Shabbat Pesach Teaching

 

-- TORAH   P O R T I O N --

“The Glory of Redemption" (Exodus 33:12–34:26)

The Torah portion of our special readings deals with Moshe’s eagerness to know more about God and his desire to see His face. At this point, God was angry with His people because they had worshipped the molded calf (chapter 32), but He granted Moshe's request by:

Promising His presence to be with him (vv.12–23)

In verse 13, Moshe prayed that God would be gracious to him and consider Israel as His people. God assured Moshe that His presence would be with him and the Israelites. First, He granted Moshe's request to show His glory (v.18). In addition to asking for God's grace, Moshe asked Him to show His glory. The Hebrew word for glory is kavod (kaw-bode’), which means “honor, abundance, riches, reputation, reverence.”

God revealed the abundance and riches of His glory to Moshe in verses 19–23. He told Moshe,

“I will make all My goodness pass before you, and I will proclaim the name of the LORD before you. I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion. You cannot see My face, for no man shall see Me and live. Here is a place by Me, and you shall stand on the rock. So it shall be, while My glory passes by, that I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with My hand while I pass by. Then I will take away My hand, and you shall see My back; but My face shall not be seen.”

Here, Moshe sees only the back of God as His glory. Using chapter 34:6–7, we understand that the back of God represents His ways and attributes: merciful, gracious, slow to anger, abounding in goodness and truth, extending mercy to thousands, and forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin. Clearly, the back of God reveals His merciful side—exactly what Israel needed after their unfaithfulness in worshipping the calf. The face of God remained hidden, possibly representing His side as a Judge or His mysterious nature.

Surprisingly, after Moshe saw the back of God, he bowed his head toward the earth and worshipped (34:8); his faith was renewed.

Renewing His Covenant (34:1–26)

God commanded Moshe to cut two tablets of stone to rewrite His words. He began by revealing His attributes to Moshe, and then in verse 10, He told him that He would drive out the Amorite, Canaanite, Hittite, Perizzite, Hivite, and Jebusite. God would do this because Israel was to conquer the land, and to prevent them from worshipping idols—as they had with the Golden Calf—since these nations were pagans.

That’s why in verse 13, God instructed Moshe and the Israelites to destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and cut down their wooden images. Then, God repeated the command to observe the Moedim (appointed times), beginning with the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Since God instructed Moshe and the Israelites to remove leaven from their houses and eat unleavened bread for seven days, the essence of this feast is separation. God wanted to separate Israel from leaven (sin).

Another part of the covenant is Shabbat. Israel did not experience Shabbat in Egypt because they were slaves. That’s why God wanted Pharaoh to release them—so they could celebrate a feast (Shabbat is also an appointed time) to Him.

Finally, we have the celebrations of Shavuot and Sukkot, which are connected. On Shavuot, the Torah was given at Mount Sinai. We know that this Torah became flesh in the presence of Messiah Yeshua, and He dwelt (tabernacled) among us (John 1:14). Baruch Hashem!

Why were these three feasts part of the renewal of God's covenant, and what can we learn from them?

These are the three harvests in Israel, and each carries deep significance to Adonai’s harvest and redemption.

Pesach – Barley Harvest

Exodus 9:31–32

“Now the flax and the barley were struck, for the barley was in the head and the flax was in the bud. But the wheat and the spelt were not struck, for they are late crops.”

This feast commemorates Adonai's harvest of Israel from Egypt through Moshe.

Shavuot – Wheat Harvest

Exodus 34:22

“And you shall observe the Feast of Weeks, of the firstfruits of wheat harvest.”

This feast commemorates not only the giving of the Torah at Mount Sinai, but also the events of Acts 2, where the talmidim of Yeshua were all filled with the Ruach HaKodesh and shared the Word in different languages (see Acts 2:1–4, 40–47).

Sukkot – Grape Harvest

Deuteronomy 16:13

“You shall observe the Feast of Sukkot seven days, when you have gathered from your threshing floor and from your winepress.”

The significance of this feast lies in the final harvest of Adonai YHVH. In Revelation 7, we see 144,000 sealed from the twelve tribes of Israel, and in verses 9–13, a great multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and tongue, standing before the Lamb (Yeshua), clothed in white robes and holding palm branches. This represents the ingathering of Jew and Gentile—one in Messiah, one in Yeshua, one in the Olive Tree.

-- H A F T A R A H   P O R T I O N --

“The Breath of Redemption” (Ezekiel 37:1–14)

Our Haftarah portion deals with Ezekiel’s vision of a valley full of bones and how these bones come to life.

First, the bones can live because Adonai will breathe into them. Going back to creation, Adonai breathed the breath of life into man’s nostrils (Gen. 2:7).

Second, the dry bones can live because of Adonai’s Word. In creation, God used the power of His Word: “And He said...” These dry bones represent the people of Israel. Adonai YHVH will assemble and restore them as a nation.

-- APOSTOLIC   P O R T I O N --

“Living as Redeemed People” (1 Corinthians 5:1–8)

In the Apostolic Scriptures, Paul challenges not only the believers in Corinth but also us, as grafted-in believers.

• Get rid of the old yeast – Paul uses leavened bread as a metaphor. Leaven represents sin. We must remove the old yeast—our former sins—so we may become a new batch of dough.

• Keep celebrating the festival – We should not only observe Pesach and the Feast of Unleavened Bread, but also rejoice in the fact that Yeshua’s righteous blood has paid for our sins.

"Redemption is not just about being set free—it’s about learning to dwell in God’s presence, walk in His ways, and become a living testimony of His mercy and truth."

As we remember the deliverance from Egypt and the resurrection power that brings dry bones to life, ask yourself:

Have I truly left Egypt behind?

This Pesach, don’t just remove the leaven from your home—remove it from your heart. Let go of old ways, and walk in the new life of Messiah Yeshua.

This Shabbat Pesach, let us rejoice in our REDEMPTION—through the blood of the perfect offering, the unleavened bread, the firstfruits from the dead, and the firstfruits of those who are asleep. He is Messiah Yeshua!

Chag Pesach Sameach and Shabbat Shalom!

Topher

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-- S O U R C E S --

blueletterbible.org 

messianiclight.com

theberean.org

explaining thebook.com

bible.org

agodman.com

jewsforjudaism.org

firelifeministries.org

The MacArthur Study Bible