The Wine at a Passover Meal
In a previous blog post Paul told us about the food and its significance at the Passover Meal. Today Paul explains about the 4 cups of wine that accompany the meal.
Lots of wine!
Whenever we do a Passover Seder service for groups who have not experienced one before, the question that comes first is always “4 cups of wine? That seems a little excessive for a religious event!”
4 cups does sound rather a lot and there are a number of reasons for this number, although they are all theories as no one really knows.
Expressions of deliverance
The most popular theory is that the cups correspond to the 4 expressions of deliverance by God in Exodus 6:6-7: “I will bring out, I will deliver, I will redeem and I will take”.
Each cup represents a different aspect of the story of the Exodus: freedom, deliverance, redemption and release and they are drunk at specific times during the service.
The names of the cups
The first cup is known as the cup of sanctification which sets apart the evening as holy.
The second is the cup of deliverance and is drunk as the Exodus story is retold.
After the meal the third cup is drunk, which is the one Jesus and his disciples were drinking at the Last Supper and is the cup of redemption, which has become the communion cup.
The fourth and final is also known as the cup of praise as it is drunk while singing the Psalms and is the one Jesus will drink with us in his Father’s kingdom.
Other explanations are that the 4 cups symbolise the 4 exiles from the promised land: the Egyptian, Babylonian, Greek and the current one waiting for the Messiah to come.
According to the Kabbalah ( a form of Jewish mysticism) we are celebrating freedom from the 4 forces of spiritual impurity as well as physical freedom.
Why wine?
Why is wine drunk at all on this occasion? Wine was thought of as a royal drink and as such symbolised freedom. This is a festive evening when families gather to celebrate.
Whatever the origin of the 4 cups, they certainly liven up the evening!
Thank you Paul
