The manner of preparing, and eating the paschal lamb: the firstborn of Egypt are all slain: the Israelites depart.

¹ The Lord also said to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt:

² “This month will be for you the beginning of the months. It will be first in the months of the year.

³ Speak to the entire assembly of the sons of Israel, and say to them: On the tenth day of this month, let everyone take a lamb, by their families and houses.

⁴ But if the number is less than may suffice to be able to consume the lamb, he shall accept his neighbor, who has been joined with his house according to the number of souls that may suffice to be able to eat the lamb.

⁵ And it shall be a lamb without blemish, a one year old male. According to this rite, you shall also take a young goat.¹

1. 12:5A kid: The phase might be performed, either with a lamb or with a kid: and all the same rites and ceremonies were to be used with the one as with the other.(Challoner)

⁶ And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of this month. And the entire multitude of the sons of Israel shall immolate it toward evening.

⁷ And they shall take from its blood, and place it on both the door posts and the upper threshold of the houses, in which they will consume it.¹

1. 12:7The word ‘superliminaribus’ is translated more literally as ‘upper threshold.’ It can also be translated as ‘lintels’ or ‘upper door posts.’(Conte)

⁸ And that night they shall eat the flesh, roasted by fire, and unleavened bread with wild lettuce.

⁹ You shall not consume anything from it raw, nor boiled in water, but only roasted by fire. You shall devour the head with its feet and entrails.

¹⁰ Neither shall there remain anything from it until morning. If anything will have been left over, you shall burn it with fire.

¹¹ Now you shall consume it in this way: You shall gird your waist, and you shall have shoes on your feet, holding staves in your hands, and you shall consume it in haste. For it is the Passover (that is, the Crossing) of the Lord.

¹² And I will cross through the land of Egypt that night, and I will strike down all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from man, even to cattle. And I will bring judgments against all the gods of Egypt. I am the Lord.

¹³ But the blood will be for you as a sign in the buildings where you will be. And I will see the blood, and I will pass over you. And the plague will not be with you to destroy, when I strike the land of Egypt.

¹⁴ Then you shall have this day as a memorial, and you shall celebrate it as a solemnity to the Lord, in your generations, as an everlasting devotion.

¹⁵ For seven days, you shall eat unleavened bread. On the first day there shall be no leaven in your houses. Whoever will consume anything leavened, from the first day, even until the seventh day, that soul shall perish from Israel.

¹⁶ The first day shall be holy and solemn, and the seventh day shall be venerated with the same festivity. You shall do no work in these days, except that which pertains to the eating.

¹⁷ And you shall observe the feast of unleavened bread. For on this same day, I will lead your army out of the land of Egypt, and you shall keep this day, in your generations, as a perpetual ritual.

¹⁸ In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, toward evening, you shall consume the unleavened bread, until the twenty-first day of the same month, toward evening.¹

1. 12:18Unleavened bread: By this it appears, that our Saviour made use of unleavened bread, in the institution of the blessed sacrament, which was on the evening of the paschal solemnity, at which time there was no leavened bread to be found in Israel.(Challoner)

¹⁹ For seven days, there shall not be found leaven in your houses. Whoever will eat leaven, his soul will perish from the assembly of Israel, as much with the newcomers as with the natives of the land.

²⁰ You shall not consume any leaven. In all your dwelling places, you shall eat unleavened bread.”

²¹ Then Moses called all the elders of the sons of Israel, and he said to them: “Go, taking an animal by your families, and sacrifice the Passover.

²² And dip a little bundle of hyssop in the blood which is at the entrance, and sprinkle the upper threshold with it, and both of the door posts. Let none of you go out of the door of his house until morning.¹

1. 12:22Sprinkle, etc: This sprinkling the doors of the Israelites with the blood of the paschal lamb, in order to their being delivered from the sword of the destroying angel, was a lively figure of our redemption by the blood of Christ.(Challoner)

²³ For the Lord will cross through, striking the Egyptians. And when he will see the blood on the upper threshold, and on both the door posts, he will pass over the door of the house and not permit the Striker to enter into your houses or to do harm.

²⁴ You shall keep this word as a law for you and for your sons, forever.

²⁵ And when you have entered into the land that the Lord will give to you, just as he has promised, you shall observe these ceremonies.

²⁶ And when your sons will say to you, ‘What is the meaning of this religious observance?’

²⁷ You shall say to them: ‘It is the victim of the crossing of the Lord, when he passed over the houses of the sons of Israel in Egypt, striking the Egyptians, and freeing our houses.’ ” And the people, bowing down, worshipped.

²⁸ And the sons of Israel, departing, did just as the Lord had instructed Moses and Aaron.

²⁹ Then it happened, in the middle of the night: the Lord struck down every firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh, who sits on his throne, even to the firstborn of the captive woman who was in prison, and all the firstborn of the cattle.

³⁰ And Pharaoh rose up in the night, and all his servants, and all of Egypt. And there arose a great outcry in Egypt. For there was not a house in which no one lay dead.

³¹ And Pharaoh, calling Moses and Aaron in the night, said: “Rise up and go forth from among my people, you and the sons of Israel. Go, sacrifice to the Lord, just as you say.

³² Your sheep and herds take along with you, as you requested, and as you go away, bless me.”

³³ And the Egyptians urged the people to go away from the land quickly, saying, “We will all die.”

³⁴ Therefore, the people took bread dough before it was leavened. And tying it in their cloaks, they placed it on their shoulders.¹

1. 12:34The phrase ‘conspersam farinam’ refers to flour sprinkled with water, i.e. bread dough that has not risen.(Conte)

³⁵ And the sons of Israel did just as Moses had instructed. And they petitioned the Egyptians for vessels of silver and of gold, and very many garments.

³⁶ Then the Lord granted favor to the people in the sight of the Egyptians, so that they bestowed on them. And they despoiled the Egyptians.

³⁷ And the sons of Israel set out from Rameses to Soccoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot, besides little ones.

³⁸ But also an innumerable mix of common people ascended with them, sheep and herds and animals of diverse kinds, exceedingly many.¹

1. 12:38The common people were Egyptians, who were amazed by the Hebrews and their leaders, Moses and Aaron. They followed them to Succoth, and to the Red Sea, and many even crossed the Sea with them, as is evident from Numbers, chapter 12. These were the Egyptians and others who listened to the Lord and brought their servants and cattle into the houses, so that they did not die in the hail storm. That is why they had many cattle and why they were willing to follow Moses and his people.(Conte)

³⁹ And they baked the bread, which a little while ago they had taken out of Egypt as dough. And they made unleavened bread baked under ashes. For it was not able to be leavened, with the Egyptians compelling them to leave and not permitting them to cause any delay. Neither did they have occasion to prepare any meat.

⁴⁰ Now the habitation of the sons of Israel, while they remained in Egypt, was four hundred and thirty years.