This Shabbat, B’ezrat Hashem, we read the Parshiot of Acharei Mot and Kedoshim. Acharei Mot primarily deals with the Avodah of the Kohen Gadol on Yom Kippur and concludes with the topic of forbidden relationships. We encounter this Parsha again on Yom Kippur; during the Torah reading at Shacharit, we read about the Kohen Gadol’s Avodah, and at Mincha, we read the section of forbidden relationships.
The second Parsha, Kedoshim, is a very special one. Chazal ask why the section on forbidden relationships is juxtaposed to that of Parshat Kedoshim (Vayikra Rabbah 24:6): It is to teach you that wherever you find a fence against forbidden relationships, you find holiness, and whoever guards himself against forbidden relationships is called holy.
Rashi writes, this section of instructions was spoken to the entire congregation of Bnei Yisrael – at a public gathering, because most of the essential laws of the Torah depend on it. The Midrash says (Vayikra Rabbah 24:5) it was said at a public gathering because the Aseret HaDibrot are included within it, and the Midrash lists which Mitzvah in the Parsha corresponds to which of the Ten Commandments.
The Torah opens Parshat Acharei Mot with the following: And Hashem spoke to Moshe after the death of the two sons of Aharon, when they drew near before Hashem and died.
Why does the Torah specifically open with the death of Aharon’s two sons? Chazal say (Vayikra Rabbah 20:8), the death of Aharon’s sons is mentioned in four places, and each time, their sin is mentioned to inform us that they had only this sin and no other, and no one has an opening to say they had secret sins on whose account they died.
The Midrash adds another point which is also recounted in the Yerushalmi (Yoma 1:1): If Aharon’s sons died on the first of Nisan, why is their death mentioned in connection with Yom Kippur? The answer given is that it teaches that just as Yom Kippur atones, so too the death of the righteous atones.
The Gemara (Gittin 60a) lists eight Parshiot that were given on the day the Mishkan was inaugurated: the section of the Kohanim, the section of the Levi’im, the section of the impure, the section of the sending away of the impure, the section of beginning with ‘Acharei Mot’ (Yom Kippur), the section dealing with Kohanim who have become intoxicated with wine, the section of lighting the lamps, and the section of the red heifer.
Of the eight Parshiot listed by the Gemara, six were necessary for the start of the Mishkan’s service, but two commandments were not needed for that day: Parah Adumah and Yom Kippur. Rashi says, Parah Adumah was commanded on that day because on the very following day, the cow was burned to purify for Pesach, and it could not be done earlier since it required Ohel Moed be present for the sprinkling of the blood. One question remains, however: Why was it necessary to inform them about Yom Kippur, which was still six months away?
Rashi explains, it is because Aharon’s sons died due to entering the Kodesh Hakodashim unnecessarily, and as a result, the warning was given to Aharon – Do not enter at any time: Aharon was cautioned; the Kohen Gadol cannot enter the Kodesh Hakodashim whenever he wishes, but only once a year – on Yom Kippur. Therefore, Rashi says, this Parsha was given specifically on that day.
The Ohr HaChaim Hakadosh provides another explanation. The Torah says they drew too close to Hashem, followed by they died, written with an extra vav, connecting to the initial words and hinting at the wondrous love Hakadosh Baruch Hu has of the righteous: This is the meaning of the extra letter vav. The Torah alludes to the fact that though these righteous people felt that they were approaching an area which would result in this "kiss of death" they did not flinch and kept getting closer. They attained a state of religious intoxication. The desire of their souls to fuse with the divine was so overpowering that they no longer made decisions in which their powers of conscious perception were involved.
This means both Nadav and Avihu knew they would die, but due to their immense love for Hakadosh Baruch Hu, they could not disconnect – they could not restrain themselves from experiencing that spiritual ecstasy. The Torat Kohanim adds: even they, in their joy, when they saw a new fire, stood to add love upon love.
In Pirkei Avot, the Mishna says (1:3): Antigonus a man of Socho received from Shimon the Righteous. He used to say: do not be like servants who serve the master in the expectation of receiving a reward, but be like servants who serve the master without the expectation of receiving a reward, and let the fear of Heaven be upon you.
This means, do not be like servants waiting for a gift, but be like servants who act for the sake of Heaven – out of love for Hakadosh Baruch Hu. But the Mishnah does not end there; it continues with the words: And let the fear of Heaven be upon you. Why did the Mishna need to conclude with these words? It could have ended with the command not to serve like a servant, expecting a reward.
There is a great concern that a person who serves out of love may feel too close to their Creator. Such a person may not realize he stands before a King. The Mishna tells us, know that you are to serve out of love, but there is a great danger in love – that you may lose the necessary restraint. Rather, let the fear of Heaven be upon you. The Rambam writes (Avot 1:3), the Mishna’s author did not exempt them from fear, saying: Although you serve out of love, do not entirely abandon fear, and let the fear of Heaven be upon you.
Thus, we can understand why, immediately after the death of Nadav and Avihu, the Torah commanded about Yom Kippur. During the Second Beit Hamikdash, there were 300 Kohanim over a span of 279 years; meaning, no Kohen Gadol left the Kodesh Hakodashim in peace and alive, except for four: Shimon HaTzaddik (40 years), Yochanan Kohen Gadol (80 years), Rabbi Yishmael ben Pavi (10 years), and Elazar ben Charsom (11 years). The rest died there.
The Midrash says (Vayikra Rabbah 21:12), in the year Shimon HaTzaddik died, he told his household upon returning from his Avodah in the Beit Hamikdash that he would die that year. They asked how he knew, and he said that every year, “an elder dressed in white and wrapped in white entered with him and left with him”. That year, however, he entered with him but did not leave with him. Rabbi Avahu says (Yoma 39a), it was Hakadosh Baruch Hu in His glory who entered and left with him; the Kohen Gadol on Yom Kippur was not a man but an angel, and when the Divine Spirit rested upon him, his face shone like torches: If the Kohen Gadol is like an angel on Yom Kippur, he has immense closeness to Hakadosh Baruch Hu. Therefore, Hakadosh Baruch Hu warns him not to come into the Kodesh Hakodashim at any other time.
The Meshech Chochma (Shmini) cites a Pasuk in Kohelet. Shlomo HaMelech says: A good name is better than fine oil, and the day of death than the day of birth. The question arises: Could one not also say, “Coca-Cola is better than fine oil,” or “two thousand dollars is better than fine oil”? What did Shlomo HaMelech mean by this statement and comparison?
When I sat shiva for my mother, a yid shared a beautiful interpretation with me: In any liquid mixed with oil, the oil rises to the top. Therefore, the only way to conceal oil is to bury it in the ground. When oil spills on the road, they cover it with sand to negate it. This is what Shlomo HaMelech means. A good name is better than fine oil: A person can hide himself throughout his life – for ninety years, no one may know of him; he sits quietly in the shul, speaking to no one. But once he is buried, he “rises to the top.” People say, “What a person he was! A hidden tzaddik!” and thus, the Pasuk continues: And the day of death than the day of birth – after the day of death, his name begins to rise.
With regards to a good name is better than fine oil, Chazal say (Shemot Rabbah 48:1) the names of Chananya, Mishael, and Azarya were better than the anointing oil with which Nadav and Avihu were anointed. Why? Because the latter entered to offer and came out burned, while the former entered the fiery furnace and emerged in peace. The Meshech Chochmah explains that Chananya, Mishael, and Azarya's survival in the fiery furnace led to a great sanctification of Hakadosh Baruch Hu’s name, prompting Nevuchadnezzar to praise Hashem with great emotion. His fervor was so intense that he nearly surpassed David HaMelech’s praises in Tehillim, but an angel stopped him by striking his mouth, as a lustful force disrupted his devotion. In contrast, Nadav and Avihu’s death instilled fear of divine punishment in Bnei Yisrael, showing that even the righteous are not spared. Thus, a good name – from Chananya, Mishael, and Azarya’s sanctification – surpasses fine oil – Nadav and Avihu’s anointing.
This means that from Chananya, Mishael, and Azarya came awe of Hakadosh Baruch Hu’s greatness – everyone said: “There is none like Hakadosh Baruch Hu!” From Nadav and Avihu came fear of punishment – everyone began to fear Hakadosh Baruch Hu. If these two great men, equivalent to seventy elders, died, a tremendous fear entered everyone who was well below their level.
We see here that the awe of Hakadosh Baruch Hu’s greatness is insufficient; we also need fear of punishment. This is what Shimon HaTzaddik tells us in the Mishna: Be like servants who serve the master not for the sake of receiving a reward; and let the fear of Heaven be upon you. One cannot serve only out of love. One who serves out of love may sin, whereas one who serves out of fear will not come to sin. Thus, we need both – love and fear.
The Torat Kohanim tells us that Nadav and Avihu came and added love upon their love. Even though they knew they would die, they did not refrain from drawing close. Hakadosh Baruch Hu says to the Kohen Gadol on Yom Kippur: “Know that you are like an angel, and despite My entering and leaving with you, beware not to come too close to Me.”
After this introduction, we can enter the central topic I would like to discuss in today’s shiur.
On Yom Kippur, the Kohen Gadol confesses three times
The first time, as written: With this shall Aharon come into the Holy Place: with a young bull for a sin offering. On this bull, the Kohen recites the following viduy – confession (Yoma 6:2): Please, Hashem, I have sinned, I have done wrong, I have transgressed before You, I and my household. Please, Hashem, atone for the sins, iniquities, and transgressions that I have sinned, done wrong, and transgressed before You, I and my household, as it is written in the Torah of Moshe, Your servant: For on this day He will atone for you to purify you; from all your sins, before the Lord, you shall be purified. The Kohanim and the people standing in the courtyard, when they heard the Shem HaMefoarsh (Ineffable Name) pronounced from the mouth of the Kohen Gadol, would bow, prostrate, and fall on their faces, saying: Blessed be the Name of His glorious kingdom forever and ever.
After the Kohen recites the viduy on his bull, he approaches the goats and casts lots – one lot for Hashem and one for Azazel. Then he returns to his bull and confesses on it again: “Please, Hashem, I have done wrong, I have transgressed, I have sinned before You, I, my household, and the sons of Aharon, Your holy people, etc.” Here, in this second confession, there is a chidush; a new element added – he confesses for all the Kohanim. The question arises: Why not say this already in the first viduy? Chazal say (Shevuot) that Aharon cannot atone for the Kohanim if he himself has not yet been atoned for. First, you need atonement for yourself, and only then can you atone for others.
The Radak writes on the words and we will render the offerings of our lips (Hoshea 14:3), instead of bulls, we will offer the confession of our lips, for Hakadosh Baruch Hu desires words of repentance more, as Korbanot are not effective without confession of sin. In conjunction with all the offerings it is said: And he shall confess that he has sinned. There is one exception though – with the scapegoat, there was only a verbal viduy, as nothing was offered on the altar with it.
With regards to viduy, the Rambam writes (Hilchot Teshuva 1:1): How does one confess? He says: Please, Hashem, I have sinned, I have done wrong, I have transgressed before You, and I have done such and such, and behold, I regret and am ashamed of my deeds, and I will never return to this matter. This is the essence of confession. The more one confesses and elaborates on this matter, the more praiseworthy he is.
The Rambam then adds (2:7): Yom Kippur is a time of repentance for all, for the individual and the community, and it is the culmination of forgiveness and pardon for Yisrael. Therefore, everyone is obligated to repent and confess on Yom Kippur. The Mitzvah of viduy on Yom Kippur begins on the eve of the day, before eating, lest one choke during the meal before confessing. Even if he confessed before eating, he confesses again on the night of Yom Kippur at Maariv, and again at Shacharit, Musaf, Mincha, and Ne’ilah.
The Rambam then details when these confessions take place. On Yom Kippur, we have ten instances of viduy: In the silent Amidah at Maariv and in the liturgical poems that follow; in both the silent Amidah and repetition of Shacharit, Musaf, and Mincha; and finally, in Ne’ilah.
Why specifically ten? The commentators say this corresponds to the ten times the Kohen Gadol mentions the Shem HaMeforash, the Explicit Name, on Yom Kippur. Some say this corresponds to the ten trials Avraham Avinu endured, and since we wish to invoke Avraham Avinu’s merits, we mention the Name ten times. The Maharil says it corresponds to the ten times the Kohen Gadol sanctifies his hands and feet.
The order of the viduy is structured according to the Hebrew alphabet – why is that? The Ben Ish Chai says it is because a Tefillah arranged in this order is most accepted, as the entire world was created for the twenty-two letters of the Torah. Others say, since Megillat Eicha is structured according to the alphabet, and when a person sins, he tarnishes the twenty-two letters of the Torah and causes the destruction of the Beit Hamikdash, viduy is thus said according to the alphabetical order.
Thus far, there is no chidush here. But at the conclusion of viduy, we recite two Pesukim. The first is based, in part, on a Pasuk from Iyov. We have strayed from Your commandments and Your good judgments, and it has not profited us. This is based on a Pasuk in Iyov (33:27): I have sinned, and perverted what is right, and it has not profited me. The second Pasuk is taken entirely from Nechemia (9:33): But You are righteous in all that has come upon us, for You have acted in truth, and we have acted wickedly.
The Yerushalmi says (Shevuot 1:5): Thirty-two goats are offered for the community each year, thirty-one on the outer altar and eaten by the Kohanim, and one final goat inside, which is not eaten. In addition, there is the scapegoat, which is not offered as a Korban, so it is not counted in the total. The Yerushalmi details the thirty-two goats and their significance: twelve for the twelve months of the year, eight for Sukkot, seven for Pesach, two for Shavuot, one for the day, one for the bread, one for Rosh Hashanah, and one for Yom Kippur. When Moshe Rabbeinu heard that all thirty-two goats atone for one thing – the impurity of the Mikdash – he asked: “From now on, if someone is in doubt as to a transgression committed, must he bring all these offerings?”
The Gemara says, when Hakadosh Baruch Hu told Moshe about the scapegoat – this was His response to Moshe, that they need not bring all thirty-two goats, for this offering, the scapegoat, will atone for anyone with a doubtful transgression who is not obligated to bring a Korban. Moshe Rabbeinu then recited a psalm of thanksgiving, as thanksgiving is an expression of confession.
The Etz Yosef notes (Otzar HaTefillot) that one must recite the verse “But You are righteous in all that has come upon us” with kavanah and great humility. In the Pesikta, Hakadosh Baruch Hu said to the ministering angels: “Come, and I will show you the righteousness of My children, whom I have tested in this world with troubles and afflictions in every generation and every hour, yet they do not rebel; they call themselves wicked and call Me righteous, saying in this language: ‘But we have sinned, we have done wrong... and You are righteous in all that has come upon us.’ ”
It is from these words that I would like to reach our central point. If we were asked to give a title to this verse, in my opinion, the most fitting title would be acceptance of Divine judgement (Din) and its righteousness. Just as a mourner accepts G’d’s judgment and blesses Baruch Dayan HaEmet, so too here: For You have acted in truth, and we have acted wickedly. “Hashem, if You have done something to me, it is because I deserve it!”
Let’s reverse track and go back two Parshiot
When Nadav and Avihu died, Moshe Rabbeinu returned and informed Aharon of the news. Chazal say (Vayikra Rabbah 12:2), Moshe said to Aharon: “My brother, at Har Sinai, I was told that I would sanctify this house (the Mishkan), and with a great person I would sanctify it. I thought it would be either through me or through you that this house would be sanctified. Now, your two sons are greater than you and me.” When Aharon heard that his sons feared Hakadosh Baruch Hu, he was silent and received reward for his silence. From where do we know he was silent? It is stated: And Aharon was silent.
What exactly does And Aharon was silent mean? What exactly did he do – did he laugh? Did he cry? The Rashbam says, in his mourning, he did not cry nor mourn. The Seforno writes, Aharon was silent, comforted by the sanctification of Hakadosh Baruch Hu through their death.
The Ba’al HaTurim explains there are two instances of silence. One pertains to Aharon’s reaction, and the other related to the sun standing still. This hints that the luminaries are dimmed for the death of a head of the court, and Aharon’s sons were heads of the court. The Be'er Moshe of Ozharov writes: It is wondrous to explain the mesorah of Aharon’s silence and the sun standing still. Just as the sun stood without action, so too Aharon was silent, even in his heart, without questioning Hakadosh Baruch Hu. The Chafetz Chaim says Aharon was silent in that his level at that moment was that he was like an inanimate object, with no trace of mourning visible on his face.
Rabbotai, this seems absolutely incomprehensible! Nobody should be tested like this and experience such loss, but how can a man possibly remain silent when his two sons die? Even more incomprehensible is what the Tzror Hamor writes, namely, that Aharon was joyful in reaction! Immediately after his sons died, it was said to Aharon: Do not drink wine or other intoxicants. If Hakadosh Baruch Hu is speaking to Aharon, says Rav Avraham Sabah, it’s a sign he was in a state of simcha, because Ruach HaKodesh appears only in a state of genuine happiness.
The sefer Talalei Orot - Shnayim Mikra brings a story: Once, a tragedy befell a merchant for one of Brisk’s notables – Rabbi Avraham. His ships sank at sea, and most of his wealth was lost. When news reached his business manager, the manager feared informing Rabbi Avraham, because it might overwhelm him. The man went to ask the rav of the community, Rabbi Yosef Dov Soloveitchik, what to do. Rav Soloveitchik said: “Leave the telegram with me and say nothing to him.”
The rav of Brisk sent for Rabbi Avraham to come to him. When Rabbi Avraham entered the rav’s house, he found him studying and laboring over Massechet Berachot, Perek HaRoeh. Curious, he asked the rav why he was toiling over a...
