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InJudaism, thekorban (pronounced[/qɔrˈbɑːn/];Biblical Hebrew:קָרְבָּן,romanized: qorbān;pl. קָרְבָּנוֹת,qorbānôt), alsoromanized asqorban orcorban,[a] is any of a variety ofsacrificial offerings described and commanded in theTorah.
The termkorban primarily refers to sacrificial offerings given by humans toGod to show homage, win favor, or secure pardon.[1] The object sacrificed was usually an animal that was ritually slaughtered and then transferred from the human to the divine realm by being burned upon an altar.[2][3][4] Other sacrifices includedgrain offerings, which were made from flour and oil instead of meat.[5]
After thedestruction of the Second Temple, sacrifices were prohibited because there was no longer atemple in Jerusalem—the only location permitted byHalakha andbiblical law for sacrificial offerings. The offering of sacrifices was briefly reinstated[where?] during theJewish–Roman wars of the second century CE.[6][7]
When sacrifices were offered by theIsraelites and, later,early Jews, they were offered as a fulfillment of themitzvot ('commandments')enumerated in the Torah andHalakha. According toOrthodox Judaism, the coming of the prophesiedMessiah will not vacate the requirement for Jews to keep the 613 commandments. When the Temple is rebuilt (as theThird Temple), sacrificial offerings may resume;Jewish religious movements disagree on whether this will be the case.[8]
While somekorbanot were offered as part of routineatonement fortransgressions, their role was strictly limited. In Judaism, atonement can be achieved through means other than sacrificial offerings, includingrepentance,tzedakah ('charitable giving'), andtefillah ('prayer').[9]
TheSemitic rootqrb (קרב) means'be near'[10] and is found in a number of related languages in addition to Hebrew, e.g. in theAkkadian language nounaqribtu, meaning'act of offering'. In Hebrew it is found in a number of words, such asqarov,'close',qerovim,'relatives', and thehifʕil verb formhiqriv,'he brought near; offered a sacrifice'. The nounkorban (pluralkorbanot,קָרְבֳּנוֹת) first occurs in theBible inLeviticus 1:2 and occurs 80 times in theMasoretic Text: 40 times in Leviticus, 38 inNumbers and twice inEzekiel.[11] The related formqurban appears only inNehemiah 10:35 and13:31 referring to the 'wood offering'. The etymology of the 'offer' sense is traditionally understood as deriving from the verbal sense of 'bringing near', viz. bringing the offering near to the deity,[12][13] but some theological explanations see it rather as bringing "man back to God".[14]
TheSeptuagint generally translates the term inKoine Greek asδῶρον,'gift',θυσία,'sacrifice', orπροσφορά,'offering up'. By theSecond Temple period,Hellenistic Jewish texts use korban specifically to mean a vow. TheNew Testament preserves korban once as a transliterated loan-word for a vow, once also a related noun,κορβανάς ('temple treasury'), otherwise usingδῶρον,θυσία orπροσφορά and other terms drawn from theSeptuagint.Josephus also generally uses other words for 'offering' but useskorban for the vow of theNazirites (Antiquities of the Jews 4:73 / 4,4,4) and citesTheophrastus as having cited a korban vow among theTyrians (Against Apion 1.167 / 1,22,4).[15]
The idea conveyed in mostkorbanot was that of a "gift" to God.[16]
Korbanot served a variety of purposes. Many were brought purely for the purpose of communing with God and becoming closer to God, or in order to express thanks, gratitude, and love toGod.[17]
While somekorbanot were offered as part of theatonement process for sin, this role was strictly limited. Standard sin-offerings could only be offered for unintentional sins;[18] according to the rabbis, they could not be offered for all sins, but only for unintentional violations of some of the most serious sins.[19] In addition,korbanot generally had no expiating effect without sincere repentance[20] and restitution to any person who was harmed by the violation.[21] In the absence of sacrifices, atonement can still be achieved through means such asrepentance,prayer, or givingtzedakah.[22]
The slaughter of an animal sacrifice is not considered a fundamental part of the sacrifice, but rather is an unavoidable preparatory step to the offering of its meat to God;[23] thus, the slaughter may be performed by any Jew, while the other stages of the sacrifice could only be performed by priests.[24]
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Offerings are mentioned in theBook of Genesis and further detailed in the remaining four books of the Torah, which elaborate on their origins and history.[25]Cain and Abel,[26]Noah,[27] Abraham,[28] andJacob offered sacrifices,[29] as did theIsraelites atMount Sinai.[30]
The Torah contains many laws about sacrifices. Different sacrifices are commanded for regular weekdays andShabbat, and numerousJewish holidays also feature their own specific offerings.[31] Sacrificial procedures were described in detail.[32] Sacrifices were only to be offered by theKohanim (כֹּהֲנִים), whom the Hebrew Bible describes as male descendants ofAaron who meet certain marital andritual purity requirements.[33][34]
The locations at which sacrificial offerings were made changed throughoutJewish history. Before building theTemple in Jerusalem, when the Israelites werein the desert, sacrifices were only to be offered in theTabernacle.[35] After the invasion ofCanaan, sacrifices were also permitted atbamot in any location until the nation's enemies had been defeated and the people lived securely, after which sacrifices were supposed to be centralized again.[36] However, in practice, thebamot were still used even during the securemonarchic period, and the Hebrew Bible's authors sometimes criticizeIsraelite kings for allowing this.[37][38] Sacrificial offerings outside the Temple complex are recorded as having occurred atBeit Shemesh,[39]Mizpah,[40]Ramah,[41]Gilgal,[42] andBethlehem,[43] among other locations.
After the entry to Canaan, the main sacrificial centre was initially atShiloh. UnderSaul, the main center of sacrifice wasNob,[44] though private offerings continued to be made at Shiloh.[45] David created a new sacrificial center in Jerusalem at the threshing floor ofAraunah (also known as Ornan),[46] adjacent to Jerusalem, to which he moved the Ark.[47][48] According to the Hebrew Bible, after the building ofSolomon's Temple, sacrifices were only to be carried out there.[49] After Solomon's Temple was destroyed, sacrifices were resumed when theSecond Temple was built, until the Second Temple was also destroyed in 70 CE.[50]
Many of theBiblical prophets criticized those Israelites who brought sacrifices while continuing to violate God's will with immoral behavior. This criticism often took the form of scathing denunciations:
What need have I for all your sacrifices? says the Lord.[51]
Your burnt-offerings are not desirable to Me, nor are your sacrifices pleasing to Me.[52]
How shall I come before the Lord, and bow before the exalted God? Shall I approach him with burnt-offerings, with yearling calves? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, with myriads of rivers of oil?... You, man, have been told what is good, and what the Lord requires of you: only to do justice, to love kindness, and to walk modestly with your God.[53]
However, while rejecting the value of sacrifices accompanied by unjust behavior, the same prophets promised an eventual reconciliation between God and a more moral people of Israel, and proclaimed that the reestablishment of sacrifices would be a sign of this reconciliation.[54] Thus sacrifices have a place in their visions of eventual redemption:
I will bring them to My holy mountain; I will gladden them in My house of prayer. Their burnt-offerings and sacrifices will find favor on My altar, for My house will be a house of prayer for all the nations.[55]
Again will be heard in this place... the voice of those who say "Give thanks to the Lord of Hosts, for the Lord is Good, for His kindness is forever", and of those who bring thanksgiving sacrifices to the house of the Lord.[56]
This is an incomplete list of sacrifices mentioned in the Hebrew Bible.
Types of sacrifice include:
Sacrifices offered on specific occasions include:
Sacrifices connected to one's personal status or situation include:
Other sacrifices include:
Procedures connected to sacrifices include:
According toMaimonides, inSefer Hamitzvot, about one hundred of the permanent613 commandments based on the Torah, by rabbinical enumeration, directly concern sacrifices, excluding those commandments that concern the actual Temple and the priests themselves, of which there are about another fifty.
TheMishnah andTalmud devote a very large section, known as aseder, to the study and analysis ofKodashim, whereby all the detailed varieties ofkorbanot are enumerated and analyzed in great logical depth, such asqodshim kalim ('of minor degree of sanctity') andqodashei qodashim ('of major degree of sanctity'). TractatePesachim is largely devoted to discussing how to offer thePassover sacrifice. TractateYoma contains a detailed discussion of theYom Kippur sacrifices, and there are sections inSeder Moed ('Order of Appointed Times') for the special offerings and Temple ritual for other major Jewish holidays. TractateShekalim discusses the annual half-shekel offering for Temple maintenance and governance, and tractateNashim discusses the offerings made byNazirites and suspected adulterers.
The Talmud provides extensive details not only on how to perform sacrifices but also on how to adjudicate difficult cases, such as what to do if a mistake is made and whether improperly performing one of the required ritual elements invalidates it. The Talmud explains how to roast the Passover offering, how to dash blood from different kinds of sacrifices upon the altar, how to prepare the incense, the regulatory code for the system of taxation that financed the priesthood and public sacrifices, and numerous other details.
Maimonides, a medievalrabbi and Jewish scholar, drew on early critiques of the need for sacrifice, holding that God always regarded sacrifice as inferior to prayer and philosophical meditation. However, God understood that the Israelites were used to the animal sacrifices that the surrounding pagan tribes used as the primary way to commune with their gods. As such, in Maimonides' view, it was only natural that Israelites would believe that sacrifice would be necessary in the relationship between God and man. This view is controversial since the Torah also forbids worship of foreign idols and practices of pagan religions as "detestable" before God, including their sacrifices. Maimonides concludes that God's decision to allow sacrifices was a concession to human psychological limitations. It would have been too much to have expected the Israelites to leap from pagan worship to prayer and meditation in one step. InThe Guide for the Perplexed, he writes:
But the custom which was in those days general among men, and the general mode of worship in which the Israelites were brought up consisted in sacrificing animals... It was in accordance with the wisdom and plan of God...that God did not command us to give up and to discontinue all these manners of service. For to obey such a commandment would have been contrary to the nature of man, who generally cleaves to that to which he is used; it would in those days have made the same impression as a prophet would make at present [the 12th century] if he called us to the service of God and told us in His name, that we should not pray to God nor fast, nor seek His help in time of trouble; that we should serve Him in thought, and not by any action.[57]
In contrast, many others, such asNahmanides (in his commentary onLeviticus 1:9), disagreed. Nahmanides cites the fact that the Torah records the practices of animal and other sacrifices from the times ofAbraham,Isaac, andJacob and earlier.[58] Indeed, the purpose of recounting thebinding of Isaac was to illustrate the sublime significance and need of animal sacrifices as supplanting the abomination of human sacrifices.[59]
Through a non-all-encompassing view of the ritual life of "Abraham [sic] as it is presented in the book of Genesis, the evolving philosophical theology that seems to underlie the modes of worship that [he] develops over time [...] is reconstruct[ed.]"[attribution needed] Abram's building of a number ofaltars without mentioning that he sacrificed animals on them, and that for most of these occasions, he "called out in the name of God" is interpreted by Samuel Lebens as theologically stating that God's desires are sated without animal sacrifices.[60] Noting that not all these altar building occasions were accompanied by call-outs, and that call-outs also took place on returns, inEverlasting Dominion, AmericanChristianOld Testament scholarEugene H. Merrill attributes a multipurpose nature to the altars, in which Abram was participating in only one:
Later, Abram, having entered Canaan, "built" an altar to the Lord at Shechem (Gen. 12:7). The narrative fails to speak of his making a sacrifice there; in fact, the inspiration for building the altar is that the Lord "appeared to [him]." This may suggest thatmīzbēaḥ refers not so much to an altar of sacrifice as to some kind of stele or monument marking God's presence there. As we shall see, this was not an uncommon thing even among the Israelites (e.g., Judg. 6:24; Josh. 22.21-34; 2 Kings 16:15b). Future generations of Abram's offspring would see the altar at Shechem and remember the promises the Lord had made to their ancestors and to them. The same was true at Bethel (v. 8), and though there is no reference to the appearance of the Lord at that place, there is likewise no record of a sacrifice being made there. Abram himself returned to Bethel; and seeing the altar still there, he "called on the name of the Lord" (Gen 13:4 NIV). The altar clearly served the purpose of a sacred memorial.[61]
Nonetheless, Abram also entered into thecovenant of the pieces, which was based on a divine set of promises accompanied by obligations and an animal sacrifice ritual, to the extent that it physically symbolized irrevocability.[62] Likewise, in Hebrew, the verb meaning "to seal a covenant" translates literally as "to cut."[63] Furthermore, to measure the general importance given to animal sacrifice preceding Abram in Genesis, in the story ofCain and Abel the only differentiator mentioned leading God to "[have] not respect [...] unto Cain and to his offering" was Abel's "firstlings of his flock and of the fat thereof" as opposed to Cain's "fruit of the ground[.]"[attribution needed][64] Then, starkly contrasting a diminutive effect resulting from Abram's altar building and call-outs, animal sacrifice was institutionalized in the era ofMoses in Numbers 28:1–30:1. The schedule of obligatory sacrifices included two daily lamb burnt-offerings.[65] However, the physical participation of God in the consumption of sacrificial offerings is debatable. The seeming all-time peak occurred with his conclusive victory asYahweh whenElijah challenged worshippers of the Canaanite deityBaal to pray for fire to light their respective bull animal sacrifices.[66]
Metaphorically, a person's efforts to purify their soul are described as "sacrific[ing one's] animalistic nature"[attribution needed] to allow them to become close to God (in keeping with the root of the wordkorban, meaning "to draw close").[67] Devotion to God can be described as "sacrificing one's soul to God", as in the poemBilvavi mishkan evneh byYitzchak Hutner.[68]
With the destruction of the Second Temple in Jerusalem by the Romans, the Jewish practice of offeringkorbanot stopped for all intents and purposes. Despite subsequent intermittent periods of small Jewish groups offering the traditional sacrifices on the Temple Mount, the practice effectively ended.[citation needed]
Rabbinic Judaism was forced to undergo a significant development in response to this change; no longer could Judaism revolve around the Temple services. The destruction of the Temple led to a development of Jewish observance in the direction of text study, prayer, and other practices, which were seen to varying extents as substitutes for the Temple service.[citation needed] A range of responses is recorded in classical rabbinic literature on this subject:
Once, RabbiYohanan ben Zakkai was walking with his disciple,Rabbi Yehoshua, near Jerusalem after the destruction of the Temple. Rabbi Yehoshua looked at the Temple ruins and said "Alas for us! The place that atoned for the sins of the people Israel lies in ruins!" Then Rabbi Yohanan ben Zakkai spoke to him these words of comfort: 'Be not grieved, my son. There is another equally meritorious way of gaining ritual atonement, even though the Temple is destroyed. We can still gain ritual atonement through deeds of loving-kindness. For it is written "Loving kindness I desire, not sacrifice." (Hosea 6:6)[69]
In theBabylonian Talmud, a number of sages opined that following Jewish law, doing charitable deeds, and studying Jewish texts is greater than performing animal sacrifices:
Rabbi Elazar said: Doing righteous deeds of charity is greater than offering all of the sacrifices, as it is written: "Doing charity and justice is more desirable to the Lord than sacrifice" (Proverbs 21:3).[70]
Nonetheless, numerous texts of the Talmud stress the importance of and hope for eventual re-introduction of sacrifices, and regard their loss as a tragedy. Partaking of sacrificial offerings was compared to eating directly at one's Father's table, whose loss synagogue worship does not entirely replace. One example is inBerachot:
...at the time that the people of Israel enter the synagogues and houses of study, and respond (in theKaddish) "May His great name be blessed", the Holy One, Blessed is He, shakes His head and says: "Fortunate for the king who is praised this way in his house. What is there for the Father who has exiled His children. And woe to the children who have been exiled from their Father's table."[71]
Another example is inSheqalim:
Rabbi Akiva said: Shimon Ben Loga related the following to me: I was once collecting grasses, and I saw a child from theHouse of Avitnas (the incense-makers). And I saw that he cried, and I saw that he laughed. I said to him, "My son, why did you cry?" He said, Because of the glory of my Father's house that has decreased." I asked "And why did you laugh?" He said to me "Because of the glory prepared for the righteous in the future." I asked "And what did you see?" [that brought on these emotions]. "The herbmaaleh ashan [used in Temple incense] is growing next to me."[72]
Non-Orthodox branches of Judaism (Conservative,Reform, andReconstructionist) regard the korbanot as an ancient ritual that will not return.
Conservative Judaism disavows the resumption ofkorbanot. Consistent with this view, it has deleted prayers for the resumption of sacrifices from the Conservativesiddur, including the morning study section from the sacrifices and prayers for the restoration of qorbanot in theAmidah, and various mentions elsewhere. Consistent with its view that priesthood and sacrificial system will not be restored, Conservative Judaism has also lifted certain restrictions onkohanim, including limitations on marriage prohibiting marrying a divorced woman or a convert. Conservative Judaism does, however, believe in the restoration of a Temple in some form, and in the continuation ofkohanim andLevites under relaxed requirements, and has retained references to both in its prayer books. Consistent with its stress on the continuity of tradition, many Conservative synagogues have also retained references toShabbat andFestivalkorbanot, changing all references to sacrifices into the past tense (e.g. the Orthodox "and there we will sacrifice" is changed to "and there they sacrificed"). Some more liberal Conservative synagogues, however, have removed all references to sacrifices, past or present, from the prayer service. SiddurSim Shalom, a common siddur in Conservative synagogues in North America, provides both service alternatives.
Reform Judaism andReconstructionist Judaism disavow all belief in a restoration of a Temple, the resumption ofkorbanot, or the continuation of identified Cohens or Levites. These branches of Judaism believe that all such practices represent ancient practices inconsistent with the requirements of modernity, and have removed all or virtually all references tokorbanot from their prayer books.[citation needed]
The traditionalsiddur, as developed over the past two millennia, contains many references to Temple sacrifices, prayers for their resumption, and rituals intended to remind worshipers of the Temple service. Numerous details of an ordinary Jew's daily religious practice are connected to remembering the rhythm of the Temple's life and its sacrifices.[citation needed]
Today, Orthodox Judaism includes mention of eachkorban on either a daily basis in thesiddur (daily prayer book) or themachzor (holiday prayerbook) as part of the prayers for the relevant days concerned. They are also referred to in the prayerbooks of Conservative Judaism in an abbreviated fashion.
References to sacrifices in the Orthodox prayer service include:
A section of the morning dailyShacharit prayer is calledKorbanot and is mainly devoted to recitation of legal passages relating to the sacrifices. According to the Talmud, this recitation takes the place of the sacrificial offering and achieves the same atonement that sacrifices would have achieved if they were possible.[75]
InNusach Ashkenaz, this section includes the following:[76]
In a later period, some communities began to add the following (all or some of the paragraphs):
The prevailing belief among rabbinic Jews is that in theMessianic Age, theMessiah will come, and aThird Temple will be built. The standard[b]Amidah prayer-text, recited daily by Jews worldwide for the last 1800 years, asks God to "return the service to the Holy of Holies of your Temple, and the fire-offerings of Israel and their prayers may you accept with favor".[82] It is believed that thekorbanot will be reinstituted, but to what extent and for how long is unknown.
According to some classical rabbinic sources hold that most or all sacrifices will not be offered: "In the future, all sacrifices, with the exception of the Thanksgiving-sacrifice, will be discontinued."[83]
Maimonides and RabbiAbraham Isaac Kook, despite some claims, believed that sacrifices would be resumed in the messianic era.[84] However, Kook believed that sacrifices could only be resumed once there was "an open appearance of theholy spirit in Israel".[85] RabbiHayim David HaLevi suggested that the future sacrificial service might be limited to grain-offerings, with no animal sacrifices being performed.[86] He based this assertion, which he called "highly novel", onMalachi 3:4 which speaks only of futuremincha offerings, as well as the assumption that the wordmincha refers to grain-offerings, as it usually does. However, according to other interpretations,mincha can also refer to animal sacrifices.[87]
According to a minority opinion in the Talmud, in the future, the Torah's commandments will be nullified.[88] Interpretations of this statement differ as to which commandments will be abolished, for whom, and at what stage (for example,Rashba ruled that commandments are nullified for a person after they have died but never for the living).[89] Some kabbalistic sources envision a messianic era when the natural order will drastically change, and animals will be on a human level, at which point no animal sacrifices will be offered.[84]
Orthodox Judaism holds that in the messianic era, most or all of the korbanot will be reinstituted, at least for a time.
Conservative Judaism andReform Judaism hold that no animal sacrifices will be offered in a rebuilt Temple at all.
In the 1800s, a number of Orthodox rabbis studied the idea of reinstatingkorbanot on the Temple Mount, even though the messianic era had not yet arrived and the Temple was not rebuilt. A number ofresponsa concluded that, within certain parameters, it is permissible according to Jewish law to offer such sacrifices. The debate on this topic involves numerous complexhalakhic questions, among them:[90]
During the early 20th century,Israel Meir Kagan advised some followers to set up specialyeshivas for married students known asQodshimKolelim that would specialize in the study of the korbanot and study with greater intensity theqodshim sections of theTalmud in order to prepare for the arrival of the Jewish Messiah who would oversee the rebuilding of the original Temple of Solomon inJerusalem that would be known as theThird Temple. His advice was taken seriously and today there are a number of well-establishedHaredi institutions inIsrael that focus solely on the subject of thekorbanot,qodshim, and the needs of the future Jewish Temple, such as theBrisk tradition and Soloveitchik dynasty.
A few groups, notably theTemple Institute and theTemple Mount Faithful, have petitioned the Israeli government to rebuild a Third Temple on theTemple Mount and restore sacrificial worship. The Israeli government has not responded favorably. Most Orthodox Jews regard rebuilding a Temple as an activity for a Jewish Messiah as part of a futureJewish eschatology, and most non-Orthodox Jews do not believe in the restoration of sacrificial worship at all. The Temple Institute has been constructing ritual objects in preparation for a resumption of sacrifices.
In theChristianNew Testament,Jesus is reported inMark 7:11 as criticising the practice of dedicating possessions asKorban.[91]
The Jewish historianJosephus uses the termKorban in the second book of his historiography titledThe War of the Jews, written in the first century CE. Josephus records, in chapter 9 of the book, that theRoman procuratorPontius Pilate expended the money stored in thetemple treasury, having been offered asKorban, on the construction of an aqueduct.[92] His action caused a riot, which his forces violently suppressed.
{{cite book}}:ISBN / Date incompatibility (help)On the other hand, P and H, the priestly sources, grant the priesthood only to descendants of Aaron, Levi's great-grandson.