"Now on
the first day of the Feast of the Unleavened Bread the disciples came to Jesus,
saying to him, 'Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover?'
And he said, 'Go into the city to a certain man, and say to him, "The
Teacher says, 'My time is at hand; I will keep the Passover at your house with
my disciples'"'" (Mat 26:17, 18).
We can
assume that in Mark’s family’s house all was cleansed of leaven and ready for
the Passover holiday, as was befitting of Jews. At sundown, Jesus and his
twelve closest disciples had gathered in the upper room of the house. It was
time for the Passover meal.
Contrary to
what Leonardo Da Vinci painted a millennium and a half after Jesus Christ, the
custom was for 1st century Jews to recline at the Passover. That means that
they each lay down at a low table. All four Gospels, written in Greek, clearly
indicate in their original language that Jesus and his disciples were
“reclining” (Mat 26:20; Mar 14:18; Luk 22:14; Joh 13:23). Not sitting.[1]
This
explains how, according to John’s Gospel, “[the disciple] whom Jesus loved”
(John?) could have been “leaning back on Jesus’ chest” (Joh 13:23-25).
The table,
either woven mats on the floor or, more often in wealthy houses, a special low
structure called a triclinium, was arranged in three parts and participants at
the meal, lay down on pillows.[2] They supported themselves on their left
elbows while their right hands remained free for use while eating.[3]
At the
opening moment in the Passover ceremony, it is recorded that Jesus had these
words to say:
“With
fervent desire I have desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer;
for I say to you, I will no longer eat of it until it is fulfilled in the
kingdom of God” (Luk 22:15, 16).
After the
customary opening blessing over the first cup of wine[4], Jesus said:
“Take this
and divide it among yourselves …” (Luk 22:17).
At this
stage in the Passover liturgy, the designated leader would wash his hands. In
this case Rabbi Jesus was the leader. After the leader washed his hands, all
the others at the table would wash their hands.[5]
It appears,
however, that at this point in the meal there began a small argument between
some of the disciples. They argued over who would be greater in rank once Jesus
established his Messianic kingdom.[6] Such arguments had happened before.[7]
Regardless, Jesus took this moment in the Passover ceremony to instruct his
followers on the nature of true greatness:
"And
supper being ended … Jesus … rose from supper and laid aside his garments, took
a towel and girded himself. After that, he poured water into a basin and began
to wash the disciples’ feet, and to wipe them with the towel with which he was
girded (Joh 13:2-5).
In a
standard 1st century Passover, after the ceremonial hand washing, the dishes of
symbolic food would be brought into the dining area. The leader would then take
a small sprig of the bitter herbs, pronounce the blessing, then dip it into a
bowl of salt water, and eat it whole. Afterwards, he would hand a sprig of
bitter herbs to each person present.
They would
likewise dip theirs in salt water, and then eat it. Immediately after this
action, the dishes of food were removed from the dining area. The dishes were
apparently removed to arouse curiosity and anticipation for what was to follow.
Right after the removal of the dishes, the second cup of wine was filled and
the blessing pronounced.
However, no
one drank yet.
Then the
youngest male in the group[8], often a son of the leader, would stand up and
chant in the Hebrew language a series of four questions. [9] At the Last Supper
it probably was John who asked the questions, since it seems that he was the
youngest of Jesus’ twelve disciples. The questions provided the leader with the
opportunity to explain the symbolic food items that would soon be returned to
the table. This naturally led into his telling the biblical story about God’s
deliverance of the Israelites from Egyptian bondage.
Once the
questions were asked, the dishes were returned to the table and the leader
began his answer. He would relate Israel’s history, from Terah, the father of
Abraham, to the exodus from Egypt and the giving of the Law. The Law of
Moses—or as it is called in Hebrew, the Torah—mandated that the annual Passover
meal include the following food items:[10]
1. Roasted
lamb …
-- called
ha-Pesakh, which means “the Passover.” In Jesus’ day it was sometimes called
ha-guf, “the body.”[11] The leader would explain that it was to remind the
meal’s participants of their ancestors’ deliverance. The Angel of Death “passed
over” those houses which were properly marked on their door frames with lamb’s
blood—a lamb that had been slain by a family representative, then entirely
eaten by a minimum group of 10 people. When the Angel saw the blood on the
doorposts,[12] … and only then, he refrained from killing the firstborn of that
household.
2.
Unleavened bread …
-- (Heb.
matzah)—It was bread made without yeast, because God’s deliverance would arrive
so swiftly that there wasn’t time to let the dough rise before baking it.[13]
3. Bitter
herbs …
-- (Heb.
maror)—Bitter vegetables[14] of most any local sort that would remind the
Jewish people of the bitterness their ancestors endured as slaves in Egypt.
According to
ancient religious writings of the times,[15] Jews almost universally included
the following items as well:
1. A bowl of
salt water on the table to symbolize the tears their ancestors shed while in
bondage.
2. A fruit
puree called kharoset that was designed to remind the participants of the clay
and mortar used while the ancient Hebrews made and lay bricks as slaves in
Egypt.
3. One cup
for each participant that was filled four times throughout the meal with red
wine. And emptied four times.[16] The wine symbolized the joy of the occasion.
Each cup contained one part real wine mixed with three parts water. The wine
was diluted to ensure that all participants, particularly the children, did not
become drunk or fall asleep during the Passover meal.[17]
It was the
duty of the leader of the meal to explain what each item on the table meant and
to tell his group the story of the exodus from Egypt. We can only assume that
Jesus did so, being a Torah-observant Jew.[18] The Gospels do not elaborate on
this. They have a narrower focus.
End Notes
[1] TEV
mistakenly has “sat down” etc. which is not only a bad rendering of the Greek
(anekeito), but also displays the translators’ lack of background cultural
knowledge. By understanding that at feasts free 1st century Jews reclined, we
can better see how certain events transpired, such as the crying woman who
anointed Jesus’ feet with perfume while he was reclining at the home of Simon
the Pharisee (Luk. 7:36-50). And others (E.g. Luk. 11:37ff; Joh. 12:1-3).
[2] Or
little “couches” made from cushions.
[3] The left
hand then, as is the case in India and in some Arab countries today, was used
by its owner during “bathroom” duties. Hand + water. Thus it was considered
unsanitary to use for general handling of food. See Keener, Craig S. The IVP
Bible Background Commentary: New Testament. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity
Press, 1993, p. 298.
[4] Called the
Cup of Sanctification because, from its consumption on, the Passover meal is
officially begun.
[5] This
ancient practice differs slightly from modern Passover customs where usually
only the table leader ritually washes his/her hands.
[6] From
Luke’s narrative (22:24-27), we see that the argument between disciples
continued even after the inauguration of the Lord’s Table. Or possibly John’s
account describes Jesus’ premonition that such an argument would take place.
Either way, it happened.
[7] Mar
10:35-44.
[8] Provided
he were old enough to carry out the duty. Otherwise, the father/leader or
someone else would do it for him.
[9] The 4
Questions of Jesus’ time were only slightly different than those in the modern
seder. They are: 1) “What distinguishes this night from all other nights? ...
for on all other nights we eat leavened or unleavened bread, but [why] on this
night do we only eat unleavened bread?” 2) “On all other nights we eat any kind
of herbs, but [why] on this night only bitter herbs?” 3) “On all other nights
we eat meat roasted, stewed, or boiled, but [why] on this night only roasted?”
4) “On all other nights we dip (the herbs) only once, but on this night twice?”
(Mishnah, Pesakhim [Passovers] 10.4). Since in modern times Jews do not eat the
sacrificed lamb because the temple was destroyed in A.D. 70, question #3 has
been replaced with #4, and the new fourth question inquires why they recline to
dine on this special night, while sitting on other nights.
[10] Exo
12:8.
[11] E.g.
“While the Sanctuary stood, they brought before him his body [Heb. GUFO] of the
Passover.” (Mishnah, Pesakhim [Passovers] 10.3, emphasis mine). After the
temple’s destruction, the matzah came to represent the Passover lamb.
Interestingly enough, Jesus referred to the unleavened bread of the Eucharist
as “my body” (Luk. 22:19; 1Cor. 11:24). Justin Martyr (c. A.D. 135), a
Christian Samaritan, wrote that the lamb was roasted in the form of a cross;
one spit, he says, went through from the lower parts to the head, and again
another across the shoulders, to which the front legs of the lamb were fastened
and hung; and so was in every way a type of Christ on the cross. (Dialogue With
Trypho the Jew, chp 40). Modern Jews, being forbidden to sacrifice the lamb
anywhere else but the temple, simply provide a lamb shank bone, or sometimes
even a chicken leg, as a temporary substitute.
[12] Exo
12:7. Is it mere coincidence that the path of the blood, applied by a hyssop
flower, starting horizontally from one side frame to the next, then vertically
from the basin on the ground upward to the overhead door frame, … is it mere
coincidence that the blood formed the sign of a cross?
[13] Deu
16:3.
[14] Exo.
12:8. The Vulgate Latin version translated by St. Jerome, who lived in
Bethlehem, renders it "wild lettuces." The Targum of Yonathan, an
early Aramaic free-translation has: "with horehound and endive they shall
eat it."
[15]
Mishnah, Pesakhim (Passovers) 10.15. See synopsis by Stein. “Last Supper” in
DJG, p. 446.
[16] The
first cup is called “the cup of Sanctification” - “I will bring you out.”
The second
cup is called “the cup of Thanksgiving” - “I will rid you out of their
bondage.”
The third
cup is called “the cup of Redemption” - “I will redeem you.”
The fourth
cup is called “the cup of Completion” - “I will take you to me for a people.”
It is sometimes called “Elijah’s cup,” since the “completion” of God’s salvific
plan must include His Messiah, and Elijah is the prophesied forerunner of the
Messiah (Mal 4:5, 6). The titles of the four cups come from words and themes in
Exo 6:6-8. Regarding "the poorest in Israel” it was written that those
with means who are celebrating Passover “must not give them less than four cups
of wine to drink" (Mishnah, Pesakhim 10.1). Why wine? Because it
"makes glad the heart of man" (Psa 104:15; Tosefta, Pesakhim 10.4),
and as such is suitable to commemorate freedom.
[17]
Nevertheless, after up to 6 hours at the table, and at least four cups of wine,
one tends to get sleepy (Mat 26:40-43). I know I do when participating in
modern Passover Seders while in the U.S. and in Israel.
[18] This is
EXTREMELY important! We must recognize that Jesus did not abolish the Law (Mat.
5:17-20) but obeyed it. Always. That is why not one of his challengers could
ever convict him of sin (E.g. Joh 8:46). If he were going about the land of
Israel disregarding the Law of Moses—as many Christians believe he was—anybody
in his country could have proven that he was a sinner “because sin is a
breaking of the Law” (1Joh 3:4 TEV). His frequent disputes with the Pharisees
were matters of interpretation. Not practice. It is for this reason that his
trial was unjust! According to the NT witness, Jesus was “born [and lived] …
under the Law” (Gal 4:4 TEV), was tempted like all humans, “but did not sin”
(Heb 4:15 TEV). Again, that means he obeyed the Law. My point is that we can
safely assume that Jesus recounted the exodus from Egypt because it is a
perpetual commandment for all descendants of Israel to do so on the Passover
(Exo 12:24-27).
-Michael
Millier
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