והוצאתי והצלתי וגאלתי ולקחתי ….. והבאתי
Although today, at our Seder, we drink four cups of wine 🍷🍷🍷🍷, the original ancient tradition—mentioned by the Talmud and by Maimonides—included a fifth cup 🍷 connected to a special prayer.
This prayer is the well-known Psalm in Tehilim, Mizmor 136 📖. The Sages called it:
🎶 Hallel haGadol — the “Great Song of Praise” to HaShem.
This psalm has 26 verses, each one describing the kindness of HaShem toward His people:
🌍 It begins with the creation of the world
⛓ It includes our gratitude for the Exodus from Egypt
🇮🇱 And it concludes with the establishment of the Jewish people in the Land of Israel
ונתן ארצם לנחלה
👉 This fifth cup is NOT obligatory—it is optional.
👉 And unlike the first four cups, it was drunk only by the person reciting the psalm 👤, not by everyone at the table.
🇾🇪 Yemenite Jews maintain this custom to this day and continue to drink the fifth cup 🍷
❓ WHY IS IT CALLED ELIYAHU HANAVI’S CUP?
For centuries, the Sages debated whether this fifth cup should be drunk 🍷
The four cups correspond to the four expressions of redemption in the Torah:
📖 In Shemot (chapter 6), HaShem says:
➡️ “I will take you out”
➡️ “I will save you”
➡️ “I will redeem you”
➡️ “I will take you as My people”
But the next verse adds a fifth expression:
➡️ “And I will bring you to the Land of Israel” 🇮🇱
👉 This fifth idea is clearly reflected in Hallel haGadol
🤔 THE GREAT QUESTION
For many centuries, throughout our two thousand years of exile, the Rabbis faced a difficult question:
Yes, we were freed from Egypt ✨
Yes, we became the people of HaShem 🤝
But…
❗ We no longer had the Land of Israel
❗ We lost our land and independence after the destruction of the Bet haMiqdash
So what should we do?
❓ Should we celebrate this fifth promise because it already happened?
❓ Or should we wait until it is fully realized again, in the Messianic era?
⚖️ THE DIPLOMATIC SOLUTION
The Rabbis did not reach a final decision.
So they established a middle approach:
🍷 We pour the fifth cup
🚫 But we do NOT drink it
👉 We acknowledge the promise… but we are still waiting for its full fulfillment ✨
🚪 WHY IS IT CALLED THE CUP OF ELIYAHU HANAVI?
When a halachic question remains unresolved, we say that when Eliyahu haNavi comes (announcing the arrival of the Mashiach), all doubts will be clarified by the renewed Sanhedrin in the Bet haMiqdash.
This cup, which is poured but not drunk, is “waiting” for Eliyahu haNavi—who will tell us whether we should drink it or not.
We leave it ready, reminding us that we are still awaiting the future redemption ✨
🇮🇱 THE STATE OF ISRAEL
Today, Baruch HaShem, we once again have a sovereign Jewish state in Israel 🇮🇱.
For this reason, many contemporary Rabbis—Sephardic and Ashkenazic alike, such as Rabbi Hayim David HaLevi z”l and Rabbi Shelomo Goren z”l—have suggested:
👉 Since 1948, we may return to the original custom
👉 And drink the fifth cup 🍷
For this reason, today many Jews—especially those living in Israel—serve and drink the fifth cup in honor of Medinat Israel 🇮🇱✨
