Parshat Acharei Mos
In 16:2 Hashem tells Moshe to tell Aharon. "ואל יבא בכל עת אל הקדש...ולא ימות" - that he cannot just walk into the Holy of Holies whenever he wants... and he will not die.
Rashi adds that this is so he should not die the way his sons died.
His sons died because they brought unauthorized sacrifices in the Holy. They did not just walk in. Also over there the commentaries search for alternative explanations that were the cause of their deaths. Such as they decided halacha in front of Moshe, or they entered the Holy while inebriated, etc.
So how does this warning compare to the death of Ahaon's sons?
The only answer I can think of offhand is that it is referring to the method of death. The punishment would be the same even though the offense is different (slightly).
Showing posts with label death. Show all posts
Showing posts with label death. Show all posts
Thursday, April 26, 2007
Wednesday, January 10, 2007
time to move on
Parshat Sh'mot
In 1:8 we are told a new king arose who did not know Yosef.
Rashi brings two opinions as to what that might mean. One, that it was actually a new king and he did not know Yosef. The second, that after Yosef's death the old king simply changed his decrees and acted as if he did not know Yosef.
How could the Pharoah ignore Yosef like that? Even if it was a new king, how could he have been unfamiliar with Yosef - the guy who ran Egypt for so many years and saved it from famine and was responsible for it becoming a great empire? He had to know Yosef!
And if it was the same old king, how could he ignore Yosef? After all that Yosef had done for him, he simply wipes it all away as if it never happened?
Yosef died. He was no longer a political force. He was not someone to be reckoned with any longer. Once Yosef died, the attitude seems to have been that all previous alliances, all deals, all favors owed, etc.. are no longer relevant.
As soon as it was necessary, the (maybe new) Pharoah simply made all his new alliances with others and his new decrees. Nothing from history mattered, as it was time to move on.
In 1:8 we are told a new king arose who did not know Yosef.
Rashi brings two opinions as to what that might mean. One, that it was actually a new king and he did not know Yosef. The second, that after Yosef's death the old king simply changed his decrees and acted as if he did not know Yosef.
How could the Pharoah ignore Yosef like that? Even if it was a new king, how could he have been unfamiliar with Yosef - the guy who ran Egypt for so many years and saved it from famine and was responsible for it becoming a great empire? He had to know Yosef!
And if it was the same old king, how could he ignore Yosef? After all that Yosef had done for him, he simply wipes it all away as if it never happened?
Yosef died. He was no longer a political force. He was not someone to be reckoned with any longer. Once Yosef died, the attitude seems to have been that all previous alliances, all deals, all favors owed, etc.. are no longer relevant.
As soon as it was necessary, the (maybe new) Pharoah simply made all his new alliances with others and his new decrees. Nothing from history mattered, as it was time to move on.
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