LESSON 13
THE FIRSTBORN SANCTIFIED
Memory Verse: 13:21 (N .W . 14:13)————Lesson: Ex. 13:1-22
—by E. L. Bynum
I. THE SANCTIFICATION OF THE FIRSTBORN. v. 1-16
A. The Separation Of The Firstborn Commanded. v. 1-2
1. All the firstborn males of man and beast were the Lord's. v.1-2
2. The lessons from this.
a. Their redemption (salvation) out of the bondage of Egypt was the foundation of it all.
b. A redeemed people become the property of the Redeemer. I Cor. 6:19-20, What? know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God's.
c. There is an inseparable connection between redemption and holiness. In Romans 3 - 5, we read of our salvation corresponding to Ex. 12, and then in Rom. 6 and 12, we find the exhortation to holiness.
B. The Memorial Commanded "Remember The Day." v. 3-10
1. What they were to remember.
a. They were to remember the day of redemption. v. 3
b. They were to remember that it was a deliverance from bondage. v. 3
c. They were to remember the strength of the Lord's hand.v.3
2. How they were to remember it.
a. By the eating of unleavened bread. v. 3-7. Leaven is a symbol of evil. Since we are saved by the blood of the Lamb, we are to separate ourselves from evil. I 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 Christ 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. It also typifies the evil of false doctrine. Matt. 16:6, Then Jesus said unto them, Take heed and beware of the leaven of the Pharisees and of the Sadducees. Acts 23:8
b. By telling their sons of it. v. 8. We should also tell our children how God delivered us. Deut. 6:6-7, And these words, which I command thee this day, shall be in thine heart: And thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thine house, and when thou walkest by the way, and when thou liest down, and when thou risest up. Eph 6:4, And, ye fathers, provoke not your children to wrath: but bring them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord.
c. By keeping the word of God in the mind and in letting it direct their labors. v. 9, 10. (It is doubtful that v. 9 and v. 16 authorize phylacteries.)
C. The Setting Apart Of The Firstborn Commanded. v. 11-16
1. The firstborn to be set apart for the Lord. v. 11-12
a. Here we learn the meaning of sanctification.
b. The firstborn was representative of the whole nation.
2. The unclean must be redeemed. v. 13
a. The firstborn of an ass must be redeemed by a lamb. The firstborn of Israel was redeemed by a lamb also in Ex. 12, therefore it shows that man is in the same classification with an ass, and in need of redemption. Lev. 12:6, And when the days of her purifying are fulfilled, for a son, or for a daughter, she shall bring a lamb of the first year for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon, or a turtledove, for a sin offering, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest. Num. 8:17, For all the firstborn of the children of Israel are mine, both man and beast: on the day that I smote every firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified them for myself.
b. The details as to how the firstborn of man is to be redeemed in the future, is not here revealed. However, it is revealed in Num. 3:40-51; 18:16
c. When Joseph and Mary came to the temple to redeem the Redeemer, they brought the sacrifice of the poor. Luke 2:21-24, And when eight days were accomplished for the circumcising of the child, his name was called JESUS, which was so named of the angel before he was conceived in the womb. And when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were accomplished, they brought him to Jerusalem, to present him to the Lord; (As it is written in the law of the Lord, Every male that openeth the womb shall be called holy to the Lord;) And to offer a sacrifice according to that which is said in the law of the Lord, A pair of turtledoves, or two young pigeons. Lev 12:8, And if she be not able to bring a lamb, then she shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons; the one for the burnt offering, and the other for a sin offering: and the priest shall make an atonement for her, and she shall be clean. There are none too poor to be redeemed by our Redeemer (Christ).
3. If not redeemed, the ass must have its neck broken. v. 13. Man if unredeemed must also suffer judgment and death. In the Scriptures, the ass is used to represent a man in some instances. Gen. 49:14, Issachar is a strong ass couching down between two burdens. An ass would enter Jerusalem, but only under the hand of Jesus. This is the only hope of the sinner. Zech. 9:9, Rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion; shout, O daughter of Jerusalem: behold, thy King cometh unto thee: he is just, and having salvation; lowly, and riding upon an ass, and upon a colt the foal of an ass.
4. The lesson to be taught. v. 14-16
II. THE JOURNEY OF THE FIRSTBORN. v. 17-22
A. The Direction Of Their Journey. v. 17-20
1. They were not led by the shortest route. v. 17. Psa. 37:23, The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD: and he delighteth in his way.
a. God's leading may not seem right to man, but it is right. Psa. 23:3, He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
b. God knew what was best for them. Prov. 3:5-6, Trust in the LORD with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.
c. "It took God one night to take Israel out of Egypt, forty years to take Egypt our of Israel." George Morrison
2. God would train them in the long wilderness journey. v. 18. Deut. 8:2-4, And thou shalt remember all the way which the LORD thy God led thee these forty years in the wilderness, to humble thee, and to prove thee, to know what was in thine heart, whether thou wouldest keep his commandments, or no. And he humbled thee, and suffered thee to hunger, and fed thee with manna, which thou knewest not, neither did thy fathers know; that he might make thee know that man doth not live by bread only, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of the LORD doth man live. Thy raiment waxed not old upon thee, neither did thy foot swell, these forty years.
3. They went out harnessed. v. 18. "Harnessed" they were in battle array, arrayed for battle by fives, armed. Five the number of grace.
4. Joseph's faith was vindicated. v. 19. Gen. 49:29-33; Gen. 50:24-25; Heb. 11:22, By faith Joseph, when he died, made mention of the departing of the children of Israel; and gave commandment concerning his bones.
5. They journeyed from Succoth to Etham. v. 20
B. The Protection For Their Journey. v. 21-22
1. The pillar was the visible sign of God's presence.
2. The pillar symbolizes the Holy Spirit to guide and protect. Rom. 8:14, For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.
a. We do not have this same kind of guidance, but we do have the Word of God for light. Psa. 119:105, Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. Eph. 1:17-18, That the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him: The eyes of your understanding being enlightened; that ye may know what is the hope of his calling, and what the riches of the glory of his inheritance in the saints.
b. The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth to teach us the Word of God. John 16:12-13, I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come.
c. We also have the fire. Jer. 23:29, Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?
d. The unsaved do not have this light. Matt. 11:25; I Cor. 2:11-16, For what man knoweth the things of a man, save the spirit of man which is in him? even so the things of God knoweth no man, but the Spirit of God. Now we have received, not the spirit of the world, but the spirit which is of God; that we might know the things that are freely given to us of God. Which things also we speak, not in the words which man's wisdom teacheth, but which the Holy Ghost teacheth; comparing spiritual things with spiritual. But the natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God: for they are foolishness unto him: neither can he know them, because they are spiritually discerned. But he that is spiritual judgeth all things, yet he himself is judged of no man. For who hath known the mind of the Lord, that he may instruct him? But we have the mind of Christ.
3. The pillar was not given until they were delivered from Egypt by the blood of the lamb.
4. The pillar was God's gift, but was unasked for. John 14:16
5. The pillar gave light. Isa. 11:2; John 16:13. It gave light to Israel, but it brought darkness to the Egyptians.
6. The pillar was given for a covering. Psa. 105:39, He spread a cloud for a covering; and fire to give light in the night. Eph. 4:30
7. God spake to them from the cloud. Psa. 99:7, He spake unto them in the cloudy pillar: they kept his testimonies, and the ordinance that he gave them. Num. 12:5-6, And the LORD came down in the pillar of the cloud, and stood [in] the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam: and they both came forth. And he said, Hear now my words....
8. The cloud was darkness to the Egyptians. Ex. 14:20; Matt. 11:25, At that time Jesus answered and said, I thank thee, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, because thou hast hid these things from the wise and prudent, and hast revealed them unto babes. John 14:17, Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you.
9. The cloud was never taken from them while they were in the wilderness. Neh. 9:19, Yet thou in thy manifold mercies forsookest them not in the wilderness: the pillar of the cloud departed not from them by day, to lead them in the way; neither the pillar of fire by night.... John 14:16, And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever.
—by E. L. Bynum
STUDY QUESTIONS
1. What is the meaning of sanctification?
2. Why were the firstborn the property of the Lord?
3. What is the connection between redemption and holiness?'
4. How were they to remember "the day?"
5. What is leaven a symbol of? Give proof.
6. Why did the firstborn of an ass need to be redeemed?
7. How was it to be redeemed?
8. If the firstborn of the ass was not redeemed, what must be done?
9. Why was Israel not led by the shortest route?
10. How was Joseph's faith vindicated?
11 The pillar was a visible sign of_______________________.
12. The pillar was a type of___________________.
13. How long did the cloud stay with them?
14. Did Israel ask for the cloud?
15. Why was the pillar not given to them while they were in the land of Egypt?
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