Exodus 13:6 · Bible study
Exodus 13:6 Commentary: The Seventh Day Feast
Hebrew · 6 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Exodus 13:6 commands seven days of unleavened bread with a feast on the seventh day. Study its meaning, context, and why only the seventh day is called a feast.
Research Summary
- Meaning: The Israelites are to eat unleavened bread for seven days and celebrate a feast to Yahweh on the seventh day, commemorating the Exodus.
- Key words: Seven (shiv'at), completeness; Unleavened bread (maẓẓoth), haste, purity; Feast (chag), pilgrimage celebration; Yahweh, covenant God.
- Main debate: Why does this passage designate only the seventh day as a feast, while Exodus 12:16 and Leviticus 23:7-8 include the first day as a holy convocation?
- Theological theme: Remembrance of deliverance, sanctification (removal of leaven/sin), covenant celebration.
- Best use: A foundation for teaching about the Feast of Unleavened Bread, its typological significance for Christian faith, and the rhythm of remembrance and celebration.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
For seven days you are to eat unleavened bread, and on the seventh day there shall be a feast to the LORD.
WEB World English Bible 2000
Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, and in the seventh day shall be a feast to Yahweh.
KJV King James Version 1769
Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, and in the seventh day shall be a feast to the Lord.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened bread, and in the seventh day shall be a feast to Jehovah.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
`Seven days thou dost eat unleavened things, and in the seventh day is a feast to Jehovah;
Darby Darby Bible 1890
Seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread; and in the seventh day is a feast to Jehovah.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
Seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread: and on the seventh day shall be the solemnity of the Lord.
Translations in other languages (10 available)
Siete días comerás por leudar, y el séptimo día será fiesta á Jehová.
Sete dias comerás sem levedar, e o sétimo dia será festa ao SENHOR.
Pendant sept jours, tu mangeras des pains sans levain; et le septième jour, il y aura une fête en l’honneur de l’ Éternel.
Sieben Tage sollst du ungesäuertes Brot essen, und am siebenten Tage ist des HERRN Fest.
Zeven dagen zult gij ongezuurde broden eten, en aan den zevenden dag zal den HEERE een feest zijn.
Per sette giorni mangia pane senza lievito; e il settimo giorno si faccia una festa all’Eterno.
Przez siedem dni jeść będziesz przaśniki, a dnia siódmego będzie święto Panu.
семь дней ешь пресный хлеб, и в седьмой день — праздник Господу;
你要吃 無酵餅 七 日，到第七 日 要向耶和華 守節。
For seven days let your food be unleavened cakes; and on the seventh day there is to be a feast to the Lord.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Exodus 13:6
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that this verse is part of Moses' instructions to the people about the Feast of Unleavened Bread following the Exodus. The seven days of eating unleavened bread (maẓẓoth) commemorate the haste of departure, the dough did not have time to rise. The seventh day is singled out as a feast (chag) to Yahweh, a pilgrimage celebration. Gill notes that Jewish rabbis debated whether the command to eat unleavened bread applied all seven days or only the first night, but the text plainly states “Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread.” The Cambridge Bible observes that this passage (from the source J) differs from the priestly version in Exodus 12:14-20 (P), which designates both the first and seventh days as holy convocations. Here only the seventh day is called a feast, perhaps emphasizing the culmination of the week of purification with collective celebration. All agree that the feast is a joyful response to God's deliverance.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Source-critical (J vs P): The Cambridge Bible notes that this passage (J) omits the holy convocation on the first day, unlike the priestly version (P) in Exodus 12:16.
- Redactional emphasis on the seventh day: The text may highlight the final day as the climax of the feast, distinct from the daily eating of unleavened bread.
What is clear: All traditions agree that the seventh day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread is a special feast day to Yahweh, celebrating the deliverance from Egypt.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Duration of eating unleavened bread | All Christians affirm that the passage requires a seven-day period of eating unleavened bread. | Jewish tradition debated whether the command to eat applies all seven days or only the first night; some Christian readings spiritualize the command as a metaphor for purity. |
| Identification of the feast on the seventh day | The seventh day is a feast (chag) to Yahweh, a day of celebration. | Some traditions identify this feast with the later holy convocation of the seventh day of Unleavened Bread, while others see it as a distinct pilgrimage feast. |
| Relationship to Exodus 12:14-20 | Both passages speak of the Feast of Unleavened Bread as a memorial of the Exodus. | Scholars debate whether the differences (mention of first day, work restrictions, source) indicate different traditions or later supplements. |
| Significance of the number seven | Seven symbolizes completeness and perfection in Scripture. | Some emphasize the creation week (six days of purification, seventh day of rest), others the seven days of the Exodus narrative. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The events of Exodus 13 take place on the day the Israelites leave Egypt, in the month Abib (March, April), the beginning of the barley harvest. Moses speaks to the people, giving them regulations for the Feast of Unleavened Bread that will be observed annually once they reach the Promised Land (v.5). The word chag (feast) means a pilgrimage festival, later one of the three great annual pilgrimages when Israelites traveled to the sanctuary (Deuteronomy 16:16). The seventh day is here called a feast, while the first day is not; other passages (Exodus 12:16; Leviticus 23:7-8) call both days holy convocations. This difference reflects distinct textual traditions. The Cambridge Bible notes that the regulations in Exodus 13 (source J) appear to be an early, parenetic (hortatory) version, emphasizing teaching the next generation (v.8) and the outward memorial signs (v.9). The feast on the seventh day concludes the week, perhaps linked to the cessation of the manna or the arrival at a sanctuary site. Culturally, leaven represented corruption or pride, and its removal for seven days symbolized purity and the urgency of liberation. The context continues with the consecration of the firstborn (v.11-16), connecting the feast to the redemption of life itself.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for this verse. The Hebrew text is consistent across manuscripts, with minor orthographic differences in the divine name (Yahweh). The phrase “a feast to Yahweh” (chag laYahweh) is stable.
Reception History
This verse has been read as part of the Feast of Unleavened Bread lection in both Jewish and Christian traditions. Early church fathers allegorized the unleavened bread as the purity required of believers (1 Corinthians 5:8). Matthew Henry, in his devotional commentary, connects the feast and the surrounding passage to gratitude for deliverance and the dedication of the firstborn. The Geneva Bible notes simply underscore the observance. In modern liturgical use, the verse appears in readings for Easter week, linking the Exodus to Christ's resurrection and the call to live as a new creation.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The Command to Remember: Seven days of eating unleavened bread call God’s people to a continual, tangible remembrance of their sudden deliverance from Egypt.
- The Consecration of a Feast: The seventh day is set apart as a feast to Yahweh, a joyful celebration that completes the week and crowns it with worship.
- The Connection to Redemption: The feast points forward to the perfect redemption in Christ, the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth (1 Corinthians 5:8).
Five-point outline
- Duration: Seven days, a complete week, symbolizing a wholehearted response to God’s work.
- Diet: Unleavened bread, a reminder of poverty and haste, but also of purity set apart for God.
- Destination: The seventh day feast, a moment of collective celebration, not just private observance.
- Delivery: The feast is “to Yahweh”, worship directed to the God who acted.
- Duty: Keep this service in its season from year to year, the rhythm of remembrance shapes each generation.
Illustration hooks
- Cleaning the pantry for Passover: the thorough removal of leaven as a picture of examining one’s life for sin, culminating in a celebration meal.
- A week-long conference that builds toward a closing ceremony: the seventh day becomes the climatic gathering, not just another day.
- The final day of a detox or fast: the relief and joy of reaching the end of a disciplined period, celebrated as a feast of thanksgiving.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why does God only call the seventh day a feast? Shouldn’t every day of the week be equally special?
- If this is a pilgrimage feast, where do we go today when we celebrate Christ’s deliverance?
- How does a week-long food restriction (unleavened bread) speak to our experience of faith?
Leading a Discussion
This verse is part of Moses’ speech just after the Exodus. The people are on the move, and God gives them a ceremony that will keep the memory alive for centuries. The seven days of unleavened bread and the feast on the seventh day form a pattern: a steady practice leads to a climactic celebration. Use these questions to explore the passage together.
Discussion questions
- Observation: What does this verse command? How long must they eat unleavened bread, and when is the feast?
- Observation: Compare this verse with Exodus 12:16 and Leviticus 23:7-8. What is different about which days are called “holy convocations” or “feasts”?
- Interpretation: Why do you think unleavened bread was used as the sign? What does “leaven” represent in the rest of Scripture?
- Interpretation: The word “feast” (chag) is the same used for pilgrimage festivals. What does that imply about how the seventh day was observed?
- Interpretation: The passage emphasizes the seventh day as the feast. What might that say about the purpose of the entire week?
- Application: If our lives have a “seven-day rhythm” of remembrance, what would it look like to build toward a weekly celebration of God’s deliverance?
- Application: How can we make our memorials of God’s grace concrete and involved (like eating special bread) rather than just intellectual?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Exodus 12:15 | “‘Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread; even the first day you shall put away yeast out of your houses, for whoever eats leavened bread from the first day until the seventh day, that soul shall be cut off from Israel. |
| Exodus 12:20 | You shall eat nothing leavened. In all your habitations you shall eat unleavened bread.’” |
| Exodus 34:18 | “You shall keep the feast of unleavened bread. Seven days you shall eat unleavened bread, as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month Abib; for in the month Abib you came out of Egypt. |
| Leviticus 23:8 | But you shall offer an offering made by fire to Yahweh seven days. In the seventh day is a holy convocation. You shall do no regular work.’” |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
5 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke offers no direct comment on this verse. Instead he directs the reader to his earlier notes on Exodus 12:15 and 12:16 for an explanation of unleavened bread. This cross-reference serves as the whole of his treatment here.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
This passage comes from a different biblical source than the similar laws in Exodus 12. The regulations here lack the holy convocation and work restrictions of the priestly version, use the older name Abib for the month, and treat the seventh day as the pilgrimage instead of the first, marking them as an earlier, simpler form of the same laws.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The note emphasizes that the feast of the Lord was specifically the seventh day, not the first. The entire week of eating unleavened bread was required, but the seventh day alone is designated as the feast, marking it as the climactic day of the observance.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill insists the command to eat unleavened bread applies to all seven days, not just the first night as some Jewish interpreters claimed. For him, this repeated eating was the whole point: it kept the bitter circumstances of their escape from Egypt vividly in mind. He also notes the seventh day is set apart as a feast to the Lord.
Matthew Henry's Commentary Reformed/Presbyterian 1710
Henry emphasizes that God's claim on Israel's firstborn rests not simply on His right as Creator but specifically on the right of protection. By sparing them when Egypt's firstborn died, the Lord made them His own by a debt of gratitude, a distinction that set them apart as a perpetual memorial.