The Passover
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The fist plague God sent against Pharaoh was turning the Nile and all of the water in Egypt into blood. Eighty years prior to this the Pharaoh of Egypt filled the Nile with the blood of Hebrew boys in an attempt to make sure that they always served him. And one of those boys became his grandson and now him and his brother are being used by God to remind the Egyptians of the blood that they filled the Nile with by turning it all to blood, throughout Egypt so that everyone would be reminded and confronted with their sin and the murder of innocent children made in God’s own image.
He then followed this plague with nine more: Frogs, gnats, swarms of flies, death of livestock, boils, hail, locusts, darkness, and finally, death of the firstborn male.
These plagues were direct attacks against Egyptian gods and against Pharaoh himself. The Egyptians worship several gods who were responsible for different aspects of Egyptian life. Hapi was the god of the nile, Ra was the god of the sun, and these gods were powerless against Yahweh. God showed the Egyptians and all the other nations who heard about what He did to deliver His people that He alone was God and that all other gods were powerless against Him.
12 “I will pass through the land of Egypt on that night and strike every firstborn male in the land of Egypt, both people and animals. I am the Lord; I will execute judgments against all the gods of Egypt.
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4 I will harden Pharaoh’s heart so that he will pursue them. Then I will receive glory by means of Pharaoh and all his army, and the Egyptians will know that I am the Lord.” So the Israelites did this.
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17 As for me, I am going to harden the hearts of the Egyptians so that they will go in after them, and I will receive glory by means of Pharaoh, all his army, and his chariots and horsemen. 18 The Egyptians will know that I am the Lord when I receive glory through Pharaoh, his chariots, and his horsemen.”
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and we see the result:
31 When Israel saw the great power that the Lord used against the Egyptians, the people feared the Lord and believed in him and in his servant Moses.
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We also see how the Egyptians felt:
3 The Lord gave the people favor with the Egyptians. In addition, Moses himself was very highly regarded in the land of Egypt by Pharaoh’s officials and the people.
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And we see that some of the Egyptians went with the Israelites.
37 The Israelites traveled from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand able-bodied men on foot, besides their families. 38 A mixed crowd also went up with them, along with a huge number of livestock, both flocks and herds.
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The final plague was the death of the firstborn male. The first plague was a reminder of Egypt’s killing of the Hebrew male children, and the last plague was God’s killing of the Egyptian firstborn male children. But there are some big differences. God isn’t killing all of the male children, just the firstborn males, people and livestock, but unlike Pharaoh, God would allow you to redeem your firstborn males by sacrificing a one year old spotless goat or lamb. Anyone who would trust God to accept the proper sacrifice could have the lives of the firstborn males spared. But the Israelites were not automatically spared from this plague. Even though this was a judgment against Egypt, the Egyptians were not the only people who deserved death, all people deserve death.
12 Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, in this way death spread to all people, because all sinned.
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So the Israelites were told they too must sacrifice a lamb and wipe the blood on their door posts and when the angel of death came to their house and saw the blood of the sacrifice the angel would passover that house and spare the firstborn males. In this way God was showing His people that even though we all deserve death, God will accept a sacrifice in our place so that we may live, but the people will eventually learn that the blood of bulls and goats is not sufficient to completely atone for our sins, there must be a greater sacrifice.
4 For it is impossible for the blood of bulls and goats to take away sins.
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God spared the firstborn males of those who place their faith in Him for their salvation, by allowing them to be redeemed by a substitute, but He would not spare His only Son who willingly sacrificed Himself for the forgiveness of our sins.
12 he entered the most holy place once for all time, not by the blood of goats and calves, but by his own blood, having obtained eternal redemption.
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Jesus chose to sacrifice himself. His life was not taken, it was given.
18 No one takes it from me, but I lay it down on my own. I have the right to lay it down, and I have the right to take it up again. I have received this command from my Father.”
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Isaiah’s prophecy of the messiah said that he would willingly submit himself to death, bear their sin and intercede for them.
12 Therefore I will give him the many as a portion,
and he will receive the mighty as spoil,
because he willingly submitted to death,
and was counted among the rebels;
yet he bore the sin of many
and interceded for the rebels.
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And as a result, we are completely atoned for and can be brought near to God, without having to be so careful to not get too close to Him. This is made possible by the blood of Jesus. His sacrifice, His blood, cleanses us.
13 But now in Christ Jesus, you who were far away have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
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7 In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses, according to the riches of his grace
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His blood declares us righteous and will prevent us from facing God’s wrath against our sin because Jesus faced God’s wrath on our behalf.
9 How much more then, since we have now been declared righteous by his blood, will we be saved through him from wrath.
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There is no shortage of passages in which we are told that it was by Jesus’ willing sacrifice of Himself that we are saved.
******God’s holiness,
Justice
Love
Free will
Jesus’ decision to die for us
God pours out his wrath on Jesus as if He were us
13 See, my servant will be successful; he will be raised and lifted up and greatly exalted. 14 Just as many were appalled at you— his appearance was so disfigured that he did not look like a man, and his form did not resemble a human being— 15 so he will sprinkle many nations. Kings will shut their mouths because of him, for they will see what had not been told them, and they will understand what they had not heard. 1 Who has believed what we have heard? And to whom has the arm of the Lord been revealed? 2 He grew up before him like a young plant and like a root out of dry ground. He didn’t have an impressive form or majesty that we should look at him, no appearance that we should desire him. 3 He was despised and rejected by men, a man of suffering who knew what sickness was. He was like someone people turned away from; he was despised, and we didn’t value him. 4 Yet he himself bore our sicknesses, and he carried our pains; but we in turn regarded him stricken, struck down by God, and afflicted. 5 But he was pierced because of our rebellion, crushed because of our iniquities; punishment for our peace was on him, and we are healed by his wounds. 6 We all went astray like sheep; we all have turned to our own way; and the Lord has punished him for the iniquity of us all. 7 He was oppressed and afflicted, yet he did not open his mouth. Like a lamb led to the slaughter and like a sheep silent before her shearers, he did not open his mouth. 8 He was taken away because of oppression and judgment; and who considered his fate? For he was cut off from the land of the living; he was struck because of my people’s rebellion. 9 He was assigned a grave with the wicked, but he was with a rich man at his death, because he had done no violence and had not spoken deceitfully. 10 Yet the Lord was pleased to crush him severely. When you make him a guilt offering, he will see his seed, he will prolong his days, and by his hand, the Lord’s pleasure will be accomplished. 11 After his anguish, he will see light and be satisfied. By his knowledge, my righteous servant will justify many, and he will carry their iniquities. 12 Therefore I will give him the many as a portion, and he will receive the mighty as spoil, because he willingly submitted to death, and was counted among the rebels; yet he bore the sin of many and interceded for the rebels.
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21 He made the one who did not know sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.
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