PASSOVER AND THE NEW COVENANT
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TAKE A JOURNEY. Take a journey through the Bible and the earliest dealings of God with man, as we arrive at the present and look beyond.
ROADMAP FOR YOUR JOURNEY. When you make a journey, you need to know where you are going. You need a map. Your “map” for this journey is based on a Biblical principle that God requires the shedding of blood for the atonement of sin. Consider two verses:
• (Hebrews 9:22, our underlining): And according to the law almost all things are purified with blood, and without shedding of blood there is no remission. [“Remission” = forgiveness of sin; pardon or release from the penalty of sin.]
• (Leviticus 17:11, our underlining): [The LORD spoke] “For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that makes atonement for the soul.” [“Atonement” = literally, covering over; here, the concept of one's sins being covered over by the shed blood of Messiah.]
JOURNEY STOP 1— SACRIFICES OF CAIN AND ABEL. The first sacrifice to God is recorded in Genesis, chapter 4. Sons of Adam and Eve— Cain and Abel— brought sacrifices to God. Abel was a keeper of sheep (a herdsman), and Cain was a tiller of the ground (a farmer). Cain brought an offering to the LORD of the ‘fruit of the ground’ he had grown, but the LORD did not respect Cain's offering. Abel offered a more excellent, more acceptable sacrifice than Cain's sacrifice— presumably a sacrifice from his herd, which would involve the shedding of blood. Cain's jealousy caused him to kill Abel.
JOURNEY STOP 2— ANIMAL SACRIFICES IN ANCIENT ISRAEL. For thousands of years, Israelites (later called Jews) sacrificed animals to God. Untold millions of animals were killed and burned on altars to seek God's forgiveness. These sacrifices became meaningless rituals, as they did not change the hearts and minds of the people. God told His prophet Jeremiah that He would give His people a new and final covenant, His eighth covenant (Jeremiah 31:31, our underling): “Behold, the days are coming, says the LORD, when I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and with the house of Judah— ....” This new covenant would come in the form of Messiah Jesus, who would be sacrificed by crucifixion.
| WORD STUDY. “The Messiah” comes from the Old Testament Hebrew HaMashiach. “The Christ” comes from the New Testament Greek ho Christos. Both titles mean “the Anointed One [of God].” Jesus' blood shed on the cross became the basis for God's New Covenant. Jesus' death is the only sacrifice we need and the reason our sins can be forgiven. We observe the sacrifice of the perfect Lamb, Jesus, in the Passover feast, in observance of Resurrection Sunday (“Easter”), and in Communion participation. |
JOURNEY STOP 3— THE FEASTS OF ISRAEL. God gave the ancient Israelites special days to celebrate their history as a people. These feasts were a prophecy of (foreshadow of, rehearsal for) the Messiah, who was promised to bridge the gap between sinless God in Heaven and sinful man on earth. We believe this Messiah is Jesus the Christ (Hebrew: Yeshua HaMashiach).
| HISTORY NOTE. God's chosen people have, over the years, been called Hebrews, Israelites, and Jews, and their form of worship is Judaism. Christianity arose as a branch of Judaism. Read Romans, chapter 11 for Paul's explanation of this relationship. The history of the Hebrews/ Israelites/ Jews is also the history of Christians/ Messianic Believers. God desires that Jews and non-Jews worship Him as one people. We use “Israelite” to describe the descendants of Jacob during this time in their history.] |
Seven feasts prophesied the life and ministry of Messiah Jesus. These special days— “feasts” — were and are still important for Jews. They should also be important for Christians. The Apostle Paul taught that Christians are branches (“wild branches”) grafted temporarily into the tree of Israel for a season (the season of the Church Age) for one purpose— to bear fruit (to save souls) for the Kingdom of God. (Again, read Romans, chapter 11 for Paul's teaching about this tree. Consider your place in that tree.)
The seven Feasts of Israel are:
| PROPHECIES FULFILLED IN THE PAST
THE SPRING FEASTS: • Passover: This feast was a prophecy of the Messiah's death to save His people from the death they deserve through God's New Covenant. • Unleavened Bread: This feast was a prophecy of the Messiah's burial, and symbolizes the physical death of all people. • First Fruits: This feast, a prophecy of the Messiah's defeat of death— His resurrection to eternal life, and finalizes God's New Covenant with mankind and the promise that all persons who obtain salvation through God's grace will also be raised to eternal life, even though they experience physical death (the first death). THE SUMMER FEAST: • “Weeks” (Hebrew: Shavuot): This feast was a prophecy of the formation of the Church of Jesus the Messiah (which occurred on the Day of Pentecost, ca AD 33 [read Acts, chapter 2]). |
PROPHECIES TO BE FULFILLED IN THE FUTURE
THE THREE FALL FEASTS: • Trumpets: This feast is a prophecy of the return of Jesus in the clouds to resurrect His dead followers or rapture (snatch away, translate) His living followers and to give all of them incorruptible (immortal) bodies and eternal life with Him. • Atonement (Hebrew: Yom Kippur): This feast is a prophecy of judgment— the Bema Judgment (Judgment Seat of Christ) in Paradise for His followers, a judgment where faithful works in Jesus' name will be rewarded. • Tabernacles (Hebrew: Sukkot): This feast is a prophecy of the thousand-year reign (Millennial Kingdom) of Jesus, when followers will live and reign with the Christ before their eternal home, New Jerusalem (Heaven), descends to earth. |
JOURNEY STOP 4— THE PASSOVER OF THE LORD AND THE EXODUS OF ISRAELITES FROM EGYPT. Scholars do not agree on the date of the first Passover. Conservative Bible scholars— those who believe the Pentateuch (Torah) was written by Moses— place the date in the fifteenth century BC. Liberal scholars, who deny Moses' authorship of the Torah, place the date at least two centuries later.
| PROPHECY OF THE MESSIAH. As you read about the first Passover, understand that these events foretold (prophesied) the birth and ministry of a Messiah, who would come to save mankind from sins. We believe that Messiah is Jesus, who was born approximately two-thousand years ago and who will return again. The Old Testament is a written record of the Messiah concealed (prophesied); the New Testament is a written record of the Messiah revealed. A meaningful Scripture to read is Isaiah, chapter 53 (the Suffering Servant prophecy). |
Jacob (re-named Israel) had twelve sons, known as the patriarchs (patriarchs = first fathers, heads) of the twelve tribes of Israel. Joseph, one of Jacob's sons, was one of Israel's patriarchs. His jealous brothers sold him into slavery, and he was taken to Egypt. Joseph's gift from God was an ability to interpret dreams. He interpreted troubling dreams of Egypt's king, the Pharaoh. Pharaoh's dreams were warnings of seven years of abundant grain harvest, followed by seven years of drought and famine. Joseph encouraged Pharaoh to store excess grain from the seven years of abundance to feed the people during the seven years of drought. Joseph's plan saved Egypt. Joseph's family traveled from Canaan (present-day Israel) to Egypt, and they, too, were saved from starvation. A grateful Pharaoh rewarded Joseph's family with rich pasture land in Goshen (Nile Delta). Israelites lived more than four centuries in Egypt, and they and their flocks increased greatly in number. The Pharaoh who knew Joseph died. A new Pharaoh, who did not remember Joseph, became alarmed at the growing number of Israelites in his country. They spoke a different language and worshiped a “foreign” God, not Egyptian gods. He feared the Israelites might revolt against him. To better control the Israelites, he enslaved them and made them labor in the hot Egyptian sun at an almost impossible task of making bricks without straw. They cried out to God to save them and permit them to return to their homeland in Canaan.
God heard the slaves' cries and raised up a fellow Israelite, Moses, to lead them to freedom. Although Moses grew into adulthood as an Egyptian prince, he killed a soldier who was beating an Israelite slave. Fearing for his own life, Moses hid in the desert until God called him to lead the Israelites out of slavery. Moses and his brother, Aaron, went before Pharaoh, demanding, “Let my people go!” Pharaoh, needing his slaves' labor, refused to free them.
God sent nine plagues against Pharaoh's Egypt, but he would not change his decision to keep the Israelites as slaves. God, then, sent a tenth plague which devastated Pharaoh and Egypt. This plague was that the firstborn would die, including the firstborn of Pharaoh, the firstborn of all of his subjects, and the firstborn of all of the livestock. (Read Exodus, chapter 11.)
God gave the Israelites specific instructions to prevent their death on the night when the LORD passed over* Egypt to kill the firstborn of every household which did not follow Him. [* “Passed over” is the origin of the name of Passover. Probably a better name is “the LORD's Passover.” Read Exodus, chapter 12.] God's instructions to the Israelites included:
• Every Israelite family was required to take a blemish-free male yearling lamb into its home from the tenth day until the fourteenth day of the month of the Passover. (Read Exodus 12:3-6.) As slaves, the Israelites probably had no pets. Imagine how much the family, especially the children, must have loved the lamb. Prophecy of a future Messiah: Jesus is repeatedly called “the Lamb” and “the Passover Lamb” in the New Testament. He came to earth to be our perfect sacrifice. He lived an unblemished life among us. We took Him into our earthly home for a short time.
• Each family was required to sacrifice (kill) its lamb at twilight on a day appointed by God. (Read Exodus 12:6.) Prophecy of a future Messiah: Many members of Jesus' “family,” the Jewish people to whom He had ministered for three and one-half years, refused to accept God's message and decided to kill Him. Many people today refuse to accept God's message and decide to “kill” the Savior of the world by refusing to follow Him.
• Each lamb was slaughtered in front of the family home by slitting his throat. Blood flowed into a shallow drainage ditch. (Each slave's simple home had a shallow ditch in front of the door to keep rainwater from entering the house. This ditch may be translated “basin” in your Bible.) After the lamb's blood pooled in the ditch in front of the door, the family took a branch of hyssop to complete the next instruction. Hyssop, which grows in Egypt and surrounding countries, resembles a paint brush. Dipping the hyssop branch into blood in the drainage ditch, they painted each of the two doorposts and the lintel with the lamb's blood. When the Spirit of the LORD passed over Egypt, He recognized a family's faith by the blood-painted door frame, and the firstborn would not die. (Read Exodus 12:7, 13, 22.) Prophecy of a future Messiah: This act of painting blood on the doorway must have seemed as strange to the Israelites, as it would if your pastor asked you to kill an animal and paint its blood on your front door frame. This illogical act was a test of faith, though. God wanted only faithful persons to follow Him on the difficult journey that lay ahead of them. Tradition states that the Israelites painted the letter tav on the doorposts and lintel. At the time of Moses, the Hebrew tav was made by two crossed lines (representing two crossed sticks). This ancient Hebrew letter somewhat resembles the Roman cross upon which Jesus was crucified. [NOTE: The Romans commonly used two crosses for crucifixion— the Latin cross, ✝ , and the tau cross, T . The Bible does not record which style was used for Jesus' crucifixion.] The blood of the Passover Lamb, Jesus, protects any follower from death— eternal death in Hell— if he/she has enough faith to accept God's gift of salvation. Notice that three tavs were painted on the home (two door posts and one lintel). At Jesus' crucifixion, three crosses were present on Golgotha, just as three tavs were present on the Israelites' homes. Jesus' precious blood spilled on that center cross will cover your sins, and faith in Jesus' sacrifice will protect you from eternal death (death in Hell). The lamb's blood completely surrounded the only door to an Israelite's home— two door posts on the sides, one lintel on top, and the drainage ditch on bottom. An Israelite was protected only if he/ she passed through this blood and remained inside the blood's protection. Once you accept Jesus' blood sacrifice, you should strive to remain within the protection of that blood and not stray out into Satan's world.
• Each Israelite family roasted its lamb and ate all of the lamb— both the desirable meat and the unappetizing parts. They ate their roasted lambs with unleavened (unrisen) bread and bitter herbs. The Israelites left in such haste (read Exodus 12:11) that they did not have time to let the leaven (yeast) cause the bread to rise. The only flavorings available to them were bitter herbs from the nearby fields. (Read Exodus 12:8-10.) Prophecy of a future Messiah: The Israelites were ready to escape Egypt. God, seeing the future, knew this journey would be forty years in the wilderness. Scriptures (read Nehemiah 9:19-21) tell us that God guarded and provided for His people Israel during their forty-years of wandering in the the wilderness. Could it be that the Israelites' faith in eating even the undesirable parts of the roasted lamb gave them God's blessing (protection) from illness? That is, eating the lamb's brain may have protected against nervous system diseases, eating the bowels may have protected against gastrointestinal diseases, and so forth. God's blessings and protections are available for His people (for you) even today.
• When the LORD passed over Egypt that evening, He told the Israelites to stay inside their homes. (Read Exodus 12:22-23.) Prophecy of a future Messiah: What God actually told the Israelites is this (paraphrased): Enter into safety past the blood of the lamb, do not leave your safe sanctuary, and you will be protected against death (the first death— death of the body). God's Word tells you something quite similar (paraphrased): Enter into safety past the blood of the Lamb (Jesus), do not leave your safe sanctuary, and you will be protected against death (the second death— death of the eternal spirit in Hell— and you will possess life eternal in Heaven).
JOURNEY STOP 5— CENTURIES OF PASSOVER SACRIFICES. From the time of the first Passover until the life of Jesus, Passover was celebrated yearly. Many lessons may be learned from the Passover Feast, but we mention three features that may be of interest:
• A better sacrifice: Millions of animals were slaughtered and burnt on God's altar to atone for sins. The sacrifices became meaningless rituals— the people did not repent of their sins and transform their lives. We are told of the futility of animal sacrifice when a better sacrifice is available (Hebrews 9:13-14): For if the blood of bulls and goats and the ashes of a heifer, sprinkling the unclean, sanctifies for the purifying of the flesh, how much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself without spot to God, cleanse your conscience from dead works to serve the living God? - AND - (Hebrews, chapter 10, including 10:4-6 [quoting Psalm 40:6-8]): For it is not possible that the blood of bulls and goats could take away sins. Therefore, when [Jesus] came into the world, He said: “Sacrifice and offering You did not desire, but a body You have prepared for Me. In burnt offerings and sacrifices for sin You had no pleasure. Then I said, ‘Behold, I have come— in the volume of the book it is written of Me— to do Your will, O God.’” Millions of sacrificed animals over many centuries made no difference, but God sent His only begotten Son (see John 3:16) as the one-time, perfect sacrificial Lamb, and this made unacceptable sacrifices forever acceptable.
• The ending of the Passover sacrifices: Passover sacrifices were concluded at the ninth hour (3:00 pm). The Passover Lamb Jesus died at the same time— the ninth hour, or 3:00 pm (see Matthew 27:46-50 and other Scriptures).
• Tetelestai— “It is finished:” At the end of the Passover sacrifices, the High Priest would raise his hands and fashion his fingers to mimic the Hebrew letter shin ( שׁ ). (Think the hand signal of Mr. Spock, “Star Trek.”) The Hebrew letter shin had great significance for Jews. Shin is the “sh” sound in a name for God, El Shaddai (translation: “God Almighty”). With arms lifted high and the hands forming shins, the High Priest of the Jews would exclaim, “It is finished.” (That is, “The Passover sacrifices are finished for this year.”) The last statement Jesus, the High Priest of the world, uttered on the cross was this same statement (John 19:30): So when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And bowing His head, He gave up His spirit. Many erroneously suppose that Jesus was stating His life was finished. No. He knew He would rise again and live forever. “It is finished” translates a Greek word, tetelestai. The Greek tetelestai was an accounting term. When a bill was paid in full, the debt holder would write tetelestai on the bill, indicating the debt had been paid in full. Multiple Scriptures indicate that Father God sent Jesus to earth for many reasons (mainly to fulfill prophecies and to pay in full all sinners' sin-debts). Jesus, knowing He had finished His missions in all aspects (specifically, that the sin-debts of mankind had been paid in full by His death), was ready to die.
JOURNEY STOP 6— JESUS' OBSERVANCE OF PASSOVER WITH HIS DISCIPLES. Jesus was an observant Jew. He would not miss an opportunity to celebrate Passover, and He did so with His disciples just hours before His death by crucifixion. This “last supper,” a Passover Seder, is described in Matthew 26:17-30, Mark 14:12-26, Luke 22:7-23, and 1 Corinthians 11:23-25.
A meal would have been eaten at this Seder. Two items would have been present on every Jewish family's table' fruit of the vine (wine) and unleavened bread (matzah). Jesus took these two items to teach the significance of His death. At this particular Seder Jesus shared with His disciples (“the Last Supper”), He taught the ordinance of Communion. He likely taught about His crucifixion and the New Covenant by drinking from the third cup, the Cup of Redemption (Matthew 26:27-28, our underlining): Then [Jesus] took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood of the new covenant, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.” Jesus' blood sacrifice paid sinners' debts in full and established God's New Covenant with mankind.
| COVENANTS. A Covenant is a formal promise God provides for His people. Mankind may break the human part of any agreement, but God will not break His part. If He were to promise something only to break that promise, He would no longer be a holy God. He would be a liar. Newer covenants were added over time to expand God's relationship with His children. There have been eight covenants:
• Edenic Covenant: This covenant established certain rights for and responsibilities of people. Read Genesis 2:15-17. • Adamic Covenant: This covenant established the conditions under which sinful mankind must live on earth until Jesus' Millennial Kingdom. Read Genesis 3:15-17. • Noahic Covenant: This covenant reconfirmed the Adamic Covenant and authorized human government to control violence and sin. Read Genesis 9:8-16. • Abrahamic Covenant: This covenant declared the sovereign choice of God to bless Israel and the nations through Abraham's descendants and the Messiah. Read Genesis 15:4-21. • Palestinian Covenant: This covenant established God's conditions for Israel's occupation of— or removal from— the Promised Land. Read Deuteronomy 30:1-20. • Davidic Covenant: This covenant extended God's promises to Israel, including the promise that the future Messiah would come through the line of David. Read 2 Samuel 7:12-16. • New Covenant: This covenant promises that the hearts of the people will be transformed— that all sin will be forgiven and forgotten through the atoning sacrifice of Messiah Jesus on the cross and that those forgiven of sin will be God—s chosen people for all eternity. This covenant was set into motion by Jesus' crucifixion, was foretold to the disciples at the Passover Seder shortly before Jesus' crucifixion, and is remembered through Communion. Read Hebrews 8:8-13. |
JOURNEY STOP 7— PASSOVER IN MODERN TIME. God's people are commanded to remember that first Passover as an everlasting ordinance. (Read Exodus 12:24-27.) Passover is not just for Jews; it is also for Christians and all Believers in Jesus as Savior. Passover is not just for people living many centuries ago in Israel; it is also for people living today in every home in the world. Please try to observe Passover in some way every year for the rest of your life. A Passover Seder is traditionally a meal shared by the family to remember God's goodness. You can observe Passover and serve a Seder meal in your home every spring. If you wish to be more traditional, you can purchase a book, a Haggadah, which describes the traditional order of a Seder [Seder is Hebrew for “order.”] of service and gives suggestions for traditional foods and prayers. God will surely bless your efforts to observe Passover, if your intentions are appropriate even though you may not say all of the “proper” words. God looks at the heart and sees what man typically misses (1 Samuel 16:7b): [The LORD said to Samuel] “... For the LORD does not see as man sees; for man looks at the outward appearance, but the LORD looks at the heart.”
Two items used by Jesus are the necessary components of Communion:
Seder (Communion) bread: Three sheets of matzah (unleavened bread) are placed on the table, with each sheet wrapped in a napkin. The napkins symbolize Jesus' linen burial cloth, or shroud (read Luke 24:12, John 20:5-7). Diners eat from the center sheet of the three sheets, a sheet called the afikomen. Jews unknowingly used this sheet for centuries, but we now know the reason. We believe God exists in three Persons, and Jesus is always considered the Second Person (the Middle) of the Holy Trinity.
At the last Seder, Jesus commanded His disciples to eat from the matzah present on their table (Matthew 26:26): And as they were eating, Jesus took bread, blessed and broke it, and gave it to the disciples and said, “Take, eat; this is My body.” There are several reasons matzah (unleavened bread) is significant, including:
• When the Israelites journeyed in the desert, God fed them manna, which they called “bread” (read Exodus 16:31).
• Jesus was born in Bethlehem (read Matthew 2:1). Bethlehem comes from two Hebrew words, Beyth lechem, which translates to “House of Bread.”
• Jesus called Himself the Bread of Life (read John 6:35, 48) and explained that whoever eats of this Bread shall never hunger.
• Even the appearance and recipe of matzah are significant. Passover (Communion) bread is unleavened (free of yeast). Originally, unleavened bread was eaten because the Israelites ate in such haste on the night the LORD passed over Egypt that they could not take time to prepare yeast-risen bread (read Exodus 12:11). The Israelites ate unrisen (unleavened) bread, or matzah. Later, Jewish rabbis equated yeast in bread with sin in a person. (Yeast causes bread to “puff up,” to become bitter, and to spoil. Sin causes a person to “puff up,” with pride, to become bitter, and to spoil [to be eventually destroyed].) When you eat matzah at a Seder, take a moment to study it. Matzah is an unattractive piece of bread, resembling a plain cracker. Jesus came as the Messiah, who would not be attractive in the eyes of man (read Isaiah 53:2b). Matzah is baked on a griddle, and you will see scorch marks from the griddle, reminding you that by Messiah's stripes you are healed (read Isaiah 53:5d). You will see many small holes in the matzah from docking (pricking) the dough to prevent the bread from puffing during baking, which should remind you that Messiah was wounded for your sins (read Isaiah 53:5a). Even the recipe for matzah is significant. Matzah is a mixture of water and flour baked on a hot griddle. This simple recipe symbolizes the Messiah. He is part man, Son of Man (represented by wheat flour from the earth), and part God, Son of God (represented by water, which commonly symbolizes the Holy Spirit of God). The application of heat in cooking symbolizes the Messiah's many sorrows and anguish suffered for us.
Let us continue with Jesus' Passover Seder. Later that evening as Jesus prayed in agony in the Garden of Gethsemane, He asked the Father if there could be any way to atone for mankind's sins other than crucifixion. He prayed that the Seder cup of wine He had used in His teaching might be removed (Matthew 26:39 our underlining): [Jesus] went a little farther and fell on His face, and prayed, saying, “O My Father, if it is possible, let this cup pass from Me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as You will.” At every Seder and Communion meal you eat, you should remember anew Jesus' blood sacrifice for your sins. The sacrifice of the Lamb Jesus at Golgotha is an extension of the sacrifice of lambs at the first Passover, which occurred in Egypt many centuries ago.
Seder (Communion) fruit of the vine: During a Seder observance, you are invited to drink from cups of “wine” (fruit of the vine, or grape juice). Each Seder cup is named. Names for the four cups came from God's promises to the Israelites:
(1) Cup of Sanctification: [The LORD said] “... I will bring you out from under the burdens of the Egyptians....” (Exodus 6:6b)
(2) Cup of Deliverance: [The LORD said] “... I will rescue you from their bondage,....” (Exodus 6:6c)
(3) Cup of Redemption: [The LORD said] “... I will redeem you with an outstretched arm and with great judgments.” (Exodus 6:6d) We are redeemed by God's grace and Jesus' sacrifice.
(4) Cup of Restoration: [The LORD said] “I will take you as My people, and I will be your God....” (Exodus 6:7a). We are restored to eternal life for eternity in Heaven (New Jerusalem), if we accept redemption (salvation).
JOURNEY STOP 8— MARRIAGE SUPPER OF THE LAMB. Jesus' celebration of Passover with His disciples did not end some two-thousand years ago. That meal was incomplete, and will not be completed until all of Jesus' followers are assembled in Paradise. Recall that there were four cups of wine used in the Passover meal. Jesus taught Communion, a celebration of the New Covenant, by drinking the blood-red wine from the third cup— the Cup of Redemption. But, he declined to drink from the fourth cup— the Cup of Restoration (Matthew 26:29): [Jesus said] “But I say to you, I will not drink of this fruit of the vine from now on until that day when I drink it new with you in My Father's kingdom.” (See also Luke 22:18.) What did Jesus mean by this statement? Understand the following:
• This event will occur in Paradise. Jesus' followers will be removed from the earth by resurrection (the faithful dead brought back to life) or by rapture (snatching away the faithful living). Both the resurrected and the raptured followers, all having glorified (immortal) bodies, will join Jesus. They first will appear in Paradise (for seven years, according to the pre-Tribulation interpretation). Then, they will return with the King of kings and Lord of lords, Jesus, to end the Battle of Armageddon. Then, they will rule earth with Jesus during the Millennial Kingdom. Finally, they will enter New Jerusalem (Heaven) for eternity.
| SIDELIGHT. Since destruction of the Second Temple and forced enslavement of the Jews by the Romans (worldwide dispersal— the Diaspora) in AD 70, Jews have concluded their Passover Seders with a heartfelt prayer: “Next year in Jerusalem.” (That is, may we celebrate our next Passover after we return to our home in Jerusalem.) Christians and Messianic Believers conclude their Passover Seders with a heartfelt prayer: “Next year in New Jerusalem.” (That is, may we celebrate our next Passover after we enter our true home in New Jerusalem. The Apostle John referred to Heaven as New Jerusalem in the Book of Revelation.) |
Scriptures are from the NEW KING JAMES VERSION (NKJV) OF THE HOLY BIBLE, © Thomas Nelson, Inc.
