Torat ha-‘olah (Law of the Burnt Offering): On the Lunar Calendar

Volume III, Chapter 49

I found it written somewhere that the eleven offerings brought on Rosh ḥodesh [the New Moon] correspond to the eleven extra days of the solar year over and above those of the lunar year. This is a very weak explanation. The Ba‘al ‘akedah [Isaac Arama (ca. 1420–1494)] wrote, in chapter 21 § 37, that:

But I am truly surprised at him that he could say that the one ram, which is slaughtered and perishes, alludes to the blessed Lord. Consequently, this is not a reasonable interpretation. Rather, it seems preferable to accept the opinion of the Ba‘al ‘akedah that the seven sheep correspond to the seven planets and that the two bulls represent the spheres above them, but the ram corresponds to the tenth sphere, called the sphere of intellect. [ . . . ] And the phrase “and one he-goat [se‘ir] to the Lord as a sin offering” [see Numbers 28:15] teaches that they will all perish, as they are all contingent objects and will ultimately decay, as in the expression and satyrs [se‘irim] shall dance there (Isaiah 13:21), i.e., they are a decaying form. They are also all a sin offering [ḥatat] to the Lord, as in the phrase I and my son Solomon shall be disadvantaged [ḥata’im] (1 Kings 1:21), which denotes a lack. In other words, they are all lacking in perfection relative to the blessed Lord, and that is why it states “ḥatat to the Lord” [ . . . ]

However, following our explanations in the previous chapters, with regard to the claims of the heretics about creation ex nihilo and the response of those who believe in it, and that the additional offerings represent those opinions, it seems that the additional Rosh ḥodesh offering negates the third claim of the philosophers. This is their argument that since the movement of the spheres is not subject to reversal, which causes decay, they cannot perish, and if they cannot perish they never came into being. By means of the new moon we can understand why this claim is to be rejected, and this is why we sacrifice an additional offering. The negation by way of the new moon is achieved in the following manner: it is by observing the moon that we can discern the reversal in the movements and orbits of the spheres, as some of them move from east to west, while others go in the opposite direction, and some of them move quickly while others move more slowly, and yet others go to the south and still others to the north. [ . . . ] This is made apparent by the orbit of the moon and its renewal on the new moon. [ . . . ]

And this is why they would sacrifice seven sheep. For we find that all the additional offerings include seven sheep, apart from those of the Sabbath. This teaches us that even the inhabited world, and all natural occurrences—which are represented by the sheep—will perish, as explained above at the end of chapter twenty-eight with respect to the additional offering of the Sabbath. They would bring seven of them because this concept is related to the seven days of creation, and therefore they all include seven. The one exception is the Sabbath, on which there is no need for the representation of the seven days of creation, as it itself stands for the last day of creation. Rather, it corresponds to the additional achievement attained through the Sabbath, as we explained regarding the additional Sabbath offering. [ . . . ] All the additional offerings were burnt offerings, which are entirely consumed upon the altar, to indicate that the whole world in its entirety will perish in the future, and this shows that it was all created. This is the meaning of every offering, as already explained earlier. The reason that there were also two bulls, apart from the sheep, as I already noted in chapter eleven section two, is that the bull represents the creation of the world ex nihilo, which can be established in negation of the opinion of Aristotle [ . . . ]

The one he-goat for a sin offering to the Lord (Numbers 28:15) represents the creation of the angels, as they are spiritual beings, and they were known as se‘irim, for it is stated: and they shall no longer sacrifice their sacrifices to the se‘irim (Leviticus 17:7). This is for the reason that has also been explained, in the second part of chapter eleven, with regard to the he-goat, that it corresponds to the order of nature, which is controlled through the angels, unlike the six days of creation, which was performed by the Lord, may He be exalted. [ . . . ]

It would also seem, based on what we wrote with regard to the he-goat, that this is the esoteric meaning of the two goats, one for the Lord and one for Azazel.¹ For the spiritual beings can be divided into two types: ministering angels, and harmful creatures and angels of destruction. The verse states that one of the goats is for the Lord, referring to the ministering angels, which were created to serve their Creator and to bring good to the world. This is for the Lord (Leviticus 16:8) as He wants the world to remain in existence. The other is for Azazel, the beings that were created to destroy and lay waste. All this will be explained with regard to the Yom Kippur service, God willing. Therefore, on Rosh ḥodesh one he-goat is brought as a sin offering to the Lord, to indicate that all the spiritual beings together are included in the he-goat, as they are all for the Lord. [ . . . ] And it is the goat (se‘ir) that is chosen as the sin offering, rather than the other additional offerings, as a person sins by means of the se‘irim, as he is guided by both his good inclination and his evil inclination, which is the portion of the se‘ir and the astrological sign of Esau, who was sa‘ir [a hairy man]. [ . . . ]

We can thus say that we have found aspects of the Rosh ḥodesh offering that allude to this topic, that is, the third claim of the philosophers regarding the creation of the world ex nihilo, as explained above. Consequently, Rambam [Maimonides] wrote that on all weekdays they would place the limbs of offerings on the western side of the lower half of the ramp, and they would put the limbs of the additional offerings on the eastern side of the lower half of the ramp, whereas those of Rosh ḥodesh would be placed upon the altar, between two of its corners, in the passageway where the priests would walk, in order to publicize that it was the new moon, and the same is stated at the end of chapter five of tractate Sukkah. This is because the sacrifice of the limbs symbolizes the mortality of the world, as explained earlier. Thus, they would place the limbs on the lower half of the ramp, since the ramp represents the rungs of ladder upon which the angels ascend and descend [see Genesis 28:12]. This corresponds to the general state of the world, as it is the path that ascends to the House of God [see Genesis 28:19], which is the altar. And as the processes of becoming and perishing happen mostly on earth below, they would place the limbs on the lower half of the ramp.

Now, the daily offerings were placed on the western side, which is at the end, corresponding to the end of the days of the world, as explained above with regard to the daily offerings. However, when it comes to the additional offerings, which represent the answer to the philosophers’ claim regarding the eternity of the world, their limbs are positioned in the east, which is the beginning. By contrast, on Rosh ḥodesh, which alludes to the aforementioned ideas, they are placed on the altar itself, between two of its corners. As we have already explained, one of these corners corresponds to the attribute of mercy, which is the good, while the other represents strict judgment, which puts evil into operation. They are positioned in the passageway where the priests would walk, as these are the two spiritual groups that are alluded to by the goats, as explained, and as they are from the corners and depend upon them, the limbs of the Rosh ḥodesh offering are placed between them. In this manner they serve to publicize the idea of the new moon, which is as we have explained.