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The Matza Mystery - The Meaning of the Command to Eat Matza Prior to the Exodus

Rabbi Yair Kahn

Sefer Shemot describes how Bnei Yisrael baked matza as they were being rushed out of Egypt because they didn't have time to wait for the leavening process in bread. But there was already a law about matza that appeared in the instructions before the Pesach in Egypt. - that Bnei Yisrael were to eat the lamb with matza and maror. Why are Bnei Yisrael commanded to eat matza for Pesach Mitzrayim-- what is the symbolism for the matza before Bnei Yisrael left in haste? We find clues in earlier chapters in Shemot as well as in the Brit Bein HaBetarim (Covenant Between the Parts) that present the matza as paralleling two different parts of the exodus. Multiple aspects of the matza experience are important in commemorating the Exodus, as the matza may symbolize the enslavement, oppression (innuy), and redemption.