Summary of the day
The Fast of the Firstborn is a fast for the firstborn (a firstborn son of the father or the mother, depending on custom), on 14 Nisan, the eve of Pesach. The fast runs from dawn until nightfall. If the 14th falls on Shabbat, the fast moves to Thursday. Most firstborn exempt themselves from the fast by attending a siyum, the completion of a tractate or a book, in the morning in the synagogue, and then take part in the festive meal of a mitzvah.
The mitzvot of the day
- Fasting of the firstborn (or taking part in a siyum).
- Burning the chametz in the morning, and selling chametz.
- Preparing for the Seder: the Seder plate, wine, matzot and so on.
- The Pesach offering was slaughtered in the afternoon in Temple times. There is no Tachanun at Mincha.
Origin in history
In the tenth plague, God struck every firstborn in Egypt and spared the firstborn of Israel. Hence the custom of the firstborn to fast in gratitude for the rescue (Tractate Soferim 21:3; Rema, Orach Chaim 470). According to tradition firstborn are holy: “Sanctify to Me every firstborn” (Exodus 13:2). The fast is acceptance of that responsibility.
The message for today
On the Seder night everyone is free, but on the eve of Pesach the firstborn begin with humility. The fast teaches that rescue is not to be taken for granted: we live thanks to a miracle. And the siyum hints that learning can turn the fast into joy. Torah study and joy go together.