Thursday, October 31, 2019

Noach's Sacrifice

Presumably after Noach lands on הר עררט, when he exits onto land and offers his korban, the local is הר עררט and indeed that is what the Even Ezra maintains.  However, in Chazal (the midrash, Targum Yonasan) we find an opinion that the korban was offered in the place of the mikdash.  How Noach flew from  הר עררט to Yerushalim isn't explained, however based upon this view the Mishech Chochma answers a  question.  The possuk (8:21) says וַיָּ֣רַח י״י֮ אֶת־רֵ֣יחַ הַנִּיחֹ֒חַ֒.  The difficulty is that the Mishna in Zevachim 113a says that there is no ריח ניחוח on a במה (Rashi explainsכדאמרינן בפרק בית שמאי (לעיל זבחים דף מו:) לשם ששה דברים הזבח נזבח לשם ריח לאפוקי אברים שצלאן והעלן שאין בהם משום ריח ניחוח:) , so how could the במה of Noach be for a ריח ניחוח?  The Meshech Chachma says that the offerings of Noach were considered offerings in the Mikdash since that was were they offered, not that of a במה.

At face value he seems to be saying it had the din of a korban offered in the mikdash, however, this seems to run contrary to Zevachim (108b) that learns laws of a במה from the korban of Noach?  Perhaps he means that the din of ריח ניחוח stems from the kedusha of the place.  Since Noach offered his sacrifices in the place of the mikdash, even though it had the status of a במה, it still has the din of ריח ניחוח.

It is clear from the beginning of Ch. 2 in Zevachim that a בעל מום can't offer a sacrifice on a במה, however, that Gemorah is in reference to a Jew.  What is the din  regarding a gentile who is a בעל מום, possibly since they can offer a korban that is a בעל מום, they can be a בעל מום as well? It is unclear from the Gemorah.  It does seem that the Midrash (30:6) was bothered by this very point and hence says that it was the sons of Noach that offered the korban, in the words of the midrash:  נֹחַ כְּשֶׁהָיָה יוֹצֵא מִן הַתֵּבָה הִכִּישׁוֹ אֲרִי וְשִׁבְּרוֹ, וְלֹא הָיָה כָּשֵׁר לְהַקְרִיב, וְהִקְרִיב שֵׁם בְּנוֹ תַּחְתָּיו, קַל וָחֹמֶר (משלי יא, לא): אַף כִּי רָשָׁע וְחוֹטֵא, זֶה דּוֹר הַמַּבּוּל.  This may be alluded to in the Rambam Beis Habecheira (2:2) ומסורת ביד הכל שהמקום שבנה בו דוד ושלמה המזבח בגורן ארונה הוא המקום שבנה בו אברהם המזבח ועקד עליו יצחק והוא המקום שבנה בו נח כשיצא מן התיבה והוא המזבח שהקריב עליו קין והבל ובו הקריב אדם הראשון קרבן כשנברא.  Regarding אדם, קין והבל, he says they were מקריב  the korban, but regarding Noach he says he built the מזבח, not that he offered a korban on it, because it was offered by his son.  However, the Meshech Chochma (Emor 22:19) assumes that a gentile that is a בעל מום may offer a korban.  If we assume like he writes here, that the sacrifice of Noach was considered a sacrifice in the mikdash, then its understandable why the midrash assumes a בעל מום is disqualified.  Hence, one Meshech Chochma compliments the other (Bear Miriem.)  But as mentioned previously it doesn't fit with the Gemorah to assume that it had the din of an actual sacrifice in the mikdash.

No comments:

Post a Comment