The Triple Crown sweepstakes has arrived! Well, not exactly. The time has arrived to discuss the Third Word. Three has a significant meaning in Scripture as a form of completeness. For instance, YaHVaH, His Son, and His Holy Spirit are complete in Spirit, and man is complete with body, soul, and spirit. Traditionally, Commandment # 3 refers to the usage of the Name. As listed in the Origins chapter; however, it is actually Commandment # 4, and will be explained in the next chapter. Also because the actual Commandment # 3 was discussed in the Number 1 chapter, this chapter will concentrate on Word Number 3, Exodus 34:18, and its corresponding actual Commandment # 7.
Word Number 3 reads, “The Festival of Matzoth you shall observe for seven days you shall eat matzoth, which I commanded you, to the appointed time of the month Abiyb; for in the month of Abiyb you went forth from Mitzrayim (Egypt)” Exodus 34:18. Matzoth is the plural form of the word Matzah, which means unleavened bread. Matzah is flat and looks a lot like a cracker.
Back in Exodus 12, YaHVaH commanded Yisrael to observe this festival. This is before they left Egypt. Verses 14 and 15 read, “And shall be to you this day a remembrance and to celebrate a festival to YaHVaH for your generations as a statute (decree) forever shall you celebrate it. For seven days matzoth you shall eat, but on the previous day you shall purge the leavening from your homes, for all eaters of leaven food shall be expelled (cut off) from Yisrael that soul, from the first day until the seventh.” And, verses 19 and 20 read, “For seven days leaven shall not be found in your homes, for all eaters from leaven food shall be expelled (cut off) from the assembly of YaHVaH, that soul, the convert and the native of the land. You shall not eat any leaven foods, in all your dwellings you shall eat Matzoth.” Exodus 13:7 also reads, ” Matzoth shall be eaten those seven days and not being seen to you leaven food and not being seen to you leavening in all your borders.”
Exodus 21:1 to 24:7 is all in the Book (Sefer) of the Covenant, written by Mosheh separately from the two stone Tablets of Testimony. Exodus 23:15 is another rendering of this command. “The Festival of Matzoth you shall observe for seven days you shall eat Matzoth, like which I commanded you to the appointed time of the month Abiyb; for in it you left Mitzrayim (Egypt) and you shall not be in my presence empty handed.” These words in the Book are much the same as in Word Number 3, which is on the Tablets of Testimony.
Above, Exodus 12 explains why Yisrael had no leaven when they left Egypt. They had already purged it from their homes before the First Passover. Clearly, YaHVaH means business about having no leaven in your house during this period. He says the soul will be expelled (cut off) from Yisrael and the assembly of YaHVaH during the entire Festival if leaven of any kind is found in the house. So what is leaven?
Leaven mainly refers to yeast, but it also refers to other products that make food rise, especially the rising of bread. One such product is sodium bicarbonate, baking soda. This product is also found in all carbonated beverages. Another product is egg whites, not leaven by itself, but become a leavening agent when whipped. No eggs should be added to the making of the breads during this Festival. Traditionally, Yehudiy make a big event of searching for leavening in the house the day before Passover. They search through the entire house, cleaning out the leaven. The origin of Spring cleaning maybe? 🙂 Clean out your house of yeast, baking soda, biscuit mixes, cake mixes, pancake mixes, carbonated beverages, yeast flavored products (such as some chips), regular bread, breaded products, pasta, and some cornbread mixes. For a complete list of leaven and leavened products, check the Internet and read the ingredients lists of your products.
When cleaning your house, do not forget to remove everything out of your pantries and closets, to clean the shelves and flooring. Other places to search and clean out leaven is your stove, refrigerator, freezer, toaster, microwave, carpeted eating areas, couches, and chairs. Finally, take out the trash. Any crumb is a crumb too many. Oh, what if you can’t find any wheat Matzoth bread to eat? Corn tortilla chips are an excellent substitute, because they are like unleavened cornbread. In fact, most corn products are unleavened.
Since the importance of this Festival and the unleavened bread is now understood, what about the time to celebrate this Festival? Leviticus 23:5-8 clarifies this some and reads, ” In the First month of the 14th of the month in the evening is the Pesach/Passover to YaHVaH. And on the 15th day of the month is the Festival of Matzoth to YaHVaH for seven days Matzoth you shall eat. On the first day, a holy convocation (assembling) it shall be to you, all laborious work you shall not do. And you shall bring a fire sacrifice to YaHVaH for seven days, on the seventh day is a holy convocation (assembling) all laborious work you shall not do.” But, the Scriptures say the month of Abiyb, and you cannot seem to find this month on the calendar, expecially not as the first month. Abiyb is the Hebrew month that begins in the Spring, generally during the month of what we call March. You will find it listed as the month of Nissan now on the Hebrew calendars because some month names were changed later in the Bible. The Festival, then, will fall at the end of March or the beginning of April. [Note: In 2018, this Festival starts the evening of March 30th.]
Commandment # 7 reads, “And you shall remember you were a servant in the land of Mitzrayim (Egypt), and YaHVaH, your Elohiym, has taken you out from there with a strong hand and an outstretched arm: Deuteronomy 5:15a. Note, this commandment is not in the list of commandments in Exodus 20. However, it is in Deuteronomy and on the Tablets of Testimony. Deuteronomy 5:22 reads, “These words spoke YaHVaH . . . and He inscribed them upon two stone Tablets and gave them to me.” These words Mosheh refers to are the commandments listed in Deuteronomy 5:6-21.
Keeping the Pesach/Passover, the Festival of Matzoth, and the Shabbath are examples of obeying Commandment Number Seven. Therefore, Word Number Three is related to this commandment. May YaHVaH bless you in the keeping and obeying of His Commandments and Words.
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