PASSOVER AND DEPARTURE FROM EGYPT CONTAINS MANY NEW TRUTHS.

WHEN DID THE ISRAELITES LEAVE EGYPT?

DID THEY LEAVE IMMEDIATELY AFTER THE LAST PLAGUE OR WAIT AROUND FOR SOME TIME?

WHAT SIGNIFICANCE HAS THEIR DEPATURE WITH OTHER EVENTS IN THE BIBLE?

The following scriptures explain the above questions. When this knowledge and that contained in the companion article “The Parting of the Red Sea” are learnt, the reader will see the amazing parallel between the exodus and the resurrection of Christ.

EX 12 V 6 Passover lambs killed 14^th at even or twilight {before sunset}.

Exo 12:6  Now you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same month. Then the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it at twilight.

Verse 7 Put blood on door posts.

Exo 12:7  And they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and on the lintel of the houses where they eat it.

Verse 8 Eat Passover night of 15^th {after sunset}.

Exo 12:8  Then they shall eat the flesh on that night; roasted in fire, with unleavened bread and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Verse 11 Eat Passover in haste and be ready to travel.

Exo 12:11  And thus you shall eat it: with a belt on your waist, your sandals on your feet, and your staff in your hand. So you shall eat it in haste. It is the LORD’s Passover.

Verse 10 Burn what is left of the lamb before morning.

Exo 12:10  You shall let none of it remain until morning, and what remains of it until morning you shall burn with fire.

Verse 29 The firstborn of the Egyptians killed at midnight.

Exo 12:29  And it came to pass at midnight that the LORD struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh who sat on his throne to the firstborn of the captive who was in the dungeon, and all the firstborn of livestock.

Verse 30 All Egyptians rose up at night {sometime after midnight}.

Exo 12:30  So Pharaoh rose in the night, he, all his servants, and all the Egyptians; and there was a great cry in Egypt, for there was not a house where there was not one dead.

Verse 31 Pharaoh sends message to get out of Egypt.

Exo 12:31  Then he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, “Rise, go out from among my people, both you and the children of Israel. And go, serve the LORD as you have said.

Verse 32 Flocks and herds to go with Israelites.

Exo 12:32  Also take your flocks and your herds, as you have said, and be gone; and bless me also.”

Verse 33 The Egyptians were urgent to send them out of the land in haste.

Exo 12:33  And the Egyptians urged the people, that they might send them out of the land in haste. For they said, “We shall all be dead.”

Verses 35,36 Israelites had already spoiled the Egyptians.

Exo 12:35  Now the children of Israel had done according to the word of Moses, and they had asked from the Egyptians articles of silver, articles of gold, and clothing.

Exo 12:36  And the LORD had given the people favor in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they granted them what they requested. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.

Verse 37 Israelites left the 15th {sometime after midnight, still dark but morning}.

Exo 12:37  Then the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides children.

Deu 16:1  “Observe the month of Abib, and keep the Passover to the LORD your God, for in the month of Abib the LORD your God brought you out of Egypt by night.

Israelites left in sight of Egyptians {early morning of 15th}. This Exodus from Rameses was early morning say 2 am. The moon was bright that night and they were seen by the Egyptians as they marched out of Egypt.

Num 33:3  They departed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the day after the Passover the children of Israel went out with boldness in the sight of all the Egyptians.

The Israelites ate the Passover dressed and ready to go, they did not wait 24 hours before leaving. They were to eat it in haste. They left Rameses a few hours after eating the Passover. They ate the Passover around 7-8 pm. They left after midnight, but before daylight, in keeping with all of the above scriptures.

The Egyptian firstborn died of a plague, so they were urgent to thrust out the Israelites before morning, lest they all died of the same plague.

The Israelites had spoiled the Egyptians well in advance before the Passover. Ex. 11 v 1-3.

An interesting comparison which will be made plain in our article, Parting of the Red Sea is that the Red Sea started parting three days from sunset start of the 15th, This is three days from the start of the 1st Day of Unleavened Bread.

The Israelites marched out of Egypt on the 1st Day of Unleavened Bread, sometime after midnight but before daybreak, they were in view of the Egyptians. The Egyptians were burying their dead, so this would have happened in the early hours of the morning around 2 am with a bright moon, as the group of 3,000,000 {approx} marched out of Rameses.

Note that God had told the Israelites to stay in their houses until morning, this word morning, does mean in the Hebrew break of day but it can also mean before first light whilst still dark as indicated by other Old Testament scriptures. There are other factors which confirm the understanding of this verse.

Firstly, the Egyptians were urgent and thrust them out because they were frightened that those who were alive might yet die of the plague if the Israelites remained any longer. God’s words let My people go would be ringing in their ears. Secondly, the Israelites marched out by night in view of the Egyptians who were burying their dead

We have clearly shown the order of events regarding the departure from Egypt. It is very clear in scripture what happened and this article is a great help when understanding the new knowledge about the correct time to keep the Passover and Days of Unleavened Bread.