And the Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, etc. And the Lord said to Moses, etc. This is difficult to understand because where did the first speech go, as no command or information is mentioned in it. And Rashi’s explanation, likening it to a sick person, etc., is not satisfactory because in the first verse no command is mentioned. We could say that these four words when they drew near before the Lord and died are not the text’s statement to us but rather what God spoke to Moses — these four words — and this is the content of the first speech. For God wanted to inform Moses of the sin for which Aaron’s two sons died, and therefore He used the harsher expression spoke [vayedaber] since it represents the attribute of judgment. Then, for what followed from this information — to warn Aaron not to be burned by their coals — the verse says and He said [vayomer], a gentler expression.

And the explanation of the matter is that the sons of Aaron were deserving of being punished, for they ate and drank and beheld God (Exodus 24:11), meaning they gazed upon the Divine Presence with the coarseness of heart that comes from food and drink. The Holy One, blessed be He, waited to punish them so as not to disturb the joy of the giving of the Torah. Corresponding to this came this command to Aaron that he should not enter the Holy place on any day when there is eating and drinking, but only on Yom Kippur, a day when a person afflicts his soul, because then he comes before his Creator in humility. Therefore, the Holy One, blessed be He, presented this introduction to Moses and first informed him of the cause of the death of Aaron’s sons in the first statement, in order to tell him in the second statement the command he shall not come at any time into the holy place (Leviticus 16:2). And this is the wording of the first statement that God said to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron — and what was the statement? When they drew near before the Lord and died. He informed him that they died because they drew near to God at an inappropriate time, as it is written and they beheld God. And if you ask why it says when they drew near before the Lord rather than “when they drew near before Me,” we find a similar case as Rashi explained in Parashat Vayera (19:24) on the verse and the Lord rained upon Sodom, etc. from the Lord, etc. And regarding the wording and they died, which could have simply said “they died,” we find a similar case in and those who did not regard the word of the Lord left their servants and livestock in the field (Exodus 9:21) where it could have simply said “left.” This also resolves the apparent redundancy of the phrase and they died, since it was already stated after the death, because the first mention is the Torah’s statement to us, and the second is God’s statement to Moses.

It is also possible to interpret “in their drawing near before the Lord,” according to the fact that they were especially close to the Lord, therefore the Holy One, blessed be He, was exacting with them to judge them even for a small error, as it is written (Psalms 53), And around Him it is very tempestuous. For whoever is closer to the king must be more careful with the king’s honor. And so Moses said, This is what the Lord spoke, saying: “Through those near to Me I will be sanctified” (Leviticus 10:3). And if we can say that there is no chronological order in the Torah, and this section was told to Moses before he said to Aaron, This is what the Lord spoke, saying: “Through those near to Me I will be sanctified,” then it is reasonable to understand that he said this regarding what the Holy One, blessed be He, told him in these four words: when they drew near before the Lord, and died. And [regarding] what Rashi explained, that “this warning was stricter than the first,” etc., perhaps his intention was that it had already been said (Exodus 19:22), Also let the priests who come near to the Lord consecrate themselves, lest the Lord break out against them, and there too they were warned about this, but no punishment was mentioned there except lest He break out against them. Therefore, it was necessary to warn him a second time and tell him that he should not die in the way his sons died. But if the entire verse from after the death until and died is Scripture’s statement to us, I do not know from where Moses learned to warn him not to die as his sons died, for the Holy One, blessed be He, did not mention anything to Moses about the death of Aaron’s sons. According to our explanation, it is well-resolved that Moses learned this from the fact that the Lord informed him of the reason for the death of Aaron’s sons, and the commandment to Aaron is adjacent to it, which is certainly to warn him more than the first time.

Speak to Aaron your brother. Why did it mention brotherhood here? It’s to tell you that Aaron should not rely on the brotherhood, thinking that he will not die when entering the holy place due to the merit of his brother Moses, so that he shouldn’t be half his flesh consumed as Rashi explained in Parashat Beha’alotcha (12:12) on the verse let him not be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed. Therefore it says: Even though he is your brother, nevertheless he should not rely on this at all. Or it says: Since he is your brother, and if he dies it would be as if half your flesh is consumed, therefore it is especially incumbent upon you to warn him. And some say: Even though he is your brother in prophecy, and it is written regarding the giving of the Torah and you shall come up, you and Aaron (Exodus 19:24), and he might think that just as Moses is permitted to enter at any time, for in all My house he is trusted (Numbers 12:7), like a trusted householder who enters his master’s house whenever he wishes, so too he [Aaron] may enter. Therefore you need to warn him especially.

And he shall not come at any time into the holy place. The phrase at any time is not precise, because it implies that he shall not come at any time but occasionally he may come. And the truth is not so, for he only comes once a year. And I say that the reason for prohibiting his entry there depends on the sin of the people, for their iniquities separate between them and their God, and their corruption also prevents the priest’s entry because the guilt of the people is dependent upon him, as it is written: And bring near to you Aaron your brother from among the children of Israel (Exodus 28:1). This teaches that he only merited this drawing near through the children of Israel, and when Israel does not merit, neither does the priest who is dependent upon them merit to see the face of the Divine Presence, except on Yom Kippur when all of Israel are compared on that day to ministering angels who are above time and time has no dominion over them. Therefore, this holy day is as if it is not included in the “time” and “season,” because all the days of the year are included in “time,” meaning the temporal dimension, except for this day.

And a hint to this is that HaSatan [numerically] equals 364, and the days of the sun [year] in number are 365, indicating that in all the days of the year, Satan and the evil inclination rule over all creatures without exception, except for this day when Satan has no dominion over it. Therefore it is not included in the time of all the days of the year, but it stands by itself, separate from all the days of the year. And when He said and he shall not come at any time, He hinted that he should not come at all on any day that is included in the [regular] time, but only on the day that is not included in the [regular] time, which is the day of forgiveness and pardon, when Israel is compared to the ministering angels who do not fall under [the constraints of] time. And it is not included in the days of the year when Satan, who causes sin, rules over them, and therefore it is not fitting that the representative of Israel should come to see the face of the Divine Presence. And He gave a reason for this: For in the cloud I will appear — meaning, if My Presence were revealed there directly, I would not need to prevent him from coming there, because no man shall see Me and live (Exodus 33:20). But since My Presence is in a cloud, he could see My glory, because the cloud enables this vision. Therefore it says, For in the cloud I will appear, and therefore I need to prevent him from seeing in all the days of the year when Israel accumulates sins.

“With this shall Aaron come into the holy place: with a young bull, etc.” And they said in the Midrash (Leviticus Rabbah 21:11) that the bull corresponds to Abraham, as it is said (Genesis 18:7), And Abraham ran to the cattle. And the ram corresponds to Isaac, for a ram was offered in his place. And the two goats correspond to Jacob, as it is said about him (Genesis 27:9), Go now to the flock, and fetch me from there two good kids. The intention of this Midrash is to say that just as we find that even to Moses, God appeared only in the merit of the Patriarchs, as it is written (Exodus 4:5), That they may believe that the Lord God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, etc., has appeared to you, so too the High Priest on Yom Kippur — God appears to him in the merit of the Patriarchs. And in all of these there is an allusion to Yom Kippur. For regarding what is written, And Abraham ran to the cattle, this Midrash believes that this was on Yom Kippur, as our Sages also taught (in Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer 29) On this very day Abraham was circumcised — that he was circumcised on Yom Kippur. And it believes that the entire episode from And the Lord appeared to Abraham by the oaks of Mamre all happened on one day. And even though he made a feast on that day, nevertheless, since the Torah had not yet been given, he was strict with himself but not with others. And regarding the ram of Isaac, there is [an opinion] in the Midrash that this event also occurred on Yom Kippur (see Yalkut Reuveni, Parashat Vayera 22:14), and the proof is from the verse, As it is said this day: On the mountain the Lord will appear. That every year on this day, The Lord will appear, because in the cloud the Lord will appear there. And regarding the two goats of Jacob, they said in the Midrash (Genesis Rabbah 65:14), Two good kids — good for you and good for your children. Good for you, as through them you will receive the blessings, and good for your children, as through them atonement is made for them on Yom Kippur. And from then on, Jacob was assured of atonement on this holy day through the two goats.

“He shall put on the holy linen tunic, etc.” At first glance, it appears that apart from the atonement, there is a second benefit to the High Priest entering to see the Divine Presence once a year: to strengthen faith, just as God appeared to all Israel at Mount Sinai to implant in their hearts the commandments I am [the Lord] and You shall have no other gods. Similarly, each year God wanted to appear to the priest, their representative, to renew faith in these two commandments which are the foundation of faith. If perhaps the Israelites transgressed You shall not murder and You shall not commit adultery, which correspond to I am [the Lord] and You shall have no other gods as we explained above in Parashat Ki Tisa regarding the verse and they rose to revel (Exodus 32:6), therefore the priest was commanded to wear a holy linen tunic. For our Sages said (Arachin 16a) that the tunic atones for bloodshed, and the linen breeches atone for sexual immorality, so that these sins would not contradict the two commandments I am [the Lord] and You shall have no other gods, and to establish a new covenant concerning them each year. And since with idolatry the Holy One, blessed be He, punishes even for thought, therefore it says and with a linen sash he shall gird himself, because the sash atones for impure thoughts of the heart (ibid. 16a). And since during this entrance, Aaron’s sons were punished for gazing at the Divine Presence with a haughty heart, therefore it says regarding Aaron and with a linen turban he shall wrap, because the turban atones for haughtiness (ibid. 16a).

Another explanation for why these four garments were specified. Corresponding to the things that Aaron’s sons stumbled with. Now, the tunic and the belt are according to the explanation in the Yalkut (Shemini 524) that Aaron’s sons used to walk behind Moses and Aaron and say, “When will these two old men die so that we can assume authority over the congregation?” Rabbi Aibu said they spoke this with their mouths; Rabbi Pinchas said they contemplated it in their hearts. And it is difficult [to understand] what they are disagreeing about, and who told them that this is what they said or that this is what they contemplated in their hearts.

And it appears that the opinion of Rabbi Ayvo is inclined to say, since the verse states “he shall wear a holy linen tunic” and the tunic atones for bloodshed, where do we find that the sons of Aaron were guilty of the sin of bloodshed? Rather, it must be that they spoke these words with their mouths and were whitening [embarrassing] the faces of Moses and Aaron by saying that they were not fit to be leaders except by virtue of their old age. And one who embarrasses his fellow is considered as if he shed blood. Therefore, this tunic comes to atone for bloodshed so that Aaron should not enter the Holy with the concern of this sin upon him, because the sons of Aaron were soiled with this sin and yet “they beheld God.” And since no hypocrite shall come before Him (Job 13:16), evil shall not enter His dwelling. For this reason, He warned Aaron about this atonement when he enters the Holy place, so that he should not enter the sanctuary soiled with this sin.

And Rabbi Pinchas’s opinion is derived from the statement that with a linen belt he shall gird which atones for sinful thoughts; certainly they had such thoughts in their hearts, as we explained [the issue as it relates to the service on Yom Kippur] in the words of Rabbi Aivo. Rabbi Aivo [however] held that the belt atones for thoughts of forbidden sexual relations, because Aaron’s sons did not have wives, and one who is without a wife is full of sinful thoughts. Rabbi Pinchas held that the tunic, which atones for bloodshed, refers to their not engaging in procreation, which is comparable to bloodshed, as concluded in Yevamot (63b): “It was taught: Rabbi Eliezer says, anyone who does not engage in procreation is as if he sheds blood, as it says Whoever sheds the blood of man (Genesis 9:6), and it is written And you, be fruitful and multiply (Genesis 9:7).” The reason for this is that the blood of his seed is required of him. And the linen pants, which atone for sexual immorality, [were needed] because they entered [the sanctuary] drunk with wine, which leads to sexual impropriety, as our Sages said (Yoma 75a), “Anyone who fixes his gaze on his cup, all forbidden sexual relations appear level to him, as it says When he puts his eye on the cup, he goes straight ahead (Proverbs 23:31).” And the linen turban atones for haughtiness, which includes several types of sins that our Sages attributed to them that are connected to haughtiness: that they gazed at the Divine Presence with an arrogant heart, that they issued rulings in the presence of Moses their teacher, and several other sins that we mentioned above in Parshat Shemini (10:1). And since Aaron’s sons died because they beheld God while they were still defiled with these sins, therefore He commanded Aaron that when he comes to see the glory of God, he should be clean of all the defilement of these sins, and he should wear these four white garments that whiten these sins — though they be red as crimson, they shall be as [white] wool. Furthermore, just as he comes to see the face of the Divine Presence, whose raiment was white as snow, so too he comes to be seen in white garments.

“One lot for the Lord, and one lot for Azazel.” It appears that these two goats are very similar to the two young goats that Jacob prepared for Isaac: he made one of them into a delicacy as the material [physical world] desires, and this is the portion of Samael, who was given a bribe so that Jacob would receive blessings through his portion from the second goat, which he made as a Passover [offering] to the Lord, as it says in the Midrash (Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 32) that on that very day, it was the first day of Passover. Isaac said, “My son, the storehouses of dew are opened today,” etc. Similarly, for future generations with these two goats, Samael is given his portion so that Jacob would receive his portion from the lot that is for the Lord. And thus the Midrash connects them (Genesis Rabbah 65:14), saying, “Good young goats. They are good for you, as through them you will receive the blessings, and good for your children, as through them they are atoned for on Yom Kippur.”

And the goat shall bear upon him all their iniquities [avonotam]. The Sages interpreted (Bereshit Rabbah 65:15) [it as] “iniquities of the perfect one” [avonot tam], this refers to Jacob who was a perfect man [ish tam]. And it is just, for whoever causes the many to sin, the sin of the many is dependent upon him. And it is known that Samael constantly strives to cause Israel to sin, and so does Esau/Edom — all their schemes are aimed at causing Israel to sin, in accordance with the blessing and it shall come to pass when you shall break loose and cast off his yoke (Genesis 27:40). Therefore, it is fitting to place upon him all the sins of the children of the perfect one [Jacob], saying that Jacob, from his side, is perfect with God, and it was you [Esau/Samael] who caused them to sin. Therefore, he [the goat] shall bear their sins to Samael, the prince of Esau, who is called a hairy man [ish sa’ir], and his sending to a land of severance [eretz gezerah] is exactly similar to what is said And I will remove far off from you the northern one, and will drive him into a land barren and desolate (Joel 2:20). And send him by the hand of a designated man [ish iti] — the Sages said (brought in Chizkuni 16:21) this refers to one whose time [ito] has come to die in that year.

Before the Lord you shall be cleansed. For Yom Kippur only atones for those who repent (Shevuot 13). And before God forgives them, each person is obligated to purify themselves from head to toe from all the impurity of sin. Therefore it says, Before the Lord you shall be cleansed, where before serves as a term meaning “prior to.” And I found something even greater than this in the Zohar on the verse Before the elderly you shall rise (Leviticus 19:32), that before the time of old age, a person should rise from their deep sleep to return to God. This is all the more so, the term before [meaning prior to]. And this means, Before the coming of the great and awesome day of the Lord, you shall be cleansed through repentance, and afterward God will purify you through atonement. And it further warns about internal, heartfelt repentance, which is before the Lord, because matters entrusted to the heart are only revealed to God alone. One should not be among the hypocrites who fast, afflict themselves, and increase their supplications in order to be considered righteous, being a generation pure in the eyes of others while not having washed their internal filth. Therefore it says, Before the Lord you shall be cleansed.

And our Sages (Yoma 85b) interpreted, specifically sins before the Lord, meaning those between a person and God, Yom Kippur atones for, but not for sins between one person and another. Therefore it says and he shall atone for all the congregation, meaning specifically when they become one congregation, united as one group, with a single purpose to serve God, then the Holy One, blessed be He, accepts their repentance, but not when their hearts are divided. And since it is customary in the world that on Yom Kippur people ask forgiveness from one another but the next day return to their rebellion, therefore it says And Moses gathered (Exodus 35:1) — the day after Yom Kippur he made them into one congregation so that they would remain so throughout the year. And since all disputes stem from dealings between people, he sat to judge the people the day after Yom Kippur, because through this they would become one congregation and all the people would come to their place in peace. For this reason, this day is called Sabbath of Sabbaths. Because the cessation of business activities and rest is a great cause for peace, and the rest is doubled because every person has external and internal movement and activity. The external comes through instruments of work in all labor, and the internal comes from the fat and blood that yearn after the pursuit of desires. On the Sabbath one rests only from external activity, but on this holy day one rests from both, for there is also no eating and drinking, therefore it is called Sabbath of Sabbaths.