Root Word
כַּרְפַּס (karpas) — fine linen; in modern Seder usage, a green vegetable representing spring and new life
Action
Dip a piece of parsley (or another green vegetable) into salt water and eat it.
Meaning and Symbolism
This step may feel small, but it is rich in layered meaning.
- Salt water represents tears, sorrow, and bondage — the grief of Israel in slavery and the sorrow we all experience in mortality.
- Parsley, a spring herb, represents life, growth, renewal, and hope — especially as it bursts forth after long, hard seasons.
The contrast of the fresh green and the stinging salt reflects the dual nature of our journey: sorrow paired with hope, suffering mingled with redemption.
Joseph’s story reminds us that grief and betrayal can become the gateway to deliverance. (See Alma 5 and the Nephite Seder for more on these connections.)
Scripture Connection
“And he shall go forth, suffering pains and afflictions… that his bowels may be filled with mercy.” — Alma 7:11
“They took Joseph’s coat… and dipped the coat in the blood of a goat.” — Genesis 37:31
Shir HaMa'alot — Psalm 122: A Song of Ascents
Psalm 122 celebrates the joy of gathering to the house of the Lord and prays for the peace of Jerusalem. The Karpas step — with its tears and greens — holds this tension between grief and hope. We dip in sorrow, but we gather in gladness. The psalm’s vision of unified tribes ascending to the temple resonates with the covenant hope that even after scattering, God gathers His people.
1 I was glad when they said unto me, Let us go into the house of the LORD. 2 Our feet shall stand within thy gates, O Jerusalem. 3 Jerusalem is builded as a city that is compact together: 4 Whither the tribes go up, the tribes of the LORD, unto the testimony of Israel, to give thanks unto the name of the LORD. 5 For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David. 6 Pray for the peace of Jerusalem: they shall prosper that love thee. 7 Peace be within thy walls, and prosperity within thy palaces. 8 For my brethren and companions’ sakes, I will now say, Peace be within thee. 9 Because of the house of the LORD our God I will seek thy good.
The Covenant Pattern
At the Seder Table: The green herbs dipped in salt water unite new life with tears — spring growth meeting the bitterness of bondage. The Midrash (Exodus Rabbah 17:3) teaches that even the hyssop — the lowliest of plants — accomplished the greatest redemption, for it was used to apply the Paschal blood to the doorposts.
At the Seder Table — The Herbs and the Questions
The Haggadah prescribes a small quantity of karpas — a green vegetable such as parsley or celery — dipped in salt water, with the following blessing:
בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה יְיָ, אֱלֹהֵינוּ מֶלֶךְ הָעוֹלָם, בּוֹרֵא פְּרִי הָאֲדָמָה.
Blessed are You, LORD our God, King of the Universe, who creates the fruit of the ground.
The karpas represents spring, new life, and hope — dipped in salt water to remember the tears of bondage. This is distinct from the maror (bitter herbs such as horseradish) eaten later at Step 9, which represents the bitterness of slavery itself.
Following the dipping of the karpas, Edersheim records that a deliberately provocative act followed: “all the dishes were removed from the table (as it was thought so strange a proceeding would tend to excite the more curiosity).” This set the stage for the most important moment of the early Seder — the child’s questions. Everything was pedagogical, an invitation to ask and to learn.
Sources: Pesach Haggadah (Sefaria/Koren); Edersheim, The Temple: Its Ministry and Services, Ch. 12
At the Last Supper: The karpas — dipped in salt water — foreshadows a darker dipping to come. Later in the meal, at the Korech (Step 10), Jesus will dip a morsel and hand it to the betrayer. But here, at the first dipping, the ancient pattern of Joseph’s coat already casts its shadow over the table.
At the Last Supper — The Foreshadowing of Betrayal
The act of dipping at the Seder was meant to signify fellowship. But for those who knew the story of Joseph, the karpas carried a warning. Joseph’s brothers dipped his coat in blood and sold him into bondage (Genesis 37:31). The Seder’s karpas — dipped in salt water — recalls those tears.
At Christ’s table, the ancient pattern would repeat. Joseph was sold for twenty pieces of silver (Genesis 37:28); Jesus would be betrayed for thirty (Matthew 26:15) — both the price of a slave in their respective eras. Joseph’s betrayal led to the salvation of his family in Egypt. Judas’ betrayal would lead to the salvation of the world through the Atonement.
The karpas foreshadows what the Korech will reveal: “He that dippeth his hand with me in the dish, the same shall betray me” (Matthew 26:23). The bitter tears of betrayal are tasted early — but the full identification comes later, when Jesus hands the sop to Judas (see Step 10: Korech).
See also: Alma 5 and the Nephite Seder
In the Nephite Assembly: Alma’s audience lived the karpas pattern — twice. In Alma 5:4, he reminds them: “they were delivered out of the hands of the people of king Noah.” A wicked Nephite king oppressing his own people. Then in verse 5: “they were brought into bondage by the hands of the Lamanites” — their own brothers, descendants of Laman and Lemuel, whose jealousy toward Nephi echoed the sons of Israel toward Joseph. The same story, repeated: brotherly contention leads to bondage. Bondage leads to tears.
In the Nephite Assembly — Alma 5: Bondage at the Hands of Their Brethren
The word karpas itself carries a hidden layer. In Esther 1:6, the same Hebrew word (כַּרְפַּס) is translated as “fine cotton” or “fine linen” — the fabric of priestly robes and royal garments. This links karpas to Joseph’s coat, the garment Jacob gave to mark Joseph’s birthright, which provoked his brothers’ jealousy:
“They took Joseph’s coat… and dipped the coat in the blood of a goat.” — Genesis 37:31
The brothers stripped Joseph of his garment and dipped it in blood — staging his death and condemning him to bondage. At the Seder, we dip the karpas into salt water, reenacting the moment when jealousy and contention within a family led to slavery and tears.
Alma draws this same pattern directly into his sermon. He does not describe a foreign oppressor — he specifies that the Nephites were brought into bondage by their own brethren:
“After that, they were brought into bondage by the hands of the Lamanites in the wilderness; yea, I say unto you, they were in captivity, and again the Lord did deliver them out of bondage by the power of his word.” — Alma 5:5
“Have ye sufficiently retained in remembrance that he has delivered their souls from hell?” — Alma 5:6
Just as Joseph’s brothers sold him into Egypt, the Lamanites — Lehi’s own descendants — brought their brethren into bondage. And just as God raised Joseph to save his family, God delivered the Nephites through the power of His word. The karpas reminds us that the deepest wounds often come from within our own families — and that God’s deliverance reaches even there.
On the Covenant Path Today: President Nelson promises that “the reward for keeping covenants with God is heavenly power — power that strengthens us to withstand our trials, temptations, and heartaches better” (“Overcome the World and Find Rest," 2022). The salt water of our own tears meets the green of covenant hope — and from that meeting, new life springs.
On the Covenant Path — Leaving Babylon
The salt water of Karpas recalls the tears of bondage — but it also points forward to the call to leave bondage behind. In the latter days, the Lord uses the same Exodus language: “Go ye out from Babylon… go ye out from among the nations, even from Babylon, from the midst of wickedness” (D&C 133:5, 14).
The Four Cups and the Wedding Covenant explains that this is Exodus language applied to the latter days. Just as Israel left physical Egypt, we are called to leave spiritual Babylon. And just as Israel was led by the blood of the lamb, we are led by Christ, the Lamb of God.
The Karpas dipping teaches that tears and deliverance are inseparable — the salt water of sorrow and the green of new life are tasted together. On the covenant path, leaving Babylon always involves grief for what we leave behind and hope for what we walk toward. The covenant does not promise a life without tears — it promises that the tears lead somewhere.
Reflection Questions
- What tears — past or present — do I bring to this table tonight? How has Christ shared in those sorrows?
- Why do we begin the meal with something bitter and salty? How do sorrow and suffering prepare our hearts for joy and deliverance?
- Like Joseph’s brothers, are there choices I’ve made that I regret — moments I’ve betrayed or wounded someone I love? What can I learn from their story of repentance and reconciliation?
- What is the “spring” growing in my soul right now? Where have I seen God turning sorrow into hope?
- Christ did not avoid sorrow — He entered into it with us. In what ways have I felt His empathy and comfort?