Feast of unleavened bread / Chag HaMatzot

The Feast of Unleavened Bread is first mentioned in:

Exodus 12:15–20 (CSB)

“You must eat unleavened bread for seven days. On the first day you must remove yeast from your houses. Whoever eats what is leavened from the first day through the seventh day must be cut off from Israel..." (v.15)

This command is given just before the Israelites' exodus from Egypt. God institutes this feast as part of the Passover memorial, marking their deliverance from slavery.

Instructions (CSB passages):

• Duration: 7 days (Exodus 12:15)
• No leavened bread: Remove all yeast/leaven (Exodus 12:15, 19)
• Holy assemblies: Hold sacred gatherings on the 1st and 7th days (Exodus 12:16)
• No work: Except for preparing food (Exodus 12:16)
• Eat unleavened bread: Each day for seven days (Exodus 13:6–7)
   

Modern Application:

While the ceremonial aspects are largely fulfilled in Christ (see 1 Corinthians 5:7–8), many believers today:

• Reflect on spiritual purity, as leaven often symbolizes sin or corruption (Luke 12:1; 1 Corinthians 5:6–8).
• Use this time for self-examination, repentance, and dedication to holy living.
• Remember the historical deliverance of Israel and God's faithfulness.

Leviticus 23:6 (CSB)

"The Festival of Unleavened Bread to the Lord is on the fifteenth day of the same month. For seven days you must eat unleavened bread."

• It begins on the 15th day of the first month (Abib/Nisan), right after Passover on the 14th (Leviticus 23:5–6).
• Lasts for seven days.

 a. What changes were made?

• Early church (especially Gentile Christians) ceased formal observance of Jewish feasts, focusing instead on the resurrection of Christ.
• The Feast of Unleavened Bread and Passover were gradually replaced by Easter, a celebration of Jesus' resurrection.
• Unleavened bread is retained symbolically in Communion (The Lord’s Supper) in many traditions.
   

b. Who made these changes?

• Church leaders in the 2nd–4th centuries, including those at the Council of Nicaea (AD 325), officially separated Christian observance from Jewish customs, establishing Easter instead of Passover/Unleavened Bread.
   

c. Does the Bible indicate that God changed the Feast of Unleavened Bread?

No, the Bible does not indicate that God changed or abolished the Feast of Unleavened Bread. However:

• The New Testament portrays the feasts as fulfilled in Christ (Colossians 2:16–17).
• Jesus kept the Passover and Unleavened Bread (Luke 22:7–8).

 Old Testament Foundations

• Exodus 12:15
  “For seven days you are to eat bread made without yeast. On the first day remove yeast from your houses, for whoever eats anything with yeast in it from the first day through the seventh must be cut off from Israel.”
• Leviticus 23:6
  “On the fifteenth day of the same month is the Feast of Unleavened Bread to the Lord; for seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.”
   

New Testament Fulfillment and Application

• 1 Corinthians 5:7-8
  “Get rid of the old yeast, so that you may be a new unleavened batch—as you really are. For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed. Therefore let us keep the Festival, not with the old bread leavened with malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.”
• John 1:29
  “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!”
• Luke 22:19-20
  “And he took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way, after the supper he took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.’”