A NIGHT OF WATCHING — from shamar, to keep or guard, and Exodus 12:42 uses it in BOTH directions in a single verse: it is a night on which Jehovah kept watch to bring them out, and a night to be kept by all the sons of Israel throughout their generations. God's vigil becomes the people's vigil. ⚠️ Jewish tradition has observed it literally ever since as a night of staying awake; the same root gives the ordinary command to 'KEEP' the Passover, so remembering and guarding are one word. Compare the failed vigil in Gethsemane on a Passover night — 'could you not WATCH with me one hour?' (Matthew 26:40). → first discussed at Exod 12:42