It’s Passover.  Passover is “Passover” because death “passed over” the households that were protected by the blood of the lamb.

One of the mainstays of Passover is eating unleavened bread.  Matzo.  Interesting, though, that the Torah also refers to motza.  That’s not a typo.

Yes, in Exodus 13 Moses said “Remember this day in which you went out of Egypt, out of the house of bondage; for by strength of hand the Lord brought you out of this place….Unleavened bread shall be eaten seven days.”  The Hebrew for “unleavened bread” is “matzo.”  But keep reading.

After Moses delivered the Law to Israel, he instructed them in obedience.  In Deuteronomy 8, Moses reminds them that God fed them with manna “that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone; but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the Lord.”  In Hebrew that phrase “every word that proceeds” is “motza.”

Sound familiar?  That was Jesus’s answer when Satan tempted Him in the wilderness to turn rocks into bread because Jesus was hungry.

And beyond that, the root for regular bread means bitter or sour – like sourdough – while the root for matzo is sweet.  And the root for motza means the source that something springs forth from.  That’s why Jesus said, “I am the bread of life.” At this year’s Seder dinner, think about passing over from death to life, covered by the blood of the Lamb who is the source of life.