came
unto him, saying, you also were with Yahshua of Galile.”
(Mat. 26:69).
• “And when he [Peter] was gone out into the porch, another
[maid} saw him, and said unto them that were there, This
[fellow] was also with Yahshua of
Nazareth” (Mat. 26:71).
• “And as Peter was beneath in the palace, there came one of
the maids of the high priest: And when she saw Peter warming
himself, she looked upon him, and said, And you also were
with Yahshua of Nazareth” (Mark 14:66-67).
• “And a maid saw him [Peter] again, and began to say to
them that stood by, This is [one] of them” (Mark 14:69).
• “But a certain maid beheld him [Peter] as he sat by the
fire, and earnestly looked upon him, and said, This man was
also with Him” (Luke 22:56).
• “And after a little while another saw him, and said, You
are also of them. And Peter said, Man, I am not” (Luke
22:58).
• “Then said the damsel that kept the door unto Peter, Are
not you also [one] of this man's disciples? He said, I am
no” (John 18:17).
It is apparent that this was an extraordinary night.
Why Were Young Girls Out Late?
John 18: 16-17 shows that young girls were up and about,
even the responsible porter (one who kept charge of the
door of the palace of the high priest). Why were these young
girls up at this time of a chilly night?
Why the one charged with keeping the door of the high priest
was still up we can perhaps understand. But what about the
others? The Savior had just celebrated the Passover with
His disciples some 12 hours earlier and had asked them to
keep a vigil while He prayed.
Was this not
the
shimmurim,
the night of watchings?
Customarily
those observing Passover would stay awake all night long.
Many would sing songs to keep awake out of respect for those
ancient
Israelites who had huddled in their houses in
Egypt for fear of the destroying angel.
Whenever one of the party fell asleep, the atmosphere of the
vigil was broken, the group broke up, and everyone retired.
The New
Testament supports the Passover as “the night to be much
remembered,”
especially when viewed through the activities of the Savior.
Going to the Mount of Olives, as their leader, Yahshua evidently sang
the last part of the Hallel.
He sang the lines of Psalms 114 through 118, and the
disciples responded with “HalleluYAH!”
He thus
promised to keep His vows; ultimately to triumph despite
rejection, and call all nations to praise Yahweh.
(Expositor's
Bible Commentary,
Vol.
8, p. 539)
A Time for Us Today
Passover is an
important one of the annual observances. It was observed in
the Garden of Eden,
it was kept by Israel, by
the prophets, by Yahshua, by His Apostles after He rose from
the dead, and will be kept in the Kingdom, Matthew26:29.
Shouldn't we also be keeping it today?
May future commemorations of the Passover lift us to new
heights as we rejoice in the reassurance we all have in
Yahshua as we keep the “Night to Be Much Remembered.”
by
Donald R. Mansager
