Biblical Parallels Index – Vayikra 24
Overview
This index is meant to help the reader explore Biblical parallels, be they two accounts of the same event or law, stories with similar motifs and themes, or units of text which are linguistically similar and perhaps alluding one to the other. The page includes links to tools that aid in comparison, primary sources that touch upon the parallels, and summaries of and links to articles which analyze them in depth.The Blasphemer & Nadav and Avihu
The story of the blasphemer in Vayikra 24 has been compared to the only other narrative of Sefer Vayikra, the story of the deaths of Nadav and Avihu.
Tools
- Use the Tanakh Lab to compare the stories of Nadav and Avihu and the blasphemer. There are not many linguistic parallels, though one in particular stands out - the bringing of each Nadav and Avihu and the blasphemer outside of the camp ("אֶל מִחוּץ לַמַּחֲנֶה"). This might be of symbolic significance as both stories touch on the question of the line between the sacred and profane, and borders between "inside" and "out".
Articles
- Listen to The Two Narratives of Vayikra, by R. Avraham Walfish, for comparison of the stories of Nadav and Avihu and of the blasphemer and analysis of their messages about divine and human justice and appropriate boundaries in religious life.
- See The Blasphemer, by R. Mosheh Lichtenstein, for comparison and contrast of the narratives of Nadav and Avihu and of the blasphemer as two opposite but equally inappropriate approaches to sanctity, which serve to illustrate the proper understanding of sanctifying the mundane. While Aharon's sons sin lay in their attempt to sanctify something that was not worthy of being sanctified, the blasphemer sinned in denouncing the idea that the profane can become holy.
The Blasphemer and Wood Gatherer
The Tanakh Lab demonstrates that the chapter most linguistically similar to Vayikra 24 is Bemidbar 15,1 with the majority of the parallels related to the stories of the blasphemer and wood gatherer. In both stories an unnamed person sins, it is initially unknown what his punishment should be, but he is ultimately stoned by the nation outside the camp.
Tools
- Use the Tanakh Lab to compare the two stories and analyze their linguistic parallels.
Articles
- See The Law of the Blasphemer, by R. Amnon Bazak, for comparison and contrast of this story with that of the wood-gatherer in Bemidbar 15. R. Bazak notes three differences between the stories: the context of laws that is found only by the story of the blasphemer, the nation's unique placing of hands on the blasphemer's head, and the fact that the blasphemer is brought to Moshe alone while the wood gatherer is brought before the entire congregation. Analysis of these points and the larger blasphemer story reveals a message about the danger of assimilation and how it affects the sanctity of Israel.
- See The Stick-Gatherer by Rabbanit Sharon Rimon who notes several differences between the stories which help shed light on the message of the story of the wood gatherer. While the story of the blasphemer focuses on the individual and his sin, the focus of the wood gatherer narrative is really the nation who discovers the sin. The point of the story is to show the nation's development into a community who cares about observance of Torah and wants to ensure that all its members do as well.
- See The Triple Threat to Social Order by Ezra Sivan who compares these two stories and also the story of Achan in Yehoshua 8. Looking to modern social science and findings about the dynamics of societal interactions learned from the "Prisoner's Dilemma" , he suggests that together, the three stories highlight three threats to social order: greed, fear of greed, and rage.