What do the bitter herbs represent at the passover? According to Jewish tradition, bitter herbs like romaine lettuce and dandelion and horseradish were to be eaten at every passover service. But none of that is in the Bible at all. In fact, bitter herbs aren’t in the Bible!

Exodus 12:8 And they shall eat the flesh in that night, roast with fire, and unleavened bread; < and> with bitter < herbs> they shall eat it.

Numbers 9:11 The fourteenth day of the second month at even they shall keep it, < and> eat it with unleavened bread and bitter < herbs>.

If you read that in your own Bible, you’ll notice that the words in brackets are in italics in your Bible. That means that they were ADDED by the translators. They added them because they knew that Jewish tradition said that bitter herbs were meant to be eaten at the passover, so they concluded that must be what Moses had meant. But what Moses REALLY said in the original text was:

Exodus 12:8 (YLT) … with unleavened things and bitters they do eat it;

Note that the phrase “bitter herbs” is not in the Bible. At all. Ever. The word translated here as “bitters”, and in the King James and most other versions as “bitter herbs”, is “Marorim”. The “im” suffix means it is a plural word, which is why it’s translated as “bitters”. Marorim is used three times in the Bible, translated twice as bitter (herbs) and once as “bitterness”.

You may recognize a related word “Marah” (as in the waters of Marah – which were so called because the waters were “bitter”). Both these words come from the very similar root word “Marar” which is pretty straightforward, meaning simply “to be bitter”. So all that was being said in Exodus 12:8 was that the passover was to be eaten with unleavened bread and “bitter (s)”, whatever that means. To find out, we’ll look at the third place this “Marorim” word is used – and start to understand what it really means!

Lamentations 3:14-15 I was a derision to all my people; and their song all the day. He hath filled me with bitterness [marorim], he hath made me drunken with wormwood.

Jeremiah was depressed. He felt bitter and hopeless. Reading the context makes that clear. He wasn’t eating bitter “herbs”, and the translators had sense enough not to translate it that way here – he was filled with BITTERNESS. The margin renders it “filled me with BITTERNESSES”, or being bitter over many things, to reflect the plurality of Marorim. This is the plain meaning of “Marorim” and all it’s related words. Now let’s apply that same thinking to the passover scriptures.

If we eat the passover with unleavened bread and “bitternesses”, how would we be eating it? This section of scripture (Exodus 12) goes into great detail describing how they were to eat the passover with a staff in their hand, shoes on their feet, to show their readiness and willingness to leave Egypt on a moment’s notice.

The passover itself pictured the death of Christ and the forgiveness of their sins, and the payment for their trip out of Egypt (metaphorically, the land of sin). Now how SHOULD you feel about your sins just before leaving them behind? Should you be rejoicing? No! You should be PENITENT over the fact that you ever sinned in the first place!

Jeremiah 2:19 … know therefore and see that it is an evil thing AND BITTER, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.

Jeremiah says that it is a BITTER THING to have forsaken God – I.E., to have sinned! The passover is about the payment for your sins, the death of GOD to pay for the careless, selfish sins of YOU! YOU SHOULD FEEL BITTER!

Zechariah 12:10 ... and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in BITTERNESS FOR HIM, as one that is IN BITTERNESS FOR HIS FIRSTBORN.

This prophecy is DIRECTLY about the passover! About the death of Christ, and how we should MOURN for Him, and be in BITTERNESS FOR HIM! In bitterness as if you were witnessing the death of YOUR OLDEST SON to pay for YOUR SINS! And THAT is the meaning of the bitter “herbs”!

The passover is not a party, not a celebration – that is to be saved for the next night, when the sacrifice was finished and the pain was over! Paul condemns people who were coming to the passover eating and drinking and celebrating! (1 Corinthians 11:20-21)

You are to eat the passover with unleavened bread and with BITTERNESS! With a heavy heart knowing the enormous penalty levied against a being who did not deserve it! Knowing that YOUR sins are what made that sacrifice necessary! To eat the passover solemnly – not to simply eat romaine lettuce at a sedar celebration, as the modern Jews do even as they deny His sacrifice!