The Father Renews the Passover
Passover is kept in the wilderness, and men made unclean by a corpse are not simply shut out — our Father gives them a second date a month later. The cloud over the tabernacle then sets the pace: Israel moves and camps only when he moves.
9 1Our Father spoke to Moses in the Sinai wilderness, in the first month of the second year after they left Egypt:
2"Let the people of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time. 3On this month's fourteenth day, at twilight, observe it at its set time, by all its statutes and all its rules."
4So Moses told the people of Israel that they should keep the Passover. 5In the wilderness of Sinai, they kept the Passover on day fourteen of the first month, at twilight, as our Father commanded Moses; so the children of Israel did. 6Some men were unclean from touching a corpse and could not observe Passover that day, so they came before Moses and Aaron that day. 7Those men said to him, "We are unclean from a dead body. Why must we be kept from presenting our Father's offering at its appointed time among the Israelites?"
8And Moses said to them, "Wait here until I hear what our Father will command about this."
9Our Father spoke to Moses, saying,
10"Tell the Israelites: if any of you or your descendants is unclean from a corpse, or off on a distant journey, he may still keep the Passover to our Father. 11In month two, on day fourteen, at twilight, they must keep it, eating it with unleavened bread and bitter herbs. 12They are to leave none of it until morning, break no bone of it, and keep it by every statute of the Passover. 13But if a man is clean and not traveling, yet does not keep the Passover, that person must be cut off from his people, because he failed to bring our Father's offering at its set time; that man will bear his sin. a a v13 Being 'cut off from his people' meant formal exclusion from Israel's covenant community.
14"If a foreigner living among you wants to keep the Passover to our Father, he must follow the Passover's statute and rule. One statute applies to both foreigner and native of the land."
The Cloud Leads the Way
15When the tabernacle—the tent of the testimony—was set up, the cloud covered it; from evening until morning it looked like fire over the tabernacle. 16So it was continually: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night. 17Whenever the cloud lifted from over the tent, the Israelites set out; wherever it settled, the Israelites camped. 18At our Father's command Israel's people set out; at our Father's command they camped. As long as the cloud rested over the tabernacle, they remained camped. 19When the cloud lingered over the tabernacle many days, the Israelites kept our Father's charge and did not set out. 20Sometimes the cloud stayed on the dwelling only a few days: at the command of our Father they camped, at the command of our Father they set out. 21Sometimes the cloud stayed from evening to morning; when it lifted in the morning, they set out. Whether by day or night, when the cloud lifted, they set out. 22Whether two days, a month, or longer, while the cloud remained over the tabernacle, Israel stayed in camp and did not set out; when it lifted, they set out. 23At our Father's command they camped; at his command they set out. They kept his charge, at our Father's command through Moses.
