SEDRA KI TISA
Exodus 30:11 – 34:35
The account of the wilderness journey, which broke off at the end of chapter 20, will resume in this sedra, but not until chapter 32.
For the moment though, the giving of the laws continues. The law of the shekel, the rituals for washing, the anointing oil, the incense, the Sabbath - all of it Temple practice given retroactive validity.
Chapter 31 introduces Betsal-El ben Uri ben Chur of the tribe of Yehudah as one of the chief craftsman. Is his grandfather the same Chur who held up Mosheh's arms in the battle against the Amalekites (Exodus 17:10)? Why else the unusual giving of both the father and the grandfather's name; and a sop to the descendants of Chur? We will also meet Ahali-Av ben Achi-Samach (אָהֳלִיאָב בֶּן אֲחִיסָמָךְ) of the tribe of Dan, probably the least-remembered of all the significant characters in the Bible, Betsal-El's partner, or possibly apprentice.
30:11 VA YEDABER YHVH EL MOSHEH LEMOR
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר
KJ: And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
BN: Then YHVH spoke to Mosheh, saying...
30:12 KI TISA ET ROSH BENEY YISRA-EL LIPHKUDEYHEM VE NATNU ISH KOPHER NAPHSHO LA YHVH BIPHKOD OTAM VE LO YIHEYEH VA HEM NEGEPH BIPHKOD OTAM
כִּי תִשָּׂא אֶת רֹאשׁ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לִפְקֻדֵיהֶם וְנָתְנוּ אִישׁ כֹּפֶר נַפְשׁוֹ לַיהוָה בִּפְקֹד אֹתָם וְלֹא יִהְיֶה בָהֶם נֶגֶף בִּפְקֹד אֹתָם
KJ: When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel after their number, then shall they give every man a ransom for his soul unto the LORD, when thou numberest them; that there be no plague among them, when thou numberest them.
BN: When you undertake the census of the Beney Yisra-El, to ascertain their number, every man shall pay a ransom for his soul to YHVH, at the time of the census; so that there be no plague among them, when you count them.
A decidedly awkward piece of phrasing in the Yehudit, but the point, I think, is to emphasise that the money had to be given as, so to speak, you entered the polling station: no pledges. And the threat of plague - probably just a scare-tactic, but then look at the details of the second census (only two are described in the Bible though it is possible others were carried out), the one "perpetrated" by King David in 2 Samuel 24 (and 1 Chronicles 21), for which he immediately "repented" (see the next paragraph in this commentary), and for which one of the three means of "ransoming" offered to him was "three days of pestilence in the land" - the word for pestilence on this occasion being DEVER (דֶּבֶר), which was also the fifth of the plagues of Mitsrayim (Exodus 9:3-7).
KOPHER: At the end of the previous section (Exodus 30:10), Aharon was instructed to "make atonement" for the altar, which we understood to be the annual cleaning of it; and I used what you probably thought was an unnecessarily facetious remark about it being the equivalent of cleaning human consciences. But I had read ahead, and knew that this would be the very next verse in what is actually the very same chapter - and again the word used is KOPHER, whence YOM KIPPUR, the "Day of Atonement".
NEGEPH: Means "a plague", but what plague, and why is it significant? Previously, when the "ten plagues" came to Mitsrayim, the words used were Magephot (Exodus 7), Dever (Exodus 9), Nega (Exodus 11), Negeph (Exodus 12), different constructions, though the root of the first and last of these is the same. Note that there only appear to be four uses of the word plague, and each time different - there is something odd about this fact.
Question: is this simply the giving of the census laws, or the actual taking of the census? Because that is traditionally believed to have happened in the Book of Numbers. Check also the details there, in contrast with here.
30:13 ZEH YITNU KOL HA OVER AL HA PEKUDIM MACHATSIT HA SHEKEL BE SHEKEL HA KODESH ESRIM GERAH HA SHEKEL MACHATSIT HA SHEKEL TERUMAH LA YHVH
זֶה יִתְּנוּ כָּל הָעֹבֵר עַל הַפְּקֻדִים מַחֲצִית הַשֶּׁקֶל בְּשֶׁקֶל הַקֹּדֶשׁ עֶשְׂרִים גֵּרָה הַשֶּׁקֶל מַחֲצִית הַשֶּׁקֶל תְּרוּמָה לַיהוָה
KJ: This they shall give, every one that passeth among them that are numbered, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary: (a shekel is twenty gerahs:) an half shekel shall be the offering of the LORD.
BN: This they shall give, every one who passes among them to be counted, half a shekel after the shekel of the sanctuary - the shekel is twenty gerahs -half a shekel for an offering to YHVH.
KOL HA OVER: meaning what; that word OVER (whence perhaps "Hebrew"?) crops up several times in peculiar manner, as now.
GERAHS: I have stayed with "gerahs", as in most translations, but it is incorrect. The plural of any word ending gamats-hey in Yehudit would be GEROT if it were feminine, or GERIM if masculine, but here it is left in the singular. In today's currency, the pennies to the Shekel's pound (the cents to the Shekel's dollar, if you prefer) are called AGOROT, from this same word.
As to it being the "shekel of the sanctuary" - were the Beney Yisra-El in the desert minting coins. This seems to me the clearest evidence yet of a very much later text being placed here to give it retroactive validity.
30:14 KOL HA OVER AL HA PEKUDIM MI BEN ESRIM SHANAH VA MA'LAH YITEN TERUMAH YHVH
כֹּל הָעֹבֵר עַל-הַפְּקֻדִים מִבֶּן עֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה וָמָעְלָה יִתֵּן תְּרוּמַת יְהוָה
KJ: Every one that passeth among them that are numbered, from twenty years old and above, shall give an offering unto the LORD.
BN: Every one who passes among them to be numbered, from twenty years old upwards, shall give the offering of YHVH.
This is retold in Numbers 1:45.
May I make the suggestion to those who organise community-wide panhandling days in the Jewish community, but who always struggle to find a suitable name for the pocket-robbing event ("Super Sunday" is horrible; "JIA Pledge Day" simply invites non-fulfilment), that "Yom Terumah" might not be a bad choice. But be prepared for the negative consequences, if, as we have to assume was the problem in the Davidic census, you fail to meet the target.
KOL HA OVER: Is a very odd formulation, even feels artificial - and then you look closer and recognise the root of "Hebrews" in here. Is this pure chance or is someone playing word-games?
Why twenty? We know from the census in the Book of Numbers (1:45) that this was the age of conscription.
30:15 HE ASHIR LO YARBEH VE HA DAL LO YAMIT MI MACHATSIT HA SHAKEL LATET ET TERUMAH YHVH LECHAPER AL NAPHSHOTEYCHEM
הֶעָשִׁיר לֹא יַרְבֶּה וְהַדַּל לֹא יַמְעִיט מִמַּחֲצִית הַשָּׁקֶל לָתֵת אֶת תְּרוּמַת יְהוָה לְכַפֵּר עַל נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם
KJ: The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less than half a shekel, when they give an offering unto the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.
BN: The rich shall not give more, and the poor shall not give less, than the half shekel, when they give the offering of YHVH, to make atonement for your souls.
ASHIR: With an Ayin (ע) here, not an Aleph (א), the root connecting to the Egyptian god Osher (עשר) rather than to the Phoenician-Hittite tribe Asher (אשר) and the goddess Asherah (אשרה) with her Asherim (אֲשֵׁרִ֖ים), or sacred trees; and not to the Babylonian Ishtar with her Ashterot (עשתרת) or sacred trees: the three are probably exactly the same in fact, but in their regional-cultural-linguistic variations. Several Psalms open with the word Ashrey, probably dedicated in their original form to Sarai-Sarah in her priestess-goddess role, but also with the meaning "happy" and "rich", a further indication that the Ayin and Aleph are no more than spelling variations.
Note that the rich and the poor are treated equally.
LECHAPER: again this links back to the concept, if not actually the Day of, Atonement. Is there a hint that the census and the Day of Atonement were identical days, or that the census by man equivalated that of god judging all souls in Heaven? And was the census taken as a fund-raiser, or really as an act of atonement; was this, that is to say, the equivalent of synagogue membership dues and Super Sunday, or an alternative, personal Pidyon ha Ben, by which each individual could literally pay a "fine", or was it a "tax", as a penance for sin? The sale of indulgences in the mediaeval Christian world operated as a kind of pre-Terumah, on a similar basis.
30:16 VE LAKACHTA ET KESEPH HA KIPURIM ME ET BENEY YISRA-EL VE NATATA OTO AL AVODAT OHEL MO'ED VE HAYAH LIVNEY YISRA-EL LE ZIKARON LIPHNEY YHVH LECHAPER AL NAPHSHOTEYCHEM
וְלָקַחְתָּ אֶת כֶּסֶף הַכִּפֻּרִים מֵאֵת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְנָתַתָּ אֹתוֹ עַל עֲבֹדַת אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְהָיָה לִבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לְזִכָּרוֹן לִפְנֵי יְהוָה לְכַפֵּר עַל נַפְשֹׁתֵיכֶם
KJ: And thou shalt take the atonement money of the children of Israel, and shalt appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of the congregation; that it may be a memorial unto the children of Israel before the LORD, to make an atonement for your souls.
BN: And you shall take the atonement money from the Beney Yisra-El, and put it in the budget for the service of the Tent of Meeting, that it may be a reminder for the children of Yisra-El before YHVH, to make atonement for your souls."
No, not "the equivalent" of membership dues; but precisely that. The money, of course, being the cash handed over by those Mitsrim standing at the roadside to wave the pilgrims goodbye (Exodus 12:35/36). Every detail added to this story confirms they cannot have been slaves, in the way we understand the term. They are "avadim" = "worshippers".
30:17 VA YEDABER YHVH EL MOSHE LEMOR
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר
KJ: And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
BN: Then YHVH spoke to Mosheh, saying...
30:18 VE ASIYTA KIYOR NECHOSHET VE CHANO NECHOSHET LE RACHTSAH VE NATATA OTO BEYN OHEL MO'ED U VEYN HA MIZBE'ACH VE NATATA SHAMAH MAYIM
וְעָשִׂיתָ כִּיּוֹר נְחֹשֶׁת וְכַנּוֹ נְחֹשֶׁת לְרָחְצָה וְנָתַתָּ אֹתוֹ בֵּין אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וּבֵין הַמִּזְבֵּחַ וְנָתַתָּ שָׁמָּה מָיִם
KJ: Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein.
BN: You shall also make a basin out of brass, with a base made out of brass, to wash at; and you shall put it between the tent of meeting and the altar, and you shall put water in it.
KIYOR: The traditional translation is "laver", pronounced "lay-ver", from the Norman-French "laver", pronounced "lav-eh" = "to wash"; modern translations prefer "wash-basin", from the DIY-catalogue dictionary, "bathrooms and kitchens" section. The traditional ceremony of "netilat yadayim", the washing of hands, was probably not introduced until Rabbinic times, but interesting to see the details of it anyway, because equally likely there was something very similar in Mosaic times as well. Click here for the most bizarre educational experience you will ever have; an idiot's guide to living your life as a total automaton, section 429, sub-paragraph 28b. Can someone please tell me if there are any rules about the towel, which looks rather dirty and is therefore making the washer's hands dirty all over again? Do I also take the bread in my right hand and pass it to my left, paralleling the jug? And is the whole ritual reversed if I'm left-handed? These laws are so incomplete, and how else do I know how to live my life, if there isn't a clear and complete rule for everything?
What is so odd about all this is that such detailed emplacement of things like altars, tents of meeting, lavers and so forth, seems to infer a sedentary people, yet we are told they are planning their entry into Kena'an - or in fact their 38 year wandering in the desert.
And mentioning the desert also rings an alarm bell; are they really establishing a system of purification, in the midst of the desert, which is dependent on sustainable sources of water, and which will waste unreusable water that people are already complaining there isn't enough to drink? In Yeru-Shala'im maybe, but here, now?
30:19 VE RACHATSU AHARON U VANAV MIMENU ET YEDEYHEM VE ET RAGLEYHEM
וְרָחֲצוּ אַהֲרֹן וּבָנָיו מִמֶּנּוּ אֶת יְדֵיהֶם וְאֶת רַגְלֵיהֶם
KJ: For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat:
BN: And Aharon and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet in it.
Hands and feet. I'm afraid I can find no Jewish youtube video anywhere for the washing of the feet, because it just isn't done nowadays, though I presume that you take the jug in your hand, not your right foot, in order to pour it; but I did find a Moslem video for the entirety of wudu, the hands, the arms, the feet, the neck, even the ears, though the part with the guy poking between his toes with his finger may be more than many of you will want to take. The video includes the relevant hadith, Qur'an references and prayers. I'm sure this must be how Aharon would have done it back then too. Bath-time with liturgy, if truth be told. Cleaning the body, as the soul, the conscience, the altar. I wonder why there are no specific instructions for the lavering of the laver.
30:20 BE VO'AM EL OHEL MO'ED YIRCHATSU MAYIM VE LO YAMUTU O VE GISHTAM EL HA MIZBE'ACH LESHARET LEHAKTIR ISHEH LA YHVH
בְּבֹאָם אֶל אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד יִרְחֲצוּ מַיִם וְלֹא יָמֻתוּ אוֹ בְגִשְׁתָּם אֶל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ לְשָׁרֵת לְהַקְטִיר אִשֶּׁה לַיהוָה
KJ: When they go into the tabernacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water, that they die not; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire unto the LORD:
BN: When they go into the tent of meeting, they shall wash with water, so that they do not die; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to cause an offering made by fire to smoke unto YHVH...
VE LO YAMUTU: Not the first time this rather empty threat has been made; and by no means the last time either. Religion as a form of social control by bullying.
30:21 VE RACHATSU YEDEYHEM VE RAGLEYHEM VE LO YAMUTU VE HAYETAH LAHEM CHAK OLAM LO U LE ZAR'O LE DOROTAM
וְרָחֲצוּ יְדֵיהֶם וְרַגְלֵיהֶם וְלֹא יָמֻתוּ וְהָיְתָה לָהֶם חָק עוֹלָם לוֹ וּלְזַרְעוֹ לְדֹרֹתָם
KJ: So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not: and it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations.
BN: They shall wash their hands and their feet, so that they do not die; and it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations.
As it still is for Muslims to this day, though in fact it has lapsed among all but Kara'ite Jews. (Nevertheless the statistical evidence is there for anyone to see. Of the x million Jews who did not wash their hands and feet, from the time of Moses until the start of the 20th century, not a single one is still alive today. Quod erat demonstrandum. The gods be praised!)
pey break
30:22 VA YEDABER YHVH EL MOSHEH LEMOR
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה אֶל מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר
KJ: Moreover the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
BN: Then YHVH spoke to Mosheh, saying...
30:23 VE ATAH KACH LECHA BE SAMIM ROSH MAR DEROR CHAMESH ME'OT VE KINMAN BESEM MACHATSIYTO CHAMISHIM U MA'TAYIM U KENEH VOSEM CHAMISHIM U MA'TAYIM
וְאַתָּה קַח לְךָ בְּשָׂמִים רֹאשׁ מָר דְּרוֹר חֲמֵשׁ מֵאוֹת וְקִנְּמָן בֶּשֶׂם מַחֲצִיתוֹ חֲמִשִּׁים וּמָאתָיִם וּקְנֵה בֹשֶׂם חֲמִשִּׁים וּמָאתָיִם
KJ: Take thou also unto thee principal spices, of pure myrrh five hundred shekels, and of sweet cinnamon half so much, even two hundred and fifty shekels, and of sweet calamus two hundred and fifty shekels,
BN: Take also the chief spices, five hundred shekels of flowing myrrh, and half that much of sweet cinnamon - two hundred and fifty shekels - and two hundred and fifty of sweet calamus.
What are these various spices, and why these amounts? See "A Myrtle Among Reeds" page 94 for full details. The shekel in this instance is the weight, not the value in money.
MAR DROR: "Flowing myrrh", or "bitter myrrh", from MAR = "bitter", which we recognise as part of Mir-Yam's name? Actually it may be neither and both. MOR DEROR is a more viable reading, and this would be solidified myrrh, from the root DERAR = "pearl": the myrrh was allowed to congeal, in much the same way and for much the same reason that tea is oxidised, and then dissolved in olive oil for usage. Psalm 45:9 has the royal garments perfumed with myrrh, and it is used as an aphrodisiac in Proverbs 7:17 and Esther 2:12. But go to the "Song of Songs" for no less than seven references (start at 1:13) - the act of love itself described metaphorically as a "spice-garden", and the myrrh as key to it there as it is in Mary Magdalene's use for the anointing of Jesus - as part of their love-rituals in her gospel, as part of his deification in the canonical gospels (Mark 16:1 for example; but see verse 31). The hill on which he was then deified also bears witness to the myrrh, Moriah (Mor-Yah) being the bitter tears of the Mother Goddess.
For a universal histroy of - and particularly the medicinal properties of - myrrh and frankincense, click here.
For a universal histroy of - and particularly the medicinal properties of - myrrh and frankincense, click here.
KINMAN BESEM: sweet cinnamon, as opposed to Cassia (which is in the next vese), or Saigon, or Ceylon, neither of which could have been known to the Mosaics... click here for the botany. The name is also connected to BASMAT, the daughter of Esav, according to Genesis 26:34, and of Yishma-El, according to Genesis 36:3.
KENEH VOSEM: also known as "sweet flag", and yet another aphrodisiac - these are not the eunuch priests of Catholicism, but the priests of a fertility cult.
30:24 VE KIDAH CHAMESH ME'OT BE SHEKEL HA KODESH VE SHEMEN ZAYIT HIN
וְקִדָּה חֲמֵשׁ מֵאוֹת בְּשֶׁקֶל הַקֹּדֶשׁ וְשֶׁמֶן זַיִת הִין
KJ: And of cassia five hundred shekels, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and of oil olive an hin:
BN: And five hundred of cassia, after the shekel of the sanctuary, and a hin of olive oil.
KIDAH: Problematic word, because it is Chaldean, or possibly Assyriac, or both, but definitely not Mitsri (Egyptian) - so a later dating of the text than the Mosaic. In those languages it is cassia, a type of cinnamon, and not to be confused with cassis, a French liqueur made from blackcurrants (and particularly delicious when served with champagne: Kir Royale as it is then known). Same link as for the "sweet cinnamon" if you want to know more.
HIN: For the details of these measurements, click here.
30:25 VE ASIYTA OTO SHEMEN MISHCHAT KODESH ROKACH MIRKACHAT MA'ASEH ROK'E'ACH SHEMEN MISHCHAT KODESH YIHEYEH
וְעָשִׂיתָ אֹתוֹ שֶׁמֶן מִשְׁחַת קֹדֶשׁ רֹקַח מִרְקַחַת מַעֲשֵׂה רֹקֵחַ שֶׁמֶן מִשְׁחַת קֹדֶשׁ יִהְיֶה
KJ: And thou shalt make it an oil of holy ointment, an ointment compound after the art of the apothecary: it shall be an holy anointing oil.
BN: And you shall make out of it an anointing oil, a perfume compounded according to the skills of the perfumer; it shall be a holy anointing oil.
And again I cannot avoid pointing out: starving and thirsty refugee ex-slaves, fleeing into the desert, attacked and decimated by Amelekites, living in tents at any oasis they can find - but also engaged in complex architecture, brasswork, tapestry-making, textiles, and even the esoteric arts of perfumery. It simply doesn't add up.
30:26 U MASHACHTA VO ET OHEL MO'ED VE ET ARON HA EDUT
וּמָשַׁחְתָּ בוֹ אֶת אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד וְאֵת אֲרוֹן הָעֵדֻת
KJ: And thou shalt anoint the tabernacle of the congregation therewith, and the ark of the testimony,
BN: And you shall use it to anoint the tent of meeting, and the Ark of the Testimony...
Nor can the counter-argument be made, that the laws are being given now, but they are intended for future use, so no matter that they have no access to the spices, etc. This verse refutes that. They are expected to do all these things, now, before they resume the journey.
30:27 VE ET HA SHULCHAN VE ET KOL KELAV VE ET HA MENORAH VE ET KELEYHA VE ET MIZBACH HA KETORET
וְאֶת הַשֻּׁלְחָן וְאֶת כָּל כֵּלָיו וְאֶת הַמְּנֹרָה וְאֶת כֵּלֶיהָ וְאֵת מִזְבַּח הַקְּטֹרֶת
KJ: And the table and all his vessels, and the candlestick and his vessels, and the altar of incense,
BN: And its tables, and all of its utensils, and its candlestick and its utensils, and the altar of incense...
MIZBACH: once again MIZBACH replaces MIZBE'ACH. Why?
30:28 VE ET MIZBACH HA OLAH VE ET KOL KELAV VE ET HA KIR VE ET KANO
וְאֶת מִזְבַּח הָעֹלָה וְאֶת כָּל כֵּלָיו וְאֶת הַכִּיֹּר וְאֶת כַּנּוֹ
KJ: And the altar of burnt offering with all his vessels, and the laver and his foot.
BN: And the altar of burnt-offering with all of its utensils, and the wash-basin and its base.
Confirming again that the two altars are discrete.
30:29 VE KIDASHTA OTAM VE HAYU KODESH KADASHIM KOL HA NOG'E'A BA HEM YIKDASH
וְקִדַּשְׁתָּ אֹתָם וְהָיוּ קֹדֶשׁ קָדָשִׁים כָּל הַנֹּגֵעַ בָּהֶם יִקְדָּשׁ
KJ: And thou shalt sanctify them, that they may be most holy: whatsoever toucheth them shall be holy.
BN: And you shall sanctify them, that they may be most holy; whatever touches them shall be holy.
Unless it isn't permitted to touch them, in which case it shall die. Or is this in fact a part of the definition of holiness, of its "being separate"? We noted exactly the same conflict at Exodus 29:37.
30:30 VE ET AHARON VE ET BANAV TIMSHACH VE KIDASHTA OTAM LECHAHEN LI
וְאֶת אַהֲרֹן וְאֶת בָּנָיו תִּמְשָׁח וְקִדַּשְׁתָּ אֹתָם לְכַהֵן לִי
KJ: And thou shalt anoint Aaron and his sons, and consecrate them, that they may minister unto me in the priest's office.
BN: And you shall anoint Aharon and his sons, and sanctify them, that they may minister for me in the office of Kohen.
This word TIMSHACH, which comes from the same root as MASHIYACH, is important for later; "to anoint" here means "to initiate as a Kohen", i.e. a sacrificial priest, exactly the same as the Mongol KHAN from whom the word derived (somewhat later than Mosaic times!). In those times, such a person was often also the secular ruler; but not so with Aharon; so here we are seeing, perhaps for the first time in history, the apparent separation of church and state authority. In Babylon the king was a priest-king, who ruled the kingdom and was called to the Temple at times of worship to represent the deity; so too in Egypt where the Pharaoh bore the god name - e.g. Ra-Mousa = Rameses. But with the Beney Yisra-El, Moshe and Aharon have clearly defined roles, and they do not clash or overlap. The division is established.
What though does this imply for the future Messiah? There are in fact two words in Yehudit, which become reduced to one in English, for reasons that I do not have and therefore cannot share. Messiah is really מוֹשִׁיעַ, the same word that gives the name Yehoshu'a (Joshua - יְהוֹשֻׁעַ) here, and the prophet Hoshe'a (Hosea - הוֹשֵׁעַ) later, and of course Jesus himself is a diminutive of the same. But when the Jews speak of the redeemer who will one day appear, they do not say Messiah, unless they are using the mistranslation in their ignorance or deliberately; they say Mashiyach, from the root MASHACH (משח) which we have encountered in this verse, and which means "anointed". As with the priest here, so will the Yisra-Eli kings later on be, not crowned as we do in Europe, but anointed (see for example 1 Samuel 10:1 which describes the ceremony very precisely).
What though does this imply for the future Messiah? There are in fact two words in Yehudit, which become reduced to one in English, for reasons that I do not have and therefore cannot share. Messiah is really מוֹשִׁיעַ, the same word that gives the name Yehoshu'a (Joshua - יְהוֹשֻׁעַ) here, and the prophet Hoshe'a (Hosea - הוֹשֵׁעַ) later, and of course Jesus himself is a diminutive of the same. But when the Jews speak of the redeemer who will one day appear, they do not say Messiah, unless they are using the mistranslation in their ignorance or deliberately; they say Mashiyach, from the root MASHACH (משח) which we have encountered in this verse, and which means "anointed". As with the priest here, so will the Yisra-Eli kings later on be, not crowned as we do in Europe, but anointed (see for example 1 Samuel 10:1 which describes the ceremony very precisely).
As what then will the returned Messiah/Mashi'ach be anointed - as priest or as king or as priest-king? The role that King Sha'ul was given clearly maintained the separation, with Shemu-El functioning as the spiritual authority and Sha'ul the secular. King David removed the distinction, re-establishing the ancient sacred kingship, which Shelomoh (Solomon) maintained but which collapsed after his death. The prophetic writings are not really clear: will the Messiah rule the spiritual realm alone, or will he re-establish the Davidic sacred kingship? Clearly the Jews of the early Christian era believed the latter, and were expecting a Messiah to come and overthrow the Romans by military or divine force; which marks a return to primitive ideas and breaks with the Mosaic tradition (if in fact the Mosaic tradition is a retrospective idealisation by the Temple priests, then the clash between this and the prophetic future idealism may well suggest that the priests and prophets were clashing quite considerably in post-exilic times; given the clash between Rabbis and priests...we may be learning here something important about the way the Bible was written: no less than three vested interest groups all contributing and vying for supremacy, or at least inclusion; hence, perhaps, the root of so many contradictions in the text.)
LI: "To me" or "for me"? Previously I have translated this, as most translators do, as "to me", but that really isn't what the Kohanim are doing - the chazan in modern orthodox Judaism is, acting as shali'ach tsibur, the representative of the congregation, addressing their prayers and blessings and petitions "to" the deity; but this is a priestly role, the vicar at the pulpit, the Reform Rabbi on the bimah with the Ark and Torah behind him, the deity's representative down to the congregation: the complete reverse: equally valid I have no doubt, but also fundamentally opposite. And as such "for me", not "to me".
30:31 VE EL BENEY YISRA-EL TEDABER LEMOR SHEMEN MISHCHAT KODESH YIHEYEH ZEH LI LE DOROTEYCHEM
וְאֶל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל תְּדַבֵּר לֵאמֹר שֶׁמֶן מִשְׁחַת קֹדֶשׁ יִהְיֶה זֶה לִי לְדֹרֹתֵיכֶם
KJ: And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, This shall be an holy anointing oil unto me throughout your generations.
BN: And you shall speak to the Beney Yisra-El, saying: "This shall be used as a holy anointing oil for me throughout your generations...
The exact compound of this oil is given above. Was this the same oil - called alabaster oil in Matthew 26:6-13, Mark 14:3-9 and Luke 7:36-50, but nard or spikenard in John 12:3, the latter of which sounds more like something from Crabtree & Evelyn or perhaps an Anne Summers store - which Mary Magdalene used to anoint Jesus?
If it were, then it would have been in flagrant (I accidentally wrote fragrant, but have corrected it) contravention of the next two verses (given the way the John version moves from this moment of tenderness between Jesus and the Magdalene, directly to Judas' betrayal of him to the authorities, there is a genuinely seriously question to be asked about whether in fact Judas, as a pious Jew, was responding to this appalling act of iconoclasm perpetrated by the Magdalene but fully approved by Jesus.)
30:32 AL BESAR ADAM LO YIYSACH U VE MATKUNTO LO TA'ASU KAMOHU KODESH HU KODESH YIHEYEH LACHEM
עַל בְּשַׂר אָדָם לֹא יִיסָךְ וּבְמַתְכֻּנְתּוֹ לֹא תַעֲשׂוּ כָּמֹהוּ קֹדֶשׁ הוּא קֹדֶשׁ יִהְיֶה לָכֶם
KJ: Upon man's flesh shall it not be poured, neither shall ye make any other like it, after the composition of it: it is holy, and it shall be holy unto you.
BN: It shall not be poured upon the flesh of lay people, nor shall you make any imitation of it, based on its ingredients; it is holy, and it shall remain holy to you.
ADAM: Very definitely ADAM and not ISH - in other words, any human, and not just men. It being holy, it is reserved for the Kohanim exclusively. Hence my extended translation.
LO TA'ASU KAMOHU: Artificial products that could be used in lay circumstances, whether in imitation or mockery or for any other reason. What people familiar with Canal Street in New York City might call "Chinese handbag syndrome".
30:33 ISH ASHER YIRKACH KAMOHU VA ASHER YITEN MIMENU AL ZAR VE NICHRAT ME AMAV
אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יִרְקַח כָּמֹהוּ וַאֲשֶׁר יִתֵּן מִמֶּנּוּ עַל זָר וְנִכְרַת מֵעַמָּיו
KJ: Whosoever compoundeth any like it, or whosoever putteth any of it upon a stranger, shall even be cut off from his people.
BN: Anyone who manufactures any imitation of it, and anyone who puts any of it on a stranger, he shall be cut off from his people.
This would seem to be a very severe punishment; but it demonstrates just how sacred the oil was.
30:34 VA YOMER YHVH EL MOSHEH KACH LECHA SAMIM NATAPH U SHECHELET VE CHELBENAH SAMIM U LEVONAH ZAKAH BAD BE VAD YIHEYEH
וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֶל מֹשֶׁה קַח לְךָ סַמִּים נָטָף וּשְׁחֵלֶת וְחֶלְבְּנָה סַמִּים וּלְבֹנָה זַכָּה בַּד בְּבַד יִהְיֶה
KJ: And the LORD said unto Moses, Take unto thee sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight:
BN: Then YHVH said to Mosheh: "Fetch sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; sweet spices with pure frankincense; of each shall there be a like weight.
SAMIM: For the most part, modern Ivrit is based on ancient Yehudit (Hebrew), words literally resurrected from the dead and restored to their former meanings. New words, for things which did not exist three thousand years ago, have been coined wherever possible from old words. Thus, for example, CHASHMAL (חַשְׁמַל) today means "electricity", rooted in a poetical phrase in Ezekiel 1:4, usually translated as "a radiance like brass", and probably meaning the lightning. Today's word for drugs - specifically hallucinogenics and narcotics, but also the medically prescribed - is SAMIM; yet the Biblical word meant "spices", presumably because they praciced homeopathic medicine, rather than the chemical medical practices of our day. Pause then. Why did they use those spices; why should the modern Israelis have believed that word to be appropriate? And given the scale of punishment for their misuse - see v33 - we can't help but wonder if these verses are not in fact concealments of Mystery rites. We know there were such rites - cf Sha'ul, when he "becomes one of the prophets" (1 Samuel 19:24).
SHECHELET: SHACHAL, when it isn't the roar of a lion, is a shell, clearly removeable since the same root gives the verb for peeling fruit and de-shelling sea-food. Gesenius tells us that "the original, unguis odoratus, is a kind of muscle found in the lakes of India, where the nard grows; which, when burning, emits an odour resembling musk; this is now called blatta byzantina (see Discorid ii.10 and the Arabian writers in Bochart..." All of which may very well be true, but how would the Mosaic Habiru have known that, or had access to it, is less easy to explain (the Babylonians of Ezra and Nechem-Yah's time, on the other hand...). I have translated it as onycha, because everyone else does, and I have nothing else to offer as an alternative. I understand that onycha is also known as, or perhaps just a variant form of, Rockrose or Labdanum - click here.
LEVONAH ZAKAH: Frankincense - for which see the link to myrrh above. As to the ZAKAH, it means "pure", but not in the same sense as TAHOR (טָהוֹר); the latter is a differentiation between the approved and the disapproved, as in kosher animals; this is pure in the sense of "clean", and probably, given the context of "atonement" as annual cleaning which has dominated these latter chapters, it probably infers that the frankincense had to be cleaned with running water, as a body might be dipped in the mikveh, or the laver lavered.
30:35 VE ASIYTA OTAH KETORET ROKACH MA'ASEH ROK'E'ACH ME MULACH TAHOR KODESH
וְעָשִׂיתָ אֹתָהּ קְטֹרֶת רֹקַח מַעֲשֵׂה רוֹקֵחַ מְמֻלָּח טָהוֹר קֹדֶשׁ
KJ: And thou shalt make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together, pure and holy:
BN: And you shall make incense out of it, a perfume after the art of the perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy.
Incense is incense, as anyone who has ever been to Glastonbury or Woodstock or the local Lebanese kebab restaurant can tell you; it clears the air of whatever the air needs to be cleared of, weed, toilet smells, or spicy meat. But this concern with the making of perfume, "after the art of the perfumer", is unnecessary for an invisible deity, and especially for a male deity, who may use deodorant, but not eau de cologne; so that I am once again wondering if Yah wasn't a part of these ceremonies originally, and expurgated by the Redactor, only he missed this nuance (as he missed so very many others!).
30:36 VE SHACHAKTA MIMENAH HADEK VE NATATAH MIMENAH LIPHNEY HA EDUT BE OHEL MO'ED ASHER IVA'ED LECHA SHAMAH KODESH KADASHIM TIHEYEH LACHEM
וְשָׁחַקְתָּ מִמֶּנָּה הָדֵק וְנָתַתָּה מִמֶּנָּה לִפְנֵי הָעֵדֻת בְּאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד אֲשֶׁר אִוָּעֵד לְךָ שָׁמָּה קֹדֶשׁ קָדָשִׁים תִּהְיֶה לָכֶם
KJ: And thou shalt beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with thee: it shall be unto you most holy.
BN: And you shall pound some of it into very small pieces, and put some of it before the Testimony in the Tent of Meeting, where I will meet with you; it shall be most holy to you.
30:37 VE HA KETORET ASHER TA'ASEH BE MATKUNTAH LO TA'ASEH LACHEM KODESH TIHEYEH LECHA LA YHVH
וְהַקְּטֹרֶת אֲשֶׁר תַּעֲשֶׂה בְּמַתְכֻּנְתָּהּ לֹא תַעֲשׂוּ לָכֶם קֹדֶשׁ תִּהְיֶה לְךָ לַיהוָה
KJ: And as for the perfume which thou shalt make, ye shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto thee holy for the LORD.
BN: And the incense which you shall make, you shall not make it for yourselves in the same quantities and qualities; it shall be understood by you as "holy to YHVH".
30:38 ISH ASHER YA'ASEH CHAMOHA LEHARIYACH BAH VE NICHRAT ME AMAV
אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יַעֲשֶׂה כָמוֹהָ לְהָרִיחַ בָּהּ וְנִכְרַת מֵעַמָּיו
KJ: Whosoever shall make like unto that, to smell thereto, shall even be cut off from his people.
BN: Whoever does make it for himself in that manner, to use it as perfume, he shall be cut off from his people.
Even to sniff this concoction is enough to be "cut off from the people" - it has to be some sort of a hallucinogenic. I wonder if it would be possible today to get a chemist to make up the recipe and try it out! In the interests of science, of course!
samech break; end of chapter 30
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