Parshas Tzav – For the All Nighter

 Parshas Tzav starts out with a seemingly straight-forward instruction: “And Hashem spoke to Moshe, saying: Command Aaron and his sons thus - This is the ritual of the burnt offering: The burnt offering itself shall remain where it is burned upon the altar all night until morning, while the fire on the altar is kept going on it” (Vayikra 6:1-2).

 

Why, one might ask, does the Torah that wastes no words, define the time the oleh is burned as “Kol halaylah ad haboker…all night until the morning”? When else does the night end if not in the morning? Why do these two extra words have to be added?

 

But wait, before that can be answered, one has to realize that the burnt offering was not an exclusively night activity. There were many different times when an “oleh” was brought, and, in fact, just three pasukim later is the instruction that in the morning, “The priest must kindle wood upon it every morning, and he must arrange the cut-up pieces of the morning daily ascent-offering upon it” (6:5).  The question therefore arises as to why Hashem began the laws of the oleh with instructions that it must be minded all night.

 

The evening offering of the oleh is the first of each day – remember: vayehi erev, vayehi boker. It is right that the offering made in the late evening or in the dark of night is explained first, but that does not explain the extra wording.

 

Now some people are what we call “night owls.” They can stay up all night, repeatedly. But they are not morning people. Perhaps Hashem wanted to give those night-owl Kohanim a job well suited to them. In truth, however, even the night owls rarely stay up ALL night, it just feels like they do.

 

Hashem included the term ad haboker because all night means all night. It does not say ad ayelet hashachar, until the crack of dawn, which could easily be assumed to be the start of morning. But that moment of ayelet hashachar actually precedes boker. Boker implies a time by which one can start to discern what things are because there is now light.  

 

Defining boker does not explain why Hashem included it in this pasuk. The Kli Yakar has several interesting thoughts on this pasuk (which I encourage you to go look up ), and he begins his commentary thus:

 

Command Aaron and his sons, saying. The term command [tzav] always implies urging, both immediately and for generations. Rabbi Shimon said: The Scripture needs to especially emphasize urging in situations where there is financial loss. Urging is only needed in places of laziness, and it is written ‘Laziness casts one into a deep sleep’ (Proverbs 19:15), and it is written ‘How long will you lie down, O lazy one?’ (Proverbs 6:9). Here, the commandment involves tending to the fire burning all night until morning, and there is concern that due to the natural laziness in people, one might fall into slumber and ruin the sacrifice (Translation from Sefaria).

 

The financial loss that the Kli Yakar is referring to is that the offering will be incomplete and thus ruined if the fire goes out. But the idea is acknowledging the challenge and risk of a statement of all night. Ad Haboker is a push, a definition that the kohein tending the oleh understands that he himself cannot define when “all night” is over. He must stay up and alert until the morning.

 

How is this relevant to us today? As a schoolteacher, I am often faced with the implied question of why an assigned work is necessary. Sometimes an assignment really isn’t necessary for a particular student to learn the lesson, but they need to do it anyway because they are learning a work ethic. Hereto, Hashem’s very specific command kol halayla ad haboker teaches us an ethic of diligence even when it is difficult.

 

It is particularly relevant as we near the seder, a moment in the Jewish calendar in which night time is highly relevant. There is an encouragement to stretch the seder far into the night  - but to eat the afikomen before halachic midnight – and that isn’t always easy for some people, especially after a very busy day of preparations. And this thought can help us, can inspire us, to stay diligent and alert throughout the seder. (Trust me, that’s a lecture to myself!)

 

I want to wish you all a beautiful shabbas and a chag kasher v’sameach, and may all of you in Eretz Yisrael have only seder night to be up all night. Let peace be upon you and no more horrid nights in bomb shelters.