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Parshas Emor

Pesukim: 124 [Siman:עוזיאל ]

Haftorah Yechezkal 44:15-31

Rishon

1. Mitzvos of Kohanim:

• Hashem told Moshe to tell the Kohanim, the sons of Aaron the following laws relating to the Kehuna:
• Impurity to corpse: The Kohanim may not become impure to a corpse, with exception to a relative. A Kohen may become impure to his mother, father, son, daughter, brother, and his virgin sister who was never yet married. A husband may not become impure to his [forbidden] wife.
• Cutting skin/beard: They may not cut their skin, or heads, or shave their beards.
• The Kohanim must adhere to extra standards of Holiness, being that they serve Hashem in the Temple.
• Marriage: Kohanim may not marry a Gerusha, Chalalah, or Zona because they are holy.
• If the daughter of a Kohen commits adultery, she is to be burnt.
• Kohen Gadol: The Kohen Gadol may not grow out his hair or tear his clothing [in mourning]. He may not become impure even to relatives. He may not leave the Mikdash. The Kohen Gadol must marry a Besula.

Sheiyni

2. Kohen with a Mum/blemish:
   • A Kohen with a Mum is invalid to serve in the Temple. He may however eat from the Kodshim.

• The following matters are defined as a Mum:
  • One who is blind
  • One who is lame
  • One who is disfigured
  • One who has an enlarged limb
  • One who has a broken leg
  • One who has a broken arm
  • Eye dysfunctions or disfigurations, such as unusual eyebrows, or a cataract, or a mixing in his eye
  • One who has a Garav or Yalefes (different types of boils)
  • One who has crushed testicles.
• The Kohanim are warned not to desecrate the Kodshim of the Jewish people.

3. Impure Kohen:

• A Kohen who offers a Karban in a state of impurity receives Kares.
• If a Kohen is impure due to Tzaraas or Zav, he may not eat Kodshim until he becomes pure.
• One who touches one who is impure due to a corpse, or due to Shichvas Zera, or due to touching a creeping animal [i.e. a Sheretz], or an impure person, is considered impure and may not eat Kodshim until he immerses his flesh in a Mikveh. Only after the sun sets may he eat the Kodshim.
• He may not eat a Niveila or Treifa to become impure.

4. Non-Kohen eating Kodshim:

• A non-Kohen may not eat the Kodshim, including the worker of a Kohen. However, the slave and the members of the household of a Kohen may eat Kodesh.
• Kohenes: The daughter of a Kohen may not eat Kodshim if she marries a non-Kohen. If she gets divorced or widowed, and does not have children from him, she may eat Kodshim.
• If Zar ate Kodesh: If a non-Kohen accidently ate Kodshim, he must pay a fine of 120% its value to the Kohen.

Shelishi

5. Laws of Karbanos:

• An Olah voluntary offering: Any Jew may volunteer to bring a Neder or Nedava Olah offering to Hashem. It is to be an unblemished male, either a male cow, sheep or goat. The Karban may not have a Mum.
• Blemishes: The following matters are defined as a Mum:
  • The animal is blind
  • The animal is broken
  • The animal has a cut eyelid
  • The animal has a wart.
  • The animal has a limp
  • The animal has an enlarged limb.
  • The animal has crushed or destroyed reproduction organs.
• It is forbidden to castrate any animal.
• You shall not take a Karban from a stranger, it will likely have a Mum.
• Slaughtering after 8 days: When an ox, sheep, or goat, gives birth, the baby is to be with its mother for seven days. The animal may be offered from the 8^th day and onwards.
• Mother and child: One may not slaughter a mother and child of an ox or sheep on the same day.
• Nosar: One may not leave the meat of the Karbon over until morning.

6. Mitzvah of Kiddush Hashem:

• Do not desecrate Hashem’s name, and you are to sanctify Hashem amongst the Jewish people.

Revi’i

7. The Moadim-Jewish Holidays:

• Hashem spoke to Moshe saying, tell the Jewish people that these are my festivals which are to be a calling of holiness:
• Shabbos: One is to work for six days and on the seventh day it is a complete day of rest. It is a calling of Holiness; one is not to do any work in all your settled places.
• Pesach: On the 14^th of Nissan, it is a Pesach for Hashem [and a Karban is to be brought]. On the 15^th of the month, it is Chag Hamatzos for Hashem. Matzos are to be eaten for seven days. One may not do any laborous work on the first day and seventh day. Karbanos are to be brought throughout the seven days.
• Karban Omer: After entering Eretz Yisrael and harvesting the land, the Omer, which is the first of the harvest season, is to be brought to the Kohen. The Omer is to be waved before Hashem on the 16^th of Nissan. On that day of the waving, an unblemished sheep is to be offered to G-d as an Olah. Its Mincha of two tenth-ephahs of fine flour mixed with oil and its Nesachim [i.e. poured-offering] of ¼ of a Hin of wine is to accompany the Karban.
• Chadash: One may not eat the new bread, parched grain, and plumped grain, until the Omer offering is brought.
• Sefiras Haomer: Count for yourselves seven weeks starting from when the Omer is offered. Count for 50 days.
• Shavuos Karbanos: On the 50^th day of count, a new Mincha is to be offered. From your settlements you are to bring two breads of elevation, made from Chametz, each bread is made of two tenth-ephahs of flour. It is a Bikurim to Hashem. It is to be accompanied by seven unblemished lambs in their first year, one young male calf, and two rams as an Olah. A single goat is to be brought as a Chatas, as well as two lambs of a year old as a Shelamim. The Kohen is to wave the two sheep upon the bread Bikurim, a waving before Hashem. That day is to be a day of Holiness. No laborious work may be done as a law for all generations.
• Mitzvah of Leket, Shichicha, Peia: Upon harvesting the field, one is not to completely remove the corner of the field and the Leket of your harvest is not to be gathered. It is to be left to the poor and the converts.

Chamishi

• Rosh Hashanah: On the first of the seventh month [i.e. Tishreiy] one is to rest, it is to be a day of remembrance of the Shofar, a calling of holiness. One is not to perform any laborious activity, and Karbanos are to be brought before Hashem.
• Yom Kippur: The 10^th day of the month is a day of atonement. It is a day of holiness for you and you shall oppress your soul and bring an offering to Hashem. You shall not perform any work on this day, as it is a day of atonement for Hashem to atone for you. Any soul who does not fast on this very day will be cut off from his people. Any soul who performs Melacha on this day, I will destroy him from amongst his people. One may not do any work for all generations, in all your settlements. It is a day of complete rest, and you shall afflict your souls. On the ninth of the month, from evening to evening, you shall rest on that day.

Shishi

• Sukkos-Karbanos and Melacha: On the 15^th day of the seventh month is the seven-day Sukkos Holiday. One may not perform laborious work on the 1^st or 8^th You are to bring an offering for seven days. On the eighth day, it is to be a call of Holiness for you and you shall bring an offering to Hashem. It is an Atzeres, all laborious activity may not be performed. These are the Holidays of Hashem which are to be called a calling of holiness to bring sacrifices to Hashem, Mincha, and Nesachim, each day’s requirement on its day. This is aside for the Shabbasos of Hashem, and one’s voluntary offerings which are given to Hashem. On the 15^th day, which is when you gather the grain, you are to celebrate the festival for seven days, on the first day you shall rest and on the eight day you shall rest.
• Daled Minim: You shall take for yourselves on the first day [of Sukkos] a beautiful fruit [i.e. Esrog], the date palm branch [i.e. Lulav], branches of a cordlike tree [i.e. Hadas] and willows of a river [i.e. Aravos] and rejoice before Hashem your G-d for seven days. You are to celebrate the festival for Hashem seven days a year for all generation, during the seventh month.
• Sukkah dwelling: One is to dwell in the Sukkah for seven days. Every native of Israel is to dwell in the Sukkah so that all your generations will know that I caused the Jewish people to dwell in Sukkos when I took them out of Egypt.
• Moshe told the Jewish people of all the Holidays of Hashem.

Shevi’i

8. Lighting the Menorah:

• Hashem told Moshe to command the Jewish people to bring to him clear crushed olive oil for the sake of illumination, to light the eternal candle [i.e. the Menorah]. It is to be lit outside the Paroches in the Ohel Moed. Aaron is to light it from evening to morning before Hashem continuously for all generations. The candles are to be set up on the pure Menorah, before Hashem constantly.

9. The Lechem Hapanim:

• You are to take fine flour and bake twelve breads from it, each Challah being two tenth-ephahs. They are to be organized in two stacks, six in each stack, on the pure table that is before Hashem. Pure frankincense is to be placed on the stack and it shall be a bread of remembrance for Hashem. The Lechem Hapanim is to be organized weekly from Shabbos to Shabbos before Hashem continuously, as an everlasting covenant. The bread is to be distributed to Aaron and his sons and eaten in a holy place, as it is Kodesh Kodashim.

10. Ish Hamikalel-The man who cursed G-d:

• The curse: A Jewish man, the son of an Egyptian father, but Jewish mother, was involved in an argument with another Jew. His mother’s name was Shlomis Bas Divri from the Shevet of Dan. The Jewish man cursed and blasphemed the name of G-d and was brought before Moshe. The man was imprisoned for his actions until further instructions would be received from Hashem.
• The punishment: Hashem instructed Moshe to have the man taken out of the camp, and to have all those who heard the curse lean their hands on his head, and the entire assembly shall stone him. Tell Bnei Yisrael that any man who blasphemes G-d will carry his sin. One who pronounces the name of G-d in a blasphemous way shall be put to death. The entire nation is to stone him.
• The nation did as they were instructed and stoned the man to death outside of the camp.

11. Murder and injury:

• Punishment for murder: One who murders another person is to be killed.
• Restitution for killing animal: One who kills an animal is to pay, a life for a life.
• Injuring a friend: One who injures his friend is to have the same done upon him. A break for a break, an eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth, as he did to his friend so shall be done to him [that he should pay the value to the injured friend].