Exodus Chapter 12 Verses 14-20

:14 “And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever. 15 Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel. 16 And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you. 17 And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever. 18 In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. 19 Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land. 20 Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.”   

“And this day shall be unto you for a memorial; and ye shall keep it a feast to the LORD throughout your generations; ye shall keep it a feast by an ordinance for ever.”  The purpose of a memorial is to remind us of something that is very important and that we need to remember.  In the United States we observe Memorial Day, which is a day that is set aside to remember those who have died in foreign wars.  They paid the sacrifice to help maintain our freedoms that we cherish as a country.  Like our Memorial Day, the memorial of the feast of unleavened bread and the Passover was to be observed by the children of Israel.  The memorial was of the LORD delivering them out of Egyptian bondage by executing judgment upon the Egyptians and passing over the children of Israel in judgment.  

The children of Israel were to observe this memorial forever.  It was an annual observance of the feast of unleavened bread and the Passover.  Today, in the Lord’s church we observe the communion service the Lord implemented with the disciples before he was crucified.  It is an ordinance to the church delivered by the Lord.   

In the ordinance of feast of unleavened bread, the feast was to last for seven days.  In the first day and in the seventh day, the children of Israel were to have an holy convocation.  “Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel.”  In this feast they were to eat no unleavened bread.  Furthermore, they were not to have any leaven within their houses.  Leaven, in the scriptures, represents those things that puff up.  For instance, pride, the doctrines of the Pharisees and Sadducees, and the doctrine of Herod, as well as malice and wickedness are represented by leaven in the New Testament.  In contrast, the term, unleavened is used to represent sincerity and truth, and sinless ness in the New Testament.  The Lord told us in the New Testament that unleavened bread represented his body, which we know was pure, holy, and without sin.  The person in Israel who would eat unleavened bread during that week was to be excommunicated from the people.  This was serious business with the LORD.   

“And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you.”  They were to do no servile work at those times.  This is in addition to the seventh day Sabbath, the Lord will give them in the wilderness.  The reason that they were to do no servile work, is because the work was performed by the LORD and he did all the work in delivering them from the judgment upon Egypt and in delivering them out of the hands of the Egyptians.  This points us to the truth that our salvation and deliverance from eternal judgment of sin is all of the Lord and we do nothing to bring it to pass.  We simply are to rest in his finished work.   

“And ye shall observe the feast of unleavened bread; for in this selfsame day have I brought your armies out of the land of Egypt: therefore shall ye observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever.”  Here the LORD confirms the reason that the children of Israel were to observe the feast of unleavened bread.   

“In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, ye shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even. 19 Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eateth that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land. 20 Ye shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall ye eat unleavened bread.”   

Much of the above paragraph is a restatement of what the LORD said at the beginning.  Our minds are lead leaking buckets, we have to constantly be reminded of things or we will let them slip.  However, please notice that the LORD tied together the Passover with the feast of unleavened bread.  The Passover was to be on the 14^th day of the month and the feast of unleavened bread started on the 15^th day and extended through the 21^st day or a period of seven days.