Exo 13:14-16 | KingComments | STEP | The sanctification of the firstborn ( ) means that the firstborn must be given or dedicated to the LORD. In the time in which we live, every believer is a firstborn ( ). If God saves from judgment, He does so for Himself. God delivers a sinner from the bondage of sin and makes him His slave. Moses speaks of devoting to the LORD as something that only happens when the people have arrived in the land of Canaan. Spiritually, this means that real dedication to the Lord according to God’s thoughts takes place in connection with knowing the blessings in Christ in the heavenly places. A special case is the firstborn of a donkey. It must be redeemed by a lamb. If this does not happen, the neck of the foal must be broken. This peculiarity is connected to the firstborn of a human being. The firstborn son must also be bought free by a lamb. This refers back to the redemption from Egypt, where the firstborn was also redeemed by a lamb. Whosoever did not hide behind the blood of the lamb died by the hand of the destroying angel ( ). The firstborn of a human being is compared here with the firstborn of a donkey. The donkey is an unclean animal. Man by nature is also unclean to God. The donkey is the picture of man under the yoke of sin (cf. ). God does exercise His right to it. In the redemption lies the salvation. A person can only belong to the church of the firstborn if he is redeemed by the Lamb ( ). The Lamb died in place of all who believe. The comparison with a donkey is not flattering, but it is significant. Whoever does not want to bow the neck, the neck of such a person must be broken. Whoever acknowledges to be in need of salvation may appeal to the substitutionary sacrifice of the Lamb. We should make this clear to our children when they ask for it. The example of Pharaoh is added as a warning ( ). To be a firstborn and redeemed by the Lamb must determine our actions and our thinking. The end of the section on the firstborn is the same as the end of the section on unleavened bread (cf. ; ). This confirms the close link between the two cases. It makes it clear that the status of firstborn demands the practice of an unleavened life.

‏ Exodus 13:14-16

Sanctification of the Firstborn

The sanctification of the firstborn (Exo 13:2) means that the firstborn must be given or dedicated to the LORD. In the time in which we live, every believer is a firstborn (Heb 12:23b). If God saves from judgment, He does so for Himself. God delivers a sinner from the bondage of sin and makes him His slave. Moses speaks of devoting to the LORD as something that only happens when the people have arrived in the land of Canaan. Spiritually, this means that real dedication to the Lord according to God’s thoughts takes place in connection with knowing the blessings in Christ in the heavenly places.

A special case is the firstborn of a donkey. It must be redeemed by a lamb. If this does not happen, the neck of the foal must be broken. This peculiarity is connected to the firstborn of a human being. The firstborn son must also be bought free by a lamb. This refers back to the redemption from Egypt, where the firstborn was also redeemed by a lamb. Whosoever did not hide behind the blood of the lamb died by the hand of the destroying angel (Exo 12:23).

The firstborn of a human being is compared here with the firstborn of a donkey. The donkey is an unclean animal. Man by nature is also unclean to God. The donkey is the picture of man under the yoke of sin (cf. Gen 16:11-12). God does exercise His right to it. In the redemption lies the salvation. A person can only belong to the church of the firstborn if he is redeemed by the Lamb (1Pet 1:18-19). The Lamb died in place of all who believe.

The comparison with a donkey is not flattering, but it is significant. Whoever does not want to bow the neck, the neck of such a person must be broken. Whoever acknowledges to be in need of salvation may appeal to the substitutionary sacrifice of the Lamb. We should make this clear to our children when they ask for it. The example of Pharaoh is added as a warning (Exo 13:15).

To be a firstborn and redeemed by the Lamb must determine our actions and our thinking. The end of the section on the firstborn is the same as the end of the section on unleavened bread (cf. Exo 13:16; Exo 13:9). This confirms the close link between the two cases. It makes it clear that the status of firstborn demands the practice of an unleavened life.