The Passover (Exodus 12:1-36)

Despite the nine devastating plagues in Egypt, Pharaoh stubbornly refused to let the Israelites go. To resolve this, God told Moses about a tenth, more terrible plague that would strike the land.

God announced that a destroying angel would visit the land at midnight, to kill the eldest son of each family. Only those houses whose doorposts were marked with blood from slain lambs would be spared. The angel would then ‘pass over’ those homes.

Moses told the elders of the people what everyone had to do. After marking their doorposts, each family was to eat their slain lamb along with some unleavened bread. They were to stay indoors and eat this meal quickly, dressed ready to leave.

Later that night, a cry of terror filled Egypt. The destroying angel struck the firstborn in every house, including Pharaoh’s son, while sparing all of the Jewish boys. Afterwards, the Egyptians urged the Israelites to leave, providing them with goods and provisions.

Moses had also explained that this supper was going to become an annual ritual, known as the Passover. Every year, Jewish families were to remember how the angel of death passed over their houses. By eating a sacrificed lamb and unleavened bread, they were to recall how they had been spared.

After settling in the Promised Land, the Israelites faithfully celebrated the Passover each year as instructed. It was during the Passover that Christ held the Last Supper and then went to his death. As a result, the Passover and the Eucharist share a special connection. Both saving meals involve a sacrifice – a lamb, and Christ himself.

This opus sectile scene is found in the sanctuary of St. James, Spanish Place, in London. It pictures Moses celebrating the first Passover meal with the elders of Israel. Created by John Francis Bentley around 1899, it’s part of a series of similar scenes linking Old Testament stories with the Eucharist.

Notice how the participants are all ready to go, with their cloaks already on and their travelling staffs in hand. On the stone table, which is covered with an altar cloth, we see the unleavened bread and the sacrificial lamb. These ritual details underline the link between the Passover and the Eucharist.

This is also reflected in the Latin caption of the scene, Erit autem agnus absque macula. This means ‘and the lamb shall be without blemish’, which is a quotation from Exodus 12:5. The Passover lambs were required to be flawless; the reference here is also to Christ, the spotless Lamb of God.

See the full image:

Where to find this work of art
St James, Spanish Place, London

Read the relevant passage
Exodus 12:1-36

On a similar theme

• From the Old Testament: The panel sits alongside other Old Testament scenes that relate to the Eucharist, such as Abram meeting Melchizedek and Moses with the spies.
• From the New Testament: The Last Supper, during which Christ introduced the Eucharist, was a Passover meal.