TRV
Translation
King James Version
And there shall be no leavened bread seen with thee in all thy coast seven days; neither shall there any thing of the flesh, which thou sacrificedst the first day at even, remain all night until the morning.
Complete Jewish Bible
No leaven is to be seen with you anywhere in your territory for seven days. None of the meat from your sacrifice on the first day in the evening is to remain all night until morning.
Berean Standard Bible
No leaven is to be found in all your land for seven days, and none of the meat you sacrifice in the evening of the first day shall remain until morning.
American Standard Version
And there shall be no leaven seen with thee in all thy borders seven days; neither shall any of the flesh, which thou sacrificest the first day at even, remain all night until the morning.
World English Bible Messianic
No yeast shall be seen with you in all your borders seven days; neither shall any of the flesh, which you sacrifice the first day at evening, remain all night until the morning.
Geneva Bible (1599)
And there shalbe no leauen seene with thee in all thy coastes seuen dayes long: neither shall there remaine the night any of the flesh vntil the morning which thou offeredst ye first day at euen.
Young's Literal Translation
and there is not seen with thee leaven in all thy border seven days, and there doth not remain of the flesh which thou dost sacrifice at evening on the first day till morning.
Study This Verse
Commentary on Deuteronomy 16 verses 1–17
1 ¶ Observe the month of Abib, and keep the passover unto the LORD thy God: for in the month of Abib the LORD thy God brought thee forth out of Egypt by night.
2 Thou shalt therefore sacrifice the passover unto the LORD thy God, of the flock and the herd, in the place which the LORD shall choose to place his name there.
3 Thou shalt eat no leavened bread with it; seven days shalt thou eat unleavened bread therewith, even the bread of affliction; for thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt in haste: that thou mayest remember the day when thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of thy life.
4 And there shall be no leavened bread seen with thee in all thy coast seven days; neither shall there any thing of the flesh, which thou sacrificedst the first day at even, remain all night until the morning.
5 Thou mayest not sacrifice the passover within any of thy gates, which the LORD thy God giveth thee:
6 But at the place which the LORD thy God shall choose to place his name in, there thou shalt sacrifice the passover at even, at the going down of the sun, at the season that thou camest forth out of Egypt.
7 And thou shalt roast and eat it in the place which the LORD thy God shall choose: and thou shalt turn in the morning, and go unto thy tents.
8 Six days thou shalt eat unleavened bread: and on the seventh day shall be a solemn assembly to the LORD thy God: thou shalt do no work therein.
9 Seven weeks shalt thou number unto thee: begin to number the seven weeks from such time as thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn.
10 And thou shalt keep the feast of weeks unto the LORD thy God with a tribute of a freewill offering of thine hand, which thou shalt give unto the LORD thy God, according as the LORD thy God hath blessed thee:
11 And thou shalt rejoice before the LORD thy God, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite that is within thy gates, and the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are among you, in the place which the LORD thy God hath chosen to place his name there.
12 And thou shalt remember that thou wast a bondman in Egypt: and thou shalt observe and do these statutes.
13 Thou shalt observe the feast of tabernacles seven days, after that thou hast gathered in thy corn and thy wine:
14 And thou shalt rejoice in thy feast, thou, and thy son, and thy daughter, and thy manservant, and thy maidservant, and the Levite, the stranger, and the fatherless, and the widow, that are within thy gates.
15 Seven days shalt thou keep a solemn feast unto the LORD thy God in the place which the LORD shall choose: because the LORD thy God shall bless thee in all thine increase, and in all the works of thine hands, therefore thou shalt surely rejoice.
16 Three times in a year shall all thy males appear before the LORD thy God in the place which he shall choose; in the feast of unleavened bread, and in the feast of weeks, and in the feast of tabernacles: and they shall not appear before the LORD empty:
17 Every man shall give as he is able, according to the blessing of the LORD thy God which he hath given thee.
Much of the communion between God and his people Israel was kept up, and a face of religion preserved in the nation, by the three yearly feasts, the institution of which, and the laws concerning them, we have several times met with already; and here they are repeated.
I. The law of the passover, so great a solemnity that it made the whole month, in the midst of which it was placed, considerable: Observe the month Abib, Deu 16:1. Though one week only of this month was to be kept as a festival, yet their preparations before must be so solemn, and their reflections upon it and improvements of it afterwards so serious, as to amount to an observance of the whole month. The month of Abib, or of new fruits, as the Chaldee translates it, answers to our March (or part of March and part of April), and was by a special order from God, in remembrance of the deliverance of Israel out of Egypt, made the beginning of their year (Exo 12:2), which before was reckoned to begin in September. This month they were to keep the passover, in remembrance of their being brought out of Egypt by night, Deu 16:1. The Chaldee paraphrasts expound it, "Because they came out of Egypt by daylight," there being an express order that they should not stir out of their doors till morning, Exo 12:22. One of them expounds it thus: "He brought thee out of Egypt, and did wonders by night." The other, "and thou shalt eat the passover by night." The laws concerning it are, 1. That they must be sure to sacrifice the passover in the place that God should choose (Deu 16:2), and in no other place, Deu 16:5-7. The passover was itself a sacrifice; hence Christ, as our passover, is said to be sacrificed for us (Co1 5:7), and many other sacrifices were offered during the seven days of the feast (Num 28:19, etc.), which are included here, for they are said to be sacrificed of the flock and the herd, whereas the passover itself was only of the flock, either a lamb or a kid: now no sacrifice was accepted but from the altar that sanctified it; it was therefore necessary that they should to up to the place of the altar, for, though the paschal lamb was entirely eaten by the owners, yet it must be killed in the court, the blood sprinkled, and the inwards burned upon the altar. By confining them to the appointed rule, from which they would have been apt to vary, and to introduce foolish inventions of their own, had they been permitted to offer these sacrifices within their own gates, from under the inspection of the priests. They were also hereby directed to have their eye up unto God in the solemnity, and the desire of their hearts towards the remembrance of his name, being appointed to attend where he had chosen to place his name, Deu 16:2 and Deu 16:6. But, when the solemnity was over, they might turn and go unto their tents, Deu 16:7. Some think that they might, if they pleased, return the very morning after the paschal lamb was killed and eaten, the priests and Levites being sufficient to carry on the rest of the week's work; but the first day of the seven is so far from being the day of their dispersion that it is expressly appointed for a holy convocation (Lev 23:7; Num 28:18); therefore we must take it as Jonathan's paraphrase expounds it, in the morning after the end of the feast thou shalt go to thy cities. And it was the practice to keep together the whole week, Ch2 35:17. 2. That they must eat unleavened bread for seven days, and no leavened bread must be seen in all their coasts, Deu 16:3, Deu 16:4, Deu 16:8. The bread they were confined to is here called bread of affliction, because neither grateful to the taste nor easy of digestion, and therefore proper to signify the heaviness of their spirits in their bondage and to keep in remembrance the haste in which they came out, the case being so urgent that they could not stay for the leavening of the bread they took with them for their march. The Jewish writers tell us that the custom at the passover supper was that the master of the family broke this unleavened bread, and gave to every one a piece of it, saying, This is (that is, this signifies, represents, or commemorates, which explains that saying of our Saviour, This is my body) the bread of affliction which your fathers did eat in the land of Egypt. The gospel meaning of this feast of unleavened bread the apostle gives us, Co1 5:7. Christ our passover being sacrificed for us, and we having participated in the blessed fruits of that sacrifice to our comfort, let us keep the feast in a holy conversation, free from the leaven of malice towards our brethren and hypocrisy towards God, and with the unleavened bread of sincerity and love. Lastly, Observe, concerning the passover, for what end it was instituted: "That thou mayest remember the day when thou camest forth out of Egypt, not only on the day of the passover, or during the seven days of the feast, but all the days of thy life (Deu 16:3), as a constant inducement to obedience." Thus we celebrate the memorial of Christ's death at certain times, that we may remember it at all times, as a reason why we should live to him that died for us and rose again.
II. Seven weeks after the passover the feast of pentecost was to be observed, concerning which they are here directed, 1. Whence to number their seven weeks, from the time thou beginnest to put the sickle to the corn (Deu 16:9), that is, from the morrow after the first day of the feast of unleavened bread, for on that day (though it is probable the people did not begin their harvest till the feast was ended) messengers were sent to reap a sheaf of barley, which was to be offered to God as the first-fruits, Lev 23:10. Some think it implies a particular care which Providence would take of their land with respect to the weather, that their harvest should be always ripe and ready for the sickle just at the same time. 2. How they were to keep this feast. (1.) They must bring an offering unto God, Deu 16:10. It is here called a tribute of a free-will-offering. It was required of them as a tribute to their Sovereign Lord and owner, under whom they held all they had; and yet because the law did not determine the quantum, but it was left to every man's generosity to bring what he chose, and whatever he brought he must give cheerfully, it is therefore called a free-will offering. It was a grateful acknowledgment of the goodness of God to them in the mercies of these corn-harvests now finished, and therefore must be according as God had blessed them. Where God sows plentifully he expects to reap accordingly. (2.) They must rejoice before God, Deu 16:11. Holy joy is the heart and soul of thankful praises, which are as the language and expression of holy joy. They must rejoice in their receivings from God, and in their returns of service and sacrifice to him; our duty must be our delight as well as our enjoyments. They must have their very servants to rejoice with them, "for remember (Deu 16:12) that thou wast a bond-man, and wouldest have been very thankful if thy taskmasters would have given thee some time and cause for rejoicing; and thy God did bring thee out to keep a feast with gladness; therefore be pleasant with thy servants, and make them easy." And, it should seem, those general words, thou shalt observe and do these statutes, are added here for a particular reason, because this feast was kept in remembrance of the giving of the law upon Mount Sinai, fifty days after they came out of Egypt; now the best way of expressing our thankfulness to God for his favour to us in giving us his law is to observe and do according to the precepts of it.
III. They must keep the feast of tabernacles, Deu 16:13-15. Here is no repetition of the law concerning the sacrifices that were to be offered in great abundance at this feast (which we had at large, Num 29:12, etc.), because the care of these belonged to the priests and Levites, who had not so much need of a repetition as the people had, and because the spiritual part of the service, which consisted in holy joy, was most pleasing to God, and was to be the perpetual duty of a gospel conversation, of which this feast was typical. Observe what stress is laid upon it here: Thou shalt rejoice in thy feast (Deu 16:14), and, because the Lord shall bless thee, thou shalt surely rejoice, Deu 16:15. Note, 1. It is the will of God that his people should be a cheerful people. If those that were under the law must rejoice before God, much more must we that are under the grace of the gospel, which makes it our duty, not only as here to rejoice in our feasts, but to rejoice evermore, to rejoice in the Lord always. 2. When we rejoice in God ourselves we should do what we can to assist others also to rejoice in him, by comforting the mourners and supplying the necessitous, that even the stranger, the fatherless, and the widow may rejoice with us. See Job 29:13. 3. We must rejoice in God, not only because of what we have received and are receiving from him daily, but because of what he has promised, and we expect to receive yet further from him: because he shall bless thee, therefore thou shalt rejoice. Those that make God their joy may rejoice in hope, for he is faithful that has promised.
IV. The laws concerning the three solemn feasts are summed up (Deu 16:16, Deu 16:17), as often before, Exo 23:16, Exo 23:17; Exo 34:23. The general commands concerning them are, 1. That all the males must then make their personal appearance before God, that by their frequent meeting to worship God, at the same place, and by the same rule, they might be kept faithful and constant to that holy religion which was established among them. 2. That none must appear before God empty, but every man must bring some offering or other, in token of a dependence upon God and gratitude to him. And God was not unreasonable in his demands; let every man but give as he was able, and no more was expected. The same is still the rule of charity, Co1 16:2. Those that give to their power shall be accepted, but those that give beyond their power are accounted worthy of double honour (Co2 8:3), as the poor widow that gave all she had, Luk 21:4.
Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 1–17. Public domain.
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Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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SUMMARY
Deuteronomy 16:4 lays down two critical, non-negotiable regulations for the observance of the Passover and the subsequent Feast of Unleavened Bread. It strictly prohibits the presence of any leavened bread within Israelite territory for the entire seven-day duration of the feast and commands that no portion of the sacrificial Passover lamb, offered on the first evening, should remain until the following morning. These precise instructions underscore the urgency of God's deliverance from Egypt, the call for Israel's complete obedience, and the necessity of spiritual purification.
CONTEXT
EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS
Key Word Analysis
Verse Breakdown
Literary Devices
Deuteronomy 16:4 employs several significant literary devices that amplify its meaning and impact. Symbolism is paramount, with "leavened bread" serving as a potent symbol for sin, corruption, or the "old self" that must be purged, while "unleavened bread" symbolizes purity, humility, and the new life of faith. The "flesh" of the Passover lamb is also deeply symbolic, representing God's provision, the atoning sacrifice, and the communal meal that binds the people to God and to one another in covenant. The Command/Prohibition structure of the verse is a direct legal and theological instruction, characteristic of Deuteronomic law, emphasizing the absolute authority of God's word and the non-negotiable nature of His covenant demands. The precise and detailed nature of these commands, repeated across the Pentateuch, also functions as a form of Emphasis, ensuring the people understand the critical importance of these rituals for their national and spiritual identity and their relationship with Yahweh.
THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS
Deuteronomy 16:4, though a specific ritual command, carries profound theological implications that resonate throughout biblical theology. The strict prohibition against leaven and the command for complete consumption of the Passover lamb underscore God's demand for holiness and purity from His people. Leaven, often associated with corruption and sin, highlights the need for a thorough spiritual cleansing, not just outwardly but inwardly, from anything that defiles or puffs up. The urgency of consuming the lamb speaks to the immediacy of God's redemptive work and the call for an unreserved response from humanity. These ancient commands foreshadow a greater spiritual reality, pointing to the ultimate purification and perfect sacrifice needed for humanity's redemption and the complete embrace of God's saving grace.
REFLECTION AND APPLICATION
Deuteronomy 16:4 calls us to a profound spiritual introspection and practical application in our lives today. The command to remove all leaven serves as a powerful metaphor for the necessity of spiritual cleansing. Just as a small amount of leaven can affect an entire batch of dough, so too can a seemingly small sin, a subtle pride, or a corrupting influence permeate and defile our character, our relationships, or even our communities. This calls us to actively and diligently purge from our lives anything that is contrary to God's holiness—malice, hypocrisy, false teachings, or any form of spiritual "puffing up." Furthermore, the instruction to consume the sacrificial lamb completely and without delay reminds us of the urgency and totality of our response to God's redemptive acts. We are called to fully embrace and internalize the profound truths of our salvation in Christ, not holding back or delaying our obedience. This means living a life of continuous remembrance of Christ's sacrifice, allowing it to transform every aspect of our being, and responding with immediate and wholehearted devotion to His call, leaving no "remains" of our old self.
Questions for Reflection
FAQ
Why is leaven so strictly forbidden during the Feast of Unleavened Bread?
Answer: The strict prohibition against leaven during the Feast of Unleavened Bread is multifaceted, encompassing both historical remembrance and profound symbolic meaning. Historically, it commemorates the Israelites' hasty departure from Egypt, where they had no time for their bread to rise, forcing them to eat unleavened bread (Exodus 12:39). Symbolically, leaven (or yeast) in ancient cultures was often associated with fermentation, decay, and corruption. In biblical contexts, it frequently represents sin, malice, hypocrisy, or false doctrine (e.g., 1 Corinthians 5:6-8; Matthew 16:6). Therefore, the command to remove all leaven for seven days signifies a complete purging of sin and impurity, a call for holiness, and a radical break from the "old life" of bondage to sin, embracing a new life of purity and obedience to God. It was a physical act with deep spiritual significance for the entire community of Israel.
CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT
Deuteronomy 16:4, with its meticulous commands concerning the purging of leaven and the complete consumption of the Passover lamb, finds its ultimate and glorious fulfillment in Jesus Christ. The strict removal of "leavened bread," which symbolizes sin and corruption, points directly to Christ, who is our perfect and sinless Passover Lamb. He became the pure, unblemished sacrifice, taking away the sin of the world (John 1:29). Just as no leaven was to be found in Israelite homes, so in Christ, there is no sin; He is the embodiment of perfect holiness, enabling us to be cleansed and made holy through His shed blood (Hebrews 9:14). Furthermore, the command to consume the sacrificial flesh entirely, leaving nothing until morning, foreshadows our complete reliance and participation in Christ's finished work. We are called to "eat His flesh and drink His blood" not literally, but spiritually, by fully embracing His sacrifice and incorporating His life into our very being through faith (John 6:53-56). This spiritual consumption signifies a total identification with Christ's death and resurrection, leaving no part of our salvation to our own efforts or "remains" of our old sinful nature. Thus, Deuteronomy 16:4 is a powerful shadow, revealing the profound truth of Christ's perfect sacrifice and our call to live a life of purity and complete devotion in Him.