There are believers in Y’shua Messiah who are convinced that we should continue to slaughter a Pesach or Passover lamb, every year, as per the instructions for the original Passover in Exodus 12. Others are having serious doubts as to the proper Scriptural directives in this regard. This brief study is an effort to bring clarity on this subject, taking into account both the Pre-Messianic and Messianic Scriptures (or: Old Testament and New Testament), as well as trustworthy sources outside of Scriptures.

It is sometimes said that with the destruction of the Temple in the year 70 AD it was only the offerings and sacrifices that had been terminated and that the Hebrew word used in the context of the first Pesach in Exodus had nothing to do with an offering or a sacrifice. In response to this statement two questions might be asked: What Hebrew word? And in what sense is it unrelated to an offering? In Exo 12:6 we read “And you shall keep it until the fourteenth day of the same new moon. Then all the assembly of the congregation of Yisrael shall slay (“shachat”) it between the evenings.” This word “shachat” is used in Gen 22:10 where Avraham prepared himself to “slay” his son Yitschak. Is this verse also “unrelated” to an offering? Is it not a shadow or a pre-messianic picture of Yahweh offering up his own Son on our behalf? The consensus among many commentators is that this event even took place at the exact same location where Y’shua was put to death many years later, as an offering, once and for all (see Heb 10:10).

The same word “shachat” is also used in Exo 29:11 “And you shall slay the bull before Yahweh by the door of the Tent of Appointment …”. There is no doubt that this act of slaying is an offering in the true sense of the word. As is the “shachat” in Lev 1:5; Lev 7:2; Lev 9:12; 2 Chron 29:24, etc. In the traditional Passover chapter, Exodus 12, the lamb of Pesach is not only said to have been slain (“shachat”), it is also described as a “zebach” (Ex 12:27 – the literal translation in this verse is: “it is ‘n sacrifice of the Pesach in honour of Yahweh!”). This same word, “zebach”, is used in the specific sense of an “offering” or a “sacrifice” more than 150 times in Scriptures. For an animal to be delivered up as an offering (“zebach”), it first had to be killed or slain (“shachat” – see for example Lev 9:18; Ezek 40:42 and Ezek 44:11, where both of these words are used in the same context). Clearly, based on this evidence, it would not be correct to justify the continued slaughtering of a Passover Lamb with a statement like “the Hebrew word used has nothing to do with an offering”.

Those who prefer to continue the practice of slaughtering a Pesach Lamb, sometimes also make the point that the Passover killings were performed by individual households, and not by the priests, who were primarily responsible for the offerings and the sacrifices. This statement is only partially correct. It was true in the case of the first Passover, and possibly for most of the wilderness period, but as soon as the people of Israel would move into the Promised Land and a central place of worship be appointed and erected, the Pesach slaughterings were required to take place at this set-apart place and the priests became fully involved (see Deut 16:6; 2 Kings 23:22 and 2 Chron 30:1). During the New Testament period, according to the historian, Josephus, and the Jewish Mishnah, the Paschal lamb was only to be offered in the court of the temple (like all other sacrifices). Josephus describes that the priests stood in rows with basins to receive the blood of each lamb as its offerer would slaughter it. The priest standing nearest the altar would then throw the blood against the base of the altar.

This ritual pouring of the blood against the base of the altar during Pesach is most probably what Y’shua (and Mark) had in mind when it is written, “This is my blood, the blood of the covenant, that is poured out for many” (Mark 14:23-24). This particular statement in Mark 14, in which the pouring out of blood is not only linked with the Passover, but also with the covenant, should be understood in the light of Exodus 24 where an altar and 12 pillars, one for each tribe, were erected close to Mount Sinai, burnt offerings and peace offerings were sacrificed, and the blood of these offerings sprinkled on the altar and on the people of Israel, with the words: “Behold, the blood of the covenant which Yahweh has made with you concerning all these Words.”

Even if someone is shaping his or her understanding by looking strictly at the very first Pesach and prefer not to see the blood of the Pesach slaughtering as being “poured out for many”, we all need to recognize the fact that not only Y’shua, but also his immediate followers and the writers of the New Testament books, up till the final book of Revelation, understood the blood of the Passover Lamb, not only as a symbol of salvation of the firstborn sons of Israel, but also as a symbol pointing towards the blood of Messiah being a once and for all atonement offering for those who would come to believe in Him. See, for example, Mark 10:45; Luk 22:20; John 1:29; Acts 28:20 (the correct translation of this verse is: “… Elohim purchased the assembly with the blood of his own Son); Rom 3:25; Rom 5:9; 1 Cor 5:7-8; 1 Cor 10:16; 1 Cor 11:25; Eph 1:7; Efes 2:13; Col 1:14; 1 Pet 1:2; 1 Pet 1:19; 1 John 1:7; Rev 1:5; Rev 7:14 and Rev 12:11.

Simply by comparing some of the highlighted aspects of Messiah’s last Passover meal with the typical elements of the Old Testament sacrifices, it is virtually impossible to deny that the Pesach lamb (in Y’shua’s time) was understood as a sacrifice in the most accurate sense of the word. Compare, for example, Y’shua’s emphasis on his own “body” and his own “blood”, with the sacrificial animal’s flesh and blood (in a verse like Deut 12:27 “And you shall make your ascending offerings, the flesh and the blood, on the slaughter-place of Yahweh your Elohim”). The same may be said with regards to “the covenant” (compare Luk 22:20 “This cup is the new covenant in My blood” with Ex 24:8 “Mosheh took the blood and sprinkled it on the people, and said, “See, the blood of the covenant which Yahweh has made with you”). So also the words “poured out” (compare Mat 26:28 “this is my blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many” with Ex 29:12 “And you shall take of the blood of the bullock … and pour out all the blood beside the bottom of the altar”) and “given” (compare Luk 22:19 “This is My body which is given for you” with Lev 10:17 “Elohim has given the sin-offering to you to bear the crookedness of the congregation”). Even the concept of “for you” and “for many” that is so central in the Messianic Scriptures concerning the Passover (see, for example 1 Cor 11:24 “Take, eat, this is My body which is broken for you”) is clearly drawn, not only from the picture of the Pre-Messianic Pesach (where an Israelite father could tell his firstborn son, “The blood on the doorpost is “for you”! If it weren’t for that, your life would not have been saved!), but also from the picture of the Pre-Messianic offerings, in general (see, for example, Lev 16:30 “For on that day he makes atonement for you …”).

It is recognized both by New Testament scholars and Jewish commentators that during the New Testament period the Pesach Lamb was understood in the sense of having sacrificial, atoning and redeeming significance. B.H. Grigsby (Professor of Biblical Studies, California) wrote somewhere that “by New Testament times, the blood of the Paschal Lamb was clearly regarded as expiatory.” The word “expiatory” means “having the power to atone for (someone) or being offered by way of atonement or propitiation”. In the Theological Wordbook of the Bible, C.R. North wrote that by the time of the closing of the Old Testament, all sacrifices were believed to have atoning value and Rashi, the respected medieval Jewish commentator, wrote in his midrash on Exodus that, in effect, the Almighty told the people of Israel on that very first Pesach, “I see the Paschal blood and propitiate you.… I mercifully take pity on you by means of the Paschal blood and the blood of circumcision, and I propitiate your souls.” The Paschal practice during New Testament times, as described by Josephus above, serve as an additional confirmation that, at the time of the writing of the New Testament, the Pesach Lamb, the ritual of Pesach and the blood of the lamb were specifically understood as having atoning and sacrificial properties.

One of the clear principles transpiring from Scriptures is that once the people of Israel would enter the land that Yahweh had promised to them, they were required to celebrate all the feasts (including the Pesach), and perform all the accompanying sacrifices and offerings, ONLY AT THE ONE PLACE THAT YAHWEH WOULD POINT OUT (as opposed to the multiple high places, slaughter sites and religious sanctuaries of the surrounding nations). Some of the Scriptures confirming this principle are Deut 26:2 (You shall take the first fruits … to the place where Yahweh your Elohim chooses to make His Name dwell there); Deut 16:2 (You shall slaughter the Pesach … in the place where Yahweh chooses to put His Name); Deut 15:20 (You and your household are to eat it before Yahweh … in the place which He chooses); Deut 12:5-7 (To the place which Yahweh your Elohim chooses, you shall take your ascending offerings, and your slaughters, and your tithes … and the firstlings of your herd … and there you shall eat before Yahweh your Elohim).

This last chapter (Deut 12) is often misunderstood by those who are looking to justify the practice of killing and eating a Pesach lamb at locations other than the ONE that Yahweh had appointed. The principle emphasized in the entire chapter of Deut 12 is summarized in verse 8: “Each one should NOT be doing whatever is right in his own eyes”. In verse 11 the commandment of verse 5-7 is repeated (Unto the place which Yahweh your Elohim chooses to make His Name dwell there, there you are to bring all that I command you: your ascending offerings, and your slaughters, and your tithes, and the contributions of your hand, and all your choice offerings). And once again in verses 13-14 (Guard yourself that you do not offer your ascending offerings in every place that you see, except in the place which Yahweh chooses). And one more time in verse 26 (The set-apart gifts which you have, and your vowed offerings, you are to take up and go to the place which Yahweh chooses). So, in one single chapter this same commandment is given over and over again: All kinds of religious offerings, sacrifices and slaughterings are ONLY to take place at “the place that Yahweh had chosen to make his Name dwell there”.

The two sets of verses that are sometimes used incorrectly to prove the exact opposite, compared to the clear message of this chapter, are verse 15 and verse 20-22. Verse 15 says: “Whatever your being desires you shall slaughter and eat, according to the blessing of Yahweh your Elohim which He has given you, within all your gates. The unclean and the clean do eat of it, of the gazelle and the deer alike”. And verse 20-22: “When Yahweh your Elohim enlarges your border as He has promised you, and you say, ‘Let me eat meat,’ because you long to eat meat, you eat as much meat as your being desires. When the place where Yahweh your Elohim chooses to put His Name is too far from you, then you shall slaughter from your herd and from your flock which Yahweh has given you, as I have commanded you, and you shall eat within your gates as much as your being desires. Only, as the gazelle and the deer are eaten, so you are to eat of it. The unclean and the clean alike eat of it.”

These two sets of verses are clearly not about religious or feast-related sacrifices, offerings and slaughterings, a fact that is recognized by virtually ALL qualified commentators on the Book of Deuteronomy. Notice the phrases, “whatever your being desires” and “when you long to eat meat” – surely this refer to casual eating and CANNOT include the slaughter of a Pesach lamb. The JPS Torah Commentary of Jeffrey Tigay confirms this fact beyond any doubt: “(These verses establish) a major change in religious and dietary practice. Previously, only game animals could be slaughtered non-sacrificially (the rabbis called non-sacrificial slaughter ‘shichitat chullin’). Domestic cattle (oxen, sheep, and goats) could only be slaughtered on altars, as sacrifices, even if the offerer’s purpose was solely to use them for food (see for example Leviticus 17:1-6). Only after the blood was dashed on the altar and certain of the innards burnt there, could the remainder be eaten. This rule was practical when all Israelites lived near a sanctuary, as when they lived in the wilderness. Even after they settled in Canaan and scattered across the land, it would remain practical as long as it was legitimate to have sanctuaries throughout the land. But once a single sanctuary was chosen the requirement would become impractical, since those who lived far from it would be able to eat meat only on the infrequent occasions when they visited there. To avoid this hardship, secular slaughter of domestic cattle, too, will be permitted, and people may eat meat whenever they want and can afford to.” This is the ONLY understanding of Deut 12 that do justice to the chapter as a whole and serve as an explanation why the feast-related slaughtering of animals later-on continued to take place ONLY at the appointed central sanctuary or dwelling place.

The fact that Y’shua is identified as “the Lamb” in more than 30 places in the New Testament, is without any doubt a clear indication that His death was recognized by the early believers as being related to the Pesach Lamb and as the key-note event in their redemption and “exodus” from a life of enslavement. The Good News according to John (the fourth book of the Messianic Scriptures), in particular, seems to focus very strongly on the theme of Pesach. It contains no less than 19 references to the Feast of Pesach (more than any other book in the New Testament!) and, in addition, the writer has chosen a variety of typical Pesach themes which he used as connecting points for writing his testimony concerning Y’shua.

A few remarks based on John’s testimony concerning Y’shua, starting with his identification of Y’shua as the Lamb of Elohim in the first chapter, may guide us in the question whether we as believers in Messiah are still required to slaughter a lamb, in our quest to “keep” the Biblical feast of Pesach as faithfully as possible.

John 1:29: “On the next day Yochanan saw Y’shua coming toward him, and said, “Behold, the Lamb of Elohim who takes away the sin of the world!” When Yochanan (John) here refers to Y’shua as the Lamb of Elohim who takes away the sin of the world, he has in mind either the Pesach Lamb of Exodus 12 or the Lamb of Isaiah 53, or both. Commentators like Raymond Brown and Charles Barrett lean strongly towards Exodus 12 because here in John 1 the Lamb is addressed directly (versus Isaiah 53 where the Servant of Yahweh is only indirectly compared with a lamb). These (and other) commentators also prefer to see John 1:29 against a Pesach background because the rest of the Book of John contains so many references to the feast of Pesach and frequently elaborates on certain themes and symbols specifically related to Pesach, like “bread” (John 6:45 ff), “wine” (John 2:10 ff), a “hyssop branch” (John 19:29 – the same kind of branch that was used to smear the blood on the doorposts in Exodus 12) and stating that none of Y’shua’s bones were broken (John 19:36), as a fulfillment of the specific requirements for the Pesach lamb in Exodus 12.

So, despite the fact that the very first Pesach was not primarily a sacrifice for the forgiveness of sins, John the evangelist (like the rest of the New Testament writers) focuses mainly on the BLOOD of the Pesach Lamb under the new covenant and on the known fact that without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness (Heb 9:22; Lev 17:11). This is why he adds that this particular Lamb is the One “who takes away the sin of the world”. It is against this background that we should read a chapter like Hebrews 9, stating that under the new covenant Y’shua obtained for us an EVERLASTING redemption, not with the blood of animals, like in the Old Covenant, but with his own blood (verse 12). Under the New Covenant the offering is no longer taken into the temple, but into the heaven itself – into the presence of Elohim on our behalf (verse 24). Under the New Covenant the blood of the offering (which is now the offerer’s own blood) is no longer required year after year, but has been presented to Elohim “ONCE AND FOR ALL” (verse 25-25).

Joh 2:19 Y’shua answered and said to them, “Destroy this Dwelling Place (i.e. “this temple”), and in three days I shall raise it.” Verse 13 tells us that this event took place shortly before Pesach. That Y’shua spoke these words in the context of the feast of Pesach, is not coincidental. Already the people would have started approaching Jerusalem in large numbers to prepare their lambs for the Pesach slaughtering. The temple, and the offerings that took place at the temple, year after year, was at the center of attention. Y’shua showed his respect and zeal for the temple by driving away those who had made it into a house of merchandise, reminding them the temple was supposed to be a center of prayer, not a market of profanity. But He also uses the opportunity of sharing with the crowds a hidden prophesy of his own death and resurrection, comparing his own body with the temple. Break it down, and in three days I will raise it up … clearly referring to Jeremiah 7 where Yahweh said that He would reject the offerings of his people who thought that simply visiting the temple, or simply calling upon the temple or simply offering sacrifices at the temple, would be enough. More than once, through his prophets, Yahweh told his people that the day would come when their offerings and their sacrifices, focusing so strongly on self-righteousness and their man-made temple, would no longer be acceptable (see Jer 7:21; Jer 6:20; Isa 1:11; Hos 8:13; Mica 6:7 and Amos 5:21). The ministry of Y’shua of Nazareth is a proof that these were not empty words. Not only would Y’shua bring a DIFFERENT KIND OF SACRIFICE, He would also bring about a different kind of temple, characterized by the different kind of body He received upon his resurrection (1 Cor 15:45) and the fact that his followers would subsequently be called the temple of Elohim (1 Cor 3:16-17). After Y’shua’s death and resurrection his followers would begin to understand in what manner He fulfilled the prophesies, recognizing the TEMPORARY NATURE of the previous sacrificial system and temple rituals when they are  compared with the perfect, once and for all sacrifice of Y’shua.

1 Corinthians 5:7-8 is one of the verse combinations of Scriptures that speaks most clearly about Y’shua, the Pesach lamb being slaughtered for us: “Therefore cleanse out the old leaven, so that you are a new lump, as you are unleavened. For also Messiah our Pesach was slaughtered for us. So then let us celebrate the festival, not with old leaven, nor with the leaven of evil and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth.” Some people are objecting that the Pesach lamb and the Unleavened bread are used as similar pictures or “shadows” in this context. If we are to discontinue the slaughtering of a Pesach lamb, we should then be consistent and also discontinue the practice of eating unleavened bread during the seven days of the feast of Unleavened Bread – a practice that has nowadays been adopted by many believers globally who are serious about honouring Torah. This remark by Paul, so the objection goes, is only telling us that Messiah our Pesach was slaughtered for us – it doesn’t tell us to stop slaughtering a lamb each year, by which we can (better) remind one another what Y’shua had done for us. What then, is the proper way to understand 1 Cor 5:7-8?

We may begin by observing that the straightforward reading of these verses suggests that the festival is to be “celebrated” by eating unleavened bread, not by eating the meat of a slaughtered lamb, because Messiah is our Pesach and He has already been slaughtered for us. Both the slaughtering of a lamb and the eating of unleavened bread may be seen as possible reminders of the body of Messiah, but because Messiah IS our Pesach and HAS BEEN slaughtered, the preferred method of commemorating Y’shua’s body, throughout the Messianic Scriptures, is the unleavened Bread, not the “body” of an animal, just as the preferred method of commemorating Y’shua’s blood is the fruit of the wine, not the blood of an animal. The key here, in my view, are the words and the instructions of Y’shua Himself and the practice that was subsequently adopted by his immediate followers. We may do things today that appear to us to be logical and helpful and even spiritual and Torah-honouring and in line with “the spirit of the law”, but if it is not Scriptural, it is not worth pursuing. And when we use the word “Scriptural” as believers in Y’shua, we should NOT exclude the Messianic Scriptures or the New Testament. If it weren’t for these, we would not have had ANY knowledge about the One who was fully revealed as the promised Messiah and the Son of Elohim! The words that He spoke, the way in which He applied the Torah and the Prophets to his own person and the legacy of lifestyle that He left behind, embraced and imitated by his immediate followers, are the most important pointers for us in our quest to understand Scriptures properly.

Those who keep on slaughtering a Pesach lamb, year after year, are claiming that this is how they honour Y’shua, remembering the meaning of his death and resurrection. But is this the way Y’shua said He wanted us to honour and remember Him? If He didn’t give any indications as to how his followers should remember Him, we could perhaps argue that it was up to us to find ways of remembering Him. But the thing is, He gave clear indications, and not only that, He also gave explicit instructions. And those instructions seem to have been followed and observed accurately by his early followers. Let us take a brief look at the reports of Matthew, Mark and Luke concerning Y’shua’s last Pesach on earth.

Mat 26:26-28 (And as they were eating, Y’shua took bread, and having blessed, broke and gave it to the taught ones and said, “Take, eat, this is My body.” And taking the cup, and giving thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you. For this is My blood, that of the renewed covenant, which is shed for many for the forgiveness of sins”). The implied meaning of these verses is clear: When we take the (unleavened) bread of the Pesach meal (or: the Pesach seder), we should remember his body that was “slain”. And when we take the cup of thanksgiving, we should remember his blood that was poured out. No other means of remembering his body that was slain, are mentioned.

Mark 14:22-24 (And as they were eating, Y’shua took bread, having blessed, broke it, gave it to them and said, “Take, eat, this is My body.” And taking the cup, giving thanks, He gave it to them, and they all drank from it. And He said to them, “This is My blood, that of the renewed covenant, which is shed for many). This is basically the same as the Matthew version, except that Matthew added “for the forgiveness of sins” after saying that Y’shua’s blood was shed for many. Once again, there is not a single word about remembering the death of Y’shua in any other way.

Luk 22:19-20 (And taking bread, giving thanks, He broke it and gave it to them, saying, “This is My body which is given for you, do this in remembrance of Me.” Likewise the cup also, after supper, saying, “This cup is the renewed covenant in My blood which is shed for you). Here we notice very little difference, once again, except that in this passage the word “remembrance” is quite prominent (Greek “anamnesis” – literally: “the ability to call to mind, to recollect or to remember”).

Apart from the elements of the bread and the wine, the above-mentioned writers include in their Pesach reports numerous other elements that were part and parcel of the typical Pesach seder of those days – elements like the blessing of the meal, the aspect of remembering, the breaking of the bread, the use of multiple cups – not one only, the reference to the future kingdom and the singing or recitation of a song of praise. All three of these writers also make mention of Y’shua’s statement that He was “certainly not going to drink of the fruit of the vine until the reign of Elohim comes.” These words are difficult to understand and are not interpreted uniformly by commentators but it is quite possible that Y’shua wanted his disciples to understand something of the enduring and continuing significance of the shedding of his own blood, and the fact that the slaughtering of lambs for Pesach (between that very moment and the coming of the kingdom) have become redundant. John’s report of Y’shua’s last meal with his disciples before his death (in John 13), is slightly different from the reports of the first three evangelists, but it also contains typical elements of the seder meal (like bread, ritual washing, reclining while eating and the dipping of food). Apart from the typical Pesach elements mentioned in John 13, this writer has also left us with almost an entire chapter on the aspect on Y’shua as “the Bread of Life” (John 6) and another chapter on the aspect of Y’shua as “the True Vine” (John 15) – both of these quite clearly being references to the deeper meaning of the symbols of Pesach. Significantly, in Joh 6:55-56 Y’shua stated “For My flesh is truly food, and My blood is truly drink. He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood stays in Me, and I in him.”

Although various aspects of the typical Pesach meal are mentioned in the description of the “last Pesach” by the first four authors of the New Testament, the most outstanding fact is that not a single word is spoken about meat or the eating of a lamb during this special meal. The same tendency surfaces in the other books of the New Testament. The Book of Acts often refer to the breaking of bread, and even though we know that these references did not always originate from a Pesach background, it seems clear that these bread-breaking meals were understood to be reminders of the body of Messiah being “broken” for us – according to the pattern established by Y’shua’s very own teachings, originating within the context of Pesach. Paul’s First Letter to the Corinthians does not only feature the already mentioned 1 Cor 5:7-8. In the Pesach meal setting of 1 Cor 10:16-17, it is stated: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a sharing in the blood of Messiah? The bread that we break, is it not a sharing in the body of Messiah? Because there is one bread, we, who are many, are one body, for we all partake of the one bread” (the “one bread” not only signifying the unity of the body of Messiah, but also the “once and for all” nature of Y’shua’s death), and in 1 Cor 11:23-25 (another Pesach meal setting): “For I received from the Master that which I also delivered to you: that the Master Y’shua in the night in which He was delivered up took bread, and having given thanks, He broke it and said, “Take, eat, this is My body which is broken for you; do this in remembrance of Me. In the same way also the cup, after supper, saying, “This cup is the new covenant in My blood. As often as you drink it, do this in remembrance of Me.” Once again and quite clearly, the teachings of Y’shua’s followers and apostles follow the same pattern as laid down by Y’shua Himself and not a single word is mentioned in the entire New Testament about the literal slaughtering of a lamb for Pesach, performed or justified by those who believed in Y’shua as the promised Messiah.

A last thought, in order to bring this study to a close. We started off by trying to answer the objection that the Pesach sacrifice was not initially seen as a sin offering. We demonstrated from several sources that it was impossible to talk about the meaning of the BLOOD of the lamb, without at least including the aspect of that very same blood being “poured out for many”. We have also seen that the death of Y’shua, and the pouring out of his blood, in particular, was essentially understood as a sacrifice for our sins. Heb 10:12 speaks of one sacrifice for sins forever. 1 Cor 15:3 declares that Messiah died for our sins according to the scriptures. Rom 4:25 states that Y’shua was delivered up because of our trespasses. Gal 1:4 continues along the same vein by saying that Messiah gave Himself for our sins. 1 Pet 3:18 says that Messiah suffered a single time (Greek: “hapax”) for our sins. To these many other references may be added. Now the question begs: When did this happen? Did it not happen when Y’shua our Pesach was slaughtered for us? If this ONE DEATH is not seen as a sin-offering, then who died for our sins? And if the unanimous Scriptural message is true that Y’shua’s death was indeed a sin-offering, do we not in fact, by continuing to slaughter a Pesach lamb year after year, tell the WORLD that Y’shua’s sacrifice was NOT sufficient and complete, despite the fact that we tell OURSELVES that we are doing this in honour of Y’shua? Slaughtering a Pesach lamb today at a location of our own choosing, in remembrance of both the Exodus from Egypt and the Execution of the One appointed by Elohim, is quite clearly going beyond the instructions and guidelines of both the Pre-Messianic and the Messianic Scriptures and believers in Y’shua should have no business partaking in such a ritual.