Midrasch zu Wajikra 6:5

"he is Mine": What is the intent of this? It is written (Devarim 15:19) "the male shall you sanctify to the L rd your G d." (How am I to understand this?) As sanctify it so that you receive reward, or if you sanctify it, it is sanctified, and, if not, it is not sanctified? It is, therefore, written "he is Mine" — in any event. What is the intent, then, of "the male shall you sanctify"? Sanctify it (i.e., dedicate it to the L rd) for the sake of receiving reward. Similarly, (Leviticus 6:5) "And the Cohein shall burn wood upon it every morning, etc." What is the intent of this? Is it not written (Isaiah 40:16) "and (the whole forest of Levanon is not sufficient to burn, etc."? What, then, is the intent of "And the Cohein shall burn wood upon it"? For the sake of receiving reward. Similarly, (Numbers 28:4) "the one lamb shall you offer, etc." What is the intent of this? Is it not written (Isaiah, Ibid.) "nor the beasts thereof sufficient for a burnt-offering"? What, then, is the intent of "The one lamb, etc."? For the sake of receiving reward. Similarly, (Exodus 25:8) "and they shall make for Me a sanctuary, etc." What is the intent of this? Is it not written (Jeremiah 23:24) "Do I not fill heaven and earth?" What, then, is the intent of "And they shall make for Me a sanctuary"? For the sake of receiving reward for making it. Once, the disciples spent a Sabbath in Yavneh, R. Yehoshua not among them. When they returned to him he asked them: "What novelty did you hear in Yavneh?" They answered: "After you, our master" (i.e., there is no one to do so after you). R. Yehoshua: "Who spent the Sabbath there?" They: "R. Elazar b. Azaryah." R. Yehoshua: "Is it possible that R. Elazar b. Azaryah spent the Sabbath there without telling you something novel?" They: He expounded this principle (Devarim 31:12) "Gather the people — the men, the women, and the children." Now do little children know the difference between good and evil? But (He did so) in order to bestow reward upon their bringers, to increase the reward of the doers of His will, as it is written (Isaiah 42:21) "The L rd desires for the sake of His righteousness to magnify Torah and to exalt it." At this, he said to them: "What can be more novel than this? I am seventy years old, and I never merited hearing such a thing until this day! Happy are you, father Abraham, from whose loins Elazar b. Azaryah emerged! The generation is not an orphan in whose midst R. Elazar b. Azaryah resides!" They: Our master, he also expounded this principle: (Jeremiah 23:7) "Therefore, behold, days are coming, says the L rd, when it will no more be said: 'As the L rd lives, who brought up the children of Israel from the land of Egypt, etc.'" To what may this be compared? A man desired children and had a daughter — whereupon (when he made a vow) he vowed upon her life. Thereafter, he had a son, and (in vowing) he left off (vowing by) his daughter and vowed upon the life of his son. R. Shimon b. Yochai says: To what may this be compared? A man was journeying and was accosted by a wolf, from which he was rescued — whereupon he would (always) talk about his encounter with the wolf. He was later accosted by a lion, from which he was rescued — whereupon he left off talking about his encounter with the wolf and spoke about his encounter with the lion. Similarly, (Genesis 29:19) "And he called the name of the place Beth-El." The first name was superseded by the second. Similarly, (Ibid. 17:5) "And your name will no longer be called Avram." The first name was superseded by the second. Similarly, (Ibid. 15) "Sarai, your wife, etc." The first name was superseded by the second. (Ibid. 32:28) "Your name will no longer be called Yaakov but Yisrael." The first name remained and the second was superadded. The name of Yitzchak was not changed, for he was thus (originally) called by the Holy One Blessed be He. There are three who were named by the Holy One Blessed be He — Yitzchak, Shlomoh, and Yoshiyahu. Yitzchak — (Ibid. 17:19) "But Sarah your wife will bear a son for you and you shall call his name Yitzchak." Shlomoh (I Chronicles 22:9) "for Shlomoh will be his name." Yoshiyahu (I Kings 13:2) "A son will be born to the house of David. Yoshiyahu will be his name." Others say: Also Yishmael among the gentiles. We find the names of righteous ones and their deeds to be revealed to the L rd before their creation, viz. (Jeremiah 1:5) "Before I created you in the womb, I knew you." Where do we find (the same for) the names of wicked ones? It is written (Psalms 58:4) "The wicked are estranged from the womb, etc."

(Fol. 33) Abaye arranged the order of the daily service in the Temple, according to tradition, in agreement with the opinion of Abba Saul. The [first] great arrangements of [wood] preceded the second arrangement of the incense; and the second order of incense preceded the ranging of the two pieces of wood [upon the altar]; and the ranging of the two pieces of wood preceded the removal of the ashes from the inner altar; and the removal of the ashes from the inner altar preceded the dressing of the five lamps [of the candlestick]; and the dressing of the five lamps, preceded the sprinkling of the blood of the regular [morning] offering; and the sprinkling of the blood of the regular [morning] offering preceded the dressing of the two lamps; and the dressing of two lamps preceded the burning of the incense; and the incense preceded the offering of the members (portions) of the sacrifices; and the offering of the members (portions) preceded the meal-offering; and the meal-offering preceded the baked-meal offering; and the baked-meal offering preceded the drink offerings; and the drink offerings preceded the additional offerings (Musaff); and the additional offerings preceded the [two] spoons of frank incense; and the spoons of frank incense preceded the regular evening offering; as it is said (Lev. 6, 5) And he shall lay the burnt offering in order upon it, and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace-offering (Hashlamim) he shall therewith finish all the offerings of the day.

(Lev. 16:1:) “After the death of Aaron's two sons.” R. Berekhyah opened (his discourse with Prov. 17:26), “To punish also the righteous is not good; to smite the noble ones for uprightness.”³⁵Lev. R. 20:6; PRK 26(27):6/7. Said the Holy One, blessed be He, “Although I punished Aaron (for the golden calf) by taking his two children from him, it is not good. It was only (according to ibid., cont.) “to smite the noble ones for uprightness.”³⁶Perhaps either because they themselves had sinned or in order to sanctify the Divine Name, since (according to Lev. 10:3) Aaron accepted their deaths in silence. See Enoch Zundel in his commentary on Tanh., Lev. 6:5.

(Lev. 16:1:) AFTER THE DEATH OF < AARON'S TWO SONS >. R. Berekhyah opened (with Prov. 17:26): TO PUNISH ALSO THE RIGHTEOUS IS NOT GOOD.³⁸Tanh., Lev. 6:5; Lev. R. 20:6; PRK 26(27):6/7. Although the Holy One punished Aaron (for the golden calf) by taking his two children from him, it IS NOT GOOD. It was only (according to ibid., cont.) TO SMITE THE NOBLE ONES FOR UPRIGHTNESS.³⁹Perhaps either because they themselves had sinned or in order to sanctify the Divine Name, since (according to Lev. 10:3) Aaron accepted their deaths in silence. See Enoch Zundel in his commentary on the parallel in Tanh., Lev. 6:5. This is what is written (in Lev. 16:1:) AFTER THE DEATH OF < AARON'S TWO SONS >….

7) (Vayikra 6:5) ("And the fire upon the altar shall burn thereby; it shall not be extinguished. And the Cohein shall kindle wood on it every morning. And he shall arrange the burnt-offering upon it. And he shall cause to smoke upon it the fats of the peace-offerings.") R. Yehudah said: Whence is it derived that the kindling of the fire is to take place only on top of the altar (and not by means of splinters kindled below)? From: "And the fire upon the altar shall burn thereby." R. Yossi said: Whence is it derived that a wood pile is provided for the sustenance of the fire? From "And the fire upon the altar shall burn thereby." Whence is it derived that all who put out (the altar fire) transgress a negative commandment? From "it shall not be extinguished."

8) "And the Cohein shall kindle wood on it every morning (lit., "in the morning, in the morning")": It is written here "in the morning, in the morning," and in respect to the daily burnt-offering (the tamid) "in the morning" (Bamidbar 28:4): "And the one lamb shall you offer in the morning." I would not know which takes precedence, (the placing of the two logs on the wood pile, "wood" in our instance, or the slaughtering of the tamid). — Let that of which it is written "in the morning, in the morning" take precedence to that of which only one "in the morning" is written. It is written in respect to the wood "in the morning, in the morning," and in respect to the incense (Shemoth 30:7): "in the morning, in the morning, when he cleans the lamps he shall burn it (the incense)." I would not know which takes precedence. Which is a prerequisite for which? The wood (i.e., the placing of the two logs) is a prerequisite for the incense, (being a prerequisite for the entire altar service). — Let them precede the incense.

9) It is written in respect to the incense "in the morning, in the morning," and it is written in respect to the lamps (Shemoth 30:7) "in the morning, in the morning." I would not know which takes precedence. "when he cleans the lamps he shall burn it (the incense)" indicates that they, too, precede the incense. Whence is it derived that the great wood pile (on the altar) is to be set up so as to accommodate all of the burnt-offerings (both the mussaf burnt-offerings and the gift burnt-offerings, as well as that of the tamid)? From (Vayikra 6:2): "It is the burnt-offering," (implying all burnt-offerings). Whence is it derived that the devoted portions of the peace-offerings, those of the guilt-offering, those of holy of holies, and those of lower order offerings, (of the atzereth peace-offerings, are also sacrificed thereon)? From "upon it the fats of the peace-offerings," (implying the other offerings as well). Whence do we derive (the same for) the fistful, the frankincense, the meal-offering of the Cohanim, the meal-offering of the anointed (high-) priest and the libation meal-offering? From "upon it." (Vayikra 6:2): "And he shall cause to smoke, etc.": I might think that (the fire for the daily burning of the) incense, too, should be upon it (i.e., that it should be taken from the great wood pile to the inner altar). It is, therefore, (to negate this) written "And he shall arrange the burnt-offering upon it. And he shall cause to smoke upon it": Arrange one burning for the wood pile and a separate burning for the incense.

Another interpretation (of Numb. 6:23-24), “Thus shall you bless the Children of Israel: The Lord bless you and keep you.” “Bless you,” with wealth; “and keep you,” so that may do good works (mitswot). (Vs. 25:) “The Lord make His face shine,” and raise up children from you to be Torah scholars. Thus it is stated (in Prov. 6:23), “For the commandment (mitzvah) is a lamp, and Torah is [a light].” Another interpretation (of Numb. 6:25), “The Lord make His face shine (from he'ir) [upon you],” to raise up priests from you, who kindle fire (from he'ir) upon the altar. Thus it is stated (in Mal. 1:10), “you will not⁵⁹In the biblical context, the sense would be “may you not.” kindle fire (from he'ir) on My altar in vain.” (Numb. 6:25, cont.:) “And be gracious to you.” R. Hiyya the Great taught, “May the Lord encamp with you.”⁶⁰So did R. Hiyya understand the word translated AND BE GRACIOUS TO YOU (WYHNK), and the word can indeed be understood as coming from the root HNH (“encamp”). Another interpretation (of Numb. 6:25), “and be gracious to you,” to raise up prophets from you. Thus it is stated (in Zech. 12:10), “And I will pour out upon the House of David and upon anyone dwelling in Jerusalem a spirit of grace and mercy.” Another interpretation (of Numb. 6:25), “and be gracious to you.” May He set His grace upon you in whatever place you go. Thus it is stated (in Esth. 2:17), “and she won grace and favor.” (Numb. 6:26:) “The Lord lift up His face unto you.” But another text says (of the Holy One, blessed be He, in Deut. 10:17), “who does not lift up His face (i.e., show favor).” How can this be?⁶¹Sifre, Numb. 6:26 (42); PRK 24(suppl. 7):1. [If] one has repented before judgment is sealed, (Numb. 6:26:) “The Lord lift up his face (i.e., show favor).” When judgment has been sealed, (Deut. 10:17:) “who does not lift up His face.” Another interpretation (of Numb. 6:24), “The Lord bless you and keep you.” Along with the blessing there is a keeping.⁶²Numb. R. 11:5. A king of flesh and blood has a friend in Syria, but he dwells in Rome; when the king sent for him, he arose and came to him, and [the king] gave him a hundred pounds⁶³Gk.: litrai; cf. Lat.: librae. of gold; [but when] he loaded it up and set out on the road, bandits⁶⁴Gk.: lestai. fell upon him. They took everything that he had given him and everything [else] that he had with him. Do you suppose that he could have kept him from the bandits? For that reason it is stated (in Numb. 6:24), “The Lord bless you and keep you.”⁶⁵See the parallel in Numb. R. 11:5, which expands here: “THE LORD BLESS YOU with abundance AND KEEP YOU from bandits.” Another interpretation (of Numb. 6:24), “The Lord bless you and keep you.” May He bless you with money, that there not be a tax collection in the province, and that a tax collector not come to the province and say to you, “Give your gold.” Rather (as in Numb. 6:24), “The Lord bless you and keep you.” Another explanation. “Bless you” refers to sons (who can produce wealth), [while] “keep you” refers to daughters, since the females need keeping. And so it says (in Ps. 121:5), “The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade [on your right hand].” (Numb. 6:25:) “The Lord make His face shine upon you. May He make the light of His face shine for you.” Now “make shine” (y'r) can only mean life, since it is written (in Prov. 16:15), “In the light of the king's face there is life.” It also says (in Ps. 118:27), “The Lord is God and has given light (y'r) to us.” And similarly it says (in Ps. 67:2), “May God be gracious to us and bless us; [may He make His face shine for us].” (Numb. 6:26:) “The Lord lift up his face.” Does the Holy One, blessed be He, lift up His face for a creature? Moreover, is it not already written (in Deut. 10:17), “who does not lift up His face (i.e., show favor).”⁶⁶Numb. R. 11:7. It is simply that, just as they lift up their faces (show favor) to Me, so do I lift up My face to them. How so? I have written in the Torah (in Deut. 8:10), “Then you shall eat, be full, and bless [the Lord your God].” So when a person sits down with his children and the children of his house, and when there is not enough before them to be full, they [still] lift their faces to Me as they give the blessing. Moreover, they exercise meticulous care [to recite a blessing] for [something as small] as an olive, for [something as small] as an egg. Therefore (in Numb. 6:26), “The Lord lift up his face unto you […].”⁶⁷Ber. 20b. (Numb. 6:23:) “Thus shall you bless the Children of Israel], ‘Say to them.’” “Say (amor)” is written] fully (i.e., with the o represented by the vowel letter, waw).⁶⁸Numb. R. 11:4. Say to them, i.e., to the priests, “[It does] not [follow that], because I told you to bless Israel, that you will bless them [as though] in forced labor⁶⁹Gk.: aggareia; Lat.: angaria. and in sudden haste. Rather you shall bless them (fully) with religious devotion (kawwanah) of the heart, so that the blessing will be fully effective with them. It is therefore stated, “Say” fully, to say that a person should wish his fellow well with a full [heart].

10) Whence is it derived that nothing is to take precedence to the morning tamid? From "upon it the burnt-offering," (implying that nothing is to take precedence to it). Whence is it to be derived that nothing is offered up later than the afternoon tamid? From "upon it (the afternoon tamid, the shelamim, lit., the "completers," i.e., complete all of the offerings with it). (Vayikra 6:6) ("A continuous fire shall burn upon the altar; it shall not be extinguished.") "continuous" — (The wood pile is to be made for the temidim and the mussafim) even on the Sabbath; "continuous" — even (if the Cohanim are) in a state of tumah. "it shall not be extinguished" — even during their journeyings. What did they do (to keep the fire from going out)? They inverted a psachter (a large vessel) over it. These are the words of R. Yehudah. R. Shimon says: In their journeyings they would remove the fire from the altar (and place it in a vessel until they camped), as it is written (Bamidbar 4:13): "And they shall remove the fire from the altar and spread upon it (the vessel) a purple cloth."

Similarly, though Scripture states: And the priests shall kindle wood upon it every morning (Lev. 6:5), it is written: And Lebanon is not sufficient fuel (Isa. 40:16). This was stated so that one might receive a reward for doing so. Similarly, it says: The one lamb thou shalt offer in the morning (Num. 28:4), though it has already been said: Nor the beasts thereof sufficient for burnt-offerings (Isa. 40:16). This indicates that you may receive a reward (for its observance). Let them make Me a Sanctuary that I may dwell among them (Exod. 25:8) may be explained in a like manner. Has it not been written already Do not I fill heaven and earth (Jer. 23:24)? This commandment was imposed upon you so that you would receive a reward (for building a Sanctuary). And Moses said unto the people: Remember this day (Exod. 13:3). Scripture states elsewhere: That thou mayest remember the day when thou camest forth out of the land of Egypt all the days of thy life (Deut. 16:3). Does this mean that they were to remember it only during the day and not at night? Ben Zoma interpreted the verse That thou mayest remember the day when thou came forth … all the days of your life to mean that the days of your life refers to the daytime, while all the days of your life alludes to night time.

11) R. Yehudah says: There were two wood piles (on the altar) every day, and three on Yom Kippur, (a pile being added for the coals taken in the fire pan). R. Yossi says: There were three every day and four on Yom Kippur: one, the great wood pile; one, the wood pile for (the daily burning of) the incense; one, for the sustenance of the fire (on the great wood pile); and one, added for Yom Kippur. R. Meir says: There were four wood piles every day and five on Yom Kippur: one, the great wood pile; one, for the incense; one, for the sustenance of the fire; one, for the limbs and the fat-pieces that had not been consumed in the evening; and one, for Yom Kippur.