The Passover Near at Hand - John 11:55

After the “high priests and Pharisees” desired to kill Jesus, the apostle John wrote how “Jesus therefore walked no more openly among the Jews; but went then unto a country near to the wilderness, into a city called Ephraim, and there continued with his disciples”, and in chapter eleven and verse fifty-five of his book John shared how, “the Jews' passover was near at hand” where we read:

And the Jews' passover was near at hand: and many went out of the country up to Jerusalem before the passover, to purify themselves.

The verse reads, “And the Jews' passover was near at hand:” John began with the words, “and the Jews' passover” which means “and the the paschal lamb which the Israelites were accustomed to slay and eat on the fourteenth day of the month of Nisan belonging to the Jewish people by origin, birth or religion” “was near at hand” or “was imminent and soon to come to pass”. John shared how the “paschal sacrifice” of the Jewish people was imminent.

The verse goes on to say, “and many went out of the country up to Jerusalem before the passover, to purify themselves.” John continued with the words, “and many went out” which means “and a lot or large number of the people departed and left” “of the country” which means “from the region and surrounding areas, towns and villages” “up to Jerusalem” or “towards the city of Jerusalem which means set you double peace and the capital of Palestine” “before the passover” which means “in advance and prior to the paschal sacrifice which the Israelites were accustomed to slay and eat on the fourteenth day of the month of Nissan”, “to purify themselves” or “for the reason and cause of making pure, cleansing and ceremonially sanctifying their own selves”. John shared how a great number of people went to the “city of Jerusalem” prior to the “passover” so they could ceremonially cleanse themselves.

When we consider John's words in this verse, we learn about the timing for the next part of Jesus' plan to provide “salvation” to mankind. The Jewish “passover” was near, and people traveled to be a part of the activities in advance of the “paschal festival” so they could “cleanse” themselves ceremonially to participate. This gathering will serve to be the background for Jesus and His next steps to becoming the “sacrifice” for the sins of mankind on the cross. God loves people, and His plan to forgive people of their sins and provide eternal life for them was unfolding. Each step should bring those who examine these things to believe and trust in Jesus and to surrender themselves to be purified by Him.

Next time John shares how people asked concerning Jesus, “what do you think, that he will not come to the feast?”, so read ahead, and we shall join together then.

Until tomorrow…there is more…

Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms Volumes I and II" and the new novel "Elizabeth County" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore. All references are from "Strongs Concordance".