Relationship Between Vayikra 1-5 and 6-7/2

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Relationship Between Vayikra 1-5 and 6-7

Exegetical Approaches

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Complement Vayikra 1-5

The laws of Vayikra 6-7 complement those in Vayikra 1-5.  The directives of Vayikra 1-5 focus on the bringing and preparation of the sacrifice, while the laws of Chapters 6-7 focus on the apportioning of the sacrifices.

Target of the command – The laws of Vayikra 1-5 are directed at lay Israelites ("דַּבֵּר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל") who bring the sacrifices,2 while the commands of Vayikra 6-7 are aimed at the priests ("צַו אֶת אַהֲרֹן וְאֶת בָּנָיו") who apportion them. This accords with the focus of each unit.
Order of the sacrifices – The sacrifices in Parashat Vayikra are listed according to the level of obligation mandating their offering, while those of Parashat Tzav are ordered according to whom each is apportioned. Again, this is in line with the theme of each unit.
  • Thus, Vayikra 1-5 moves from voluntary offerings (Olah, Minchah and Shelamim) to obligatory sacrifices brought as atonement for sin (Chatat and Asham).3
  • In contrast, Parashat Tzav moves from קדשי קדשים to קדשים קלים.  The Olah is listed first as it is offered totally to Hashem.4  The Minchah and Chatat follow as there are examples of each which are for God exclusively5 and others that are shared also by the priest.6 The Asham, which is always divided between Hashem and the priest, comes next, while the unit closes with the Shelamim which is shared also by the lay Israelite.7
Sacrificial procedure – On the whole, Vayikra 1-5 details the sacrificial procedure for each offering, while Vayikra 6-7 does not. This is logical if we assume that Vayikra 6-7 revolves mainly around the allocating of the portions and not the dynamics of the offering itself. This position, though, must explain two exceptions to the rule: the Minchah whose procedure is mentioned in both units, and the Asham, whose protocol is mentioned only in Vayikra 6-7:
  • The Minchah – As the Minchah is a meal offering which does not require slaughter, sprinkling of blood, or the like, its preparation is basically equivalent to its allotment between the altar and the priest, and so it is mentioned in both units.8  As such, too, parts of the procedure which are related to its preparation rather than its allocation, such as the placing of oil and frankincense on the offering, are omitted in Parashat Tzav. 
  • The Asham – It is not clear, according to this position, why the Asham's sacrificial procedure is mentioned in Vayikra 6 and not in Vayikra 5, where expected.
Reasons for bringing the offerings – As expected, only in Parashat Vayikra do the verses explain why the various sacrifices are brought, listing the sins and circumstances which mandate bringing a Chatat or Asham.
Object to be sacrificed – As Vayikra 1-5 focuses on the bringing of the sacrifice, it is only these verses which distinguish between the different animals which can be brought for each sacrifice and the various types of meal offerings.9
Sacrifices mentioned only in Parashat Tzav
  •  מנחת כהן משיח ושלמי תודה – Both the Minchah of the Kohen Mashiach and the Thanksgiving Offering, a type of Shelamim, are mentioned only in Parashat Tzav.  This position would explain that since each of these has certain laws regarding the allocation of the sacrifice that distinguish it from other offerings in its category,10 they needed to be mentioned individually as a contrast to the other similar offerings.11  They are omitted from Parashat Vayikra because this distinction is irrelevant there, as the unit does not focus on the apportioning of the sacrifice.12
  •  קרבן תמיד – As this specific Olah is a national rather than individual offering, it has no place in Parashat Vayikra and is instead alluded to only in Parashat Tzav, together with the other laws aimed at the priest specifically.
Terumat HaDeshen – As the process of removing the ashes of the daily Olah offering has nothing to do with the lay Israelite's bringing of the sacrifice, it is not mentioned in Vayikra 1-5.  Moreover, as the ashes highlight how the entire offering had been given to Hashem, it is appropriate to the discussions of Parashat Tzav.
Guiding word - "זֹאת תּוֹרַת" – This phrase repeats throughout the unit of Vayikra 6-7,13 yet never appears in Vayikra 1-5.  As the phase is often understood to mean "procedure",14 this is somewhat surprising considering that it is specifically in Parashat Vayikra that most of the sacrificial procedures are enumerated. However, translated literally, the words "זֹאת תּוֹרַת" simply mean "this is the teaching" or "laws of..." and, as such, in context, might refer to the laws of allocating each sacrifice.15
Ohel Moed vs. Har Sinai – It is not clear why one set of laws would be given at Mt. Sinai and the other in the Ohel Moed. Ramban16 attempts to explain that really the two phrases refer to the same place, the Tabernacle.17  When the verses speaks of Mt. Sinai, it means in front of the mountain,18 where the Ohel Moed was stationed.19
The conclusion: "זֹאת הַתּוֹרָה לָעֹלָה... וְלַמִּלּוּאִים" – The inclusion of the special consecration offering (Miliuim) in the summary sentences of Vayikra 7 is difficult for this position, as there is no mention of the Miluim in either Parashat Vayikra or Parashat Tzav.

Supplement Shemot 29

The laws of Vayikra 6-7 supplement the laws regarding the Days of Consecration in Shemot 29, adding laws specific to the priest which were relevant not only for this ceremony but for future generations as well. The laws of Vayikra 1-5 are detached from the ceremony and focus instead on laws governing the individual's bringing of sacrifices throughout the generations

Sources:R. D"Z Hoffmann
Distinct sets of laws – According to R. D"Z Hoffmann, Shemot 29 and Vayikra 6-7 together form one set of laws, aimed at the priests, which were all commanded on Mount Sinai. Vayikra 1-5, in contrast, form a distinct set of laws aimed at the lay Israelite which were commanded in the Ohel Moed. While the laws of Shemot 29 are specific to the Days of the Consecration, the laws in both Vayikra 1-5 and 6-7 are relevant for all future generations.
Target audience – The laws of Vayikra 1-5  open with the command: "דַּבֵּר אֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל" because they are directed at lay Israelites who bring the sacrifices, while the commands of Vayikra 6-7 are introduced with the directive: "צַו אֶת אַהֲרֹן וְאֶת בָּנָיו" because they are aimed at the priests .
Ohel Moed vs. Har Sinai – R. Hoffmann's hypothesis is based on this distinction in the location in which each set of laws was given.  Since the verses teach that the laws of Vayikra 6-7 were given on Mt. Sinai, he concludes that they were given before, and not together with, the laws of Vayikra 1-5.20  As such, they serve to supplement not these chapters but rather Shemot 29 which was similarly relayed on the mountain. Vayikra 1-5, in contrast were only commanded after the Tabernacle was built and the people could begin to offer sacrifices.
Why is Vayikra 6-7 separated from Shemot 29? This position must explain why Vayikra 6-7 is separated from Shemot 29, if the laws were given together.  R.  Hoffmann answers that Shemot 29  only includes those laws which were needed for the Days of Consecration themselves, while Vayikra 6-7 adds those laws which are relevant for all time.21  As such, they are placed in Vayikra together with the other laws which are relevant to all generations.
Why doesn't Vayikra 6-7 precede Vayikra 1-5? According to this approach one would have expected the laws of Parashat Vayikra to follow those in Parashat Tzav, as per the order in which they were commanded. However, it is possible that once Vayikra 6-7 was detached from Shemot 29, when writing the Torah for future generations, it made more sense to begin with laws aimed at the nation's bringing of sacrifices and only afterwards to include the laws aimed at the priests and their portions.22
Connections between Shemot 29 and Vayikra 5-6 – There are several points in the description of the sacrifices in Parashat Tzav which highlight the unit's connection to Shemot 29 specifically:
  • "זֹאת הַתּוֹרָה לָעֹלָה... וְלַמִּלּוּאִים" – R. Hoffmann suggests that the inclusion of the Miluim in the closing verses of Vayikra 6-7 proves that the verses form a conclusion not just to these chapters but also to Shemot 29 which discusses the Miluim in detail.23 As such, all three chapters form one unit and were commanded together.
  • "זֹאת מִשְׁחַת אַהֲרֹן וּמִשְׁחַת בָּנָיו... בְּיוֹם מׇשְׁחוֹ" – This verse, too, clearly connects Chapters 6-7 to the events of the Days of Consecration mandated in Shemot 29.
Sacrifices mentioned only in Parashat Tzav
  • Minchat Kohen Mashiach – This Minchah is clearly connected to the days of Consecration, when Aharon was anointed, and is thus logical that it appears in Vayikra 6 rather than Vayikra 2.  One might question, however, why it is not mentioned in Shemot 29, if it was brought as part of the Consecration ceremony. According to R. Hoffmann, since the sacrifice is relevant not only to Aharon, but to his descendants as well,24 it is mentioned only in Vayikra 6 together with the other laws relevant for all generations rather than Shemot 29 which is limited and specific to what was relveant only for the days of Consecration.25
  • Lachmei Todah– These loaves, too, might be mentioned in Vayikra 6 specifically since they are very similar to the loaves of bread which accompanied the Miluim offering (like the Torah, it too is a type of shelamim).  In both cases,
  • Emphasis on Tamid
Sacrificial procedure – The sacrificial procedures are laid out twice, once in the context of the lay Israelite (Vayikra 1-5) and once in relation to the priests (Shemot 29 and Vayikra 6-7).
  • Vayikra 6-7 omits the procedures for most of the sacrifices not because they are mentioned in 1-5 (which was only given later) but because they were relayed already in Shemot 29.26  The Minchah and Asham are exceptional because they were not offered during the Consecration ceremony.27 As such, their procedures are not discussed in Shemot 29, but are instead relayed in Vayikra 6,28 together with the other laws aimed at the priests which were relevant for all generations.29 It is only between the two sets of chapters, then, that the priests gets a complete list of procedures.
  • Though the laws of Vayikra 1-5 are given after the laws of Shemot 29 and Parashat Tzav, they also mention the protocol for each sacrifice, since here these laws are aimed at the lay Israelite rather than the priest. Since only in these chapters is there a distinction between the types of animals that might be brought for each sacrifice,30 it was necessary to distinguish between the various processes for each. It is possible that the protocol regarding the Asham is omitted because it might be considered a sub-type of Chatat,31 whose sacrificial process was already discussed.32  
Apportioning of the sacrifices – This approach might suggest that here is an emphasis on the apportioning of the sacrifice in Vayikra 6-7 because the allocation of certain sacrifices during the Cnsecration ceremnoy differed form the allocation for future generations:
  • Shelamim
  • Lachmei todah
  • Chatat
Elaboration regarding the Daily Olah Offering – This specific Olah is discussed at length in Parashat Tzav (but not at all in Parashat Vayikra), just as it is discussed at the end of Shemot 29.
Minchat Kohen Mashiach
"וְהִשְׁלִיךְ אֹתָהּ אֵצֶל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ קֵדְמָה אֶל מְקוֹם הַדָּשֶׁן" – R. Hoffman points to this verse as proof that the laws of Vayikra 1-5 were given after those of Vayikra 6-7 and are aware of them. The verse assumes knowledge of the place where the ashes of the Olah were brought, even though this is mentioned nowhere in this unit and only in Parashat Tzav.
כי איל מלאים הוא