Exodus 13:3

MEMORIAL OF THE PASSOVER. (Exo 13:3-10)

Moses said unto the people, Remember this day--The day that gave them a national existence and introduced them into the privileges of independence and freedom, deserved to live in the memories of the Hebrews and their posterity; and, considering the signal interposition of God displayed in it, to be held not only in perpetual, but devout remembrance.

house of bondage--literally, "house of slaves"--that is, a servile and degrading condition.

for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out from this place--The emancipation of Israel would never have been obtained except it had been wrung from the Egyptian tyrant by the appalling judgments of God, as had been at the outset of his mission announced to Moses (Exo 3:19).

There shall no leavened bread, &c.--The words are elliptical, and the meaning of the clause may be paraphrased thus:--"For by strength of hand the Lord brought you out from this place, in such haste that there could or should be no leavened bread eaten."

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown — Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

Exo 13:3 And Moses said unto the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the LORD brought you out from this [place]: there shall no leavened bread be eaten.

Ver. 3. Remember.] Heb., To remember, indefinitely; q.d., Remember perpetually, and commemorate.

John Trapp, A Commentary or Exposition upon All the Books of the Old and New Testament (1647–1656) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Exo_13:3-4

Remember this day.

A day to be remembered

1. Gods commands and His servants obedience are sweetly united together.

2. Deliverance of the Church from Egyptian bondage is justly chargeable on their memory.

3. Jehovah the Author of deliverance is to be minded with His work, and power of doing it.

4. Remembrance of Jehovah carrieth with it mindfulness of duty and service to Him (Exo_13:3).

5. Days and months of mercy are ordered by God to be remembered (Exo_13:4). (G. Hughes, B. D.)

Days to be remembered

I. There are days in the history of individuals which ought to be celebrated.

II. There are days in the history of churches which ought to be celebrated.

III. There are days in the history of nations which ought to be celebrated. (J. S. Exell, M. A.)

The Biblical Illustrator, edited by Joseph S. Exell (c. 1880s–1900s) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

To signify that they had not leisure to leaven their bread.

Hebrew, house of servants.

Where they were in most cruel slavery.

Geneva Bible (1599) marginal notes — public domain. Text via Bolls.life.

(3) Remember this day.—Remembrance was secured in four ways:—(1) By the month being made to commence the ecclesiastical year; (2) by the institution of the Passover; (3) by the seven days of unleavened bread; and (4) by the redemption, and the inquiries it would necessitate (Exo_13:14-15).

A Bible Commentary for English Readers, edited by Charles John Ellicott (1878–1897) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

3. this day] i.e. the 15th of Abib.

house of bondage (lit. of bondmen or slaves)] so v. 14, Exo_20:2; and hence often in Dt. (Deu_5:6 [= Deu_20:2], Deu_6:12, Deu_7:8, Deu_8:14, Deu_13:5; Deu_13:10), and Jos_24:17 (D2[135]); also Mic_6:4†. The expression means a place in which slaves are confined (Lat. ergastulum), such as Egypt was to the Hebrews in bondage.

[135] Deuteronomic passages in Josh., Jud., Kings.

strength of hand] so vv. 14, 16†. The usual expression is a strong hand (v. 9): see on Exo_6:1.

3–4. No leavened bread to be eaten on the day of the Exodus.

3–16. Moses’ promulgation to the people of directions respecting (a) Maẓẓoth, vv. 3–10, and (b) the sanctity of the firstborn, vv. 11–16. Both passages approximate in style and tone to Deuteronomy (cf. on Exo_12:25-27 a); and it is probable that they are both parenetic expansions, by the compiler of JE, of a simpler original in J, contained perhaps in vv. 3a (to people), 4, 6–7, 10, 12–13.

(a) 3–10. Maẓẓoth. Regulations respecting Maẓẓoth have already been given to Moses by Jehovah in Exo_12:14-20 (P); but the differences, both material (no mention of a ‘holy convocation,’ with restrictions from work, on the 1st and 7th days; different name, ‘Abib,’ for the month; the 7th, not the 1st day, the ‘pilgrimage’) and linguistic, shew that the regulations found here cannot be by the same writer, but that they have been taken by the compiler from the source J. Cf. the note on Exo_12:21-27.

The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges (gen. ed. J. J. S. Perowne; Cambridge University Press, 1878–1918) — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

And Moses said unto the people,.... After the Lord had spoken to him, and said the above things:

remember this day in which ye came out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage; or "of servants" (x) where they had been servants to the Egyptians, by whom they had been made to serve with rigour, and their lives made bitter with hard bondage; that country had been like a prison house unto them, where they had been detained captives, and treated in a very cruel manner; but now they were come out of this place and state of servitude, even that very day, the fifteenth of Nisan; and which therefore it became them to remember, they and theirs, in all succeeding generations, as the Lord had directed, and which is afterwards repeated to impress it the more upon their, minds and memories:

for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out of this place; it was not by their own might and strength that they were redeemed from their state of bondage, but by the mighty hand of the Lord who wrought such signs and wonders before Pharaoh and his servants, and inflicted such plagues upon them, which none but an omnipotent hand could do, which obliged them at last to let them go: and if the Israelites were under obligation, on account of this redemption, to remember the day when it was in this wonderful manner wrought out, much, more reason have we to remember the redemption by Christ the mighty Redeemer, whose own arm wrought salvation for us, and delivered us out of the hands of our spiritual enemies, that were stronger than we, by frequently attending the ordinance of the Lord's supper, which is instituted to bring this amazing affair to our remembrance, and which is to be continued for that purpose unto the second coming of Christ:

there shall no leavened bread be eaten; as they then on this very day had no other but unleavened bread to eat, so they should eat no other on this day and the six days following, in successive ages unto the coming of the Messiah.

(x) "e domo servorum", Pagninus, Montanus, Tigurine version, Junius & Tremellius, Piscator, Vatablus, & Drusius.

John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible (1746–1763) — public domain (CC PDM 1.0). Text via the HelloAO Bible API.

And Moses said. Without relating the directions given to Moses any further, the author passes to the directions given by him. He thus, here and elsewhere, avoids unnecessary repetition. Remember this day. The injunction came with great force at the close of the first day"s journey, when the good-will of the Egyptians had been shown, and the people had been helped and speeded on their way, and felt that they were actually quitting the house of their bondage, and setting out for Canaan. By strength of hand the Lord brought you outi.e. ., "by His powerful protection has God brought you on your way thus far." Therefore, "Remember this day, and remember that nothing leavened is to be eaten on it". (see Exo_12:15-20)

Vers. 3-16. The rightful use of Church ordinances.

Church ordinances are

(1) Commemorative;

(2) Disciplinary;

(3) Channels of supernatural grace.

The benefits derivable from them depend mainly upon their rightful use. We learn from the instructions hero given to the Israelites by Moses, that their rightful use consists especially

I IN THE REGULAR KEEPING OF THEM. "Thou shalt keep this ordinance in his season from year to year." Spasmodic observance, enthusiastic and frequent at one time, perfunctory and infrequent at another, ten times this year, once the next, will bring no blessing, conduct to no good result. Each ordinance has its own time or times baptism and confirmation once in a lifetime the Holy Communion weekly, if opportunity offers; if not, monthly; or, at the least, thrice a year attendance at public worship, each Sunday, twice fasting, on Fridays and in Lent commemoration of chief festivals, once a year and so on. Fitness has in every ease been considered, and set times appointed at proper intervals. Let the rule of the Church be regularly followed, let there be no needless variation, no will-worship, no caprice, and the greatest benefit may be confidently anticipated. But following one"s own fancy in the matter, now observing rules, now breaking them, making ourselves in fact a law to ourselves, is a course that will assuredly obtain no blessing upon it. "Thou shalt keep each ordinance in his season.

II IN THE STRICT KEEPING OF THEM. "There shall no leavened bread be seen with thee, neither shall there be leaven seen with thee, in all thy quarters." Lukewarmness, double-mindedness, half-and-half measures, are everywhere condemned in Scripture. "If the Lord be God, follow Him; if Baal, then follow him." "Because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold nor hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth." If the ordinances of the Church are worth following at all, they are worth following strictly. If the Church says away gaiety and amusement during this or that season," then all gaiety and amusement should be put away none should be seen "in all our quarters." If she appoints two services, or (as some understand it) three for Sundays, then men should not limit their attendance to one. If she urges frequent communions, they should attend frequently, and not be content with the minimum of three times in the year.

III IN THE KEEPING OF SUCH OF THEM AS ARE COMMEMORATIVE WITH REMEMBRANCE. "Remember this day, in the which ye came out from Egypt Lord slew all the first-born therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all that openeth the matrix." A large part of the ritual of every church is commemorative. Sunday is a commemoration. The Friday fast, enjoined by the Church of England and others, is a commemoration. Christmas, Easter, Whitsuntide, Ascension Day, are commemorations. And the Holy Communion is in part commemorative. To observe, in a certain sense, these days and seasons and ordinances, without giving serious thought to the historical events with which they are connected, and out of which they have arisen, is to lose half the benefit which their observance was intended to secure to us. It is scarcely, perhaps, to be supposed that any one could receive the Holy Communion without some thought of the death of Christ upon the Cross; but it must greatly conduce to the rite having its due and full operation on our minds and hearts, that we should vividly present to ourselves on the occasion a mental picture of the agonies suffered for us, that we should dwell in thought upon the whole scene of the trial and the crucifixion, and seek to realise its particulars. We cannot have too deeply impressed upon us the recollection of the day on which, and the means by which, God brought the Church of the first-born out of the spiritual bondage of Egypt, saved them from the destroyer, sanctified them, and made them his "peculiar people.

IV IN THE CONTINUED KEEPING OF THEM THROUGH TIMES OF PROSPERITY. "When the Lord shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanites, thou shalt keep this service." The discipline of adversity is apt to draw men nearer to God than that of prosperity. Many are very careful and regular attendants on Church ordinances when they are afflicted, or in poor circumstances, or suffering from a bereavement; but, if the world smiles upon them, if they grow rich and respected, if men court and flatter them, they grow careless and irregular in such matters. They think that they cease to have the time for them; but in reality they cease to relish them. "The cares of the world and the deceitfulness of riches," choke the good seed that was in them, and "they become unfruitful." They forget God, and the marvellous things that he hath done for them. Hence a warning is required. We must not let the "milk and honey" of Canon wean our hearts from God, or make us less zealous in his service, or less constant attendants upon his ordinances. The higher we are lifted up the more we need his grace; the greater attraction that the world offers to us, the more helpful to us are those holy rites and usages, which draw our thoughts away from earthly things, and fix them upon things Divine and heavenly.

Vers. 3-11. Remember this day.

The exhortation in these verses may very well be applied to Christians. They are to remember the fact add the might of their redemption. They are to commemorate it by observance of appointed ordinances. They are to beware of forgetting it in days of prosperity. They are to show their remembrance of it by a holy walk, and by due instruction of their children.

I REMEMBER THE FACT AND THE MIGHT OF YOUR REDEMPTION.

1. The fact of it (vers. 3-8). How Jesus has brought you up "out of a horrible pit, out of the miry clay"; (Psa_40:1) has redeemed you from the law"s curse, from Satan"s tyranny, from a condition of wrath, and from spiritual death; has introduced you into the liberty of God"s children, and started you on your journey to an everlasting and glorious inheritance. Redemption from the thraldom of Pharaoh sinks into insignificance as compared with this "so great salvation." If Israel was summoned to remember the day on which they came out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage, much more is it the duty of Christians to remember what great things God has done for them.

2. The might of it. "By strength of hand the Lord brought you out of this place" (vers. 3, 9, 14). They were to remember this as enhancing their sense of the greatness of their redemption, and as affording a pledge that God was able to accomplish all else that he had promised (ver. 5). The might expended in the Christian redemption is not less, but greater, than in the exodus from Egypt. It does not detract from its greatness that it is chiefly moral strength power exerted in overcoming evil, in producing moral effects in the minds and consciences of men, and in making them new creatures in Christ Jesus. Redemption has both its objective and its subjective sides, and in both is displayed the power of God. God"s might is seen in the upholding of Christ; in the victories which, while on earth, he was enabled to gain over the powers of evil; in the gigantic triumph of the Cross; and in the spiritual effects produced since, through eighteen centuries, by the preaching of his Gospel; in the regeneration of souls, in the strength given to his servants to do spiritual work, in the victory whereby they overcome the world.

II BEWARE OF FORGETTING YOUR REDEMPTION IN THE DAYS OF YOUR PROSPERITY, ver. 15. Prosperity has a subtle influence in leading away the heart from God. When men have eaten, and are full, (Deu_8:12-18) they are very apt to grow haughty and self-sufficient. This danger is one to be jealously watched against.

III SHOW THAT YOU REMEMBER YOUR REDEMPTION BY DOING THE THINGS THAT GOD COMMANDS.

1. By observing his ordinances. The special ordinance here alluded to is the feast of unleavened bread a sequel to the passover (vers. 3-10). Christians are to observe the Lord"s Supper.

2. By a holy life. The observance of the outward ordinance would be valueless if that which it spiritually represented was lost sight of, viz., the need of a walk in "newness of life." We are to "keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth". (1Co_5:7) To this end has Christ redeemed us, that we may walk in holiness. (Eph_5:25-28; Tit_2:14 1Pe_1:18)

3. By instruction of children. God lays stress on this. (vers. 8-14; cf. Deu_6:6-9 Deu_11:18-22) It is his chief way of perpetuating a holy seed. The responsibility of instruction rests primarily on the parent. No task should be more delightful to him, or should be discharged more faithfully. If the parent is willing, many opportunities will present themselves. A child"s curiosity is ever active. The ordinances of the Church will furnish starting-points for conversation. We have in these verses, and elsewhere in the book, specimens of the instruction that is to be given. J.O.

The Pulpit Commentary (1880–1919), ed. H.D.M. Spence-Jones & Joseph S. Exell — public domain. Text from a community e-Sword module.

Call this day to mind

The words "Call ... to mind" were a customary way of telling someone to remember something. AT: "Remember and celebrate this day" (See: Idiom and Assumed Knowledge and Implicit Information)

the house of slavery

Moses speaks of Egypt as if it were a house where people keep slaves. AT: "the place where you were slaves" (See: Metaphor)

Yahweh's strong hand

Here the word "hand" refers to power. See how you translated "strong hand" in Exodus 6:1. (See: Metonymy)

No bread with yeast may be eaten

This can be stated in active form. AT: "You must not eat bread with yeast" (See: Active or Passive)

the month of Aviv

This is the name of the first month of the Hebrew calendar. Aviv is during the last part of March and the first part of April on Western calendars. (See: Hebrew Months and How to Translate Names)

a land flowing with milk and honey

Since milk comes from cows and goats, "milk" represents food produced by livestock. Because honey is produced from flowers, "honey" represents food from crops. See how you translated this in Exodus 3:8. AT: "food from livestock and from crops" (See: Metonymy)

you must observe this act of worship

When the Israelites live in Canaan, they must celebrate the Passover on this day each year. See how you translated this phrase in Exodus 12:25.

translationWords

people of God

day

mind

Egypt

servant

hand

bread

yeast

Canaan

Hittite

Amorite

Hivite

Jebus

oath

honey

worship

unfoldingWord translationNotes — © Distant Shores Media and the Door43 World Missions Community, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0. Source: git.door43.org/Door43/en_tn.

זכור את היום הזה REMEMBER THIS DAY — This teaches that one must make mention of the Exodus from Egypt every day (Mekhilta; cf. Rashi on Deuteronomy 27:9).

Rashi on the Tanakh — English translations: “The Judaica Press complete Tanach with Rashi, translated by A. J. Rosenberg” (CC BY 4.0); “Pentateuch with Rashi's commentary by M. Rosenbaum and A.M. Silbermann, 1929-1934” (public domain); “The Metsudah Tanach series, Lakewood, N.J” (CC BY 4.0); and “The Book of Joshua, Metsudah Publications, 1997” (CC BY 4.0). Text via Sefaria.