The Jewish Passover, the Last Supper, and the New Testament Sacrifice, How are they connected?

zeland2236 said:

"It Is Finished"
The Jewish Passover, the Last Supper, and the New Testament Sacrifice,
How are they connected?​

We will start this discussion with a question. Just before Christ died, He said “It is finished” (John 19:28-30). What does the word “It” refer to - what was finished?

The customary answer given by most people is that Christ’s work of salvation was now complete, but this is not correct. The apostle Paul states that for the work of our salvation to be complete, Christ had to first rise from the dead: “…16 for if the dead are not raised, then Christ has not been raised. And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is in vain; and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ are lost (1 Corinthians 15:12-18) – also see Romans 4:25. So then, what does the “It” refer to? To answer this question we first need to ask several other questions.

Now to the casual observer, the following questions may seem trivial. However that is not the case. A proper understanding of the relationship of these questions (and their answers) to each other will bring us to a more profound insight into God’s plan of salvation, and in doing so, we will answer our primary question - what does the “It” refer to?.


1 - At the last supper, why did Christ omit the 4th cup of wine - the Cup of Consummation?

2 - On the way to Calvary, Christ was offered a cup of wine (Matthew 27:31-34; Mark 15:22-23), but he refused it! Why?

3 - Did Christ drink the 4th Cup – if so, when and where?

4 - When did the Last supper end? What is the significance of the answer to this question?

5 - When did Christ’s sacrifice begin? When did it end – or did it? See Malachi 1:10-11; Hebrews 8:1-3.

6 - How did the crucifixion become a sacrifice?

7 – In Luke 19:22 we read: “… do this in remembrance of me”. What does the word “this” refer to? What was it that the apostles were supposed to do?

To answer the above questions, we need to go back to the night of the original Passover, and the requirements that God set forth for the exodus from Egypt.

In Exodus 12:1-10 we see where God sets forth the requirements for the exodus of the Jewish people from Egypt. He then commands the Israelite's (three times) to remember this event as a perpetual ordinance (Ex. 12:14, 17, and 24). So the Passover Celebration becomes the most important sacrifice for the Jewish people.

But now there seems to be a problem! In Malachi 1:10-11 (also see Hebrews 8:1-3), God says that He will no longer accept this old sacrifice, but refers to a new, most pure, continual sacrifice – “from the rising of the sun to setting of the sun!” So this brings up a question. Why would God command the perpetual remembrance of a form of sacrifice (The Passover) which, at some point in the future, He would no longer accept?

Answer - It was never God’s intention that the manner of fulfilling of the requirements of Exodus 12:14, 17, & 24, would stay the same i.e. the Passover Seder meal. At the coming of Christ, the manner (or outward form) of this perpetual remembrance would change, but not the basic elements. Note the following comparison!

Elements of the Old Testament Passover Sacrifice:

An unblemished lamb would be slain;

The blood would be shed;

And the lamb must be consumed (Exodus 12:8)



Elements of the New Testament Passover Sacrifice:

Christ, the unblemished Lamb of God (John 1:29) would be slain (John 19:30);

The blood would be shed; (John 19:34);

And the Lamb must be consumed; Exodus 29:33; 1 Corinthians 5:7-8; John 6:53-56; Matthew 26:26.

Note - Paul’s statement in 1 Corinthians 5:8 is a direct reference back to John 6: 53. 1 Corinthians 5:8 is also the New Testament counterpart of Exodus 12:8 – the Lamb must be consumed. Also, Christ’s words “Do this in remembrance of Me” (Luke 22:19), is the New Testament counterpart of Exodus 12: 14, 17, & 24.

Restating this using modern computer terminology. At the coming of Christ, the old Jewish Passover sacrifice was “upgraded” to the New Testament Passover Sacrifice – The Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. This “upgrade” took place at the Last Supper when Christ instituted the Holy Eucharist. In other words, the Last Supper was the first Catholic Mass.

As stated above, this new sacrifice (The Mass) would still contain the basic elements of the old one: an unblemished lamb would be slain; the blood would be shed; and the lamb would be consumed, and therefore it would continue to fulfill the requirements of exodus 12 as a perpetual ordinance.

At the Last Supper, the priesthood of Christ replaced the Levitical priesthood of the Old Testament. In other words, in Christianity, the Eucharist at Mass has replaced the Jewish Passover meal.

With the above discussion in mind, let us now look at the questions that are listed at the beginning of this article and see how they fit in.

Questions 1 & 2, have the same answer. Most Protestant commentators will say that Jesus refused the wine, on the way to Calvary, because it contained myrrh, a pain killer, and He wanted to suffer the maximum. If this could be a secondary consideration, it would be a very minor one. The main reason Jesus refused to drink the wine on the way to Calvary, is because he wanted to wait till just before he died. It is for this same reason that Christ omitted the 4th Cup at the Last Supper.

So why did Christ not want to drink the wine until He was on the cross? Remember that Jesus had omitted the 4th Cup (the Cup of Consummation) at the Last supper, and therefore the Last Supper was not yet finished. The Last Supper ended, with Jesus on the cross, when He received and drank the wine (John 19:30). This was the 4th Cup. This is very significance. This means that Christ’s entire passion was part of the Last Supper. Why did Jesus wait till just before He died to conclude the Last Supper?

Remember that on the previous Thursday night, at the Last Supper (the first Catholic Mass), Christ had instituted the Holy Eucharist. By making His drinking of the Cup of Consummation His very last action before he died, Christ intimately connected His real bloody sacrifice on the cross with His real un-bloody sacrifice of the Holy Eucharist. This means that Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary on Friday, and his Last Supper Eucharistic Sacrifice on Thursday night, are one and the same.

It is Christ’s institution of the Eucharistic Sacrifice at the Last Supper which transforms His execution on Calvary into a Sacrifice, because, as was just stated above, the two sacrifices are one and the same. We know that the Eucharist at the last supper was a sacrifice because of Paul’s words “Christ our pascal lamb has been sacrificed” (1 Corinthians 5:7).

Now the above discussion brings out a very important point. If the Sacrifice on Calvary and the Eucharistic Sacrifice of the Last Supper are one and the same, then how could (as many non-Catholics claim) the Eucharist be just a piece of bread, just a symbol? If the Eucharist is just a symbol, then Calvary was just a symbol! - But a symbol of what? Or to put it another way, if Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary on Friday, and his Last Supper Eucharistic Sacrifice on Thursday night, are one and the same, then how could the Calvary sacrifice be “real”, while the Eucharistic sacrifice of Thursday night be only “symbolic”?

Also, consider this idea, if all the apostles ate was a piece of bread (as many non-Catholics claim), then the Last Supper was invalid, and in violation of Exodus 12:8 – bread is not lamb. This point is explained in greater detail below.

With the above explanations we have now answered questions 3, 4. And 6.

Now for question 5: “When did Christ’s sacrifice begin? It began at the Last Supper when He instituted the Holy Eucharist. When did it end? It didn’t! Christ’s sacrifice on Calvary continues eternally (Hebrews 8: 1-3). This point needs a little explanation.

Christ is now in eternity, and is outside of time. As such, He sees all of human history at once, as if it were a huge mural on a wall, so His Sacrifice on Calvary is always present to Him. In other words, as an eternal Being, Jesus stands outside of time, and therefore all of history is simultaneously present to Him.

Now in regards to our original question - what does the “It” refer to? From John 19:30 we read: “After this Jesus, knowing that all was now finished, said (to fulfill the scripture), “I thirst.” A bowl of sour wine stood there; so they put a sponge full of the wine on hyssop and held it to his mouth. When Jesus had received the wine, he said, “It is finished”; and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit”.

The “it” refers to two simultaneous events, it signifies the conclusion of the Last Supper, and the conclusion of the Last Supper signifies the transformation of the Old Testament Passover sacrifice into the New Testament Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.

There is one more important point that many non-Catholic Christians miss. Just as the Old Covenant Passover was both a meal and a sacrifice, so too is the New Covenant Passover of the Eucharist at Mass, also a meal and a Sacrifice. This means that we must now eat our New Covenant Passover Lamb just as the Jews were commanded to eat the lamb in the Old Covenant Passover (Exodus 12:8). Christ Himself gives us this command; “Take and eat….” (Matthew 26:26). Exodus 29:33 also prefigures Christ’s words: “And they shall eat those things with which the atonement was made, to consecrate and to sanctify them: but an outsider shall not eat thereof, because they are holy”.

Now notice also the last part of this verse (29:33), it states an additional requirement concerning who can receive (consume) the Eucharistic Sacrifice: “…but an outsider shall not eat thereof, because they are holy”. This part of the verse prefigures Paul’s warning against receiving the Eucharist unworthy.

In 1 Corinthians 11:23-29 Paul states; “…Therefore whosoever shall eat this bread, or drink the chalice of the Lord unworthily, shall be guilty of the body and of the blood of the Lord (guilty of the murder of Christ). But let a man examine himself: and so let him eat of that bread, and drink of the chalice. For he that eats and drinks unworthily, eats and drinks judgment to himself, not discerning the body of the Lord”.

At this point we need to define those persons that Paul refers to as “unworthy” - that Exodus 29:33 refers to as “outsiders”. Those who are unworthy fall into one of two categories. First, they are either Catholics who are not properly disposed (in a state of serious sin) to receive Communion, such as unrepentant pro-abortion Catholic politicians for example; or secondly, any person who does not believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist (non-Catholic Christians and non-Christians).
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Now to answer question 7 - What does the word “THIS” refer to.

This statement by Christ, was the apostle’s commission, where He gave them, as priests of the New Covenant, the command, and authority to do everything He had done while He was on earth, including, and most important of all, offering this new sacrifice (The Mass), so as to feed His lambs, to feed his sheep (John 21:15-17) – feed them spiritually with the Holy Eucharist. Remember that on the night of the original Passover the Jews ate the lamb to strengthen them physically for the journey they were about to undertake. In the Mass we eat The Eucharist - the Living, Resurrected, Heavenly, Glorified body of Christ - to strengthen ourselves for the spiritual journey (John 6: 51-58) to Heaven.

Only in the Catholic Church can one fulfill the requirements of John 6:51-58. Many Protestant churches have “communion services” but It should be noted, that in such a service, people receive only bread and wine (a symbol), not the real Body and Blood of Christ. No protestant minister has the ability to change bread and wine into Christ’s Body & Blood. Only a properly ordained priest or bishop who is a direct descendant of the Apostles can do that.

This sacramental lineage is prefigured in the Old Testament - see 2 Chronicles 26:18 - “they withstood King Uzziah, and said to him, “It is not for you, Uzziah, to make an offering to the Lord, but for the priests - the descendants of Aaron, who are consecrated to make offerings. Go out of the sanctuary; for you have done wrong, and it will bring you no honor from the Lord God.”

It should also be noted that, at Mass, the priest does not, by his own, humanly power, change the bread and wine into Christ’s Body and Blood. He is only acting as an agent for Christ. It is Christ who performs the miracle and makes the change. A good example of this is found in Peter’s actions in Acts 3:6-16.​

Additional considerations.​

One last biblical type to consider is this: the totality of the Old Testament Passover was itself a prefigurement of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass in New Testament times, and the two taken together fulfill the requirements of “an ordinance forever”, which is quoted above. In other words, Christ transferred the fulfillment of the requirements of Exodus 12 from the old Jewish Passover, which He would no longer accept (Malachi 1: 10-11), to the New Covenant Sacrifice – the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. The New Testament counterpart of Exodus 12: 14, 17 & 24, is: “Do this in remembrance of me” (Luke: 22:19). The Catholic Church, through the Mass, continues the perpetual remembrance of Exodus 12:14, 17, 24, but in a more perfect way.

Just as the Jewish Passover was a re-presentation of the original Passover, done in remembrance of the night before the Jews left Egypt, so too the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is a re-presentation of Christ’s sacrifice on the cross, and is done, as He requested, in remembrance of His redemptive actions on Calvary (Luke 22: 19). But the Mass is also so much more. It is the means by which the merits gained on Calvary are brought to us; it is the method Christ gives us to fulfill the requirements of John 6:53-59.

In general The Mass is offered for four specific ends: (1) as a supreme act of adoration of God; (2) as a most powerful means of appeasing God’s offended justice; (3) as a most acceptable act of thanksgiving; (4) as a most powerful means of obtaining all blessings for body and soul.

It should be noted that Paul links this requirement of John 6: 53-54 to the last supper. Again in 1 Corinthians 5:7-8 Paul states: “Christ is the Paschal Lamb who has been sacrificed…” But then notice that Paul adds an additional requirement to Christ’s sacrifice – “Therefore, let us keep the feast, not with the old yeast, the yeast of malice and wickedness, but with the unleavened bread of sincerity and truth” (As a side note – Communion hosts are made from unleavened bread).

So how do we keep the feast? We must eat the Lamb, the Real Lamb – Christ in the Eucharist. Here, Paul is restating the requirements of Exodus 12:8 (the Paschal lamb had to be eaten) and showing its connection to 1 Corinthians 5:7-8. In other words 1 Corinthians 5:7-8, John 6: 53-54, and the three accounts of the institution of the Holy Eucharist (Matthew 26:26-28; Mark 14:22-24; and Luke 22:19-20), are the New Testament fulfillment of Exodus 12:8.

As was stated above in 1 Corinthians 11:23-29, Paul, gives a stern warning against receiving the Eucharist unworthily - reception by a non-believer, or by a person who is in a state of serious sin. His warning is very significant here, because it proves that the Eucharist is truly the Body of Christ. If that were not the case and the Eucharist is just a piece of ordinary bread, just a symbol as Protestants claim, how then could someone be “guilty of the body and blood of the Lord” (guilty of the murder of Christ) just for eating a piece of bread, eating a symbol? If the Eucharist is just a symbol, it wouldn’t matter what state a person’s soul was in, or what the person believes. If it is only a symbol, then Paul’s statement here is pointless and has no meaning. Obviously, scripture is not pointless, so the only way his statement has any meaning is if the Eucharist is truly the Body of Christ. Paul’s warning here also ties in with John 20: 19-23.

Also, as was mentioned above, if the apostles only ate a piece of bread at the last supper, then the last supper was invalid. Exodus 12:8 requires that a lamb be eaten, and bread is not Lamb. It should be noted that nowhere in the scriptural description of the Last Supper is there any reference to an animal type lamb being there! Why? Paul shows that none was needed, and he confirms that the apostles ate the Real Lamb when he says: “Christ our pascal lamb has been sacrificed” (1 Corinthians 5:7)”, and must be eaten (1 Corinthians 5:8). Additionally Paul states: “The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not a participation in the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not a participation in the body of Christ? (1 Corinthians 10:16). Also, see Exodus 29:33: “And they shall eat those things with which the atonement was made…” Christ has atoned for our sins, and must now be eaten (John 6: 53-54).

Most Protestants believe that Christ was only talking symbolically because that is what they have been told all their life, and they have accepted this error, with little biblical proof or investigation. The problem is that the Bible does not support this erroneous "symbolic" meaning. In fact, a serious study of scripture will show just the opposite to be the case.

Conclusion - to be continued in the next post.

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chevyontheriver said:

One minor criticism. The Orthodox are in the same situation as the Catholics, agree with the Catholics, and the Catholics recognize the validity of the Orthodox Eucharist. We are in schism but nonetheless we are practicing the same thing.

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B Griffin said:

After Jesus fed the 5000 and crossed the sea (walking on water), the people who were fed went looking for Jesus. And we have this great passage as a result:

25 And when they found Him on the other side of the sea, they said to Him, “Rabbi, when did You come here?”​

26 Jesus answered them and said, “Most assuredly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw the signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled. 27 Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life, which the Son of Man will give you, because God the Father has set His seal on Him.”​

28 Then they said to Him, “What shall we do, that we may work the works of God?”​

29 Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He sent.”​

30 Therefore they said to Him, “What sign will You perform then, that we may see it and believe You? What work will You do? 31 Our fathers ate the manna in the desert; as it is written, ‘He gave them bread from heaven to eat.’ ”​

32 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, Moses did not give you the bread from heaven, but My Father gives you the true bread from heaven. 33 For the bread of God is He who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world.”​

34 Then they said to Him, “Lord, give us this bread always.”​

35 And Jesus said to them, “I am the bread of life. He who comes to Me shall never hunger, and he who believes in Me shall never thirst. 36 But I said to you that you have seen Me and yet do not believe. 37 All that the Father gives Me will come to Me, and the one who comes to Me I will by no means cast out. 38 For I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me. 39 This is the will of the Father who sent Me, that of all He has given Me I should lose nothing, but should raise it up at the last day. 40 And this is the will of Him who sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son and believes in Him may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”​

41 The Jews then complained about Him, because He said, “I am the bread which came down from heaven.” 42 And they said, “Is not this Jesus, the son of Joseph, whose father and mother we know? How is it then that He says, ‘I have come down from heaven’?”​

43 Jesus therefore answered and said to them, “Do not murmur among yourselves. 44 No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day. 45 It is written in the prophets, ‘And they shall all be taught by God.’ Therefore everyone who has heard and learned from the Father comes to Me. 46 Not that anyone has seen the Father, except He who is from God; He has seen the Father. 47 Most assuredly, I say to you, he who believes in Me has everlasting life. 48 I am the bread of life. 49 Your fathers ate the manna in the wilderness, and are dead. 50 This is the bread which comes down from heaven, that one may eat of it and not die. 51 I am the living bread which came down from heaven. If anyone eats of this bread, he will live forever; and the bread that I shall give is My flesh, which I shall give for the life of the world.”​

52 The Jews therefore quarreled among themselves, saying, “How can this Man give us His flesh to eat?”​

53 Then Jesus said to them, “Most assuredly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink His blood, you have no life in you. 54 Whoever eats My flesh and drinks My blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. 55 For My flesh is food indeed, and My blood is drink indeed. 56 He who eats My flesh and drinks My blood abides in Me, and I in him. 57 As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. 58 This is the bread which came down from heaven—not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever.”​

59 These things He said in the synagogue as He taught in Capernaum.​

60 Therefore many of His disciples, when they heard this, said, “This is a hard saying; who can understand it?”​

61 When Jesus knew in Himself that His disciples complained about this, He said to them, “Does this offend you? 62 What then if you should see the Son of Man ascend where He was before? 63 It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing. The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life. 64 But there are some of you who do not believe.” For Jesus knew from the beginning who they were who did not believe, and who would betray Him. 65 And He said, “Therefore I have said to you that no one can come to Me unless it has been granted to him by My Father.”​

66 From that time many of His disciples went back and walked with Him no more.​

[The New King James Version (Jn 6:25–66). (1982). Thomas Nelson.]​

We see from the beginning of this story to the end that trust in Christ is the key human element of obtaining eternal life. It is not as if "faith" itself produces eternal life. But faith is the vehicle which delivers us to Christ, so to speak, and it is Christ Himself who gives life to those who believe. God the Father is the prime mover in the salvation of every individual person. He teaches everyone that they are sinners in need of a Savior, and sends to Jesus everyone who who hears and learns these things from Him. And Jesus will not cast out or lose anyone who goes to Him for salvation.

16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. (Jn 3:16–17)​

This is the gospel. God loved the world to such great an extent that He sent His Son to die on a cross and to bear our sins so that everyone who puts their trust in Him will not perish because of their sins but instead will have eternal life because of the sacrifice of Christ.

Every person (regardless of religious affiliation) who puts their trust in Christ has eternal life and they will never perish.

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