ציטירנדיקער פּירוש אויף במדבר 16:17

A kabbalistic approach: We can gain a clearer picture of the sin of these sons of Aaron when noting that the Torah wrote: וישימו עליה, instead of writing וישימו עליהם, “they placed on it” instead of: “they placed on them.” [There had been two censers, each brother having entered with his own censer. Ed.] When you compare what the Torah writes in connection with the 250 men who offered incense (Numbers 16,18) you will find that the fire and incense is described with the words “they placed it on them, (the censers, plural). When the instructions as to the correct procedure is issued in the Torah (Numbers 16,17) Moses had told these men ונתתם עליהם קטורת “place on them incense.” (No mention had been made of fire although the 250 men added their own fire) The word עליה as distinct from עליהם is an allusion to the attribute of Justice. The Torah is trying to give us an insight into the thinking of Nadav and Avihu at that time. They knew that incense was intended to counter, to stop the attribute of Justice in its tracks, as we know from Moses in Deuteronomy 33,10: “they place incense to placate Your anger.” The word קטורת itself means התקשרות רוח במדות, “establishing a spiritual affinity.” The Aramaic translation of the word ותקשור, (Genesis 38,25) “she tied” is וקטרת. The spiritual affinity established by means of the incense is meant to draw down an abundance of heavenly blessings by means of the attribute of Justice, which in turn will confer these blessings on the person burning up the incense. The sin of the person offering incense with such considerations consists in the fact that it is not permissible to direct one’s offering to any other attribute of G’d than the tetragram, i.e. Hashem. Seeing that Nadav and Avihu erred in the address to which the offered their incense, we do not find it described as אשה ריח ניחוח לה', “as a fire-offering of pleasing fragrance to the Lord,” but the very attribute of Justice to whom they addressed their offering smote them. This is the meaning of the words ותצא אש מלפני ה' ותאכל אותם, “fire came forth from the presence of the Lord and consumed them so that they died” (verse 2).

AND THERE CAME FORTH FIRE ‘MILIPHNEI’ (FROM BEFORE) THE ETERNAL. The meaning of “miliphnei the Eternal” is like: “from before the pnei (presence of) the Eternal.” The student learned [in the mystic lore of the Cabala] will understand, for I have already explained this.⁵³Exodus 30:1. The nature of the sin of Nadab and Abihu you may know from that which it says, and they offered ‘strange fire’ before the Eternal,⁵⁴Verse 1. and it does not say “and they offered before the Eternal ‘incense’ which He had not commanded them.” Thus they put incense upon the fire, similarly to that which Scripture says, they shall put incense ‘b’apecha’ (before Thee),⁵⁵Deuteronomy 33:10. See following note. and they directed their thoughts only to this,⁵⁶In quoting the language of Ramban, Menachem of Ricanti adds the following explanatory note: “Know that the incense is offered towards the attribute of justice, as it is said, they shall put incense ‘b’apecha’ (literally: ‘before Thy anger’). It is for this reason that the burning of incense stays the plague. (Numbers 17:11-15). However, the priest who offered it had to direct his mind to the perfect Unity of G-d. And since Nadab and Abihu directed it only to the attribute of justice (see Note 58), therefore they were punished.” See further, my Hebrew commentary p. 46. and thus it was not a fire-offering of a sweet savor.⁵⁷Above, 1:9, etc. This is the sense of the expression, and they laid ‘aleha’ (upon her) incense.⁵⁸Verse 1. The word aleha (upon her) is an allusion to the attribute of justice. and it does not say “and they laid upon them [i.e., the censers] incense,” as is said with reference to the company of Korah, and put fire therein, and put incense upon them,⁵⁹Numbers 16:7. and again it is said there, and put incense upon them.⁶⁰Ibid., Verse 17. But here it says upon her, to allude [to the fact] that they put the incense only on “the fire,” [and therefore it says], And there came forth fire from before the Eternal, and devoured them. It is possible that the verse which He said, Ye shall offer no strange incense thereon,⁶¹Exodus 30:9. alludes to this, meaning that he should not cause it [the fire] to be strange. It is in connection with this that Scripture states, when they [Nadab and Abihu] drew near before the Eternal, and died,⁶²Further, 16: 1. which means “when they offered l’phanav they died.”⁶³I.e., when they offered the incense l’phanav alone [to the attribute of justice alone, as explained above] they died.

AND MOSES SAID UNTO KORACH: ‘BE THOU AND ALL THY CONGREGATION BEFORE THE ETERNAL, THOU, AND THEY, AND AARON, TOMORROW.’ Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra wrote that “this has already been stated [above, in Verses 5-7: And he spoke unto Korach and unto all his company, saying: ‘In the morning the Eternal will make known etc.’], but the meaning thereof here is: as Moses said to Korach, Be ye before the Eternal, so they took every man his censer.”⁹⁸Further, Verse 18. Thus according to Ibn Ezra, the verse here does not contain a new command heretofore not mentioned, but is the same charge mentioned already above. The reason why it is repeated here is that at the time of fulfillment Scripture records that the charge previously given to Moses was now fulfilled in deed. Ramban will offer another interpretation.
The correct interpretation appears to me to be that at first Moses told them: This do: Take you censers, Korach, and all his company … and it shall be that the man whom the Eternal doth choose, he shall be holy,⁹⁹Above, Verses 6-7. and he did not say that Aaron would be together with them. They [also] remained silent, [so that Moses thought] perhaps they did not find this acceptable and did not agree to it, for they may have thought: “If Aaron will be together with us, either the [Heavenly] fire will come down for all of us, or it will not descend at all, so that we will all be alike; whereas if Aaron will not be together with us, and the fire will not come down, the people will say that He has not chosen us, but will think that He has already chosen him [Aaron] inasmuch as the fire came down on his offerings on the eighth day [of the installation of the priests].¹⁰⁰Leviticus 9:24. But as far as that [eighth] day is concerned we have a complaint against him [Moses], namely that he should not have chosen Aaron to be the priest alone, since [the Heavenly fire] came down only in the merit of [the whole people of] Israel who made the Tabernacle, and it would have come down for any representative of the congregation, for the firstborns had not yet been exchanged at that time [for the Levites].” Therefore Korach did not want to do any sort of trial without [the participation of] Aaron. Now Dathan and Abiram were [also] present when Moses told them [these instructions], and they were thus included in what Moses said, [This do: take you censers,] Korach, and all his company.¹⁰¹Verse 6. But after he sent for them, and they said: ‘We will not come up,’¹⁰²Verse 12. then Moses was very wroth,¹⁰³Verse 15. and wanted to decree that they should not die the common death of all men.¹⁰⁴Further, Verses 29-30. Therefore Moses returned to Korach and said, Take ye every man his censer … two hundred and fifty censers; thou also, and Aaron, each his censer.¹⁰⁵Verse 17. Thus he excluded Dathan and Abiram from this group — this being the meaning of [the expression] two hundred and fifty censers, for why was it necessary to mention the number here [since the number of Korach’s company had already been given above in Verse 2]? He also included Aaron amongst them. Then Korach agreed to Moses, for he thought that the matter [of the test] would be decided equally for [both] them and Aaron [as explained above].

And he made of them seventy thousand, etc. The reason he mentions them again and mentions the number is that he interrupted the topic; therefore, he had to repeat it again now. And he did not stop until he finished the entire [account of the] building, and he says immediately (3:1): “And Solomon commenced to build, etc.” Now, even with one verse, it is customary to interrupt the topic and [then] to begin [again] with the previous statement, e.g., (Num. 16:6): “Do this: take yourself, etc.” And the morrow, it says (ibid. 16f.): “And Moses said to Korah: You and all your band, etc.,” and he repeats and says, “and let each man take his censer and place, etc.” Since he interrupted with many verses, it was necessary to rewrite it, and how much more so here.