When the Pesach Seder took shape almost two thousand years ago, it made no mention of Elijah the prophet. How did the biblical zealot find his way into the haggadah? Medieval Ashkenazic traditions may hold the key

The bare bones of the Seder are outlined in the Mishna, in the tenth chapter of tractate Pesahim, dating from roughly the third century. There’s not a trace of Elijah the prophet anywhere in that description. The first time he appears as the guest of honor at these proceedings is in haggadot from 15th-century Germany. 

Three customs announce the prophet’s arrival at the Seder, each of which developed separately: pouring him a cup of wine (in addition to the four drunk by all participants); opening the door; and reciting a series of biblical verses beginning with “Pour out Your wrath upon the nations” (Psalms 79:6). In the late Middle Ages, these three independent practices coalesced around Elijah as the herald of the Messiah, emphasizing the evening’s heightened expectation of redemption. All three were performed immediately following the grace after meals, before continuing the reading of Hallel (more psalms) and the conclusion of the Seder. The meal essentially divides the Seder in two. Before dinner we focus on the exodus from Egypt, i.e., on the past, while afterward we allude to the future redemption. Elijah is integral to that salvation, as the biblical book of Malachi tasks him with announcing the Messiah’s arrival: 

Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse. (Malachi 3:23– 24) 

Since the Middle Ages, Ashkenazic communities have chanted this chapter of Malachi as the weekly selection from the prophets on the Sabbath before Pesach. That Sabbath was known as the “Great Sabbath” well before the custom of reading about the “great and dreadful day of Lord” became entrenched. Nevertheless, the two traditions together likely reinforced the connection between Elijah and Passover. 

 

Night of Watching

The practice of opening the door midway through the Seder apparently dates from the Geonic period (circa 600–1000). The most common medieval explanation ties the custom to the protective nature of this night:

It is a night of watching for the Lord, to bring them out of the land of Egypt. (Exodus 12:42)

The Talmud attributes special qualities to the anniversary of Israel’s exodus throughout history: 

R. Joshua says: In Nisan they were delivered, in Nisan they will be delivered in the time to come. Whence do we know this? Scripture calls [the first night of Passover] ‘a night of watchings’ [shimurim, plural], [meaning] a night continuously watched for from the six days of creation [and] a night under constant protection against evil spirits. (Rosh Ha-shana 11b, Soncino translation)