**The Night of Deliverance: The Passover**
The sun dipped low over the horizon, casting long shadows across the land of Goshen. The air was thick with anticipation, a mixture of fear and hope that clung to the hearts of the Israelites. For four hundred and thirty years, they had lived as strangers in Egypt, their lives marked by toil and oppression. But tonight, everything would change. Tonight, the Lord would fulfill His promise to deliver His people from bondage.
Moses stood before the elders of Israel, his face resolute, his voice steady. The Lord had given him detailed instructions, and he was determined to carry them out precisely. “Listen carefully,” he began, his words carrying the weight of divine authority. “This month shall be the beginning of months for you. It shall be the first month of the year. On the tenth day of this month, each man is to take a lamb for his family, one lamb per household.”
The people listened intently, their hearts stirred by the gravity of Moses’ words. The lamb was to be without blemish, a male of the first year, chosen from the sheep or the goats. It was to be kept until the fourteenth day of the month, and then, at twilight, the entire assembly of Israel was to slaughter their lambs.
Moses continued, his voice rising with urgency. “Take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses where you eat the lamb. You shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire, with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. Do not eat it raw or boiled in water, but roasted, its head with its legs and its inner parts. And let none of it remain until morning; whatever remains you shall burn with fire.”
The instructions were clear, but the purpose behind them was even more profound. “For the Lord will pass through to strike the Egyptians,” Moses explained, “and when He sees the blood on the lintel and the two doorposts, the Lord will pass over the door and will not allow the destroyer to enter your houses to strike you. This is the Lord’s Passover.”
The people hurried to obey. Families gathered in their homes, selecting the finest lambs from their flocks. Children watched wide-eyed as their fathers carefully inspected the animals, ensuring they were without spot or blemish. The lambs were brought into the homes, where they remained for four days, a constant reminder of the impending deliverance.
On the fourteenth day, as the sun began to set, the atmosphere grew tense. Fathers took knives in hand, their hearts heavy yet resolute. The lambs were slaughtered, their blood collected in basins. Mothers dipped hyssop branches into the blood and carefully painted the doorposts and lintels of their homes. The smell of roasting lamb filled the air, mingling with the scent of bitter herbs and the flat, unleavened bread that had been prepared in haste.
Inside the homes, families gathered around the meal. The roasted lamb was shared, its rich flavor a stark contrast to the bitterness of the herbs. The unleavened bread, baked without yeast, symbolized the urgency of their departure. There was no time for dough to rise; the Lord’s command was to be obeyed without delay.
As the night deepened, a profound silence fell over the land of Egypt. The Israelites, marked by the blood of the lamb, waited in their homes. Outside, the darkness was palpable, a thick, oppressive shroud that seemed to suffocate the land. Then, at midnight, the Lord struck.
A great cry rose from the land of Egypt, a wail of anguish that pierced the night. In every Egyptian home, from the palace of Pharaoh to the humblest dwelling, the firstborn were struck down. No household was spared, for there was no blood on their doorposts. The destroyer moved through the land, executing the judgment of the Lord.
But in the homes of the Israelites, there was peace. The blood on the doorposts was a sign of obedience and faith, a testimony to the covenant between God and His people. The Lord passed over them, sparing their firstborn and fulfilling His promise of deliverance.
Pharaoh, awakened by the cries of his people, summoned Moses and Aaron in the dead of night. His voice trembled with fear and desperation. “Rise up, go out from among my people, both you and the children of Israel,” he commanded. “Go, serve the Lord as you have said. Take your flocks and your herds, and be gone. And bless me also!”
The Israelites did not wait for dawn. They gathered their belongings, their kneading bowls still filled with unleavened dough, and prepared to leave. The Egyptians, eager to see them go, pressed gold, silver, and clothing into their hands, fulfilling the promise the Lord had made to Abraham centuries before: “Afterward they shall come out with great possessions.”
As the first light of morning broke over the horizon, the Israelites began their exodus from Egypt. They were no longer slaves but a free people, led by the mighty hand of the Lord. The blood of the lamb had saved them, a foreshadowing of the ultimate deliverance that would come through the Lamb of God, who would take away the sin of the world.
And so, the Lord brought His people out of Egypt with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, fulfilling His covenant and demonstrating His power. The Passover became a lasting ordinance, a memorial to be observed by generations to come. For on that night, the Lord had passed over His people, and they were redeemed.
