Exodus 12:5 - Your lamb shall be without defect, a male a year old. You shall take it from the sheep, or from the goats:

Generated Verse: Exodus 12:5

What does "Exodus 12:5" mean?


Exodus 12:5 describes the requirements for the lamb to be sacrificed for the Passover celebration. Let's break down what it means:

"Your lamb shall be without defect": This emphasizes the importance of offering the best and most perfect animal as a sacrifice to God. The lamb should be physically healthy and unblemished, free from any diseases, injuries, or deformities. This symbolizes purity and a willingness to offer one's best to God.

"a male a year old": The lamb had to be a male and a year old. The gender and age are significant because they represent a young, strong, and unblemished animal in its prime.

"You shall take it from the sheep, or from the goats": This specifies that the animal could be either a lamb (young sheep) or a young goat. This provides some flexibility in the offering, allowing those who might not have had sheep to still participate by offering a goat.

In summary, the verse outlines the required characteristics of the animal to be sacrificed for the Passover. It needed to be:

Perfect and without any blemishes
A male
One year old
Either a lamb (young sheep) or a young goat

Symbolic significance:

These requirements highlight the reverence and respect that the Israelites were to show to God. By offering their best animal, they were demonstrating their faith and obedience. The Passover lamb sacrifice is considered a foreshadowing of Jesus Christ, who Christians believe is the perfect, spotless Lamb of God who was sacrificed for the sins of humanity.