When one answers, “We were slaves…” one explains to the wise child, “Listen, it is for this reason that we dip twice before the meal on this night. It is to teach that the dippings are not for the purpose of the meal. The first is an allusion to the beginning of Israel’s subjugation, the gathering of straw, while the second is a reminder of freedom since it is the way of free people to dip before the meal to enhance the desire for food. Thus, we explain, “We were slaves,” (as a reference to the first dipping) and “God took us out” (as an allusion to the second dipping). The questioner then asks, “On all other nights we eat chametz…” It is possible to explain from this query why it was established that chametz on Passover is forbidden even in the tiniest amount but on Passover eve, from six hours onward, even though chametz is forbidden from the Torah, if it is one portion in sixtieth (batel b'shishim) or less,⁶⁵, even the smallest amount (asur b’mashehu) mixed into the food makes it forbidden. then it is not prohibited, as in the case of other kashrut prohibitions as our teacher, Josef Karo rules in the Shulchan Aruch, Siman 447:2. The Rosh⁶⁶ and one of the Ba'alei Hatosafot. He was born, lived and taught in Germany, fleeing with his family to Spain after the imprisonment and death of his teacher, Maharam of Rothenburg. He served as a leading authority in Spain alongside the Rashba. Due to the tremendous impact of his work, Hilchot HaRosh, his halachic authority was so widely regarded that he was one of three sages selected by R. Yosef Karo to serve as the "Beit Din'' for his Beit Yosef and Shulchan Aruch. (Sefaria) writes that the reason that chametz is forbidden even in the smallest amount (asur b’mashahu) on Passover is because people do not normally separate themselves from it.⁶⁷. Here the wise child makes an inquiry: if the reason for the extra stringency is that people do not separate themselves from it, the stringency of even the smallest amount of chametz should have begun from the sixth hour (before Passover) onward. Why is it that the prohibition of the smallest amount does not apply until nightfall? The statement, “On all other nights we eat chametz and matzah,” implies that people do not separate themselves from the chametz. If so, “On this night we eat only matzah, which implies that it is only after nightfall that the stringency applies. It states, “This night,” which would exclude Passover eve. Wouldn’t the rationale for this stringency that is implied by the words, “On all other nights we eat chametz and matzah apply from the sixth hour onward as well? The answer, “We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt...and if the blessed Holy One had not taken us out…” is answered in what the commentators on the Haggadah explain. They explain that the reason for the prohibition of even the smallest bit can be explained by the fact that Israel had descended into the husks (kilipot) of Egypt, the impurity of the land, and into forty ninth gates of impurity. If Israel had tarried for even another second, they would have been unable to rise up from the husks because they would have entered the fiftieth gate of impurity. This is the allusion of chametz on Passover: just as one second more in Egypt would have been a grave danger, so too is the smallest amount of chametz. This is hinted at in the following statement, “We were slaves...and if the blessed Holy One had not taken our ancestors out of Egypt, we, our children, and our children’s children would still be subjugated…” In other words, the extent of the prohibition was because they were slaves to the impurity of Egypt. The fact that there was only a second between them and complete imprisonment in Egypt was the reason for making chametz a prohibition of even the smallest amount. The beginning of the night was the time when the danger existed and even a bit could cause Israel’s death. That is why one begins with a prohibition of even the smallest amount at the beginning of the night as is hinted at on this night and yet God saved us.

footnotes: ⁶⁵ A concept in kosher laws where if a small amount of forbidden food is accidentally mixed with a permitted one (such as dairy in a meat dish), the dish is still kosher provided that the prohibited item is only one sixtieth of the total. Unlike the normal laws of Kashrut, Chametz is asur b’mashehu ⁶⁶ Asher ben Yehiel (1259-1327) was a prominent Talmudic commentator, posek ⁶⁷ Since it is generally a permitted food, people are less likely to be careful to avoid it, so the rabbis were extra stringent when it came to chametz

One then asks, “On all other nights we eat all types of vegetables…” It is possible that the intention of his question is the following: after we have had reminders of slavery by eating matzah, and reminders of the mud and straw with which we soiled our hands by making charoset, etc, why then is it necessary to create a reminder of how difficult slavery was by eating maror, a reminder of, “Ruthlessly they made life bitter for them with hard labor.” (Ex.1:14) This is the strength of his question, “And on this night bitter herbs.” Why did we need to return to the bitterness again? In the answer “We were slaves to Pharaoh in Egypt…” The commentators gave an explanation based on the words of the sages to explain why they were only enslaved in Egypt for 210 years when the decree was supposed to be 400 years. It seems that the harshness of their subjugation, making their lives bitter, completed the length of the time they had to be enslaved...it was as if they had served four hundred years even though it was only 210 years. This is what Rabbi Shmuel Yaffa⁶⁸ has related to the sages based on Exodus Rabbah Chapter 15.

footnotes: ⁶⁸ Shmuel Yaffa Ashkenazi 1525-1595

We will explain this according to a statement in Exodus Rabbah, chapter 15:5. “‘I shall pass through the land of Egypt’ (Ex. 12:12) Rabbi Shimon said, ‘ Great is God’s love of Israel. The blessed Holy One revealed himself in a place of filth and impurity in order to redeem them. This may be compared to a kohen whose terumah fell in a cemetery. He said, “What should I do? I cannot make myself impure. To leave my terumah in the cemetery is impossible. Better that I should make myself impure one time and again purify myself and not lose my terumah.’ So, Israel is the terumah of the Holy One, and they are in a cemetery. The blessed Holy One said, ‘How can I redeem them? To leave them in Egypt is impossible! It is better that I go down to Egypt and save them….’” Rabbi Shmuel Yaffa asked: this needs further deliberation for the parable is not the same as the case to which it is compared (nimshal). The kohen is not capable of saving his terumah without making himself impure but the Holy One can bring the Israelites out of Egypt with wonders, signs and miracles without entering Egypt. He answered that this was stated regarding the plague of the first born.⁶⁹

footnotes: ⁶⁹ This was the one plague when God did pass through the land of Egypt.

Based on our interpretation, there is still a difficulty because of Israel’s premature exodus from Egypt. If the reason for Israel’s early exodus was the harsh subjugation, this is not established until we know if Israel was judged as a child of God. As the commentary explains: if Israel was judged as a child of God,⁷⁰, the law of children. See Leviticus 21:1-4. Though a kohen must remain in a state of purity, he is allowed to render himself impure in burying his child or other members of his immediate family. Since Israel is considered to be God’s children they are allowed to become impure. then the harshness of the subjugation would be included in the calculation of the number of years they had to be in Egypt. The first chapter of Baba Batra (10a) compares this to a king who is angry with his son (and imprisons him;) if someone aids the king’s son, would the king not then treat the person with gratitude? Even though the All-Merciful decreed, “They shall enslave and oppress them,” (Gen. 15:13), still it is not fitting that the King’s child be treated ruthlessly while enslaved. Shouldn’t the law take this into consideration in calculating the length of the slavery? On the other hand if Israel had been judged as slaves, then the harshness of the subjugation would not call for them to be saved earlier. When one is angry at one’s slave, any annoyance and hard labor (placed on the slave) would please the master who seeks vengeance upon him. Now it was found that the claim for the harshness of subjugation remained in doubt until it was shown that Israel is beloved to God and they were called God’s children.

footnotes: ⁷⁰ This concept appears throughout this section: din banim

Commenting on Sanhedrin 39a, “When God buried Moses, in what mikveh did God immerse,” the Tosafot say, “The heretic did not ask, "How was God allowed to become impure? This is because the Jews are called children of God.” Kohanim are allowed to become impure for their deceased children. One may conclude from this that it arose in God’s thoughts to show the hosts of heaven and the prosecutors that God’s ways are just. It was just for God to take Israel out of Egypt prematurely because of the harshness of the subjugation. This increased the amount of time that they were enslaved. Therefore, God went down to Egypt though it was filled with idolatry to save Israel, His holy child, the first of God’s yield. God was similar to the kohen whose terumah fell into a cemetery since the law is that a kohen may make himself impure for his child. Thus, it was publicized in heaven that Israel is the child of the living God. In this way God silenced the prosecutors against Israel who said they had not completed the sentence of exile. It was as if God grasped hold of God’s children. Certainly the question is connected to the answer. The difficulty of the subjugation lessened the time they served the Egyptians. The All-Merciful calculated and took away time.

Ashkenazic sages have commented on this Tosafot. They state that when God became impure for the sake of His child, it shows the great humility of the Blessed One who acted like a plain kohen who is allowed himself to become impure for his son and not like the Kohen Gadol, the high priest, (who is not allowed to do so). This is stated in Exodus Rabbah. “Rabbi Shimon said, “Great is the love of Israel that was revealed…” Because Israel was considered God’s child, God added to their love and greatness by making Himself like a commoner who made himself impure for his child. According to its hidden meaning (Sod), the sages compared God to a kohen whose terumah (fell in the cemetery) etc... The parable can be compared also here. There was no way to free them before their time except if God entered Egypt on their behalf, if God did not make known that they were God’s children. God did not make known to the entire heavenly entourage that the law of children applied to Israel and God took into account the harshness of their subjugation. That which God said (in the Midrash), “How can I redeem them,” means “With what claim can I redeem them before the allotted time if I do not make known that they are My children? ...If you claim that they were supposed to dwell in Egypt four hundred years, God could say, “It is impossible to leave them in Egypt for they will enter the fiftieth gate of impurity and they will drown in impurity. “Since this is so,” said God, “it would be better for me to go down to Egypt.” For it was the will of God to make known to the divine company and to publicize that God rules justly with Israel in all matters of truth and justice. With justice God acts in all things and from all things.

It is possible that this is the reason for the Haftorah which is read on Shabbat Hol HaMoed of Passover. It deals with the resurrection of the dead by God in the time of Ezekiel. The author of Parshat Derachim⁷¹ (Constantinople, 1727), a work containing twenty-six homiletic treatises on various subjects. writes that we learn from this Haftorah that the resurrection of the dead is accorded even to the wicked because Israel is judged as God’s children,⁷² according to Rabbi Meir in the first chapter of *Kiddushin.*⁷³ The keys for the resurrection of the dead are in God’s hand. Yet, how can God make Himself impure (so to speak) by resurrecting the dead? One must conclude, (the Tosafot state), that God is like a kohen who makes himself impure for the sake of his children. Even if the dead who are vivified are not righteous, they are still treated as God’s children. The commentary write that the concept of “the law of children'' is also related to Sabbath rest. For the Sabbath, so to speak, is a divine day in which God made rest for Himself. How then can a mortal being act like God by resting which is a divine act? Isn’t one who uses the royal scepter deserving of death? It must be that Israel is judged as children and between a father and son there can be no legal objection. But non-Jews who rest on the Sabbath are deserving of death. Now you see clearly that the Exodus from Egypt Israel was judged as God’s children, just as the Sabbath and resurrection are judged as the law of a child. Thus there is a strong connection between the Exodus, the Sabbath, and resurrection. They have one spirit and are brought together in one clear expression on the Sabbath of Passover. They come together to comfort Israel for the sages have said, In Nissan Israel was redeemed and in Nissan Israel will be redeemed.⁷⁴ ….Therefore, the haftorah proves that even if one’s children are wicked they can still be redeemed, This is a great comfort in this terrible and long exile to make known that no matter what, we are God’s children and we can anticipate God’s redemption. God shows us compassion just as a father shows compassion to His children.

footnotes: ⁷¹ Judah ben Samuel Rosanes (1657-1727) was Rabbi of Constantinople. His teachers in Talmud and rabbinics were Samuel HaLevi and Joseph di Trani the Younger. On account of his knowledge of Arabic and Turkish he was appointed by the government as chief rabbi of the Ottoman empire. Judah took a very active part in condemning and denouncing the Shabbethaians. Among his works was: Parashat Derakim ⁷² Because we are God’s children God deals with the impurity of death to resurrect the dead, even though they may not have been righteous. ⁷³ See BT Kiddushin 36a ⁷⁴ See BT Rosh Hashanah 11a

It has been demonstrated that the Exodus took place earlier than expected, allowing Israel to leave Egypt after 210 years. The reason for the early exodus was that our ancestors lives was made bitter through harsh slavery and suffering. God is righteous, making bitterness into sweetness for otherwise they would have remained in Egypt 400 years. That is why we perform acts as a reminder of the harshness of subjugation; we return to the matter of bitterness since it is an important cornerstone (Isaiah 28:16) for our liberation. Without it we would have drowned in the depths of sinful waters by entering the fiftieth gate of impurity. Thus, the answer, “We were slaves… and Adonai our God took us out from there” implies that through His glory God took us out from there, from an impure land. If you wonder how God could do this in a land filled with idolatry, God's reason was that He did so with a mighty hand and an out-stretched arm before the allotted time in order to prevent 400 years of harshness. If one says, “Let Israel dwell in Egypt the full 400 years,” to this one may say, “If God had not taken us out….” we would have drowned in the fifty gates of impurity as has been explained. “And so, my child, you asked about the reason for bitter herbs. Now go and understand with wisdom and you will have a definitive and convincing answer!”

It is possible to explain the wise child’s fourth query: “On all other nights one may eat sitting upright or leaning…” We can understand this based on a statement in Pesachim (99b), “On the eve of Passover, adjacent to minḥa time, a person may not eat until dark...Even the poorest Jew should not eat on Passover night until he reclines.”⁷⁵ 10:1 Tosafot writes, “One might conclude that a poor person’s reclining is not considered reclining because he doesn’t have a comfortable couch on which to lean as free people do. Therefore, the Mishnah suggests, ‘Until dark, and even a poor person should not eat a meal…’ should be read to mean, ‘even a poor person who has not eaten in several days should not eat until it becomes dark.’” Rabbi Bachya asks in his explanation of the Exodus from Egypt: if so, why does the Talmud ask about Erev Pesach; this would apply on the eve of the Sabbath and holidays as well. The reason it singled out the eve of Passover is because it wishes to teach us that even a poor person must lean.⁷⁶ is not that one must lean (since poor people might not be able to do so comfortably) but on eating after dark. Harav Benei Chayai⁷⁷ raises difficulty: if so, why does the Talmud speak about Passover eve; this would apply equally to the eve of the Sabbath and holidays? It emphasizes the eve of Passover because it teaches us that even a poor person is required to recline on the eve of Passover. This is not a difficulty, if the tana only wanted to teach us about the poor person, he should have stated, “On the eve of Passover adjacent to Minchah even a poor person should not eat until dark,” and then there would not have been a difficulty for us. Why did it state, “the eve of Passover?” Now that it stated, “The eve of Passover adjacent to Minchah, a person should not eat until it becomes dark and even a poor person,” proves that it includes all the people. It asks why “Passover eve.” Rashi and Rashbam both explain it according to the first explanation of the Tosafot. Thus the intention of the question is: On all other nights we eat either sitting or reclining and we don’t worry about reclining; but on this night even a poor person who never reclines, must recline. Thus, on this night, “All of us lean.” Some are surprised about whether we worry about reclining. Further, even if one has never reclined in his life or has no way of reclining, why should he do so? To this comes the answer: “We were slaves in Egypt… and God took us out,” comes to teach us the way of free people who recline. Just the opposite, we must do so even if we do not regularly recline. It is all the more appropriate for us to do so on this night as a reminder of our freedom. Even the poor person who has never stretched his legs out in reclining has a great obligation to learn about freedom. For he is a Jew who has God’s soul, there is a light⁷⁸ in him like a king upon his couch who rejoices in his heart.

footnotes: ⁷⁵ Mishnah Pesachim ⁷⁶ The focus of the Mishnah ⁷⁷ I have found multiple references to הרב בני חיי but I have been unable to figure out who this refers to or what work. ⁷⁸ Unclear meaning. The word here is אור"בו . Usually these appear as a single word but I am conjecturing that this is actually two words - there is a light in him.

I have shown that one can answer all four queries with a single passage. We know that the dipping is an allusion to freedom while eating matzah symbolizes slavery as was written above. Maror, like its name, symbolizes slavery. And leaning symbolizes freedom. This is the order of the night: there is leaning for the first two cups of wine and the second two cups of wine. The wise child already knows the symbols of slavery and freedom as a way of remembering that “We were slaves in Egypt” and “God took us out to freedom.” But he now asks about the depth of the matter in remembering these symbols out of order. We should have performed the first symbols as signs of slavery and then the others as signs of freedom. That is, first eating matzah and maror which symbolize slavery and afterwards as a reminder of freedom we should have performed the dipping and leaning. This is what the wise child thinks who asks about the order of these four things. Instead they are all mixed up. On this he answers, “We were slaves…” The sages mentioned that there was a decree of four exiles made during the Covenant of the Pieces, as they explained regarding the verse, “and a great dark dread descended upon him.” (Gen 15:12) ⁷⁹ "And when the sun was about to set, and a deep sleep fell upon Avram, and, behold, a great dark dread fell upon him": "dread" — the kingdom of Bavel. "dark" — the kingdom of Madai. "great' — the kingdom of Greece. "fell" — the wicked Rome. Some transpose it: "fell" — the kingdom of Bavel, viz. (Isaiah 21:9) "Bavel has fallen." "great" — the kingdom of Madai, viz. (Esther 3:1) "King Achashverosh made great, etc." "dark" — the kingdom of Greece, which darkened the eyes of Israel with afflictions. "dread" — the fourth kingdom, viz. (Daniel 7:7) "… fearful, dreadful, and of great strength." It was necessary for the Holy One to take us out of Egypt and from the other exiles while we completed the four hundred years as some commentators wrote and as Rabbi Menachem Azariah of Fano⁸⁰ explained. The verse concludes, “but I will execute judgment on the nation they shall serve...” (Gen. 15:14) Thus the statement means, “We were slaves… and God took us out with a mighty hand” before our allotted time. The reason was, “If God had not taken us out…” we would have been lost in the fifty gates of impurity. From this you will come to understand that everything is according to its correct and precise order. The first two cups are drunk while leaning and the dipping is a remembrance of freedom and the redemption from Egypt. Afterwards comes matzah and maror as a reminder of slavery and the destruction of the two temples as well as Israel’s subjugation to the four nation. The final two times that we lean during the second two cups of wine and hallel are a reminder of Israel’s future liberation, the day that we anticipate God’s redemption. This will be an eternal salvation; may it happen speedily in our day, Amen!.

footnotes: ⁷⁹ See Mechilta D’Rebbe Yishmael 20:15 ⁸⁰ Menahem Azariah da Fano (also called Immanuel da Fano, and Rema MiPano) (1548 – 1620) was an Italian rabbi, Talmudist, and Kabbalist.