Generally, Chazal advise us to be defined by our actions and not by our words, as the Mishna states "say little and do a lot" (Avos 1:15). However, a notable exception to this rule is the night of the seder, when the Haggadah exhorts, "whoever talks excessively about the exodus from Mitzrayim is praiseworthy." Similarly, the matzah is described as "lechem oni - the bread of affliction" (Devarim 16:3) which could also be read as "the bread of responses," from which the Gemara (Pesachim 36a) derives that the matzah should be the topic of great and lengthy conversation, "lechem she'onim alav devarim harbei - the bread about which many answers are offered." The Arizal has observed that even the name of the yom tov of "Pesach" itself, can be deconstructed to form two words, "peh sach - a mouth which is speaking", because throughout Pesach our mouths should be working tirelessly to recount the story of yetziyas Mitzrayim. The month during which Pesach occurs is the month of Nissan, which has the numerical equivalent of one hundred and seventy, or two times eighty-five, which is the numerical value of the word "peh - mouth." This underscores the message that during the month of Nissan, and particularly on Pesach, our mouths should be operating on overdrive, speaking twice as much as usual, in delving into the miracles of the exodus.
Most of our discussions regarding yetziyas Mitzrayim are concentrated in the Maggid section of the Haggadah, which is introduced with the words "ha lachma - this is the bread," which also has the numerical value of eighty-five, and the word "peh," prompting us to be prepared to open our mouths immanently in conversation. Moreover, the formal beginning of Maggid opens with the letter mem, in the word "mah - why," and closes with a mem sofit, an ending mem, in the word "mayim" at the conclusion of the first part of Hallel. This is analogous to the Torah She'baal Peh itself which opens with the letter mem, in the word "mei'eimasai," at the beginning of Berachos, and closes with a mem sofit, in the word "shalom," at the conclusion of Uktzin. The letter mem is one of the four letters in the aleph beis which are formed with the lips, along with the letters, beis, vuv, and peh. The Maggid section of the Haggadah, and the Mishnah commence with the letter mem which is produced with the lips as an indication, that we should seek to open our lips and mouths to a greater degree when speaking and engaged in learning Torah and retelling the story of yetziyas Mitzrayim. The mem sofit at the end, encourages us, to be to be more discerning and economical with what we say and how much we speak after we have concluded learning Torah and discussing yetziyas Mitzrayim.
When addressing the fourth son in the Haggadah, the one who does not even know how to ask, the Haggadah prescribes, "at pesach lo - you should initiate with him." However, here the narrator of the Haggadah transitions from the masculine "ata" to the feminine "at", which is curious. This leads the Divrei Chaim, to suggest that in fact the word "at" is an acronym for "a'leph...t'af", which coaches us to exhaust the entire lexicon, dictionary, and thesaurus, all the way from the letter aleph, at beginning of the aleph beis, to the letter taf at the end of the aleph beis, in order to engage the children at the seder and inspire them with our description of yetziyas Mitzrayim. A short while later, we raise our glasses of wine and declare, "vehi she'adma le'avoseinu ve'lanu - and this is what has stood for us" and preserved us throughout the diaspora and saved us from mortal danger. The item referred to in this proclamation, "vehi - and this," is vague and one of the classical mysteries of the seder which is the subject of voluminous speculation. However, perhaps on some level the word "vehi", which has the numerical value of twenty-two, is an allusion to the twenty-two letters of the aleph beis which we must utilize completely in speaking with and educating our children on the night of the seder regarding our beliefs and practices, and it is precisely this endeavor which has secured our continuity and survival from generation to generation.
Why do we exaggerate speaking and talking to such an unusual degree on the night of the seder? Perhaps it is because we were only exiled to Mitrzayim in the first place as a result of harmful and destructive speech. When Yitzchak was born, Sarah approached Avraham Avinu and urged him to "evict this handmaid (Hagar) and her son" (Breishis 21:10), lest Yishmael have a harmful influence on Yitzchok. The Baal Haturim claims that since Sarah spoke in an exceptionally harsh fashion towards Hagar, the Jewish people were punished that they too would be driven from their home. In accordance with Hashem's usual method of administering justice in-kind, Sarah's descendants were exiled specifically to Mitzrayim, which was the birthplace of Hagar. Rav Shlomo Kluger (Yeriyos Shlomo), suggests that this is the meaning of the assertion in the Haggadah that we descended to Mitrzrayim "trapped by the speech." This phrase is generally interpreted as a reference to Hashem's verbal bond with Avraham Avinu, "and your children will be strangers in a foreign land" (Breishis 15:13) which compelled our deportation and servitude. However, Rav Shlomo Kluger argues that it also refers to Sarah's severe tone in speaking with Hagar, which further induced our expulsion and held us prisoner in Mitzrayim.
But more directly, Yaakov and his sons originally traveled to Mitzrayim only as a result of the sale of Yosef. For this reason, the seder begins with karpas, the first dipping of the night. Rabbeinu Manoach contends that this dipping serves as a reminder of the first dipping recorded in the Torah, when the shevatim dipped Yosef's coat in the blood of a goat (Breishis 37:31) in order to deceive and mislead their father. This is supported by Rashi (Breishis 37:3) who defines Yosef's coat as a garment made from material "similar to karpas and techeiles." Additionally, the seder finishes with the cryptic chad gadya parable, which centers around a pivotal goat who is sold for two zuzim. Rav Asher Weiss proposes that this too is an allusion to Yosef and his fateful coat that was worth two selaim (Shabbos 10b), which aroused the jealousy of his brothers and led to his kidnaping and sale at their hands. The Torah attests that when Yosef "spoke evil tales about them to their father" (Breishis 37:2), the shevatim began to despise Yosef to the point that "they could no longer speak with him peacefully" (Breishis 37:4). The dysfunctional relationship between Yosef and his brothers, that facilitated the Jewish people's initial descent to Mitzrayim, deteriorated so dramatically and tragically because of a breakdown of peaceful and positive speech. Therefore, it is not surprising that the only way to leave Mitzrayim on the seder night, is to rehabilitate our speech and talk our way out of it. On the night of the seder we accentuate talking to a greater degree than usual, because we are attempting to cleanse our power of speech by channeling our words towards praising Hashem, learning Torah, and welcoming others.
The mouth and our ability to speak were designed expressly for the purpose of holy speech and engaging in Torah learning. The Shelah Hakadosh cites the Rokeach that there are thirty-two teeth in the mouth, sixteen above and sixteen below, corresponding to the sixteen aliyos of Torah reading we participate in each week, (seven Shabbos morning, three Shabbos afternoon, three on Monday, and three on Thursday), because our mouths were intended deliberately to enable weekly and daily Torah learning. Similarly, the five areas in the mouth where letters are formed, the throat, palate, tongue, teeth, and lips, are related to the five books of the Torah which we should be discussing incessantly. The Bluzhever Rebbe (Tzvi LeTzaddik) suggests that these five areas in which letters are enunciated are the basis for the five expressions of redemption mentioned by the Torah in connection with yetziyas Mitzrayim, "I shall take you out", "I shall rescue you", "I shall redeem you", "I shall take you", and "I shall bring you")Shemos 6:6-8), as well as the five illustrations of emancipation and salvation contained within the Haggadah, "from slavery to freedom, from sorrow to joy, from mourning to festivity, from deep darkness to great light, and from bondage to redemption." If we immerse ourselves verbally in the story of yetziyas Mitzrayim and limmud haTorah on the seder night, may we be able to purge our mouths from all aspects of negative speech, and may we merit to attain and experience all of the five manifestations of redemption, culminating with "and I will bring you to the land" so that we may be able to celebrate Pesach next year in Yerushalayim!