THE FEAST

OF

UNLEAVENED BREAD

(Lev. 23:6-8)

  

Feast #2 = The Burial of Jesus

 

(Prophecy Plus Ministries)

(Daymond R. Duck)

  

 

OPENING REMARKS

(Prophecy Plus Ministries)

 

When the Jews were slaves in Egypt they made bread from dough with leaven or yeast in it.

ü      They had lots of time to let the dough rise.

ü      They baked the bread in an oven.

ü      It was very fluffy.

 

But when the death angel passed over Egypt to make Pharaoh let God’s people go, the Jews had to leave Egypt so fast they didn’t have time to use leaven or yeast in their dough.

ü      They made dough without leaven or yeast.

ü      Their dough didn’t rise.

ü      Their bread was flat like a pancake.

 

ü      The Jews cooked their dough on a grill.

ü      Their bread had stripes on it (like stripes on a grilled steak).

 

ü      The Jews turned their bread over with a fork.

ü      Then, their bread had holes in it (like holes in a cracker).

 

 THE FEAST OF UNLEAVENED BREAD

 

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. In the FIRST DAY  ye shall have an holy convocation: ye shall do NO SERVILE WORK  therein. But ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the LORD seven days: in the SEVENTH DAY  is an holy convocation: ye shall do NO SERVILE WORK  therein (Lev. 23:6-8).

 

ü      The Feast of Unleavened Bread started the day after the Feast of Passover.

Ø      The Feast of Passover was on the fourteenth day of Nisan (also called Abib).

Ø      The day after the Feast of Passover would be the FIFTEENTH day of Nisan.

1)      The Jews were told to eat UNLEAVENED BREAD for SEVEN DAYS (Nisan 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21).

2)      The Jews were told to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread with a holy convocation on the FIRST DAY and the SEVENTH DAY of the feast.

3)      The Jews were told not to do any WORK on the first day (the Sabbath) or the seventh day of the feast.

a.       Work is a burden.

b.      The Sabbath is for rest and rejoicing not bearing a burden.

INSTRUCTIONS TO THE JEWS FOR UNLEAVENED BREAD

 

Exodus 13

3  And Moses said unto the people, Remember this day, in which ye came out from Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the LORD brought you out from this place: there shall NO LEAVENED BREAD BE EATEN.

4  This day came ye out in the month Abib [NISAN].

5  And it shall be when the LORD shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites, which he sware unto thy fathers to give thee, a land flowing with milk and honey, that thou shalt keep this service in this month.

6  SEVEN DAYS thou shalt eat UNLEAVENED BREAD, and in the seventh day shall be a feast to the LORD.

7  Unleavened bread shall be eaten seven days; and there shall no leavened bread be seen with thee, neither shall there be leaven seen with thee in all thy QUARTERS.

 

ü      On the day after Passover, Pharoah released the Jews.

Ø      The Jews were in a hurry to leave Egypt because they feared Pharoah would change his mind, chase them down and force them to return.

ü      They didn’t have time to stop and make dough, time to mix leaven in it, let it rise and bake it.

Ø      So they ate unleavened bread while they were on the run.

ü      When they settled down in the land they had to get all the leaven out of their QUARTERS (houses).

Ø      This was a spring feast so a spring house cleaning was required.

Ø      This may be where the term “spring cleaning” comes from.

ü      Unleavened bread is called the “bread of affliction” (Deut. 16:3).

Ø      It’s flat.

Ø      It has stripes on it.

Ø      It has holes in it.

 

 

 

THE FEAST OF UNLEAVENED BREAD IS ABOUT JESUS

 

ü      The Hebrew word for “leaven” means to ferment or to sour.

Ø      Leaven is a symbol of evil or sin in the Scriptures (Mark 8:15).

1)      Jesus is the Bread of Life (Jn. 6:32-35; 47-51; 53-58).

2)      Jesus was without sin or leaven (II Cor. 5:21; I Jn. 3:5).

3)      Therefore, Jesus was the Unleavened (sinless) Bread of Life.

Ø      Unleavened bread is bread that has not risen.

ü      On the day after Passover (the first day of Unleavened Bread) while the Jews were eating the “bread of affliction” (unleavened bread) the afflicted, beaten, bruised, pierced, unrisen body of Jesus was in the grave.

THE HOUSE OF BREAD

 

ü      Jesus was born in Bethlehem (Mic. 5:2; Matt. 2:1).

Ø      Bethlehem means “house of bread.”

 

 

THE BREAD OF LIFE

 

ü      The Feast of Passover was drawing near [and by implication the Feast of Unleavened Bread because it was the next day] (Jn. 6:1-4).

Ø      Jesus was teaching multitudes.

Ø      They were hungry.

Ø      There was a boy in the crowd with five loaves of bread and two fishes (Jn. 6:9-15).

Ø      Jesus blessed and broke the bread and fishes.

Ø      He fed 5,000 people and had twelve baskets of leftovers.

Ø      The next day, Jesus said, “I am the Bread of Life” (Jn. 6:22, 35).

Ø      He probably had the approaching Feast of Unleavened Bread in mind when He fed the 5000 and called Himself the Bread of Life.

ü      The Bread consumed at the Feast of Passover represents Jesus.

Ø      For I have received of the Lord that which also I delivered unto you, That the Lord Jesus the same night in which he was betrayed took BREAD: And when he had given thanks, he brake it, and said, Take, eat: THIS IS MY BODY, which is broken for you: this do in remembrance of me (I Cor. 11:23-24). 

 

 

SPRING CLEANING

 

ü      The Jews were suppose to get all the leaven out of their quarters (houses) for the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Ø      Christian’s bodies are houses or TEMPLES.

1)      Know ye not that ye are the TEMPLE of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you (I Cor. 3:16)?

Ø      Christians should purge the LEAVEN (sin) from their lives and live unleavened lives.

1)      Purge out therefore the old LEAVEN, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Christ our passover is sacrificed for us (I Cor. 5:7):

Ø      Christians are BURIED with Christ and RAISED up with Him to walk in newness of life.

1)      Therefore we are BURIED  with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was RAISED  up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life (Rom. 6:4).

Ø      Clean your house, bury your old ways, be raised to a new life.

Ø      Some need a spring revival or a spring house cleaning.

NO WORK

 

ü      The Jews were supposed to REST or do no work on the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Lev. 23:6-8).

Ø      Jesus wasn’t teaching or performing miracles on the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Ø      The body of Jesus was RESTING in the grave on the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

 

 

THE BREAD OF AFFLICTION

(Matzoth Bread or Matzo Bread)

 

ü      The Jews make unleavened bread called “Matzoth” or “Matzoth Bread” for the Feast of Unleavened Bread.

Ø      At all other times, the Jews eat regular bread, but during the Feast of Unleavened Bread the Jews eat Matzoth Bread.

Ø      There is no leaven in Matzoth bread so the dough does not rise.

1)      Matzoth bread looks more like a cracker than a loaf of bread.

Ø      Matzoth bread is grilled so it has STRIPES on it similar to the stripes on a grilled steak.

1)      Some Jews say the stripes remind them of the affliction their ancestors suffered when they were slaves in Egypt.

2)      Other Jews say the STRIPES are a prediction that the Messiah would be afflicted.

a.       But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his STRIPES  we are healed (Isa. 53:5).

3)      Christians agree with those who believe the stripes point to the Messiah.

a.       Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose STRIPES  ye were healed (I Pet. 2:24).

Ø      During the grilling process the Matzoth bread is PIERCED with holes similar to the holes in a cracker.

1)      Some Jews believe this may be a prophecy that reveals something about the Messiah.

2)      Christians believe the holes symbolize the crucifixion or piercing of Jesus.

a.       And they shall look upon me whom they have PIERCED, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn (Zech. 12:10).

b.      They shall look on him whom they PIERCED (Jn. 19:37).

 

THE HIDDEN BREAD CEREMONY

 

ü      During “The Hidden Bread” ceremony the Jewish father takes three loaves of Matzoth Bread (Each loaf looks like a cracker).

Ø      He places them in a special white linen envelope with three compartments,

Ø      He removes the middle loaf from its compartment, breaks it, wraps it in a piece of linen and hides it under something in a drawer, under a cushion, etc.

Ø      Then, someone has to find it.

1)      Christians believe the middle piece of Matzoth Bread symbolizes the Second Person in the Trinity (Father, Son and Holy Spirit).

Ø      Breaking the bread symbolizes the breaking of His body or the beating Jesus took.

Ø      Wrapping the bread in linen symbolizes the wrapping of His body in linen.

Ø      Hiding the bread symbolizes His burial.

Ø      Finding it symbolizes His resurrection.

 

ü      In the Hidden Bread Ceremony, the Jewish father pinches off a piece of bread about the size of an olive.

Ø      The Jewish father leans back in a comfortable chair.

1)      This is a symbol of freedom, comfort and ease,

Ø      The Jewish father says a blessing.

1)      Blessed art thou, O Lord our God, King of the Universe, who bringest forth bread from the earth.

a.       Notice, that the blessing calls God the King of the Universe and Jesus is King.

b.      Notice, that the blessing says God brings bread from the earth and Jesus, the Bread of Life, was raised from the earth.

Ø      The Jewish father drinks from the cup.

1)      Jesus drank from a cup when He turned the Passover Supper into the Lord’s Supper.

 

 

THIS BREAD IS THE REAL MANNA

(Eat it and live; reject it and die)

ü      When the Jews were running from Pharaoh they had to eat or they would perish.

Ø      Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you. Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him. As the living Father hath sent me, and I live by the Father: so he that eateth me, even he shall live by me. This is that bread which came down from heaven: not as your fathers did eat MANNA, and are dead: he that eateth of this bread shall live for ever (Jn. 6:53-58).

SOMETHING TO REMEMBER

 

 

SPRING FESTIVAL

Jesus was crucified on the Feast of Passover (Fulfilled on a set day).

The body of Jesus was in the grave on the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Fulfilled on a set day).