פרשת צו — חמישי (Aliyah 5)
Parashat Tzav | Leviticus 8:14–8:21 | Aliyah 5 of 7
קלאוד על הפרשה
The fifth aliyah of Parashat Tzav presents the first sacrificial acts of the inauguration ceremony (milluim), moving from the elaborate preparatory rituals of anointing and vesting described in the preceding aliyah into the actual offering of animals upon the altar. Two distinct sacrifices structure this passage: the sin offering bull (par hachatat) in verses 14-17 and the burnt offering ram (eil ha’olah) in verses 18-21. Together they represent the foundational acts by which the newly constructed altar was consecrated and the priesthood formally inaugurated into the service of God.
The sin offering bull occupies a singular place in the inauguration sequence. Aaron and his sons perform semichah — the laying of hands upon the animal’s head — an act that symbolically transfers their identification onto the sacrifice. Moses then slaughters the bull and applies its blood to the horns of the altar with his finger, a procedure distinct from the typical dashing (zerikah) used for most offerings. Rashi explains that this act of “purifying the altar” (vayechate et hamizbeach) cleansed it from any profane contamination so that it might enter a state of holiness, and that the consecration was performed “so that one might make expiation upon it from that time onward” — establishing the altar as a permanent instrument of atonement rather than offering atonement for the altar itself. This distinction is theologically significant: the altar is not being forgiven but rather being prepared to serve as the vehicle through which Israel will seek forgiveness for generations to come.
Ramban deepens this analysis by citing a remarkable passage from the Torat Kohanim (Sifra). The midrash suggests that the atonement for the altar addressed a specific concern: when Moses called for donations to build the Tabernacle, the people rushed to contribute with such fervor that some may have pressured others, resulting in donations that were not entirely freely given. The sin offering purified the altar of any taint of coercion, fulfilling the prophetic principle from Isaiah 61:8 — “For I the Lord love justice, I hate robbery in a burnt-offering.” This teaching reveals a profound sensitivity to the ethical foundations of worship: even an altar built with overwhelmingly generous contributions requires purification if there is any suspicion that the giving was not entirely voluntary. The remainder of the bull — its hide, flesh, and dung — is burned outside the camp, following the law for sin offerings whose blood is brought within the sacred precincts.
The second sacrifice, the ram of the burnt offering, follows a different protocol. After semichah, Moses slaughters the ram and dashes its blood upon the altar on all sides, the standard procedure for an olah. The ram is then flayed and cut into its prescribed sections. Ramban notes that Scripture omits explicit mention of the flaying here because this procedure had already been commanded in the laws of the burnt offering in Leviticus chapter 1, and the text abbreviates accordingly. He further observes that the narrative separates the burning of the head and sections (verse 20) from the washing of the entrails and legs (verse 21) not because they occurred in that order, but to teach that the external sections of the animal do not require washing — only the innards and lower legs must be rinsed. The ram ascends entirely as smoke upon the altar, described as “a pleasing odor, an offering by fire to the Lord,” the quintessential expression of total devotion with nothing held back for human consumption.
The juxtaposition of these two sacrifices captures the dual prerequisites for inaugurating the divine service. The sin offering addresses the past — purging impurity, removing any ethical taint, preparing a clean foundation. The burnt offering addresses the future — expressing wholehearted dedication and establishing the pattern of complete self-offering that will define the priestly vocation. Throughout both sacrifices, it is Moses who performs every priestly function, serving as the sole officiant of the milluim. Aaron and his sons participate only through semichah, standing as the beneficiaries of a consecration they cannot yet perform themselves. This liminal status — anointed and vested but not yet authorized to serve independently — underscores that the priesthood is not self-conferred but divinely bestowed through the mediation of Moses, the faithful servant of God.
Leviticus 8:14–8:21 · ויקרא ח:יד–ח:כא
פסוק ח:יד · 8:14
Hebrew:
וַיַּגֵּ֕שׁ אֵ֖ת פַּ֣ר הַֽחַטָּ֑את וַיִּסְמֹ֨ךְ אַהֲרֹ֤ן וּבָנָיו֙ אֶת־יְדֵיהֶ֔ם עַל־רֹ֖אשׁ פַּ֥ר הַֽחַטָּֽאת׃
English:
He led forward the bull of sin offering. Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the head of the bull of sin offering,
פסוק ח:טו · 8:15
Hebrew:
וַיִּשְׁחָ֗ט וַיִּקַּ֨ח מֹשֶׁ֤ה אֶת־הַדָּם֙ וַ֠יִּתֵּ֠ן עַל־קַרְנ֨וֹת הַמִּזְבֵּ֤חַ סָבִיב֙ בְּאֶצְבָּע֔וֹ וַיְחַטֵּ֖א אֶת־הַמִּזְבֵּ֑חַ וְאֶת־הַדָּ֗ם יָצַק֙ אֶל־יְס֣וֹד הַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ וַֽיְקַדְּשֵׁ֖הוּ לְכַפֵּ֥ר עָלָֽיו׃
English:
and it was slaughtered. Moses took the blood and with his finger put some on each of the horns of the altar, purifying the altar; then he poured out the blood at the base of the altar. Thus he consecrated it in order to make expiation upon it.
פסוק ח:טז · 8:16
Hebrew:
וַיִּקַּ֗ח אֶֽת־כׇּל־הַחֵ֘לֶב֮ אֲשֶׁ֣ר עַל־הַקֶּ֒רֶב֒ וְאֵת֙ יֹתֶ֣רֶת הַכָּבֵ֔ד וְאֶת־שְׁתֵּ֥י הַכְּלָיֹ֖ת וְאֶֽת־חֶלְבְּהֶ֑ן וַיַּקְטֵ֥ר מֹשֶׁ֖ה הַמִּזְבֵּֽחָה׃
English:
Moses then took all the fat that was about the entrails, and the protuberance of the liver, and the two kidneys and their fat, and turned them into smoke on the altar.
פסוק ח:יז · 8:17
Hebrew:
וְאֶת־הַפָּ֤ר וְאֶת־עֹרוֹ֙ וְאֶת־בְּשָׂר֣וֹ וְאֶת־פִּרְשׁ֔וֹ שָׂרַ֣ף בָּאֵ֔שׁ מִח֖וּץ לַֽמַּחֲנֶ֑ה כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶת־מֹשֶֽׁה׃
English:
The rest of the bull, its hide, its flesh, and its dung, he put to the fire outside the camp—as יהוה had commanded Moses.
פסוק ח:יח · 8:18
Hebrew:
וַיַּקְרֵ֕ב אֵ֖ת אֵ֣יל הָעֹלָ֑ה וַֽיִּסְמְכ֞וּ אַהֲרֹ֧ן וּבָנָ֛יו אֶת־יְדֵיהֶ֖ם עַל־רֹ֥אשׁ הָאָֽיִל׃
English:
Then he brought forward the ram of burnt offering. Aaron and his sons laid their hands upon the ram’s head,
פסוק ח:יט · 8:19
Hebrew:
וַיִּשְׁחָ֑ט וַיִּזְרֹ֨ק מֹשֶׁ֧ה אֶת־הַדָּ֛ם עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ סָבִֽיב׃
English:
and it was slaughtered. Moses dashed the blood against all sides of the altar.
פסוק ח:כ · 8:20
Hebrew:
וְאֶ֨ת־הָאַ֔יִל נִתַּ֖ח לִנְתָחָ֑יו וַיַּקְטֵ֤ר מֹשֶׁה֙ אֶת־הָרֹ֔אשׁ וְאֶת־הַנְּתָחִ֖ים וְאֶת־הַפָּֽדֶר׃
English:
The ram was cut up into sections and Moses turned the head, the sections, and the suet into smoke on the altar;
פסוק ח:כא · 8:21
Hebrew:
וְאֶת־הַקֶּ֥רֶב וְאֶת־הַכְּרָעַ֖יִם רָחַ֣ץ בַּמָּ֑יִם וַיַּקְטֵר֩ מֹשֶׁ֨ה אֶת־כׇּל־הָאַ֜יִל הַמִּזְבֵּ֗חָה עֹלָ֨ה ה֤וּא לְרֵֽיחַ־נִיחֹ֙חַ֙ אִשֶּׁ֥ה הוּא֙ לַיהֹוָ֔ה כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶת־מֹשֶֽׁה׃
English:
Moses washed the entrails and the legs with water and turned all of the ram into smoke. That was a burnt offering for a pleasing odor, an offering by fire to יהוה —as יהוה had commanded Moses.