Exodus 12:8

Roast with fire] The flesh of sacrificial animals which were eaten by the offerers was usually boiled: cp. 1 Samuel 2:13; 1 Samuel 2:14. In the present case the roasting was probably to ensure haste (Exodus 12:39) and to prevent the dismemberment of the animal: see Exodus 12:9; Exodus 12:46.

And unleavened bread and with bitter herbs] Leaven, as causing fermentation and corruption, is regarded as unclean, and its use in sacrificial meals is accordingly forbidden. In NT. it is used as a symbol of sin and moral uncleanness: see 1 Corinthians 5:8 and on Exodus 12:14. The bitter herbs, probably some kind of wild lettuce or endive, were meant to symbolise the bitter bondage which the Israelites had endured in Egypt: see Exodus 1:14.