Exodus 13 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

Exodus 13

Consecration of the Firstborn

13:1 The LORD said to Moses, 2 “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”

The Feast of Unleavened Bread

3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the LORD brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. 4 Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. 5 And when the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month. 6 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the LORD. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. 8 You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the LORD did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 9 And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the LORD may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the LORD has brought you out of Egypt. 10 You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.

11 “When the LORD brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, 12 you shall set apart to the LORD all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the LORD’s. 13 Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 14 And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. 15 For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the LORD killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the LORD all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ 16 It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the LORD brought us out of Egypt.”

Pillars of Cloud and Fire

17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” 18 But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph¹ had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here.” 20 And they moved on from Succoth and encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 21 And the LORD went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people.

Footnotes

[1] 13:19 Samaritan, Septuagint; Hebrew he

Commentary

v1-2: The first born, having avoided death by the Passover, were consecrated, set apart, for God. This was a single event, rather than a process. It had either happened or it hadn't.

v3-10: Moses was looking forward, to the people celebrating the Passover when they arrived in Canaan.

v3: The day was to be remembered, because on this day the Lord brought His people out of Egypt, out of the years of bondage and hardship. The simple command, to"eat nothing containing yeast", would remind them as a people of the events of that time.

v4: The month of Abib, the first month, a new start (see 12.2, the first of the months). The Passover was to be remembered at the beginning of the year.

v5: There was no doubt that the people would reach Canaan. The celebration of the Passover would be a testimony to the people in Canaan. In light of Josh 5.10-12, this seems to be a hint that Passover would not be celebrated during the wilderness journey. Of course, at this stage, it was not expected that a 40 year gap would occur.

v6-7: All yeast to be removed from their homes. This was part of the re-enactment of the first Passover.

v8: The details of the Passover were to be passed on to succeeding generations. The feast was therefore celebrated in the family home. In this way, the Passover was seen to be a personal deliverance;"what the Lord did for me". See Gal 2.20; Eph 5.25. The deliverance from Egypt was both national and personal, and our salvation in Christ must also be understood in both ways.

v9: The physical sign, on the hand, on the forehead, on the lips. Something to be remembered.

v10: An annual feast had to be maintained. In later years this was neglected; see 2 Kings 23.21-23.

v11-13: First born sons to be set apart. This aspect of the Passover was to be applied to all the people and to their animals. Notice that the arrival in Canaan was without doubt, for God would fulfil His purpose. The donkey, an unclean animal, had to be redeemed with a lamb. This pictures Christ's redemption for us by the shedding of His blood, 1 Pet 1.18-19. The choice is stark and real - redemption or death. Like the Passover feast itself, this practice was a testimony of God's deliverance of His people from Egypt.

v14: Again, there was an opportunity to explain to the family what the ritual meant.

v15: The first born son was sacrificed to the Lord. This reminds us of Abraham's sacrifice of Isaac (Gen 22).

v16: The sign of the first born son, that the Lord had delivered His people with a powerful hand. See also v9.

v17-18: God led His people, not through the land of the Philistines, but towards the Red Sea. This was a longer route, but the better way. In this respect, we see that salvation is an on-going process as well as a once-only event.

v19: The promise of God through Joseph (Gen 50.24-25) had been fulfilled, and his bones were taken from Egypt.

v21-22: The permanent, visible presence of the Lord. The Christian enjoys that same presence by the Holy Spirit indwelling us.