A Whirlwind Tour of the Haggadah

‫משנה מסכת פסחים פרק י‬

‫ ׁשֶ ְּבכָל הַ ּלֵילֹות ָאנּו אֹו ְכלִין‬,‫ מַ ה ּנִׁשְ ַּתּנָה הַ ַּליְלָה הַ ּזֶה מִ ּכָל הַ ּלֵילֹות‬,‫ ָאבִיו מְ לַּמְ דֹו‬,‫ ו ְאִ ם אֵ ין ּדַ עַ ת ַּבּבֵן‬.‫ וְכָאן הַ ּבֵן ׁשֹואֵ ל ָאבִיו‬,‫)ד( מָ זְגּו לֹו כֹוס ׁשֵ נִי‬
,‫ ׁשָ לּוק‬,‫ ׁשֶ ְּבכָל הַ ּלֵילֹות ָאנּו אֹו ְכלִין ּבָׂשָ ר ָצלִי‬.‫ הַ ַּליְלָה הַ ּזֶה מָ רֹור‬,‫ ׁשֶ ְּבכָל הַ ּלֵילֹות אָ ּנּו אֹו ְכלִין ׁשְ ָאר י ְָרקֹות‬.‫ הַ ַּליְלָה הַ ּזֶה ֻּכּלֹו מַ ּצָה‬,‫חָ מֵ ץ ּומַ ּצָה‬
‫ מַ תְ חִ יל ִּבגְנּות‬.‫ ָאבִיו מְ לַּמְ דֹו‬,‫ ּו ְל ִפי דַ עְ ּתֹו ׁשֶ ּל ּבֵן‬.‫ הַ ַּליְלָה הַ ּזֶה ׁשְ ֵּתי פְעָ מִ ים‬,‫ ׁשֶ ְּבכָל הַ ּלֵילֹות ָאנּו מַ טְ ּבִילִין ּפַעַ ם ַאחַ ת‬.‫ הַ ַּליְלָה הַ ּזֶה ּכֻּלֹו ָצלִי‬,‫ּומְ בֻּׁשָ ל‬
:‫ עַ ד ׁשֶ ּיִגְמֹור ּכָל הַ ּפָ ָרׁשָ ה ֻכּלָּה‬,‫ְדֹורׁש מֵ אֲ ַרּמִ י אֹובֵד ָאבִי‬
ֵ ‫ ו‬,‫ּומְ סַ ּיֵם ּבְׁשֶ בַח‬

They pour the second cup for him and here the son asks. If the son is incapable, his father teaches him – how does this night
differ from all other nights? For on all other nights we eat chametz or matzah; tonight only matzah. For on all other nights we
eat any vegetables; tonight maror. For on all other nights we eat meat roasted, boiled or cooked; tonight only roasted. For on
all other nights we dip on one occasion; tonight twice. According to the capability of the son, his father teaches him. One
begins with shame and ends with praise and one expounds from ‘an Aramean oppressed my father’ until one completes the
entire section.

‫ עַ ל ׁשּום ׁשֶ ָּפסַ ח‬,‫ ּפֶ סַ ח‬.‫ ּומָ רֹור‬,‫ מַ ּצָה‬,‫ ּפֶ סַ ח‬,‫ ו ְאֵ ּלּו הֵ ן‬,‫ ֹלא יָצָא י ְדֵ י חֹובָתֹו‬,‫ ּכָל ׁשֶ ֹּלא ָאמַ ר ׁשְ ֹלׁשָ ה דְ ב ִָרים אֵ ּלּו בַּפֶ סַ ח‬,‫)ה( ַרּבָן ּגַמְ לִיאֵ ל הָ י ָה אֹומֵ ר‬
‫ ְּבכָל ּדֹור‬.‫בֹותינּו בְמִ צ ְָרי ִם‬
ֵ ֲ‫ עַ ל ׁשּום ׁשֶ ּמֵ ְררּו הַ ּמִ צ ְִרים אֶ ת חַ ּיֵי א‬,‫ מָ רֹור‬.‫ עַ ל ׁשּום ׁשֶ ּנִגְאֲ לּו אֲ בֹותֵ ינּו מִ ּמִ צ ְָרי ִם‬,‫ מַ ּצָה‬.‫הַ ּמָ קֹום עַ ל ּבָּתֵ י אֲ בֹותֵ ינּו בְמִ צ ְָרי ִם‬
‫ ּבַעֲ בּור זֶה עָ ׂשָ ה ה' לִי ְּבצֵאתִ י‬,‫ ו ְהִ ּגַדְ ּתָ ְל ִבנְָך ּבַּיֹום הַ הּוא לֵאמ ֹר‬,(‫ ׁשֶ ּנֶאֱ מַ ר )שמות יג‬,‫ו ָדֹור חַ ּיָב ָאדָ ם ל ְִראֹות אֶ ת עַ צְמֹו ּכְאִ ּלּו הּוא יָצָא מִ ּמִ צ ְַרי ִם‬
:‫מִ ּמִ ְצ ִָרי ִם‬

Rabban Gamliel used to say, ‘anyone who does not mention these three things on Pesach has not discharged his obligation;
these are they – Pesach, matzah and maror. Pesach – on account of the fact that the Almighty passed over the houses of our
ancestors in Egypt; matzah – on account of the fact that our ancestors were redeemed from Egypt; maror – on account of the
fact that the Egyptians embittered the lives of our ancestors in Egypt.’ In every generation one is obliged to see oneself as
though one had come out of Egypt, as it says: ‘and you shall report to your son on that day saying: because of this that God did
for me when I came out of Egypt’.

.‫תלמוד בבלי מסכת פסחים דף קטז‬

‫ מאי בגנות רב אמר מתחלה עובדי עבודת גלולים היו אבותינו ]ושמואל[ אמר עבדים היינו‬:‫מתחיל בגנות ומסיים בשבח‬

One begins with shame and ends with praise: what is ‘shame’? Rav says: ‘originally our ancestors were idolaters’; Shmuel says:
‘we were slaves’

Rabbi J.B. Soloveitchik, from ‘Exalted Evening’ Haggadah

In Deuteronomy, the phrase "Avadim hayinu le-Faroh be-Mizrayim" is the response to the question of the wise son: "What are
the testimonies, statutes, and ordinances that the Lord our God commanded you?" The wise son's question does not address
the story of the Egyptian Exodus alone; it includes the laws of Passover as expounded in both the Torah she-bi-ketav and Torah
she-be-al peh, the oral and written laws. The night of Passover is first and foremost a night of Torah study.

The citations in the Haggadah from the Tosefta and the Mekhilta -the Oral Law -concentrate on the major laws of sipur Yezi’at
Mizrayim so that we will be able to fulfil the commandment of discussing the laws of Pesah. Without discussing the laws, the
Haggadah cannot begin. We start with "We were slaves" in orde rto stress that the source of everything is the Exodus from
Egypt. Then straightaway we proceed to the laws of sipur Yezi’at Mizrayim. (1) "Had the Almighty not redeemed our forefathers
from Egypt" is the law that in every generation a person is obligated to see himself as if he personally left Egypt. It explains what
we mean by saying that we, and not simply our forefathers, were slaves. (2) "Even if we were all wise" expresses the law that
the obligation of sipur Yezi’at Mizrayim must be kept even if we already know all the details. Furthermore, there is a mizvah to
add or innovate something in our sipur. (3) "Whoever elaborates on the story" expresses the element of the law that sipur
Yezi’at Mizrayim is a commandment that has no bounds. (4) The story about Rabbi Eliezer, Rabbi Joshua, and the sages in Bene-
Berak teaches that sipur may last all night long, despite the opinion of Rabbi Eleazar ben Azariah that the paschal lamb may be
eaten only until midnight. (5) "The Torah addressed itself to four children "teaches that there is a commandment of telling
another person in general, and children in particular; that we must tailor the mode of sipur to the understanding of the child;
that a child who does not acknowledge the requirement of fulfilling the commandments should not be told the story of the
Exodus; that we must elicit the curiosity of the child so that he or she will ask questions on Pesah night; and that clarification of
the laws of Pesah is an inherent part of the story of the Exodus. Finally, (6) we determine the timing of the mizvah of sipur to be
at a time when mazah and bitter herbs are set before us.