Tafsiran yang Mengutip untuk Keluaran 32:19

ונתתם אותה אל אלעזר, “you are to hand it over to Eleazar, etc.” Rashi claims that the reason why this heifer was handed over to Eleazar, was to indicate that the task of slaughtering the red heifer would primarily be performed by the High Priest’s deputy. Nachmanides writes that this does not mean that ideally this commandment was to be performed by the High Priest’s deputy rather than that it be performed by the High Priest personally, or even by any ordinary priest, for we have a disagreement of Tannaim about this as described in the commentary of Sifrey. One school of thought holds that in the future it would always be carried out by the High Priest personally; this school argued that in this instance the reason why it was performed by Eleazar was that there was an emergency so that the Torah designated the deputy High Priest Eleazar instead of Aaron. According to this latter opinion we must conclude that the deeper meaning of this commandment was such that it was appropriate that the High Priest, who normally would also be a Torah scholar of outstanding caliber, would be entrusted with this task. [It is important to remember that according to tradition there were only 7 red heifers altogether, so that this commandment was not one that even a High Priest would normally be called upon to fulfill. Ed.] Our author speculates that Aaron [a High Priest of special qualifications. Ed.], of whom the Torah had said in Leviticus 21,12 that he was not to leave the consecrated grounds of the Temple, was not to be charged with a task that is carried out outside these grounds, such as the red heifer that was taken outside the camp before being slaughtered, etc. Alternately, this opportunity may have been the one to prepare the people for who was going to be the successor of the first High Priest, Aaron. [This is reasonable only if we assume that this paragraph was written in the fortieth year. Ed.] By assigning the task to prepare the ashes of the red heifer which would purify people who had incurred ritual impurity due to physical contact with a dead body, or even by being only in the same roofed airspace with such corpses, to Eleazar, a clear message was sent out that he would be next in line for his father’s office when the latter would leave the scene. On the other hand, it is possible that the fact that this time Aaron himself was not charged with handling the red heifer was a punishment for his part in the sin of the golden calf, which necessitated the people having to be purified. Moses had treated the golden calf itself as the first red heifer and he had sprinkled its ashes on the water with which the people had to be sprinkled. (Compare Exodus 32,19)

EVEN HIM WHOM HE HATH CHOSEN WILL HE CAUSE TO COME NEAR UNTO HIM. The meaning of this repetition [since the first half of this verse already says, and who is holy, He will cause him to come near unto Him] is that [at first Moses said] the Eternal will make known who are His, and who is holy, and will cause him to come near unto Him tomorrow, and He will have regard for his offering,⁴⁶See Genesis 4:4. whereas He will not turn to the others and to their offerings. Even him whom He hath chosen forever to stand to minister before Him, him and his seed forever,⁴⁷See Deuteronomy 18:5. will He cause to come near unto Him tomorrow. Thus he is saying that this test will be a proof to them throughout their generations not to contest [the rights of] him who is chosen, nor those of his seed forever.
Now Rabbeinu Chananel⁴⁸See (Exodus), Vol. II, p. 106, Note 45, for a brief biography of this great Rabbinic scholar. See also (Leviticus), Vol. III, p. 324, Note 286. wrote that all these people who assembled [against Moses] were Levites, of the same tribe as Korach, this being the reason for the expressions [by Moses]: ye take too much upon you, ‘ye sons of Levi;’⁴⁹Further, Verse 7. Hear now, ‘ye sons of Levi.’⁵⁰Ibid., Verse 8. Perhaps they thought that their whole tribe had been chosen for the priesthood, and that it was Moses of his own accord who gave the honor to his brother. Thus far [are the words of Rabbeinu Chananel]. But G-d forbid that there should be in the tribe of the ministers of our G-d two hundred and fifty men¹⁴Verse 2. — of the most distinguished [of the people], and princes — who were sons of rebellion,⁵¹Ibid., 17:25. rejecting their leader, the greatest of their tribe, and murmuring against G-d! And [furthermore], if these [rebels] were only of that tribe [of Levi, as Rabbeinu Chananel wrote], then all the tribes of Israel would not have murmured on the next day [after the rebels were killed] saying: ‘Ye have killed the people of the Eternal,’⁵²Ibid., Verse 6. since not one of their own tribe died, [and those who did die were] only of Moses’ and Aaron’s tribe. Similarly the sign of the rod⁵³Ibid., Verses 16-24. Each tribe had to deposit a rod with its name written on it in the Tent of Meeting, before the ark of the Testimony, and Moses placed another rod there with Aaron’s name written on it. G-d promised that he would make the rod of the one who was chosen bud miraculously. Thus the fact that each tribe had to put a rod there shows that the controversy embraced them all. also proves that the controversy embraced all tribes of Israel. In addition, Scripture expressly states, [and they rose up in the face of Moses,] with certain men ‘of the children of Israel,’⁵⁴Above, Verse 2. in order to point out that the men were from all the tribes, not only from the two tribes [previously] mentioned [Reuben and Levi]. But the reason why [Moses said] ye take too much upon you, ‘ye sons of Levi’⁴⁹Further, Verse 7. is that Korach won the tribes over to his side [by persuading them] that it was because of their honor that he wanted to restore the service [of the offerings] to their firstborns, as he said, seeing all the congregation are holy.⁵⁵Ibid., Verse 3. But Moses in his wisdom laid bare the hidden motives of Korach’s heart to the whole people, namely that he was only protesting because of his own [failure to attain the] priesthood; therefore Moses said to him that he had sufficient [honor] in the honor bestowed upon his tribe, for “you have enough honor, you sons of Levi.” Then Moses continued and said, Hear now, ye sons of Levi.⁵⁰Ibid., Verse 8. [This he said] to Korach their leader — as is shown by [the first part of] that verse, And Moses said unto Korach⁵⁰Ibid., Verse 8. — but he included in his words all the Levites, since Moses in his wisdom spoke conciliatory words to Korach and all his tribe, so that none of them should be drawn after him.
Now it was Moses himself who thought of this procedure, and chose the burning of incense [as the test to show who was suitable for the priesthood] rather than any of the other offerings, because he had already seen in the case of Nadab and Abihu that when they offered strange incense before the Eternal they were burnt.⁵⁶Leviticus 10:1-2. Therefore he permitted Aaron to burn the incense, because of the special needs of the time,⁵⁷See Exodus 30:9 (Vol. II, p. 509) that all offerings of incense are forbidden as “strange” incense, except for those especially prescribed [e.g., the daily offering of incense]. In times of emergency and special need, however, such as when the overall authority of the Torah is at stake, it is permitted to suspend temporarily the operation of a particular law or prohibition, and it was this power which Moses now made use of when he allowed Aaron to offer up this non-prescribed incense. Or it may be, as Ramban continues, that this test took place at the Service of the Morning Whole-offering, which included the burning of incense, so that there is no need to say that Moses resorted to special emergency powers. or maybe it was the [daily] incense of the morning which he used to burn when he kindled⁵⁸In the Tur: when he “dressed” the lamps. See Vol. II, pp. 472-474, for an explanation of the Service done in connection with the lamps at the daily Morning Service. See also my Hebrew commentary here, p. 257. the lamps, according to the ordinance, and Moses trusted that G-d confirmeth the word of His servant, and performeth the counsel of His messengers.⁵⁹Isaiah 44:26.
And some scholars⁶⁰So quoted by Ibn Ezra in Verse 4. say that [the meaning of the verse], And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face,⁶¹Above Verse 4. is [that he did so] in order to inquire of G-d to know what to do, and then he was told, In the morning the Eternal will make known etc.;⁶²Verse 5 before us. According to this interpretation, the test of incense was declared by G-d, as is implied in Moses’ falling on his face to ask for Divine guidance, and the verse only tells us what G-d told him to do when mentioning Moses’ speech to Korach and all his company. but it is mentioned only in Moses’ account to the people. I have already shown you⁶³See e.g., Vol. II, pp. 101, 111. that in many places Scripture will sometimes deal at length with the account of G-d’s communication to Moses, but mention [the matter] in brief in Moses’ narration thereof, and at other times it does the opposite. At other instances [still] it does not mention one of the communications at all, such as in the story of the children of Gad and the children of Reuben, where Scripture tells the event [only] with respect to Moses himself [that he gave them the land east of the Jordan as a conditional inheritance], and [this whole matter] was [in fact] done by the commandment of the Eternal, as they said, As the Eternal hath said unto thy servants, so will we do.⁶⁴Further, 32:31. And in [the Book of] Joshua it is written, [And the children of Reuben and the children of Gad and the half-tribe of Menasheh returned … to go] unto the land of Gilead, to the land of their possession, whereof they were possessed, ‘according to the commandment of the Eternal by the hand of Moses’.⁶⁵Joshua 22:9. And if we say that [Moses in fact gave these lands to the tribes of Reuben, Gad, and the half-tribe of Menasheh on his own authority, and the above-mentioned verse which says that it was done according to the commandment of the Eternal] refers to G-d’s [subsequent] agreement to Moses’ action, similar to that which it says, This is the Land wherein ye shall receive inheritance by lot, which the Eternal hath commanded to give unto the nine tribes, and to the half-tribe,⁶⁶Further, 34:13. The verse thus indicates that G-d agreed that the nine and a half tribes should take their inheritance west of the Jordan, and therefore that the remaining two and a half tribes should take the land Moses gave them on the east side of the Jordan. in which case this would be one of the occasions when Moses acted of his own accord and the Holy One, blessed be He, [later] approved his decision⁶⁷In Shabbath 87a, the Talmud mentions three occasions when Moses acted on his own authority and G-d subsequently approved his decisions. Ramban is thus saying here: “In case one should suggest that Moses’ decision to grant the lands east of the Jordan as an inheritance to the two and a half tribes was in reality his own decision, which was subsequently approved by G-d — this hypothesis cannot be correct because etc.,” as Ramban continues. — See also at the end of Seder Naso where Ramban cites cases, where man’s opinion coincided with that on High. There is a marked difference though between the cases of Moses and those mentioned above. Moses according to tradition acted on his own reasoning, and G-d subsequently approved. In the cases mentioned above [such as in the section about the impure people on Passover, etc.] inquiry was first made for Divine guidance, and it happened that the opinion of those seeking guidance coincided with that on High. — [this cannot be so because] it is not right [to say] that Moses would have done anything in connection with the division of the Land without [Divine] permission. For [in dividing the Land] he did everything at the command of G-d, as it is written, [And the Lord spoke unto Moses saying:] Unto these the Land shall be divided etc.⁶⁸Further, 26:53. The verse saying And the Eternal spoke unto Moses clearly indicates that he acted originally on Divine instruction.
My own opinion in this matter [of Moses’ command to Korach and his company to take censers and burn incense], and in that which he said to Aaron [during the outbreak of the plague], Take thy fire-pan, and put fire therein from off the altar, and lay incense thereon⁶⁹Ibid., 17:11. is that the hand of the Eternal was upon him⁷⁰See Ezekiel 37:1. in these matters, and it is this which is called Ruach Hakodesh,⁷¹Literally: “The Holy Spirit.” See in Moreh Nebuchim, II, Chapter 45, beginning: “the second degree of prophecy.” See also further, Seder Balak Note 63, and Ramban ibid. as happened with the books of David and Solomon which were written by Ruach Hakodesh,⁷²Such is also the opinion of Rambam in his Moreh Nebuchim II, 45. and as David said, The spirit of the Eternal spoke by me, and His word was upon my tongue.⁷³II Samuel 23:2. For Moses our teacher was trusted in all His house,⁷⁴See above, 12:7. and I have explained the matter of “the house”⁷⁵Ibid., Verse 6. and mentioned it many times;⁷⁶See e.g. Exodus 32:19. but since this was not in the usual course of Moses’ prophecy, Scripture did not mention G-d’s communication to him about these matters.
Now I have seen in Onkelos’ translation that every time the word k’toreth (incense) appears in this section, he rendered it in his language [Aramaic also] as k’toreth and he did not translate it [as he does in all other places] as k’toreth busmin (aromatic incense), as he usually does.⁷⁷See e.g. Onkelos ibid. 30:8. — But note, however, that in our versions of Onkelos, the word k’toreth in this section is translated as k’toreth busmin (aromatic incense). In the opinion of the author of Minei Targima (Rabbi Yeshayah Pick), Ramban’s version of the text of Onkelos here is the correct one, and later copyists mistakenly amended the text. See my Hebrew commentary, p. 258. From this it would appear that he was of the opinion that this was not the aromatic incense used in the Sanctuary [i.e., Tabernacle], but it [consisted of] frankincense and similar ingredients which he [Moses] made them burn for the test. Onkelos translated likewise in the case of Aaron’s sons [Nadab and Abihu, who burnt the strange incense, for there too he did not render the Hebrew k’toreth as he usually does: k’toreth busmin, but as k’toreth].⁷⁸Leviticus 10:1. In our version of Onkelos, again, the text there is k’toreth busmin (aromatic incense), which in the opinion of the author of Minei Targima is likewise a copyist’s mistake. But in the opinion of our Rabbis⁷⁹Tanchuma Korach 5. it was the sacred incense, and this is the correct interpretation. Perhaps Onkelos [agrees that this was the sacred incense, but he] did not want to praise the incense by adding thereto the word busmin (aromatics), except when it [the incense] was used in performance of the [daily] commandment [to burn incense].

תחוג לי, as we find in Psalms 149,2 ישמח ישראל בעושיו, “the people of Israel rejoice in their Maker.” Such joy on the festivals legislated by G’d is to offset the joy displayed on the occasion of the making of the golden calf, when the Torah reported “when he saw the calf and the people dancing, etc.” (Exodus 32,19).