Passover / Pesach — The Festival of Freedom
Pesach (Passover) is cherished for its home-centered character and its enduring message: God delivers His people with a strong arm. It begins on the 14th day of the biblical month of Nisan and continues seven days through the 21st (Leviticus 23:8). In this framework, Passover carries both historical power and prophetic relevance within the appointed times (see The Kingdom Calendar).
Overview
Pesach (Passover) is widely loved and remembered as the Festival of Freedom. One reason for its universal interest is its home character: family members often travel great distances to gather at the Seder table. The desire to participate in a Seder—wherever a person may be— reflects how strongly early impressions of Passover hold the Jewish heart.
The holy days begin on the 14th of Nisan and continue for seven days through the 21st (Leviticus 23:8).
Like Sukkot and Shavuot, Pesach originally functioned as a nature festival and later took on historical significance. It once commemorated the barley harvest and the lambing season in ancient Palestine, marking the rejuvenation of life. Over time, Passover came to symbolize the Exodus from Egyptian bondage—an event that shaped ancient Hebrew identity more than any other single historical turning point.
The Seder Table
In traditional households, the Seder—held on the first two nights of Passover—highlights the festival. The family sits together with the father as teacher and the household as students. In practice, the Seder is a living “audio-visual” lesson: each item on the table carries meaning and reinforces the freedom message.
Core Symbols of the Seder
- Matzah: the bread of affliction eaten in haste while fleeing Egypt.
- Shankbone: the paschal sacrifice offered by each family on Passover eve.
- Egg: often explained as an additional sacrifice; also interpreted as a symbol of Jewish endurance—just as an egg hardens when heated, so the will to survive becomes more resolute through persecution.
- Maror (bitters): remembrance of anguish experienced in servitude.
- Haroset: apples, nuts, and wine recalling the mortar Israel was forced to make under Pharaoh.
- Greens: a symbol of spring and renewed life.
- Four cups of wine: recalling the four times God promised freedom to the Israelites.
- Fifth cup (in many homes since modern Israel): added with an appropriate prayer.
Children & the Haggadah
Much of the Seder is shaped around children. The youngest anticipates the four questions; the family reads about four kinds of children and their differing relationship to Judaism; and children try to “steal” the afikomen (the dessert matzah), which is hidden early in the ceremony. Songs are often held until the end to keep attention and anticipation to the close.
The Haggadah, read at the table, is more than a holiday script—it is a short history of the Jewish people. Its passages are meant to instruct and strengthen: to entertain and teach open minds, to enlighten, and to challenge the discerning.
The central Haggadah theme is often summarized this way: in every generation, each person must regard himself as though he left Egypt. Freedom must never be taken for granted, and seeking freedom for the oppressed is a continuing responsibility. The repeated telling of the Exodus is praised.
The Historical Passover
The name “Passover” comes from the Exodus account. During the tenth and final plague against Pharaoh, the Lord “passed over” the Israelites and struck the Egyptian firstborn. That night Pharaoh agreed to release the children of Israel. Ever since, Jewish households have gathered to commemorate being freed by the strong arm of Elohim.
Passover marked the beginning of a covenantal relationship between the Holy One of Israel and the nation of Israel, because prior covenants were chiefly established with individuals (for example, Abraham).
As a spring festival following winter’s bleakness, Passover pairs naturally with the theme of renewal: the earth bursts into new life as a people shackled in oppressive slavery burst forth into a new journey toward the land of promise. In this framing, God adopted them as sons and daughters of the Most High.
Applied spiritually: once set free from sin, the saint of God should not return to spiritual bondage. The Exodus redemption foreshadows Israel’s redemption still to come.
Preparation & Putting Away Leaven
Devout observants prepare for Passover much as they have for centuries. In the days leading up to the holy day, the home is searched for yeast and leavened products, which are then discarded. God required leaven to be removed for the seven days of Passover (Exodus 12:15; 13:7).
The Seder table is set. The household prays and sings. Children ask questions about the Exodus. Passover evening becomes a focused time of reflection on past freedom and on future redemption.
Elijah at Passover
A traditional Passover emphasis is the expectation of Elijah. Many households set an extra cup of wine for the prophet Elijah. Passover is remembered as deliverance from slavery and also contemplated as a gateway to the redemption to be heralded by Elijah.
Malachi 3:1 promises, “See, I will send my messenger, who will prepare the way before Me,” just before the Lord—the Angelic Messenger of the Covenant at Mount Sinai— comes to His Temple in Jerusalem. Malachi further identifies the preparer as Elijah: “See, I will send you the prophet Elijah before the great and dreadful Day of the Lord comes” (Malachi 4:5).
In many Jewish homes, the Seder includes an Elijah cup and an expectation that Elijah’s role is tied to final redemption.
The Prophetic Passover of the Appointed Time of the End
In this perspective, as Passover draws near in a year not far distant, global disasters—war, earthquakes, and nature’s wrath—intensify alongside an increase in demonic signs and wonders in the skies. Untold millions could perish during upheaval.
Matthew 24:4–8 warns God’s people to watch against deception: many will come in Christ’s name claiming “I am Christ,” and wars and rumors of wars will occur—yet believers are told not to be alarmed. Nations rise against nations, with famines and earthquakes in various places; these are described as the beginning of birth pains, with the final “delivery” yet to come.
Though ancient Israel experienced a new beginning in the Exodus nearly 3,500 years ago, the wilderness journey included trials—yet God provided miracles of food and water. In this line of thought, when Elijah calls Israel to leave “spiritual” Egypt (Jerusalem—Revelation 11:8) at Passover, Israel will “fly to the place prepared for her in the desert” for “a time, times and half a time” (1,260 days) out of the serpent’s reach (Revelation 12:14).
Within this framework, the appointed time of the end and the beginning of the 1,260 prophetic days align with Passover (see The Kingdom Calendar).
During this period, for those willing to heed guidance, Elijah’s mission is framed as turning hearts in family restoration—“the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers” (Malachi 4:5–6). Revelation 11:3 also points to two witnesses who prophesy for 1,260 days clothed in sackcloth, often associated here with Elijah and, by implication, Moses. In Revelation 11:5–6, they are portrayed as protected and able to strike in judgment for protection.
As the nations yield themselves to Antichrist’s 1,260-day rule in this view, Passover becomes a marker where saints may choose to leave larger cities for less populated areas. Matthew 24:9–12 speaks of persecution, betrayal, hatred, and the love of many growing cold. Luke 21:16 warns of betrayal even within families, and Luke 21:20 warns: “when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies… its desolation is near.”
1,260 Days, the Desert, and the Two Witnesses
This theme is emphasized repeatedly: Israel’s flight to a prepared place in the wilderness for 1,260 days (Revelation 12:14) is paired with the testimony of two witnesses for 1,260 days (Revelation 11:3). The prophetic storyline presented here includes protection, provision, warning, and the sharpening conflict between truth and deception.
In the language of this framework: Passover marks a beginning point for a defined prophetic season—1,260 days—under Elijah’s end-time mission (see The Kingdom Calendar Pt.9).
Statements by Jewish Writers & Scholars on Pesach and Elijah
“The custom [of the fifth cup of wine at the Passover table] became associated with the belief that Elijah did not die but ascended to Heaven alive (II Kings 2:11)… and in the future he would announce the coming of the Messiah… Further, it was believed that as the first redemption took place in Nisan, so the future redemption would take place in Nisan.”
“This covenantal relationship lies at the heart of the celebration of Passover… Because of the fulfillment of past promises, we anticipate at Passover the future final redemption. We create a special role for the prophet Elijah at the seder… as the symbol of our faith in the redemption soon to come.”
“Even before we recount the redemption from Egypt at Passover, we look forward to the final redemption, which will be heralded by Elijah.”
“Havdalah… expresses a longing for a never-ending Shabbat… and because according to Talmudic legend Elijah will come after havdalah, it is traditional to sing ‘Eliyahu Hanavi’…”
Drawn together, these statements reinforce the association of Elijah with Passover and with the hope of final redemption. In this thread’s framework, The Kingdom Calendar Pt.9 places Elijah’s 1,260-day mission beginning at Passover, with the added note of Talmudic legend connecting Elijah’s coming to havdalah.
Conclusion
Passover stands as a living rehearsal of freedom: a household remembrance of deliverance, a covenantal identity marker, and a call to gratitude and obedience. Its symbols teach that freedom is not accidental—it is bestowed, guarded, and remembered.
In this Collective Futurist view, Passover is also a prophetic signpost within the appointed times—warning of deception, urging watchfulness, and pointing to a defined season of trial and protection connected to Elijah’s mission and the testimony of God’s two witnesses.
Passover proclaims this message across generations: God can break the strongest chains, lead His people through wilderness, and bring redemption on His timetable—past, present, and soon to come.