Christian Passover 2024

3,500 years ago, God created a holiday for Israel called “passover.” God told Moses this holiday would begin for the first time ever on the evening of the fourteenth of Abib. This month became the beginning of months for the Israelites.

On the evening of the fourteenth of Abib, the Israelites (Hebrews) were to sacrifice an unblemished lamb. They were to place the blood of the lamb over and on the sideposts of their door. This would prevent the Tenth Plague of Egypt from having any effect on them, which was, the death of the firstborn.

On that night, now the fifteenth of Abib, the Israelites were to eat the lamb with unleavened bread and bitter herds. This became a memorial, with the unleavened bread signifying the Israelites leaving their long bondage in Egypt by night in haste.

Today, we no longer sacrifice lambs to remember and honor passover. Jesus fulfilled all blood sacrifices through His crucifixion on the Cross, He became our unblemished Passover Lamb, (1 Corinthians 5:7).

Christian Passover Calendar

In order to calculate and celebrate Christian Passover, we have to remember the Hebrew day began at sundown. So one Hebrew day commences at sundown, and concludes on the following sundown which initiates a new day.

God told Moses passover occurs during the month of Abib. The month of Abib begins at the Spring Equinox, which is March 19th this year. So Passover begins on the evening of the fourteenth of Abib, equivalent to the evening of April 2nd this year 2024.

Please read, When Is The Month Of Abib? in order to understand the date before proceeding.

I have provided a calendar marking off the days to help you better understand when Passover begins, and the events that coincide with it.

Click to enlarge

Christian Passover 2024 begins on the evening of April 2nd.

All right, now let me guide you through the Old and New Testaments so you can understand the events of passover, along with the time sequence of it. Then you will understand the entire story, and how Jesus fulfilled it.

It’s fantastic, let’s begin!

Passover In The Old Testament

Turn your Bible with me to,

Leviticus 23:5-6
5 In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is the LORD’S passover.

6 And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread.

The first month is Abib (Deut 16:1), so the evening of the fourteenth day of Abib begins the LORD’s Passover, (evening of April 2nd). Right after that, the fifteenth of Abib (the night of April 2nd) begins, which is the feast of unleavened bread, this is intertwined with Passover.

Fourteenth Evening: Passover Begins, Lamb Sacrificed

Let’s read what the Israelites were to do with the unblemished lamb we discussed earlier.

Exodus 12:6
And ye shall keep it up until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.

The Israelites were to take the unblemished lamb they obtained on the tenth of the month, and kill it “in the evening,” “at the going down of the sun” on the fourteenth of Abib, that is “the LORD’S passover,” (Exodus 12:3, Deuteronomy 16:6). This would be equivalent to the evening of April 2nd this year.

Exodus 12:8
And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; and with bitter herbs they shall eat it.

Now remember, once the sun goes down, the Hebrew day has concluded and a new Hebrew day begins.

Fifteenth Begins: Lamb Eaten In That Night

God said, “in that night” which means the fourteenth of Abib is now over, and the fifteenth of Abib has begun. It was this night when the Israelites were to eat the lamb with unleavened bread and bitter herds.

Exodus 12:11
And thus shall ye eat it; with your loins girded, your shoes on your feet, and your staff in your hand; and ye shall eat it in haste: it is the LORD’S passover.

Notice, God called this night, “the LORD’s passover” as well. This tells us, while passover begins on the evening of the fourteenth day of Abib (evening of April 2nd), passover continues into the fifteenth day of Abib (night of April 2nd) which is the night.

On this night, “the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when he seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer the destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you,” (Exodus 12:23).

The “destroyer” is Satan, he is the “destroying angel,” the very definition of “Abaddon” and “Apollyon,” (Revelation 9:11).

Exodus 12:17
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.

“This selfsame day,” the fifteenth of Abib begins at sundown. It would be this same Hebrew day that God led Israel out of their long bondage in Egypt, (Numbers 33:3).

Take note, Leviticus 23:5-6 explained, passover and the feast of unleavened bread are intertwined together, (Deuteronomy 16:1-8). As passover commences on the evening of the fourteenth of Abib, at sundown that day ends, just as the fifteenth day of Abib begins, which is the feast of unleavened bread.

Unleavened bread was to be eaten with the passover meal, this was to be a seven day feast, (Ezekiel 45:21). This was to remind the Israelites throughout all their generations, there was no time for the bread to rise. They would leave Egypt that night in haste.

Why Do We Celebrate Passover?

Exodus 12:26-27
26 And it shall come to pass, when your children shall say unto you, What mean ye by this service?

27 That ye shall say, It is the sacrifice of the LORD’S passover, who passed over the houses of the children of Israel in Egypt, when he smote the Egyptians, and delivered our houses. And the people bowed the head and worshipped.

This is why we remember passover, even to this day, though Jesus Christ fulfilled all blood sacrifices from the past.

The Passover In The Night

Exodus 12:29
And it came to pass, that at midnight the LORD smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, from the firstborn of Pharaoh that sat on his throne unto the firstborn of the captive that was in the dungeon; and all the firstborn of cattle.

“At midnight” on the fifteenth of Abib. God swept through the land and allowed the “destroyer,” who is Satan, to kill the firstborn of every man (and beast) that did not place the blood of the lamb over and on the sides of their door. This would be equivalent to our midnight which begins April 4th.

This Tenth Plague of Egypt was so severe, “Pharaoh rose up in the night… and he called for Moses and Aaron by night, and said, Rise up, and get you forth from among my people,” (Exodus 12:30-31).

Exodus 12:42
It is a night to be much observed unto the LORD for bringing them out from the land of Egypt: this is that night of the LORD to be observed of all the children of Israel in their generations.

The Israelites were now freed from Egyptian bondage by God’s Hand.

Numbers 33:3
And they departed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the morrow after the passover the children of Israel went out with an high hand in the sight of all the Egyptians.

This firmly concludes, while passover begins on the evening of the fourteenth of Abib, passover continued into the night being the fifteenth of Abib. The moment when the LORD passed over the Israelites homes.

Passover In The New Testament

Now I want to tie in the crucifixion of Jesus.

You’re going to learn, Christ was crucified on the evening of the fourteenth of Abib. Yes, the same moment the passover lambs were being sacrificed. The timing of Christ becoming our eternal sacrifice is precise in fulfillment.

Turn your Bible with me to,

Luke 22:7
Then came the day of unleavened bread, when the passover must be killed.

We learned passover and the day of unleavened bread are intertwined, so we need to step through this verse.

If it was the day of unleavened bread (fifteenth of Abib), the passover lamb would have already been killed (evening of the fourteenth of Abib). So this was not the day of unleavened bread, rather, the day of unleavened bread “came” closer.

We can be certain of that, when Jesus told Peter and John, “Go and prepare us the passover.” They replied, “Where wilt thou that we prepare,” (Luke 22:8-9)?

Christ’s own admission was the preparation for passover had not yet taken place, so it would be impossible for the passover lamb to have been sacrificed already.

Of a surety then, we know “the day” mentioned here is the beginning of the fourteenth of Abib which occurred at sundown, just as the thirteenth day of Abib was concluding. This would be equivalent to the evening of April 2nd.

Jesus went on to tell Peter and John where they could find the room where the Twelve Disciples would convene with Christ, (Luke 22:10-12). This would be the night of the Last Supper, as passover had not yet taken place.

Fourteenth Begins With The Last Supper

Luke 22:19-20
19 And he took bread, and gave thanks, and brake it, and gave unto them, saying, This is my body which is given for you: this do in remembrance of me.

20 Likewise also the cup after supper, saying, This cup is the new testament in my blood, which is shed for you.

These words of Christ ring true even to this day, this is how we remember Him until His Return. This is what you will do on the evening of April 3rd, (1 Corinthians 11:24-26).

Obviously, Christ’s Blood had not yet been shed, but it soon would be.

Fourteenth: Jesus Prayed In The Night

Jesus and the Disciples then went to the Mount of Olives. Christ would tell them, “All ye shall be offended because of me this night.” Peter responded, “Yet will I never be offended,” (Matthew 26:31,33).

Offended” means “apostasy” which is to “fall away” from Christ. Apostasy even means, “the abandonment or renunciation of a religious belief.”

Matthew 26:34
Jesus said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.

“This night” plainly tells us, this occurred hours after sundown, mere hours into the beginning of the fourteenth of Abib. This would be equivalent to the night of April 2nd.

Before Jesus went to pray, He said to the Disciples, “My soul is exceeding sorrowful, even unto death: tarry ye here, and watch with me,” (Matthew 26:38). Jesus checked on the Disciples twice, and both times, He “found them sleeping, for their eyes were heavy” as it was now late into the night, (Matthew 26:43).

Fourteenth: Jesus Betrayed By Night

Luke 22:47
And while he yet spake, behold a multitude, and he that was called Judas, one of the twelve, went before them, and drew near unto Jesus to kiss him.

By night, Jesus was betrayed and given into the hand of sinners who led Him to the high priest’s house, (1 Corinthians 11:23). Peter followed far behind, (Luke 22:54).

Luke 22:55
And when they had kindled a fire in the midst of the hall, and were set down together, Peter sat down among them.

The fire was kindled as it was a cool and dark night. As Peter stood around the fire, the others began to accuse him of being one of the Twelve that were with Christ.

Luke 22:60
And Peter said, Man, I know not what thou sayest. And immediately, while he yet spake, the cock crew.

The crowing of the rooster indicates it was now nearing dawn, certainly no longer in the middle of the night.

Now let’s read what happens to Jesus next.

Fourteenth: Jesus Brought To Pilate In The Day

Luke 22:66
And as soon as it was day, the elders of the people and the chief priests and the scribes came together, and led him into their council, saying,

The morning had now arrived, this would be the morning hours of the fourteenth of Abib, equivalent to the morning of April 3rd. We can only imagine the amount of verbal and physical abuse Jesus endured throughout the night.

Luke 23:1
And the whole multitude of them arose, and led him unto Pilate.

Quite naturally, you would not bother the governor who was Pontius Pilate until “it was day,” he would certainly not be disturbed in the middle of the night.

Though ‘the elders, chief priests, and scribes’ wanted to crucify Jesus, Pilate wanted to let Him go, even asking, “Why, what evil hath he done,” (Matthew 27:23)?

Nevertheless, Pilate interrogated Jesus to meet the demand of the chief priests and scribes.

It Was The Preparation Of The Passover

For completeness, we must discuss Pilates words in,

John 19:14
And it was the preparation of the passover, and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King!

It was the “preparation of the passover.” This also proves, passover had not yet taken place, but it would during the evening of this day, the fourteenth of Abib.

Luke 22:66 explained to us, “it was day” when Jesus was brought before Pilate. So we know this did not take place in the night. Further, this “sixth hour” in John must be reckoned from Roman time which would make it 6 AM. If this “sixth hour” were Hebrew time, it would be 12 noon.

We can be certain of that, as Jesus was crucified at the “third hour” being 9 AM, (Mark 15:25). Therefore, it would be impossible for Christ to stand in front of Pilate at the “sixth hour” being 12 noon, as Jesus would have already been on the Cross for three hours beginning at 9 AM.

We should note, the book of John was written some 30-50 years after Matthew, Mark, and Luke. So it is thought Roman influence became more predominant leading to this recording of time in this book.

Let us continue.

Luke 23:20-21
20 Pilate therefore, willing to release Jesus, spake again to them.

21 But they cried, saying, Crucify him, crucify him.

Unfortunately, “Pilate gave sentence that it should be as they required,” and Pilate “delivered Jesus to their will” which led to Christ being crucified on the Cross for our sins, (Luke 23:24-25).

Fourteenth Evening: Passover Begins, Jesus Sacrificed

Luke 23:44
And it was about the sixth hour, and there was a darkness over all the earth until the ninth hour.

The sixth hour here is reckoned according to Hebrew time, making the darkness over the land from 12 noon until 3 pm. This means, it (ninth hour) was now the evening of the fourteenth of Abib (evening April 3rd), the time of passover.

Luke 23:46
And when Jesus had cried with a loud voice, he said, Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit: and having said thus, he gave up the ghost.

As passover now began on the evening of the fourteenth of Abib, Jesus spirit departed His flesh. Christ’s sacrifice had just replaced the need for all blood sacrifice, including the passover lambs of old, (Colossians 2:14). Jesus was now our Passover Lamb.

Luke 23:54
And that day was the preparation, and the sabbath drew on.

This sabbath would be the first day of the feast of unleavened bread. This begins just as the fourteenth day ends, and the fifteenth day begins, (John 19:31).

This completely proves, Jesus was crucified at the same time as the passover lambs of old were sacrificed.

Christian Passover Is The Evening Of April 2nd

This year 2024, Christian Passover begins on the evening of April 2nd.

  • On this day 3,500 years ago, the first passover lambs were sacrificed. On this night, “at midnight.” The LORD swept through the land and allowed the “destroyer” who is Satan, to kill the firstborn if the household did not have the blood of the lamb over and on the sides of their door.
  • On this day 2,000 years ago, Jesus Christ was sacrificed for our sins fulfilling the passover of old. This not only removed the need for blood sacrifice, but provided a way for us to conquer “death” and obtain Eternal Life, all through the precious Blood of the Lamb.
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