(Leviticus 19:1 - 19:37)
Jehovah spoke to Moses and told him to give the following instructions to the entire community of Israel, "Be holy because I, your god Jehovah is holy."
"You all must show respect to your mother and father, and you must observe the Sabbath. Thus says your god Jehovah.
"Do not fall back into worshiping idols or casting brazen images of gods for yourself. Thus says your god Jehovah.
"When you make a peace offering to Jehovah make sure you that you carry it out with proper procedures so that it may be accepted on your behalf. The sacrifice should be eaten on the day that it is offered -- or the next day, but by the third day, anything left over should be burned up. If it is eaten on the third day, it is spoiled and, therefore, I will not accept it. Because they have desecrated what is sacred to Jehovah, those who eat it will be subject to punishment and should be banished from the community.
"When you harvest your crops, do not reap to the edges of your fields or gather up the remains. And in regard to your vineyards, do not pick them entirely clean or collect all the grapes that have fallen to the ground. Leave them for the poor and for the foreigners living among you. Thus says your god Jehovah.
"Do not steal. Do not deceive or lie to one another. And do not swear falsely in my name, profaning the name of your god. Thus says Jehovah.
"Do not defraud your neighbor or steal from him. Do not make those who work for you wait until the next day to receive their wages.
"Don't mock the deaf or trip up the blind.
"You must respect your god. Thus says Jehovah.
"In legal matters do not pervert justice either by favoring the poor or by deferring to the rich and powerful, but judge all your people with equal fairness.
"Do not spread slanderous gossip among your neighbors.
"Do not take advantage of your neighbor's death. Thus says Jehovah.
"Do not bear resentment in your heart against any of your tribe. Reprove your neighbor when he is in the wrong so that you will not share his guilt. Nor should you seek vengeance against your neighbor, or bear a grudge against him, but respect him as yourself. Thus says Jehovah.
“Keep my statutes!
"Do not permit your livestock to breed with other species. Do not plant a field of yours with more than one kind of crop. And do not wear garments composed of two different kinds of materials.
"If a man has sexual relations with a female slave that has been promised to another man but the transfer of ownership has not taken place and she has not been given her freedom, there should be legal sanction. However, since she is not a free woman, but still a slave, the death penalty is not appropriate. Instead, the male offender should make a guilt offering to Jehovah, bringing a ram to the Sacrificial Altar. There, before the entrance to the Sanctum, the priest will make atonement for him with the sacrificed ram, and the sin he has committed will be forgiven.
"When you cultivate the land and plant fruit trees, refrain from harvesting the fruit for three years. You are prohibited from eating the fruit for those three years. On the fourth year, the entire harvest is to be consecrated to Jehovah as an offering of thanksgiving. But, on the fifth year, the fruit may then be eaten. Following this practice, and your harvests will increase. Thus says your god Jehovah.
"Do not eat any food with blood in it.
"Do not practice fortune telling or augury.
"You should not shave the hair off the sides of your head or shape the edges of your beard.
"Do not cut or scourge yourself during mourning, or put any mark on your body. Thus says Jehovah.
"Do not disgrace your daughter by making her a prostitute, or the country will be filled with whores and promiscuity.
"Keep the Sabbath as a day of rest and regard with reverence my Tabernacle. Thus says Jehovah.
"Do not consult mediums or necromancers or defile yourself by association with them. Thus says your god Jehovah.
"Stand in the presence of your elders and honor the aged, for, by doing so, you show respect to your god. Thus says Jehovah.
"When a foreigner lives among you, do not abuse him; he should be treated as if he were a native-born inhabitant. Respect him as you would yourself. Remember that you were once foreigners living in Egypt. Thus says your god Jehovah.
"Do not be dishonest when making measurements of length, width, and volume. You should employ accurate scales with true weights -- an honest ephah and an honest hin.
"I am Jehovah your god, the one who brought you out of Egypt. You must not only honor my statutes and ordinances, but put them into practice. Thus says Jehovah."
Notes
1. Jehovah, who has already laid out the Ten Commandments and other lists of statutes he demands the Israelites observe, has another go at listing do's and don't's, reiterating what he has already discussed, but also broaching new areas. Some, like not stealing, or refraining from selling your daughter into prostitution (which seems like a moral no-brainer), are of consequence, while others, like restrictions on trimming your beard, seem like mere tribal customs, significant only in that they may serve to distinguish the Israelites from other peoples. (Maintaining a unique ethnic identity was always a high priority for the Israelite and, later, Jewish people.)
2. The Ten Commandments prohibits the making and worshiping of idols. This prohibition is restated, but with the implication that the Israelites used to be idol worshipers and are here warned against falling back into their former bad habits. It is not made clear if this pertained to the adoration of household spirits, some other god, or Jehovah himself.
3. There are some interesting references to charitable practices, most notably the provision that farmers and fruit growers leave some of their crop for the poor and destitute. It was a widespread and common practice, though, up until modern times, for the poor to be allowed to glean harvested fields and not be chased off the land as trespassers by angry farmers.
4. Considering that the Israelites were anything if not xenophobic, it is surprising how accommodating they were expected to be of foreigners and resident aliens. The laws of hospitality, however, are ancient, if not prehistoric.
5. In addition to many sound precepts, such as equal justice under the law, honest sales practices, and a prohibition against vengeance seeking, there are some more sophisticated moral concepts that involve attitudes rather than actions. This is the first biblical exhortation to "love your neighbor as yourself." (Since the word love is used in so many different ways and often ambiguously, I have used what I believe to be the more accurate "respect.") There is also a prohibition against nurturing grudges and harboring resentments that foreshadows the Christian view that one should forgive one's enemies. Here, though, it seems the proscription against resentment, grudges, and revenge applies only to fellow Israelites and maybe neighbors, not enemies. At this early point in history the tribalistic mentality and conditional morality was universal: one treats members of the tribe, the in group, differently than the out group.
6. One should not allow your livestock to breed with other animals. Why was this a matter of concern to Jehovah? One would think that mating cows with rams would be unproductive in any case. Is this a prohibition against selective breeding, perhaps seen as unnatural? Was it wrong, for instance, to mate different breeds of cattle? The prohibition, perhaps of more symbolic than practical significance, reinforces Jehovah’s preference for and insistence upon homogeneity and uniformity. And a distaste for man tampering with the natural world.
7. Planting a field with only one crop might make agronomic sense, but wearing clothes made of different materials, where's the harm in that? (The cotton-nylon blend, the fur collar, the leather arm patches are sadly, but emphatically non-Levitical.) Clothes at that time were made primarily of wool, linen, leather or animal skins. What was the reference here? Was there some connotation of sinful luxury or abnormality in clothes of more than one fabric, such as wool and linen?
8. The provision on the cutting of the hair and the beard is anything but clear. It is hard to figure out precisely what is being prohibited. I believe Jehovah meant to outlaw Egyptian and Canaanite styles, specifically square-cut beards, shaven heads with side locks (which Egyptian youths wore), and “round” haircuts. That the hair on the sides of the head be not cut, which is probably not what is meant at all, is followed today by ultra-orthodox Jews, resulting in what most people regard as an extremely unbecoming hair style. That the beard be not shaped makes a little more sense. Many ancient peoples sported highly dressed beards, sometimes braided or artfully sculpted. Jehovah probably did not want his people to imitate styles that suggested cultures he regarded as decadent. It should be mentioned that this provision did not mean that the beard should not be cut at all, only that the edges of it not be so evenly trimmed that it gave the appearance of being artificial and dressed. Jehovah, ever eschewing the artifices of civilization, wanted his people to be not only simple and obedient, but natural, down-to-earth, folksy, and shaggy-bearded, and not like the sophisticated Egyptians.
9. Jehovah specifically prohibits two types of mystical activity, fortune-telling and communication with the dead. There is no suggestion that either of these activities are bogus, only that they should not be practiced. This is mere protection of turf: the proclamations of dead might compete with Jehovah's message and fortune tellers would surely be rivals for his prophets. Moreover, mediums of any sort would infringe upon the prerogatives of his priests who must maintain their monopoly on communing with the divine. (Of course, one may safely conclude that these statutes were likely devised not by Jehovah, but by his priests, to safeguard their professional interests, to further their own agenda, and to enhance their influence and control over the people.)
10. The provision against cutting or marking the body is misunderstood. Most translations say "cut for the dead," which seems senseless. The reference is to cutting or scourging oneself while grieving the death of a love one. This was the custom among some ancient peoples, certainly the Amorites and the Scythians and perhaps even the Egyptians and the Canaanites. “Tattooing” is often used in most translations, but this not the correct term, since tattooing, as we know it, a Polynesian custom, was unknown in the ancient Middle East. The reference is to the practice of marking the body, perhaps with paint or a hot iron. The marks on the skin, symbols or pictures, may have had religious significance. This was the custom among some ancient tribes, but our knowledge of the matter is sparse.
11. The prohibition against fathers inducing their daughters to become prostitutes probably references the custom of among many peoples, the Babylonians, the Greeks, the Phoenicians, and the Canaanites to operate temple brothels and to attach religious sanction to such promiscuous sex.
12. An ephah was a dry measure equal to .6 bushels. The hin, a liquid measure, was approximate to a gallon.
Wednesday, August 27, 2014
Wednesday, August 13, 2014
Prohibited Sexual Relations
(Leviticus 18:1 - 18:30)
Jehovah told Moses to instruct the people of Israel: "Thus says Jehovah, who is your god. You should not behave like the people of Egypt, where you formerly resided, nor like the people of Canaan, into whose land I am bringing you. Do not adopt their customs! Obey my laws and follow my decrees, for I am Jehovah, your god. By keeping my laws and decrees you will preserve your life. Thus says Jehovah!
"No one should engage in sexual intercourse with any close relation. Thus says Jehovah.
"Do not dishonor your father by having sexual relations with your mother. She is your mother, you must not have sex with her! Nor should you have sexual relations with any of his wives. for that, too, would dishonor your father.
"Do not have sexual relations with a sister -- nor with a half sister, your father's or mother's daughter, regardless of whether she grew up with you in your household or not.
"Do not have sexual relations with your granddaughter, whether she be your son's child or that of your daughter, for that would dishonor you.
"Do not have sexual relations with a stepsister, a daughter of any of your father's wives, for she is still a sister to you.
"Do not have sexual relations with your father's sister: she is your aunt. Nor should you have sexual relations with your mother's sister: she is an aunt. Do not disgrace your father's brother by having sexual relations with his wife, for she is also an aunt.
"Do have sexual relations with both a woman and her daughter, nor should you marry or have sexual relations with her granddaughter, whether the child of a son or daughter. They are of her family and to have sexual relations with them would be an act of violation.
"Do not marry your wife's sister or engage in sexual relations with her while your wife is still living, for that would make them rivals.
"Do not seek to have sexual intercourse with a woman during the ritually impure part of her menstrual period.
"Do not dishonor yourself by having sexual relations with a wife who belongs to a member of your tribe.
"Do not permit any of your children to be offered as a human sacrifice upon the fiery altars of the god Moloch, for that would bring discredit upon the name of your god -- who is I, Jehovah.
"Do not have sexual relations with a man as one would with a woman, for homosexuality is an abomination.
"You must not defile yourself by having sexual intercourse with an animal, nor should a woman seek to have sex with an animal -- it is a perversion!
"Do not defile yourself by any of these acts -- which are practiced by the peoples I am going to drive out of the land before your arrival. Even the land has become so completely defiled that I will punish it for its sins and make it eject its inhabitants as if they were vomit. You must obey all my laws and decrees! You must not commit any of these detestable acts: that applies to foreigners residing among you as well as native-born Israelites. All of these acts are practiced by the inhabitants of the land where I am taking you, so much so that they have defiled the land. And if you similarly defile the land, it will eject you as if you were vomit, just like the peoples who lived there before you.
"Anyone who commits these detestable acts can no longer belong to the community of Israel. Therefore, observe my prohibitions against engaging in any of these practices that were done by the people who preceded you. Do not defile yourselves with them! Thus says Jehovah, your god."
Notes
1. The people of Egypt, the land that the Israelites have left, and the people of Canaan, where they are to settled, are more or less demonized by Jehovah. By painting your enemy as morally degraded or perverse, you lend greater justification for killing him. It has always been done to justify war or invasion. Even in America the Germans were portrayed as blood-thirsty, barbaric Huns during World War I, and in World War II the Japanese were dismissed as puny, subhuman Orientals with buck teeth and glasses. Here, the Canaanites are depicted as indulging in immoral and unnatural sexual practices. This furnishes a moral rationale for Jehovah's plan to drive them out of their country and give their land to the "virtuous" Israelites.
2. It is well known that the Egyptians, the royal family at any rate, engaged in incestuous practices; marriages between close family members were preferred in order to preserve the purity of the royal line. (The Pharaohs believed themselves to be descended from the gods. Perhaps they were, perhaps they were the descendants of extraterrestrial hybrids and claimed kingship and divine devotion on that account.)
3. The continuing theme of Jehovah's pronouncements is that his people, the Israelites, should zealously preserve their customs and the resist any pressure to alter them. Assimilation, adaptation, these are an anathema. The upside of this attitude is that a people is able to survive as a unique ethnic identity; the downside is that it tends to regard other peoples as alien, inferior, or evil.
4. The prohibition against sexual relations within the family seem very natural and are consistent with modern norms and with modern law. (These were probably needed since their early history, recounted in Genesis, shows a marked tendency on the part of Hebrews to be severely inbred.) There are a few prohibitions, however, that we today would find unnecessary. While few might chose to have sexual relations with both a mother and a daughter, I'm not sure many would find that morally offensive in itself. One is reminded that the actor Rod Cameron, a man who rode tall in the saddle, divorced his wife to marry his mother-in-law. When he did so (in 1960), eyebrows were probably raised, but not moral indignation. And as far as Americans today are concerned, the prohibition against sexual relations with in-laws, those related by affinity rather than by consanguinity, probably fits into the category of "nice people don't do it," but is not a matter for legal proscription. England, though, has always been stricter on such matters, in accordance with levitical tradition. For instance, rules of the Anglican Church long prevented a man from marrying his deceased wife’s sister. (Although a few courageous souls, such as Jane Austen’s brother Charles, managed to get away with it.) An English law of 1835 expressly forbade such unions until it was repealed in the early 20th Century. Legal prohibitions against marrying an in-law of a living ex-spouse remained in effect there until 1960! --- Moderns can be still be strict regarding sexual unions between those of close consanguinity -- in America cousin marriages are still illegal in about half of the states of the union. Surprisingly, Leviticus makes no mention of cousins.
5. Jehovah takes for granted the existence of polygamy, from which there arises some unique moral problems. One is prohibited, for instance, from marrying the sister of a current wife (and disturbing the harem with sibling rivalry). Such problems and the legality of marrying sisters, would again arise among polygamist Mormons of the late 19th Century.
6. Several Hebrew patriarchs seemed to have violated the sexual prohibitions stated here, for instance, Abraham was married to his half-sister Sarah. Are these laws meant to apply to Israelites from this point onward, or are past offenders, who would have been unaware of the laws, subject to moral sanction? Also, there is no suggestion by Jehovah that these laws are meant to apply to any people other than Israelites, his people. He expressly states that other peoples live by their own laws, which, of course, are inferior to his.
7. Nearly all the prohibitions here are directed towards men, and one gets the impression that woman are not considered morally conscious beings. The sole law directed toward the female of the species is that she should refrain from seducing any animals and engaging in bestiality -- most flattering! The honor and reputation of the woman does not seem to be a consideration in sexual relations, for instance, if you have sex with your dishy auntie, she is not the one who is disgraced, but the uncle. Everything is from the male perspective. Even though there is presented throughout the Old Testament a large number of influential and powerful women, it must be remembered that women were at that time the property of males. And improper sexual relations with them often seem to be merely a violation of property rights.
8. A provision that one would think would be easy to follow is not allowing your child to be sacrificed to Moloch, a Canaanite god who demanded human sacrifices. At this point, the Israelites are still camped out in the desert of Sinai. They hadn't seen Canaan yet and wouldn't for a very long time. Why this prohibition should be inserted here is not obvious, since it has nothing to do with sexual conduct. At any rate, the cult of Moloch was pervasive in the region. Moloch was represented by a human figure with a bull’s head. Statues would feature a hole in the belly and a ramp leading to it. Inside the hole a fire would consume sacrifices of babies and children, offered to ensure good fortune for the family.
9. The condemnation of homosexuality is not surprising; only recently has it found any level of acceptance in Judeo-Christian culture. It should be noted that while homosexuality has been disparaged as a perversion and a moral degradation, the disapproval of it also arises from the belief that it undermines procreation; societies in the past have usually had a strong interest in increasing their populations -- the Israelites certainly did. (The author of Exodus brags about the tremendous growth in the Israelite slave population and inflates exponentially the number of people who could have participated in the Exodus.) Homosexuality, however, was probably accepted, if not honored by many, if not most ancient peoples, although our knowledge on the subject is limited. We do know the Greeks were famous advocates of the practice. (Plato, who apparently disapproved, was a rare outlier in his views.) These opposing attitudes toward homosexuality highlight clearly the disparity between Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian mores.
Jehovah told Moses to instruct the people of Israel: "Thus says Jehovah, who is your god. You should not behave like the people of Egypt, where you formerly resided, nor like the people of Canaan, into whose land I am bringing you. Do not adopt their customs! Obey my laws and follow my decrees, for I am Jehovah, your god. By keeping my laws and decrees you will preserve your life. Thus says Jehovah!
"No one should engage in sexual intercourse with any close relation. Thus says Jehovah.
"Do not dishonor your father by having sexual relations with your mother. She is your mother, you must not have sex with her! Nor should you have sexual relations with any of his wives. for that, too, would dishonor your father.
"Do not have sexual relations with a sister -- nor with a half sister, your father's or mother's daughter, regardless of whether she grew up with you in your household or not.
"Do not have sexual relations with your granddaughter, whether she be your son's child or that of your daughter, for that would dishonor you.
"Do not have sexual relations with a stepsister, a daughter of any of your father's wives, for she is still a sister to you.
"Do not have sexual relations with your father's sister: she is your aunt. Nor should you have sexual relations with your mother's sister: she is an aunt. Do not disgrace your father's brother by having sexual relations with his wife, for she is also an aunt.
"Do have sexual relations with both a woman and her daughter, nor should you marry or have sexual relations with her granddaughter, whether the child of a son or daughter. They are of her family and to have sexual relations with them would be an act of violation.
"Do not marry your wife's sister or engage in sexual relations with her while your wife is still living, for that would make them rivals.
"Do not seek to have sexual intercourse with a woman during the ritually impure part of her menstrual period.
"Do not dishonor yourself by having sexual relations with a wife who belongs to a member of your tribe.
"Do not permit any of your children to be offered as a human sacrifice upon the fiery altars of the god Moloch, for that would bring discredit upon the name of your god -- who is I, Jehovah.
"Do not have sexual relations with a man as one would with a woman, for homosexuality is an abomination.
"You must not defile yourself by having sexual intercourse with an animal, nor should a woman seek to have sex with an animal -- it is a perversion!
"Do not defile yourself by any of these acts -- which are practiced by the peoples I am going to drive out of the land before your arrival. Even the land has become so completely defiled that I will punish it for its sins and make it eject its inhabitants as if they were vomit. You must obey all my laws and decrees! You must not commit any of these detestable acts: that applies to foreigners residing among you as well as native-born Israelites. All of these acts are practiced by the inhabitants of the land where I am taking you, so much so that they have defiled the land. And if you similarly defile the land, it will eject you as if you were vomit, just like the peoples who lived there before you.
"Anyone who commits these detestable acts can no longer belong to the community of Israel. Therefore, observe my prohibitions against engaging in any of these practices that were done by the people who preceded you. Do not defile yourselves with them! Thus says Jehovah, your god."
Notes
1. The people of Egypt, the land that the Israelites have left, and the people of Canaan, where they are to settled, are more or less demonized by Jehovah. By painting your enemy as morally degraded or perverse, you lend greater justification for killing him. It has always been done to justify war or invasion. Even in America the Germans were portrayed as blood-thirsty, barbaric Huns during World War I, and in World War II the Japanese were dismissed as puny, subhuman Orientals with buck teeth and glasses. Here, the Canaanites are depicted as indulging in immoral and unnatural sexual practices. This furnishes a moral rationale for Jehovah's plan to drive them out of their country and give their land to the "virtuous" Israelites.
2. It is well known that the Egyptians, the royal family at any rate, engaged in incestuous practices; marriages between close family members were preferred in order to preserve the purity of the royal line. (The Pharaohs believed themselves to be descended from the gods. Perhaps they were, perhaps they were the descendants of extraterrestrial hybrids and claimed kingship and divine devotion on that account.)
3. The continuing theme of Jehovah's pronouncements is that his people, the Israelites, should zealously preserve their customs and the resist any pressure to alter them. Assimilation, adaptation, these are an anathema. The upside of this attitude is that a people is able to survive as a unique ethnic identity; the downside is that it tends to regard other peoples as alien, inferior, or evil.
4. The prohibition against sexual relations within the family seem very natural and are consistent with modern norms and with modern law. (These were probably needed since their early history, recounted in Genesis, shows a marked tendency on the part of Hebrews to be severely inbred.) There are a few prohibitions, however, that we today would find unnecessary. While few might chose to have sexual relations with both a mother and a daughter, I'm not sure many would find that morally offensive in itself. One is reminded that the actor Rod Cameron, a man who rode tall in the saddle, divorced his wife to marry his mother-in-law. When he did so (in 1960), eyebrows were probably raised, but not moral indignation. And as far as Americans today are concerned, the prohibition against sexual relations with in-laws, those related by affinity rather than by consanguinity, probably fits into the category of "nice people don't do it," but is not a matter for legal proscription. England, though, has always been stricter on such matters, in accordance with levitical tradition. For instance, rules of the Anglican Church long prevented a man from marrying his deceased wife’s sister. (Although a few courageous souls, such as Jane Austen’s brother Charles, managed to get away with it.) An English law of 1835 expressly forbade such unions until it was repealed in the early 20th Century. Legal prohibitions against marrying an in-law of a living ex-spouse remained in effect there until 1960! --- Moderns can be still be strict regarding sexual unions between those of close consanguinity -- in America cousin marriages are still illegal in about half of the states of the union. Surprisingly, Leviticus makes no mention of cousins.
5. Jehovah takes for granted the existence of polygamy, from which there arises some unique moral problems. One is prohibited, for instance, from marrying the sister of a current wife (and disturbing the harem with sibling rivalry). Such problems and the legality of marrying sisters, would again arise among polygamist Mormons of the late 19th Century.
6. Several Hebrew patriarchs seemed to have violated the sexual prohibitions stated here, for instance, Abraham was married to his half-sister Sarah. Are these laws meant to apply to Israelites from this point onward, or are past offenders, who would have been unaware of the laws, subject to moral sanction? Also, there is no suggestion by Jehovah that these laws are meant to apply to any people other than Israelites, his people. He expressly states that other peoples live by their own laws, which, of course, are inferior to his.
7. Nearly all the prohibitions here are directed towards men, and one gets the impression that woman are not considered morally conscious beings. The sole law directed toward the female of the species is that she should refrain from seducing any animals and engaging in bestiality -- most flattering! The honor and reputation of the woman does not seem to be a consideration in sexual relations, for instance, if you have sex with your dishy auntie, she is not the one who is disgraced, but the uncle. Everything is from the male perspective. Even though there is presented throughout the Old Testament a large number of influential and powerful women, it must be remembered that women were at that time the property of males. And improper sexual relations with them often seem to be merely a violation of property rights.
8. A provision that one would think would be easy to follow is not allowing your child to be sacrificed to Moloch, a Canaanite god who demanded human sacrifices. At this point, the Israelites are still camped out in the desert of Sinai. They hadn't seen Canaan yet and wouldn't for a very long time. Why this prohibition should be inserted here is not obvious, since it has nothing to do with sexual conduct. At any rate, the cult of Moloch was pervasive in the region. Moloch was represented by a human figure with a bull’s head. Statues would feature a hole in the belly and a ramp leading to it. Inside the hole a fire would consume sacrifices of babies and children, offered to ensure good fortune for the family.
9. The condemnation of homosexuality is not surprising; only recently has it found any level of acceptance in Judeo-Christian culture. It should be noted that while homosexuality has been disparaged as a perversion and a moral degradation, the disapproval of it also arises from the belief that it undermines procreation; societies in the past have usually had a strong interest in increasing their populations -- the Israelites certainly did. (The author of Exodus brags about the tremendous growth in the Israelite slave population and inflates exponentially the number of people who could have participated in the Exodus.) Homosexuality, however, was probably accepted, if not honored by many, if not most ancient peoples, although our knowledge on the subject is limited. We do know the Greeks were famous advocates of the practice. (Plato, who apparently disapproved, was a rare outlier in his views.) These opposing attitudes toward homosexuality highlight clearly the disparity between Greco-Roman and Judeo-Christian mores.
Tuesday, July 29, 2014
Unlawful Sacrifices and the Consumption of Blood
(Leviticus 17:1 - 17:16)
Jehovah told Moses to tell Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelites this: "It is the commandment of Jehovah that any Israelite who sacrifices a bull or a cow, a lamb, or a goat in the camp -- or outside it, instead of bringing it to entrance to the Sanctum and offering it as a sacrifice on Jehovah's altar before the Sanctum, shall be guilty of a crime; he has shed blood and must be banished from the community. The purpose of this order is so that the Israelites who are now making sacrifices in open fields, will bring their sacrifices to the priest at the entrance to the Sanctum, where he can present them as peace offerings to Jehovah. It is there the priest can sprinkle the blood against the Sacrificial Altar before the Sanctum and burn the fat so that it may create an aroma pleasing to Jehovah. The people must stop prostituting themselves by making sacrifices to goat gods! This is a permanent order that will stand for the people throughout the generations.
"Also stress to the people that anyone, Israelite or a foreign resident, who makes a burnt offering or peace offering -- but does not bring it to the Sacrificial Altar before the entrance to the Sanctum so that it may be presented to Jehovah -- should be banished.
"And if a native Israelite or foreign resident consumes any blood, I will be opposed to that person and reject him as a member of the congregation. The essence of the life force resides in the blood. I have demanded that blood be shed upon the altar for the sake of atonement. Indeed it is the blood, in place of a life, that achieves atonement. Therefore, I demand of the people of Israel that no Israelite or foreign resident consume blood. And any Israelite or foreign resident who hunts and kills an animal or bird (one approved for eating) must drain out the blood and cover it with dirt. The life force of every creature resides in the blood. That is why I tell the people of Israel, 'You must never consume blood, for it is the life force of every creature," and that is why whoever consumes blood must be banished from the community.
"And if a native Israelite or foreign resident eats the meat of an animal that has died naturally or has beenkilled by animal predators, he must bath and wash his clothes. He will remain ritually impure until evening, but will thereafter be pure. However, if he does not bathe or wash his clothes, he will be subject to divine punishment."
Notes
1. The prohibition against individual, unsupervised sacrifices is, like many laws here, supposedly set down by Jehovah, a means to enforce uniformity in worship and to ensure for the priesthood a monopoly in the control of religious practice. Exclusivity in dealing with the divine is a prerogative the religious establishment has always jealously defended, whether it be of ancient Israel, Egypt, or medieval Europe. Priests of the church, synagogue, or temple function as intermediaries, middle men between human worshipers and the deity. They do not appreciate and often do not tolerate competition; free-lance practitioners are made unwelcome, so much so that they have often been put to death. The notion that a layman may seek or find divine communion without the intercession of the priesthood has always been rejected by religious authorities for reasons that are patently self serving. Priests always make it very clear that the god recognizes them as his only agents on earth. Thus the lone Israelite devoutly making a sacrifice to Jehovah in a field is viewed the same as would be a heretic during the time of the Inquisition.
2. A complaint is voiced about the Israelites making sacrifices to what seems best translated as "goat gods." There is obviously a back story here the authors vouchsafe no information about. All along, though, we find the Israelites seeking to worship gods other than Jehovah. Considering all the things that Jehovah has done for them, one wonders why.
3. The prohibition against the consumption of blood is explained here in a rare recourse to the metaphysical. Blood is believed to possess the life force. (Almost all translations use simply "life," but I contend "life force" is what is meant.) Perhaps they thought it housed the soul. (The function of the blood was not understood by ancient man, but everyone would know that a person bleeds when wounded and dies if he loses too much blood.) It is, therefore, the mystical qualities of blood that make it essential for sacrifices and for atonement. It is likely that other ancient and primitive peoples who practiced blood sacrifices believed similarly.
4. It is unclear if it is morally objectionable to eat a rare steak or not. How it is possible to eat meat without some blood being present in it?
5. It is mandatory to bathe and wash your clothes after eating an animal that dies on its own or was killed by another animal. (We apparently aren't done with ritual purity.) This might be difficult for the priests to enforce, though some dire, but unspecified punishment is inflicted upon those who do not obey the edict. One might conclude that those who violate the laws of ritual purification would be much more cleanly than the average Israelite, having to bathe and wash their clothes so frequently.
Jehovah told Moses to tell Aaron, his sons, and all the Israelites this: "It is the commandment of Jehovah that any Israelite who sacrifices a bull or a cow, a lamb, or a goat in the camp -- or outside it, instead of bringing it to entrance to the Sanctum and offering it as a sacrifice on Jehovah's altar before the Sanctum, shall be guilty of a crime; he has shed blood and must be banished from the community. The purpose of this order is so that the Israelites who are now making sacrifices in open fields, will bring their sacrifices to the priest at the entrance to the Sanctum, where he can present them as peace offerings to Jehovah. It is there the priest can sprinkle the blood against the Sacrificial Altar before the Sanctum and burn the fat so that it may create an aroma pleasing to Jehovah. The people must stop prostituting themselves by making sacrifices to goat gods! This is a permanent order that will stand for the people throughout the generations.
"Also stress to the people that anyone, Israelite or a foreign resident, who makes a burnt offering or peace offering -- but does not bring it to the Sacrificial Altar before the entrance to the Sanctum so that it may be presented to Jehovah -- should be banished.
"And if a native Israelite or foreign resident consumes any blood, I will be opposed to that person and reject him as a member of the congregation. The essence of the life force resides in the blood. I have demanded that blood be shed upon the altar for the sake of atonement. Indeed it is the blood, in place of a life, that achieves atonement. Therefore, I demand of the people of Israel that no Israelite or foreign resident consume blood. And any Israelite or foreign resident who hunts and kills an animal or bird (one approved for eating) must drain out the blood and cover it with dirt. The life force of every creature resides in the blood. That is why I tell the people of Israel, 'You must never consume blood, for it is the life force of every creature," and that is why whoever consumes blood must be banished from the community.
"And if a native Israelite or foreign resident eats the meat of an animal that has died naturally or has beenkilled by animal predators, he must bath and wash his clothes. He will remain ritually impure until evening, but will thereafter be pure. However, if he does not bathe or wash his clothes, he will be subject to divine punishment."
Notes
1. The prohibition against individual, unsupervised sacrifices is, like many laws here, supposedly set down by Jehovah, a means to enforce uniformity in worship and to ensure for the priesthood a monopoly in the control of religious practice. Exclusivity in dealing with the divine is a prerogative the religious establishment has always jealously defended, whether it be of ancient Israel, Egypt, or medieval Europe. Priests of the church, synagogue, or temple function as intermediaries, middle men between human worshipers and the deity. They do not appreciate and often do not tolerate competition; free-lance practitioners are made unwelcome, so much so that they have often been put to death. The notion that a layman may seek or find divine communion without the intercession of the priesthood has always been rejected by religious authorities for reasons that are patently self serving. Priests always make it very clear that the god recognizes them as his only agents on earth. Thus the lone Israelite devoutly making a sacrifice to Jehovah in a field is viewed the same as would be a heretic during the time of the Inquisition.
2. A complaint is voiced about the Israelites making sacrifices to what seems best translated as "goat gods." There is obviously a back story here the authors vouchsafe no information about. All along, though, we find the Israelites seeking to worship gods other than Jehovah. Considering all the things that Jehovah has done for them, one wonders why.
3. The prohibition against the consumption of blood is explained here in a rare recourse to the metaphysical. Blood is believed to possess the life force. (Almost all translations use simply "life," but I contend "life force" is what is meant.) Perhaps they thought it housed the soul. (The function of the blood was not understood by ancient man, but everyone would know that a person bleeds when wounded and dies if he loses too much blood.) It is, therefore, the mystical qualities of blood that make it essential for sacrifices and for atonement. It is likely that other ancient and primitive peoples who practiced blood sacrifices believed similarly.
4. It is unclear if it is morally objectionable to eat a rare steak or not. How it is possible to eat meat without some blood being present in it?
5. It is mandatory to bathe and wash your clothes after eating an animal that dies on its own or was killed by another animal. (We apparently aren't done with ritual purity.) This might be difficult for the priests to enforce, though some dire, but unspecified punishment is inflicted upon those who do not obey the edict. One might conclude that those who violate the laws of ritual purification would be much more cleanly than the average Israelite, having to bathe and wash their clothes so frequently.
Thursday, July 17, 2014
Ritual of Atonement
(Leviticus 16:1 - 16:34)
Jehovah spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron's two sons who were killed while improperly ministering at the altar. "Warn your brother Aaron that he must not enter the Inner Sanctum beyond the veil and approach the Judgment Seat (that is, the lid of the Chest of Sacred Records) any time he wishes, or he is apt to be killed when I manifest myself in a cloud above the Judgment Seat. Aaron should carefully follow this procedure whenever he enters the Inner Sanctum: He must present a young bull as a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. He must garb himself in the sacred vestments: he must don the linen tunic and the linen undergarments, fasten the linen sash round his waist, and put the linen turban on his head. And he must bathe before putting them on.
"From the congregation of Israel he should receive two male goats as a sin offering and a ram as a burnt offering. Aaron must offer in sacrifice his own bull as a sin offering to make atonement for himself and the other members of the priesthood. Then he should take the two goats and bring them to the Sacrificial Altar that stands before the entrance to the Sanctum.
“He is to cast sacred lots for the goats to determine which one will be sacrificed to Jehovah and which will banished as the scapegoat. The goat chosen by lot for Jehovah is to be sacrificed as a sin offering. The one chosen by lot to be the scapegoat should be presented live before the altar and then sent off into the desert to complete the ritual of atonement for the people.
"Aaron is take the bull as the sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household and slaughter it as a sacrifice. After he has done so, he should take a censer full of burning embers (from the Sacrificial Altar that stands before the Sanctum) and two handfuls of powdered aromatic incense. When he has passed through the veil into the Inner Sanctum, he should sprinkle the incense into the censer so that smoke from the burning incense will rise up and cover the Judgment Seat, that is, the lid of the Chest of Sacred Records. --- If he does not follow these instructions, he will die.
"He should take some of the blood from the sacrificed bull and dab it upon the top of the Judgment Seat and with his finger he should sprinkle blood seven times in front of it. He should sacrifice the goat that is the sin offering of the people and bring its blood into the Inner Sanctum so that he may sprinkle it upon and before the Judgment Seat, as was done with the bull's blood. This will purify the Inner Sanctum, to make atonement for the impurity and rebelliousness, and all the sins of the Israelites. But he must do the same for the entire Tabernacle which remains standing in the midst of their impurity. No one should be allowed in the Tabernacle from the time Aaron enters the Inner Sanctum to purify it, and no one should be allowed to enter it until after he leaves, having made atonement for himself and the priests and atonement for the entire community of Israel.
"Aaron should then go out to the Sacrificial Altar that stands before the entrance to the Sanctum and purify it. He should do this by taking some of the blood from the sacrificed bull and goat and dabbing it on each horn of the altar. With his finger he should sprinkle blood seven times over the altar in order to purify and consecrate it and make atonement for the impurities of the Israelites.
"When Aaron has finished purifying the Inner Sanctum, the Tabernacle, and the Sacrificial Altar, he should present the live goat. He will hold the goat's head in both of his hands and confess to it all the sins and transgressions and iniquities of the Israelite people, the guilt of which is thus transferred to the head of the goat. A designated person will then take it into the desert. When a desolate, uninhabited country is reached, the person will set the goat free, so that it may carry away all the people's sins.
"Aaron should then return to the Sanctum and take off the linen vestments he donned before he entered the Inner Sanctum; he should leave them there. While in the Tabernacle he should bathe himself and change his clothes. He should then come out of the Sanctum and present his burnt offering and the people’s burnt offering to make atonement both for himself and for the people. The fat of the sin offering will be burnt on the altar.
"The person chosen to lead the scapegoat into the desert should wash his clothes and bathe and may afterward come back into camp. The carcasses of the bull and the goat that were sacrificed as sin offerings and whose blood was used to purify the Inner Sanctum should be taken outside of camp, where their hides, flesh, and organs are to be burned. He who burns them must bathe and wash his clothes before returning to camp.
"This shall be for you an established practice: every year on the tenth day of the seventh month you should do penitence and refrain from doing any work -- both citizens and resident aliens alike -- for this will be the Day of Atonement when offerings are made to cleanse you of your sins in the eyes of Jehovah. It will be a Sabbath-like day of rest and penitence; this will be a permanent observance. Wearing the sacred linen vestments, Aaron's successor, anointed and consecrated as high priest, will purify the Inner Sanctum, the Tabernacle, the Sacrificial Altar, the priests, and the entire congregation. Making this atonement for the sins of Israel’s people must be done every year."
Moses would do what Jehovah had instructed him.
Notes
1. The Hebrew text makes no clear distinction between atonement and purification, whether they are two different things or the same.
2. One is again reminded what a bloody business being a priest was -- rather like a butcher who gets to wear fancy clothes, but who, if he makes a misstep, may be struck down dead. One wonders how the linen garments of the priest could have remained clean with all that blood being splattered about. Did Israelite laundries possess advanced methods of stain removal?
3. And it seems a shame that the spectacularly beautiful gold Judgment Seat and the stunning bronze horns of the Sacrificial Altar should be sullied by blood. Was it later wiped off? There is no reference to cleaning up after sacrifices, only instructions on the disposal of the carcasses of sacrificed animals. How long, might one ask, would it take for the dried blood encrusted on the altar horns to become gross and unsightly? And one wonders whether that incense was strong enough to banish the inevitable stench of the slaughterhouse that must have regularly pervaded the Tabernacle.
4. The Inner Sanctum is Jehovah's special place, and he demands special rituals to be performed before the priest may enter it. Jehovah manifests himself there as a cloud above the Judgment Seat. There is a great deal of ambiguity in the Torah concerning the physical appearance of Jehovah. In Genesis he is as a man who walks and talks and eats cottage cheese. In Exodus he is a burning bush, whatever that might have been. He appears in an airship during the Exodus. He communes with Moses on the mountain more or less man-to-man. It can be assumed he had the form of a man, though even Moses is not allowed to glimpse his face. His appearance, nevertheless, is awe-inspiring, fearsome even. But, more and more, Jehovah becomes less and less material. He is now a cloud. Does this cloud suddenly materialize in the Inner Sanctum or does it travel from elsewhere and enter the Inner Sanctum? Is his being contained in the cloud, or does the cloud obscure a physical, even humanoid form? And then there is the matter of the incense Aaron must burn in the Inner Sanctum. The burning incense is intended to create a cloud of smoke obscuring the Judgment Seat. Jehovah arrives there in a cloud and now he needs another cloud in which to hide himself? This may have a practical purpose of obscuring the form of Jehovah so that no one may see him as he really is, or it may merely a means of creating a mystique, an aura of mystery surrounding religious worship -- the Wizard of Oz effect.
5. Many translations refer to burning coal being placed in the censor, or incense burner. Coal, as we define it today, a mined mineral, was scarcely known, let alone used in ancient times. Charcoal, almost pure carbon obtained by slowly burning wood, is probably meant -- more likely than dried animal dung, which was a common fuel at that time.
6. The ritual of the scapegoat is interesting but not unique. (I use the traditional term “scapegoat,” since it is so familiar. The meaning of the Hebrew word Azazel is conjectural -- a desert demon?) Man has always had a strong desire to free himself from the burden of guilt his sins impose upon him. Primitive and ancient man found an easy out by transferring guilt into an inanimate object, or, in this case, an animal and then destroying or banishing the receptacle of that guilt. Most peoples seem to have folk or religious traditions of this sort. Often effigies are burned. Sometimes a human sacrifice is made. Communal guilt and communal expiation exist in societies where the group, the collective, has primacy over the individual, who is significant only as a part of the whole. The transfer of guilt, though, is tenuous philosophically. It is contrary to the concept, held by most people today, that individuals are only responsible for their own acts and not for the acts of others, and that others should not pay for what we have done. Generally we believe that guilt can be expunged only by remorse, repentance, compensatory good deeds, and sometimes a period of ostracism -- or the Catholic method of expiation consisting of confession, prayer, and attendance of mass.
7. Lots are cast to see which goat is to be sacrificed and which is to be the scapegoat and sent into the desert. Perhaps this was a use for the mysterious Urim and Thimmim (small tablets, stones?) that the high priest carried inside the chest piece of his vestments and were used in divination.
8. Aaron is supposed to bathe after he has performed the purification ceremony and leave his priestly vestments in the Sanctum. One assumes he undressed in the curtained Sanctum and not in the more open Tabernacle courtyard, considering Hebrew prohibitions against viewing the naked body. It is not clear, though, what bathing facilities would have existed in the Sanctum: he would not have had access to, nor would he have found sufficient, the bronze wash basin that stood outside the Sanctum. (It was meant for hand washing.) Would there be a portable bath tub or maybe a handy bucket of water, sponge, and towel?
9. Jehovah's harping on the sins and impurities of the Israelites gives the impression, perhaps not a false one, that they were a pretty rum lot. Jehovah expresses obvious contempt for his Chosen People. Why, one might ask, did he choose them? Wouldn't the Hittites or the Nubians or the Minoans, or even the Scythians have been more worthy of his patronage?
10. The Day of Atonement occurs in early autumn (in the northern hemisphere) in the month of Tishrei of the Hebrew lunar calendar. Traditionally, it is believed to be the date that Moses received the second set of Ten Commandment tablets and the Israelites made atonement for their sin of the Golden Calf. The Day of Atonement is observed by Jews today as Yom Kippur (literally, “day to atone”), the holiest day in the religious calendar and one celebrated even by those who are non-practicing Jews. Depending upon the moon, it may occur from mid September to mid October.
Jehovah spoke to Moses after the death of Aaron's two sons who were killed while improperly ministering at the altar. "Warn your brother Aaron that he must not enter the Inner Sanctum beyond the veil and approach the Judgment Seat (that is, the lid of the Chest of Sacred Records) any time he wishes, or he is apt to be killed when I manifest myself in a cloud above the Judgment Seat. Aaron should carefully follow this procedure whenever he enters the Inner Sanctum: He must present a young bull as a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering. He must garb himself in the sacred vestments: he must don the linen tunic and the linen undergarments, fasten the linen sash round his waist, and put the linen turban on his head. And he must bathe before putting them on.
"From the congregation of Israel he should receive two male goats as a sin offering and a ram as a burnt offering. Aaron must offer in sacrifice his own bull as a sin offering to make atonement for himself and the other members of the priesthood. Then he should take the two goats and bring them to the Sacrificial Altar that stands before the entrance to the Sanctum.
“He is to cast sacred lots for the goats to determine which one will be sacrificed to Jehovah and which will banished as the scapegoat. The goat chosen by lot for Jehovah is to be sacrificed as a sin offering. The one chosen by lot to be the scapegoat should be presented live before the altar and then sent off into the desert to complete the ritual of atonement for the people.
"Aaron is take the bull as the sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household and slaughter it as a sacrifice. After he has done so, he should take a censer full of burning embers (from the Sacrificial Altar that stands before the Sanctum) and two handfuls of powdered aromatic incense. When he has passed through the veil into the Inner Sanctum, he should sprinkle the incense into the censer so that smoke from the burning incense will rise up and cover the Judgment Seat, that is, the lid of the Chest of Sacred Records. --- If he does not follow these instructions, he will die.
"He should take some of the blood from the sacrificed bull and dab it upon the top of the Judgment Seat and with his finger he should sprinkle blood seven times in front of it. He should sacrifice the goat that is the sin offering of the people and bring its blood into the Inner Sanctum so that he may sprinkle it upon and before the Judgment Seat, as was done with the bull's blood. This will purify the Inner Sanctum, to make atonement for the impurity and rebelliousness, and all the sins of the Israelites. But he must do the same for the entire Tabernacle which remains standing in the midst of their impurity. No one should be allowed in the Tabernacle from the time Aaron enters the Inner Sanctum to purify it, and no one should be allowed to enter it until after he leaves, having made atonement for himself and the priests and atonement for the entire community of Israel.
"Aaron should then go out to the Sacrificial Altar that stands before the entrance to the Sanctum and purify it. He should do this by taking some of the blood from the sacrificed bull and goat and dabbing it on each horn of the altar. With his finger he should sprinkle blood seven times over the altar in order to purify and consecrate it and make atonement for the impurities of the Israelites.
"When Aaron has finished purifying the Inner Sanctum, the Tabernacle, and the Sacrificial Altar, he should present the live goat. He will hold the goat's head in both of his hands and confess to it all the sins and transgressions and iniquities of the Israelite people, the guilt of which is thus transferred to the head of the goat. A designated person will then take it into the desert. When a desolate, uninhabited country is reached, the person will set the goat free, so that it may carry away all the people's sins.
"Aaron should then return to the Sanctum and take off the linen vestments he donned before he entered the Inner Sanctum; he should leave them there. While in the Tabernacle he should bathe himself and change his clothes. He should then come out of the Sanctum and present his burnt offering and the people’s burnt offering to make atonement both for himself and for the people. The fat of the sin offering will be burnt on the altar.
"The person chosen to lead the scapegoat into the desert should wash his clothes and bathe and may afterward come back into camp. The carcasses of the bull and the goat that were sacrificed as sin offerings and whose blood was used to purify the Inner Sanctum should be taken outside of camp, where their hides, flesh, and organs are to be burned. He who burns them must bathe and wash his clothes before returning to camp.
"This shall be for you an established practice: every year on the tenth day of the seventh month you should do penitence and refrain from doing any work -- both citizens and resident aliens alike -- for this will be the Day of Atonement when offerings are made to cleanse you of your sins in the eyes of Jehovah. It will be a Sabbath-like day of rest and penitence; this will be a permanent observance. Wearing the sacred linen vestments, Aaron's successor, anointed and consecrated as high priest, will purify the Inner Sanctum, the Tabernacle, the Sacrificial Altar, the priests, and the entire congregation. Making this atonement for the sins of Israel’s people must be done every year."
Moses would do what Jehovah had instructed him.
Notes
1. The Hebrew text makes no clear distinction between atonement and purification, whether they are two different things or the same.
2. One is again reminded what a bloody business being a priest was -- rather like a butcher who gets to wear fancy clothes, but who, if he makes a misstep, may be struck down dead. One wonders how the linen garments of the priest could have remained clean with all that blood being splattered about. Did Israelite laundries possess advanced methods of stain removal?
3. And it seems a shame that the spectacularly beautiful gold Judgment Seat and the stunning bronze horns of the Sacrificial Altar should be sullied by blood. Was it later wiped off? There is no reference to cleaning up after sacrifices, only instructions on the disposal of the carcasses of sacrificed animals. How long, might one ask, would it take for the dried blood encrusted on the altar horns to become gross and unsightly? And one wonders whether that incense was strong enough to banish the inevitable stench of the slaughterhouse that must have regularly pervaded the Tabernacle.
4. The Inner Sanctum is Jehovah's special place, and he demands special rituals to be performed before the priest may enter it. Jehovah manifests himself there as a cloud above the Judgment Seat. There is a great deal of ambiguity in the Torah concerning the physical appearance of Jehovah. In Genesis he is as a man who walks and talks and eats cottage cheese. In Exodus he is a burning bush, whatever that might have been. He appears in an airship during the Exodus. He communes with Moses on the mountain more or less man-to-man. It can be assumed he had the form of a man, though even Moses is not allowed to glimpse his face. His appearance, nevertheless, is awe-inspiring, fearsome even. But, more and more, Jehovah becomes less and less material. He is now a cloud. Does this cloud suddenly materialize in the Inner Sanctum or does it travel from elsewhere and enter the Inner Sanctum? Is his being contained in the cloud, or does the cloud obscure a physical, even humanoid form? And then there is the matter of the incense Aaron must burn in the Inner Sanctum. The burning incense is intended to create a cloud of smoke obscuring the Judgment Seat. Jehovah arrives there in a cloud and now he needs another cloud in which to hide himself? This may have a practical purpose of obscuring the form of Jehovah so that no one may see him as he really is, or it may merely a means of creating a mystique, an aura of mystery surrounding religious worship -- the Wizard of Oz effect.
5. Many translations refer to burning coal being placed in the censor, or incense burner. Coal, as we define it today, a mined mineral, was scarcely known, let alone used in ancient times. Charcoal, almost pure carbon obtained by slowly burning wood, is probably meant -- more likely than dried animal dung, which was a common fuel at that time.
6. The ritual of the scapegoat is interesting but not unique. (I use the traditional term “scapegoat,” since it is so familiar. The meaning of the Hebrew word Azazel is conjectural -- a desert demon?) Man has always had a strong desire to free himself from the burden of guilt his sins impose upon him. Primitive and ancient man found an easy out by transferring guilt into an inanimate object, or, in this case, an animal and then destroying or banishing the receptacle of that guilt. Most peoples seem to have folk or religious traditions of this sort. Often effigies are burned. Sometimes a human sacrifice is made. Communal guilt and communal expiation exist in societies where the group, the collective, has primacy over the individual, who is significant only as a part of the whole. The transfer of guilt, though, is tenuous philosophically. It is contrary to the concept, held by most people today, that individuals are only responsible for their own acts and not for the acts of others, and that others should not pay for what we have done. Generally we believe that guilt can be expunged only by remorse, repentance, compensatory good deeds, and sometimes a period of ostracism -- or the Catholic method of expiation consisting of confession, prayer, and attendance of mass.
7. Lots are cast to see which goat is to be sacrificed and which is to be the scapegoat and sent into the desert. Perhaps this was a use for the mysterious Urim and Thimmim (small tablets, stones?) that the high priest carried inside the chest piece of his vestments and were used in divination.
8. Aaron is supposed to bathe after he has performed the purification ceremony and leave his priestly vestments in the Sanctum. One assumes he undressed in the curtained Sanctum and not in the more open Tabernacle courtyard, considering Hebrew prohibitions against viewing the naked body. It is not clear, though, what bathing facilities would have existed in the Sanctum: he would not have had access to, nor would he have found sufficient, the bronze wash basin that stood outside the Sanctum. (It was meant for hand washing.) Would there be a portable bath tub or maybe a handy bucket of water, sponge, and towel?
9. Jehovah's harping on the sins and impurities of the Israelites gives the impression, perhaps not a false one, that they were a pretty rum lot. Jehovah expresses obvious contempt for his Chosen People. Why, one might ask, did he choose them? Wouldn't the Hittites or the Nubians or the Minoans, or even the Scythians have been more worthy of his patronage?
10. The Day of Atonement occurs in early autumn (in the northern hemisphere) in the month of Tishrei of the Hebrew lunar calendar. Traditionally, it is believed to be the date that Moses received the second set of Ten Commandment tablets and the Israelites made atonement for their sin of the Golden Calf. The Day of Atonement is observed by Jews today as Yom Kippur (literally, “day to atone”), the holiest day in the religious calendar and one celebrated even by those who are non-practicing Jews. Depending upon the moon, it may occur from mid September to mid October.
Saturday, June 28, 2014
Impure Genital Emissions
(Leviticus 15:1- 15:33)
Jehovah told Moses and Aaron to give the people of Israel the following instructions: "Any man who has an unnatural emission of fluid from his penis is ritually impure. The emission is impure whether his organ is dripping with it or is experiencing a blockage because of it. The bed on which he has lain is impure and so is any place he has sat. If you touch the bed on which such a person has lain, or any place where he sat, you must wash your clothes and bath yourself; you will remain ritually impure until evening. And if you touch the man with the emission, or if he spits upon you, you must also wash your clothes and bath; you will remain ritually impure until evening. Any saddle or blanket on which the man has sat during riding will be impure. If you touch anything that has been under him or if the man touches you without first rinsing his hands, you must wash your clothes and bathe; you will be ritually impure until evening. Any earthenware vessel he has touched must be smashed and any wooden utensil he has used must be rinsed with water.
"When the person who has had the emission has recovered, he must devote 7 days to his ritual purification. Afterwards, he must wash his clothes and bath himself in fresh water so that he may be ritually pure. On the eighth day he must take two turtledoves or young pigeons and present them to the priest at the Sacrificial Altar in front of the entrance to the Tabernacle Sanctum. The priest will sacrifice them, one as a sin offering, the other as a burnt offering. By this means he will complete the ceremony of purification for the bodily discharge and obtain for the man atonement with Jehovah.
"Whenever a man has an discharge of semen, he must bathe his entire body; he will remain ritually impure until evening. Anything of cloth or leather with semen on it should be washed and will be impure until evening. If a man has sexual intercourse with a woman, resulting in an ejaculation, they must both bathe; both will remain impure until evening.
"When a woman experiences a flow of menstrual blood, she will remain ritually impure for 7 seven days. Anyone who touches her during the time of her menstrual period will be ritually impure until evening. Anything the woman lies upon or sits on will be impure. If you touch her bed or anything she has sat upon, you must wash your clothes and bathe. Whether you have touched her bed or something she has sat upon, you will remain impure until evening. If a man has sexual intercourse with her, then her ritual impurity of her menstrual period is transferred to him; he will be ritually impure for 7 days and any bed upon which he lies will become impure.
"If a woman suffers a flow of blood unrelated to her menstrual period or if the blood flow of menstruation continues beyond the normal time of her period, she will be considered ritually impure. As with her menstrual period, she will be impure so long as the discharge continues. And as with her period, any bed she lies upon or place she sits will be impure. If you touch these things, you, too, will become impure. You must then wash your clothes and bathe; you will be ritually impure until evening.
"When a woman's flow of blood ceases, she must wait 7 days, after which she will be ritually pure. On the eighth day she must take two turtledoves or young pigeons and present them to the priest at the Sacrificial Altar in front of the entrance to the Tabernacle Sanctum. The priest will sacrifice them, one as a sin offering, the other as a burnt offering. By this means he will complete the ceremony of purification for the impure flow of blood and obtain for the woman atonement with Jehovah.
"You must therefore protect the people of Israel from ritual impurity, for they will die, anyone defiling with impurity my Tabernacle, which stands in their midst.
"These are the regulations concerning persons with bodily discharges -- a man who become impure because of an emission of semen, a woman during her menstrual period, any man or woman with genital emissions, and a man who has had sexual relations with a woman who is ritually impure.”
Notes
1. Although many Bible translations are (perhaps understandably) vague and euphemistic in describing the first-mentioned “bodily discharge,” what is meant here is an emission of fluid from the penis most likely caused by gonorrhea, an STD with a long history. (Syphillis, on the other hand, was not known in the Old World until 1494, traditionally and still widely believed to have been brought to Europe by Columbus’ sailors.)
2. Ritual impurity after intercourse and during the menstrual period would be common and natural. Impurity, it can be concluded, would not always be the result of imprudent behavior or physical affliction. Any person would, at various times, be deemed impure. It would seem that someone who was sexual active would be ritually impure most of the time.
3. One can imagine social complications ensuing from concerns about ritual purity. A man might visit another's house. He is invited to sit down. But the guest would need to be cautious in order to maintain his ritual purity. Would he tell his host, "Yes, thank you, but, you know, your wife seemed a bit out of sorts today. Is she possibly having her period now? And if so, did she sit in this chair you offer me." And one would hesitate visiting anyone who was sick for fear of becoming ritually impure. One can’t help but thinking that this emphasis on ritual purity would have a very chilling effect on whatever the practice of medicine consisted of at the time.
4. The enforcement of ritual purity is to make certain that no one and nothing impure ever violates the Tabernacle. The punishment is death. It is not spelled out how this occurs. Does the impure violator of the Tabernacle suddenly die of a heart attack? Is he struck down by lightning or consumed by the roaring flames of the altar fire? Or does he waste away days later? This is a frightful thing, considering that one might very easily become ritually impure without knowing it, sitting in the wrong place, drinking from the wrong cup, touching the wrong person. Would not the Hebrew community be consumed by paranoia and fear, each person safeguarding his purity?
5. I might present a theory to explain the origin of the concept of ritual purity (which is not exclusive to the Hebrews, but is nearly universal among primitive religions). It is this. If extraterrestrial beings came to earth and had intercourse with human beings, they would be accepted by the earth men as gods and temples would be build to honor and worship them. The temples might also be places where the extraterrestrial beings might physically visit their worshipers. But the "gods" would need to be wary of the humans. They could easily protect themselves physically with weapons and defenses, but might not so easily guard themselves from the germs that humans could carry. Therefore, they might insist that they be approached only by healthy worshipers and those who had bathed and washed their clothes. The reason behind ritual purity might, therefore, be hygienic after all, even if the ancients did not understand it as such.
Jehovah told Moses and Aaron to give the people of Israel the following instructions: "Any man who has an unnatural emission of fluid from his penis is ritually impure. The emission is impure whether his organ is dripping with it or is experiencing a blockage because of it. The bed on which he has lain is impure and so is any place he has sat. If you touch the bed on which such a person has lain, or any place where he sat, you must wash your clothes and bath yourself; you will remain ritually impure until evening. And if you touch the man with the emission, or if he spits upon you, you must also wash your clothes and bath; you will remain ritually impure until evening. Any saddle or blanket on which the man has sat during riding will be impure. If you touch anything that has been under him or if the man touches you without first rinsing his hands, you must wash your clothes and bathe; you will be ritually impure until evening. Any earthenware vessel he has touched must be smashed and any wooden utensil he has used must be rinsed with water.
"When the person who has had the emission has recovered, he must devote 7 days to his ritual purification. Afterwards, he must wash his clothes and bath himself in fresh water so that he may be ritually pure. On the eighth day he must take two turtledoves or young pigeons and present them to the priest at the Sacrificial Altar in front of the entrance to the Tabernacle Sanctum. The priest will sacrifice them, one as a sin offering, the other as a burnt offering. By this means he will complete the ceremony of purification for the bodily discharge and obtain for the man atonement with Jehovah.
"Whenever a man has an discharge of semen, he must bathe his entire body; he will remain ritually impure until evening. Anything of cloth or leather with semen on it should be washed and will be impure until evening. If a man has sexual intercourse with a woman, resulting in an ejaculation, they must both bathe; both will remain impure until evening.
"When a woman experiences a flow of menstrual blood, she will remain ritually impure for 7 seven days. Anyone who touches her during the time of her menstrual period will be ritually impure until evening. Anything the woman lies upon or sits on will be impure. If you touch her bed or anything she has sat upon, you must wash your clothes and bathe. Whether you have touched her bed or something she has sat upon, you will remain impure until evening. If a man has sexual intercourse with her, then her ritual impurity of her menstrual period is transferred to him; he will be ritually impure for 7 days and any bed upon which he lies will become impure.
"If a woman suffers a flow of blood unrelated to her menstrual period or if the blood flow of menstruation continues beyond the normal time of her period, she will be considered ritually impure. As with her menstrual period, she will be impure so long as the discharge continues. And as with her period, any bed she lies upon or place she sits will be impure. If you touch these things, you, too, will become impure. You must then wash your clothes and bathe; you will be ritually impure until evening.
"When a woman's flow of blood ceases, she must wait 7 days, after which she will be ritually pure. On the eighth day she must take two turtledoves or young pigeons and present them to the priest at the Sacrificial Altar in front of the entrance to the Tabernacle Sanctum. The priest will sacrifice them, one as a sin offering, the other as a burnt offering. By this means he will complete the ceremony of purification for the impure flow of blood and obtain for the woman atonement with Jehovah.
"You must therefore protect the people of Israel from ritual impurity, for they will die, anyone defiling with impurity my Tabernacle, which stands in their midst.
"These are the regulations concerning persons with bodily discharges -- a man who become impure because of an emission of semen, a woman during her menstrual period, any man or woman with genital emissions, and a man who has had sexual relations with a woman who is ritually impure.”
Notes
1. Although many Bible translations are (perhaps understandably) vague and euphemistic in describing the first-mentioned “bodily discharge,” what is meant here is an emission of fluid from the penis most likely caused by gonorrhea, an STD with a long history. (Syphillis, on the other hand, was not known in the Old World until 1494, traditionally and still widely believed to have been brought to Europe by Columbus’ sailors.)
2. Ritual impurity after intercourse and during the menstrual period would be common and natural. Impurity, it can be concluded, would not always be the result of imprudent behavior or physical affliction. Any person would, at various times, be deemed impure. It would seem that someone who was sexual active would be ritually impure most of the time.
3. One can imagine social complications ensuing from concerns about ritual purity. A man might visit another's house. He is invited to sit down. But the guest would need to be cautious in order to maintain his ritual purity. Would he tell his host, "Yes, thank you, but, you know, your wife seemed a bit out of sorts today. Is she possibly having her period now? And if so, did she sit in this chair you offer me." And one would hesitate visiting anyone who was sick for fear of becoming ritually impure. One can’t help but thinking that this emphasis on ritual purity would have a very chilling effect on whatever the practice of medicine consisted of at the time.
4. The enforcement of ritual purity is to make certain that no one and nothing impure ever violates the Tabernacle. The punishment is death. It is not spelled out how this occurs. Does the impure violator of the Tabernacle suddenly die of a heart attack? Is he struck down by lightning or consumed by the roaring flames of the altar fire? Or does he waste away days later? This is a frightful thing, considering that one might very easily become ritually impure without knowing it, sitting in the wrong place, drinking from the wrong cup, touching the wrong person. Would not the Hebrew community be consumed by paranoia and fear, each person safeguarding his purity?
5. I might present a theory to explain the origin of the concept of ritual purity (which is not exclusive to the Hebrews, but is nearly universal among primitive religions). It is this. If extraterrestrial beings came to earth and had intercourse with human beings, they would be accepted by the earth men as gods and temples would be build to honor and worship them. The temples might also be places where the extraterrestrial beings might physically visit their worshipers. But the "gods" would need to be wary of the humans. They could easily protect themselves physically with weapons and defenses, but might not so easily guard themselves from the germs that humans could carry. Therefore, they might insist that they be approached only by healthy worshipers and those who had bathed and washed their clothes. The reason behind ritual purity might, therefore, be hygienic after all, even if the ancients did not understand it as such.
Treatment of Dwellings Contaminated with Tzaraath
(Leviticus 14:33 - 14: 57)
Jehovah then told Moses and Aaron: "When you arrive to settle in the land of Canaan, which I am bestowing upon you as a possession, I may cause some of your dwellings to become contaminated with tzaraath. In such cases, the owner should go to the priest and report, 'There is some kind of mold contamination in my house!' Before the priest inspects the house, it must be emptied so that nothing remains in it that could be deemed ritually impure. The priest will then enter the house, make his inspection, and examine the mold contamination. If there are greenish or reddish spots in the mold and the contamination seems to go deeper than the surface of the wall, the priest should leave the house, seal the door, and quarantine the house for 7 days. The priest should return on the seventh day and re-inspect the house. If the mold has spread on the walls, he should order the affected stones of the wall removed and dumped in a ritually impure area outside of town. He should have the inside walls of the house scraped, with the scrapings similarly disposed of. New stones should be set to replace the contaminated ones that were removed and the house re-plastered.
"If the mold reappears after the stones have been replaced and the walls scraped and re-plastered, then the priest must return and re-inspect the house. If the mold has spread throughout the house, then the house has been contaminated with tzaraath and is ritually impure. The priest must order the house to be torn down, with all its stones, timbers, and plaster dumped in a ritually impure place outside of town. Anyone who has entered the house while it was closed up will be ritually impure until evening. And anyone who has slept or has eaten in the house must wash his clothes.
"If, however, the priest makes his inspection after the house has been re-plastered and finds that the mold has not reappeared, he may pronounce the house ritually pure, for the tzaraath is clearly gone. Then, to purify the house, the priest should take two birds, a length of cedar wood, some scarlet yarn, and a hyssop branch. He should sacrifice one of the birds over an earthenware vessel filled with fresh water. Then he should dip the cedar wood, the scarlet ribbon, the hyssop branch, and the live bird into the blood of the sacrificed bird and into the fresh water. The house should be sprinkled with this blood and water seven times. With the bird's blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop branch, and the scarlet ribbon the house will thus be purified. (The live bird will then be released in an open field outside of town.) Through this ceremony the priest will obtain atonement for the house and it will thereafter be ritually pure.
"These comprise the instructions for dealing with the varied incidences of tzaraath, whether it manifests itself as mold in cloth or on the walls of a dwelling, or as sores, rashes, swelling or discolored areas on the skin. These are the procedures for determining whether skin diseases and molds are ritually impure or not. These are the regulations concerning tzaraath."
Notes
1. We hear of another form of tzaraath, that of mold or mildew contaminating dwellings. (How absurd seem the many translations that refer to this as "leprosy.") This is referencing a problem that does not yet exist, for the Israelites are still dwelling in tents at the supposed time that Jehovah makes these communications to Moses and Aaron and lays out these instructions. Jehovah, if not omniscient, is at least prescient, although he gives the impression that the tzaraath contaminates houses according to his will. Is tzaraath, even of the house mold variety, some sort of divine punishment inflicted upon the unholy? Should sinners mend their ways for fear their bedroom walls might become moldy?
2. One assumes that Canaan, even in ancient times, enjoyed a fairly arid climate. It seems strange then that mold (or mildew), which thrive on moisture, would be so major a problem in homes that structures would have to be torn down because of it. (I have concluded that mold is a more likely contaminant than mildew and is probably what is referred to.)
3. The stone walls of dwelling would probably have been stuccoed on the outside and plastered on the inside, but there is really no difference between traditional plaster and stucco (basically lime, sand, and water -- Portland cement and gypsum plaster are fairly recent refinements).
4. It is interesting that something like mold on the basement walls should be considered to be under the purview of a priest. But it should be remembered that the ancients, except for a few Greek philosophers, believed that all that happened in the world was due to supernatural agencies. Religion, therefore, touched everything. (In contrast, most people today believe that everything happens through natural agencies, a view that is just as inaccurate and that results in just as many errors of understanding.)
Jehovah then told Moses and Aaron: "When you arrive to settle in the land of Canaan, which I am bestowing upon you as a possession, I may cause some of your dwellings to become contaminated with tzaraath. In such cases, the owner should go to the priest and report, 'There is some kind of mold contamination in my house!' Before the priest inspects the house, it must be emptied so that nothing remains in it that could be deemed ritually impure. The priest will then enter the house, make his inspection, and examine the mold contamination. If there are greenish or reddish spots in the mold and the contamination seems to go deeper than the surface of the wall, the priest should leave the house, seal the door, and quarantine the house for 7 days. The priest should return on the seventh day and re-inspect the house. If the mold has spread on the walls, he should order the affected stones of the wall removed and dumped in a ritually impure area outside of town. He should have the inside walls of the house scraped, with the scrapings similarly disposed of. New stones should be set to replace the contaminated ones that were removed and the house re-plastered.
"If the mold reappears after the stones have been replaced and the walls scraped and re-plastered, then the priest must return and re-inspect the house. If the mold has spread throughout the house, then the house has been contaminated with tzaraath and is ritually impure. The priest must order the house to be torn down, with all its stones, timbers, and plaster dumped in a ritually impure place outside of town. Anyone who has entered the house while it was closed up will be ritually impure until evening. And anyone who has slept or has eaten in the house must wash his clothes.
"If, however, the priest makes his inspection after the house has been re-plastered and finds that the mold has not reappeared, he may pronounce the house ritually pure, for the tzaraath is clearly gone. Then, to purify the house, the priest should take two birds, a length of cedar wood, some scarlet yarn, and a hyssop branch. He should sacrifice one of the birds over an earthenware vessel filled with fresh water. Then he should dip the cedar wood, the scarlet ribbon, the hyssop branch, and the live bird into the blood of the sacrificed bird and into the fresh water. The house should be sprinkled with this blood and water seven times. With the bird's blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop branch, and the scarlet ribbon the house will thus be purified. (The live bird will then be released in an open field outside of town.) Through this ceremony the priest will obtain atonement for the house and it will thereafter be ritually pure.
"These comprise the instructions for dealing with the varied incidences of tzaraath, whether it manifests itself as mold in cloth or on the walls of a dwelling, or as sores, rashes, swelling or discolored areas on the skin. These are the procedures for determining whether skin diseases and molds are ritually impure or not. These are the regulations concerning tzaraath."
Notes
1. We hear of another form of tzaraath, that of mold or mildew contaminating dwellings. (How absurd seem the many translations that refer to this as "leprosy.") This is referencing a problem that does not yet exist, for the Israelites are still dwelling in tents at the supposed time that Jehovah makes these communications to Moses and Aaron and lays out these instructions. Jehovah, if not omniscient, is at least prescient, although he gives the impression that the tzaraath contaminates houses according to his will. Is tzaraath, even of the house mold variety, some sort of divine punishment inflicted upon the unholy? Should sinners mend their ways for fear their bedroom walls might become moldy?
2. One assumes that Canaan, even in ancient times, enjoyed a fairly arid climate. It seems strange then that mold (or mildew), which thrive on moisture, would be so major a problem in homes that structures would have to be torn down because of it. (I have concluded that mold is a more likely contaminant than mildew and is probably what is referred to.)
3. The stone walls of dwelling would probably have been stuccoed on the outside and plastered on the inside, but there is really no difference between traditional plaster and stucco (basically lime, sand, and water -- Portland cement and gypsum plaster are fairly recent refinements).
4. It is interesting that something like mold on the basement walls should be considered to be under the purview of a priest. But it should be remembered that the ancients, except for a few Greek philosophers, believed that all that happened in the world was due to supernatural agencies. Religion, therefore, touched everything. (In contrast, most people today believe that everything happens through natural agencies, a view that is just as inaccurate and that results in just as many errors of understanding.)
Purification of Those Cured of Tzaraath
(Leviticus 14:1 - 14:32)
Jehovah instructed Moses further: "This is the procedure for those seeking ritual purification from tzaraath: One who has been healed of disease must be presented to a priest, who will examine him at a place outside of camp. If the person has indeed been healed of tzaraath, then the priest should order brought to him, on behalf of the one who is to be purified, the following items: two ritually pure live birds, a length of cedar wood, some scarlet yarn, and branches of hyssop. The priest will first order that one of the birds be sacrificed over an earthenware vessel filled with fresh water. Then the live bird, the cedar wood, the scarlet yarn, and the hyssop branches should be dipped in the blood of the bird sacrificed over the fresh water. The priest will then sprinkle the blood of the dead bird seven times upon the person to be purified from tzaraath. He will then be pronounced ritually pure. (The live bird may be released into an open field.)
"The person to be purified will then wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and take a bath, to be declared ritually pure. He may then return to camp, but must remain outside his tent for a period of 7 days. On the seventh day, he must shave again, removing all the hair from his head, his beard, and eyebrows. He must wash his clothes and take a bath, to be ritually pure.
"On the eighth day he must get together two male lambs and a yearling ewe, all without defect, and for a grain offering, three tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil and a log of olive oil. The officiating priest will present the person seeking purification and the aforesaid offerings before Jehovah’s altar at the entrance to the Tabernacle Sanctum. The priest will take one the male lambs and the olive oil and present them as guilt offerings, raising and waving them above the Sacrificial Altar. He will slaughter the male lamb in the area before the Sanctum where guilt and burnt offerings are sacrificed. (As with a sin offering, the guilt offering, by divine right, belongs to the priest.) The priest will dab blood from the guilt offering on the lobe of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the big toe of the right foot of the person seeking purification. He will then pour some of the log of olive oil into the palm of his own left hand. He will dip his right forefinger into the oil and sprinkle it seven times before the altar. He will apply the oil from his palm over the blood on the lobe of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the big toe of the right foot of the person to be purified. The remaining oil in his palm the priest should use to anoint the head of the one seeking to be purified. Through this ritual and through the sin offering, the priest will seek atonement with Jehovah on behalf of the one cured of tzaraath and seeking purification. The priest will then slaughter the burnt offering and lay it upon the altar along with the grain offering. Atonement will thus be obtained for the one who has been purified.
"If, though, one is poor and cannot afford all these offerings, one may instead bring a single male lamb to be the guilt offering waved above the altar for atonement, a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for the grain offering, a log of oil, and two turtledoves or young pigeons, such as one may afford -- one for the sin offering and one for the burnt offering. On the eighth day of the purification ritual, one should bring them to the priest at the altar in front of the Tabernacle Sanctum. The priest will take the lamb and the olive oil and present them as guilt offerings, raising and waving them above the Sacrificial Altar. He will slaughter the lamb of the guilt offering and dab its blood on the lobe of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the big toe of the right foot of the person seeking purification. He will then pour some of the log of olive oil into the palm of his own left hand. He will dip his right forefinger into the oil and sprinkle it seven times before the altar. He will apply the oil from his palm over the blood on the lobe of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the big toe of the right foot of the person to be purified. The remaining oil in his palm the priest should use to anoint the head of the one seeking to be purified, in order that he may obtain atonement with Jehovah. Next, the priest will offer for sacrifice the turtledoves or young pigeons (whatever the person can afford), one being for the sin offering, the other for the burnt offering, along with the grain offering, all through which the priest will obtain atonement with Jehovah for one being purified. --- These are the instructions for one who has been cured of tzaraath but cannot afford the normally required offerings."
Notes
1. Three-tenths of an ephah would be a little more than 6 quarts. A log is equivalent to two-thirds of a pints.
2. Save that they be dipped into the blood of the sacrificed bird, it is not explained what is done with, or the significance of the length of cedar wood, the scarlet thread, or the hyssop branches in the ritual, although one may assume the hyssop branches are used to sprinkle the blood about. Maybe the thread is used to bind the birds. The cedar wood -- ?
3. The person who is cured of tzaraath and is being purified may return to camp, but he can't sleep in his tent for 7 days. Does he sleep on the ground outside his tent? One hopes the nights weren't too cold or a good sleeping bag was available.
4. The text is unclear as to whether the bird is be slaughtered over an earthenware vessel filled with fresh water (as I have rendered it) or over running water above the vessel (as is the most common translation). It is hard to visualize where the running could come from since the sacrifice was to be made at the Sacrificial Altar in front of the Tabernacle Sanctum. There wasn’t a tap handy. Water, of course, could be poured, but the sacrificed bird is described as being over the earthenware vessel, and if water were poured out of it upon the bird, it would be below the vessel.
5. Shaving all the hair from one’s body was a common rite of purification in ancient religions. The Egyptian priests regularly did so, and perhaps this custom was acquired by the Hebrews during their sojourn in Egypt.
6. The bathing and washing of clothes to restore ritual purity reminds the modern reader of our washing to disinfect and prevent disease. No ancient people, though, had any concept of illness being caused by micro-organisms. Some peoples, such as bath-crazy Greeks and Romans, may have regarded bathing as being beneficial to health, but if they believed it prevented disease, they wouldn’t have known why. And their custom of bathing, as a public function, seemed intended more for recreational and social than sanitary purposes.
7. The repeated reference to turtledoves or young pigeons reflects a stipulation that the birds be rather small. The turtledove (streptopelia colombidae), native to Europe, Asia, and Africa, is a small species of the dove family, measuring as little as 8 inches. Most pigeons are larger, but a young pigeon, presumably smaller than an adult, would be of comparable size to a turtle dove.
8. Those who can't afford the usual sacrificial offerings are given a pass of sorts, but they still have to come up with a lamb, some flour, and a couple of pigeons. If the person suffering from tzaraath is forced to live alone outside of camp, how would he be possessed of any wealth? Would others tend the flocks he once owned or hold his possessions in trust? And if one could not afford even the reduced rates, would he be deprived of purification altogether? Would a wealthier member of the community pay the fare for him, or did the priests ever do work pro bono?
Jehovah instructed Moses further: "This is the procedure for those seeking ritual purification from tzaraath: One who has been healed of disease must be presented to a priest, who will examine him at a place outside of camp. If the person has indeed been healed of tzaraath, then the priest should order brought to him, on behalf of the one who is to be purified, the following items: two ritually pure live birds, a length of cedar wood, some scarlet yarn, and branches of hyssop. The priest will first order that one of the birds be sacrificed over an earthenware vessel filled with fresh water. Then the live bird, the cedar wood, the scarlet yarn, and the hyssop branches should be dipped in the blood of the bird sacrificed over the fresh water. The priest will then sprinkle the blood of the dead bird seven times upon the person to be purified from tzaraath. He will then be pronounced ritually pure. (The live bird may be released into an open field.)
"The person to be purified will then wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and take a bath, to be declared ritually pure. He may then return to camp, but must remain outside his tent for a period of 7 days. On the seventh day, he must shave again, removing all the hair from his head, his beard, and eyebrows. He must wash his clothes and take a bath, to be ritually pure.
"On the eighth day he must get together two male lambs and a yearling ewe, all without defect, and for a grain offering, three tenths of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil and a log of olive oil. The officiating priest will present the person seeking purification and the aforesaid offerings before Jehovah’s altar at the entrance to the Tabernacle Sanctum. The priest will take one the male lambs and the olive oil and present them as guilt offerings, raising and waving them above the Sacrificial Altar. He will slaughter the male lamb in the area before the Sanctum where guilt and burnt offerings are sacrificed. (As with a sin offering, the guilt offering, by divine right, belongs to the priest.) The priest will dab blood from the guilt offering on the lobe of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the big toe of the right foot of the person seeking purification. He will then pour some of the log of olive oil into the palm of his own left hand. He will dip his right forefinger into the oil and sprinkle it seven times before the altar. He will apply the oil from his palm over the blood on the lobe of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the big toe of the right foot of the person to be purified. The remaining oil in his palm the priest should use to anoint the head of the one seeking to be purified. Through this ritual and through the sin offering, the priest will seek atonement with Jehovah on behalf of the one cured of tzaraath and seeking purification. The priest will then slaughter the burnt offering and lay it upon the altar along with the grain offering. Atonement will thus be obtained for the one who has been purified.
"If, though, one is poor and cannot afford all these offerings, one may instead bring a single male lamb to be the guilt offering waved above the altar for atonement, a tenth of an ephah of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for the grain offering, a log of oil, and two turtledoves or young pigeons, such as one may afford -- one for the sin offering and one for the burnt offering. On the eighth day of the purification ritual, one should bring them to the priest at the altar in front of the Tabernacle Sanctum. The priest will take the lamb and the olive oil and present them as guilt offerings, raising and waving them above the Sacrificial Altar. He will slaughter the lamb of the guilt offering and dab its blood on the lobe of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the big toe of the right foot of the person seeking purification. He will then pour some of the log of olive oil into the palm of his own left hand. He will dip his right forefinger into the oil and sprinkle it seven times before the altar. He will apply the oil from his palm over the blood on the lobe of the right ear, the thumb of the right hand, and the big toe of the right foot of the person to be purified. The remaining oil in his palm the priest should use to anoint the head of the one seeking to be purified, in order that he may obtain atonement with Jehovah. Next, the priest will offer for sacrifice the turtledoves or young pigeons (whatever the person can afford), one being for the sin offering, the other for the burnt offering, along with the grain offering, all through which the priest will obtain atonement with Jehovah for one being purified. --- These are the instructions for one who has been cured of tzaraath but cannot afford the normally required offerings."
Notes
1. Three-tenths of an ephah would be a little more than 6 quarts. A log is equivalent to two-thirds of a pints.
2. Save that they be dipped into the blood of the sacrificed bird, it is not explained what is done with, or the significance of the length of cedar wood, the scarlet thread, or the hyssop branches in the ritual, although one may assume the hyssop branches are used to sprinkle the blood about. Maybe the thread is used to bind the birds. The cedar wood -- ?
3. The person who is cured of tzaraath and is being purified may return to camp, but he can't sleep in his tent for 7 days. Does he sleep on the ground outside his tent? One hopes the nights weren't too cold or a good sleeping bag was available.
4. The text is unclear as to whether the bird is be slaughtered over an earthenware vessel filled with fresh water (as I have rendered it) or over running water above the vessel (as is the most common translation). It is hard to visualize where the running could come from since the sacrifice was to be made at the Sacrificial Altar in front of the Tabernacle Sanctum. There wasn’t a tap handy. Water, of course, could be poured, but the sacrificed bird is described as being over the earthenware vessel, and if water were poured out of it upon the bird, it would be below the vessel.
5. Shaving all the hair from one’s body was a common rite of purification in ancient religions. The Egyptian priests regularly did so, and perhaps this custom was acquired by the Hebrews during their sojourn in Egypt.
6. The bathing and washing of clothes to restore ritual purity reminds the modern reader of our washing to disinfect and prevent disease. No ancient people, though, had any concept of illness being caused by micro-organisms. Some peoples, such as bath-crazy Greeks and Romans, may have regarded bathing as being beneficial to health, but if they believed it prevented disease, they wouldn’t have known why. And their custom of bathing, as a public function, seemed intended more for recreational and social than sanitary purposes.
7. The repeated reference to turtledoves or young pigeons reflects a stipulation that the birds be rather small. The turtledove (streptopelia colombidae), native to Europe, Asia, and Africa, is a small species of the dove family, measuring as little as 8 inches. Most pigeons are larger, but a young pigeon, presumably smaller than an adult, would be of comparable size to a turtle dove.
8. Those who can't afford the usual sacrificial offerings are given a pass of sorts, but they still have to come up with a lamb, some flour, and a couple of pigeons. If the person suffering from tzaraath is forced to live alone outside of camp, how would he be possessed of any wealth? Would others tend the flocks he once owned or hold his possessions in trust? And if one could not afford even the reduced rates, would he be deprived of purification altogether? Would a wealthier member of the community pay the fare for him, or did the priests ever do work pro bono?
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