שמיני

It was the eighth day, called Shemini, which means “Eighth.” Moses called Aaron and his sons, and the elders of Israel, to the front of the Tent of Meeting. Moses told Aaron to bring a calf for a purgation offering and a ram for a burnt offering, both without blemish. He also told the people to bring their offerings: a goat for a purgation offering, a calf and a lamb for burnt offerings, an ox and a ram for an offering of well-being, and a grain offering mixed with oil.

Moses said they should do what God commanded so God’s Presence would appear. Aaron came to the altar and offered first for himself and then for the people. His sons brought him the blood, and he placed it on the altar and poured the rest at its base. He turned the chosen parts into smoke on the altar and finished the offerings. Then Aaron lifted his hands and blessed the people. Moses and Aaron went into the Tent of Meeting, and when they came out and blessed the people, God’s Presence appeared. Fire came from before God and consumed the offering on the altar, and the people shouted and fell on their faces.

Right after that amazing moment, Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu each took a fire pan, put fire in it, and laid incense on it. They offered “alien fire,” something God had not commanded. Fire came forth from God and consumed them, and they died.

Moses said to Aaron that God had meant, “Through those near to Me I show Myself holy, and gain glory before all the people.” Aaron did not argue; he stayed silent. Moses called Mishael and Elzaphan, relatives of Aaron, and told them to carry the bodies outside the camp, and they did.

Moses warned Aaron and his remaining sons, Eleazar and Ithamar, not to tear their clothes or leave the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, because God’s anointing oil was on them, even though the rest of Israel could mourn. Then God spoke to Aaron: no wine or intoxicant when entering the Tent of Meeting, so the priests could tell the difference between sacred and ordinary, and between impure and pure, and teach the people God’s laws.

Later Moses questioned why the goat of the purgation offering had been burned instead of eaten in the sacred area. Aaron explained what had happened that day, and Moses accepted his answer.

God then told Moses and Aaron to teach the Israelites which creatures could be eaten and which were forbidden. For land animals, the rule was clear: an animal had to have split hooves and chew the cud. So animals like the camel, hare, and swine were not to be eaten, and their carcasses were not to be touched.

For water creatures, anything with fins and scales could be eaten, but anything without fins and scales was forbidden. God also listed birds that were not to be eaten, and said most winged swarming insects were not allowed. Only certain jumping insects with jointed legs, like locusts, crickets, and grasshoppers, could be eaten.

God explained that touching the carcass of an impure animal made a person impure until evening, and sometimes clothes had to be washed. Some objects could also become impure and needed washing, and an earthen vessel that became impure had to be broken. These instructions helped the people distinguish between the impure and the pure, and between what may be eaten and what may not.