We Answer the Questions Tonight is different indeed! Passover celebrates a great miracle that happened more than 3,000 years ago in the land of Egypt. Life was harsh for the Hebrew slaves, but our God heard their cries and saw their tears, and by the might of His arm and with many signs and wonders, brought them out from slavery under the evil Pharaoh. God sent Moses to tell Pharaoh, “Let my people go!” But Pharaoh would not listen to him. God had to send terrible plagues on Egypt until Pharaoh finally set them free. The worst and final plague was the death of the firstborn of all of Egypt. God wanted to spare the families of the Hebrew slaves and told them to each take a lamb and to sacrifice it and put the blood on their doorposts. The night the Angel of Death went through Egypt was terrifying—there was great weeping and wailing, but the Hebrew slaves were safe because of the blood of the lamb! This was a hint of the salvation we have through Yeshua’s sacrifice for us. Did you know Jesus is called the Lamb of God?
The elements we use in our Seder answer these intriguing questions and help us tell the Passover story:
1. Matzo—“The Bread of Affliction”—With the final plague, Pharaoh told the Hebrew slaves to leave. They left so hastily their bread did not have time to rise, but baked hard and flat in the hot, Egyptian sun. We remember their flight from Egypt as we eat this unleavened bread on Passover.
2. Horseradish—The Bible tells us to cel- ebrate the Passover every year by eating unleavened bread, lamb, and bitter herbs. As we eat bitter herbs at our Seder, we are reminded of how bitter life was for the Hebrew slaves in Egypt under Pharaoh until God rescued them.
3. Parsley and Salt Water—We dip the parsley in salt water, symbolic of tears, remembering that as sweet as our life is now, it was the tears of the Hebrew slaves that moved God to compassion and be- gan the great redemption story.
4. A Pillow—If possible, at least the leader of the Seder should symbolically recline, unlike the Hebrew slaves who had to eat their last meal in Egypt in haste. A fun idea is to recreate an ancient Seder around a low table with pillows like Yeshua’s Last Supper.
5. A Lamb Shank—Symbolic of the lamb sacrificed by each Hebrew family that saved them from the Angel of Death.
6. Four Glasses of Grape Juice—Each cup pronounces a promise of God from Exo- dus 6: “I will bring you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians, I will redeem you with great judgments, I will redeem you with an outstretched arm, I will take you as my own people.”
With the second cup of grape juice, we recount the terrible plagues. Even though they set the Hebrew slaves free, our joy is diminished by the suffering it cost the
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Egyptians. Therefore, let’s diminish our own cup of grape juice by dipping a finger in and removing a drop onto our napkin as we recite each plague:
“BLOOD!” “FROGS!” “LICE!” “BEASTS!” “CATTLE DISEASE!” “BOILS!” “HAIL!” “LOCUSTS!” “DARKNESS!” “DEATH OF THE FIRSTBORN!”
7. Charoset—A yummy apple mixture that symbolizes the mortar that evil Pharaoh made the Hebrew slaves use to make bricks.
8. Afikomen—Three matzot in a special bag. The middle one will be broken and half will be wrapped in linen and hidden as the children cover their eyes. Don’t peek! At the end of the meal, the children must hunt for it. The one who finds it will bring it to the leader of the Seder and “ransom it”—receive a prize for it, and a small portion of this piece will be shared by all. It’s a curious and mysterious tradi- tion! Believers in Yeshua (Jesus) see a clear picture of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—what do you think?
9. The Cup of Elijah—An extra place is set for Elijah, who was prophesied to announce the coming of the Messiah, according to the Prophet Malachi. A child will be asked to open the door in expecta- tion and see if Elijah has indeed come this year.
After telling the Hebrew slaves to go, Pharaoh changed his mind and sent his great armies after them. They were trapped at the edge of the sea! However, God did another great miracle—He parted the sea and all passed through safely. As Pharaoh’s armies chased them, the sea returned and they were all drowned! The Hebrew slaves were free. Through them, God created the great Nation of Israel and brought salvation to the world through the Messiah of Israel, Yeshua, the Lamb of God!
? Passover is very different for many reasons...
We celebrate with special foods and stories and even tableware!
Are you ready to celebrate Passover?
No Passover table is complete without a “Seder Plate.”
You will love this colorful, plastic Seder Plate with a place for each of the special Passover foods, each labeled in English and Hebrew.
The plate reads “WHY IS THIS NIGHT DIFFER- ENT?” in both English and Hebrew. The three large Hebrew characters say Pesach, “Pass- over” in Hebrew.
The Seder Plate is part of our Passover kit that also contains a “Matzo Tash,” the divided cover for matzo that plays an important role in the Passover Seder.
The entire order of the service, with the bless- ings and the Hebrew can be easily followed using the enclosed Haggadah booklet and JVMI Passover DVD.
So order the Children’s Passover Kit today and plan your own very special Passover celebra- tion!
Children’s Passover Kit contains one Seder Plate, one Matza Tosh, one DVD, one Haggadah.
ORDER #9615 | $25.00 + S&H ? Jewish Voice Today 19
is this night different? Why
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