The Importance of Number Four on Pesach
Friday, 7 April 2017
יום שישי, י”א בניסן תשע”ז
The number FOUR plays a dominant role in the story of Pesach and especially at Seder night. Leading up to Pesach, there are four special Shabbatot on which we read additional portions of the Torah, for the Maftir, with appropriate Haftarot. Each of these Shabbatot has a particular name: Shabbat Shekalim, Shabbat Zachor, Shabbat Parah and Shabbat Hachodesh.
The story of the Exodus begins with God’s commandment to the Israelites to prepare the lamb on the 10th of Nissan and look after it for four days until the time of the Pesach sacrifice. The sacrificial lamb was slaughtered on the afternoon of the 14th of Nissan and eaten after nightfall. At the Seder, there are four questions, four sons and four cups of wine. According to the most popular explanation, these four cups symbolise the four expressions of redemption mentioned in the story of the Exodus. Moreover, there are also four special Mitzvot which we obligated to fulfil on Seder night. Two of them originate in the Torah; the eating of the Matza and the telling of the story of the Haggada; the other two are Rabbinic in origin; the eating of the Maror and the drinking of the four cups of wine. In the beginning, we read in the Haggada that four rabbis attended the Seder of Rabbi Akiva in his hometown, Bnei B’rak. In this story, the Baal Haggada mentions four rabbinic qualities: wisdom, understanding, experience and knowledge of Torah. The central part of the Haggada consists of Midrashic interpretations of four verses which stem from the Bikkurim declaration, recorded in the Book of Devarim, Chapter 26. This central section begins with the statement: “Arami Oved Avi”, which mean: “My father was a wandering Aramean”.
Why is the number four so necessary for Pesach?
Some rabbis have offered compelling reasons.
The former Chief Rabbi, Lord Jakobovits, Zecher Tzaddik Livracha, explains that the number four is the most regular and orderly of all figures. We can see this in the complete symmetry of the square with its four equal sides.
According to the opinion of the Vilna Gaon, the number four corresponds to the four categories of people who come to shul to recite the blessing of Hagomel next to the Torah. In this blessing, people express their thanks to God for having saved them from dangerous situations. These people are those who have travelled on a ship across the oceans; those who have crossed the desert; prisoners or captives who have come out of prison and those who have recovered from a serious illness. When the Jews came out of Egypt, they escaped from all these four dangerous situations.
The Eliyahu Rabbah suggests that we use the number four so frequently because the name of Hashem consists of four letters. It reminds us that all four stages of the redemption of the Jewish people from Egypt were due only to God’s providence. This idea is found explicitly in the Haggada itself where it says:”I alone redeemed Israel. It was neither an angel nor a messenger of any kind”. The Aruch Hashulchan writes that the Gematria, the numerical value, of the Hebrew word KOS, cup, corresponds to the name of God. Both these words amount to 86. Therefore, each time we drink one cup of wine we think of Hashem who saved us.
The Mitzvah of the four cups is paramount. The Shulchan Aruch says that even a person who is destitute must be given enough money to buy wine. If the community is unable to give him wine, he must sell one of his possessions to buy wine. Why is this Mitzvah so important? Because, as has been pointed out already, it reminds us of the four expressions of redemption. These are: 1 will take you out, I will save you, I will redeem you, and I will take you for me as a nation.
People ask: Why do we need four cups to celebrate the single event of the Exodus? Rabbi Naftali, Tzvi Yehudah Berlin, known as the Natziv explains that the four cups emphasise that every stage in their deliverance was a separate miracle. The Jewish people had fallen into such a depth of hopelessness and despair, that every stage in their deliverance was a significant step forward. Each stage merits a special show of gratitude to Hashem. We see a similar idea behind the concept of the Song of Dayenu. We declare that at every stage in our deliverance from Egypt, it would have been enough. With some events, this appears to be illogical. However, the song remains deeply meaningful.
The Ma Nishtana consists of four questions. Asking questions and answering them is an essential aspect of Seder night. It emphasises the importance of dialogue between parents and children. The best way to transmit the teachings of Torah is by encouraging communication. Every child is equally valued, no matter what his attitude is. At the Seder night, we must make deliberate actions to stimulate our children’s interest and curiosity.
The four questions of the MA NISHTANAH have changed over the centuries. During the Temple period one of the questions was: Why is it that on all other nights we eat both roasted and boiled meat, but tonight we are only eating roasted meat? After the destruction of the Temple, our ancestors were forced to replace it by a question regarding the manner in which we sit; namely that we recline on our cushions, leaning to the left side. 2000 years ago, during Roman times, people lay on their beds, which was even more striking. Lord Jakobovits, the former Chief Rabbi, has suggested that the four questions correspondent to the four sons. All of them notice that this night different from all other nights. However, each of them sees a feature of the Seder which reflects his nature and personality. The wise son sees the Matzah, which is the most important Mitzvah, so he asks about it, wondering why it is replacing bread.
The first thing that the wayward son sees is the Maror. He feels bitter that he has to sit at the Seder table instead of enjoying himself at the cinema or in some other place of entertainment. The simple son only notices that we are behaving like children when we dip our foods twice. Finally, the fourth son is incapable of asking any questions. He is pleased to be seated in exceptional comfort. The Ba’al Haggadah introduces the section of the four children, with a unique blessing, in which the word Baruch occurs four times. “Blessed be Hashem, who is everywhere, blessed be He, blessed be He who has given Torah to his people Israel, blessed be He.” Rabbi Chayim of Brisk offers the following explanation for this introduction. Its purpose is to praise the Torah which is unlike any other book of wisdom. In other disciplines, there are books for adults and books for children, for experts and beginners. If you give a beginner a book intended to be read by an expert, it is useless to him and vice-versa. On the other hand, the Torah is equally meaningful to everyone who learns it. It has a multitude of interpretations suitable for every adult or child. No matter what level of knowledge and understanding he has, he can learn Torah and benefit from its wisdom. The Torah is entirely unique. For this, we bless the Almighty four times.
The four children of the Haggada have attracted many interpretations. According to the Vilna Gaon, they represent two pairs of opposites. First, we meet the opposites the Chacham, the wise son, and the She’eno Yode’a Lish’ol, the son who is unable to ask any questions. They are two extremes in their intellect and interest. One son is diligent and inquisitive; the other is passive and completely indifferent. We also have two sons who are moral opposites, the Rasha and the Tam; one child wants to do what he fancies and refuses any discipline. The other is loyal and single-minded. He is like Yaakov, our father, who was Ish Tam, dwelling in the tents of Torah. The Ba’al Haggada teaches us that all the four types of children are precious to Hashem, to their parents and the community. We must teach each child according to his inclination. Many people have serious questions. Judaism does have many thoughtful answers. I hope that Hashem will always help us to find them.