And when you come is literally “And it shall be that you will enter.” Another way to express this is “After you [plural] have entered.” The land which the LORD will give you refers to the land promised by Yahweh in 3.8. As he has promised is literally “just as he said.” You shall keep is the same word as “observe” in verse 24. This service uses the same word that described the “bondage” of the Israelites in 2.23. It means work, or even forced labor, but it is also used in reference to worship as a cultic obligation. Various translations are “observance” (New Revised Standard Version), “ceremony” (New International Version), and “ritual.”

It is possible to combine verses 24 and 25 as follows:

• After you [plural] have entered the land that the LORD has promised to give you, you and your children must obey these rules and celebrate the Passover festival each year forever.

Quoted with permission from Osborn, Noel D. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on Exodus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1999. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .