I call this series “revisited” because I have written on Passover and Second Passover several times before. However, I am expecting new revelation this time for some reason. It amazes me that the Christian Church has almost no understanding that Jesus Christ was God’s Passover lamb who was slain for the sins of the world.  The Church has even less understanding concerning this passage, “Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (1 Cor. 5:7-8 ESV) I believe we have now entered a season of tribulation wherein if we do not actively “celebrate” this festival, we will be severely and seriously chastised, perhaps even tortured and killed.

This study will focus on both the first and second Passover.  Second Passover is a little understood and rarely recognized or even thought about feast of our LORD. The first reference to this festival occurs in Numbers 9.

And the LORD spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the first month of the second year after they were come out of the land of Egypt, saying, Let the children of Israel also keep the passover at his appointed season. In the fourteenth day of this month, at even, ye shall keep it in his appointed season: according to all the rites of it, and according to all the ceremonies thereof, shall ye keep it. And Moses spake unto the children of Israel, that they should keep the passover. And they kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month at even in the wilderness of Sinai: according to all that the LORD commanded Moses, so did the children of Israel. And there were certain men, who were defiled by the dead body of a man, that they could not keep the passover on that day: and they came before Moses and before Aaron on that day: And those men said unto him, We are defiled by the dead body of a man: wherefore are we kept back, that we may not offer an offering of the LORD in his appointed season among the children of Israel? And Moses said unto them, Stand still, and I will hear what the LORD will command concerning you. And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the passover unto the LORD. The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. They shall leave none of it unto the morning, nor break any bone of it: according to all the ordinances of the passover they shall keep it. (Numbers 9:1-12 KJV)

Before we try to begin to understand Second Passover, though, let us seek wisdom concerning the meaning of First Passover. Remember, all Biblical historical events are also divine parables which portray spiritual truth which is not readily understood in the natural, historical level. The LORD designed Scripture this way so that only the diligent, only those who seek eyes to see and ears to hear can ever come to understand his ways.

Recall that God instituted the Feast of Passover just before executing his tenth judgment upon Egypt in the days of Moses. Exodus 12:29 explains this final plague: “And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle.” The rules for keeping Passover are also found in Exodus 12. We must understand these rules for they foretell spiritual truth for this hour.

And the LORD spake unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying, This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you. Speak ye unto all the congregation of Israel, saying, In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for an house: And if the household be too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbour next unto his house take it according to the number of the souls; every man according to his eating shall make your count for the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish, a male of the first year: ye shall take it out from the sheep, or from the goats: And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening. (Exodus 12:1-6 KJV)

First notice that God changed the times of the year for Israel just before the exodus. Rosh Hashanah, the first day of Tishri (Tishrei), would not longer be their new year’s day. God changed that to the seventh month, the month of Abib (Aviv), or Nisan (Nissan). Nisan begins at evening on March 11 this year and the time for slaughtering the Passover lamb is between noon and evening on March 25 (Nisan 14) this year. Notice in verse 3 above that the people were commanded to choose their sacrificial lamb on Nisan 10. Although the writers of the Gospels do not give us the date we can count the days to Jesus’ crucifixion, which occurred on Passover Day (Nisan 14), from the day when Jerusalem welcomed her coming King (Matthew 21:1-11). This day is traditionally called “Palm Sunday” and his coming into Jerusalem is called “the triumphal entry.” Mark 11:11 says that “it was already late” when Jesus entered Jerusalem. I believe it was after the evening time. Thus, if we count backwards from “Good” Friday, the day of his crucifixion which occurred on Nisan 14 (Passover Day), then the people of Jerusalem “chose” their Passover lamb on Nisan 10, exactly according to Scripture.  Here is the counting: Sunday evening to Monday evening is Nisan 10, Monday evening to Tuesday evening is Nisan 11, Tuesday evening to Wednesday evening is Nisan 12, Wednesday evening to Thursday evening is Nisan 13, and Thursday evening to Friday evening is Passover, Nisan 14, the day upon which our Passover was crucified, the lamb slain from the foundation of the world. (Revelation 13:8)