Extra-Biblical Blessings of the Passover Seder
When God instituted the first celebration of Passover, he
required only three elements—an unblemished lamb, bitter
herbs, and unleavened bread (Exodus 12:8). Yet, if you attend
a Passover seder today, you'll see other items that complete
the telling of the Passover story. By Yeshua's time, several of
these "extra" items had already been added. It's likely that
the custom common in seders today—drinking four cups of
wine—was part of the ceremony. Each cup commemorated one
of the "I will" promises made by God to Israel (Exodus 6:6–8).
And each cup carried more meaning.
The Good News as reported by Luke says, "Then, taking a cup
of wine, he made the b'rakhah [blessing] and said, 'Take this
and share it among yourselves...'." (Luke 22:17). He began his
last Passover seder with the Cup of Sanctification, making the
traditional blessing over the kiddush cup.
The second cup, the Cup of Plagues, recounts the ten plagues
with which God smote the Egyptians. No mention of this cup appears
in the gospels, perhaps because Yeshua did not amplify its meaning.
The Cup of Redemption, the third cup in the seder, is taken after
the actual meal. It was this cup that Yeshua took at his last
seder: He did the same with the cup after the meal, saying, "This
cup is the New Covenant, ratified by my blood, which is being
poured out for you" (Luke 22:20). He expanded the meaning of this
third cup for his twelve Jewish guests.
The wine in this cup symbolized the Passover lamb's blood,
shed to bring rescue to those who trusted God and put its blood
on the doorposts of their homes so death would "pass over." Just
as the lamb was sacrificed to provide deliverance, Yeshua was
sacrificed to bring redemption to Israel and to those who join
themselves to her in the Messiah.
At the end of his last seder, he and his friends finished in
the traditional way: After singing the Hallel, they went out to
the Mount of Olives (Mt. 26:30). The fourth cup of the seder is
the Cup of Hallel (or, "Praise").
Clearly, Yeshua's last Passover meal included the practice
of drinking several cups of wine. And there's more. He drashed,
or expounded on the matzah, the unleavened bread of Passover.
This flat bread symbolized the haste with which Israel left the
land of Egypt (Exodus 12:11). Yet, as time went on the symbolism
of the unleavened bread expanded. Leaven became a symbol for sin
and was not to be in the house during the Passover/Feast of
Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:15-20).
Yeshua further elaborated the meaning of the matzah. He sat
among his friends and said: Taking a piece of matzah, he made
the b'rakhah [blessing], broke it, gave it to them and said,
"This is my body, which is given for you; do this [the Passover
seder] in memory of me" (Luke 22:19). He desired that on each
subsequent Passover, they would remember him, the sinless Messiah.
On the evening of April 20, we will enjoy a delicious Passover
meal, remembering our ancestors' deliverance from slavery to
Pharaoh. And we will pause to reflect on the great salvation
that came through Yeshua, the ultimate Passover lamb.
Shalom and Blessings,
Rabbi Baruch (Barry) Rubin
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