Shemos Rabbah 42:8. R. Meir said: It was not even one complete day [before they sinned], for while they were yet standing near Sinai, exclaiming ’We will do, and obey’, their hearts were already concentrated on idolatry, for itsays, But they beguiled Him with their mouth, and lied unto Him with their tongue (Ps. LXXVIII, 36)
“while they were yet standing near Sinai, exclaiming We will do, and obey, their hearts were already concentrated on idolatry” In the Talmud, yes.
ReplyDeleteTorah thought Parsha בהעלתך
“The Levites purified themselves and washed their clothes; and Aaron designated them וינף אהרן אותם as an elevation offering תנופה before the Lord, and Aaron made expiation for them to cleanse them. Thereafter the Levites were qualified to perform their service in the Tent of Meeting, under Aaron and his sons. As the Lord had commanded Moses in regard to the Levites, so they did to them.” (Numbers 8:21-22)
Hertz Chumash p. 605: “He did not say, “and the Levites shall be mine,” before he had tried this tribe and found them worthy.”
במדבר פרשת בהעלותך פרק ח פסוק כא
וַיִּתְחַטְּאוּ הַלְוִיִּם וַיְכַבְּסוּ בִּגְדֵיהֶם וַיָּנֶף אַהֲרֹן אֹתָם תְּנוּפָה לִפְנֵי יְקֹוָק וַיְכַפֵּר עֲלֵיהֶם אַהֲרֹן לְטַהֲרָם:
My theory. God commanded Moses to elevate and purify the Levites in a ritual similar to the purification of the leper in Leviticus 14:1-57. “The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Take the Levites from among the Israelites and cleanse them. This is what you shall do to them to cleanse them: sprinkle on them water of purification, and let them go over their whole body with a razor, and wash their clothes; thus they shall be cleansed. Let them take a bull of the herd, and with its meal-offering of choice flour with oil mixed in, and you take a second bull of the herd for a sin-offering. You shall bring the Levites forward before the Tent of Meeting. Assemble the whole Israelite community, and bring shalt the Levites forward before the Lord. Let and the Israelites lay their hands upon the Levites, and let Aaron designate והניף the Levites before the Lord as an elevation offering תנופה from the Israelites, that they may perform the service of the Lord. The Levites shall now lay their hands upon the heads of the bulls; one shall be offered to the Lord as a sin-offering, and the other as a burnt-offering, to make expiation for the Levites. You shall place the Levites I attendance upon Aaron and his sons, and designate them והנפת אותם as an elevation offering תנופה to the Lord. Thus you shall set the Levites apart from the Israelites, and the Levites shall be Mine. Thereafter the Levites shall be qualified for the service of the Tent of Meeting, once you have cleansed them and designated them והנפת אותם as an elevation offering תנופה.” (Numbers 8:5-15).
Misreading of the Bible “Take the Levites” physically. No. Rashi says only with words. In “The priest shall take one of the he-lambs, and offer it והקריב with a the log of oil as a guilt-offering, and, and he shall elevate them והניף אותם as an elevation offering תנופה before the Lord.” (Leviticus 14:12) take the he-lamp does means physically. But to elevate the he-lamp as an elevation offering is only with words. The he-lamp is still alive. Rashi says take one of the he-lambs, and offer it והקריב means to bring the he-lamb into the Azarah and designate as a sacrifice.
רש"י ויקרא פרשת מצורע פרק יד פסוק יב
והקריב אתו לאשם - יקריבנו לתוך העזרהצ לשם אשם:
It would be difficult for the Kohen to physically lift from the ground the he-lamp alive and kicking. No. Designate with words only. It would be difficult for Aaron to lift up from the ground 22,000 Levites. No. Designate with words only. KA, Garnel, IR---follow? Yes because of the sin of idolatry God commanded the purification of the whole tribe of Levi similar to the purification f the leper.
Of course, that would exclude the "Kuzari Principle" from having much validity..
ReplyDelete“When Jews said naaseh vnishma they thinking of idolatry” This was a poison pill = This was a tactic used by a company threatened with an unwelcome takeover bid to make itself unattractive to the bidder. There were Jews at Mount Sinai that did not welcome God takeover bid on the night of Shavuoth. Yes they all said naaseh vnishma, but some of the wicked/rabble were thinking of idolatry, generally centered in promiscuous sex (not sex of man and his wife). What did God do: . “The Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Take the Levites from among the Israelites and cleanse them. This is what you shall do to them to cleanse them: sprinkle on them water of purification, and let them go over their whole body with a razor, and wash their clothes; thus they shall be cleansed. Let them take a bull of the herd, and with its meal-offering of choice flour with oil mixed in, and you take a second bull of the herd for a sin-offering. You shall bring the Levites forward before the Tent of Meeting. Assemble the whole Israelite community, and bring shalt the Levites forward before the Lord. Let and the Israelites lay their hands upon the Levites, and let Aaron designate והניף the Levites before the Lord as an elevation offering תנופה from the Israelites, that they may perform the service of the Lord. The Levites shall now lay their hands upon the heads of the bulls; one shall be offered to the Lord as a sin-offering, and the other as a burnt-offering, to make expiation for the Levites. You shall place the Levites I attendance upon Aaron and his sons, and designate them והנפת אותם as an elevation offering תנופה to the Lord. Thus you shall set the Levites apart from the Israelites, and the Levites shall be Mine. Thereafter the Levites shall be qualified for the service of the Tent of Meeting, once you have cleansed them and designated them והנפת אותם as an elevation offering תנופה.” (Numbers 8:5-15).
ReplyDeleteThe wicked thinking of idolatry while saying naaseh vnishma puts God on the defensive with the wicked on the offensive. How is God to carry out his plan to make all the Jews His slave forever and ever with the wicked thinking of idolatry while saying naaseh vnishma?
A parallel to today: the Knesset lost a crucial vote extending Israeli law to settlers living in the West Bank. Good, thank God. The WSJ says: Justice Minister Gideon Sa’ar, a right-wing coalition member who supports settlers, had warned ahead of the vote that he and his party would walk away from the government should the bill fail to pass.
Netanyahu is on the offensive, finally, against his political enemies. Gideon Sa’ar cannot continue after June 30, 2022 without the Knesset voting to extend Israeli law to settlers living in the West Bank. This is a poison pill to block Bennet/Lapid/Ganz/Sa’ar continue rule. They have legal problems and legal issues that will overwhelm them after June 30, 2022 without the Knesset voting to extend Israeli law to settlers living in the West Bank.
Your analysis is correct - what is surprising is your downtick of my comment - since your comments lead tot he same conclusion that the Kuzari principle is unreliable. Kuzari type arguments claim that 3 million witnesses all experienced prophecy, and that mass acceptance of such an event is philosophical proof of it having taken place. The way Rabbi Dr Gottlieb forumaltes the argument, is that "had not the event taken place, the people would not have believed it". The immediate and obvious disproof is that a few minutes later they were serving a golden calf, and saying how "this is the god that took us out of egypt" - which is a total sheker. Thus the kuzari principle of mass acceptance = historical verification is sheker, and lends support to all sorts of rubbish, starting with the Golden calf, and not ending there.
ReplyDeleteBut they beguiled Him with their mouth, and lied unto Him with their tongue (Ps. LXXVIII, 36) My theory.
ReplyDelete“Yet they deceived Him with their speech, lied to Him with their words; their hearts were inconstant toward Him; they were untrue to His covenant. But He, being merciful, forgave iniquity and would not destroy; He restrained His wrath time and again and did not give full vent to His fury;” (Psalms 78:36-38).
תהלים פרק עח פסוק לח
וְהוּא רַחוּם יְכַפֵּר עָוֹן וְלֹא יַשְׁחִית וְהִרְבָּה לְהָשִׁיב אַפּוֹ וְלֹא יָעִיר כָּל חֲמָתוֹ:
רש"י תהלים פרק עח פסוק לח
להשיב אפו - מהם ואף אם נפרע מהם לא העיר עליהם כל חמתו כי אם מעט מעט לפי שזכר כי בשר המה ויצר הרע טמון בלבם והוא רוח הולך כשימותו ולא ישוב אותו רוח בהם לעולם הבא כשיחיו אין יצר הרע שולט בהם ולא יתכן לפרש רוח הולך ולא ישוב רוחם של חיים בהם שאם אמרת כן כפרת בתחית המתים וכן מפורש באגדת תהלים:
Rashi says that He did not give full vent to His fury, He did not remark on them all his wrath, but only slightly before He remembered that the evil inclination lies in mankind’s hearts and when they die the evil inclination will not return to the same spirit in the next world. Impossible to interpret their spirit will not return if you said so you deny resurrection of the dead. This is explicit in the legends of Psalms.
Yes we were wicked, KA, yet God has steadfast love and patience for us. I grew up with Kuzari philosophy and I still support it, but let’s talk the parsha OK?
Update on Aranoff v Aranoff I’m on the offensive, finally, in both NYS Court of Appeals and Appellate Division 2nd Dept: I’m not getting my pension that started 1993 then went to 45% from 1994 to no end in sight. Susan will have legal issues and legal problems taking 55% of my pension from 1994 with no end in sight.. KA, Garnel, IsraelReader do you see why I give you down-ticks?