“And he will turn back (to God) the hearts of fathers to their sons and the hearts of sons to their fathers”

Malachi 3:24

The haftarah reading for Shabbat Hagadol is connected to Pesach, which begins next Wednesday evening — although the link between the festival and this reading from the prophet Malachi may not be immediately

obvious.

As we sit with our families gathered round the Seder table, we tell the story of the miraculous Exodus from Egypt. Moses, the first and greatest of all prophets, led our forefathers in their transformation from enslaved people to spiritual nation.

Prophecy, as a vocation, began with him and ended with Malachi, who in his closing words harks back to the giving of the Torah to Moses at Horeb.

Looking back to the beginning, Malachi gives a panoramic view of Jewish history to close its prophetic chapter.

His message ends with a promise of the final redemption, when God will send Elijah the prophet “before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord.” Thus he creates a chain from the first redemption from Egypt to the ultimate and eagerly awaited messianic era.

It is through the questioning of the children and the responses given to them that the story of the Exodus unfolds on Seder night. There is no other mitzvah or ritual where children claim such a central and pivotal role.

The many generations who join in recounting the tales of the Exodus do so with one voice and with one heart. And so, during Seder night we see echoes of Malachi’s prophecy that the final redemption will come when Elijah “turns back the hearts of fathers to their sons and the hearts of sons to their fathers.”

As we recreate and re-experience the first redemption with grandparents and children, we also joyfully envision the coming of Elijah, which will mark the ultimate redemption of all future generations.