BAR 34:04, Jul/Aug 2008
Hints of the Passover
Many scholars believe the origins of the Passover sacrifice can be found in the Bedouin customs surrounding Rabi’ah, which is in the spring, when the herds are taken out into the mountains for seasonal pasturage. The ritual includes the sacrifice of a goat or lamb, as does the Passover feast (Exodus 12:3–10).
Perhaps the most striking similarity is the Bedouin practice of draining the goat’s blood and smearing it on their camels and on their children’s foreheads, as protection. In the Exodus account the Israelites were commanded to smear the blood of the sacrificial lamb on their lintels and doorposts to protect their households from the tenth plague: the death of the firstborn (Exodus 12:7, 13).