Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Exodus 34:18

The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time of the month Abib: for in the month Abib thou camest out from Egypt.

18. See on Exo 23:15 a.

19, 20a (to redeem). See on Exo 13:12-13.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep,…. Which was instituted at the time of their coming out of Egypt, and on that account, and then observed, Ex 12:15 and afterwards repeated, and the month expressed in which they were to keep it, and the reason of it, as it here follows, [See comments on Ex 13:15].

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

Solemn Feasts Appointed.

B. C. 1491.

      18 The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time of the month Abib: for in the month Abib thou camest out from Egypt.   19 All that openeth the matrix is mine; and every firstling among thy cattle, whether ox or sheep, that is male.   20 But the firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb: and if thou redeem him not, then shalt thou break his neck. All the firstborn of thy sons thou shalt redeem. And none shall appear before me empty.   21 Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest: in earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest.   22 And thou shalt observe the feast of weeks, of the firstfruits of wheat harvest, and the feast of ingathering at the year’s end.   23 Thrice in the year shall all your men children appear before the Lord GOD, the God of Israel.   24 For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders: neither shall any man desire thy land, when thou shalt go up to appear before the LORD thy God thrice in the year.   25 Thou shalt not offer the blood of my sacrifice with leaven; neither shall the sacrifice of the feast of the passover be left unto the morning.   26 The first of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring unto the house of the LORD thy God. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk.   27 And the LORD said unto Moses, Write thou these words: for after the tenor of these words I have made a covenant with thee and with Israel.

      Here is a repetition of several appointments made before, especially relating to their solemn feasts. When they had made the calf, they proclaimed a feast in honour of it; now, that they might never do so again, they are here charged with the observance of the feasts which God had instituted. Note, Men need not be drawn from their religion by the temptation of mirth, for we serve a Master that has abundantly provided for the joy of his servants: serious godliness is a continual feast, and joy in God always.

      I. Once a week they must rest (v. 21), even in earing time, and in harvest, the most busy times of the year. All worldly business must give way to that holy rest; harvest-work will prosper the better for the religious observance of the sabbath-day in harvest-time. Hereby we must show that we prefer our communion with God, and our duty to him, before either the business or the joy of harvest.

      II. Thrice a year they must feast (v. 23); they must then appear before the Lord, God, the God of Israel. In all our religious approaches to God, we must eye him as the Lord God, infinitely blessed, great, and glorious, that we may worship him with reverence and godly fear, as the God of Israel, a God in covenant with us, that we may be encouraged to trust in him, and to serve him cheerfully. We always are before God; but, in holy duties, we present ourselves before him, as servants to receive commands, as petitioners to sue for favours, and we have reason to do both with joy. But it might be suggested that, when all the males from every part of the country had gone up to worship in the place that God should choose, the country would be left exposed to the insults of their neighbours; and what would become of the poor women and children, and sick and aged, that were left at home? Trust God with them (v. 24): Neither shall any man desire thy land; not only they shall not invade it, but they shall not so much as think of invading it. Note, 1. All hearts are in God’s hands, and under his check; he can lay a restraint, not only upon men’s actions, but upon their desires. Canaan was a desirable land, and the neighbouring nations were greedy enough; and yet God says, “They shall not desire it.” Let us check all sinful desires in our own hearts against God and his glory, and then trust him to check all sinful desires in the hearts of others against us and our interest. 2. The way of duty is the way of safety. If we serve God, he will preserve us; and those that venture for him shall never lose by him. While we are employed in God’s work, and are attending upon him, we are taken under special protection, as noblemen and members of parliament are privileged from arrests.

      III. The three feasts are here mentioned, with their appendages. 1. The passover, and the feast of unleavened bread, in remembrance of their deliverance out of Egypt; and to this is annexed the law of the redemption of the first-born, v. 18-20. This feast was instituted, ch. xii. 13, and urged again, ch. xxiii. 15. 2. The feast of weeks, that is, that of pentecost, seven weeks after the passover; and to this is annexed the law of the first-fruits. 3. The feast of in-gathering at the year’s end, which was the feast of tabernacles (v. 22): of these also he had spoken before, ch. xxiii. 16. As to those laws repeated here (Exo 34:25; Exo 34:26), that against leaven relates to the passover, that of the first-fruits to the feast of pentecost, and therefore that against seething the kid in his mother’s milk in all probability relates to the feast of in-gathering, at which God would not have them use that superstitious ceremony, which probably they had seen the Egyptians, or some other of the neighbouring nations, bless their harvests with.

      IV. With these laws, here repeated, it is probable all that was said to him when he was before upon the mount was repeated likewise, and the model of the tabernacle shown him again, lest the ruffle and discomposure, which the golden calf had put him in to should have bereaved him of the ideas he had in mind of what he had seen and heard; also in token of a complete reconciliation, and to show that not one jot or tittle of the law should pass away, but that all should be carefully preserved by the great Mediator, who came not to destroy, but to fulfil, Mat 5:17; Mat 5:18. And in the close, 1. Moses is ordered to write these words (v. 27), that the people might be the better acquainted with them by a frequent perusal, and that they might be transmitted to the generations to come. We can never be enough thankful to God for the written word. 2. He is told that according to the tenour of these words God would make a covenant with Moses and Israel; not with Israel immediately, but with them in Moses a mediator. Thus the covenant of grace is made with believers through Christ, who is given for a covenant to the people, Isa. xlix. 8. And, as here the covenant was made according to the tenour of the command, so it is still; for we are by baptism brought into covenant, that we may be taught to observe all things whatsoever Christ has commanded us,Mat 28:19; Mat 28:20.

Fuente: Matthew Henry’s Whole Bible Commentary

Verses 18-20:

These verses continue the list of points Israel must observe.

4. The Passover must be faithfully observed, as God had commanded, see Ex 12:14-20; 13:3-10; 23:15.

5. The dedication or redemption of the first-born male, see Ex 13:12, 13; Le 27:26, 27.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

(18) The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep.Comp. Exo. 12:15-20; Exo. 13:3-10; Exo. 23:15.

The month Abib.See Note on Exo. 13:4.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

The Second Festivals

v. 18. The Feast of Unleavened Bread shalt thou keep. Cf Exo 23:15. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time of the month Abib; for in the month Abib thou camest out from Egypt. Because of the defection of the Israelites the Lord here repents the ordinances regarding the chief festival days and seasons.

v. 19. All that openeth the matrix is Mine, all the firstborn sons of the children of Israel; and every firstling among thy cattle, whether ox or sheep, that is male. This precept is here stated on account of its close connection with the Passover and its significance.

v. 20. But the firstling of an ass thou shalt redeem with a lamb, ransom by the payment of a lamb or a kid; and if thou redeem him not, then shalt thou break his neck. All the first-born of thy sons thou shalt redeem. And none shall appear before Me empty. Cf Exo 23:15.

v. 21. Six days thou shalt work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest, Cf Exo 20:9; Exo 23:12 ; in earing time and in harvest thou shalt rest, these two seasons being mentioned since they were the busiest season for the farmer, when he would be inclined to use also the Sabbath for work.

v. 22. And thou shalt observe the Feast of Weeks, of the first-fruits of wheat harvest, namely, Pentecost, and the Feast of Ingathering at the year’s end, the Feast of Tabernacles at the end of the season.

v. 23. Thrice in the year shall all your men-children, all the males, the men, appear before the Lord God, the God of Israel. On these three great festivals the attendance of all Israelites was commanded; they were obliged to meet, first at the Sanctuary, and later in the Temple.

v. 24. For I will cast out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders, Cf Exo 23:31 ; neither shall any man desire thy land when thou shalt go up to appear before the Lord, thy God, thrice in the year; the Lord promised to keep away all enemies at these times, so that they would not take advantage of the men’s absence to invade the country.

v. 25. Thou shalt not offer the blood of My sacrifice, of the Passover lamb, with leaven; neither shall the sacrifice of the Feast of the Passover be left unto the morning; it should either be eaten to the last fragment, or the remainder burned with fire, Exo 12:10.

v. 26. The first of the first-fruits of thy land thou shalt bring unto the house of the Lord, thy God, this being the most prominent rite of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. Thou shalt not seethe a kid in his mother’s milk. Cf Exo 23:19.

v. 27. And the Lord said unto Moses, Write thou these words, the ordinances were to be preserved in writing; for after the tenor of these words I have made a covenant with thee and with Israel. The first covenant had hereby been renewed or reinstituted.

v. 28. And he (Moses) was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights, as he had been the first time, Exo 24:18; he did neither eat bread, nor drink water, being miraculously sustained by the Lord. And He (God) wrote upon the tables the words of the covenant, the Ten Commandments, the Decalog. The true hallowing of God’s name in the New Testament consists in this, that we gladly hear and learn the Word of God, and help to uphold the ministry in our midst and to spread the Gospel-news.

Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann

Exo 12:19-20 ; Deu 16:3 .

Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

Exo 34:18 The feast of unleavened bread shalt thou keep. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, as I commanded thee, in the time of the month Abib: for in the month Abib thou camest out from Egypt.

Ver. 18. In the month Abib. ] So called from the new fruits, or ears of corn, then first appearing. See Exo 12:1 ; Exo 13:4 . God here repeateth divers laws. It was a token of reconciliation to the people after their apostasy, in that he treats with them again, after their repentance, about his solemn worships. So, for a testimony of his reconciliation to Peter after his foul fall, he sets him to work in the ministry. Joh 21:15 So he commendeth his spouse afresh, after her drowsy decays, every whir as amiable as she was before her fall. Son 6:5 ; Son 5:10-16

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

as. Some codices, with Samaritan Pentateuch, The Targum of Onkelos, The Targum of Jonathan ben Uzziel, Septuagint, Syriac, and Vulgate, read “according as”.

time = appointed time.

Abib. See note on Exo 13:4, and App-51.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

Moses Brings the Renewed Tables of the Law

Exo 34:18-35

For forty days, with no sustenance from bread or water, Moses abode on the Mount-absorbed with a passion of love and awe-not counting the hours which passed like a dream. He talked with God as a man face to face with His friend; but he was completely unaware of the marvelous transformation which this holy intercourse was effecting. At Gods dictation he wrote out the covenant, as we have it in this Book, and finally God gave him the two tables of stone, on which He had imprinted His autograph.

With these in his hand Moses descended to the plain, unconscious that his face shone. See 2Co 3:18, r.v. The Apostle urges that we, as Christians, should first behold, and then reflect the glory of Jesus. We must be mirrors, for the purpose of shedding His light among our fellow-men; and in the effort to do this we shall become transfigured into His glorious beauty from one degree to another. The crowning glory of that transfiguration will be our unconsciousness: He wist not.

Fuente: F.B. Meyer’s Through the Bible Commentary

Abib

First month i.e. April.

Fuente: Scofield Reference Bible Notes

Exo 12:15-20, Exo 13:4, Exo 13:6, Exo 13:7, Exo 23:15, Lev 23:6, Deu 16:1-4, Mar 14:1, Luk 22:1, Act 12:3

Reciprocal: Exo 12:2 – General Exo 12:19 – Seven Deu 16:3 – eat no 2Ch 35:17 – the feast Act 20:6 – the days

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge