hyssopos), first mentioned in Exodus 12:22 in connection with the institution of the Passover. This “cup” of wine was offered to Jesus in the form of vinegar, raised up on a hyssop branch, and it was hyssop branches that the Israelites used to daub the blood on the doorframes in Exodus. The small blue flowers are on the upper part of the branches during summer. Leviticus 14:6,7 As for the living bird, he shall take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water: …. With that in mind, we now can wonder why he tells us about the hyssop branch that the soldiers used to extend a sponge soaked in wine to Jesus. While hyssop is not as recognizable a symbol for purification, its use in the Mosaic law for cleansing and its connection to the cross becomes a powerful symbol of the, Copyright 2011-2021 Got Questions Ministries - All Rights Reserved. If the lamb had been sacrificed on the threshold, it would scarcely have been necessary to put the blood on the lintel and doorposts also. How is Jesus our Passover Lamb? And they play a critical role in the story of the Israelites’ Exodus from slavery in Egypt, marking who would be saved from the death that struck the firstborn of the Egyptians. This was the first Passover. A sponge attached to a hyssop branch was used to give Jesus on the cross a drink of vinegar. The hyssop branch was symbolic of the sprinkling of the Passover lamb’s blood using a hyssop branch – see Exodus 12:22. Therefore when Jesus had received the sour wine, He said, “It is finished!” And He bowed His head and gave up His spirit. And the Gospel of John tells us that Christ takes his last drink from a sponge attached to a Hyssop branch. Using a branch to represent the hyssop, paint a door frame or board with “blood” (red paint). 'ezob; LXX. Exodus 12:22 The hyssop is used here along with a sacrifice of a lamb as protection for the Israelites that sets them apart from the Egyptians. Begin by reading the account of the Passover in Exodus 12. During the Jewish Passover meal the third cup is called “The Cup of Blessing.” The air was filled with the cries of children who had just lost of their newest friend, the lamb. Whichever translation we adopt, there is a difficulty in the occurrence of the article, since neither the threshold nor any bason had been mentioned previously. The biblical use of hyssop in the Passover, the sacrifices, and the ceremonial cleansing rituals was a constant reminder, painting a detailed picture of the washing, cleansing, saving, purification, and salvation from death itself that come only from the eternal God. and by Jerome. The lamb was then roasted and on that night the family would eat together in the security of their own home. The Hyssop Branch & Passover Lamb. Here is David, grieved by his sin and bowed before God between the "already" and the "not yet." This was the beginning of the Passover. the hyssop branch (John 19:29) is reminiscent of the hyssop branch used to paint the doorposts of the Israelites (Exodus 12:22) the mention that none of Jesus’ bones are broken (John 19:33, 36) echoes the instructions for the preparation of the Passover Lamb (John 19:29, 36; Exodus 12:46; Numbers 9:12). ... found in the Sinai desert, and grows on the walls of Jerusalem. This year one I really enjoyed learning about the Hyssop Branch and the Passover Lamb. 3 “Hail, ‘King of the Jews’!” they mocked, and struck him with their fists. A jar full of sour wine was standing there; so they put a sponge full of the sour wine upon a branch of hyssop and brought it up to His mouth. Perhaps Moses assumed that whenever a victim was offered, the blood had to be caught in a bason, and therefore spoke of "the bason" as something familiar to his hearers in this connection. This “cup” of wine was offered to Jesus in the form of vinegar, raised up on a hyssop branch, and it was hyssop branches that the Israelites used to daub the blood on the doorframes in Exodus. The First Passover … 6 You must keep it until the fourteenth day of the month, when the whole assembly of the congregation of Israel will slaughter the animals at twilight. The Last Supper. Father was priest over his family (cf. The Hebrews began and ended their day with different timing than we do, as 6 o’clock in the evening, around sundown, is considered the start of a new day. Basically the hyssop branch is a means by which the blood of the sacrifice was transferred to the sinner. When the Israelites marked their doorposts with lamb’s blood in order for the angel of death to pass over them, God instructed them to use a bunch of hyssop as a “paintbrush” (Exodus 12:22). 2 John 19 Living Bible (TLB). None of you shall go out.--Moses seems to have given this command by his own authority, without any positive Divine direction. This is the first Passover, and God commanded that it become an annual feast. I understand the 3rd cup to be the cup of Jesus’ blood, and the 4th cup to be the wine on the hyssop branch on the Cross… but where are the first 2? The earliest record is Exodus 12:22 when it was used as a paint brush. Passover is still celebrated by Jews today. On the eve of Passover he was to kill the lamb and put the blood of the lamb on the lentil and side posts of the doorway of his home with a hyssop branch. 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