Blemished Sacrifices
In this week’s parsha, Emor, God declares
כֹּ֛ל אֲשֶׁר־בּ֥וֹ מ֖וּם לֹ֣א תַקְרִ֑יבוּ כִּי־לֹ֥א לְרָצ֖וֹן יִהְיֶ֥ה לָכֶֽם׃
You shall not offer any that has a defect, for it will not be accepted in your favor.
וְאִ֗ישׁ כִּֽי־יַקְרִ֤יב זֶֽבַח־שְׁלָמִים֙ לַיהֹוָ֔ה לְפַלֵּא־נֶ֙דֶר֙ א֣וֹ לִנְדָבָ֔ה בַּבָּקָ֖ר א֣וֹ בַצֹּ֑אן תָּמִ֤ים יִֽהְיֶה֙ לְרָצ֔וֹן כׇּל־מ֖וּם לֹ֥א יִהְיֶה־בּֽוֹ׃
And when any party offers, from the herd or the flock, a sacrifice of well-being to יהוה for an explicit vow or as a freewill offering, it must, to be acceptable, be without blemish; there must be no defect in it.
עַוֶּ֩רֶת֩ א֨וֹ שָׁב֜וּר אוֹ־חָר֣וּץ אֽוֹ־יַבֶּ֗לֶת א֤וֹ גָרָב֙ א֣וֹ יַלֶּ֔פֶת לֹא־תַקְרִ֥יבוּ אֵ֖לֶּה לַיהֹוָ֑ה וְאִשֶּׁ֗ה לֹא־תִתְּנ֥וּ מֵהֶ֛ם עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ לַיהֹוָֽה׃
Anything blind, or injured, or maimed, or with a wen, boil-scar, or scurvy—such you shall not offer to יהוה; you shall not put any of them on the altar as offerings by fire to יהוה.
Why is it important to God that we not offer Him blemished sacrifices?
There are several possibilities. But I think one of them is linked to an idea that is made clear by the famous Gordon Ramsay of ‘Masterchef,’ ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ and ‘Kitchen Nightmares.’
Ramsay wants perfection. But it’s not just that he wants it- he models it. You will see him wiping down the edge of every single plate before it ever goes out to table service. You will see him shouting at his amateur chefs that the scallops are cold and sending them back, because we cannot serve cold scallops to diners. He will nitpick the exact way a beef wellington or eggs benedict portion looks. Why is he doing this? Because perfection matters to him.
And let’s be honest. Perfection matters to us, too. If we go out to a fancy restaurant, we don’t only enjoy the ambiance. We also enjoy the elegance (dare I say finesse) of the plating and the way in which the food is arranged. If it’s sloppy, looks haphazard, or as though it was done in a rush, our enjoyment is marred.
So I think that the issue of blemished sacrifices is more about us than it is about God. God wants us to value the experience of offering sacrifices. He wants us to take pride in it and to care about it. Doing that means we give God our best effort, and our best effort is a creature that is unblemished.
Later, in Malachi, we read about individuals who offered blemished animals to God.
וְאָר֣וּר נוֹכֵ֗ל וְיֵ֤שׁ בְּעֶדְרוֹ֙ זָכָ֔ר וְנֹדֵ֛ר וְזֹבֵ֥חַ מׇשְׁחָ֖ת לַאדֹנָ֑י כִּי֩ מֶ֨לֶךְ גָּד֜וֹל אָ֗נִי אָמַר֙ יְהֹוָ֣ה צְבָא֔וֹת וּשְׁמִ֖י נוֹרָ֥א בַגּוֹיִֽם׃ A curse on the cheat who has an [unblemished] male in his flock, but for his vow sacrifices a blemished animal to the Lord! For I am a great King—said the LORD of Hosts—and My name is revered among the nations.
Metzudat David explains
וארור נוכל. ארור המערים לומר שאין בידו יותר מובחר להקרבה ממה שהביא אבל באמת יש בעדרו זכר מובחר וטוב הראוי לעולה:
The problem in this specific scenario is that the person is a liar. He claims he has nothing better to offer as a korban when in truth he does have a beautiful male animal- he just doesn’t want to give it up. He wants to get away with second-best as opposed to chasing perfection.
And that reminded me of the Cain and Abel story all the way back in Genesis.
וַתֹּ֣סֶף לָלֶ֔דֶת אֶת־אָחִ֖יו אֶת־הָ֑בֶל וַֽיְהִי־הֶ֙בֶל֙ רֹ֣עֵה צֹ֔אן וְקַ֕יִן הָיָ֖ה עֹבֵ֥ד אֲדָמָֽה׃ She then bore his brother Abel. Abel became a keeper of sheep, and Cain became a tiller of the soil.
וַֽיְהִ֖י מִקֵּ֣ץ יָמִ֑ים וַיָּבֵ֨א קַ֜יִן מִפְּרִ֧י הָֽאֲדָמָ֛ה מִנְחָ֖ה לַֽיהֹוָֽה׃ In the course of time, Cain brought an offering to יהוה from the fruit of the soil;
וְהֶ֨בֶל הֵבִ֥יא גַם־ה֛וּא מִבְּכֹר֥וֹת צֹאנ֖וֹ וּמֵֽחֶלְבֵהֶ֑ן וַיִּ֣שַׁע יְהֹוָ֔ה אֶל־הֶ֖בֶל וְאֶל־מִנְחָתֽוֹ׃ and Abel, for his part, brought the choicest of the firstlings of his flock. יהוה paid heed to Abel and his offering,
וְאֶל־קַ֥יִן וְאֶל־מִנְחָת֖וֹ לֹ֣א שָׁעָ֑ה וַיִּ֤חַר לְקַ֙יִן֙ מְאֹ֔ד וַֽיִּפְּל֖וּ פָּנָֽיו׃ but to Cain and his offering [God] paid no heed. Cain was much distressed and his face fell.
If you read this story carefully, you are left perplexed. Cain brought an offering from the fruit of the soil. He initiated making contact with God! Abel copied him!
But the close reader of text also sees that when Abel brings his offering he brings m’bchorot tzono, from the choicest of his flock. The very opposite of the cheat in Malachi who pretends his blemished animal is the best he can give.
The story of Cain and Abel, per Midrash, is the story of a person who was willing to give the best of what he had to God as compared to a person who gave the worst, most puny fruits of the field.
Why does it really matter? Is God that shallow?
I don’t think so. It’s about us. Not God.
Are we the kind of cooks who will push ourselves in an effort to make sure that the food is delicious, cooked at the right temperature, perfectly plated, with not a spot or drop of extra sauce marring the effect? Or are we the kind who will be okay with “good enough?” One of those cooks is doing his best to respect the diner- and Gordon- and the other is not.
The same with God. Are we investing the effort to give God the best of our flock, even when it means we might suffer a monetary loss/ lose out on the sale (or breeding) of a prime animal? Are we acting like Abel?
And nowadays, when we no longer give animal sacrifices, what do we offer to God? The scraps of our attention, when we can bother to pay heed to him after completing everything else on our busy schedule? Or the bulk of our commitment?
What kind of sacrifice do we offer God? Is it whole or blemished? And if the latter- can we fix it?
Love this.