1. While Moses and Aaron were still in Egypt, the Lord spoke to them. He said,
2. “This month will be the first month of the year for you.
3. This command is for the whole community of Israel: On the tenth day of this month each man must get one lamb for the people in his house.
4. If there are not enough people in his house to eat a whole lamb, then he should invite some of his neighbors to share the meal. There must be enough lamb for everyone to eat.
5. The lamb must be a one-year-old male, and it must be completely healthy. This animal can be either a young sheep or a young goat.
6. You should watch over the animal until the 14th day of the month. On that day all the people of the community of Israel must kill these animals just before dark.
7. You must collect the blood from these animals and put it on the top and sides of the doorframe of every house where the people eat this meal.
8. “On this night you must roast the lamb and eat all the meat. You must also eat bitter herbs and bread made without yeast.
9. You must not eat the lamb raw or boiled in water. You must roast the whole lamb over a fire. The lamb must still have its head, legs, and inner parts.
10. You must eat all the meat that night. If any of the meat is left until morning, you must burn it in the fire.
11. “When you eat the meal, you must be fully dressed and ready to travel. You must have your sandals on your feet and your walking stick in your hand. You must eat in a hurry, because this is the Lord’S Passover.
12. “Tonight I will go through Egypt and kill every firstborn man and animal in Egypt. In this way I will judge all the gods of Egypt and show that I am the Lord.
13. But the blood on your houses will be a special sign. When I see the blood, I will pass over your house. I will cause bad things to happen to the people of Egypt. But none of these bad diseases will hurt you.
14. “You will always remember tonight—it will be a special festival for you. Your descendants will honor the Lord with this festival forever.
15. For this festival you will eat bread made without yeast for seven days. On the first day, you will remove all the yeast from your houses. No one should eat any yeast for the full seven days of this festival. Anyone who eats yeast must be separated from the rest of Israel.
16. There will be holy assemblies on the first day and the last day of the festival. You must not do any work on these days. The only work you can do is preparing the food for your meals.