Any sin-offering from which blood has been brought to the Tent of Meeting... shall not be eaten, it shall be burned in fire. (6:23)
The Gemara relates that according to R’ Yose Haglili, this pasuk is expressing the halachah regarding all “inner” chatas (sin) offerings, i.e., those whose blood is sprinkled inside the Mishkan itself. This is in contrast to the “outer” chatas offerings, whose blood is sprinkled on the mizbeyach in the courtyard. The pasuk states that all such inner chatas offerings are forbidden for consumption, rather, they must be entirely burned.
Two Types of Sin
The Meshech Chochmah explains that the division of the place where the blood is sprinkled depends on the nature of the wrongdoing, and is based on the correspondence between the aspects of the Mishkan and the make-up of a human being:
- The inside of the Mishkan corresponds to the inner faculties of the person, e.g. his mental faculties.
- The outer parts of the Mishkan correspond to the person’s physical drives and activities.
Therefore:
- A regular chatas, which is brought to atone for an unintentional sin, where the wrongdoing is in the domain of a physical act, has its blood sprinkled on the outer mizbeyach, in the Courtyard.
- A chatas which atones for either a willful transgression or an erroneous judgment on the part of the Sanhedrin, where the wrongdoing is in the domain of the intellect, has its blood sprinkled inside the Mishkan.
Consumed by Man or by Fire?
Awareness of this distinction brings us to the question of what happens with the remainder of the chatas offering. The outer chatas is consumed by the kohanim, since the physical forces it represents are not meant to be rejected completely, but rather, to be enlisted in the service of Hashem. As the Gemara comments on the pasuk in Mishlei, “בְּכָל דְּרָכֶיךָ דָעֵהוּ – In all your ways know Him” – even in matters of sin; i.e., even with the physical tendencies that can potentially lead a person to sin, one should “know Hashem” and enlist them toward elevated purposes.
By contrast, objectionable intellectual tendencies have no place whatsoever in Torah living, hence, the inner chatas which comes to atone for such wrongdoings is not consumed, but rather is burned outside the camp.
The Meshech Chochmah concludes that the basis for his comments in this matter comes from the presentation of this halachah by R’ Shlomo Ibn Gabirol in his work known as “The Azharos.” He writes:
וְלא יֶאכֵל פנְיֶמִיֶוְתֵ בָזדוְן וְבָתֵרֵמִיֶתֵ
And one shall not eat of the inner (chatas offerings, which come through) intentional sin and deceit.
In mentioning the types of sin which obligate an inner chatas as part of the prohibition against consuming it, Ibn Gabirol is indicating that that it is the nature of these sins which is responsible for the prohibition to partake of them – even as part of the mitzvah of consuming meat of korbanos.
