Parshas Shemini 5785
- Torah Tavlin
- Apr 23
- 2 min read
ואל בני ישראל תדבר לאמר קחו שעיר עזים לחטאת ועגל וכבש בני שנה ... (ט-ג)
At the inauguration of the Mishkan, several Korbonos were brought. Among them were two Chatos offerings: One, a calf for Aharon HaKohen, and the other, a goat, brought on behalf of the Jewish people. Chazal explain that Aharon’s korban atoned for his part in the sin of the golden calf, while the goat represented the blood of the goat used to dip Yosef’s Kesones Pasim into when the brothers deceived Yaakov regarding his death. Based on the fact that the Mishkan was built in response to the outcome of the eigel, we can understand the first connection. But what is the relevance of Yosef’s sale here? The main sin of Yosef’s brothers was the murder attempt, not the subsequent lie to save face. Why would that be a factor of this Korbon?
R’ Yosef Salant zt”l (Be’er Yosef), explains that of course, the shevatim were not murderers; rather they had reasons for Yosef to be חייב מיתה: he spoke Lashon Hara, he rebelled against Shevet Yehuda’s kingdom, to name some examples. Together, they created a Beis Din, which paskened that Yosef must be killed. But this was a mistake. They should have consulted with their father Yaakov, or grandfather Yitzchok. The sheilah could have been brought to the Beis Din of Shem V’Ever. They should have seeked out the guidance of the Gedolei Hador. The proof of their ulterior motives was the fact that they hid their decision from Yaakov by showing him the bloody cloak. As the saying goes, “When one says it’s the principle, not the money - you know, it’s the money!” The korban brought for this sin, therefore, focused on the ruse, because the true fault was the lack of leadership. Had they consulted with greater authority, they may have changed their psak. Similarly, the intention of many to make an eigel, was to create a physical means of connecting to Hashem. Had they listened to the Gedolei Hador, Aharon and Chur, the outcome would have been very different. This common theme is the connection between the eigel, Mishkan, and mechiras Yosef. In all decisions, even those we believe are ratzon Hashem, it is important to include the direction of our Gedolim.