Our sages established that we drink 4 cups of wine at the Seder for the 4 expressions of redemption that Hashem commanded Moshe to convey to the Jewish people at the beginning of Parshas Vaera, “I will take you out… I will save you… I will redeem you… And I will take you (to Myself as a nation)…”
If these 4 expressions of redemption are so significant, that they should be symbolized by the Seder, why not have 4 matzahs which are a biblical commandment, as the Mishnah tells us that the reason we have matzah is “because our parents were redeemed from Egypt,” as opposed to 4 cups of wine that are only a rabbinical enactment?
Why do we need 3 matzahs? The simple reason is that 2 whole matzahs are for Hamotzi (just like on every Yom Tov, we make the blessing of Hamotzi on 2 whole challahs or matzahs), and an extra broken piece of matzah, poor man’s bread, to recite the Haggadah over.
However, being that everything in Torah is perfect and we know that the reason we have matzah is “because our parents were redeemed from Egypt,” the 3 matzahs must represent redemption as well.
With this understanding, we can conclude that there are two aspects of redemption, one is connected to the number 3 and is represented by matzah and the other is connected to the number 4 and is represented by wine.
What are these two aspects of redemption? And why are they represented by wine and matzah?
We are told that the Jewish people had sunken to such a low in Egypt that if they would have stayed a moment longer, they would have been totally lost, with no chance of redemption. It was only that Hashem pulled us out in the nick of time. In other words, it wasn’t on our merits or through our efforts that we were redeemed, rather it was a one-sided redemption; Hashem did it himself.
This is what the Exodus was all about, being redeemed by Hashem Himself, without our effort. Being that it was from Him, and we had no involvement, we have no pleasure in it. This is represented by matzah, which doesn’t have much flavor. It is poor man’s bread, symbolizing that we were poor in understanding and poor spiritually. We have 3 matzahs, representing the first 3 expressions of redemption, “I will take you out… I will save you… And I will redeem you…” These are all one-sided. They are all from Hashem himself without our involvement. Being that these 3 actually happened at the Exodus, they are represented by matzah, a biblical commandment.
The fourth, “And I will take you to Myself as a nation,” didn’t reach completion until we received the Torah at Mount Sinai, after 50 days of working on ourselves to be worthy of receiving Hashem’s Torah. Being that it came about through our effort and on our merit, we have pleasure in it; therefore, it is represented by wine that has flavor. Because it only reached completion 50 days after the Exodus, it is not totally connected to Pesach and, therefore, only a rabbinical enactment.
So you have 3 that is given and the fourth that is developed by the recipient. This will help us understand a few other things.
This is one of the reasons that we have 3 fathers and 4 mothers. In producing a child, the part of the father is to give, but the mother takes what she receives, and with her body’s effort, she develops it into a complete baby. Being that 3 represents giving, there are 3 fathers, and since 4 represents taking and developing through our own effort, there are 4 mothers.
The same thing is with Torah. The written Torah is called “The mussar (discipline) of your father” because it is given to us completely by Hashem, we have no input. It is similar to redemption from above, symbolized by matzah, a biblical commandment.
However, the oral Torah, the Mishnah, Talmud, etc. is called “The Torah of your mother” because our great rabbis develop and complete its details, showing the importance of personal involvement in the Torah. This is similar to redemption through our effort, symbolized by wine, a rabbinical enactment.
You may ask, the fourth is only one, so why do we have 4 cups of wine?
Because through our effort, we reveal that the essence and the purpose of the first three is for the fourth, so our effort begets all 4. Hence, 4 cups of wine.
May we soon merit to see the final redemption, which we deserve and earned. The time has come.
This week’s parsha, Chayei Sarah, begins, “And Sarah’s lifetime was 127 years, the years of Sarah’s life.”
The question is asked: If it already said, “And Sarah’s lifetime was 127 years,” why does it add, “the years of Sarah’s life?”
Another question: Why does the Torah tell us how long Sarah lived, as opposed to the other matriarchs, whose years aren’t told to us? The Zohar says, that because she went down and came up from Egypt, she merited to have an exalted state of living, which means that her life now was filled with a very high spiritual state as a gift from above. He concludes that “her life was hers,” meaning, that she was master over every aspect of her life, and even more, not only did she receive the gift of an exalted state of living, but she internalized it, and mastered that as well.
The Rebbe Rashab (the fifth Rebbe of Chabad, Rabbi Shalom Dovber Schneerson of Lubavitch) explains the words of the Zohar: The first part of the verse, “And Sarah’s lifetime was 127 years,” means that she merited an exalted state of living, and the second half of the verse, “the years of Sarah’s life,” teaches us that her life was hers.
Rashi explains that the extra words, “the years of Sarah’s life,” come to teach us that her years were all equally good, which means free of sin. How do we reconcile Rashi’s interpretation with the words of the Zohar, that “her life was hers?”
We have a rule, that what our patriarchs and matriarchs did, is a lesson to us, their children, as to what we should do. If the Torah tells us extra words, “the years of Sarah’s life,” which means equally good, free of sin, it means that we should also have equally good years. How can this be a life lesson for us to follow? A lesson can be applied to the present and the future, but not the past. If someone had committed sins in the past, how can his years be equally good, free of sin?
This is where teshuva comes in. There is a kind of teshuva that could correct the past as well as if no sin was ever committed – when someone does teshuva out of love.
What is teshuva from love? There are different reasons a person does teshuva. Sometimes it is done out of fear, either because he is afraid of punishment or he feels that he will not get what he needs from Hashem if he doesn’t correct his ways. Then there is the person who wants to get closer to Hashem. He yearns from the depth of his heart and thirsts for a relationship with Hashem, only to get closer and closer. Doing teshuva from this approach is called teshuva from love.
Being that it is possible to change the past, it is possible to follow Sarah’s lead and have all your years equally good. In other words, a Jew has total control over his life, even his past, if he wants to. And when he does, it becomes his life just like Sarah’s life was her’s.
How does changing the past work?
On a basic level, because he realizes that he sinned, he is full of remorse, and he feels cut off. Therefore, he becomes bitter over his lowly situation, and that pushes him to do teshuva. Now, because it is the sin that motivated him to do teshuva, repair the bond, and come closer to Hashem than he was before the sin, it is the actual sin that brought him closer. Superficially it is a sin with all its trappings, but through his teshuva, he reveals a hidden good from within the sin, and that takes the place of the sin.
On a deeper level, teshuva from love is so powerful, that it reaches a place that is beyond the creation of time. Time is also a creation and there are spiritual realms before or beyond the existence of time. At the moment of teshuva, you are beyond time, and there is no past, present, or future, therefore, it is as if you are transported to before the sin and it is corrected.
Not only do we learn this lesson from Sarah, but because she was at such a high level, and she was able to internalize it and take ownership of every aspect of her life, it means that we could as well. Because Sarah is our mother, and it is in our genes to be like her. Therefore, we have the ability to have all our years equally good and that our lives be ours, just like her.
You might think, “I am not holy enough or special enough to be able to do teshuva from love.” It is a mistake to think that way, every Jew is holy and special and can do teshuva from love. It is not the easy route, it will take work, learning about Hashem, understanding why He created the world, and why He created you. But when you begin to understand, your love for Hashem will start to burn inside you, and with time and effort, the fire will grow and lead you to teshuva from love.
If you follow these steps, you will begin to see Judaism differently. Instead of it feeling as a burden you are responsible for, you will begin to have a passion for it and do it with joy. And joy is the key to breaking all boundaries and reaching the greatest heights. You will even do your teshuva with joy, passion, and love, and you will become the master over your life, past, present, and future, just like Sarah our mother.
May our efforts to get closer to Hashem, bring us to “serve Hashem with joy.” This joy will break all boundaries, especially the constraints of this dark and bitter exile, and usher in the coming of Moshiach. The time has come.
If you want to learn about Hashem, I suggest learning the book of Tanya as a starting point.
ABOUT RABBI YITZI HURWITZ
Rabbi Yitzi Hurwitz—father of seven, husband of Dina, and spiritual leader at Chabad Jewish Center in Temecula, Calif.—has been rendered immobile by ALS (Lou Gehrig’s Disease). Unable to speak or type, he uses his eyes to write heartfelt thoughts on the weekly Torah portion.
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