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The title of this sermon is The Passover— Abraham, Isaac, Israel, and Christ. Most people believe that the Passover began with the children of Israel in Egypt. However, we’re going to see that that is not true. It began long, long before then. And most people today believe that the Passover is only for the Jews. However, the Jews have it on the wrong day, and I’ve covered that very thoroughly in the book The Christian Passover. So let’s approach this from an entirely different point of view. That’s why I said, The Passover—Abraham, Isaac, Israel, and Christ.
Let’s first of all go to Galatians 3. Now I’m going to read to you from my translation. Here, Galatians 3:29, and I found in translating that God inspired the Greek in such a way that if you’re going to be honest in translating it, almost all the versions will be similar. And the reason being is because you can’t translate it any differently.
Now, Galatians 3:29, “And if you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” Now we’ll take a look at that in detail here, in a little bit.
Let’s go to the book of Hebrews, and again I’m going to read from the Faithful Version. Let’s come to the sixth chapter. And I think if you go through and look at the writings of the New Testament you will be very surprised how much of the New Testament is keyed to Abraham, and then Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, but more in particularly to Abraham.
Now let’s begin here in Hebrews 6:13. “For God, after promising Abraham, swore by Himself, since He could swear by none greater, saying, ‘Surely in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply you.’ Now after he had patiently endured, he obtained the promise. For indeed, men swear by the greater, and confirmation by an oath puts an end to all disputes between them. In this way God, desiring more abundantly to show the heirs of the promise the unchangeable nature of His own purpose, confirmed it by an oath; …” (Heb. 6:13-17). Now I want you to understand “the unchangeable nature of His own [purpose]”, because that does tie in with God’s plan, and God’s plan ties in with the Passover and the holy days, as well as the weekly Sabbath. So that’s important to understand.
“So that by two immutable things, in which it was impossible for God to lie, we who have fled for refuge might have strong encouragement to lay hold on the hope that has been set before us; which hope we have as an anchor of the soul, both secure and steadfast, and which enters into the sanctuary within the veil; where Jesus has entered for us as a forerunner, having become a High Priest forever according to the order of Melchisedec” (vs. 18-20).
Now also this tells us a very important thing. That we always have to have the hope that God gave to Abraham, the hope of eternal life. We need to have that as secure and steadfast for the anchor of our soul. That way we’re not going to be tossed to and fro by everything that comes along. And as we have been finding in the series in the book of Hebrews, as we’re coming to now, that the thing that is important is that we have a High Priest Who is in heaven at the right hand of God, and this is the greatest most supreme thing that God could do for us while we are in the flesh.
Now let’s come to Hebrews 13:8. And here is something that’s very important that we need to understand and remember. “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday [that is, when He was the God of the Old Testament], and today [that is, under the New Covenant], and forever [that is in carrying out God’s plan into the ages of eternity].” So these things we really need to have as a preface before getting into the Passover concerning Abraham, Isaac, Israel, and Christ.
Now let’s come back to Galatians 3, and let’s see something that is important, something that is profound. Now let’s pick it up here in Galatians 3:6. “It is exactly as it is written: “Abraham believed God…” Now that is a profound statement. He believed God. And that’s what we have to do in the New Covenant as well, see. He didn’t believe in just what God had told him. Well, he did, but he believed God. And this is what it needs to be for all of us, that we believe God. When God says something, we believe it because God said it. So therefore we believe God. Now notice, “…and it was reckoned to him for righteousness.” This is telling us then, when you believe God, wholly and completely, you are righteous before Him. Righteousness is imputed to you. Now we’ll see how this comes when we get back to the book of Genesis in just a minute. “Because of this, you should understand that those who are of faith are the true sons of Abraham” (Gal. 3:6-7). That is, the spiritual sons. There were the physical sons through Isaac and Jacob, and Israel.
“Now in the Scriptures, God, seeing in advance that He would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham…” Now when have you heard that the gospel was preached to Abraham? There it is. And the gospel begins with what He said to Abraham, “…saying, ‘In you shall all the nations be blessed.’ It is for this reason [because Abraham believed] that those who are of faith are being blessed with the believing Abraham” (vs. 8-9).
So let’s go back to the book of Genesis and see this. And we will see that the Passover did not begin with Israel, but rather it began with Abraham. And we’ll see that it’s the same day that God gave the Passover to Israel. And we will see the reason we keep the Passover today is because of Abraham. That’s what it says. “If you are Christ’s then you are Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.” And so likewise, when we partake of the Passover, because we’re coming up to it very shortly here, we need to understand that the words that Jesus gave, the words of the New Covenant, we need to believe.
Now let’s come back to Genesis 12. Let’s begin here in verse 1. “And the LORD said to Abram, ‘Get out of your country, and from your kindred, and from your father’s house into a land that I will show you…” Now just hold your place here, and let’s go to Luke 14, because I want to make something very clear. That what Abraham did fulfilled this requirement that Jesus gave in the gospel of Luke, beginning in verse 26. Let’s read verse 25 and then we’ll read verse 26. “And great multitudes were going with Him; and He turned and said to them…” Now this is also important to understand. Multitudes of people like to use the name of Christ, like to claim that they are Christian, like to think of themselves as Christian, but they are the glad-handers just like the people who were here because they came because they were looking for the physical things. They remembered the feeding of the 4000, the feeding of the 5000, and so forth. So Jesus turned and He made a very important point here. He said, “If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father, and mother, and wife, and children, and brothers and sisters, and, in addition, his own life also, he cannot be My disciple.” So it is not like the Protestants say, “All you have to do is give your heart to the Lord.” No, you have to do the same thing as Abraham did. This is a requirement of Abraham, now detailed a little more closely for us. And where it says, “cannot be My disciple”, it means the impossibility of being a disciple of Jesus Christ. So we can tie that together. If you do not believe God, if you do not believe Christ, if you do not keep His commandments you are not of Christ. You may claim to be, you may think you are. You may even have some important people whom you look to in this world as your spiritual leaders, but unless you do what Jesus said here, you’re not His disciple.
Luke 14:27, “And whoever does not carry his cross, and come after Me…” meaning that you have to go through whatever trials and difficulties you go through and you bear your cross. “…cannot be My disciple;” So remember what Jesus said, the broad way, the easy way. Many are going that way with the name of Christ, but it’s going to end in destruction. So then He gives a little more and He says, “For which one of you, desiring to build a tower…” You can read the rest of it there. You calculate whether you have enough to finish it or not. And if you don’t, people are going to mock you and say, “You began but didn’t finish.” Or a king, going against another, he figures out whether he can come against 20,000 with his 10,000, and if he can win or not. And if not then he goes ahead and makes peace.
Now verse 33 says, “In the same way also, each one of you who does not forsake all that he possesses cannot be My disciple.” Now what is the hardest thing to give up? Many people have walked away from lands. Many people have walked away from countries. Many people have left families, but what is the hardest thing to give up? Self. You are to give up self to become a new creature in Christ.
Now let’s come back to Genesis 12. Let’s see how the gospel began. And what we read in Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John, and all the New Testament is a detailed fulfilling and carrying out of this promise, which was given to Abraham by God directly in Genesis 12:2. “And I will make of you a great nation. And I will bless you and make your name great. And you shall be a blessing. And I will bless those that bless you and curse the one who curses you. And in you shall all families of the earth be blessed.” Now that is a broad, broad promise, isn’t it? So therefore literally, the rest of the Bible from this point on shows how God fulfilled those promises and was carrying them out. And how that the carrying out of these promises are going to go clear on down through into the millennium, down into the Last Great Day, down into New Jerusalem coming on this earth, and on into all eternity. So that’s quite a thing. “Then Abram departed, even as the LORD had spoken to him…” (Gen. 12:2-4).
Now let’s come to Genesis 15. Let’s see where then, God then gives a little more understanding of what He promised him. Now he believed Him. [But] He didn’t give him any details. He said, “Just go, I’ll bless you.” So he left. Now please understand this: that’s the same with us. Many times God has us do things that we don’t understand right away. Later, He reveals it to us. Here’s the later part that He revealed a little bit more to Abram, or Abraham. Now we’re going to look and see that there are two things here. We’re also going to see that this took place over a period of two days, and that these two days are the Passover, the 14th of the first month, and the first day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, the 15th of the first month. Now, we’ll prove that after we get into it.
Let’s look at this now. So He gave the promise, beginning in verse 4. He said, “…out of your own loins shall be your heir.” So there is a physical seed. First there is the physical, then there is the spiritual. That’s what Paul said. The first man, Adam, was of the flesh. The second Adam, Christ, was from heaven. There is a natural body, which is sown in the resurrection, and raised a spiritual body. So here we have the same thing. God is giving the promise of a physical heir—a son.
Now then we have a second promise given. Verse 5, “And He brought him outside and said, ‘Look now toward the heavens and number the stars—if you are able to count them.’ And He said to him, ‘So shall your seed be.’ ” Now that’s quite an awesome thing. And remember, at that time there was no smog around to obscure the vision of the stars. Now, you see the stars when? At night. What God is doing here, He is bringing the words of the covenant to Abraham. These are the words of the covenant that God gave to Abraham. Now, He expands upon that because there are two parts here: the physical seed and the spiritual seed.
Now, hold your place and let’s come to Matthew 13, and we will see the promise of spiritual seed is likened unto the stars. So He is giving two promises to Abraham here. One a physical seed from his own loins. One of spiritual seed, which would come through Christ, as we now know, Galatians 3:29, that if you be Christ’s then are you Abraham’s seed and heirs according to the promise.
Now let’s come to Matthew 13:43. “Then shall the righteous shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. The one who has ears to hear, let him hear.”
Now again let’s come to 1 John 3, and let’s see something very important here…how we will be when we are glorified spirit beings. 1 John 3:1, “Behold! What glorious love the Father has given us, that we should be called the children of God! For this reason, the world does not know us because it did not know Him. Beloved, now we are the children of God, and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be; but we know that when He is manifested, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him exactly as He is” (1 John 3:1-2).
Now let’s come to Revelation 1 so we can show that when God took Abraham out there and showed him the stars, he was literally showing him the glory of his coming spiritual seed through Christ. Now, Revelation 1:13, “And in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of man, clothed in a garment reaching to the feet, and girded about the chest with a golden breastplate. And His head and hair were like white wool, white as snow; and His eyes were like a flame of fire; and His feet were like fine brass, as if they glowed in a furnace; and His voice was like the sound of many waters. And in His right hand He had seven stars, and a sharp two-edged sword went out of His mouth, and His countenance [now notice] was as the sun shining in its full power” (Rev. 1:13-16). Now, what is a star? A star is a sun. We know that, don’t we? Yes. So when God told Abraham they’d be like the stars, so shall your seed be, this is talking about the spiritual seed.
Now let’s come to Philippians 3:20. “But for us, the commonwealth of God exists in the heavens, from where also we are waiting for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; Who will transform our vile bodies…” In the Greek you can use a plural subject in a singular antecedent, but here in English it should be plural. “…Who will transform our vile bodies, that they may be conformed to His glorious body [and we just saw that in Revelation 1], according to the inner working of His own power, whereby He is able to subdue all things to Himself” (Phil. 3:20-21). So when God told Abraham that his seed was going to be as the stars of heaven for multitude, He’s not only showing the number, He’s also showing the kind of glory that they will be.
Now let’s come back to Genesis 15, and let’s read that again. Now some people may ask the question: “so shall your seed be” does that not just refer to physical seed? Well, what is God’s plan overall for human beings? [It is] to become the sons of God.
Now let’s come back here to 1 John 3 then and I’ll answer the question. Because when we receive the begettal of the Holy Spirit, we receive the seed of eternal life. And in the Greek the seed is called sperma. Now unfortunately in 1 John 3:9 we have one of the worst translated verses in all the King James Version of the Bible, which reads, “Whosoever is born of God doth not commit sin; …” That’s an entirely incorrect translation. And [it is] incorrectly interpreted by the Protestants who say that if you are born again you cannot sin. That is, if you have a conversion experience you cannot sin. Now that is not true.
Come over here to Chapter 5 and let’s show the contradiction right within the translation of the King James. Verse 16, “If anyone see his brother sinning a sin that is not unto death…” Does this not say that a person who is converted is capable of sin? Does it not? Is not a brother converted? Yes. And if he sins a sin not unto death, that means it’s a sin he can repent of. “…He shall ask [that is, you pray for him], and He [God] will give him life for those who do not sin unto death. There is a sin unto death; concerning that sin, I do not say that he should make any supplication to God” (1 John 5:16). This shows two things. Converted people can sin. Converted people, according to Protestants, are born again. But that is not a correct interpretation. No one is born again until the resurrection. However, with the proper translation of 1 John 3:9, which I’ll read the one that I have, which bears out in the Greek and should read this way: “Everyone who has been begotten by God does not practice sin because His seed [that is from God the Father, which is the begettal, so I put in italics] of begettal is dwelling within him, and he is not able to practice sin because he has been begotten by God.” So when it talks about seed back here in Genesis 15, now we see that there’s physical seed, and we also see that there are spiritual seed. That’s why I started out that if you are Christ’s then are you Abraham’s seed (spiritual) and heirs according to the promise.
Ok, now let’s come back to Genesis 15 because we’re going to find how important this is. And I remember when we first understood this, what, about four years ago, three years ago, somewhere around there. It was really, really quite an eye-opener. So we’ll go through it and we will clarify it for you. Ok, now let’s come back here again to Genesis 15:5. “So shall your seed be.” Now in both instance, physical and spiritual. Verse 6, “And he believed in the LORD. And He accounted it to him for righteousness.” Now, let’s understand something here. There was no work for Abraham to do because it’s impossible to count the stars, correct? He could not have children at this point, so there was no work for him to do. He believed God. It counted to him for righteousness.
Now then, God gives him an instruction here. “And He said to him, ‘I am the LORD that brought you out of Ur of the Chaldees, to give you this land to inherit it.’ And he said, ‘Lord GOD, by what shall I know that I shall inherit it?’ ” So God then, did a very profound thing. And this has to do with the very crucifixion of Christ and His death, and being put in the grave. “And He said to him, ‘Take Me a heifer of three years old, and a she-goat of three years old, and a ram of three years old, and a turtledove, and a young pigeon’ ” (Gen. 15:7-9). Now this means that they’re all mature.
“And he took all these to himself, and divided them in the middle [meaning he cut them down the middle], and laid each piece opposite the other…” Meaning the spine was close to each other and there was a path down between these animals cut and laid out. Everything was there, the blood, the guts, everything. “…But he did not divide the birds.” He probably put one bird on one side and one bird on the other side. Now what was the purpose of this? We’ll see what the purpose of this is. This is a special maledictory sacrifice and oath, that when one takes an oath such as this they cannot break it. Now verse 11, “And when the birds of prey came down upon the carcasses, Abram drove them away” (vs. 10-11).
“And it came to pass, as the sun was going down…” That’s very interesting, isn’t it? First of all, back here in verse 5 we have a night, don’t we? Then in the day portion of the day, which was the 14th of the first month as we will see, he did the sacrificing of the animals. Now notice there was no altar, there was no sprinkling of the blood, there was no burning of it by Abraham. Just laid out there. So much so that the fowl, which then would be the vultures and buzzards, were circling up overhead. And they came down upon the carcasses, and Abram drove them away. “...As the sun was going down, that a deep sleep fell upon Abram…” Now you can read in the Passover book how this is very likened to the time when Jesus died. He died at the third hour, and the sun was going down at the third hour, is it not? Yes. Then two things happened here. “…A deep sleep fell upon Abram…” Now, a deep sleep. What is a person who dies in Christ? They are sleeping. So here’s a deep sleep. This is a type of death. A type of the death of Christ, perhaps precisely at the same time that Jesus died, when He was crucified on the 14th day, the Passover, when He was crucified. “…And, behold, a horror of great darkness fell upon him! And He said to Abram, ‘You must surely know that your seed shall be sojourners in a land that is not theirs, (and shall serve them and they shall afflict them) four hundred years. And also I will judge that nation whom they shall serve. And afterward they shall come out with great substance. And you shall go to your fathers in peace. You shall be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall come here again, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full” (vs. 12-16).
Now then, notice verse 17. “And it came to pass—when the sun went down…” Now we are into the second day, aren’t we? When do the days begin and end according to scripture? At sunset. So we have the sun going down, don’t we. Now remember, we started out at night in verse 4 and 5. Then we had the day portion with the sacrifice, and we’ll explain the sacrifice here in just a minute. Now, we come, the sun went down and it was dark. Then God did something very profound to give to Abraham the guarantee of the promises beginning in verse 4, carried on down through verses 13, 14, and 15. Then He did something very profound. “…—behold, a smoking furnace and a burning lamp passed between those pieces.” Now what happened when God went through those parts? It doesn’t tell us directly, but I would say from the context of it is here, when God walked between the parts of the sacrifice, those animals were consumed and there was nothing left but ashes.
Now verse 18. “In the same day the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘I have given this land to your seed, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the river Euphrates, the land of the Kenites, and the Kenizzites…”, and so forth, all of the different tribes of Canaan. Now where else do we find a two day sequence? And how do we know this is the 14th and 15th? We can’t prove it from right here, because it doesn’t say 14th day of the first month, here. And it doesn’t say the 15th day of the first month, here. However, if we go to Exodus 12 we do have the days numbered, and we do have it told us exactly when it took place.
Now let’s come here to Exodus 12. Now again, I refer you to The Christian Passover book. You can go through in detail because we have great detailed explanation of everything that is here because there is great confusion over the Passover. And of course it’s only logical that Satan would confuse everything concerning the Passover, because if you keep the Christian Passover today the way that Christ wants you to, at the time that He says, and the manner that He says, then you belong to Christ. So Satan’s objective is to confuse it, to cause problems with it, to change the day if possible. And because the Jews today keep the Passover on the 15th, which I fully explain in the book The Christian Passover, they do not recognize Christ at all. Because in order to truly recognize Christ you must understand the truth of the Passover, because Christ, as we will see later, died on the Passover day, the very time that the sacrifice took place that Abraham gave and fell into the deep sleep.
Now let’s read the instructions here for the children of Israel, concerning the Passover. Now we’re not going to go in great detail, but what I want to point out is this: let’s begin in verse 3. “Speak to all the congregation of Israel, saying, ‘In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them each man a lamb for a father’s house, a lamb for a house. And if the household is too little for the lamb, let him and his neighbor next to his house take according to the number of the souls, each one, according to the eating of his mouth, you shall count concerning the lamb. Your lamb shall be without blemish [because that’s a type of Christ], a male of the first year. You shall take it from the sheep or from the goats. And you shall keep it up until the beginning of the fourteenth day of the same month...” Which then is the first month because he said in verse 2, “This month shall be to you the beginning of months.” So it’s the first month. “…And the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it between the two evening” (vs. 3-6). Which means between the two evenings, between sunset and dark, which is amply proved in the book, The Christian Passover.
Now then, they were to eat it in that night, after taking the blood and the so forth and roasting it, and so forth. Because He says, verse 12, “For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast. And I will execute judgment against all the gods of Egypt...” Then He said, “And the blood shall be a sign to you upon the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you…” (vs. 12-13). Now let’s understand something here very important. All of Israel was blessed because of the Passover, but the Passover spared whom? The firstborn, correct. Now there is a great parallel with that for today with God’s church who are the church of the firstborn, as we will see a little later, and also the rest of the world. So how important is the church of God to the world? [It is] Far more important than we have ever calculated. As important as the firstborn of Israel in relationship to the rest of Israel, so the church of the firstborn, which we are today, is as important to God as the rest of the world. So then, they were to keep that as a memorial.
Then we have this. Let’s understand something very important here, which I cover. Here is the Passover. Let’s come over here verse 21. “Then Moses called for all the elders of Israel and said to them, ‘Draw out and take a lamb for yourselves according to your families, and kill the Passover lamb. And you shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip in the blood that is in the bowl, and strike the lintel and the two side posts with the blood in the bowl. And none of you shall go out of the door of his house until the sunrise.” And that literally means sunrise. So they could not leave that night. We explain all of that in The Christian Passover book. “For the LORD will pass through to strike the Egyptians. And when He sees the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not allow the destroyer to come into your houses to strike you. And you shall observe this thing as a law to you and to your children forever. And it shall be when you have come to the land which the LORD will give you, according as He has promised that you shall keep this service. And it will be, when your children shall say to you, ‘What does this service mean to you?’ Then you shall say, ‘It is the sacrifice of the LORD’S Passover, Who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when He struck the Egyptians and delivered our houses.’ And the people bowed their heads and worshiped. And the children of Israel went away and did as the LORD had commanded Moses and Aaron; so did they” (vs. 21-28). Then at midnight He smote all the firstborn.
Now let’s come here to Numbers 33:3 because we do want to get a little chronology here. Let’s begin in verse 1 and not 3. “These are the journeys of the children of Israel, who went forth out of the land of Egypt with their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron. And Moses wrote their goings out according to their journeys by the command of the LORD. And these are their journeys according to their starting places. And they set out from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month…” (Num. 33:1-3). When does the 15th begin? Right after sunset of the 14th, correct? Yes. They went out by night, as we will see. They couldn’t have gone out on the night of the 14th because they had to stay in their houses. And if they kept the Passover on the 15th then they could not have left until morning. And if they left in the morning they could not leave at night. Now that’s as simple as can be. If you’re going to go to work at six in the morning, you don’t show up at six at night. It’s that simple, see. So they left on the morrow, or that is, the day after the Passover.
Now let’s come and see this. Let’s see what they did when they left their homes. Now where were the homes of the children of Israel? We’ll see a little later they lived in the area of Goshen. So it was in the northwest part of the delta, the very choicest part of Egypt, and they had their little villages scattered there. And so for them to leave Rameses means they had to assemble at Rameses and then leave there. So they assembled at Rameses on the day portion of the 14th. And here’s what they did. Let’s go back to Exodus 12:33. “And the Egyptians were urging the people, that they might send them out of the land quickly, for they said, ‘We are all dead men.’ ”
“And the people took their dough before it was leavened, their kneading troughs being bound up in their clothes upon their shoulders. And the children of Israel did according to the word of Moses. And they asked for articles of silver, and articles of gold, and clothing from the Egyptians. And the LORD gave the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, and they granted their request, and they stripped the Egyptians” (Ex. 12:33-36).
Key verse beginning in verse 37 down to verse 42. Let’s read it. “And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, the men being about six hundred thousand on foot, apart from little ones.” So this is where we get the figure of 1.8 million. If we have one woman and one child per man, then you get 1.8 million people. “And also a mixed multitude went up with them, and flocks and herds, very much livestock. And they baked unleavened cakes of the dough which they brought out of Egypt, for it was not leavened, because they were driven out of Egypt and could not stay, neither had they prepared any food for themselves for the journey” (vs. 37-39).
Verse 40, according to the commandment of God. Remember that we read back there in Numbers 33. “Now the sojourning of the children of Israel in Egypt was four hundred and thirty years. And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, it was even on that very same day, all the armies of the LORD went out from the land of Egypt. It is a night to be much observed to the LORD for bringing them out from the land of Egypt. This is that night of the LORD to be observed by all the children of Israel in their generations” (vs. 40-42). This is not the Passover because the Passover they stayed in their homes. They came out by night. Now how does this tie in with Genesis 15? It ties in this way, verse 41. “And it came to pass at the end of the four hundred and thirty years, it was even on that very same day…” Very same day in reference to what? In reference to Genesis 15.
Let’s go back there. Let’s pick it up in verse 17. “And it came to pass—when the sun went down [which we know begins a new day, correct?], and it was dark—behold, a smoking furnace and a burning lamp passed between those pieces. In the same day [being nighttime] the LORD made a covenant with Abram, saying, ‘I have given this land to your seed…” Also, “this same day”, what also has part of the covenant? Come back here to verse 13. “And He said to Abram, ‘You must surely know that your seed shall be sojourners in a land that is not theirs [that’s all they were in Egypt], (and shall serve them and they shall afflict them) four hundred years [it was actually 430]. And also I will judge that nation whom they shall serve…” And God said He did judge them on the Passover night, correct? Yes. “…And afterward they shall come out with great substance.” Did they do that? Yes. “And you shall go to your fathers in peace. You shall be buried in a good old age. But in the fourth generation they shall come here again, for the iniquity of the Amorites is not yet full” (Gen. 15:13- 16). So when the sun went down, beginning the 15th, that same day God made the covenant that He would bring them out and that they would inherit the land. So that’s what the “self same day” is referring to. And God did it by walking through this special sacrifice which is called a maledictory oath. Meaning that once you make this oath you cannot change. And of course then, the smoking furnace burned up all the sacrifice completely.
So then, since verse 18, “the same day” equals to the same day in Exodus 12:41, “self same day”, that is the 15th day of the first month. So therefore when we come back to Genesis 15, the promises that God gave to Abraham was then on the night of the 14th, which is the same night in which we take the Passover, in which we have the promises of eternal life given to us by Jesus Christ in the words of the New Covenant, correct? Yes.
Now before we go on let’s come to understand a little bit more about this maledictory oath. Let’s see it here in the book of Jeremiah 34. This tells us what kind of oath this is. There is no greater, no stronger oath. And of course, in doing this not only did He make the covenant with Abraham to bring the children of Israel out, but He also foretold of His coming crucifixion. So let’s see this oath, and we will see what happens when people don’t keep it. This is the most solemn oath that you can have.
Verse 8, “The word that came to Jeremiah from the LORD, after king Zedekiah had made a covenant with all the people at Jerusalem, to proclaim liberty to them,” Now here’s the liberty. They made a covenant. We’ll see how they made the covenant. “That each man should let his male slave, and each man his female slave—if a Hebrew man or a Hebrew woman—go free; that none should enslave a Jew, his brother among them. And all the rulers obeyed, and all the people who had entered into the covenant allowed them to go free, each man his male slave, and each man his female slave, so that not any should be enslaved among them any more; and they obeyed and let them go” (Jer. 34:8-10).
Now notice what happened here. “But afterward they turned and took back the male slaves and the female slaves whom they had set free and enslaved them again as male slaves and female slaves.” (vs. 11). Almost like Pharaoh, right, when Moses said, “Let my people go.” They couldn’t get along without the servants. So the Jews, when they let them go they said, “Oh, look what we did. We’ve got to do the work ourselves.” Too bad.
Verse 12. They went back on their word. They went back on a covenant, see. And I want you to also remember that in relationship to the coming Passover, which is a renewing of the New Covenant. “So the Word of the LORD came to Jeremiah from the LORD, saying, ‘Thus says the LORD, the God of Israel, “I made a covenant with your fathers in the day that I brought them out from the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery, saying, ‘At the end of seven years each man should let go free his brother, a Hebrew, who has been sold to him. And when he has served you six years, you shall let him go free from you.’ But your fathers did not hearken to Me, nor inclined their ears. And you had turned today, and had done right in My sight to call for liberty, each man to his neighbor. And you had made a covenant before Me in the house which is called by My name. But you turned back and defiled My name, and each of you has taken back his male slave and his female slave whom you had set free to do as they pleased. But you forced them again to become your male and your female slaves.” Thus says the LORD. “You have not hearkened to Me to proclaiming liberty each man to his brother, and each man to his neighbor! Behold, I proclaim freedom for you,” says the LORD, “to the sword, to the plague, and to the famine. And I will cause you to be a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth” ’ ” (vs. 12-17). Now how serious is a covenant? Mighty serious. How serious is it when you break it? And remember, they did this in the house of God. And also remember, that when we do things, we have access to God the Father in heaven above. So this is not just in a physical house upon the earth where we have a covenant, you see.
Verse 18, “And I will give the men who have sinned against My covenant, who have not done the words of the covenant which they made before Me when they divided the calf in two…” Just like Abraham did. He cut it in two. “…And passed between its parts;” Because when anyone made that kind of covenant and passed between the parts of the animals that were sacrificed for that covenant, what they are declaring by their action is this: if I break this covenant I will be like these animals that have been sacrificed—cut down the middle.
Now continuing, verse 19. The rulers of Judah, and the rulers of Jerusalem, the officials, and the priests, and all the people of the land who passed between the parts of the calf; I will even give them into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their life. And their dead bodies shall be for food to the birds of heaven and to the beasts of the earth.” (vs. 18-20). id not the fowls of heaven come down to try and get the sacrifices that Abraham made? Yes. So now He’s going to say, “I’m going to do this to you.”
“And I will give Zedekiah king of Judah, and his rulers, into the hand of their enemies, and into the hand of those who seek their lives, and into the hand of the king of Babylon’s army, who has withdrawn from you. Behold, I will command,’ says the LORD, ‘and cause them to return to this city. And they shall fight against it and capture it, and burn it with fire. And I will make the cities of Judah a desert without a soul to live in it.” (vs. 21- 22).
Apparently, God fought their battle for them, drove back the king of Babylon. So they said, “Thank you God for doing that. We repent. We’ll let our slaves go free.” And then they changed their minds. So He said, “Now I’m going to cause the king of Babylon to return, and now he’s going to go into the whole city.” So this tells you the seriousness of the kind of oath that there is when you make a covenant and pass between the parts. That’s the oath that God made with Abraham to guarantee that he would have 1) physical seed, 2) spiritual seed, 3) that He would take them out of the land of the stranger in the same day that He made the covenant with Abraham. That very same night. So you see, the Passover, and the Feast of Unleavened Bread really began with Abraham and not with Israel.
Now let’s look at the extension of this covenant, the physical seed, which would be Israel. And they would come through Isaac. Let’s come to Genesis 17. And oh, the Arabs would that it would have been Ishmael. But it wasn’t. So here then is a continuation of the covenant, now giving in detail the requirements for the physical seed. Let’s begin in verse 1. Abraham had to wait a long time, didn’t he? Now this was a year before Isaac was born. And Isaac was then the promise of the physical seed. “And when Abram was ninety-nine years old…” Well now let’s see. He left at 75, didn’t he. Here we are 25 years, inclusive counting, alright? “…And [He] said to him, ‘I am the Almighty God [El Shaddai]! Walk before Me and be perfect.’ ” Now just put in your margin there, Matthew 5:48, because we are told to be perfect as your Father in heaven is perfect. So you see here again, it’s the same requirement. It is the gospel as preached to Abraham, right? Yes. Matthew 5:48.
Now verse 2 of Genesis 17. “And I will make My covenant between Me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly. And Abram fell on his face. And God talked with him, saying, ‘As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. Neither shall your name any more be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.” And that was before Isaac was even born. Because you see, when God says something it is as good as done. That’s what’s important. So when God says you will be in the kingdom of God, it is as good as done. The only condition is, you have to endure to the end and be faithful. You’ll make it.
Now verse 6, “And I will make you exceeding fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your seed after you in their generations…” Now this is, then, the physical seed. “ ‘…For an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and to your seed after you. And I will give the land to you in which you are a sojourner, and to your seed after you, all the land of Canaan, for an everlasting possession. And I will be their God.’ And God said to Abraham, ‘And you shall keep My covenant, you and your seed after you in their generations. This is My covenant, which you shall keep, between Me and you and your seed after you. Every male child among you shall be circumcised.’ ” (vs. 6-10). So here’s the covenant of circumcision. Now remember that he was blessed of God, had righteousness imputed to him, his sins forgiven him for 25 years while he was in uncircumcision so that he could be the father of the uncircumcision who receive the promise of eternal life, as well as the father of the circumcision.
Continuing verse 11, “And you shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin. And it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you. And a son of eight days shall be circumcised among you, every male child in your generations; he that is born in the house, or bought with silver of any foreigner who is not of your seed. He that is born in your house, and he that is bought with your silver, must be circumcised. And My covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.” (vs. 11- 13). And that was until it was continuous to that time. And I think for all the descendants of Israel should be, to this day. Not for salvation but for the keeping of the covenant here because we live today in the land that God gave to the descendants of Israel. Not for salvation, but for this part of the covenant because whoever are the descendants of Israel should.
Now, verse 14. “And the uncircumcised male child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people— for he has broken My covenant.” Now you see, God has not required this of the Gentile and their own nations. We know that in the New Covenant circumcision is nothing, and uncircumcision is nothing, but the circumcision of the heart, and faith in Christ. But this is for the physical seed.
Now, verse 15. “And God said to Abraham, ‘As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but her name shall be Sarah. And I will bless her, and give you a son also of her. Yes, I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations— kings of people shall be from her.’ And Abraham fell upon his face and laughed, and said in his heart, ‘Shall a child be born to him that is a hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear?’ And Abraham said to God, ‘Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!’ ” The easy way out. “And God said, ‘Sarah your wife shall bear you a son indeed. And you shall call his name Isaac. And I will establish My covenant with him for an everlasting covenant, and with his seed after him. And as for Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I have blessed him, and will make him fruitful, and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall multiply him exceedingly. He shall beget twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. But I will establish My covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time in the next year” (vs. 15- 21). It’s important for us to understand that God does things at the set time. So then they had the circumcision party.
Now, Isaac was born, sure enough at the set time that God had said, and then we have something profound. Here, let’s come to Genesis 21:1. “And the LORD visited Sarah as He had said. And the LORD did to Sarah as He had spoken. For Sarah conceived and bore Abraham a son in his old age…” You see, God does the impossible things. That way it can never be said that it’s of a man. Now you show me any 100 year old today who has a pregnant 90 year old wife, and then we will know that this was not a miraculous thing. “…At the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son that was born to him, (whom Sarah bore to him) Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac, when he was eight days old, as God had commanded him. And Abraham was a hundred years old when his son Isaac was born to him” (Gen. 21:1-5). So that means he was pretty close to the end of his 100th year, because remember when God told him back here in Chapter 17:17, he said, “Shall a child be born to him that is a hundred years old?” So apparently he was just 100 at that point. No more than three months into his 100th year, and Isaac was born before the 100th year was out. That’s how we have the chronology.
Now then, let’s talk about the Passover and Isaac, because this time it talks about Isaac and Abraham. Now this we find some tremendous types coming down to the prophecy, not only the prophecy but the actual crucifixion of Jesus Christ. Here we find that in type Abraham is a type of God the Father, who has only one son. And this son is to be sacrificed. Now we do not have anything dogmatic that we could say that this took place on the Passover day. It’s possible, but we don’t know for sure. So we can’t say that. Now here is a test that Abraham went through. Now remember what we read at the beginning in Luke 14:26. Here again he is going to be tested on this. Not only do we do that when it’s called “counting the cost” where in Luke 14:26 to the end of verse 33, but we always count the cost continually as we go through our Christian life. We’re confronted with many things where we must count the cost. Will we obey God or not? Will we believe God or not? Will we trust God or not? And that’s on an ongoing basis. It’s not just, you know, you do it once and it’s over with, see. No, not at all. So here he is. We don’t know how old. As we see a little later, Isaac is called a lad. So, we could say that he was probably less than 20. They even have an indication that he was say, not much more than 12. So between 12 and 20 was the age of Isaac when this event took place. Which means that from the time that God called Abraham we have 37 to 45 years when this event took place. So you see, God also tested Abraham all those years, didn’t He?
Now I’ve got another tape that I did, you know the Abraham and his human nature, and the things that he did. Now Abraham had a little deceitful streak in him, which Isaac inherited, and also Jacob inherited. And also Jacob’s mother, she had a little deceitful streak in her. So God uses some of those human weakness in His plan. But here we have between 37 and 45 years when this event took place in Genesis 22. Now let’s begin in verse 1. “And it came to pass after these things that God tested [him]…” Now this means test Abraham. God does not tempt anyone with evil. Let’s understand that. God puts before us choices, whether we will obey Him or not. When we are tempted with evil and drawn away of our own lusts, and then the lust conceives and brings forth sin, God did not make us sin when we do that. That’s a wrong human nature. And of course that’s why we have the Feast of Unleavened Bread continuously year by year, as long as we are in the church of God, so that we understand that our human nature is always here and we always have to be working on getting rid of it, just like we get rid of leaven out of our lives.
Now Genesis 22:1, “And it came to pass after these things that God tested Abraham, and said to him, ‘Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ And He said, ‘Take now your son, your only son…’ ” Now was Ishmael Abraham’s son? Yes, he was. But not of Sarah. Not counted as the seed for the promise, so therefore He said, “Your son, your only son.” So this is very much a type of God the Father in relationship to Christ. In this case then, Isaac being a type of Christ, Abraham being a type of the Father. “…And go into the land of Moriah, and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell you” (Gen. 22:1-2). Now, there were mountains in Moriah. Now the Jews claim by tradition that this was the area where the temple was built. But also one of the mountains of Moriah then would be the mount that later became to be called the Mount of Olives. So could this be, and of course you need to understand the Mount of Olives is higher than the temple mount. So could this be the mount where Christ was crucified? If the parallel follows then that could be true so I just leave that as a question.
“And Abraham rose up early in the morning and saddled his donkey, and took two of his young men with him, and Isaac his son. And he split the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up and went to the place of which God had told him. Then on the third day Abraham lifted up his eyes and saw the place afar off. And Abraham said to his young men, ‘You stay here with the donkey, and I and the boy will go yonder and worship, and come again to you.’ And Abraham took the wood of the burnt offering and laid it upon Isaac his son [that’s almost like a type of carrying the cross that Christ did, remember?]. And he took the fire pot in his hand…” Now that means he took a kettle of hot coals for a fire, because obviously you are not going to carry it in your hand. Because if you carry fire in your hand you’re going to burn it. “…And a knife. And they both went together.” I imagine it was kind of a silent climb up that mountain. “And Isaac spoke to Abraham his father and said, ‘My father.’ And he said, ‘Here I am, my son.’ And he said, ‘Behold the fire and the wood [I see the fire and I see the wood]. But where is the lamb for a burnt offering?’ ” (vs. 3-7).
Now we notice two things here. There are two acts of faith. 1) Abraham, he believed. 2) And Isaac, he also believed and did not complain. He could have said, “This is ridiculous. We’re going up here and you’re going to offer an offering, and I find out at the last minute it’s me!” But he didn’t do it.
Now verse 8. “And Abraham said, ‘My son, God will provide Himself a lamb for a burnt offering:…’ ” Now sometimes God waits until the very last minute for deliverance, doesn’t He? Yes, He does. “…So they both went on together. And they came to the place of which God had told him. And Abraham built an altar there…” Now let’s understand something about sin offerings and burnt offerings. On the Mount of Olives, now let’s picture this in your mind. You’re looking at the temple area, and you are looking north. To the right is east. To the east of the temple is the Kiddron Valley going down 600 feet. Actually 450. They built a bridge across the Kiddron Valley to go into the East gate of the temple. This bridge went to the Mount of Olives. On the Mount of Olives right near the crest of the Mount of Olives was what was called the Miphkad Altar. Now this was a special altar outside the temple area. This is where they took all the sin offerings, and they took all the skins of the sin offerings and they burnt them in the Miphkad Altar. So this was like a huge pit. And these things were constantly and continually burnt. And at the bottom of the pit there was a conduit which went down into the Kiddron Valley, at which periodically they would push the ashes out.
Now, question: could it be that where he built this altar was later where the Miphkad Altar was built? Even though this was a burnt offering, Christ was a sin offering, wasn’t He? Christ was not burned, was He? No, because He had to be buried and raised so the parallel breaks down when you get out of the physical parallel and you start getting into the real sacrifice of Christ. So he “… built an altar there and laid the wood in order. And he bound his son Isaac and laid him on the wood upon the altar” (vs. 9). Now this means that this probably tells us that he was more like 12 years old so that Abraham could pick him up and place him on the altar. If he’s a full grown man, probably he couldn’t do that.
Now verse 10, “And Abraham stretched out his hand [he put down his hand] and took the knife to slay his son.” Now why did he do that? His only son and the one to whom, he was told, you would have physical seed. Why was he willing to do this? Well, 1) because God commanded him to. But also what was in his mind? Was he doubting God? Was he angry at God? Here, let’s come to Hebrews 11. Was he doubting God? Was he angry at God? What was it?
Now I’m going to read from my translation, Hebrews 11. Let’s begin in verse 8, because this gives a real good summary of the life of Abraham. “By faith Abraham, [after] being called of God to go out into the place which he would later receive for an inheritance, obeyed and went, not knowing where he was going. By faith he sojourned in the land of promise, like a foreigner, dwelling in tabernacles with Isaac and Jacob, the joint heirs of the same promise; for he was waiting for the city with the foundations of which God is the Architect and Builder. By faith also Sarah herself received power to conceive seed, and gave birth when she was well beyond the childbearing age because she esteemed Him faithful Who had personally promised her a son. Because of this faith, there came into being from one man—and moreover, one who was reproductively dead— descendants as numerous as the stars in the heavens, and as countless as the sand on the sea shore” (Heb. 11:8-12).
Now verse 13, let’s just read right on. “All these died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them from afar, and having been persuaded of them, and having embraced them, and having confessed that they were strangers and sojourners on the earth. For those who say such things make it manifest that they seek their own country, as promised by God. And if, on the one hand, they had let their minds dwell fondly on the place where they came from, they might have had opportunity to return. But now, on the other hand, they are aspiring to a more excellent country— that is, a heavenly one. Therefore, God is not ashamed to be called their God because He has prepared a city for them. By faith Abraham, when he was being tried, offered up Isaac; and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son of whom it was said, “In Isaac shall your Seed be called”; because he reckoned that God was able to raise him even from among the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative way” (vs. 13-19). That’s why he was willing to do it. Because he knew that if it came down to the point where he did offer his son as that offering, that God would raise him from the dead.
Ok, now let’s come back and we’ll have just enough time to finish Genesis 22. So he took the knife, verse 10, to slay his son. And then he heard a voice from heaven. I imagine before he took out the knife that he looked around everywhere and didn’t see a lamb. So then verse 11. “And the angel of the LORD called to him from the heavens and said, ‘Abraham! Abraham!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’ ” And I imagine he said, “HERE I AM.” “And He said, ‘Do not lay your hand upon the lad, nor do anything to him, for now I know that you fear God…’ ” So how long was he tried before God really, really knew through and through that Abraham feared God? 37 to 45 years. Say, 37 years. Now is it any wonder that we still go through trials though we’ve been in the church for how long. See, same thing. And how many people have been in the church for so long and say, 10, 15, 20, 30 years, and then to leave? So that’s why we’ve had the trials come upon us that have come upon us, for the same reason.
“ ‘…For now I know that you fear God, seeing you have not withheld your son, your only son from Me.’ And Abraham lifted up his eyes and looked. And, behold, behind him a ram was entangled in a thicket by its horns. And Abraham went and took the ram and offered it up for a burnt offering instead of his son.” Now how did the ram get there? Well, either God drove it up there while his back was turned, or God supernaturally created a ram right there, which would be fitting, to supernaturally create one, because that would be a type of Christ who was a supernatural creation, correct? Yes. “And Abraham called the name of that place [Jehova-jireh] The LORD Will Provide; so that it is said until this day, ‘In the mount of the LORD it will be provided” (vs. 11-14). Now I wonder if that’s also a prophecy of the sacrifice of Christ on the Mount of Olives? Just a question.
“And the angel of the LORD called to Abraham out of heaven the second time, and said, ‘By Myself have I sworn…” Now here is where everything becomes completely irrevocable. It cannot be turned back. Nothing can stop from what God has promised. All the promises of God will come as He said. “…Because you have done this thing, and have not withheld your son, your only son; that in blessing I will bless you, and in multiplying I will multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens [spiritual seed], and as the sand which is upon the seashore [physical seed]. And your seed [the physical seed] shall possess the gate of his enemies. And in your seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed, because you have obeyed My voice” (vs. 15-18). Now that’s the only way we’re going to have the blessing of God, is if we obey the voice of God. And as we covered in our series concerning Hebrews, if you don’t listen to Christ there is no eternal life.
So we’ll continue on next time with Passover: Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Israel, and Christ #2.
Scriptural References
- 1.) Galatians 3:29
- 2.) Hebrews 6:13-20, 8
- 3.) Galatians 3:6-9
- 4.) Genesis 12:1
- 5.) Luke 14:25-33
- 6.) Genesis 12:2-4
- 7.) Genesis 15:4-5
- 8.) Matthew 13:43
- 9.) I John 3:1-2
- 10.) Revelation 1:13-16
- 11.) Philippians 3:20-21
- 12.) Genesis 15:5
- 13.) I John 3:9, 5:16
- 14.) Genesis 15:5-18
- 15.) Exodus 12:3-6, 12-13, 21-28
- 16.) Numbers 33:1-3
- 17.) Exodus 12:33-42
- 18.) Genesis 15:17, 13-16, 18
- 19.) Jeremiah 34:8-22
- 20.) Genesis 17:1-21
- 21.) Genesis 21:1-5
- 22.) Luke 14:26-33
- 23.) Genesis 22:1-10
- 24.) Hebrews 11:8-19
- 25.) Genesis 22:10-18
