Take a cluster of hyssopHyssop is a small, bushy plant used in ancient rituals for purification and cleansing. Its use here signifies a symbolic act of purification and protection. Hyssop is mentioned in other biblical contexts, such as in
Leviticus 14:4-6 for cleansing lepers and in
Psalm 51:7, where David asks to be cleansed with hyssop. This plant's role in the Passover foreshadows its use in the New Testament, where it is associated with the crucifixion of Jesus (
John 19:29), symbolizing purification through His sacrifice.
Dip it into the blood in the basin
The blood in the basin comes from the Passover lamb, which is central to the Passover ritual. This act of dipping signifies the application of the sacrificial blood, which is essential for the protection of the Israelites. The blood represents life and atonement, as seen inLeviticus 17:11, where it is stated that the life of the flesh is in the blood. This prefigures the blood of Christ, the Lamb of God, whose sacrifice brings redemption and protection from spiritual death (1 Peter 1:18-19).
And brush the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe
The application of blood on the doorframe serves as a sign for the Lord to pass over the house, sparing the firstborn from death. This act of marking the doorframe is a public declaration of faith and obedience to God's command. The doorframe, being the entrance to the home, symbolizes the threshold between life and death, safety and danger. This act parallels the sealing of believers with the Holy Spirit in the New Testament (Ephesians 1:13), marking them as God's own.
None of you shall go out the door of his house until morning
This command emphasizes the importance of remaining under the protection of the blood. It signifies trust and obedience to God's instructions, highlighting the theme of divine protection during the night of judgment. The restriction to stay indoors until morning reflects the idea of waiting for deliverance and safety, akin to the resurrection morning when Christ's victory over death is revealed. This also connects to the concept of spiritual vigilance and readiness, as seen in the parable of the ten virgins (Matthew 25:1-13), where staying prepared is crucial for salvation.
Persons / Places / Events
1.
HyssopA plant used for ritual purification in the Bible. It symbolizes cleansing and is used here to apply the blood of the Passover lamb.
2.
Blood in the BasinRefers to the blood of the Passover lamb, which is a symbol of atonement and protection from the plague of the firstborn.
3.
Lintel and DoorpostsThe structural parts of the door where the blood was applied, signifying the household's faith and obedience to God's command.
4.
The IsraelitesGod's chosen people who were instructed to follow these specific commands to be spared from the final plague in Egypt.
5.
The PassoverA pivotal event in Israel's history where God delivered them from slavery in Egypt, marking the beginning of their journey to the Promised Land.
Teaching Points
Obedience to God's CommandsThe Israelites' obedience in applying the blood was crucial for their protection. Similarly, our obedience to God's Word is vital for spiritual safety and blessing.
Faith in ActionThe act of applying the blood was a demonstration of faith. Our faith should also be evident in our actions, trusting in God's provision and protection.
The Power of the BloodThe blood of the lamb protected the Israelites from death. In the New Testament, the blood of Christ offers us eternal life and protection from spiritual death.
Community and Family ResponsibilityThe command was given to households, emphasizing the role of family and community in spiritual practices and obedience to God.
Waiting on God's TimingThe instruction to stay indoors until morning teaches patience and trust in God's timing for deliverance and guidance.
Bible Study Questions and Answers
1.What is the meaning of Exodus 12:22?
2.How does Exodus 12:22 illustrate the importance of obedience to God's commands?
3.What does the use of hyssop symbolize in Exodus 12:22?
4.How can we apply the principle of protection in Exodus 12:22 today?
5.What connections exist between Exodus 12:22 and the sacrifice of Jesus Christ?
6.Why is it crucial to "stay inside" as instructed in Exodus 12:22?
7.Why was hyssop chosen for applying blood in Exodus 12:22?
8.What is the significance of the blood on the doorposts in Exodus 12:22?
9.How does Exodus 12:22 foreshadow the sacrifice of Jesus?
10.What are the top 10 Lessons from Exodus 12?
11.What does hyssop symbolize in the Bible?
12.Psalm 51:7 – Does the idea of being cleansed with hyssop conflict with modern understandings of physical purification and disease prevention?
13.What does Pascha mean?
14.(Exodus 11) How could a just and loving God sanction the killing of innocent children for Pharaoh’s stubbornness?What Does Exodus 12:22 Mean
Take a cluster of hyssop“Take a cluster of hyssop” (Exodus 12:22) sounds simple, yet it is packed with meaning.
• Hyssop was a small, common plant—easy to gather, humble in appearance. God chose an ordinary tool for an extraordinary purpose, highlighting that deliverance rests on His power, not human impressiveness (cf.1 Corinthians 1:27).
• Hyssop shows up whenever purification is in view. Lepers were cleansed with it (Leviticus 14:4–6), the red-heifer ashes included it (Numbers 19:6), and David prayed, “Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean” (Psalm 51:7).
• At the cross, soldiers lifted a hyssop stalk with sour wine to Jesus’ lips (John 19:29), tying the Passover symbol to Christ’s final sacrifice. The plant whispers, “God still cleanses through blood.”
Dip it into the blood in the basinThe basin collected the lamb’s blood, and the hyssop had to be dipped.
• The lamb had just been killed (Exodus 12:6). Life was given so others could live, anticipating Christ, “the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29).
• Blood is God’s ordained means of atonement: “For the life of the flesh is in the blood… it is the blood that makes atonement” (Leviticus 17:11).Hebrews 9:22 echoes, “Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.”
• No substitute existed. Empty hyssop was useless; only blood applied saves (Exodus 12:13). The moment foreshadows salvation by faith in Christ’s shed blood, not by moral effort or ritual.
Brush the blood on the top and sides of the doorframeGod specified where the blood belonged.
• It covered the “top and sides”—forming a doorway drenched in substitutionary life. Later Jesus said, “I am the door. If anyone enters through Me, he will be saved” (John 10:9).
• The act was public. Neighbors could see which homes trusted God’s word. In the same way, believers openly identify with Christ (Romans 10:9–10).
• The blood formed a barrier against judgment: “When I see the blood, I will pass over you” (Exodus 12:13). Peter affirms, “You were redeemed… with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish” (1 Peter 1:18-19).
None of you shall go out the door of his house until morningSafety demanded staying under the blood-marked doorway.
• The destroyer was coming (Exodus 12:23). Whoever stepped outside rejected God’s provision and faced certain death.
• The command taught perseverance—remain under God’s covering until He declares the night over (cf.Isaiah 26:20-21). Jesus echoes the principle: “The one who endures to the end will be saved” (Matthew 24:13).
• Inside, families waited in faith. Their peace rested on God’s promise, not on personal merit (Hebrews 10:36).
summaryExodus 12:22 weaves four simple actions into one grand message: God provides cleansing through a substitute’s blood, invites humble faith to apply that blood, and calls His people to abide under its protection. Hyssop points to cleansing, the basin points to sacrifice, the doorframe points to identification, and the indoor waiting points to persevering trust—each strand fulfilled perfectly in Jesus, the true Passover Lamb (1 Corinthians 5:7).
(22)
A bunch of hyssop.--The "hyssop" (
ezob) of the Old Testament is probably the caper plant, called now
asaf, or
asuf, by the Arabs, which grows plentifully in the Sinaitic region (Stanley:
Sinai and Palestine, p. 21), and is well adapted for the purpose here spoken of. It was regarded as having purifying properties (
Leviticus 14:4;
Leviticus 14:49-52;
Numbers 19:6;
Psalm 51:7), and was therefore suitable for sprinkling the blood of expiation.
In the bason.--The word translated "bason" has another meaning also, viz., "threshold;" and this meaning was preferred in the present place both by the LXX. and by Jerome. Whichever translation we adopt, there is a difficulty in the occurrence of the article, since neither the threshold nor any bason had been mentioned previously. Perhaps Moses assumed that whenever a victim was offered, the blood had to be caught in a bason, and therefore spoke of "the bason" as something familiar to his hearers in this connection. If the lamb had been sacrificedon the threshold, it would scarcely have been necessary to put the blood on the lintel and doorposts also.
None of you shall go out.--Moses seems to have given this command by his own authority, without any positive Divine direction. He understood that the Atoning blood was the sole protection from the destroying angel, and that outside the portal sprinkled with it was no safety.
Verse 22. -
A bunch of hyssop. The hyssop was regarded as having purging or purifying qualities, and was used in the cleansing of the leper (
Leviticus 14:4), and of the leprous house (
ibid. 51-52), and also formed an element in the "water of separation" (
Numbers 19:6). It was a species of plant which grew on walls, and was generally low and insignificant (
1 Kings 4:33), yet which could furnish a stick or stalk of some length (
John 19:29). It must also have been a common plant in Egypt, the wilderness, and Palestine. Two suggestions are made with respect to it. One, that it was a species of marjoram (
Origanum Aegyptiacum,
or O. Syriacum) common in both Egypt and Syria; the other that it was the caper plant (
Capparis spinosa), which abounds especially in the Desert. (Stanley,
Sinai and Palestine, p. 21.) It is in favour of this latter identification, that the modern Arabic name for the caper plant is
asaf or
asuf, which excellently represents the Hebrew
ezob, the word uniformly rendered in our version by "hyssop"
The blood that is in the basin. The Septuagint and Vulgate render - "that is
on the threshold."Saph - the word translated "basin" has the double meaning. None of you shall go out. Moses may well have given this advice on his own authority, without any Divine command. (See introductory paragraph.) He would feel that beyond the protection of the blood of the lamb, there was no assurance of safety.
Parallel Commentaries ...
Hebrew
Takeוּלְקַחְתֶּ֞ם(ū·lə·qaḥ·tem)Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 3947:To takea clusterאֲגֻדַּ֣ת(’ă·ḡud·daṯ)Noun - feminine singular construct
Strong's 92:A band, bundle, knot, archof hyssop,אֵז֗וֹב(’ê·zō·wḇ)Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 231:Hyssopdipוּטְבַלְתֶּם֮(ū·ṭə·ḇal·tem)Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 2881:To dip, to immerseit into the bloodבַּדָּ֣ם(bad·dām)Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1818:Blood, of man, an animal, the juice of the grape, bloodshedin the basin,בַּסַּף֒(bas·sap̄)Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 5592:A vestibule, a dishand brushוְהִגַּעְתֶּ֤ם(wə·hig·ga‘·tem)Conjunctive waw | Verb - Hifil - Conjunctive perfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 5060:To touch, lay the hand upon, to reach, violently, to strikethe topהַמַּשְׁקוֹף֙(ham·maš·qō·wp̄)Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 4947:Probably lintel (of a door)and the twoשְׁתֵּ֣י(šə·tê)Number - fdc
Strong's 8147:Two (a cardinal number)sideposts of the doorframeהַמְּזוּזֹ֔ת(ham·mə·zū·zōṯ)Article | Noun - feminine plural
Strong's 4201:A doorpost, gatepostwith some ofמִן־(min-)Preposition
Strong's 4480:A part of, from, out ofthe blood.הַדָּ֖ם(had·dām)Article | Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1818:Blood, of man, an animal, the juice of the grape, bloodshedNoneלֹ֥א(lō)Adverb - Negative particle
Strong's 3808:Not, noof youוְאַתֶּ֗ם(wə·’at·tem)Conjunctive waw | Pronoun - second person masculine plural
Strong's 859:Thou and thee, ye and youshall go outתֵצְא֛וּ(ṯê·ṣə·’ū)Verb - Qal - Imperfect - second person masculine plural
Strong's 3318:To go, bring, out, direct and proximthe doorמִפֶּֽתַח־(mip·pe·ṯaḥ-)Preposition-m | Noun - masculine singular construct
Strong's 6607:An opening, door, entrance wayof his houseבֵּית֖וֹ(bê·ṯōw)Noun - masculine singular construct | third person masculine singular
Strong's 1004:A houseuntilעַד־(‘aḏ-)Preposition
Strong's 5704:As far as, even to, up to, until, whilemorning.בֹּֽקֶר׃(bō·qer)Noun - masculine singular
Strong's 1242:Dawn, morning
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OT Law: Exodus 12:22 You shall take a bunch of hyssop (Exo. Ex) 
