The Structure of the Book ofVayikra, and Its Divisions
Parashat Hashavua
Yeshivat Har
Etzion
This
parasha series is dedicated
Le-zekher Nishmat HaRabanit Chana
bat HaRav Yehuda Zelig zt"l.
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PARASHAT
VAYIKRA
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Dedicated in memory of Joseph Sokolow z"l,
husband of Hannah, father of Dr. Moshe Sokolow, Zipporah Friedman
and Nechama Sokolow, and grandfather of our alumnus Sholom.
May the entire family be comforted among the mourners of Zion veYerushalayim.
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By Rav
Tamir Granot
A. Proposed Approach for Defining the
Structure and Division of Sefer Vayikra
The Book of Vayikra differs from the other Books of the Torah in
that most of it contains no narrative or moral exhortation, but rather pure
halakha. Only twice in the
Sefer do narratives appear, breaking the continuity of the laws (we shall
discuss these instances below). The
multiplicity of details sometimes leads us to a feeling of not being able to see
the woods for the trees, and it is therefore instructive to pause for an
overview of the Book, divided into clearly defined units, so as to consider its
structure and division, and thereby its substance and purpose,
too.
How are we to go about dividing up the Book and determining its
structure? We may divide it by subject for example: sacrifices, inauguration,
the eighth day, etc. This option,
however, imposes an external test that relies on opinion and interpretation,
since every individual reader may offer his own categories of subject. Hence, we shall attempt here to propose
a division and structure of the Book based on purely internal factors, and that
will lead us to attempt a definition of the order of subjects and its
significance.
I propose that we take into consideration the following criteria, in
defining the structure and parts of the Book:
1.
Every utterance by God ("God spoke
saying
") shall be regarded as an
independent unit/item. Altogether
there are 37 such utterances by God in Sefer Vayikra; hence, we start
with 37 units (to which we must add the narratives, which do not begin with this
opening formula). The assumption
behind this criterion is that when God speaks with Moshe or Aharon about some
subject, His speech is not interrupted.
When there are two separate subjects, they will be treated in two
separate utterances. A review of
the material shows that there are some utterances that are very long, and others
that are very short; hence, it is not the length of the speech that matters, but
rather the content.
2. General introductions or general
conclusions will define larger units.
3. A transition from one genre to another
will indicate the end or beginning of a large unit. Therefore, when the Sefer ends a
story, it must be assumed that a subject is now closed. The reason for this criterion is that
God's utterances in Sefer Vayikra are not presented in any chronological
framework (there are no dates provided); hence, there is no reason to assume
that the narrative appears in its chronological place, merely on the basis of
the fact that it appears after the preceding command. It is better that we adopt the literary
assumption that the narratives are inserted at their particular places for
structural reasons.
4.
Units within the Book which are not part of the continuum of halakhic
commands (i.e., the Divine utterance is not a continuation of its predecessor
conveyed in the Ohel Mo'ed, and does not give the impression of being
located matter-of-factly, but rather is explicitly identified as belonging
somewhere else) will also represent a criterion for defining the larger units in
the Sefer. Thus, we shall
address chapters which, we are told, were commanded to Moshe at Mount
Sinai.
5.
We shall pay attention to the addressees of the commands. In other words, a distinction will be
drawn between commands to Moshe alone (a category to which most of the
utterances belong), to Moshe and Aharon (a minority), or to Aharon alone. Sometimes there is also an "utterance"
(va-yomer) instead of a "command" (va-yedaber), and we shall
address this difference. It is not
necessarily true that the addressees of the utterance are significant in terms
of the division of the Book, but the issue is important in terms of
characterizing the subjects in question.
B. Division of the
Sefer
Let us now set out the list of utterances that introduce subject units in
the Sefer, and their contents, and at the same time define larger units
on the basis of beginnings and endings found in the Sefer.[1]
1.
Vayikra chapters 1-3 - Opening speech from the Ohel
Mo'ed: burnt offering, meal offering, peace offering details
of the laws of freewill offerings.
2.
4:1-5:13 list of sin offerings, including (in chapter 5) an "oleh
ve-yored" offering.
3.
5:14-5:19 guilt offering for sin involving holy things (me'ila),
and a guilt offering in the case of doubt
4.
5:20-5:26 guilt offering for something stolen
5.
6:1-6:11 Introduction, "Command Aharon." Subject of first unit: the ashes and the
fire, laws of meal offering pertaining to the
kohanim
6.
6:12-6:16 meal offering of the kohanim
7.
6:17-7:21 laws of the sin offering, guilt offering, peace offering and
thanksgiving offering, and their accompaniments pertaining to the
kohanim
8.
7:22-7:27 prohibition of fats and blood
9.
7:28-7:38 gifts to the kohanim from the sacrifices
conclusion of chapters 6-7 "which God commanded Moshe at Mount
Sinai
."
10. 8:1-10:7
Command concerning the days of consecration, and narrative concerning
the days of consecration and the Eighth Day, with the death of Nadav and
Avihu.
11. 10:8-10:11
Utterance to Aharon: warning concerning drinking wine, and the role of
the kohanim
12. (no
utterance) 10:12-10:19 completion of fulfillment of the Eighth Day following
the death of Nadav and Avihu
13. chapter 11
Utterance to Moshe and Aharon: laws of unclean animals and the
prohibition against eating them.
General summary dealing with ritual impurity, obligation of
sanctity, and separation of Israel from the
nations.
14. chapter 12
ritual impurity of the birthing mother and the accompanying
laws
15. chapter 13
Utterance to Moshe and Aharon: details of the laws of leprosy manifest
on a person and on a garment
16. 14:1-14:32
laws of purification of the leper after he is healed
17. 14:32-14:57
Utterance to Moshe and Aharon: laws of leprosy manifest on a house and
the order of its purification; general summary of the laws of
leprosy.
18. chapter 15
Utterance to Moshe and Aharon: impurity of the body; general
summary concerning impurity of the body.
19. chapter 16
order of the Kohen Gadol entering the Holy of Holies following the death of
Aharon's two sons, Yom Kippur.
20. chapter 17
laws of blood, including warning concerning animals slaughtered outside (the
precincts of the Mishkan).
21. chapter 18
list of forbidden sexual relations, preceded by an introduction and general
warning to keep distant from the behavior of the land of Canaan, and
followed by a general conclusion in the same style, describing the
sanctity and purity necessary to be worthy of the
land.
22. chapter 19
the laws of Parashat Kedoshim, centered around laws between man and his
fellow
23. chapter 20
punishment for forbidden sexual relations, including punishment for
worshippers of Molekh; ending with general conclusion dealing with the
separation of Israel from the nations, and summarizing the laws of ritual
impurity, the laws and statutes, and more.
24. 21:1-21:16
"God said to Moshe" impurity of kohanim
25. 21:16
21:23 blemishes among kohanim.
Conclusion: Moshe conveys it all to the kohanim and to Bnei
Yisrael.
26. 22:1-22:16
laws of eating sacrificial meat, and gifts (teruma) to the
kohanim
27. 22:17-22:25
laws of blemishes in sacrifices
28. 22:26
22:33 limitations on animal sacrifices: eight days, animal and its young,
"that it be accepted for you"; general conclusion about observing the
laws and avoiding desecration of God's Name.
29. 23:1-23:8
Shabbat and Pesach
30. 23:9-23:22
"When you come to the land" omer and offering of the first
fruits/Shavuot; appendix gifts of the field to the poor
31. 23:23-23:25
Day of remembrance of sounding the shofar (Rosh
Ha-shana)
32. 23:26-23:32
Yom Kippur
33. 23:33-23:44
Sukkot and general conclusion concerning the
festivals.
34. 24:1-24:12
Menora and show-bread
35. 24:13-24:23
story of the blasphemer.
Following this, utterance and command concerning damages to man and
animals, and punishment carried out for blasphemer.
36. chapters
25,26 God commands Moshe at Mount Sinai: Shemitta, Yovel, and their
accompanying laws; the covenant with its blessings and curses. General conclusion: This is what
God commanded at Mount Sinai, through Moshe.
37. chapter 27
estimated values and dedications; general conclusion: These are the
laws from Mount Sinai.
C. Comments on the
Division
a. It is easy to see that
this division is preferable to both the traditional division into
parshiyot and the division into chapters, since it gives no weight to the
length of the unit, focusing instead only on content. In some cases there are large units
which, in the traditional division, are divided into several parshiyot or
chapters; when they are treated as a single unit it is easy to perceive their
integrity of subject. Conversely,
the section on the festivals is divided here into several units, so as to
highlight the differences between the festivals when they are not treated as a
single unit.
b. If we focus on the break
in the continuity of halakhic commands given to Moshe from the Tent of Meeting,
and ignore for the moment the chapters of laws whose source is Sinai and which
for some reason were inserted into Sefer Vayikra, we end up with a
simple scheme of the structure of Sefer Vayikra:
* section 1
laws of sacrifices (1-5)[2]
* section 2
days of inauguration, and the Eighth Day
(8-10)
* section 3
chapters of laws, statutes, and judgments
(11-24)
Appendix the
blasphemer and the laws applicable to him (end of 24)[3]
c. Perhaps section 3 should
be divided into two sub-sections, based on the same principle, since chapter 16
explicitly relates itself to the death of Aharon's sons "After the death of
the two sons of Aharon." This is
true both in terms of content ("that he die not") and in terms of the laws
(i.e., the similarity between the Eighth Day and Yom Kippur). We may assert that all of the chapters
from 11 to 16 belong to one closed unit.
These chapters deal with the details of the laws of the various types of
impurity, and the substantial connection between them is clear. Furthermore, a look at the internal
criteria likewise points to their uniqueness and unity: only in these chapters
and in all of them does Aharon receive a command together with Moshe. This fact alone is enough to provide a
common denominator for these chapters.
Thus, we may amend our division as follows:
* Unit 1: laws
of sacrifices (1-5)[4]
* Unit 2: days
of inauguration and the Eighth Day (8-10)
* Unit 3:
chapters addressing the types of impurity and chapters addressing the
purification from these forms of impurity: "And atone for the holy place because
of the impurity of Bnei Yisrael" (11-16)
* Unit 4: laws,
statutes, and judgments (18-24)
Let us now elaborate on what we have discovered. In chapters 11-15 (as well as in the
command concerning priests who have drunk wine), Aharon is commanded together
with Moshe. As we know, Sefer
Vayikra is also known as "Torat Kohanim"; indeed, the laws of the
sacrifices with which the Book begins, as well as the laws of the various types
of impurity, the sacrificial meat and possible blemishes in chapters 21-22, all
fit this description. This being
so, why is Moshe alone commanded concerning the first set of laws of sacrifices
and the last set of laws pertaining to kohanim, while the laws of
impurity and purification (chapters 11-15) are conveyed to Moshe and Aharon
together? The answer is quite simple: when it comes to the sacrifices and the
laws pertaining to the kohanim themselves, Aharon and the other
kohanim are nothing but servants: they are the workers in the
Mikdash, and they must carry out everything that they are commanded to
do. From this perspective, there is
no real difference between that which is incumbent upon them and that which is
incumbent on any other Israelite, qua servant of God, and therefore it is Moshe
who commands them. When it comes to
the laws of impurity, however, their status is different. Here, the kohanim are not merely
"clerks" or servants. They are
entrusted with determining the status of the impurity and giving instructions
with regard to it. Here, Aharon and
his sons are not there merely to carry out their tasks, but - like Moshe play
a role in the molding and application of the actual laws. Hence, since their role here is to be
teachers and instructors, God commands Aharon directly. It is for the same reason that two
parshiyot within the laws of impurity are conveyed to Moshe alone: the
laws of the birthing woman, and the order of the purification of the leper. The impurity of a birthing woman is a
simple determination, with no doubt involved; therefore, there is no difficulty
in instructing in this regard. And
when it comes to the purification of the leper, the kohanim once again
become servants who must perform a certain job: they must offer up the
sacrifice, sprinkle, etc. Once
again they are not partners in the command, but rather subjects, and so Moshe
conveys this to them, like the rest of the Torah.
It seems, then, that the section comprising the laws of impurities is
placed where it is not because of the story of Nadav and Avihu, which precedes
it (as many commentators maintain), but rather as a direct continuation of the
chapters describing the Seven Days of Consecration, during which time the
kohanim were trained and prepared for their service. This training involved practice in
offering sacrifices i.e., the kohahim were trained as
servants/workers. After the
inauguration of the Mishkan, the kohanim were also commanded to be
teachers and instructors, responsible for the impurities of Bnei Yisrael and
guarding the Mikdash from such impurities: "To teach when it is impure
and when it is pure" (14:57); "And you shall separate Bnei Yisrael from their
impurity" (15:31).
Seemingly, the
prohibition against inebriation, commanded to Aharon, likewise arises not from
the death of Nadav and Avihu, but rather from the obligation of the
kohanim to instruct, such that they cannot be drunk: "And to distinguish
between the holy and the profane, and between the impure and the pure" (10:10,
in the unit concerning drunkenness).
d. From the above analysis
it also arises that the unit discussing forbidden foods is, first and foremost,
a unit describing the impurity of those who eat these things; the specifications
of the forbidden foods themselves are only a secondary matter here, since the
unit belongs to the section addressing the different forms of impurity. At this point there is a clear
difference between the chapters of forbidden foods in Vayikra, and their
parallels in Devarim (the scope of this shiur does not allow for
further elaboration on this point).
e. Chapter 16, dealing with
the entry of the Kohen Gadol into the Holy of Holies, serves two functions: on
one hand, it concludes the episode of the deaths of Nadav and Avihu, and the
fears which that event aroused. On
the other hand, it concludes the laws of impurities, by means of the general act
of atonement for them that is connected to the Kohen Gadol's entry: "And he
shall atone for the holy place because of the impurities of Bnei Yisrael, and
because of their transgressions in all of their sins." The essence of chapter 16 is not the
details of Yom Kippur, but rather the atonement for the impurities. The command concerning Yom Kippur
appears only at the end of the parasha, while the general atonement for
sins "tags along," as it were, attaching itself to the original context of
Aharon's entry into the Holy of Holies: atonement for impurities.
f. Some comments on the
units that we have skipped, and which appear to have been dislodged from their
proper place (item numbers refer to the numbering in the scheme
above):
1. Items 5-9 (chapters 6-7): This section
contains the laws of the sacrifices, from the point of view of the priest's
role. This section originated at
Mount Sinai, and was conveyed as testified at the end of the section
together with the command concerning the consecration. The reason for this is clear: the
purpose of the days of consecration is to prepare the kohanim, through
training and practice, to perform the sacrificial service; therefore, they need
to be commanded in advance concerning the details of their service and their
rights. From this perspective, the
command precedes the building of the Mishkan, like all the commands that
anticipate the Mishkan and its service, which belong in Sefer
Shemot. These chapters are
inserted here because Sefer Shemot does not deal with the offering of
sacrifices at all. The Torah
chooses to forego their proper, chronological place, preferring to include this
list of laws of sacrifices, meant for the kohanim, along with a parallel
list that discusses the same sacrifices from the perspective of the Israelite
who offers them (chapters 1-5*), so as to treat all the laws of sacrifices
together.
2. In item 11 (chapter 10), Aharon is
commanded concerning the prohibition of wine. This command is wedged, as it were, in
the middle of the narrative about the eighth day, since it is followed in item
12 by certain elements that complete the Eighth Day. Why does the Torah not first finish the
narrative, and only then present the prohibition against wine for the
kohanim? We have already noted that the wine prohibition serves as a sort
of introduction to all the chapters addressing the special role of the
kohanim in the sphere of ritual impurity. If the Torah chooses to place this
command to Aharon in the middle of the Eighth Day, apparently it seeks to relate
the prohibition to the event that takes place on that day, and to the suspicion
that entering the holy place while drunk brings death. It is this juxtaposition that leads
Chazal to conclude that Nadav and Avihu were punished for entering the
Mishkan while drunk, since otherwise there would be no need for the Torah
to create this break in the middle of the narrative.
3. Item 20 (chapter 17), dealing with the
prohibition against blood, is not part of the preceding units, nor is it part of
those that follow. It addresses
prohibitions and obligations related to sacrifices and the Tent of Meeting, but
also other obligations such that covering the blood and the prohibition
against eating blood which apply outside of the context of the Mishkan,
too. From the introduction at the
beginning of chapter 18 it would appear that the main body of laws begins only
after this unit. What, then, is the
role of this unit here? It would appear to serve as a sort of bridge between the
first three sections of the Sefer, all of which involve from some or
other perspective the Mishkan (sacrifices; consecration and the Divine
Presence; impurities) and the rest of the Sefer, which covers statutes
and laws that apply throughout the land.
The prohibition against sacrificing meat slaughtered outside of the
Mishkan defines the obligation of serving God through sacrifice only
within the Mishkan, but it also connects to more general prohibitions
that are not related to the Mishkan, but rather to other values: "For the
blood is the soul." Since these prohibitions straddle the Mishkan
precincts and what lies outside of it, the Torah place them in between the first
part of the Sefer (the first three sections), dealing with the
Mikdash, and the second part, dealing with the rest of the territory of
Israel.
4. Item 36 (chapters 25-26) do not belong
to the basis of this Sefer, but rather are "imported" from Mount
Sinai. What is this section doing
here? We shall explain this matter at length in future shiurim. In general, the Torah wants the covenant
with the blessings and curses, forged at Mount Sinai, to be included along with
the lists of laws in Sefer Vayikra, even though chronologically those
laws were conveyed later on.
Therefore, the conclusion of the covenant appears at the end of
Sefer Vayikra, rather than in Sefer
Shemot.
5. Unit 37 (chapter 27, the final chapter
of the Sefer), dealing with dedications to the Mishkan, was also
commanded at Mount Sinai. It is not
part of the covenant, since it is located after the conclusion of the
covenant. Why, then, it is located
here? It would seem that since the subject of this unit is gifts given
voluntarily, it is not part of the covenant, all of which is obligatory. Its connection with the subject of
Shemitta arises from internal halakhic reasons: the calculation of the
value of a field that is to be dedicated is dependent on the time remaining
until the Jubilee year; likewise, other laws related to the status of the field
(its return in the Jubilee year, etc.).
Hence, this unit in fact belongs to the laws of Jubilee, which were
listed in the preceding unit (chapter 25).
However, as mentioned, since the issue here is not an obligation, these
laws are separated from the other laws of the Jubilee year, which are included
within the covenant; instead, they are appended
afterwards.
g. We shall conclude this shiur with
a review of the sub-sections that comprise the larger bodies; these we identify
on the basis of the beginnings and endings that are exceptions to the usual "God
spoke
" (as emphasized in the scheme above):
Unit
a may be divided into two parts:
Chapters 1-5:
all the laws of the sacrifices, from the perspective of the person bringing
them; these were commanded in the Tent of Meeting.
Chapters 6-7:
completion of the laws of sacrifices from the perspective of the kohanim;
these were commanded at Sinai.
Unit b: a
complete and chronological narrative; we have already discussed the sole break,
discussing the prohibition of wine.
Unit c: clearly
divisible into four sub-sections, by subject:
1.
impurities of animals and their prohibitions
2.
leprosy
3.
impurity of the body
4.
entry of the Kohen Gadol to the Holy of Holies to atone for the various
impurities, etc.
Unit d: here the
division is more complicated, but clear and structured in the general
sense. We propose an initial
suggestion:
1.
item 21: forbidden sexual relations (chapter 18)
2.
items 22-23: Parashat Kedoshim, with the punishments for forbidden
sexual relations (19-20)
3.
items 24-28: laws of the kohanim and the aspects of the sacrifices
that pertain to them (21-22)
4.
items 29-33: section on the festivals.
Attention
should be paid to the fact that this proposed structure is not based on
identifying subjects, etc., but rather upon the division determined by the Torah
itself, in the form of the opening and closing formulas. Hence, we must try to understand the
logic of this division, in light of the above criteria.
Let us consider
some of the questions that require further investigation, in light of the above
structure:
* Why does the
Torah define the punishments for forbidden sexual relations (chapter 20) as an
independent section, separate from the laws of forbidden sexual relations
(chapter 18), with a different subject (Kedoshim chapter 19) creating a
break between them? And why do the punishments for forbidden sexual relations
belong to the same section as the social laws of Parashat Kedoshim,
rather than sharing a section with the prohibitions against those forbidden
relations?
* How are the
laws of the kohanim, in unit d-3, connected to the preceding and
succeeding subjects, and why are they not part of one of the first three
sections, which deal with the Mikdash and the kohanim? The same
question applies concerning the few laws of sacrifices that appear in that
parasha.
* Item 34,
following the laws of the festivals, deals with the laws of the Menora
and the show-bread. It is difficult
to understand why this is a separate unit, outside the framework of any general
section either in Sefer Shemot (where the laws of these vessels are
detailed) or the beginning of Vayikra, or as part of the laws of the
kohanim listed in chapters 21-22.
Why do they appear here?[5]
* Finally: is
the episode of the blasphemer a narrative appendix placed at the end of section
d. of the Sefer, or does its location serve some
purpose?
These and other questions still require some clarification, and the
answers to them are, at most, hinted at in our discussion above. Some will hopefully be resolved in the
future shiurim, while others will be left open, for readers to research
and hopefully solve. To these we
must add the need to explain the division of the smaller units, which is
interesting and different from the generally accepted division. This applies both to the section on the
sacrifices, which testifies to a perception that is different from the regular
one, and to the division of for example - the section on the festivals,
according to which the festivals should be divided as follows: Shabbat and
Pesach, Omer and first fruits (Shavuot), Yom Ha-zikaron (Rosh Ha-shana), Yom
Kippur, Sukkot. There is no
division into pilgrim festivals vs. High Holy Days; Pesach is separated from the
Omer and also from Shavuot; Pesach and Shabbat are treated together; there is a
separation between Rosh Ha-shana and Yom Kippur. In short, the structure proposed above,
with its system of divisions, gives rise to no small number of surprises, all of
which we shall have to try to explain, and this we shall hopefully attempt in
future shiurim.
Translated by
Kaeren Fish
[1] Owing
to the scope of the shiur, we shall obviously have to limit ourselves to
a brief overview, such that not every point will be able to be proved at
length. The reader is advised to
follow the discussion with a Tanakh accessible. We do not note here all the places where
there is a regular utterance by God to Moshe ("God spoke to Moshe saying
"); we
emphasize only the unusual cases.
[2] Chapters
6-7 were commanded at Mount Sinai, and therefore we skip them
here.
[3] Chapters
25-27 were given at Sinai.
[4] Chapters 6-7
were commanded at Mount Sinai, and therefore we skip them here.
[5] It
is possible that the Torah seeks to relate the service of the Menora and
the table with the show-bread to the overall system of the sanctity of time,
treated in chapter