“And ‘ה spoke to Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying … In the tenth day of this month they shall take to them every man a lamb, according to the house of their fathers, a lamb for a house … And they shall take of the blood and strike it on the two side posts and on the upper door post of the houses … And the blood shall be to you for a sign upon the houses where you are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you” (Exodus 12: 1-4).
Of all the questions that children might ask their fathers on the eve of Pesach, the most obvious one should be the question that Isaac asked his father Abraham, “The fire and wood are here, but where is the lamb for the sacrifice?” For two thousand years there have been bitter herbs, gefilte fish, eggs and salt water, but no lamb.
Of all the answers that fathers might give their children at the Pesach table, the most important one is the answer that Abraham gave to Isaac, “God will provide Himself a lamb for the sacrifice, my son”.
Of all the miracles that may be remembered on the eve of Pesach, the greatest one is surely that God redeemed Israel from bondage in Egypt by the blood of the lamb – but then to understand that there was an even greater Pesach in which God redeemed us from a far greater bondage – the bondage to sin. May your family find the missing lamb as you recognize the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, through whom God has redeemed his people through faith in his blood.