My Personal History with Passover, Its Roots and Its Promise

My husband and I are both Jews who grew up in Christian families who were not at all observant of the family heritage. We grew up in church being surrounded with Biblical history. The history of the Passover and what led up to it have always been some of my favorite parts of the Bible.

In the churches and in Jewish tradition, Passover is often taught as having begun with Moses, although some also teach that the roots began with Jacob and his sons. But, having come from a family with similar dis-functionality, I would point to Isaac, Jacob's father, and his experience with his father Abraham's choices. Actually, that's also when the promise of the Passover was first given.

The Promise:

God had promised Abraham and Sarah a son even though they were in their 80's, who would produce an entire nation which would live in slavery in a strange land for 400 years before returning to their promised land and that the enslaving nation would be punished for their oppressive behavior.

God took so long in bringing his promise to pass that Abraham and Sarah reasoned that they needed to help Him to fulfill His promise. Sarah gave her maid to Abraham to produce a son, whom they named Ishmael. Then almost 11 years after the original promise, Sarah gave birth to Isaac, he who laughs. She was 91 and Abraham was 101.

As the children grew, the maid and her son became more and more uppity toward Sarah and her son Isaac. Abraham was torn between the two. Abraham asked God what to do and was told to do as Sarah wanted. They sent the maid and her son away.

Isaac grew up as an only child not understanding the dynamics of the give and take of a household with siblings. He also saw a favoritism being displayed in how the situation was dealt with in the case of his half brother.

The Inheritance:

When Isaac and his wife Rebeka had twin sons, Esau and Jacob, he preferred the older since he was as he had wished a son to be, rough and outdoorsy and cooking him a favorite venison stew. They thought alike. Jacob was preferred by his mother. Being the oldest Esau would have both the birthright, which was inheriting double what his brother would inherit of their father's wealth. He would also receive the firstborn's blessing which was the elder-ship and patriarchal authority of the extended family after his father had gone.

One day, Esau came in from the field very hungry and he sold his birthright to his brother for a bowl of lentils. Then when their father was nearing the end of his life, he called to the eldest to cook him a venison stew, so that he might give him the blessing. While Esau was away preparing this, the younger, with the help of his mother, tricked the blind old man into giving the blessing to the younger, who then fled to her family to hide from his murderous brother.

Jacob worked for his uncle for the hand of his younger daughter, Rachel whom he'd fallen in love with. On his wedding night he found that he'd been married to the elder daughter, Leah. The younger was given to him, in marriage, the next day in exchange for more years of work for the uncle.

There was a great rivalry between the two sisters. The younger, because she was the favored wife and could bare no children and the elder because she was constantly trying to prove that she was more worthy than her sister by baring more and more children. They even had their maids birth children to best each other. Between them and their maids, they gave Jacob 12 sons and at least one daughter, Dinah.

Rachel had two sons, the elder was Joseph, who was most favored of his father because he was the eldest of his preferred wife. His father spoiled him and gave him things that none of the other children received, such as the coat of many colors, which he wore before his seething brothers.

Betrayal With a Promise:

He had dreams, that would later prove to be significant in the rescue of his family, which he told his brothers. These dreams given without the context that they were intended and from a child who was immature and favored, caused an even greater rift between him and his brothers.

They sold him to slavers who sold him into slavery in Egypt. Where he gained great favor and authority over his master's house until he refused his mistress's sexual advances and found himself in prison. There he also gained great favor and authority, and was able to interpret dreams, of two of the Pharaoh's servants, which came true. Years later, Pharaoh had disturbing dreams which reminded his servant of Joseph. Joseph interpreted Pharaoh's dreams about the coming years of over abundance and following years of famine.

What was Meant for Bad Came out Very Good:

Pharaoh promoted Joseph right under him in authority, to prepare the country and the entire region for the famine. During the famine, Joseph's family came to buy grain and was brought into a region of Egypt, separate from the rest of the population, to ride out the famine. Those childhood dreams that showed Joseph's parents and brothers bowing to him, came to pass.

The Israelite nation entered Egypt about 70 in number. But everything they touched prospered and they greatly multiplied. After several generations, the memory of Joseph and what he had done for Egypt and the reason why they had been given a separate region from the Egyptians, had been buried and forgotten.
Genesis 15-50

They had been separated from the general population because the Egyptians considered them to be unclean since they didn't shave as the Egyptians did, plus the sheep they owned stank. The currently reigning Pharaoh saw the Israelites as a favored threat. He increased their work load and deliberately made it more difficult for them to even do it. Then as a final effort. He ordered all of the male Israelite children to be killed at birth. Out of this came Moses.

The Rescue and Another Promise:

Moses was rescued and hidden from the Egyptian murderers and was found and adopted by the
daughter of the man who would have him killed, Pharaoh. His nurse was his biological mother, who taught him the ways of his people while his adoptive mother groomed him to be one in the line of the successors of the current Pharaoh.

One day, he saw how his adoptive grandfather's men were treating his countrymen, how they were severely beating them. He ended up killing the abuser. When he tried to intervene in an argument between two of his brethren, he was castigated by them, being told that he was no better than the abuser. He ran and hid in the desert, from what he had heard and from the wrath of Pharaoh. There he established a family until Pharaoh
died.

Then God told him to return to Egypt to rescue His people. First Moses was sent to request the release of his people, which was refused. Then he was sent in repeatedly to request what would be refused with a different promised plague each time. Which hit at each of Egypt's gods in succession and proved God's dominance over their gods except for the last which was the passover which involved the death of the eldest born of both man
and beast which was foretelling the birth and dominance of God's own son.

As the blood of the lamb was to be swiped upon the lintel and doorposts of the dwellings of the Jews, the blood of Jesus was also spread upon the cross thereby allowing the death angel to passover those of us who had and have been covered by that blood.

In preparation for leaving Egypt, the Israelites were commanded to repeat this history throughout their generations, to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened bread for 7 days, the Passover for 1 day.

Before the Israelites finally returned to their promised land, they were instructed to observe the passover as one of the two required yearly pilgrimages to the Tabernacle and later the Temple. The other being the High Holy days of Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur and Sukkot.
Exodus 1-15

Promised Redemption:

Generations later, Jesus observed the Passover, going up to the Temple and celebrating the dinners that went with the feast of remembrance. For the three and one half years that He spent preaching and healing people throughout Israel. He often told them that He would be dying on a cross so that His blood would save us from death just as the lamb's blood of the passover during Moses's time had done for those people, then.

It was during one of these Passovers that he was betrayed for 20 pieces of silver and was hung on a cross alongside two criminals. He was buried and rose from his tomb on the third day, appearing to all who knew him for 30 days, then in their sight rose into Heaven. Out of this comes the celebration of Easter or Resurrection Sunday, as some prefer to call it.

Easter celebrates that there is life after death and that there is a hope in this world which can save us and keep us from eternal harm and death.
Matthew 26-28; Mark 14-16; Luke 21-24; John 16-21

My Personal History with Passover:

When I was a young adult, one of my neighbors was an observant Reform Jew from in an observant Reform Jewish family. She kept a vegetarian kosher house and would thoroughly clean out her house every year in preparation for Passover. She had a separate cupboard for all of her Passover dishes. She would lock all of her chametz, leavening and grains, into the cupboards and tape them shut, flushing a symbolic handful down the toilet. She also practiced the giving of alms which is in connection with this particular holy day. It was in her house that I was able to celebrate my first Passover.

During that time, there was also a Messianic ministry in our church, which I was involved with. I was able to celebrate my first Messianic Passover with them. Both Passover dinners or seders were similar in structure and content except the Messianic one also included Jesus as the foretold Messiah fulfilling the promise of Passover and the promise of His return. The anticipated arrival of the Messiah is repeated every year with the cup of Elijah, which symbolizes the awaiting of the arrival of the Messiah, in the traditional Jewish seder.

A Brief History of Passover Observance:

The history of Passover observance from the time of the original Passover has been very uneven. Depending upon what situations Israel went through, they were continuously going through periods of restoration of celebration after long absences from practicing the Holy Day.

Until the destruction of the second Jewish Temple, around 70 AD, the keeping of this feast was celebrated in the Temple, which is where Jesus and His disciples often went. Although, around this time, the observance was moving more into the home and being celebrated among the family, such as was the Last Supper, where Jesus and His disciples ate before His betrayal.

After the destruction of the Temple, it was necessary to observe the festival privately within the home structure. This is also around the time that the reference to synagogues were being mentioned as places of teaching and of worship.

The Haggadah, one pronunciation is hu-goo-duh, which is used as the guidebook to the seder was originally incorporated in one of the Jewish books, the Mishnah, as well as in one of their siddurs, prayer book.

In the 12th century, this guidebook became a separate book. There are different versions depending upon the denomination of Jewish observance that the individual belongs to. There are also children's versions. If you care to learn more about this, then read the Bible references given and/or click on the links provided. One of them has a link to a down-loadable, free Haggadah.
http://www.myjewishlearning.com/holidays/Jewish_Holidays/Passover/History.shtml

A Personal Note:

We celebrate both Passover and Easter because both celebrations complete each other and they fulfill the total picture of whom we are. They are the promise and the fulfillment. They are the anticipation and the thankful celebration of a promise kept.

Sources:

Genesis 15-Exodus 15

Matthew 26-28

Mark 14-16

Luke 21-24

John 16-21

http://www.myjewishlearning.com/holidays/Jewish_Holidays/Passover/History.shtml

http://www.interfaithfamily.com/resource_pages/Passover_and_Easter_Resource_Page.shtml