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Hashem Command Us About Qorbanos?</title><link rel="stylesheet"
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content="text/html; charset=utf-8"></head><body>Aspaqlaria has posted a new
item, '<a
href="http://www.aishdas.org/asp/did-hashem-command-us-about-qorbanos">Did
Hashem Command Us About Qorbanos?</a>'<br>
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<p>Well, given this and next weeks’ parashios, as well as numerous other
places in the Torah, the question in the subject line appears to have an
obvious answer: Yes!</p>
<p>And yet, that’s not what Yirmiyahu appears to say (7:22-23):</p>
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<td dir="rtl" style="text-align: justify; height: 105px; vertical-align:
top;"><span style="font-size: 20px;">כִּ֠י
לֹֽא־דִבַּ֤רְתִּי אֶת־אֲבֽוֹתֵיכֶם֙
וְלֹ֣א צִוִּיתִ֔ים בְּי֛וֹם (הוציא) [<span
style="font-family: arial, helvetica,
sans-serif;">הוֹצִיאִ֥י</span>] אוֹתָ֖ם מֵאֶ֣רֶץ
מִצְרָ֑יִם עַל־דִּבְרֵ֥י עוֹלָ֖ה
וָזָֽבַח׃</span></td>
<td style="text-align: justify; height: 105px; vertical-align: top;">For when
I freed your ancestors from the land of Egypt, I did not speak with them about
nor command them about burnt offerings or sacrifice.</td>
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<td dir="rtl" style="text-align: justify; height: 130px; vertical-align:
top;"><span style="font-size: 20px;">כִּ֣י
אִֽם־אֶת־הַדָּבָ֣ר הַ֠זֶּה צִוִּ֨יתִי
אוֹתָ֤ם לֵאמֹר֙ שִׁמְע֣וּ בְקוֹלִ֔י
וְהָיִ֤יתִי לָכֶם֙ לֵֽאלֹקים וְאַתֶּ֖ם
תִּֽהְיוּ־לִ֣י לְעָ֑ם וַהֲלַכְתֶּ֗ם
בְּכָל־הַדֶּ֙רֶךְ֙ אֲשֶׁ֣ר אֲצַוֶּ֣ה
אֶתְכֶ֔ם לְמַ֖עַן יִיטַ֥ב לָכֶֽם׃</span></td>
<td style="text-align: justify; height: 130px; vertical-align: top;">Rather,
this is what I commanded them: Listen to My Voice, that I may be your G-d and
you may be My people; walk the entire path that I enjoin upon you, that it may
go well with you.</td>
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<p>How can Yirmiyahu claim that Hashem told him that He did not speak to Benei
Yisrael about nor command them about the <em>qorban olah</em> or other
sacrifices?</p>
<p>I think the problem is with this translation. (Which was tweaked slightly
from the JPS 1985 translation.)</p>
<p>The common take is to read “עַל־דִּבְרֵ֥י” as
“about” or “concerning”. Which I believe is accurate,
but insufficient. Earlier in the <em>pereq </em>(7:8), Yirmiyahu uses the same
idiom:</p>
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<td class="he" dir="rtl" lang="he" style="vertical-align: top; width:
46.8451%;"><span style="font-size: 20px;">הִנֵּ֤ה אַתֶּם֙
בֹּטְחִ֣ים לָכֶ֔ם עַל־דִּבְרֵ֖י
הַשָּׁ֑קֶר לְבִלְתִּ֖י הוֹעִֽיל׃</span></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; width: 52.9637%;">Behold, you trust in lying
words, that cannot profit.</td>
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<p> Here the “<em>al divrei</em>” are rendered “in
words”, referring to the thrust of what the people chose to rely in. Or
Shemu’el II 3:8, where “Avner became very angry <em>al divrei</em>
Ish-Boshes”. Ish-Boshes was the person at the core of what instigated
his anger.</p>
<p>“<em>Al divrei</em>” doesn’t mean “about the ideas
/ words” among others. But rather “about” in the sense of
what the speech or command was about.</p>
<p>And so here, Hashem is telling Yirmiyahu to inform us that everything
Hashem taught us and all the mitzvos He gave us — they weren’t
about the qorbanos. Qorbanos as not an end in themselves. Rather, we should
listen to Hashem and walk in His Ways because Hashem wants things to be good
for us.</p>
<p>Qorbanos are a <strong>means toward</strong> the actual thrust of
Hashem’s mission for us, to walk in the path He set out before us.</p>
<p>And we know Chazal’s definition of “<em>vehalakhta bidrakhav
</em>— and you shall go in His Path”. As the Rambam summarized
(end of Hilkhos Dei’os 1:5, beginning of 1:6):</p>
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<td dir="rtl" style="vertical-align: top; text-align: justify;"><span
style="font-size: 20px;">וּמְצֻוִּין אָנוּ לָלֶכֶת
בַּדְּרָכִים הָאֵלּוּ הַבֵּינוֹנִים
וְהֵם הַדְּרָכִים הַטּוֹבִים
וְהַיְשָׁרִים שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר <small>(<a class="refLink"
href="/Deuteronomy.28.9" data-ref="Deuteronomy 28:9">דברים
כח:ט</a>)</small> “וְהָלַכְתָּ
בִּדְרָכָיו”:</span></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; text-align: justify;">… We are commanded
to walk in these middle paths [between extremes of temperament], which are the
good and straight paths, even as it is said: “And thou shalt walk in His
ways.” (Devarim 28:9)</td>
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<td dir="rtl" style="vertical-align: top; text-align: justify;"><span
style="font-size: 20px;">כָּךְ לָמְדוּ בְּפֵרוּשׁ
מִצְוָה זוֹ. מַה הוּא נִקְרָא חַנּוּן אַף
אַתָּה הֱיֵה חַנּוּן. מַה הוּא נִקְרָא
רַחוּם אַף אַתָּה הֱיֵה רַחוּם. מַה הוּא
נִקְרָא קָדוֹשׁ אַף אַתָּה הֱיֵה
קָדוֹשׁ…</span></td>
<td style="vertical-align: top; text-align: justify;">This is what [Chazal]
taught in explaining this <em>mitzvah</em>: Just as He is called Gracious, you
shall be gracious; just as He is called Merciful, you shall be merciful; just
as He is called Holy, you shall be holy…</td>
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<p>The <em>pasuq</em> is saying more than that Hashem doesn’t want
<em>qorbanos</em> from people who don’t show concern for character or
how they treat other people. Yirmiyahu is setting our priorities, means vs
goals, between our worship of the Creator and our imitating His Good.</p>
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