Exo 12:16  And in the first day there shall be an holy convocation, and in the seventh day there shall be an holy convocation to you; no manner of work shall be done in them, save that which every man must eat, that only may be done of you.

Exo 12:17  And you 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 you observe this day in your generations by an ordinance for ever.

Exo 12:18  In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even.

The first day of the Feast is a commemoration of the exodus from Egypt. What do you suppose is the purpose for observing the last day of the Feast?

Exo 12:19  Seven days shall there be no leaven found in your houses: for whosoever eats that which is leavened, even that soul shall be cut off from the congregation of Israel, whether he be a stranger, or born in the land.

Exo 12:20  You shall eat nothing leavened; in all your habitations shall you eat unleavened bread.

Why did Yahweh command us to remove leaven from our houses? Leaven figuratively represents undesirable things in our lives that Yahweh would have us to remove from our walk with Him and Yahshua.

1Co 5:6  Your glorying is not good. Know you not that a little leaven leavens the whole lump?

1Co 5:7  Purge out therefore the old leaven, that you may be a new lump, as you are unleavened. For even Messiah our Passover is sacrificed for us:

1Co 5:8  Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.

Here we see that malice and wickedness, which is sin, is a type of leaven. Paul was prompted to write this in reference to the man who was committing fornication by having his father’s wife.

Mat 16:6  Then Yahshua said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leavenlof the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

Mat 16:7  And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread.

Mat 16:8  Which when Yahshua perceived, he said unto them, O you of little faith, why reason you among yourselves, because you have brought no bread?

Mat 16:9  Do you not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets you took up?

Mat 16:10  Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets you took up?

Mat 16:11  How is it that you do not understand that I spoke it not to you concerning bread, that you should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees?

Mat 16:12  Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.

Here we see that false doctrine is a type of leaven.

Luk 12:1  In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware you of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.

Here we see a third type of leaven which is hypocrisy. To understand the kind of hypocrisy Yahshua was referring to, let’s read Matthew 23:27-28;

Mat 23:27  Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for you are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men’s bones, and of all uncleanness.

Mat 23:28  Even so you also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within you are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.

Yahshua was a sinless man; a man who knew the truth and had all his doctrines correct; and who was sincere, not hypocritical.

Heb 4:15  For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin.

By ridding our houses of leaven, we show our desire to rid our lives of sin. We want to be sinless as Yahshua was. Is that possible?

1Jn 1:9  If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.

The moment we are cleansed of all unrighteous, we are sinless. Confessed sin cannot stick to us. The problem is, we are yet flesh and continue to sin.

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which does so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

Heb 12:2  Looking unto Yahshua the author and finisher of our faith; who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is set down at the right hand of the throne of [Elohim].

Heb 12:3  For consider him that endured such contradiction of sinners against himself, lest you be wearied and faint in your minds.

Heb 12:4  You have not yet resisted unto blood, striving against sin.

There is a battle taking place in believers. The inner man desires to obey Yahweh and keep His commandments, but the outward man of flesh strives against and sometimes yields to sin. Here is how Paul puts it in Romans 7:

 14 For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. 15 For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. 16 But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. 17 So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. 19 For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. 20 But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me.
21 I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. 22 For I joyfully concur with the law of [Elohim] in the inner man, 23 but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my  mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my  members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? 25 Thanks be to [Elohim] through Yahshua Messiah our Master! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of [Elohim], but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin.

Paul explains this same war a little differently in Galatians 5:

Gal 5:16  This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.

Gal 5:17  For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that you cannot do the things that you would.

Gal 5:18  But if you be led of the Spirit, you are not under the law.

The victory in this war lies in walking in the Spirit. What does it mean to “walk in the Spirit”?

As I see it, that phrase can have at least three meanings;

1)      If we are in tune with the Holy Spirit and hear what it is saying to us, not allowing anything to dull our hearing, then we can walk were it leads .

An example of this would be:

Acts 8:29  Then the Spirit said unto Philip, Go near, and join yourself to this chariot.

The Spirit spoke to Philip who heard and obeyed. He walked in the Spirit’s leading.

2)     Ezekiel 36:27  And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes, and you shall keep my judgments, and do them.

It seems that Yahweh would do this in conjunction with the written Word. For example, if the Spirit guides us into all truth (John 16:13) and Yahweh’s Word is truth (John 17:17), then the Spirit will guide us to understand His Word (the Scriptures) and lead us to repentance and obedience.

3)     After writing about “walking in the Spirit”, Paul goes on to write:

Gal 5:24  And they that are Messiah’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts.

When we first believed our old man was crucified with Yahshua.

Rom 6:6  Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin.

By the “old man” is meant our corrupt self/nature before receiving Yahshua. However, as a man who is crucified  is still alive though he can’t move and act as he previously did, so our old man and its body of sin is “crucified” in that it is restrained by Yahweh’s grace and Spirit, yet it still has great influence over us.

Paul goes on to say:

Rom 6:12  Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that you should obey it in the lusts thereof.

Sin is still alive, but we should not allow it to rule over us. The way to do that is by continually putting it to death.

Rom 8:13  For if you live after the flesh, you shall die: but if you through the Spirit do mortify (put to death) the deeds of the body, you shall live.

Rom 13:14  But put on the Master Yahshua Messiah, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfil the lusts thereof.

Col 3:5-10 Mortify (put to death) therefore your members (parts of the body) which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil desires, and covetousness, which is idolatry: For which things’ sake the wrath of Elohim comes on the children of disobedience: In which you also walked some time, when you lived in them. But now you also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. Lie not one to another, seeing that you have put off the old man with his deeds; And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:

1Pe 2:11  Dearly beloved, I beseech you as strangers and pilgrims, abstain from fleshly lusts, which war against the soul;

In the four passages above, it is the believer that must act to put away sin through the help of the Holy Spirit and not allow it to become our master once again.

Mat 16:24  Then said Yahshua unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.

What are some ways we can deny ourselves?

The fact that the Feast of Unleavened Bread lasts seven days pictures this ongoing process of putting to death sin, discarding false doctrine and feeding on the unleavened bread of truth, and living sincere, honest and open lives before our Creator.

The last day of the Feast would picture the end of that lifelong process ending when our flesh literally dies. Up until then, we have been figuratively dead, but then literally. We cease abstaining from leaven at our death. Afterwards, our resurrection unto a literal new life will take place.

I do not believe we will ever be leaven free based on Lev 23:17:

You shall bring out of your habitations two wave loaves of two tenth deals: they shall be of fine flour; they shall be baked with leaven; they are the firstfruits unto Yahweh.

These loaves represent the firstfruits of the wheat harvest or the first fruits of the harvest of souls at the resurrection. They are baked with leaven showing us that even the first saints to be resurrected will be leavened. Only Yahshua was unleavened or sinless. His resurrection is pictured in Lev 23:10-13 with the waving of the sheaf of the firstfruits of the barley harvest which was pure grain without leaven.

So let’s continue to look unto Yahshua, the author and finisher of our faith, who will save us from our sins. And let us continue to search out the leaven in us and put it out of our lives until we are unable to do so.

1. There is no mention of either Passover or of a New Passover in any of these verses. The gathering being discussed is simply called “The Master’s Supper”. To say it replaces the Passover supper is an assumption. If Paul believed the Master’s Supper took place on Passover, he could have easily said so. Since it was only a common supper eaten before Passover (as John 13:1 states), and since that day did not have a name, Paul needed to clarify which day by saying, “the same night in which he was betrayed.”

2. It is believed by many that the unleavened bread of verse 24 symbolizes the Passover Lamb. However, the Lamb was not to have even one bone broken (Ex.12:46; Num.9:12). Could the breaking of the bread symbolize the breaking of the Lamb? No.

3. Verses 24 and 25 say, “…this do in remembrance of me.” They do not say, “in remembrance of Passover.”

4. It is believed by many that the contents of the cup symbolizes the blood of the Passover Lamb. However, the Israelites were not to drink the Lamb’s blood. Could the drinking of the “cup” symbolize the drinking of the Passover Lamb’s blood? No.

5. Verse 26 tells us that by eating the bread and drinking the cup we show the Master’s death. It aids us in declaring and remembering his death, not the totality of the Passover. There are aspects of Passover that are yet to be fulfilled. Although we have eternal life at this time, “by faith”, we will literally have it fulfilled at our resurrection. The Exodus will literally be fulfilled at that time as well.

6. Verse 25 says, “This cup is the New Testament in my blood.” The New Testament (or Covenant) is the counterpart of the Old Covenant. The Old Covenant was not established in the blood of the Passover Lamb, but in the blood of calves and goats (Heb.9:19,20). This suggests that the blood that was shed to establish the New Covenant differs in function from the blood that was shed for Divine protection from the Angel of Death (judgment from Yahweh) or, the antitype, Yahweh’s judgment against the wicked. Yahshua’s shed blood on Abib 14 fulfills at least three different sacrificial aspects; Atonement, Divine protection, and Covenant ratification. The cup, then, symbolizes; the remission of sins (Atonement)(Mt.26:28); the New Covenant (Mt.26:28); Divine protection (in that, “I will be to them an Elohim, and they shall be to me a people” (Heb.8:10) implies protection); and it is a means of remembering Yahshua’s death. Therefore, to say the cup is a symbol that replaces the Passover Lamb limits the importance of this symbol. When Yahshua gave his disciples these symbols he did not intend for them to be a replacement for the Passover Lamb, especially since he gave them a day before the Lamb was eaten.

7. “The night in which he was betrayed” (vs.23) began the fulfillment of Is.53:7; “…he is brought as a lamb to the slaughter.” Yahshua was brought as the [Passover] lamb to the slaughter which took place the afternoon of Abib 14. That is further proof that his death at 3:00 pm fulfilled the phrase “between the evenings.” He could not have eaten a fictitious lamb that was slain at the beginning of Abib 14.

Jn.6:31-35, 48-58

These verses compare eating Yahshua’s flesh to eating manna (the bread of life from heaven), not to eating the Passover Lamb or the supposed unleavened bread of Passover. As Yahweh is Yahshua’s source of life (vs.57), Yahshua is to be our source of life by spiritually partaking of this manna from heaven. We symbolically do that at the Master’s Supper.

John 13:21-30

It is believed by many that this supper took place on the night of Abib 14 which they consider to be the time when the Passover Lamb was eaten. After the foot washing, they sat back down to the supper table. Yahshua then dipped a sop and gave it to Judas Iscariot at which time Satan entered him. Yahshua then said, “That thou doest, do quickly” (vs.27). The disciples did not know why Judas was leaving, but they suspected he was going to buy things they needed for the feast (vs.29). What?! How could the disciples think so nonchalantly of this sudden departure from the Passover supper unless, of course, it was only a common supper the night before the true Passover supper. Had Judas been sent from the true Passover supper the disciples would have been shocked. And what merchants would have their shops open to allow such a purchase on the night of Passover? Obviously the disciples thought shops would be open because it was the night before the lamb was eaten.

The supper in John 13 is the same supper of Mt.26:20,21; Mk.14:18; and Lu.22:22,23. John 13:1 says that supper was “before the feast of the Passover.” The reaction of the disciples to Judas’ departure confirms the fact that this supper was before the Passover supper.

Jn.18:28

This verse has led many people to believe that these Jews were about to eat the Passover at the wrong time since Yahshua supposedly ate it the night before. This has led to the belief that the Pharisees kept Passover on Abib 15 and the Sadducees (whom Yahshua supposedly followed) on Abib 14. If you will check verses 3, 12, & 28 of that same chapter, as well as Jn.19:6, you will note that the Jews of verse 28 included “chief priests” and “captains”. The chief priests were, beyond a shadow of a doubt, Sadducees. Luke 22:52 reveals the “captains” to be “captains of the temple”, again Sadducees. Therefore, these Sadducees had not eaten the Passover yet.

Ex.12:43-50

It is taught that the killing and eating of the Passover Lamb takes place on Abib 14. Ex.12:43-50 outlines this eating concerning strangers. Notice verse 51, “And it came to pass the selfsame day , that Yahweh did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their armies.” The “selfsame day” can only refer to the previous verses concerning eating. The selfsame day the Passover was eaten they came out of Egypt; Abib 15 (Num.33:3). Those that keep Passover at the beginning of Abib 14 believe it was eaten that night followed by the exodus the next night.

2 Chr.35:16,17

Beginning of the 14th proponents use these verses to teach, “The whole service of the Passover [including eating] was observed that day (in one day) just as Moses prescribed; that is, on the 14th.” (emphasis & brackets mine). The KJV says, “So all the service of Yahweh was prepared the same day to keep the passover…” Notice the difference in the emphasized words.

Moffatt’s translation is often used to support that view. It says, “In this way, the whole service of holding the passover in honor of the Eternal and sacrificing burnt-offerings on the altar of the Eternal was carried out that day…” The phrase in bold type is not in the Hebrew. It simply says, “all the service of Yahweh was prepared the same day…” Moffatt’s version leads one to believe that it is talking about a Passover service or ceremony whereas the Hebrew shows the service to be people prepared to conduct the passover ceremony. This can be seen by verses 2-5,10,14-16. Each family division had a specific service to perform and to prepare for. Verse 16 says that all those that had a service to perform were prepared the same day, Abib 14.

2 Chr.35:10-14

It is implied that the priests were busy with burnt offerings from before sunset until night and therefore, the Levites took charge of the passover lambs themselves. Yet, verse 11 implies that the priests sprinkled the blood [of the passover lambs] from their hands. Verse 14 then says that after they finished sacrificing the lambs for the people [and by extension, after the priests finished sprinkling the blood for the people], the Levites began sacrificing lambs for themselves and the priests. Once the priests finished sprinkling blood they began offering burnt offerings until night.

1 Cor.5:7

“Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Messiah our passover is sacrificed for us:” Paul tells us that OUR passover lamb has been sacrificed “for us” or on our behalf. Who sacrificed it for us? Is.53 tells us that Yahweh bruised His Son and smote him. Did Yahweh have our Passover Lamb sacrificed at the wrong time? No. That being true, then Yahshua and his disciples could not have eaten the lamb the night before. If Yahshua did eat it the night before, and if he did it correctly, then Yahweh sacrificed Yahshua at the wrong time. The only way to reconcile this dilema is to acknowledge the fact that what Yahshua did in the evangel accounts of Matthew, Mark, and Luke is being misunderstood. When translating from Hebrew to Greek and from one culture to another, it can easily lead to error as it has concerning the Holy Names. John’s evangel was written in such a way as to leave us no doubt as to when Passover took place.

Mk.15:21, Lu.23:26

Simon was forced to carry Yahshua’s torture stake. It is said that he was coming out of the “country” (Gr. agros meaning – country, farm, farmland, fields, etc.). The argument is put forth that if Passover was a high sabbath (Abib 15), Simon would have been at the Temple or synagogue and not in the fields. That is true. The opposite holds true as well. If the night of Abib 14 began Passover, Simon would have come out of the fields to observe it the night before carrying Yahshua’s stake. The most likely scenario is that Simon came out of the fields the morning of Abib 14 for the purpose of observing Passover that afternoon.

Sadducees/Pharisees

It is often contended that Yahshua observed Passover the year he died according to the Sadducean way. It is said that, “as long as the temple stood, the Sadducees set the festival dates” and, eventually, Pharisaical changes were made. This view is primarily based on the commentaries such as, The New Bible Dictionary under “Pentecost.”

Another comment in that same book is found on page 1054 under “Sadducees” – “Our sources are all hostile and inadequate for an accurate picture. They are Josephus…the Mishnah….the N.T. ” In other words, we don’t have any information concerning the Sadducees except from these three sources. None of these sources provides the view that the Sadducees set festival dates. On the contrary, they oppose that view. The N.T. only shows that the high priest was a Sadducee. So where does this view come from? Conjecture. Since the high priest was a Sadducee, it is assumed that the Sadducees had total control over the temple and festival dates. But if we honestly use the only information we have concerning the Sadducees, we see an entirely different picture.

Acts 22:3 says, “I am verily a man which am a Jew, born in Tarsus, a city in Cilicia, yet brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel (a Pharisee), and taught according to the perfect manner of the law of the fathers , and was zealous toward Elohim, as ye all are this day.” Gamaliel would not have taught Paul the Sadducean way of counting.

Acts 23:6 says, “But when Paul perceived that the one part were Sadducees, and the other Pharisees, he cried out in the council, Men and brethren, I am a Pharisee, the son of a Pharisee : of the hope and resurrection of the dead I am called in question.” Not only was Paul taught by a Pharisee, his father was a Pharisee. It is doubtful he would have departed from the way he was raised.

Acts 23:9 says, “And there arose a great cry: and the scribes that were of the Pharisees’ part arose, and strove, saying, We find no evil in this man: but if a spirit or an angel hath spoken to him, let us not fight against Elohim.” Paul had the scribes and Pharisees on his side. Notice he did not appeal to the Sadducees saying, “I count Pentecost and keep Passover just like you.”

Phil.3:5-6 says, “Circumcised the eighth day, of the stock of Israel, of the tribe of Benjamin, an Hebrew of the Hebrews; as touching the law, a Pharisee ; Concerning zeal, persecuting the church; touching the righteousness which is in the law, blameless.” Paul declares that, not only is he a Pharisee regarding the law, but that he is blameless regarding it. He kept the law as the Pharisees taught him and was blameless as a result. What could be clearer?

Mk.12:24 – “Yahshua answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures , nor the power of [Yahweh].” The Sadducees had a very shallow understanding of Scripture because they were political puppets appointed by foreign rulers. They did not understand the concepts of a resurrection or angels, and neither did they understand how to reckon festivals.

Notice what the New Westminster Dictionary of the Bible says about the priesthood in the time of Messiah;
“The chief priest who are mentioned in the N.T. were the officiating high priest, former high priests still alive, and members of their families. They were an anomaly of the times. The law (Yahweh’s Law) that regulated the succession to the high priesthood had come into abeyance through political confusion and foreign domination. High priests were made and unmade at will of the rulers.”

Mt.23:2,3 says, “… The scribes and the Pharisees sit in Moses’ seat: All therefore whatsoever they bid you observe, that observe and do; but do not ye after their works: for they say, and do not.” Yahshua did not say “the scribes and Sadducees.” What is Moses’ seat? Ex. 18:15-16 reads, “And Moses said unto his father in law, Because the people come unto me to enquire of Elohim: When they have a matter, they come unto me; and I judge between one and another, and I do make them know the statutes of Elohim, and his laws.” Yahshua declared that it was the job of the Scribes and Pharisees to teach Yahweh’s laws and statutes, including reckoning festivals. Yahshua was not a hypocrite. If he taught us to observe the ways of the Pharisees concerning the Law, we can rest assured that he followed the Pharisees teachings as well.
 

Samaritan’s

Those who support an early 14th Passover seem to take pride in the fact that the Samaritan’s sacrifice the Passover lamb at twilight. Yet, they disregard the fact that it was the twilight between the 14th and 15th of Abib, not twilight beginning the 14th. Although the Pharisees were in error because of their over zealousness and hypocrisy, Yahshua supported them in their role as those who sit in Moses’ seat (Mt.23:2,3). Scripture, however, paints a different picture of the Samaritan’s. Consider the following;

John 4:21,22 – “Yahshua saith unto her, Woman, believe me, the hour cometh, when ye shall neither in this mountain, nor yet at Jerusalem, worship the Father. Ye worship ye know not what: we know what we worship: for salvation is of the Jews.” Not only were they worshiping in the wrong location, they didn’t even know what they were worshiping.

Ezra 4:3-24 – It was the Samaritans that were the greatest obstacle in rebuilding Yahweh’s temple in Jerusalem. Later, they built their own temple in Mt. Gerizim.

The Samaritan religion developed as a result of Jeroboam’s efforts at alienating the ten tribes from Yahweh’s worship at Jerusalem. What they learned of Yahweh they learned from “Jeroboam’s priesthood”, not from the Levitical priesthood. Most of their history involves gross idolatry.

The Samaritan’s reject all Hebrew Scriptures with the exception of the Pentateuch and possibly Joshua. They have rewritten these books in many areas. These rewritten books comprise the “Samaritan Pentateuch.”
 

“Remember the commandment which the Lord commanded thee concerning the Passover, that thou shouldst celebrate it in its season on the fourteenth of the first month, that thou shouldst kill it before it is evening, and that they should eat it by night on the evening of the fifteenth from the time of the setting of the sun.”

“Let the children of Israel come and observe Passover on the day of its fixed time, on the fourteenth day of the first month, between the evenings, from the third part of the day to the third part of the night, for two portions of the day are given to light, and a third part to the evening.”

“This is that which the Lord commanded thee that thou shouldst observe it between the evenings. And it is not permissible to slay it during any period of the light, but during the period bordering on the evening, and let them eat it at the time of the evening until the third part of the night, and whatever is left over of all its flesh from the third part of the night and onwards, let them burn with fire.” (Each ‘part’ was approximately 4 hours long). ‘Apocrypha and Pseudepigrapha of the Old Testament in English’ by R.H. Charles, chapter 49.

This shows that, as early as two centuries before Messiah, there were Jews who believed the Passover was to be sacrificed at the end of Abib 14 and eaten on the 15th. This also shows that this practice did not begin after the destruction of the second temple in 70 C.E.

Philo - (early 1st century C.E.) -

“After the New Moon comes the fourth feast, called the Crossing-feast, which the Hebrews in their native tongue call Pascha. In this festival many myriads of victims from noon till eventide are offered by the whole people … The day on which this national festivity occurs may very properly be noted. It is the 14th of the month …” ‘De Specialibus Legibus, 2,’ 145, 149.

Again, these offerings took place at the end of the 14th. Philo wrote from about 20 B.C.E. to 45 C.E. So this would have been the practice in Messiah’s day.

Another treatise ascribed to Philo, ‘Quasestiones et Solutiones in Genesin et in Exodum,’ states the time of the Passover sacrifice to be after 3 p.m.

Josephus – (late 1st century C.E.) -

“… accordingly, on the occassion of the feast called Passover, at which they sacrifice from the ninth hour to the eleventh hour , [3 p.m. to 5 p.m.] and a little fraternity, as it were, gather round each sacrifice, of not fewer than ten persons” War 6.9.3.

Josephus also wrote about the time of the evening sacrifice that was offered between the evenings as was the Passover.

“…but did still twice each day, in the morning and about the ninth hour [3 p.m.], offer their sacrifices on the altar;” Antiquities of the Jews 14.4.3

This was the practice in the days of Pompey (65 B.C.E.). It continued this way until the destruction of the temple in 70 C.E.

Writing on the subject of offering incense as it was practiced in Moses’ time, Josephus says;

“… but incense was to be offered twice a day, both before sunrising and at sunsetting .” Antiq. 3.8.3.

The phrase “at sunsetting” has led some to believe that incense and the evening sacrifice were offered originally at sunset, but later changed to mid-afternoon. Note that Josephus does not say “sunset” or “sundown”, but “sunsetting.” To a Jew, the sun is setting from noon until it disappears below the horizon. Even to an American today, the sun is continually descending until sundown. So Josephus does not contradict himself, nor does he teach that a change was made.

Septuagint – (3rd Century B.C.E.) -

Lev.23:5 gives a literal translation of the Hebrew “ben ha-erebim” (Greek: anameson ton hesperinon = “at between the evenings.”) However, in Ex.12:6,12 and Num.28:4,8, ben ha-erebim is translated as “toward evening,” (Greek: pros hesperan). Ex.29:39,41 translates ben ha-erebim as ‘to deilinon’ in Greek meaning “in the afternoon” or “toward evening.”

This shows that the Hebrew phrase ben ha-erebim was understood to mean the evening at the end of the day approximately 300 years before Messiah.

Ezekielos – (approx. 90 B.C.E.) -

Ezekielos was a Jewish dramatist who composed a tragedy in Greek on the theme of the Exodus. He writes, “And let them be kept until the fourteenth day is bright ; then sacrificing them towards evening (you will eat them) all roast, together with (their) entrails.”

Eustathius -

“Eustathius, in a note on the seventeenth book of the Odyssey, shows that the Greeks too held that there were two evenings, one which they called the latter evening, at the close of the day; and the other the former evening, which commenced immediately after noon . . .” McClintock and Strong, vol. VII, 1877, p.735.

Irenaeus - (120 – 202 C.E.) -

“Of the day of His passion, too, he was not ignorant; but foretold Him, after a figurative manner, by the name given to the passover; and at that very festival, which had been proclaimed such a long time previously by Moses, did our Lord suffer, thus fulfilling the passover. And he did not describe the day only, but the place also, and the time of day at which the sufferings ceased , and the sign of the setting of the sun, saying: “Thou mayest not sacrifice the passover within any other of thy cities which the LORD thy God shall choose that His name be called on there, thou shalt sacrifice the passover at even, towards the setting sun .” Ante-Nicean Fathers, Vol.1, pg.473.

Although this source testifies from about 100 years after the temple was destroyed, I feel it is important. This was written at a time when weak Christians were avoiding persecution by forsaking the appearance of anything Jewish such as Sabbath observance. If the practice of sacrificing the Passover before sunset was a Jewish invention after 70 C.E., it most certainly would have been forsaken by Messianic believers at that time. But there is no evidence of that in Irenaeus’s account.

Rabbinic Literature can also be added to this list of historical evidence, but since they are accused of changing the time of the Passover sacrifice, they won’t be included.

All of the sources listed are unified in their support of “between the evenings” meaning at the end of the day. I have yet to see any historical documentation supporting a beginning of the 14th Passover. Most of the extra-Biblical support for that position comes from modern commentaries and translations written by people who did not understand Jewish thought on this subject.

It is important to understand what this phrase means. Notice the phrase does not say “sunset” or “sundown,” but “at the going down.” That means the sun was on its way down, but had not reached that point yet. It was “going” down, but not gone. The verse says to sacrifice the Passover as the sun is going down. It does not say to sacrifice the Passover after the sun has set. The sun is only “going down” at the end of a day, not the beginning.

Proof that this phrase can mean “prior to sunset” is found by studying two verses in the book of Joshua wherein the same Hebrew phrase occurs.

Josh.8:29 , “And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until eventide [ereb]: and as soon as the sun was down , Joshua commanded that they should take his carcase down from the tree, and cast it at the entering of the gate of the city, and raise thereon a great heap of stones, that remaineth unto this day.”

Josh.10:26,27 , “… and they were hanging upon the trees until the evening [ereb]. And it came to pass at the time of the going down of the sun, that Joshua commanded, and they took them down off the trees, and cast them into the cave wherein they had been hid, and laid great stones in the cave’s mouth, which remain until this very day.”

The underlined words in both verses are the equivalent Hebrew of “at the going down” in Deut.16:6. Notice one verse says the sun was already down and the other verse says it was going down. To understand what the status of the sun really was, we must look at the commandment that led Joshua to order the king’s body taken down. It is found in Deut.21:22,23;

“And if a man have committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree: His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day ; (for he that is hanged is accursed of Elohim;) that thy land be not defiled, which Yahweh thy Elohim giveth thee for an inheritance.”

Yahweh commanded the body to be removed and buried the same day . To accomplish that, the body had to be removed before sunset . After sunset would have been a new day. Josh.8:29 should have been translated “at the going down of the sun” just as Deut.16:6 and Josh.10:27 were. This also shows that the word “ereb” in Josh.8:29 and 10:27 has the meaning of “before sunset” in these cases.
 

There is firm historical support showing that the Hebrew phrase “ben ha-erebim” (between the evenings) was a time period between noon and sundown (See ‘Historical Evidence to Support a Passover Sacrifice at the End of Abib 14′). There is virtually no historical evidence I know of to support that phrase meaning twilight. One can find many modern day commentators and Bible translators supporting that position, but their position is based on opinion, conjecture, and a misunderstanding of Hebrew thought on this subject. By ‘Hebrew thought’ I mean their beliefs as far back as three hundred years prior to Messiah Yahshua, not their thoughts after 70 C.E.. Although Jewish thought on this subject did not change at that time, some people believe it did.

The phrase in question appears eleven times in the Hebrew text. Five of those times pertain to the Passover.

Ex.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 .”

Lev.23:5 – “In the fourteenth day of the first month at even is Yahweh’s passover.

Num.9:3 – “In the fourteenth day of this month, at even , ye shall keep it in his appointed season: according to all the rites of it, and according to all the ceremonies thereof, shall ye keep it.”

Num.9:5 – “And they kept the passover on the fourteenth day of the first month at even in the wilderness of Sinai: according to all that Yahweh commanded Moses, so did the children of Israel.”

Num.9:11 – “The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs .”

The context of these scriptures are not very helpful in determining the meaning of “Between the evenings” (in bold print). The remaining six verses, however, are quite helpful.

Ex.16:12 – “I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am Yahweh your Elohim. The “flesh” the Israelites would eat “between the evenings” was quail (vs.13). The question is, if “between the evenings” means twilight, which is a period lasting approximately 40 minutes, how did the Israelites manage to catch, kill, clean, cook and eat the quail in that short time period? It is obvious that much more time is required to do all that. They may also have had to start fires to cook the quail. We shouldn’t assume that they had fires ready in anticipation of the quail coming.

Ex.29:39,41 is repeated in Num.28:4,8 so we need only look at Num.28:4,8 to understand the next four uses of “between the evenings.”

Num.28:4,8 – “The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning, and the other lamb shalt thou offer at even ;
And the other lamb shalt thou offer at even : as the meat offering of the morning, and as the drink offering thereof, thou shalt offer it , a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto Yahweh.”

Both phrases in bold type are from the Hebrew “ben ha-erebim.” These verses deal with the time of the evening sacrifice. Keep in mind that a Hebrew day ends at sunset as we study these verses.

First, the historical testimony of Josephus places the evening sacrifice at “about the ninth hour” or approximately 3:00 p.m. (Antiquities 14.4.3). This agrees with his statement that the Passover lamb was sacrificed “between the ninth and the eleventh hour” (Wars 6.9.3). Two different sacrifices, both occurring at about the ninth hour and both fulfilling the command to sacrifice “between the evenings.”

Secondly, we have the clear meaning of two other Hebrew words to assure us of the meaning intended. The word “one” used in verse 4 is the Hebrew word “echad” which can also mean “first” as in Num. 29:1 and many other texts.

Num.29:1a – “And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation;”

More importantly is the Hebrew word translated “other” in verse 8. It is “sheniy” meaning “double ie: second,” according to Strong’s Concordance. “Sheniy” is the most common Hebrew word for “second.” If the “other” lamb, or more correctly, the “second” lamb, were sacrificed after sunset it would have been sacrificed on a new day making it the first lamb sacrificed that day. Both lambs had to be sacrificed the same day, the first one in the morning and the second one between the evenings or late in the day, but before sunset.

That leaves us with one verse left, Ex.30:8. Josephus says this was done at “sunsetting” (Antiquities 3.8.3). He does not say “sundown” or “sunset.” This time period, in the Jewish culture, begins at noon. The sun begins setting at that time. It continues to set until it vanishes from sight beginning a new day. Ex.30:8 – “And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even , he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before Yahweh throughout your generations.”
The Tabernacle in the wilderness was made out of animal skins which means they would not allow much light, if any, to enter the sanctuary. If Aaron waited until sundown to light the lamps, he would not have had any light to see what he was doing. This would especially be true when the moon was not full. Lighting the lamps before sunset would make more sense. Also, if Aaron had to light the lamps, burn incense and offer the evening sacrifice after sunset, when did he have time to offer the Passover sacrifice? Twilight only lasts about 30 minutes.

Interestingly, Lev.23:3 uses the Hebrew word “ereb” concerning the time for lighting the lamps and 2 Chr.13:11 uses “ereb” for the time of the evening sacrifice. Therefore, ereb and ben ha-erebim are interchangeable as far as these times are concerned.

Conclusion: The weightier evidence, both historical and scriptural, is clearly in favor of “between the evenings” meaning a time period before sunset. Appealing to modern day commentators and translators is fruitless since support can be found for both views. History, however, cannot be refuted and neither can context.

To begin with we must understand that Yahweh’s plan of salvation existed before the creation of the worlds. That plan included the slaying of His son Yahshua as we read in Rev.13:8;

 ”And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world.”

Not only was it part of Yahweh’s plan to provide His son as the lamb, but Yahweh Himself was the one who bruised him as we read in Is.53:10;

“Yet it pleased Yahweh to bruise him; he hath put him to grief.”

Considering these two verses we must conclude that Yahweh bruised Yahshua, as His Passover lamb, at the exact time that He decreed the Israelites to kill their Passover lambs.

Yahweh is a mighty one of perfection and exactness. Would He not have slain His lamb at the correct time? Yahweh has an appointed time for everything whether it be the resurrection of the dead, judgement day, the day of Yahshua’s second coming, etc. The appointed time of His son’s death was firmly established before the foundations of the world as well. It is this premise that must be kept in mind as we study the correct time for the Passover sacrifice.

Matthew tells us that Yahshua died about the ninth hour which is equivalent to 3:00 pm. (Mt.27:45-50). This time, then, would be the fulfillment of Ex.12:6 and the phrase “kill it in the evening” or more correctly “between the evenings.” The Jews have always understood the first evening to begin at approx. 3:00 pm and the second evening to begin the moment the sun sets. Others believe the phrase “between the evenings” to mean from sunset to darkness or the time known as twilight. Interestingly, two Hebrew words were translated twilight in the KJV neither of which were ever used concerning the Passover. In addition, the Jews had another phrase (between the suns) that they used to denote the time between the setting of the sun and the appearance of any star (Commentary on the New Testament from the Talmud and Hebraica – John Lightfoot, Vol. 3, pg.217).

The phrase “between the evenings” appears 11 times in the Hebrew text. Five of those pertain to Passover leaving us with six verses to examine and interpret its meaning. Ex.29:39,41 and Num.28:4,8 concern the morning and evening sacrifice which was offered daily. Since they all say the same thing we need only examine Ex.29:38-41;

“Now this is that which thou shalt offer upon the altar; two lambs of the first year day by day continually. The one lamb thou shalt offer in the morning; and the other lamb thou shalt offer at even : And with the one lamb a tenth deal of flour mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil; and the fourth part of an hin of wine for a drink offering. And the other lamb thou shalt offer at even , and shalt do thereto according to the meat offering of the morning, and according to the drink offering thereof, for a sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto Yahweh.”

Two lambs were to be offered each day; one in the morning and the other between the evenings. The word “one” in verse 39 is the Hebrew “echad” which can also mean “first” as in Num.29:1;

“And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you.”

The word “other” in verse 39 is the Hebrew “sheniy”. According to Strong’s Concordance it means “double ie: second.” If the other lamb or more correctly, the second lamb, were sacrificed after sunset then it would be a new day making it the first lamb sacrificed. This is one reason the Jews always sacrificed the second lamb at 3:00 in the afternoon.

The next use of “between the evenings” is found in Ex.30:8;

“And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even , he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before Yahweh throughout your generations.”

The Tabernacle was made from animal skins which means they would not allow much light to enter the sanctuary. If Aaron had waited until sundown to light the lamps he would not have had any light to see what he was doing. Lighting the lamps before sunset would make more sense. If Aaron had to light the lamps after sunset and offer the second lamb after sunset, when did he have time to offer the Passover sacrifice?

The last usage of “between the evenings” is found in Ex. 16:12,13;

“I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel: speak unto them, saying, At even ye shall eat flesh, and in the morning ye shall be filled with bread; and ye shall know that I am Yahweh your Elohim. And it came to pass, that at even the quails came up, and covered the camp: and in the morning the dew lay round about the host.”

The word “even” in verse 12 is “between the evenings” and the word “even” in verse 13 is “ereb.” Some say that ereb means sunset therefore “between the evenings” must be twilight. However, ereb and ben ha arbayim (between the evenings) are used interchangeably. Lev.23:3 uses ereb concerning the time of lighting the lamps and II Chr.13:11 uses ereb concerning the time of the evening sacrifice. Therefore the quails could have come into the camp by 3:00 pm and been eaten before sunset. Twilight only lasts approximately 40 minutes. If the quail didn’t come in until sundown, how did the Israelites manage to catch, kill, clean and cook them before dark? Incidently, according to “Aid to Bible Understanding”, Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., 1971, under the heading “Quail” it states that they often fly at night which brings into question the assumption that they came in at sundown to roost in the trees. Ex.16:13 says the quail “covered the camp” implying that they landed on the ground and not in trees. Since this was a miracle performed by Yahweh, He could have brought the quail in at any time. He did not have to bring them in at the normal roosting time of other birds.

“Between the evenings” means just that; a period of time that falls between two different evenings. Scripture undoubtedly teaches that evening begins the moment the sun sets. It then continues on towards morning. Scripture never states that a second evening begins when twilight ends. It does show that another evening can occur as early as 3:00 pm (ereb).

Those who believe the lamb was killed after the sun set beginning the 14th of Abib also say that the Hebrew phrase “ba ereb” always means the end of the day. However we find the same phrase used pertaining to the Passover in Jos.5:10;

 ”And the children of Israel encamped in Gilgal, and kept the Passover on the fourteenth day of the month at even in the plains of Jericho.”

The Israelites kept the Passover at even (ba ereb) meaning at the end of the fourteenth. Deut.16:4,6 also use “ba ereb” to show the sacrifice occurred at the end of the fourteenth.

“But at the place which Yahweh thy Elohim shall choose to place his name in, there thou shalt sacrifice the passover at even , at the going down of the sun, at the season that thou camest forth out of Egypt.”

What does the phrase “going down of the sun” mean? The same Hebrew construction is found in Josh.8:29;

“And the king of Ai he hanged on a tree until eventide: and as soon as the sun was down , Joshua commanded that they should take his carcase down from the tree, and cast it at the entering of the gate of the city, and raise thereon a great heap of stones, that remaineth unto this day.”

The underlined words are the equivalent Hebrew found in Deut.16:6 (at the going down). A similar occurrence is found in Josh.10:27;

“And it came to pass at the time of the going down of the sun, that Joshua commanded, and they took them down off the trees, and cast them into the cave wherein they had been hid, and laid great stones in the cave’s mouth, which remain until this very day.”

Again, the underlined words are the equivalent Hebrew of Deut.16:6. Joshua was obeying Yahweh’s commandment found in Deut.21:22,23;

“And if a man commited a sin worthy of death, and he be put to death, and thou hang him on a tree: His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but thou shalt in any wise bury him that day ; (for he that is hanged is accursed of Elohim;) that thy land be not defiled, which Yahweh thy Elohim giveth thee for an inheritance.”

The body had to be buried the same day it was hung on the tree. That means it had to be buried before sunset. Therefore, when Deut.16:6 says,” sacrifice the Passover at even (ba ereb), at the going down of the sun,…” it shows that “ba ereb” in this case means prior to sunset. Incidently, the word “eventide” in Josh.8:29 is “ereb” clearly showing that the king of Ai’s body was both hanging on the tree and buried before sunset.

It is also believed by some people that the word “until” in Ex.12:6 means “up to” or the beginning of the fourteenth.

“And ye shall keep it (up ,not in Hebrew) until the fourteenth day of the same month: and the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel shall kill it in the evening.”

The same Hebrew word also means “through till the end” as we see in Ex. 12:15,18;

“Seven days shall ye eat unleavened bread; even the first day ye shall put away leaven out of your houses: for whosoever eateth leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel… In the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month at even, you shall eat unleavened bread, until the one and twentieth day of the month at even.”

If “until” meant the beginning of the day then we would be permitted to eat leaven on the seventh day of the feast (Abib 21).

Notice also this crucial point; The Hebrew of Ex.12:18, “on the fourteenth day of the month at even,” is the exact same phrase in Josh.5:10 declaring the time when Joshua kept the Passover. In Ex.12:18 it means the end of the 21st day and in Josh.5:10 it means the end of the fourteenth. Lev.23:32 shows this phrase to mean the end of the ninth day.

It is often said that Ex.12:6-14 refers to Abib 14, especially the phrase “this night” in verse 12. If we understand that “between the evenings” (vs.6) means approximately 3:00 pm, then obviously “this night” must mean Abib 15. It all depends on your understanding of the meaning of “between the evenings.” Notice, however, verse 14. “This day” (the day Yahweh passed over them) shall be a memorial ; and you shall keep it a feast to Yahweh throughout your generations; you shall keep it a feast forever.” Whenever Yahweh memorializes a day He does so by making it a Sabbath just as He memorialized His finished work of Creation, the Day of Atonement, Trumpets, etc. He also memorialized the day He passed over Israel by making it a Sabbath, Abib 15. That is why the term “feast” is used in this verse. The Hebrew word is “chagag” which was also used in Ex.23:14; “Three times thou shalt keep a feast unto me in the year.” A chagag is a special time of rejoicing and dancing. Certainly, Abib 14 cannot be considered a chag or chagag in any way. It is merely the day that the Passover lamb was sacrificed.

Let’s look at a few more Old Testament verses.

Deut.16:1 – “Observe the month of Abib, and keep the Passover unto Yahweh thy Elohim: for in the month of Abib Yahweh thy Elohim brought thee forth out of Egypt by night.”

Since Moses told the Israelites not to come out of their houses until morning (Ex.12:22), some people assume that they came out of Egypt the following night, Abib 15. The phrase “brought thee forth out of Egypt” refers to the period of time beginning with the killing of Egypt’s firstborn males.

 Ex.13:14-16 – “And it shall be when thy son asketh thee in time to come, saying, What is this? that thou shalt say unto him, By strength of hand Yahweh brought us out from Egypt , from the house of bondage: And it came to pass, when Pharaoh would hardly let us go, that Yahweh slew all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both the firstborn of man, and the firstborn of beast: therefore I sacrifice to Yahweh all that openeth the matrix, being males; but all the firstborn of my children I redeem. And it shall be for a token upon thine hand, and for frontlets between thine eyes: for by strength of hand Yahweh brought us forth out of Egypt.”

That final act of Yahweh’s strength is what delivered the Israelites or what “brought them forth.” That act occurred at midnight on Abib 15. The following morning the Israelites left in a great hurry. They did not have time to leaven their bread (Ex.13:33,34). If the killing of the firstborn occurred at midnight on Abib 14 the women would have had at least ten hours to leaven their bread before they left at sundown.

It is taught that the killing and eating of the Passover Lamb takes place on Abib 14. Ex.12:43-50 outlines this eating concerning strangers. Notice verse 51;

“And it came to pass the selfsame day , that Yahweh did bring the children of Israel out of the land of Egypt by their armies.”

The “selfsame day” can only refer to the previous verses concerning eating. The selfsame day the Passover was eaten they came out of Egypt; Abib 15 (Num.33:3). Those that keep Passover at the beginning of Abib 14 believe it was eaten that night followed by the exodus the next night.

II Chr.35:1-19 recounts Josiyah’s Passover. Verse 14 suggests the sacrifices and offerings took place hours before nightfall in order to complete them. Since twilight is only a period of approximately 40 minutes, how could they kill, bleed, clean and cook so many offerings and sacrifices in so short a time? This verse takes place after they had roasted the Passover offerings which would have taken several hours.

It is implied in verse 14 that the priests were busy with burnt offerings from before sunset until night and therefore, the Levites took charge of the passover lambs themselves. Yet, verse 11 implies that the priests sprinkled the blood [of the passover lambs] from their hands. Verse 14 then implies that after they finished sacrificing the lambs for the people [and by extension, after the priests finished sprinkling the blood for the people], the Levites began sacrificing lambs for themselves and the priests. Once the priests finished sprinkling blood they began offering burnt offerings until night.

Beginning of the 14th proponents use verses 16 & 17 to teach, “The whole service of the Passover [including eating] was observed that day (in one day) just as Moses prescribed; that is, on the 14th.” (emphasis & brackets mine). The KJV says, “So all the service of Yahweh was prepared the same day to keep the passover…” Notice the difference in the emphasized words.

Moffatt’s translation is often used to support that view. It says, “In this way, the whole service of holding the passover in honor of the Eternal and sacrificing burnt-offerings on the altar of the Eternal was carried out that day…” The phrase in bold type is not in the Hebrew. It simply says, “all the service of Yahweh was prepared the same day…” Moffatt’s version leads one to believe that it is talking about a Passover service or ceremony whereas the Hebrew shows the service to be people prepared to conduct the passover ceremony. This can be seen by verses 2-5,10,14-16. Each family division had a specific service to perform and to prepare for. Verse 16 says that all those that had a service to perform were prepared the same day, Abib 14.

The last Old Testament verse we should read is Eze.45:21 .

 ”In the first month, in the fourteenth day of the month, ye shall have the Passover, a feast of seven days; unleavened bread shall be eaten.”

This verse does not say “and a feast of seven days” thereby making a distinction between Passover and Unleavened. According to Strong’s Concordance, Passover can mean either the festival or the victim (the sacrifice). Passover in this verse would refer to the festival. Verses such as Ex.12:6; Nu.9:5; and Lev.23:5 refer to the victim. Many people do not understand this and erroneously assume the killing and eating must take place on the same day. Once the Passover is sacrificed at the end of the fourteenth it is eaten as the first meal of the feast.

What does the New Testament tell us about Passover? First let’s look at some clear scriptures beginning with Jn.18:28 .

“Then led they Yahshua from Caiaphas unto the hall of judgment: and it was early; and they themselves went not into the judgment hall, lest they should be defiled; but that they might eat the passover.”

This verse has led many people to believe that these Jews were about to eat the Passover at the wrong time since Yahshua supposedly ate it the night before. This has led to the belief that the Pharisees kept Passover on Abib 15 and the Sadducees (whom Yahshua supposedly followed) on Abib 14. If you will check verses 3, 12, & 28 of that same chapter, as well as Jn.19:6, you will note that the Jews of verse 28 included “chief priests” and “captains”. The chief priests were, beyond a shadow of a doubt, Sadducees. Luke 22:52 reveals the “captains” to be “captains of the temple”, again Sadducees. Therefore, these Sadducees had not eaten the Passover yet.

Jn.13:1,2 – “Now before the feast of the passover, when Yahshua knew that his hour was come that he should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved his own which were in the world, he loved them unto the end. And supper being ended . . .”

This verse tells us that the supper of Abib 14 took place before the Passover. It was not the Passover.

John 13:2-30 – It is believed by many that this supper took place on the night of Abib 14 which they consider to be the time when the Passover Lamb was eaten. After the foot washing, they sat back down to the supper table. Yahshua then dipped a sop and gave it to Judas Iscariot at which time Satan entered him. Yahshua then said, “That thou doest, do quickly” (vs.27). The disciples did not know why Judas was leaving, but they suspected he was going to buy things they needed for the feast (vs.29). What?! How could the disciples think so nonchalantly of this sudden departure from the Passover supper unless, of course, it was only a common supper the night before the true Passover supper. Had Judas been sent from the true Passover supper the disciples would have been shocked. And what merchants would have their shops open to allow such a purchase on the night of Passover? Obviously the disciples thought shops would be open because it was the night before the lamb was eaten.

The supper in John 13 is the same supper of Mt.26:20,21; Mk.14:18; and Lu.22:22,23. John 13:1 says that supper was “before the feast of the Passover.” The reaction of the disciples to Judas’ departure confirms the fact that this supper was before the Passover supper.

Jn.19:14 – “And it was the preparation of the passover , and about the sixth hour: and he saith unto the Jews, Behold your King!”

If Yahshua had just finished eating the Passover the previous night, how can it be the “preparation of the passover” at about noon the next day? The “preparation of the Sabbath” ends as the weekly Sabbath day begins. The “preparation of the Passover” must also end as the Passover begins. Since this verse refers to Abib 14 at noon, then the Passover could not have begun yet. It will have begun at least three hours later at the normal time of sacrificing the lambs. If one believes the lambs were sacrificed at the beginning of Abib 14, then all of Abib 13 would be the “preparation of the passover.”

Lu.22:1 – “Now the feast of unleavened bread drew nigh, which is called the Passover.”

As in Eze.45:21, Passover in this verse would refer to the entire festival and not the victim.

This brings us to the most difficult part of this study; understanding what took place at the last supper. What was Yahshua and his disciples doing the night he was betrayed? Was he partaking of the Passover meal with its lamb and bitter herbs or was this a pre-Passover meal?

Lu.22:7-18 – “Then came the day of unleavened bread, when the passover must be killed. And he sent Peter and John, saying, Go and prepare us the passover, that we may eat. And they said unto him, Where wilt thou that we prepare? And he said unto them, Behold, when ye are entered into the city, there shall a man meet you, bearing a pitcher of water; follow him into the house where he entereth in. And ye shall say unto the goodman of the house, The Master saith unto thee, Where is the guestchamber, where I shall eat the passover with my disciples? And he shall shew you a large upper room furnished: there make ready. And they went, and found as he had said unto them: and they made ready the passover. And when the hour was come, he sat down, and the twelve apostles with him. And he said unto them, With desire I have desired to eat this passover with you before I suffer: For I say unto you, I will not any more eat thereof, until it be fulfilled in the kingdom of Yahweh. And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and said, Take this, and divide it among yourselves: For I say unto you, I will not drink of the fruit of the vine, until the kingdom of Yahweh shall come.”

Verse 7 means that Abib 14 had begun. Why would they begin preparing for Passover after the sun had set? To prepare the Passover, if that were the Passover meal, would mean to bring the lamb to the priests, have it killed, bleed it, clean it, carry it back to the room that they still needed to get, cook it for hours after they kindled a fire and carve it up. Not to mention the lines of people waiting to have their lambs killed after sunset (thousands of lambs)!

Verse 16 adds the words “any more” which are not found in the oldest Greek manuscripts (Vatican, Sinaiticus, Alexandrinus). The added words imply that Yahshua had just finished eating the Passover. Omitting the words implies that Yahshua did not eat the Passover. Although he desired to eat the Passover with his disciples the following night, he knew he couldn’t because he would be dead.

In The Mishnah, Pesahim 6:4, it reads,

A. A festal offering derives from the flock of sheep or from the herd of oxen, from lambs or from goats, from males or from females.

B. And it is eaten for two days and the intervening night [to the night of the fifteenth of Nisan].

Since John’s gospel suggests the Jews had not yet eaten their Passover lambs, and since the lambs were traditionally killed at 3:00 p.m. on Abib 14, I think it is logical to believe Yahshua and his disciples were partaking of this “festal offering” on that “intervening night”. The festal offering could be eaten on the daylight portion of the 13th, the night beginning the 14th, and the daylight portion of the 14th. Then, on the night of the 15th, they would partake of the Passover lamb.

Matthew, Mark and Luke each say “they made ready the Passover” in preparation for the “last supper”. Since Josephus says the Jews considered the Passover to be “a feast of eight days”, the beginning of Abib 14 would begin Passover in that context. The first meal partaken of would have been the festal offering on the night of the 14th. The disciples made everything ready to begin the Passover by securing a room, making sure it was unleavened, preparing the festal offering, etc.

In the Evangel accounts of the last supper, Yahshua and his disciples were having the festal offering, a pre-Passover meal. They did not eat the Passover since the priests did not begin killing them until the following afternoon. That is why John 18:28 says the Jews hadn’t eaten the Passover even after Yahshua’s trial began.

The Passover meal was a family gathering in which the women and children also paricipated. When Yahshua attended the Passover as a boy of twelve he accompanied his family (Lu.2:41,42). Yet, in Yahshua’s last supper the women and children are conspicuously absent. All that were present were Yahshua’s male disciples who were linked to him socially rather than through kinship. Where were the women who followed Yahshua throughout his ministry? Where is Peter’s wife or the wives of the other married disciples? They were not in attendance because that was not the Passover meal.

Mk.15:21, Lu.23:26 – Simon was forced to carry Yahshua’s torture stake. It is said that he was coming out of the “country” (Gr. agros meaning – country, farm, farmland, fields, etc.). The argument is put forth that if Passover was a high sabbath (Abib 15), Simon would have been at the Temple or synagogue and not in the fields. That is true. The opposite holds true as well. If the night of Abib 14 began Passover, Simon would have come out of the fields to observe it the night before carrying Yahshua’s stake. The most likely scenario is that Simon came out of the fields the morning of Abib 14 for the purpose of observing Passover that afternoon.

1 Cor.5:7 reads, “Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Messiah our passover is sacrificed for us:”

Paul tells us that OUR passover lamb has been sacrificed “for us” or on our behalf. Who sacrificed it for us? Is.53 tells us that Yahweh bruised His Son and smote him. Did Yahweh have our Passover Lamb sacrificed at the wrong time? No. That being true, then Yahshua and his disciples could not have eaten the lamb the night before. If Yahshua did eat it the night before, and if he did it correctly, then Yahweh sacrificed Yahshua at the wrong time. The only way to reconcile this dilema is to acknowledge the fact that what Yahshua did in the evangel accounts of Matthew, Mark, and Luke is being misunderstood. When translating from Hebrew to Greek and from one culture to another, it can easily lead to error as it has concerning the Holy Names. John’s evangel was written in such a way as to leave us no doubt as to when Passover took place.

There are more scriptures to support an end of Abib 14 Passover offering as opposed to a beginning of the fourteenth offering. The content of this study should suffice to enlighten the seeker of truth.

” And the Jews’ Passover was nigh at hand: and many went out of the country up to Jerusalem before the Passover, to purify themselves.”

 The act of purifying themselves involved both a physical and spiritual cleansing. First, let’s look at some examples of physical cleansing or physically sanctifying oneself. In Num 9:6-14 we read,

 ”And there were certain men, who were defiled by the dead body of a man, that they could not keep the Passover on that day: and they came before Moses and before Aaron on that day: And those men said unto him, We are defiled by the dead body of a man: wherefore are we kept back, that we may not offer an offering of Yahweh in his appointed season among the children of Israel? And Moses said unto them, Stand still, and I will hear what Yahweh will command concerning you. And Yahweh spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or be in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the Passover unto Yahweh. The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, and eat it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. They shall leave none of it unto the morning, nor break any bone of it: according to all the ordinances of the Passover they shall keep it. But the man that is clean, and is not in a journey, and forbeareth to keep the Passover, even the same soul shall be cut off from among his people: because he brought not the offering of Yahweh in his appointed season, that man shall bear his sin. And if a stranger shall sojourn among you, and will keep the Passover unto Yahweh; according to the ordinance of the Passover, and according to the manner thereof, so shall he do: ye shall have one ordinance, both for the stranger, and for him that was born in the land.”

Here we see an example of being unclean physically and therefore being unable to keep Passover. The same principle applies to us today. If, for any reason, we become unclean, we are forbidden to observe Passover at that time and must wait until the fourteenth day of the second month to keep it. There are several ways to become unclean besides touching a dead body. Among those that the scriptures mention are childbirth, which renders the mother unclean for up to eighty days; menstruation; eating the flesh of unclean animals; leprosy; and physical discharges of the sex organs, including emission of semen during sexual intercourse.

 Another example is found in 2 Chr 30:1-3.

“And Hezekiah sent to all Israel and Judah, and wrote letters also to Ephraim and Manasseh, that they should come to the house of Yahweh at Jerusalem, to keep the Passover unto Yahweh Elohim of Israel. For the king had taken counsel, and his princes, and all the congregation in Jerusalem, to keep the Passover in the second month. For they could not keep it at that time, because the priests had not sanctified themselves sufficiently, neither had the people gathered themselves together to Jerusalem.”

Continuing in verses 15-20,

“Then they killed the Passover on the fourteenth day of the second month: and the priests and the Levites were ashamed, and sanctified themselves, and brought in the burnt offerings into the house of Yahweh. And they stood in their place after their manner, according to the law of Moses the man of Elohim: the priests sprinkled the blood, which they received of the hand of the Levites. For there were many in the congregation that were not sanctified: therefore the Levites had the charge of the killing of the passovers for every one that was not clean, to sanctify them unto Yahweh. For a multitude of the people, even many of Ephraim, and Manasseh, Issachar, and Zebulun, had not cleansed themselves, yet did they eat the Passover otherwise than it was written. But Hezekiah prayed for them, saying, The good Yahweh pardon every one that prepareth his heart to seek Elohim, Yahweh Elohim of his fathers, though he be not cleansed according to the purification of the sanctuary. And Yahweh hearkened to Hezekiah, and healed the people.”

In this example, the King interceded for those that were unclean and Yahweh personally purified them. Whether this can be done today for unclean saints only Yahweh knows. The most prudent thing to do is to be sure that you remain clean for Passover rather than relying on Yahweh to cleanse you miraculously. Let’s read Ezr 6:19-22;

 ”And the children of the captivity kept the Passover upon the fourteenth day of the first month. For the priests and the Levites were purified together, all of them were pure, and killed the Passover for all the children of the captivity, and for their brethren the priests, and for themselves. And the children of Israel, which were come again out of captivity, and all such as had separated themselves unto them from the filthiness of the heathen of the land, to seek Yahweh Elohim of Israel, did eat, And kept the feast of unleavened bread seven days with joy: for Yahweh had made them joyful, and turned the heart of the king of Assyria unto them, to strengthen their hands in the work of the house of Elohim, the Elohim of Israel.”

This purification involved the priests and Levites. Since believers today are called a “royal priesthood” then we too, should be sure that we are purified or cleansed before we keep the Passover. The Passover is eaten on the night of the first day of the Feast of Unleavened. By that time every believer should have removed all leaven or all fermented products from his house (Ex.12:15,18,19). Leaven throughout scripture is symbolic of sin, false doctrine and hypocrisy as we read in the following verses;

Mat 16:5-12 – “And when his disciples were come to the other side, they had forgotten to take bread. Then Yahshua said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. And they reasoned among themselves, saying, It is because we have taken no bread. Which when Yahshua perceived, he said unto them, O ye of little faith, why reason ye among yourselves, because ye have brought no bread? Do ye not yet understand, neither remember the five loaves of the five thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? Neither the seven loaves of the four thousand, and how many baskets ye took up? How is it that ye do not understand that I spake it not to you concerning bread, that ye should beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees? Then understood they how that he bade them not beware of the leaven of bread, but of the doctrine of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees.”

Luke 12:1 – “In the mean time, when there were gathered together an innumerable multitude of people, insomuch that they trode one upon another, he began to say unto his disciples first of all, Beware ye of the leaven of the Pharisees, which is hypocrisy.”

1 Cor 5:6-8 – “Your glorying is not good. Know ye not that a little leaven leaveneth the whole lump? Purge out therefore the old leaven, that ye may be a new lump, as ye are unleavened. For even Messiah our Passover is sacrificed for us: Therefore let us keep the feast, not with old leaven, neither with the leaven of malice and wickedness; but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”

The “old leaven” spoken of in verse 8 consists of all the false doctrines we have believed until now. If we have any false doctrines remaining in our minds we are to search them out, as we would leaven in our houses, and discard them. The same is true of hypocrisy and sins that we have not repented of. If our false doctrines, hypocrisies and sins are not pointed out to us by our fellow brethren, or even unbelievers, then we are to examine ourselves, to search our own souls thoroughly, to be sure we are free of leaven. If we go before Yahweh in prayer and ask Him to reveal our hidden faults to us, He will. This was the attitude of David as we read in Psa 139:23,

 ”Search me, O Elohim, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting.”

This should be the attitude of any truly converted person. Jeremiah showed this attitude in Jer 10:23-24 when he said,

 ”O Yahweh, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps. O Yahweh, correct me, but with judgment; not in thine anger, lest thou bring me to nothing.”

If we do not allow Yahweh’s Holy Spirit to correct us or to show us our faults He may have to correct us in anger. As the writer of Hebrews said,

“It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living Elohim.”

Concerning the symbols of the bread and the cup that we take to remember the death of our Passover Lamb, Yahshua, the Apostle Paul wrote, in 1 Cor 11:28-32,

“But let a man examine himself, and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of that cup. For he that eateth and drinketh unworthily, eateth and drinketh damnation to himself, not discerning the Master’s body. For this cause many are weak and sickly among you, and many sleep. For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged. But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Master, that we should not be condemned with the world.”

The Passover season is the best time of the year to take a long, hard look at ourselves, to judge ourselves to be certain we are walking in a pleasing way in Yahweh’s sight. It is also a time when we must be sure that we are physically clean in our flesh. The Apostle Paul made a statement in 2 Cor 7:1 that sums up what our obligation is, especially at this time of year.

“Having therefore these promises, dearly beloved, let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of the flesh and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of [Yahweh].”

It makes no sense to keep the Feast of Unleavened, which symbolizes the purity of the believer, if we knowingly have sins, false doctrines and hypocrisies within us. That would be hypocritical. Yahweh is calling us to be pure in heart, mind, and body. This is the time of the year where He commands us to come before Him in an undefiled physical and spiritual condition to worship Him in spirit and in truth. The wise man will do just that.

Many of the arguments for Christmas are not historically based and have few proof texts.  On the other hand, the arguments and documentation against Christmas are very numerous as can be seen in the quoted references below.

Being that there are so many arguments for and against Christmas, can it be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is right?  Can it be proven beyond a shadow of a doubt that it is wrong?  With something so cloudy and controversial, why participate at all?  There is no wrong committed in avoiding this holiday.  If we avoid Christmas and are wrong, then we lose nothing.  If we avoid Christmas and are right, we prevent ourselves from being united with and engulfed in a sinful religious holiday during that time of the year. 

Christmas, its origin found nowhere in scripture and surrounded by pagan worship and rites, has no place in the congregation of our Master.  We cannot separate a religious holiday with its past or its origins.  We can’t say, “Well, that was then, and this is now.”  We are told in Deuteronomy 12:29-30 – “When Yahweh your Elohim cuts off before you the nations which you are going in to dispossess, and you dispossess them and dwell in their land, beware that you are not ensnared to follow them, after they are destroyed before you, and that you do not inquire after their gods, saying, ‘How do these nations serve their gods, that I also may do likewise?,’ and 18:9 – “When you enter the land which Yahweh your Elohim gives you, you shall not learn to imitate the detestable things of those nations. “

If we can see that there is even a chance, of which there is much more than that, of Christmas being pagan, should we still seek or find justification in participating?  We would only succeed in being ensnared to follow pagan gods in the same way that the pagans did.  The rites performed during Christmas today are those that were done to glorify their false gods in the past.  Do we want to give those gods any glory whatsoever?  If those things are detestable to Yahweh, should we not stay far, far away to avoid even the appearance of evil?

 The statements and quotes from reputable sources below should provide plenty enough proof that Christmas has a pagan past.  We cannot “Christianize” something that was theirs first, just like they can’t “Paganize” something that was ours first.  They can’t take Passover and dance around snakes and sacrifice children and it be pleasing to Yahweh, so how can we imitate the rites of those pagan celebrations and honor Yahweh or Yahshua?  If they offered gifts to a tree representing their god (by putting them under the tree), how can we do the same and separate the paganism from that?  That is the same as playing with a wee gee board and asking Yahshua to guide our hands.  We cannot bring Yahshua into that pagan practice. Is it a sin to give gifts to one another?  No.  But when it is done in the same manner, at the same time of the year as the ancient pagans did it, we should run away from it to avoid association with the world in it.  We have had this in our past for so many hundreds of years that it seems normal.  But normal doesn’t always mean right.  Did Yahshua observe it?  Did Yahshua instruct it to be observed?  Did any of the apostles teach or observe it?  Did the early church fathers observe it?  The answers to these are obvious.  Why should we unite our festivities with those rooted in or imitative of pagan rites and rituals?

Date of the birth of Yahshua Unknown

There is probably a good reason as to why the exact date of Yahshua’s birth is not known.  Not even the devout followers of him, in all of their research and attempts, were able to ascertain that date.  Simply put, “Not mentioned, not important.”  There is no instruction to observe the day of the birth of Yahshua as a religious holiday.  If Yahweh thought that would be important he would have said so.  The lack of a specific date being even slightly alluded to should actually keep us on our guard against it. 

The facts presented in scripture that do give some information regarding the season of Yahshua’s birth contradict what is currently practiced.  First, a census was ordered, which brought Joseph and Miriam there to begin with.  Any king, including Herod, who wanted to get any type of accurate numbering of the people in his kingdom, would not have done it during the dead of winter when traveling was difficult.  Second, the inn was full.  This was probably due to the ongoing or up and coming Feast of Tabernacles in the fall.  Many people would have been making a pilgrimage to Jerusalem at that time for that feast.  Third, the shepherds were sleeping and staying in the fields.  They would not have been doing this in winter.  Fourth, Zacharias, John the Baptist’s father, was of the priestly order of Abijah, which served twice a year.  The course of Abijah was the eighth course which was approximately three months after the start of the priestly cycle in March/April. This would place Elizabeth’s conception around June or, if it was Zacharias’s second yearly turn, around December.

The Bible does not specify which of the two courses it was. Nine months after one of the two courses John the Baptist was born. This would place his birth in March or September. Six months later, Yahshua’s birth would have been around September or the following March. Either way, according to the time of the course of Abijah, a December birth for Messiah Yahshua is out of the question.

 - “The exact date of Yahshua’ birth is entirely unknown, as all authorities acknowledge—though there are indications that it was in the early fall—probably September—approximately six months after Passover,” Catholic Encyclopedia.

 - “Inexplicable though it seems, the date of the [Christ’s] birth is not known. The Gospels indicate neither the day nor the month,” The New Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 3, p. 656.

 - “It was a custom among Jews to send out their sheep to the deserts about the Passover [early spring], and bring them home at the commencement of the first rain,” Clarke’s Commentary by Adam Clarke, vol. 3, p. 370. He adds, “As these shepherds had not yet brought home their flocks, it is a presumptive argument that October had not yet commenced, and that, consequently, our Savior was not born on the 25^th of December, when no flocks were out in the fields …the flocks were still in the fields BY NIGHT. On this very ground the nativity in December should be given up.”

Celebrating our Savior’s birth on December 25 and teaching others to do so is to live and teach a lie. Some will say, “We know he was not born on December 25. We simply choose that day to remember his birth.” Of all the days in the year to remember his birth, why that day? History has shown, as we will see below, that  that day was chosen by the Roman church in order to assimilate pagans who were celebrating their gods and goddesses on the same day. If Christians know Messiah was not born on December 25, then why not move the celebration of his birth to a different day, one that is closer to the approximate time of his birth (September/October)? Since we are not commanded to celebrate Yahshua’s birth and since we do not know the exact date of his birth, the prudent course of action in dealing with such a holiday stemming from paganism is to abandon it.

Intimately related to pagan celebrations

 There is plenty of evidence supplied below to bring the celebration of Christmas as relating to Yahshua into question.  From many of the reputable sources here, as well as the sheer volume of documentation by so many different sources on this subject, it is most apparent that Christmas was wholly derived from and/or strongly related to paganism.  With such a “shady” background, these questions should come to mind, “Are the presents, trees, carols, candles, feasts, holly and mistletoe, stockings, and other material things, used during this time of the year, really necessary to celebrate Yahshua’s birth?  Why do we hold so closely and tightly to a man-made tradition, surrounded by and engulfed in pagan rites, with no biblical sanction and no apostolic exemplification?  Is it really important, or are we just fearful of what others would think if we ceased from observing it?”  If there is no instruction to participate in or an example of participation in scripture of a certain religious holiday or feast, we should not participate.  All others can be assumed to be man-made traditions with potentially dangerous backgrounds. 

- “This tendency on the part of Christians to meet Paganism half-way was very early developed,” says Alexander Hislop in The Two Babylons, p. 93. “And we find Tertullian, even in his day, about the year 230, bitterly lamenting the inconsistency of the disciples of [Christ] in this respect, and contrasting it with the strict fidelity of the Pagans to their own superstition.” Tertullian – “By us who are strangers to Sabbaths and new moons, and festivals, once acceptable to [Yahweh] – the Saturnalia, the feasts of January, the Brumalia, and Matronalia are now frequented; gifts are carried to and fro, new year’s day presents are made with din, and sports and banquets are celebrated with uproar.”

 - “In patristic thought [the Christ] had traditionally been associated with light or the sun, and the cult of the Sol invictus, sanctioned as it was by the Roman emperors since the late third century, presented a distinct threat to Christianity. Hence, to compete with this celebration the Roman church instituted a feast for the nativity of [the Christ], who was called the Sol iustitiae …. Usually when Christians celebrated the natalis of a saint or martyr, it was his death or heavenly nativity, but in this case natalis was assigned to be [the Christ’s] earthly birth, in direct competition with the pagan natalis,” Dictionary of the Middle Ages,  pp. 317-318. 

- “Christmas…was, according to many authorities, not celebrated in the first centuries of the Christian church, as the Christian usage in general was to celebrate the death of remarkable persons rather than their birth.”  “A feast was established in memory of this event [Christ’s birth] in the fourth century.  In the fifth century the Western church ordered it to be celebrated forever on the day of the old Roman feast of the birth of Sol, as no certain knowledge of the day of Christ’s birth existed,” Encyclopedia Americana, 1944 ed.

 - “The Feast is first mentioned at the head of the Depositio Martyrum in the Roman Chronograph of 354. Since the Depositio was composed in 336, Christmas in Rome can be dated that far at least. It is not found, however, in the lists of Feasts given by Tertullian and Origen,” New Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 3, p. 656.

 - The Romans kept the Saturnalia in December, at the time of the winter solstice in honor of the returning sun. The festival lasted seven days. “All classes exchanged gifts, the commonest being waxed tapers and clay dolls,” says the Encyclopaedia Britannica, Eleventh Edition. “These dolls were especially given to children. Varro thought these dolls represented original sacrifices of human beings to the infernal God,” vol. 24, p. 231.

 - “The pagan Saturnalia and Brumalia were too deeply entrenched in popular custom to be set aside by Christian influence. . . . The pagan festival with its riot and merrymaking was so popular that Christians were glad of an excuse to continue its celebration with little change in spirit and in manner. Christian preachers of the West and the Near East protested against the unseemly frivolity with which Christ’s birthday was celebrated, while Christians of Mesopotamia accused their Western brethren of idolatry and sun worship for adopting as Christian this pagan festival,” New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, p. 48. And so, the church established the birthday of the Savior to coincide with the heathen feast day. “…the Latin Church, supreme in power, and infallible in judgment, placed it on the 25th of December, the very day on which the ancient Romans celebrated the feast of their goddess Bruma. Pope Julius I was the person who made this alteration,” Clarke’s Commentary. 

 - “December 25 was the date of the Roman pagan festival inaugurated in 274 as the birthday of the unconquered sun which at the winter solstice begins again to show an increase in light. Sometime before 336 the Church in Rome, unable to stamp out this pagan festival, spiritualized it as the Feast of the Nativity of the Sun of Righteousness,” New International Dictionary of the Christian Church, p. 223.

 - “That Christmas was originally a Pagan festival, is beyond all doubt. The time of the year, and the ceremonies with which it is still celebrated, prove its origin,” The Two Babylons, p. 93 

- The decorated tree, St. Nick, yule log, wreaths, cookies, berries, mistletoe, bonfires, roast goose, roast pig, wassailing, caroling, and other familiar fixtures were added or embellished for the Christmas-Saturnalia in various countries. When the Protestant movement attempted to rid itself of the excesses and sins of Roman Catholicism, there also came an opposition to Christmas that almost obliterated it entirely in England. “In England, for example, the Puritans could not tolerate this celebrating for which there was no biblical sanction. Consequently, the Roundhead Parliament of 1643 outlawed the feasts of Christmas, Easter, Whitsuntide, along with the saints’ days,” Celebrations, p. 312. 

- “Christmas was not among the earliest festivals of the Church . . . the first evidence of the feast is from Egypt.” “Pagan customs centering around the January calends gravitated to Christmas,” Catholic Encyclopedia, 1911 edition, “Christmas”.

 - “The interchange of presents between friends is alike characteristic of Christmas and the Saturnalia, and must have been adopted by Christians from the Pagans, as the admonition of Tertullian plainly shows,” Bibliotheca Sacra, volume 12, pages 153-155. 

- “According to the hypothesis . . . accepted by most scholars today, the birth of Christ was assigned the date of the winter solstice (December 25 in the Julian calendar, January 6 in the Egyptian), because on this day, as the sun began its return to northern skies, the pagan devotees of Mithra celebrated the dies natalis Solis Invicti (birthday of the Invincible Sun). On Dec. 25, 274, Aurelian had proclaimed the sun-Elohim principal patron of the empire and dedicated a temple to him in the Campus Martius. Christmas originated at a time when the cult of the sun was particularly strong at Rome,” The New Catholic Encyclopedia, 1967.

 - “The use of Christmas wreaths is believed by authorities to be traceable to the pagan customs of decorating buildings and places of worship at the feast which took place at the same time as Christmas. The Christmas tree is from Egypt, and its origin dates from a period long anterior to the Christian Era,” Answers to Questions.

 - “Christmas was originally a festival of the Winter Solstice. It was customary to hold great feasts in honor of the HEATHEN GODS. The early teachers of Christianity PROHIBITED THESE FESTIVALS as unsuited to the character of Christ. Yet the symbols and customs of the old festivals are adapted to the new, and so we find Christmas patterned with many customs of pagan origin.” “To the mind of the Puritans, Christmas smelled to heaven of idolatry… The Puritans abolished Christmas as a hateful relic of Popery.” The Customs of Mankind.

 - “There were non-Christian elements present in the origin of Christmas. The giving of presents was a Roman custom. The Yule-tree [modern ‘Christmas Tree’] and the Yule-log are remnants of old Teutonic NATURE WORSHIP.” Schaff-Herzog Religious Encyclopedia. 

- “Many current customs date back to pre-Christian origins: among them are Christmas decorations. The Romans ornamented their temples and homes with green boughs and flowers for the Saturnalia [Dec. 17-23] … The Druids gathered mistletoe and hung it in their homes; the Saxons used holly and ivy,” Encyclopedia Britannica.

The Christmas Tree

One of the most beloved traditions of Christmas is to cut down a tree, bring it into the house, secure it so it stands upright, decorate it, and put Christmas presents under it.

 An interesting parallel to this is found in Jeremiah 10:1-5:

 1  Hear you the word which Yahweh speaks unto you, O house of Israel:

2  Thus says Yahweh, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them.

3  For the customs of the people are vain: for one cuts a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe.

4  They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.

5  They are upright as the palm tree, but speak not: they must needs be borne, because they cannot go. Be not afraid of them; for they cannot do evil, neither also is it in them to do good.

This is referring to the idolatry into which Israel fell as a result of learning pagan ways. Those who use Christmas trees today will say, “We are not worshipping our tree as idolatrous Israel did.”  That may be true, however, what relation is there between cutting down a tree and decorating it and Messiah’s birthday? Regardless of the modern day intent, it was a pagan practice to do such things. Since there is no connection between Messiah’s birth and Christmas trees, and since we clearly see how Israel learned to do so from pagans, why would we want anything to do with such a practice?

 - 2Kings 17:9-11: “And the children of Israel did secretly those things that were not right against Yahweh their God, and they built them high places in all their cities …. And they set them up images and groves [asherah] in every high hill, and under every green tree … and they wrought wicked things to provoke Yahweh to anger.” “We can find enough instances of the use of trees, even decorated ones such as the pine tree on which images of the god Attis were hung amid rows of ribbons at a spring festival, to convince us of the ultimately pagan origin of our custom,” Celebrations, p. 331.

 - “He [St. Boniface] was trying to stamp out the pagan rite of sacrificing people to the oak tree. He led his followers into a forest at yule time. Showing them a fir tree, he said it pointed straight upward to the [Christ]. ‘Take this tree into your homes,’ he said, ‘as a sign of your new worship [Christianity]. Celebrate [Yahweh’s] power no more in the forest with shameful rites, but in the sanctity of your homes with laughter and love’,” Compton’s Encyclopedia and Fact Finder, vol. 5, p. 326.

 - “Now the Yule Log is the dead stock of Nimrod, deified as the sun-God, but cut down by his enemies; the Christmas tree is Nimrod redivivus – the slain God come to life again,” The Two Babylons, p. 98 .

No where instructed or exemplified in scripture

It is very clear that there is absolutely no record in scripture of anyone celebrating the birth of Messiah.  The death and resurrection are celebrated, but never the birth.  Likewise, there is no record of the apostles or early church fathers celebrating his birth.  Again, knowing this, we must ask ourselves, “Why are we celebrating this?”  Yahshua didn’t set this example or instruct it to be done before or after his resurrection.  The apostles, the people taught directly by Yahshua himself, didn’t set this example.  Shouldn’t we be following their example?

 - “There is no historical evidence that our [Savior’s] birthday was celebrated during the apostolic or early post-apostolic times,” (Christmas, p. 47) The New Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge.

- “The day was not one of the early feasts of the Christian church. In fact the observance of birthdays was condemned as a heathen custom repugnant to Christians,” The American Book of Days, by George W. Douglas.

 - “The fathers of the first three centuries do not speak of any special observance of the nativity. No corresponding festival was presented by the Old Testament … the day and month of the birth of [the Christ] are nowhere stated in the Gospel history, and cannot be certainly determined,” Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature, p. 276, “Christmas”.

 - “Christmas (i.e., the Mass of Christ). . . . Christmas was not among the earliest festivals of the church,” Encyclopaedia Britannica, 1946 edition.

 - “Christmas . . . was, according to many authorities, not celebrated in the first centuries of the Christian church, as the Christian usage in general was to celebrate the death of remarkable persons rather than their birth,” Encyclopedia Americana, 1944 edition.

 - The early Catholic Church father, Origen, acknowledged: “In the Scriptures, no one is recorded to have kept a feast or held a great banquet on his birthday. It is only sinners like Pharaoh and Herod who make great rejoicings over the day in which they were born into this world,” The Catholic Encyclopedia, 1911 edition, Natal Day. 

Conclusion

Knowing all of the facts above, we should choose to not participate in the normal activities of Christmas time.  This includes:

 -Teaching others that Yahshua’s was born on December 25

- Decorating trees or aiding those who sell them

- Using other decorations linked to the Christmas holiday

- Exchanging gifts

- Participating in or going to Christmas plays, pageants, or dramas

- Participating in Christmas caroling

- Setting up Christmas lights

Yahweh seeks those who worship Him in spirit and in TRUTH. A December 25^th birth of the Savior is not true. It has its origins in paganism. Believers are not to learn the way of heathens/pagans. We are to learn Yahweh’s ways and obey them. All His Holy Days are listed in Leviticus 23. Christmas is not one of them. Christmas is not found in the New Testament either.

The word “Christmas” is a contraction of “Christ” and “mass”. The “mass” is a man-made , Roman Catholic doctrine in which the Savior is sacrificed over and over again in what is called an “unbloody sacrifice.” It is taught that the true believer cannot be fully cleansed of his sins unless he partakes of this sacrifice at mass. Christmas is simply a Roman Catholic holiday that has no place in the true worship of Almighty Yahweh.

December 25th was the date of the winter solstice in ancient Rome.

December 25th was celebrated by the pagan sun-worshippers of Mithraism as the “birthday of the invincible sun” because on that day the sun began its return to northern skies.

December 25th was the date of the pagan Brumalia festival in Rome before our Savior’s birth. It was preceded by the Saturnalia festival – Dec.17-24 – in honor of the Roman god Saturn.

The Saturnalia and Brumalia festivals were so popular among the heathens and so deeply entrenched in their customs, that rather than attempt to reform the pagan populous the Roman Church chose to absorb their festivities into “Christianity.”

Christmas is a contraction for “Christ’s Mass.” The “mass” is a man-made , Roman Catholic doctrine in which the Savior is sacrificed over and over again in what is called an “unbloody sacrifice.” It is taught that the true believer cannot be fully cleansed of his sins unless he partakes of this sacrifice at mass. Christmas is simply a Catholic holiday.

Christmas trees, Yule logs, candles, bells, mistletoe, holly wreaths, ham, tinsel, lights, and Santa Claus have nothing to do with the Savior’s birth. They each have a non Biblical source. Most are rooted in fertility rites or in sun worship from a pagan past and were grafted into the so-called “Christian” church during or after the fourth century.

Instead of giving gifts to the Savior such as the gift of our obedience to Yahweh’s laws, the celebrants give gifts to each other. This creates a burden upon people each year as their Christmas lists grows and grows. Many go into great debt because of this supposed “Holy” season. Additionally, the wise men did not give gifts to the Savior because it was his birthday, but because they knew he was born to be a king. It was a common custom in the East to bring gifts to kings.

Children are being lied to concerning the date of birth and concerning Santa Claus. Is it any wonder that when they grow up and learn the truth they begin to believe Yahweh is a myth too? And who gave Santa Claus Yahweh’s right to decide who is naughty and who is nice?

Man-made “holy days,” including Christmas, are being exalted over Yahweh’s true Holy Days.

Gluttony and drunkenness are typical results of Christmas merrymaking.

Throughout the year people treat each other like dirt and then suddenly become nice for the Christmas season. It is a time of hypocrisy.

Christmas causes tremendous stress on families and individuals as they fret over what gifts to buy, fight crowds to buy those gifts, race to prepare feasts of gluttony, try to outdo each other with decorations, and fight crowds to return all the gifts that they don’t want.

Christmas is perpetuated by merchants who get rich during this season. It is based on materialism, greed, and the lust of the flesh.

“Christmas” is not in the Bible.

We are not commanded to celebrate the Savior’s birth in Scripture.

The true spirit of Christmas is a spirit of anti-Messiah and untruth.

“And they shall turn away their ears from the truth and shall be turned unto fables” ( II Tim.4:4).

“Thus saith Yahweh, ‘Learn not the way of the heathen . . .” (Jer.10:2).

“Lie not one to another . . .” (Col.3:9).

“Therefore, putting away lying, speak every man truth with his neighbor . . . ” (Eph.4:25).

“Love not the world, neither the things in the world. If any man loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him” (1 Jn.2:15). If December 25th were really the birthday of Yahshua, you can be sure that the world would have nothing to do with it. The very fact that the world observes it proves that it isn’t of Yahweh.

“. . . in vain do they worship me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men” (Mk.7:7).

Be sober, be watchful. Your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking some one to devour. I Peter 5:8

Now the Spirit expressly says that in later times some will depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits and doctrines of demons. 1Timothy 4:1

We know the fate of the devil that deceives the world:

And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever. Re 20:10

The question is, “Will you be a victim of his deceptions or will you be among those who have been enlightened to the truth concerning Halloween?”

Let’s consider the following historical references concerning Halloween.

Encyclopedia Britannica:

“Halloween, also called All Hallows’ Eve or All Hallows’ Evening, a holy or hallowed evening observed on October 31, the eve of All Saints’ Day. In modern times, it is the occasion for pranks and for children requesting treats or threatening tricks. In ancient Britain and Ireland, the Celtic festival of Samhain eve was observed on October 31, at the end of summer. This date was also the eve of the new year in both Celtic and Anglo-Saxon times and was the occasion for one of the ancient fire festivals when huge bonfires were set on hilltops to frighten away evil spirits. The date was connected with the return of herds from pasture, and laws and land tenures were renewed. The souls of the dead were supposed to revisit their homes on this day, and the autumnal festival acquired sinister significance, with ghosts, witches, hobgoblins, black cats, fairies, and demons of all kinds said to be roaming about. It was the time to placate the supernatural powers controlling the processes of nature. In addition, Halloween was thought to be the most favorable time for divinations concerning marriage, luck, health, and death. It was the only day on which the help of the devil was invoked for such purposes.”

Encarta Encyclopedia:

“Origins, Halloween: Many of the ancient peoples of Europe marked the end of the harvest season and the beginning of winter by celebrating a holiday in late autumn. The most important of these holidays to influence later Halloween customs was Samhain, a holiday observed by the ancient Celts, a tribal people who inhabited most of Western and Central Europe in the first millennium BC. Among the Celts, Samhain marked the end of one year and the beginning of the next. It was one of four Celtic holidays linked to important transitions in the annual cycle of seasons. Samhain began at sundown on October 31 and extended into the following day. According to the Celtic pagan religion, known as Druidism, the spirits of those who had died in the preceding year roamed the earth on Samhain evening. The Celts sought to ward off these spirits with offerings of food and drink. The Celts also built bonfires at sacred hilltop sites and performed rituals, often involving human and animal sacrifices, to honor Druid deities.”

The World Book Encyclopedia:

“Halloween is a festival celebrated on October 31. Its name means hallowed or holy evening because it takes place the day before All Saints’ Day.

Many superstitions and symbols are connected with Halloween. The Irish have a tale about the origin of jack-o’-lanterns. They say that a man named Jack was unable to enter heaven because of his miserliness. He could not enter hell because he had played practical jokes on the devil. So he had to walk the earth with his lantern until Judgment Day.

The Druids, an order of priests in ancient Gaul and Britain, believed that on Halloween, ghosts, spirits, fairies, witches, and elves came out to harm people. They thought the cat was sacred and believed that cats had once been human beings but were changed as a punishment for evil deeds. From these Druidic beliefs comes the present-day use of witches, ghosts, and cats in Halloween festivities.

The Druids had an autumn festival called Samhain, or summer’s end. It was an occasion for feasting on all the kinds of food which had been grown during the summer.

In the 700’s, the Roman Catholic Church named November 1 as All Saints’ Day. The old pagan customs and the Christian feast day were combined into the Halloween festival.”

The Roman Catholic Church chose to assimilate the pagan practices of their new converts into the worship of the Almighty rather than truly converting their mind to Yahweh’s ways. The protestant churches continued the practices of the RCC and we see those practices even today.

Many churches today actually sponsor Halloween parties in which the children dress up as witches, ghosts, warlocks, etc. What does Yahweh’s Word say?

Exodus 22:18 – “You shall not suffer a witch to live.”

Deuteronomy 18:10 – “There shall not be found among you any one that makes his son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that uses divination, or an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, 11 Or a charmer, or a consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a necromancer. 12 For all that do these things are an abomination unto Yahweh: and because of these abominations Yahweh thy Elohim drives them out from before you.”

Galatians 5:19 – “Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, 20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, 21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of Elohim.”

Should we allow our children to dress up like witches or any other occult character in light of these verses that reveal Yahweh’s heart? Doing so will only grieve His Holy Spirit.

On the other hand, there are many churches that are moving away from traditional Halloween parties by sponsoring alternative Halloween gatherings in which the children dress up as Bible characters or less occult/scary secular characters. I suppose alternatives are better than traditional Halloween parties, but why offer alternatives at all? Why not just stay home like any other ordinary day or hold them on a different day? It seems to me that alternative Halloween gatherings are simply watered down versions of traditional gatherings. They still stem from the same pagan origins.

There are many people that view Halloween activities as good, innocent fun.  That is part of the deception. Halloween has evil origins as the references above show. How, then, can they be considered good?

“Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; who put darkness for light, and light for darkness; who put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!” Isaiah 5:20

“Prove all things; hold fast that which is good. Abstain from all appearance of evil.” 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22

“… have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather reprove them.” Ephesians 5:11

“After one’s own birthday, the two major Satanic holidays are Walpurgisnacht (May 1st) and Halloween (or All Hallow’s Eve).” The Satanic Bible by Anton Levey page 96, section on Religious Holidays.

Halloween is a Satanic holiday in which people show their allegiance to him by glorifying the occult. It is a holiday that revolves around death and the macabre and it goes beyond the supposed innocent fun of trick or treating. All sorts of mayhem and murder take place on Halloween in the name of Satan.

On the night before Halloween the city of Detroit is set ablaze every year by arsonists. This night is referred to as Devil’s Night, Mischief Night or Hell Night. Similar, but not quite as destructive, activities take place in cities around the U.S. and Canada.

According to the Satanic Calendar Halloween, October 31st is a night for Human and animal sacrifice. Evangelist Dave Benoit tells of a mother finding a strange diary, called “The Book Of Shadows” in her son’s room. She, with fear and trembling, leafed through pages filled with satanic drawings. Then her eyes fell on these horrifying words, “Last year I stole a car at Halloween and ran over a kid and killed him. This year, at Halloween, I plan to do the same thing!” The words in his satanic diary proved to be true. He murdered a person the previous Halloween as a sacrifice to Satan.

One of the biggest problems with Halloween is that it desensitizes children to the occult, violence, death, gore, mutilation, etc. This desensitization is exacerbated by movies that glorify the same type of violence and gore. Movies like “Halloween”, “Nightmare on Elm Street”, Friday the 13^th”, and the Harry Potter series all serve to further desensitize children. And then we wonder why we have mass murderers and all sorts of evil activities taking place in society.

I encourage you to prayerfully consider not allowing your child to engage in any Halloween or alternative Halloween activities. I also suggest you turn off your porch light as a signal to trick or treaters that you do not want them coming to your door.

I highly recommend the Halloween article found at http://www.jeremiahproject.com/culture/halloween.html. Please read it as it goes into much greater depth than I have here.

“Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, 
but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.” Romans 12:2

“For what do righteousness and wickedness have in common? Or what fellowship can light have with darkness? What harmony is there between Messiah and Belial?” 2 Corinthians 6:14, 15