5 It shall be, when Yahweh shall bring you into the land of the Canaanite, and the Hittite, and the Amorite, and the Hivite, and the Jebusite, which he swore to your fathers to give you, a land flowing with milk and honey, that you shall keep this service in this month.
*Minor differences ignored. Grouped by changes, with first version listed as example.
The Canaanites - Five nations only are named in this passage, whereas six are named in Exodus 3:8, and ten in the original promise to Abraham, Genesis 15:19-21. The first word "Canaanite" is generic, and includes all the Hamite races of Palestine.
When the Lord shall bring thee into the land - Hence it is pretty evident that the Israelites were not obliged to celebrate the Passover, or keep the feast of unleavened bread, till they were brought into the promised land.
And it shall be when the Lord shall bring thee into the land of the Canaanites,.... Though the whole land was called the land of Canaan, yet there was one tribe or nation of them particularly so called as here, distinct from those that follow:
and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites; there were seven nations in all, but two are here omitted, the Girgashites and Perizzites, but they are added in the Septuagint version, see Deuteronomy 7:1.
which he swore unto thy fathers to give thee; to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob; so that they might be assured they would be brought into it, since they had both the word and oath of God for it; and which is the rather mentioned now for their encouragement, since they were at this time set forward in their journey thitherwards:
a land flowing with milk and honey; See Gill on Exodus 3:8,
that thou shalt keep this service in this month; the month of Abib; that is, the following service concerning unleavened bread; it is concluded from hence by some, that those laws concerning the passover, and eating unleavened bread, and sanctifying the firstborn, did not oblige the Israelites, while in the wilderness, only when they came into the land of Canaan; and it seems pretty clear that this was the case with respect to the two latter, but not the former, since it is certain they did keep the passover in the wilderness, and were obliged to it, Numbers 9:1 but then it may be observed, that there is no mention there of their keeping the feast of unleavened bread, only of the passover, as here no mention is made of the feast of the passover, which, though they followed one another, were, two distinct feasts.
when the Lord shall bring thee--The passover is here instituted as a permanent festival of the Israelites. It was, however, only a prospective observance; we read of only one celebration of the passover during the protracted sojourn in the wilderness [Numbers 9:5]; but on their settlement in the promised land, the season was hallowed as a sacred anniversary [Joshua 5:10], in conformity with the directions here given.
When the lord shall bring you into the land, thou shalt keep this service - 'Till then they were not obliged to keep the passover, without a particular command from God.
*More commentary available at chapter level.