Leviticus 23:6
This page isn't yet indexed by search engines.
While we often think of the Feast of Unleavened Bread as a distinct holiday, it was actually part of the Passover observance. This seven-day feast immediately followed the Passover meal itself, emphasizing the urgent, haste-filled departure from Egypt where there wasn't even time for bread to rise.
And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This passage immediately follows the instructions for Passover, which is the evening meal on the 14th of the first month commemorating God's judgment passing over the Israelites. The Feast of Unleavened Bread then begins the very next day, the 15th, and lasts for seven days, bridging directly from the Passover event. This sequence highlights the urgency of Israel's departure from Egypt, as they had to leave in haste, not even waiting for their bread dough to rise.
Why would God command His people to eat 'bread of affliction' for seven days?
The command to eat unleavened bread for seven days immediately following Passover wasn't just about avoiding leaven. It was a powerful, tangible reminder of the urgent and hasty departure from Egypt.
Are Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread really two separate holidays?
While we often talk about Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread as distinct, the Bible presents them as deeply intertwined, almost a single, extended celebration.
Ask a follow-up
Understand the original words
matstsah · Hebrew Noun
A seven-day festival following Passover, characterized by the removal of leaven (yeast) from the home. It symbolizes the removal of sin and the haste with which Israel departed from Egypt.
matstsah · Hebrew Noun
Leaven typically represents sin, corruption, or moral impurity in the Bible. To eat unleavened bread is to live in purity and holiness before God.
This passage describes the initial institution of the Feast of Unleavened Bread alongside the Passover, highlighting its origin tied to the hurried departure from Egypt.
Deuteronomy 16:3This verse emphasizes the purpose of eating unleavened bread: to remember the day of departure from Egypt and the haste with which they left, underscoring the 'bread of affliction.'
1 Corinthians 5:8Paul uses the imagery of unleavened bread ('pure bread') to represent sincerity and truth in the Christian life, drawing a spiritual parallel to the Old Testament festival.
Galatians 5:9This verse uses the metaphor of 'a little leaven' corrupting the whole batch to warn against the spread of false doctrine or sin, echoing the significance of unleavened bread as something pure and uncorrupted.
calvinLeviticus 23:1-44: "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,"
Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When ye be come into the land which I give unto you, and shall reap the harvest thereof, then ye shall bring a sheaf of the firstfruits of your harvest unto the priest:
Alloquere filios Israel, et dic eis, Quum ingressi fueritis terrain quam ego do vobis, et messueritis messem ejus, tunc offeretis omnes primitias messis vestrae ad sacerdotem.
And he shall wave the shea…
pulpitLeviticus 23:6: "And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the feast of unleavened bread unto the LORD: seven days ye must eat unleavened bread."
Verse 6. - The Feast of Unleavened Bread was instituted at the same time with the Feast of the Passover (Exodus 12:15-17), and from the beginning the two festivals were practically but one festival, never separated, though separable in idea. The Passover, strictly so called, lasted but one day, Nisan 14; the Feast of Unleavened Bread lasted seven…
While we often think of the Feast of Unleavened Bread as a distinct holiday, it was actually part of the Passover observance. This seven-day feast immediately followed the Passover meal itself, emphasizing the urgent, haste-filled departure from Egypt where there wasn't even time for bread to rise.
This passage immediately follows the instructions for Passover, which is the evening meal on the 14th of the first month commemorating God's judgment passing over the Israelites. The Feast of Unleavened Bread then begins the very next day, the 15th, and lasts for seven days, bridging directly from the Passover event. This sequence highlights the urgency of Israel's departure from Egypt, as they had to leave in haste, not even waiting for their bread dough to rise.
This passage immediately follows the instructions for Passover, which is the evening meal on the 14th of the first month commemorating God's judgment passing over the Israelites. The Feast of Unleavened Bread then begins the very next day, the 15th, and lasts for seven days, bridging directly from the Passover event. This sequence highlights the urgency of Israel's departure from Egypt, as they had to leave in haste, not even waiting for their bread dough to rise.
"And on the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the LORD; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread." — While we often think of the Feast of Unleavened Bread as a distinct holiday, it was actually part of the Passover observance. This seven-day feast immediately followed the Passover meal itself, emp…
Get the original Greek and Hebrew, verse-by-verse context, and related passages inside the app.
Last reviewed October 2026
