Numbers 28:17
and on the fifteenth day of this month is a feast. Seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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While the Passover was celebrated on the 14th, the real festival of unleavened bread, with its specific sacrifices and convocations, actually began on the 15th. This verse highlights that the continuous, seven-day observance of eating unleavened bread was the central focus of the feast that followed the Passover remembrance.
The preceding verses detail the daily sacrifices required of Israel, and this passage shifts to the annual feasts. Specifically, it marks the beginning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread on the fifteenth day, immediately following the Passover observance, and establishes its duration. This week-long festival, characterized by the complete absence of leaven, was a significant period of remembrance and worship.
The day after Passover wasn't just about eating unleavened bread. It marked the beginning of a week-long celebration with a deeper meaning.
Numbers 28:17 tells us, 'and on the fifteenth day of this month is the feast. Seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.' While the immediate instruction is about the type of bread to eat (unleavened), the context reveals this is the start of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Beyond the bread, this week involved specific sacrifices and a call to holy rest, showing that God's presence permeated every aspect of their lives.
While our verse focuses on the bread, the surrounding verses in Numbers 28 detail the prescribed sacrifices for this feast. This wasn't a passive observance;
Understand the original words
chag · Hebrew Noun
A festive season or appointed time of religious celebration, often involving pilgrimage and communal worship before the LORD. These festivals functioned to sanctify time and remind Israel of God's redemptive history.
matstsah · Hebrew Noun
Bread prepared without yeast or leaven; leaven typically symbolizes sin or corruption. Eating this bread symbolized the haste of the exodus and, by extension, the purity and sincerity required of God's people.
The command to celebrate the Feast of Unleavened Bread, beginning on the fifteenth of Nisan, is deeply rooted in the miraculous Exodus from Egypt. It serves as a vital reminder of God's deliverance and covenant faithfulness, set within the context of a settled life in the Promised Land and the established system of worship.
c. 1445 BC
Exodus from Egypt
After generations in Egypt, the Israelites are miraculously freed from slavery, marking the beginning of their journey to the Promised Land. This event is foundational to the Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread.
c. 1445 BC
Giving of the Law at Sinai
God establishes His covenant with Israel and gives them the Law, including detailed instructions for festivals, sacrifices, and rituals, which govern the observance of the feasts mentioned in Numbers.
c. 1406 BC
Entry into Canaan
The Israelites, after 40 years of wandering in the wilderness, finally cross the Jordan River and enter the Promised Land. This marks a new phase of Israelite life and continued observance of divine commands.
c. 1400 BC
Conquest and Land Allotment
The conquest of Canaan begins, leading to the division and allotment of the land among the twelve tribes. This establishes the settled life for which the feasts and agricultural cycles are timed.
This passage introduces the command to eat unleavened bread for seven days, directly linking to the practice mentioned in Numbers 28:17 as part of the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
Leviticus 23:6This verse specifies the beginning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread on the fifteenth day of the month and the seven-day duration, reinforcing the context of the observance described in Numbers 28:17.
Deuteronomy 16:3This passage connects the Feast of Unleavened Bread with the Passover, emphasizing that unleavened bread is to be eaten with the sacrifice, providing a fuller picture of the religious significance.
1 Corinthians 5:7-8Paul uses the symbolism of unleavened bread and purging out leaven to explain how believers should live a life free from sin, showing the New Testament application of this Old Testament command.
calvinNumbers 28:16-31: "And in the fourteenth day of the first month is the passover of the LORD."
After this manner ye shall offer daily, throughout the seven days, the meat of the sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: it shall be offered beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.
Secundum haec facietis singulis diebus septem dierum, panem oblationis ignitae odoris quietis Jehovae: ultra holocaustum juge fiet, et libamen ejus.
And on the seventh da…
gillNumbers 28:17: "And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten."
And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast,.... Not of the passover, that was the day before, but of unleavened bread, which began on this day, and lasted seven days, Leviticus 23:6 which is what the Jews call the Chagigah: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten; see Exodus 12:15.
While the Passover was celebrated on the 14th, the real festival of unleavened bread, with its specific sacrifices and convocations, actually began on the 15th. This verse highlights that the continuous, seven-day observance of eating unleavened bread was the central focus of the feast that followed the Passover remembrance.
The preceding verses detail the daily sacrifices required of Israel, and this passage shifts to the annual feasts. Specifically, it marks the beginning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread on the fifteenth day, immediately following the Passover observance, and establishes its duration. This week-long festival, characterized by the complete absence of leaven, was a significant period of remembrance and worship.
The preceding verses detail the daily sacrifices required of Israel, and this passage shifts to the annual feasts. Specifically, it marks the beginning of the Feast of Unleavened Bread on the fifteenth day, immediately following the Passover observance, and establishes its duration. This week-long festival, characterized by the complete absence of leaven, was a significant period of remembrance and worship.
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c. 1350 BC - 1075 BC
Period of the Judges
A period characterized by cycles of disobedience, oppression, and deliverance, during which Israel's faithfulness to divine commands, including feast observances, often waned.
c. 1000 BC
Reign of King David
David establishes Jerusalem as the capital and brings the Ark of the Covenant, setting the stage for centralized worship and the eventual construction of the Temple.
c. 966 BC
Solomon's Temple Completed
The First Temple in Jerusalem is completed, becoming the central sanctuary for Israel's worship, including the prescribed sacrifices and feasts.
"and on the fifteenth day of this month is a feast. Seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten." — While the Passover was celebrated on the 14th, the real festival of unleavened bread, with its specific sacrifices and convocations, actually began on the 15th. This verse highlights that the conti…
