The Passover Meal

On Passover Evening, Passover-keeping Christians share a meal together in remembrance of Jesus Christ. Why do they do this? Where did this practice come from?

The First Passover Meal

The origins of the Passover meal can be found in what the Bible says about the first Passover Evening:

Exodus 12:3–8 ESV 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. ... ₇ “Then they shall take some of the blood and put it on the two doorposts and the lintel of the houses in which they eat it. ₈ They shall eat the flesh that night, roasted on the fire; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it.

During the first Passover Evening, the Israelites had to kill a blemishless lamb and put its blood on the lintel and doorposts of their houses. Then, they had to roast the lamb and eat it together with unleavened bread and bitter herbs inside their houses, ready to leave Egypt at any moment.

In the biblical law, God instituted Passover as a yearly remembrance of how he rescued them from slavery to Egypt. Each year, during Passover Evening, the Israelites had to sacrifice a Passover lamb at the Temple, and then eat that lamb with their families (Deut. 16:2, 6–7). This became the practice of sharing a Passover meal.

Jesus’ “Last Supper” Passover Meal

During the Passover Evening before his death, Jesus shared a Passover meal with his disciples:

Luke 22:15–20 ESV And he said to them, “I have earnestly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer. ... ₁₉ And he took bread, and when he had given thanks, he broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is my body, which is given for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” ₂₀ And likewise the cup after they had eaten, saying, “This cup that is poured out for you is the new covenant in my blood.”

This event is more widely known as the “Last Supper”. However, the Bible makes it clear that this “Last Supper” was actually a Passover meal! In preparation for this meal, Jesus sent his disciples to prepare a “Passover” (vv. 7–13). During the meal, Jesus even said that they were eating a “Passover” (v. 15). This means that during the “Last Supper”, Jesus and his disciples were eating a Passover meal—complete with a sacrificed and roasted Passover lamb!

The Christian “Lord’s Supper” Passover Meal

During the “Last Supper” Passover meal, Jesus told his disciples, “Do this in remembrance of me.” (Luke 22:19) In obedience to Jesus, the first Christians continued the practice of sharing a Passover meal in remembrance of him.

In a letter to the Corinthian Christians, the Apostle Paul wrote:

1 Corinthians 11:23–26 ESV For I received from the Lord that which I also delivered to you, that the Lord Jesus, on the night which he was betrayed, took bread, ₂₄ gave thanks, broke, and said, “This is my body, which is for you. Do this in remembrance of me.” ₂₅ In the same way also, he took the cup, after supping, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in my blood. Do this, as often as you drink, in remembrance of me.” ₂₆ For as often as you eat this bread and drink the cup, you proclaim the death of the Lord until he comes.

In context, Paul was writing about the Christian practice known as “the Lord’s Supper” (v. 20). Here in this passage, Paul identified the Lord’s Supper with the “Last Supper” Passover meal which Jesus ate with his disciples. Therefore, the “Lord’s Supper” is the Christian practice of keeping Passover in remembrance of Jesus.

What about the Passover Lamb Today?

According to the biblical law, the Passover lamb may only be sacrificed in “the place which YHWH your God shall choose to cause his name to dwell” (Deut. 16:5–6). This “place” was the Temple in Jerusalem (1 Ki. 8:29; 9:3; 2 Ki. 21:4, 7; 23:27; 2 Chr. 6:20; 7:16; 33:7; Ezra 6:12). This restriction applies to all the other biblical sacrifices as well (Deut. 12:13–14). However, the Temple was destroyed in the year 70 CE, and there is no biblical temple today. Hence, it would not be right to prepare a Passover lamb today.

Nonetheless, Christians can still share a Passover meal even without a Passover lamb. Even after the time of the Apostles, the early Christians kept Passover even though they did not sacrifice and eat a Passover lamb.