In the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.

Welcome back to Purify the Heart. This is Pastor Zachary Courie. In Exodus 12, the Lord passed over his people, especially the firstborn of Israel, though he slaughtered the firstborn, both man and beast, of the Egyptians. Not only that, but He led His people out of Egypt in what is specifically known as the Exodus.

Exodus 13

13 The Lord said to Moses, 2 “Consecrate to me all the firstborn. Whatever is the first to open the womb among the people of Israel, both of man and of beast, is mine.”

3 Then Moses said to the people, “Remember this day in which you came out from Egypt, out of the house of slavery, for by a strong hand the Lord brought you out from this place. No leavened bread shall be eaten. 4 Today, in the month of Abib, you are going out. 5 And when the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, the Hittites, the Amorites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, you shall keep this service in this month. 6 Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the Lord. 7 Unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days; no leavened bread shall be seen with you, and no leaven shall be seen with you in all your territory. 8 You shall tell your son on that day, ‘It is because of what the Lord did for me when I came out of Egypt.’ 9 And it shall be to you as a sign on your hand and as a memorial between your eyes, that the law of the Lord may be in your mouth. For with a strong hand the Lord has brought you out of Egypt. 10 You shall therefore keep this statute at its appointed time from year to year.

11 “When the Lord brings you into the land of the Canaanites, as he swore to you and your fathers, and shall give it to you, 12 you shall set apart to the Lord all that first opens the womb. All the firstborn of your animals that are males shall be the Lord’s. 13 Every firstborn of a donkey you shall redeem with a lamb, or if you will not redeem it you shall break its neck. Every firstborn of man among your sons you shall redeem. 14 And when in time to come your son asks you, ‘What does this mean?’ you shall say to him, ‘By a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt, from the house of slavery. 15 For when Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let us go, the Lord killed all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man and the firstborn of animals. Therefore I sacrifice to the Lord all the males that first open the womb, but all the firstborn of my sons I redeem.’ 16 It shall be as a mark on your hand or frontlets between your eyes, for by a strong hand the Lord brought us out of Egypt.”

17 When Pharaoh let the people go, God did not lead them by way of the land of the Philistines, although that was near. For God said, “Lest the people change their minds when they see war and return to Egypt.” 18 But God led the people around by the way of the wilderness toward the Red Sea. And the people of Israel went up out of the land of Egypt equipped for battle. 19 Moses took the bones of Joseph with him, for Joseph had made the sons of Israel solemnly swear, saying, “God will surely visit you, and you shall carry up my bones with you from here.” 20 And they moved on from Succoth and encamped at Etham, on the edge of the wilderness. 21 And the Lord went before them by day in a pillar of cloud to lead them along the way, and by night in a pillar of fire to give them light, that they might travel by day and by night. 22 The pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night did not depart from before the people. (Exodus 13:1–22, ESV)

This is the Word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

The consecration or sanctifying of the firstborn was commanded by God first and foremost because He had spared them by the blood of the lamb. The firstborn being set apart, or holy, means they are special to the Lord. This is not because they have inherently greater value than the rest of the children of a family, but this is simply by the declaration of God. The declaration of God is to be paid attention to most especially because it carries theological significance and instruction, as well as consolation for our souls. The firstborn of the beasts were consecrated by becoming a sacrifice to God. They were killed, but they were killed as innocent beasts, so to speak, as if they were sinless. The idea is that the firstborn was declared by God to be acceptable, and the sacrifice of that firstborn beast satisfied God’s wrath against the other children who were sinful. Because their eldest brother-beast was sacrificed for them, they were spared. Just as the Passover lamb points us to Christ, so also this is another foreshadowing. Everyone who is baptized into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit has Jesus as their eldest brother. He who offered His truly innocent soul as an acceptable sacrifice to God has made us, who have been made to become His brothers and sisters, to be acceptable by His blood. In Holy Baptism, His blood is applied to us, as St. Paul says in Titus chapter 3: “He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit, whom He poured out on us generously through Jesus Christ our Savior, so that, having been justified by His grace, we might become heirs having the hope of eternal life. This is a trustworthy saying.” (Titus 3:5-8)

The consecration of the firstborn human male was that he would be sacrificed in the sense that he would serve as a priest of God on behalf of his family. (Later, this role will be designated only to those who are from the tribe of Levi, but until the Lord institutes this for now, no doubt to impress this upon the simpleminded of Israel, so that the change later will have it’s own theological significance.) In this sense, the firstborn son becomes his family reduced to one: representing them to God, and in turn, representing God to them. This is why it’s right for us Christians to refer to Jesus not only as true Prophet, not only as a true King, but also as true Priest. Because He represents all families, as well as all Priests, He even is the true High Priest. Listen to what Hebrews 4:14-16 says:

14 Since we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:14–16, ESV)

The purpose of the consecration of the firstborn of both man and beast is to point us to God’s faithfulness in salvation, of the Israelites, yes, but also of all of mankind.

The institution of the Feast of Unleavened Bread also has theological significance. The Passover was instituted specifically to be a perpetual reminder, even for future generations, of the judgment that God’s people escaped by the blood of the lamb, and by eating the sacrifice. The Feast of Unleavened Bread specifically points to the exodus of God’s people from the land of slavery into the land of freedom. Leaven thus becomes related to sin in Scripture. Leaven isn’t sinful in and of itself, of course, but according to the declaration of God, at such an appointed time, it has that particular meaning. St. Paul refers to this idea in 1 Corinthians 5, where he says,

“6 Your boasting is not good. Do you not know that a little leaven leavens the whole lump? 7 Cleanse out the old leaven that you may be a new lump, as you really are unleavened. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. 8 Let us therefore celebrate the festival, not with the old leaven, the leaven of malice and evil, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” (1 Corinthians 5:6–8, ESV)

This becomes a central text for the Church at her celebration of the Resurrection of Our Lord. The Pascha, or Passover feast on Easter Sunday, is inseparable from the self-sacrifice of our Lord on Good Friday for the sins of the world, which for us is like a separation from the oppression and the ungodly influences of Egypt upon Israel.

Finally, the Lord leading His people by a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night points us to the Holy Spirit which Christ the Lord gives to all His baptized saints. The cloud, throughout Scripture, points us to the Holy Spirit, such as the cloud that envelops the three apostles on the mount of transfiguration (and out of which the Father speaks) as well as the cloud which envelops Jesus at His ascension. Fire also points us to the Holy Spirit’s work of Divine purification in the life of every Christian, as well as specific moments like at Pentecost in Acts 2. There He enables many disciples to speak in other languages for the sake of the proclamation of the Gospel, where He visually presents Himself in the form of tongues of fire over the heads of those men.

The work of the Holy Spirit is always to point us to Jesus. He desires nothing more than to make Christ and His Father present with us and in us by His Word, to guide us through the wilderness of this world.

Let us pray. O God, You see that of ourselves we have no strength. By Your mighty power defend us from all adversities that may happen to the body and from all evil thoughts that may assault and hurt the soul; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Let us pray. Almighty and everlasting God, You despise nothing You have made and forgive the sins of all who are penitent. Create in us new and contrite hearts that lamenting our sins and acknowledging our wretchedness we may receive from You full pardon and forgiveness; through Jesus Christ, Your Son, our Lord, who lives and reigns with You and the Holy Spirit, one God, now and forever. Amen.

Thanks for joining me to Purify the Heart! Tomorrow, we’ll continue with Exodus 14. Until then, grace be with you. Amen.

This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit purifytheheart.substack.com