Prophetically, Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread relate to both the First and Second Comings of the Messiah, Jesus of Nazareth.

Prophecy, Passover,  and the Feast of Unleavened Bread
The Gospels record that Jesus observed Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread on numerous occasions, the most significant being the Passover He celebrated with His disciples on the night He was betrayed. Some customs present in modern seders were also practiced in Jesus’ day, but others are new. It is difficult to accurately pinpoint the Passover customs Jesus observed. The Gospel records give only highlights of Jesus’ last seder. Similarities between His seder and its modern counterpart are present, to be sure, but are limited.

The Bible relates that two of Jesus’ disciples were sent ahead to prepare the Passover (Mk. 14:12–13). It is likely that part of the preparation included confirmation that all leaven had been removed from the house where they were going to keep the festival, as well as assuring that a freshly baked supply of unleavened bread was on hand. Once preparations had been made, Jesus and His disciples partook of His final Passover meal, His Last Supper.

Hand-washing is not mentioned in the Gospel accounts, but at one point during the evening, Jesus got up from supper and washed the disciples’ feet (Jn. 13). The object lesson was clear: Not only was Jesus exemplifying the epitome of servanthood, He was also demonstrating a spiritual principle that He had taught many times before. Outward washings are merely symbols of what should be true on the inside; inward, spiritual cleanliness takes precedence over that which is outward. In a parallel passage reiterating this principle, Jesus’ disciples were rebuked by the Scribes and the Pharisees for not washing their hands before they ate bread. Jesus’ response was pointed and went straight to the heart of the matter: “Hear, and understand: Not that which goeth into the mouth defileth a man, but that which cometh out of the mouth, this defileth a man…those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart, and they defile the man. For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies. These are the things which defile a man; but to eat with unwashed hands defileth not a man” (Mt. 15:10–11, 18–20).

Later that Passover evening, Jesus announced that one of His disciples would betray Him, indicating which one it would be by dipping a sop or morsel of bread and giving it to Judas Iscariot. It is likely that this sop was the “Hillel sandwich” described earlier. Judas, “having received the sop, went immediately out; and it was night” (Jn. 13:30). This was in fulfillment of the messianic prophecy found in Psalm 41:9, “Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, who did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me.”

During His last Passover meal, Jesus partook of the unleavened bread and drank of the Passover cups (Lk. 22:17–20). He and His disciples concluded their Passover seder by singing a hymn (Mt. 26:30). A significant aspect of the Last Supper is that Jesus applied two of the main elements of the seder—the unleavened bread and one of the cups of wine—to Himself.

“When he had given thanks, he broke it [the unleavened bread], and said, Take, eat; this is my body, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me” (1 Cor. 11:24). The symbolism was clear. In Jewish teaching, leaven was representative of “the evil impulse of the heart.” Jesus Himself applied the allegory to the pervasive, evil doctrine of the Pharisees, Sadducees, and Herod (Mt. 16:11; Mk. 8:15). In applying the symbol of the unleavened bread to His own body, Jesus was saying that His life contained no evil or sin.

“After the same manner also he took the cup, when he had supped, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood: this do, as often as ye drink it, in remembrance of me” (1 Cor. 11:25). It is important to recognize that in the Passover seder, the third cup immediately follows supper and corresponds with the third promise of Exodus 6:6: “I will redeem you.” Thus, the cup of redemption that Jesus took on that last Passover night symbolized what He was about to do through His death. He would shed His blood to bring redemption, the forgiveness of sins. Just as the Passover brought physical redemption, Jesus’ death would bring spiritual redemption (Eph. 1:7).

It is because of this symbolism that Christians observe the communion service or partake of the Lord’s table. As Passover was established to be a memorial, so too was the communion service. Jesus said, “This do in remembrance of me…For as often as ye eat this bread, and drink this cup, ye do show the Lord’s death till he come” (1 Cor. 11:24, 26).

In applying the bread and cup to His own person and ministry, Jesus did far more than just institute a new ordinance to be observed. He clearly stated that the Jewish holidays of Passover and Unleavened Bread pictured or foreshadowed what He, the promised Messiah, would be and do. The three original elements of the Passover tell the story of the redemption found in Jesus Christ.

The Bitter Herbs
Spiritual slavery is much more bitter than mere physical slavery. The Bible teaches that the things we do that are contrary to the will of God—sin—enslave us: “For of whom [or what] a man is overcome, of the same is he brought in bondage” (2 Pet. 2:19). Also, there are “Such as sit in darkness and in the shadow of death, being bound in affliction and iron, Because they rebelled against the words of God, and despised the counsel of the Most High” (Ps. 107:10–11).

Just as the children of Israel were slaves in the land of Egypt, the Bible teaches that we are slaves to sin. Just as they obeyed their taskmasters, so we obey our sin nature. “For the imagination of man’s heart is evil from his youth” (Gen. 8:21). Scripture makes it plain that all of mankind is bound in this sinful condition. “The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, and seek God. They are all gone aside, they are all together become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one” (Ps. 14:2–3). The resulting penalty is death. “The soul that sinneth, it shall die” (Ezek. 18:20). This involves physical death and spiritual death, or separation from God. “But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hidden his face from you, that he will not hear” (Isa. 59:2).

Since all people are spiritually dead in their trespasses and sins (Eph. 2:1), it is impossible for them to redeem themselves or others. “None of them can by any means redeem his brother, nor give to God a ransom for him (For the redemption of their soul is precious…)” (Ps. 49:7–8). In other words, a sinner cannot pay the spiritual debt of another sinner. Only a sinless person could achieve that. This leads to the second original element in the Passover.

The Unleavened Bread
Leaven in the Scriptures is symbolic of sin. Unleavened bread represents that which has no sin. Only the Messiah is described in the Bible as being without sin—without stain or spot. “He had done no violence, neither was any deceit in his mouth” (Isa. 53:9). As Jesus applied the unleavened bread to His sinless life, His messianic claim became evident. He was the righteous branch of David, the one without violence or deceit. Even His enemies could not rightfully accuse Him of wrongdoing (Jn. 8:46). Jesus knew that because of mankind’s sinful condition, spiritual redemption would require someone who was spiritually alive to die on behalf of those who were spiritually dead. He was the only one who could accomplish that, because He was the one who had never sinned. Therefore, although all of mankind has gone astray, God “laid on him the iniquity of us all” (Isa. 53:6). How did He do this? The answer is found in the third original element of the Passover.

The Passover Lamb
On the night of the first Passover, the blood of the Passover lamb had to be applied to the doorposts and lintels of the Israelites’ homes, for it was by reason of the blood that God spared those homes from judgment. “When I see the blood, I will pass over you” (Ex. 12:13).

Leviticus 17:11 reveals why the blood was so important: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood; and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls; for it is the blood that maketh an atonement for the soul.” The shedding of blood—the substitution of one life for another—brought atonement for sins. In the same way, the Messiah redeemed all of mankind from the bondage of sin by shedding His blood and giving up His life so that we might live (Isa. 53:5).

All of this was typified in the Passover lamb, whose antitype was Jesus of Nazareth. Just as the Passover lamb was to be without blemish, so Jesus was without stain, blemish, or sin. “Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things…But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot” (1 Pet. 1:18–19). Just as the Passover lamb was to die without any of its bones being broken, so Jesus died without any of His bones being broken, which was unusual for death by crucifixion (Jn. 19:36). Just as the Passover lamb was not to be sacrificed at any place but Jerusalem, so Jesus was sacrificed at Jerusalem. Finally, just as the Passover lamb died as a substitute, so Jesus died in our place as our substitute (Rom. 5:8).

As a reminder of the Passover lamb today, Jewish people place a lifeless shank bone on the seder table, for since the Temple was destroyed in 70 a.d., there have been no sacrifices. But this is in accordance with Scripture, because now there is no need for sacrifice. The Scriptures state, “But this man [Jesus], after he had offered one sacrifice for sins forever, sat down on the right hand of God” (Heb. 10:12), indicating, just as He said, “It is finished [or completed]” (Jn. 19:30).

For centuries Jewish people have longed for and anticipated the coming of the Messiah. It was believed among the ancient sages that because Israel’s first redemption occurred on Nisan 15, so too on that date the Messiah would reveal Himself and usher in Israel’s future redemption. It is of no small significance, then, that Jesus of Nazareth chose to apply the messianic connotations of the Passover to Himself on the first night of Unleavened Bread, which would, of course, have been Nisan 15.

As we have already seen, Elijah plays an important role in the observance of Passover. His duty is to herald the arrival of the Messiah, who, as noted earlier, is expected to come at Passover. This, in fact, was the mission of John the Baptizer, who came “in the spirit and power of Elijah” (Lk. 1:17). Jesus Himself said of John, “I say unto you, That Elijah is come already, and they knew him not” (Mt. 17:12). In accordance with prophecy, therefore, Elijah, in the person of John the Baptizer, did come and announce the coming of the Messiah with the proclamation, “Behold the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world” (Jn. 1:29).

Thus, through the three original Passover elements and other related prophecies, God’s tremendous plan of spiritual redemption is revealed. And, in the person of Jesus Christ, it is all fulfilled. “Christ, our passover, is sacrificed for us” (1 Cor. 5:7).

Concerning the future of the holidays of Passover and Unleavened Bread, it is important to note that on the night of the Last Supper, Jesus announced that He would not eat the Passover again “until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of God” (Lk. 22:16). Jesus knew that before the kingdom could come, the redemptive meaning of the Passover had to be fulfilled, and He accomplished that through His death.

Following His resurrection, He ascended on high where He sits at the right hand of God, ministering as our High Priest. One day He will come back to the earth to set up His kingdom and restore the glory of Israel. At that time, when Jesus’ Millennial Kingdom has been established, the Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread will again be observed (Ezek. 45:21–24), perhaps as a memorial of the finished work of Christ and, as with the redemption from Egypt, as a memorial of Israel’s redemption from the nations (Jer. 16:14–15).