Mitzvah —
108
Not to eat Chametz on the afternoon of the 14th day of Nissan
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לֹא־תֹאכַ֤ל עָלָיו֙ חָמֵ֔ץ שִׁבְעַ֥ת יָמִ֛ים תֹּֽאכַל־עָלָ֥יו מַצּ֖וֹת לֶ֣חֶם עֹ֑נִי כִּ֣י בְחִפָּז֗וֹן יָצָ֙אתָ֙ מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם לְמַ֣עַן תִּזְכֹּ֗ר אֶת־י֤וֹם צֵֽאתְךָ֙ מֵאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔יִם כֹּ֖ל יְמֵ֥י חַיֶּֽיךָ׃ - פָּרָשַׁת רְאֵה
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Deuteronomy 16:3 - "You shall not eat leaven with it; for seven days you shall eat with it matzoth, the bread of affliction, for in haste you went out of the land of Egypt, so that you shall remember the day when you went out of the land of Egypt all the days of your life."
This Mitzvah's Summary
מִצְוָה עֲשֵׂה - Positive Commandment
מִצְוָה לֹא תַעֲשֶׂה - Negative Commandment
Holidays – חֲגִים
Do not eat chametz on the afternoon of the 14th of Nissan.
This mitzvah forbids eating chametz (leavened bread or products) beginning from midday on the 14th of Nissan, the eve of Passover. By abstaining from chametz before the festival starts, one prepares spiritually and physically for Pesach, ensuring complete focus on matzah and the mitzvot of the Seder night. The prohibition highlights the urgency of the Exodus, when Israel left Egypt without time to allow their dough to rise.
Commentary & Classical Explanation:
- Rambam (Hilchot Chametz U’Matzah 1:8): Teaches that chametz becomes forbidden to eat from the sixth hour of the day on Erev Pesach.
- Sefer HaChinuch (Mitzvah 9): The root is to recall the haste of the Exodus and to distinguish clearly between chametz and matzah in the observance of Pesach.
- Talmud (Pesachim 28a): Establishes the precise time from which chametz is forbidden on the 14th, marking the transition into the festival’s holiness.
Commentaries
(Source: Chabad.org)
