Many wonderful truths are being revealed to us concerning the Feast of Passover—truths that, surprisingly, have never been on earth before. The Passover comes to project us into action, to liberate us into that which we were not able to do before, and to enable us to do it.
The ninth chapter of Numbers is the one passage in the Pentateuch that tells us about the little Passover, which was observed in the second month, just after the Passover. The little Passover was for the benefit of those who were unable to keep the feast. Anyone who was on a journey at the time of Passover would not be able to keep it, because the Passover had to be kept in a certain place that the Lord had chosen. The Passover also could not be kept by people who were unclean. According to the Jewish law, anyone who touched a corpse or a bone was considered unclean for seven days (Numbers 19:16). If it happened that a man had to go to a funeral and bury a relative, he was unclean for seven days. If the Passover came during that time, he would have to wait until the following month and keep the little Passover.
Thus the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, saying, “Now, let the sons of Israel observe the Passover at its appointed time. On the fourteenth day of this month, at twilight, you shall observe it at its appointed time; you shall observe it according to all its statutes and according to all its ordinances.” So Moses told the sons of Israel to observe the Passover. And they observed the Passover in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, at twilight, in the wilderness of Sinai; according to all that the Lord had commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did.
But there were some men who were unclean because of the dead person, so that they could not observe the Passover on that day; so they came before Moses and Aaron on that day. And those men said to him, “Though we are unclean because of the dead person, why are we restrained from presenting the offering of the Lord at its appointed time among the sons of Israel?” Moses therefore said to them, “Wait, and I will listen to what the Lord will command concerning you.”
Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘If any one of you or of your generations becomes unclean because of a dead person, or is on a distant journey, he may, however, observe the Passover to the Lord. In the second month on the fourteenth day at twilight, they shall observe it; they shall eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs.’ ” (Just exactly as though they had kept it the month before.) “ ‘They shall leave none of it until morning, nor break a bone of it; according to all the statute of the Passover they shall observe it.’ ” Numbers 9:1–12.
According to Exodus 12:46 and Numbers 9:12, not a bone of the Passover lamb was to be broken, because the Passover lamb was a symbol of the Lord Jesus Christ, and it was prophesied in Psalm 34:20 concerning Christ: “Not a bone shall be broken.” In John’s account of the crucifixion of Christ, he states that the soldiers pierced His side; but they did not break His bones, even though the Jewish authorities had requested that His legs be broken (John 19:31–37). A person who was crucified could hang in agony, often even for days. Jesus was crucified at the third hour (nine o’clock), and at the ninth hour (three o’clock in the afternoon) the Jews wanted the soldiers to break His legs. It was the day of preparation, and they wanted the bodies removed before sundown, for then the Sabbath would begin. The soldiers broke the legs of the thieves who hung beside Him to hasten their death. When they saw that Jesus was already dead, they thrust a spear into His side, and blood and water came out, which proved that He actually died of a ruptured heart—His heart was broken.
Christ had kept the Passover Feast with His disciples the night before, and it was then that He instituted the Lord’s Supper. About midnight He was seized in the Garden of Gethsemane. He was first rushed to Caiaphas, the high priest, to be tried, but under Roman law he could not pronounce the death sentence. Jesus was then taken to Pilate, who evaded the issue by sending Him to Herod. Herod sent Jesus back to Pilate, who then ordered Him to be crucified. All of this took a number of hours.
Actually, the process of His crucifixion began at that midnight hour after Passover. From that time on, judgments were proclaimed upon Him, one right after another. The high priest condemned Him, Herod condemned Him, and Pilate condemned Him. When Christ was crucified, He was the Passover Lamb. However, I want you to understand that God intervened so that Jesus was not crucified on the actual Passover. That day on which He kept the Passover, there may have been a quarter of a million lambs slain in Jerusalem, according to some of the accounts. Jesus partook of one of those lambs, but in another sense, He Himself was the Passover Lamb. If you remember, it was during that same night, centuries before, that the death angel had slain the firstborn of all Egypt as God pronounced judgment upon Egypt. Do not misunderstand—Christ was our Passover Lamb, and His death took place in the judgments which God pronounced upon the world. All the judgments of God were heaped upon Him, and the next day He hung on the cross.
I want you to realize that Christ was not a Passover to avoid judgment; He was the judgment. Judgment was heaped upon Him. Even the Father turned away from Him; and Jesus said, “My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?” Psalm 22 gives us the picture, showing how horrible it was. Oh, thank God for our blessed Redeemer!
The Israelites were also told not to leave any of the lamb until morning (Numbers 9:12). What did this symbolize? When Jesus instituted the Lord’s Supper, He told the disciples, “This is My blood. Drink ye all of it.” He meant, “Take the full provision that is given to you. Do not hold back from taking everything that the Lamb is to mean to you, everything of the blood and the life that God wants to bring to you. Do not pass any of it by.” The command, “Do not leave any of the lamb until morning,” has special significance for God’s people in this day. According to Jewish and Bible reckoning, a day did not start in the morning, but at sundown. The evening and the morning were the first day (Genesis 1:5). What God makes available to us in the full provision of the blood of Jesus Christ for redemption should be taken care of in the evening of this dispensation. We are not to leave any of it until the morning. When the morning comes, we should already have partaken fully and completely. We should walk into the Kingdom, having experienced all the fullness, all the riches that His grace has provided for us. Wondrous truths will open up to us as we study the Word from now on; and we will delight in them because we are going to experience them in a very real way.
“ ‘But the man who is clean and is not on a journey, and yet neglects to observe the Passover, that person shall then be cut off from his people, for he did not present the offering of the Lord at its appointed time. That man shall bear his sin.’ ” I am glad that it is possible for some people to get through the gate late; but I do not think that God extends mercy to a man who continually neglects the means of grace that he has at his disposal. If it is a matter of neglect, that man will bear his sin.
“ ‘And if an alien sojourns among you and observes the Passover to the Lord, according to the statute of the Passover and according to its ordinance, so he shall do; you shall have one statute, both for the alien and for the native of the land.’ ” Numbers 9:13–14.
The next portion, verses 15–23, seems almost to break the continuity of the chapter in speaking about the Passover. Now on the day that the tabernacle was erected the cloud covered the tabernacle, the tent of the testimony, and in the evening it was like the appearance of fire over the tabernacle, until morning. So it was continuously; the cloud would cover it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. And whenever the cloud was lifted from over the tent, afterward the sons of Israel would then set out; and in the place where the cloud settled down, there the sons of Israel would camp. At the command of the Lord the sons of Israel would set out, and at the command of the Lord they would camp; as long as the cloud settled over the tabernacle, they remained camped.
Even when the cloud lingered over the tabernacle for many days, the sons of Israel would keep the Lord’s charge and not set out. If sometimes the cloud remained a few days over the tabernacle, according to the command of the Lord they remained camped. Then according to the command of the Lord they set out. If sometimes the cloud remained from evening until morning, when the cloud was lifted in the morning, they would move out; or if it remained in the daytime and at night, whenever the cloud was lifted, they would set out.
Whether it was two days or a month or a year that the cloud lingered over the tabernacle, staying above it, the sons of Israel remained camped and did not set out; but when it was lifted, they did set out. At the command of the Lord they camped, and at the command of the Lord they set out; they kept the Lord’s charge, according to the command of the Lord through Moses.
Do you see the picture here? After the people had been redeemed by the blood of the Passover Lamb, they were led by the Lord through the wilderness. In this passage devoted to the Passover, a little thought is interjected which shows us that not only is the Lamb to be our Redeemer, but the Lamb will also be the one who leads us. First He has to be our Savior; then He becomes our leader.
Revelation 14:1–5 gives us a picture that verifies this. And I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one could learn the song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchased from the earth. These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they are celibates. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb. And no lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless. Notice that they follow the Lamb wherever He goes.
The Book of Revelation speaks much about the Lord as the Lamb. Even when it says, “Behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah is worthy,” we are told that they turned to see a Lamb as it had been slain (Revelation 5:5–6). Unless He had redeemed us, He could not lead us.
This is the picture portrayed in Numbers 9. The Israelites kept the Passover, and then they were led by the pillar of fire, following it exactly. Do what the Lord wants you to do when He wants you to do it. Some people, who are withdrawn and rebellious, may finally get around to doing the will of God, but that is not enough. Do you remember when the children of Israel came to Kadesh-barnea before the forty years in the wilderness? Moses sent twelve spies into the land, and when they came back, the people were so discouraged by the report of ten of the spies who were filled with unbelief that the children of Israel were ready to stone Moses and Joshua and Caleb for giving them the word to go in and possess the land. God said that they would wander for forty years and all would die in the wilderness. Then the people realized that they had sinned. They decided to go and fight as the Lord had commanded them. But then it was too late; the enemy defeated them and utterly crushed them (Deuteronomy 1:19–46).
If they had just done as they were told twenty-four hours earlier, they would have saved forty years. But because they were filled with rebellion and were one day late in acting on God’s command, it cost them forty years. There is a lesson for us in this incident. When the fire moves, you move. When the fire hovers over a place, stay there. There are always some people who are ambitious and overly zealous. They will not wait for a leading from the Lord or for a confirmed word; instead, they want to run ahead. It does not pay to run ahead, nor does it pay to linger behind. Just keep in step with God when He is moving—that is the best way.
In Numbers 10, we find an intriguing story hidden away in verses 1 and 2: The Lord spoke further to Moses, saying, “Make yourself two trumpets of silver, of hammered work you shall make them; and you shall use them for summoning the congregation and for having the camps set out.” These trumpets were not beautifully polished instruments like we use today; they were made of silver that had been pounded and hammered into shape. They symbolize the ministries who speak the living Word that is coming forth today. The Lord sifts and refines us as silver is refined in the fire; then He starts hammering on us. It is not enough for Him to put the fire to us to burn out the impurity; He also has to add a little bit of injury. The trumpets, made of hammered silver, were used for the Feast of Trumpets. They also proclaimed the Year of Jubilee and were used to sound the alarm in the camp.
Today we have a living Word, a prophetic Word from the Lord to direct the people. When the pillar of fire is moving along, some people “have their sunglasses on,” and they cannot see it very well; they need a trumpet to stir them up. Others perhaps are “sleeping in bed” and need to be awakened. Someone has to blow the trumpet. This is the way you should look upon the ministries that God has raised up. They are hammered like silver. In preparing them, God has beaten and hammered them. He has brought them into a place where they can give a clear call to God’s people: “Come on now, the Lamb is going to lead us, and we’re going to follow the Lamb wherever He goes. Let’s go!” Among us are trumpets that summon for war, trumpets that proclaim liberation, trumpets that get the camp in motion. As a people, we will have many beautiful trumpet calls that give us words of direction. I believe that the Lord is ready to have the trumpets sound in Zion.
While the people were rebuilding the wall in the days of Nehemiah, the one who had the trumpet stood by Nehemiah. When the trumpet sounded, everyone came to the place on the wall that was under attack. I like to think that this is symbolic of what God is doing now. We are being led by the Spirit of the Lord, but we are also being viciously attacked by the enemy. Therefore the living Word comes to consolidate the focus of faith in the prayers and the fasting, so that we can all come to help the brother who is under attack. When the assault is beamed at you, you want someone to blow a trumpet; then everyone’s prayers become focused on you and help comes forth for the glory of God.
We read in Numbers 10:11–13: Now it came about in the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth of the month (the little Passover had been observed on the fourteenth day of the month), that the cloud was lifted from over the tabernacle of testimony; and the sons of Israel set out on their journeys from the wilderness of Sinai. Then the cloud settled down in the wilderness of Paran. So they moved out for the first time according to the commandment of the Lord through Moses.
This is another passage that has symbolical significance for us. God is sounding the trumpet, and the pillar of fire is moving. It is good that the Lord did not move a month earlier, or some would have missed it completely. Some have needed the dealings of the Lord to purify them and to get rid of much of the uncleanness that has held them back. The Passover is a time of action, and as soon as the last little straggling lamb is safely in the fold, we are moving!
In the different stories about the Passover, it is amazing to see that immediately after the Passover was observed, the people were thrust into action. The significance of this is found in the first Passover (Exodus 12). When you partake of the Passover, you must be prepared for action with your loins girded, your staff in your hand, and sandals on your feet. Be prepared to move. Believe for changes in every phase and every aspect of your life. You will not look upon the same scenery, nor will you have the same relationships. You will be different yourself. Anticipate a release within you and a release within your circumstances. No deliverance ever wrought such changes in the circumstances of people’s lives as the Passover. It has been seen in instance after instance after instance. When they obeyed God and believed the Lord to appropriate, then changes took place. This shows that you can struggle with the circumstances of your life from now on and make very little headway; but when you allow Christ to become the focus of judgment for you, and the source of your sustaining redemption, then there will be some changes which will come quickly.
Much of the frustration within people who are in a walk with God has been caused by the fact that they feel as if they themselves have to break through to see the prophecies fulfilled. Every prophecy and every revelation is contingent upon their appropriating divine grace to accomplish it. They will not go anywhere until they appropriate the strength of the Lamb. When the Israelites were ready to march, what did they do? They stood there and ate the lamb. The blood of the lamb had already averted judgment, but they ate the flesh of the lamb to give them strength for their journey. Not only did the lamb provide a passing-over of judgment upon their houses so that their firstborn would not be slain, but they received an inner strength as they ate it. As our Passover Lamb, Christ is not only our salvation; He also becomes our strength and our song as we eat the Lamb, roasted with fire. The fire of judgment was upon Him, that judgment might be averted from us.
The bitter herbs were to remind the Israelites of the days of bondage. Likewise, we remember what the Lord has done to redeem us. We remember all the limitations from which He has released us. It is a matter of remembrance. As you partake of the Lamb, be ready to move out of every trace of Egypt you are in.
In the account of Numbers 9, the Israelites had already been in the wilderness a year. Then for the first time they moved according to the command of the Lord. It had taken a year for them to learn that the blessed pillar of fire would lead them and direct them in every step of their journey as they moved out in the Lord. In a similar manner, we recognize that we are ready to move out in the Lord. We are ready to move ahead. There will not be any more delays or any more wandering around. God is telling us that this is going to be a time when we appropriate everything that He has for us, and we are getting ready to move. When you ask the Lord to meet your needs, make out a shopping list, showing exactly what you need. When you pray, believe for something to happen. With every prayer that you speak, get ready for an answer. Do not come to church and pray for rain without bringing an umbrella!