Madonna and Child with the Lamb of God, Artist: CESARE da Sesto, c. 1515, Oil on panel, 37 x 30 cm, Museo Poldi Pezzoli, Milan
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"you shall say, 'It is the sacrifice of the Lord 's Passover, for he passed over the houses of the people of Israel in Egypt, when he struck the Egyptians but spared our houses.'" -Exodus 12:27

1) passover. a) sacrifice of passover, b) animal victim of the passover, c) festival of the passover
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The blood of the paschal lamb of the Old Testament protects and saves the Israelites in Exodus 12. This link is made explicit in 1 Corinthians 5:7. For Paul, Christians are saved by Christ as their true paschal lamb.

The Hebrew Bible also testifies to the earlier practice of sin offerings as a possible means of atonement. Lambs could be used in these offerings (e.g. Leviticus 4:32-34 and 5:6), and this link is strongly suggested by John 1:29 and 1 Peter 1:19. Like the sin of a person could be forgiven through the offering and the pouring out of the blood of an "unblemished" lamb (cf. Lev 4:32), so Christians would be freed from sin by the blood of Jesus as the unblemished Lamb of God. See Sin for further discussion about the concept of sin and the means of atonement in Judaism.

Lastly, Christians believe that the suffering servant of Isaiah 53 refers to Jesus. An extreme minority position emerged in the Jewish community in the 20th Century following the Holocaust. Some identify the servant as Israel personified arguing that the identity of the servant has already been established by Isaiah in previously stated passages (Isaiah 41:8-9; 44:1-2, 21; 45:4; 48:20; 49:3).

The lamb is one of the animals that was used as a sacrificial animal prior to 70 CE.
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¹[1] Who has believed what he has heard from us?
And to whom has[2] the arm of the LORD been revealed?
²For he grew up before him like a young plant,
[3] and like a root out of dry ground;
[4] he had no form or majesty that we should look at him,
and no beauty that we should desire him.
³[5] He was despised and rejected by men;
a man of sorrows, and acquainted with grief;
and as one from whom men hide their faces
he was despised, and[6] we esteemed him not.

⁴[7] Surely he has borne our griefs
and carried our sorrows;
yet we esteemed him stricken,
[8] smitten by God, and afflicted.
⁵[9] But he was wounded for our transgressions;
he was crushed for our iniquities;
upon him was the chastisement that brought us peace,
[10] and with his stripes we are healed.
⁶[11] All we like sheep have gone astray;
we have turned—every one—to his own way;
[12] and the LORD has laid on him
the iniquity of us all.

⁷He was oppressed, and he was afflicted,
[13] yet he opened not his mouth;
[14] like a[15] lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and like a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he opened not his mouth.
⁸By oppression and judgment he was taken away;
and as for his generation,[16] who considered
that he was cut off out of the land of the living,
stricken for the transgression of my people?
⁹And they made his grave with the wicked
[17] and with a rich man in his death,
although[18] he had done no violence,
and there was no deceit in his mouth.

¹⁰Yet[19] it was the will of the LORD to crush him;
he has put him to grief;
[20] when his soul makes an offering for guilt,
he shall see his offspring; he shall prolong his days;
[21] the will of the LORD shall prosper in his hand.
¹¹Out of the anguish of his soul he shall see and be satisfied;by his knowledge shall[22] the righteous one, my servant,
[23] make many to be accounted righteous,
[24] and he shall bear their iniquities.
¹²[25] Therefore I will divide him a portion with the many,
[26] and he shall divide the spoil with the strong,
because he poured out his soul to death
and was numbered with the transgressors;
[27] yet he bore the sin of many,
and makes intercession for the transgressors. -Isaiah 53 ESV

Geza Vermes posited that the title Lamb of God does not necessarily refer to the metaphor of a sacrificial animal. He points out that, in Galilean Aramaic (the Aramaic of Jesus was Galilean Aramaic), the word talya, literally "lamb," had the common meaning of "male child". This is akin to "kid" meaning "child" in modern colloquial English. The female equivalent of Talya was Talitha, literally "ewe lamb" and figuratively "girl" (the word is found in the Narrative of the Daughter of Jairus). Thus, "Lamb of God" could have been a slang means of saying "Son of God" or "God's Kid".

Lamb of God. Decorations on the Baroque pulpit. Holzen Abbey is a Benedictine abbey near the village of Allmannshofen in Bavaria, Germany
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It is also appended to many of the Church's litanies. In the Church of England, it is acceptable for the "Agnus Dei" to be sung in English by the choir during the administration of Communion, provided that the reception of the elements is not delayed till its conclusion.

In Catholicism, this name also refers to a small cake made of the wax of the Paschal candle and impressed with this figure. Since the 9th century, it has been customary for the Pope to bless these cakes, and distribute them on the Sunday after Easter among the faithful. In modern times the distribution has been limited to persons of distinction, and is made by the Pope on his accession and every seven years thereafter.

Agnus Dei

Art and sacramental

In the Roman Catholic Church it is also a tablet of wax stamped with a representation of Jesus as a lamb bearing a cross, then blessed by the Supreme Pontiff as a sacramental.

The Moravian Church uses an Agnus Dei as their seal with the surrounding inscription Vicit agnus noster, eum sequamur ("Our Lamb has conquered, let us follow him.").

Although the depiction of Jesus as the Lamb of God is of ancient origin, it is not used in the liturgical iconography of the Eastern Orthodox Church. The reason for this is that the depictions of Jesus in the Orthodox Church are anthropomorphic rather than symbolic, as a confession of the Orthodox belief in the Incarnation of the Logos. However, there is no objection to the application of the term "Lamb of God" to Jesus. In fact, the Host used in the Orthodox Divine Liturgy is referred to as the Lamb (Greek: άμνος, amnos; Slavonic: Агнецъ, agnets).

Liturgy

Based upon John the Baptist's reference in John 1:29 to Jesus ("Behold the Lamb of God that taketh away the sin of the world"), the text in Latin is:

Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, miserere nobis.
Agnus Dei, qui tollis peccata mundi, dona nobis pacem.

Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us.
Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world, grant us peace.

Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world, have mercy on us.
Lamb of God, you take away the sin of the world, grant us peace.

Jesus, Lamb of God, have mercy on us.
Jesus, bearer of our sins, have mercy on us.
Jesus, redeemer of the world, grant us peace.

O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us.
O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, have mercy upon us.
O Lamb of God, that takest away the sins of the world, grant us thy peace.

The General Instruction of the Roman Missal, § 83, states: "The supplication Agnus Dei, is, as a rule, sung by the choir or cantor with the congregation responding; or it is, at least, recited aloud. This invocation accompanies the fraction and, for this reason, may be repeated as many times as necessary until the rite has reached its conclusion, the last time ending with the words dona nobis pacem (grant us peace)."

Historically, in Requiem Masses, the first two invocations ended with "dona eis requiem" (give them rest) instead of "miserere nobis", and the last with "dona eis requiem sempiternam" (give them rest eternal).

The priest again uses the phrase "Lamb of God", in a more complete quotation from John 1:29, when displaying the consecrated Host (or the Host and Chalice) to the people before giving them Holy Communion. He says: "Ecce Agnus Dei, ecce qui tollit peccata mundi. (Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who taketh away the sins of the world.) Happy are they who are called to His Supper."

Famous composers have set to at times elaborate music this part of the Ordinary of the Mass.

The Agnus Dei chant also appears in the Eucharistic liturgies of other Communions. Lutherans and (usually) Anglicans almost always use it prior to or at the beginning of the administration of Holy Communion. Lutheran celebrants will often genuflect at the beginning of the three phrases.

In the Book of Common Prayer of The Episcopal Church, the Agnus Dei is listed (along with Pascha Nostrum) as one of several Fraction Anthems that may be used at the breaking of the bread.

Music

Agnus Dei is also the name of several other songs, which may not have the traditional words:

• The atmospheric opening piece from Elliot Goldenthal's Alien³ score.
• The instrumental music played during the evacuation scene in Oliver Stone's Platoon.
• It was also sampled by Puff Daddy for the intro on his album No Way Out.
• Trains and Winter Rains single by Irish musician Enya, taken from the album And Winter Came..
• A song on Rufus Wainwright's Want Two album.
• A contemporary Christian praise song written by Michael W. Smith first released on his 1990 CD Go West Young Man. Later Smith performed it on his 2001 CD Worship. The song was subsequently covered by Third Day on their 2000 CD Offerings: A Worship Album. Donnie McClurkin has recorded a rendition of the song on his 2005 CD entitled Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs. However, the text of this version does not bear any resemblance to the original historical texts.
• Contemporary Christian musician Rich Mullins modeled the first half of his 1993 CD A Liturgy, a Legacy, & a Ragamuffin Band after an orthodox liturgy. The song "Peace (A Communion Blessing from St. Joseph's Square)" relates to this part of the liturgy.
• Ross Parsley performed Agnus Dei on the album "Above All Worship", produced by Integrity's Hosanna Music in 2002. The same song was also re-released on the album "Real Men Worship", also produced by Integrity. Lyrics written by Michael W. Smith.
• The name of an instrumental produced by Asaki for Drummania 9/Guitar Freaks 10.
• The name of a song by Mylene Farmer.
• The name of a song by Funeral Mist.
• The name of a CD single produced by Janus.
• The group Bel Canto set the Agnus Dei to music on the holiday compilation CD Winter, Fire & Snow.
• Guy Gross set a version of Agnus Dei to music in a funeral scene in the tv series Farscape.
• A song track from the Namco videogame Ace Combat 04 (specifically, the background music for the final mission, "Megalith"). This rendition of Agnus Dei is properly called "Megalith-Agnus Dei" and features a 4-part chorus arrangement and a mix of classical and techno elements.
• A track on the Michael Garrick Jazz Orchestra album "Yet Another Spring".
• The boys' choir Libera also did their own variation on the piece "Agnus Dei"
• Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark's "Agnus Dei" from their Liberator album.
• Sung by choir during pivotal scenes in the best-selling PC game Homeworld.
• Act 5 of John Rutter's Requiem
• Choral work by Morten Lauridsen Paul Salamunovich, Conductor Los Angeles Master Chorale
• The Agnus Dei is heard at parts throughout the film Jose Rizal. Its music is composed by Nonong Buencamino, and chanted by a choir composed of tenors and basses.
• The newly found choir boy Andrew Johnston, has done his very own rendition of Angus Dei on his Debut album "One Voice"

References

• Gen 22:8
• John 1:29
• John 1:36
• Exodus 3:1-23
• Rashi to Bamidbar 9:1
• This article incorporates text from the 1901–1906 Jewish Encyclopedia article "Passover Sacrifice" by Executive Committee of the Editorial Board, Jacob Zallel Lauterbach, a publication now in the public domain.
• Rav, Rav Kahana, Talmud Bavli, Pesachim, 79b
• Talmud Bavli, Pesachim, 68a
• Shargai, Nadav; Barkat, Amiram (2007-02-04), "Court prevents groups from sacrificing live animals at Temple Mount", Haaretz, http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/844963.html, retrieved on 7 October 2008
• Gesenius's Lexicon. A Hebrew and English lexicon of the Old Testament. Public Domain.
• "Rabbis aim to renew animal sacrifices", Jerusalem Post, 2007-02-28, retrieved on 31 January 2009
• "Judge Rules Paschal Sacrifice Practice 'Proper,' Appeal Filed". Israeli National News. 2008-04-08. http://www.israelnationalnews.com/News/News.aspx/125806. Retrieved on 7 October 2008.
• See "Agnus Dei" article from The Catholic Encyclopedia
• St Leonards Church, Speeton Has a fine example of a carved Norman Agnus Dei
• Lives of Orthodox Western Saints by Reader Daniel Lieuwen (St Nicholas Orthodox Church, McKinney TX)

Biblical Cross references

1. «  Isaiah 53:1 » Cited John 12:38; Rom 10:16
2. «  Isaiah 53:1 » Isaiah 51:9
3. «  Isaiah 53:2 » Isaiah 11:1
4. «  Isaiah 53:2 » Isaiah 52:14
5. «  Isaiah 53:3 » Isaiah 49:7; Psalm 22:6; Mark 9:12
6. «  Isaiah 53:3 » John 1:10, 11
7. «  Isaiah 53:4 » Matt 8:17
8. «  Isaiah 53:4 » Psalm 69:26
9. «  Isaiah 53:5 » Rom 4:25
10. «  Isaiah 53:5 » Cited 1 Pet 2:24
11. «  Isaiah 53:6 » Cited 1 Pet 2:25; Jer 50:6, 17
12. «  Isaiah 53:6 » 2 Cor 5:21; Isaiah 53:10; Col 2:14
13. «  Isaiah 53:7 » Matt 26:63; Mark 14:61; John 19:9; 1 Pet 2:23
14. «  Isaiah 53:7 » Cited Acts 8:32
15. «  Isaiah 53:7 » Jer 11:19
16. «  Isaiah 53:8 » Isaiah 57:1
17. «  Isaiah 53:9 » Matt 27:57, 60
18. «  Isaiah 53:9 » Cited 1 Pet 2:22; Heb 4:15; 1 John 3:5
19. «  Isaiah 53:10 » Isaiah 53:4
20. «  Isaiah 53:10 » Isaiah 53:6
21. «  Isaiah 53:10 » Isaiah 44:28
22. «  Isaiah 53:11 » 1 John 2:1
23. «  Isaiah 53:11 » Acts 13:39; Rom 5:18, 19
24. «  Isaiah 53:11 » Isaiah 53:5
25. «  Isaiah 53:12 » Isaiah 52:13; Phil 2:9
26. «  Isaiah 53:12 » Col 2:15
27. «  Isaiah 53:12 » Isaiah 53:6, 8, 10