("Paschal Sacrifices"). Third tractate of Order
Mo'Ed in the Mishnah. Its ten chapters deal with the laws requiring the eating of
Matzah (unleavened bread) and forbidding the consumption of leaven (
ḥamets) during the festival of
Passover (cf. Ex. 12:1-28, 43-50, 13:3-10; Num. 9:1-14; Deut. 16:1-8). The Mishnah also covers the offering of the paschal lamb sacrifice during the period of the
Temple and the holding of the
Seder (service) on the first night of Passover. This tractate also discusses the two different times when one may offer the Passover sacrifice, either on the proper date or on the Second Passover. The subject matter is amplified in both Talmuds and in the
Tosefta.