Exodus 12:2-3
“This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses, a lamb for a household.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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God is fundamentally resetting Israel’s calendar, not just changing a date, but establishing a new standard of timekeeping that points to Him. This divine recalibration marks the liberation from Egypt not just as a historical event, but as the new "head" or chief month, a pivotal point for all future sacred observances.
God is about to institute the Passover and the subsequent Exodus from Egypt. He instructs Moses and Aaron that this upcoming month, which would later be known as Nisan, will be marked as the new beginning of their year, shifting from the traditional autumn start to this spring month. This change signifies a profound reordering of their lives, centered around their liberation from slavery.
Did you know the start of the year wasn't always in spring? God intentionally shifted Israel's calendar with this command.
Before this moment, Israel likely began their year in the autumn, around September. This was a common practice in many cultures, often tied to the harvest and the close of the agricultural year.
But God declares, 'This month shall be for you the beginning of months.' This new 'first month' (Abib, later Nisan, around March/April) wasn't just a random change. It marked a radical new beginning for Israel, directly linked to their miraculous deliverance from slavery in Egypt.
This shift in the calendar wasn't just about dates; it was about reorienting their entire identity around God's saving acts. Their new year would now dawn in spring, celebrating freedom, not just the end of a harvest.
Imagine celebrating two New Years every year! This verse laid the foundation for Israel's unique calendar system.
With this declaration, God established a crucial distinction within Israel's life: a sacred year and a civil year.
This dual system highlights how deeply faith was meant to permeate every aspect of Israelite life, even while maintaining practical, everyday functions.
The original name of this 'first month' tells us so much about what God was doing.
The month God designated as the new beginning was called 'Abib.' This Hebrew word means 'green ears' or 'greenness,' referring to the young grain ripening in the fields at that time of year.
Understand the original words
edah · Hebrew Noun
A formal gathering or assembly of people, often used specifically for the people of Israel as God’s chosen covenant community.
seh · Hebrew Noun
A young sheep; in the context of the Mosaic Law, it represents a sacrificial animal used to bear the penalty of sin or satisfy a covenantal requirement, ultimately pointing to Christ as the perfect sacrifice.
bayith · Hebrew Noun
A group of people living together as a social unit; in a biblical context, it refers to the basic unit of the covenant people, often organized by family descent or shared sustenance.
This command to start the year with the Exodus isn't just about a calendar change; it's a profound reorientation, making their liberation the foundational event of their national and spiritual identity, forever influencing how they mark time and remember God's faithfulness.
c. 1446 BC— this verse
Exodus from Egypt
The Israelites, after centuries of slavery, are miraculously delivered from Egypt under Moses' leadership, marking the birth of the Israelite nation.
c. 1446 BC
Institution of the Passover
God institutes the Passover feast to commemorate the Exodus, making the month of Abib (later Nisan) the start of the sacred year.
c. 1445 BC
Conquest of Canaan Begins
Following their wilderness wanderings, the Israelites enter and begin the conquest of the Promised Land.
c. 1000 BC
United Monarchy Established
Saul, David, and Solomon rule over a united Israel, establishing Jerusalem as the capital and building the Temple.
This verse echoes the creation account, where God established the celestial bodies for signs and seasons, including the marking of months and years. It highlights God's divine ordering of time, which is now being re-established for His people with a new beginning.
Leviticus 23:24This passage describes the Feast of Trumpets on the first day of the seventh month, which was still observed as a New Year's Day for certain purposes (like the sabbatical year). It shows the continuity of old traditions alongside the new sacred calendar established in Exodus 12, illustrating a dual reckoning of the year.
1 Corinthians 5:7Paul directly connects the Passover lamb, instituted in Exodus 12, to Jesus Christ, the true Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. This verse shows how the 'beginning of months' and the Passover pointed forward to Christ's redemptive work.
Galatians 4:4This verse speaks of God sending His Son 'when the fullness of time had come,' a concept that resonates with God establishing specific times and seasons for His redemptive plan. The institution of the first month marks a pivotal moment in His unfolding history for Israel.
cambridgeExodus 12:2: "This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you."
2 . This month , &c.] The ‘month’ is the one corresponding to our Mar.–Apr., called in J and E ( Exodus 13:4 , Exodus 23:15 , Exodus 34:18 ) and Deuteronomy 16:1 ) ‘Abib,’ and in the later post-exilic writings ( Nehemiah 2:1 , Esther 3:7 ) by its Bab. name, Nisan . P never, like the older pre-exilic writers, calls the months by their Canaanitish or Phoenician names, Abib ( ll.cc.…
clarkeExodus 12:2: "This month shall be unto you the beginning of months: it shall be the first month of the year to you."
This month shall be unto you the beginning of months - It is supposed that God now changed the commencement of the Jewish year. The month to which this verse refers, the month Abib, answers to a part of our March and April; whereas it is supposed that previously to this the year began with Tisri, which answers to a part of our September; for in this month the Jews suppose God cre…
God is fundamentally resetting Israel’s calendar, not just changing a date, but establishing a new standard of timekeeping that points to Him. This divine recalibration marks the liberation from Egypt not just as a historical event, but as the new "head" or chief month, a pivotal point for all future sacred observances.
God is about to institute the Passover and the subsequent Exodus from Egypt. He instructs Moses and Aaron that this upcoming month, which would later be known as Nisan, will be marked as the new beginning of their year, shifting from the traditional autumn start to this spring month. This change signifies a profound reordering of their lives, centered around their liberation from slavery.
God is about to institute the Passover and the subsequent Exodus from Egypt. He instructs Moses and Aaron that this upcoming month, which would later be known as Nisan, will be marked as the new beginning of their year, shifting from the traditional autumn start to this spring month. This change signifies a profound reordering of their lives, centered around their liberation from slavery.
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Why 'greenness'? It beautifully symbolizes the state of Israel at this moment:
God didn't just change a date; He gave the very month a name that declared His new work of bringing forth life from death.
931 BC
Division of the Kingdom
After Solomon's death, the kingdom splits into the northern Kingdom of Israel and the southern Kingdom of Judah.
722 BC
Fall of Samaria
The Assyrian Empire conquers the northern Kingdom of Israel, exiling its people and ending its existence.
586 BC
Fall of Jerusalem
The Babylonian Empire destroys Jerusalem and its Temple, exiling the remaining people of Judah.
"“This month shall be for you the beginning of months. It shall be the first month of the year for you. Tell all the congregation of Israel that on the tenth day of this month every man shall take a lamb according to their fathers’ houses,…" — God is fundamentally resetting Israel’s calendar, not just changing a date, but establishing a new standard of timekeeping that points to Him. This divine recalibration marks the liberation from Egyp…
