וַיְדַבֵּ֥ר יְהוָ֖ה אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֥ה לֵּאמֹֽר׃

The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

צַ֤ו אֶֽת־אַהֲרֹן֙ וְאֶת־בָּנָ֣יו לֵאמֹ֔ר זֹ֥את תּוֹרַ֖ת הָעֹלָ֑ה הִ֣וא הָעֹלָ֡ה עַל֩ מוֹקְדָ֨ה עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֤חַ כָּל־הַלַּ֙יְלָה֙ עַד־הַבֹּ֔קֶר וְאֵ֥שׁ הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ תּ֥וּקַד בּֽוֹ׃

Command Aaron and his sons: Since the following laws pertain to the priestly responsibilities and privileges, the command was directed specifically toward Aaron and his sons. Saying: This is the law of the burnt offering. Although the laws of the burnt offering were essentially delineated in the beginning of Leviticus (see chap. 1), an additional point is added by the verse here: It is the burnt offering that burns on the pyre on the altar all night until the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be kept burning on it. Most of the Temple service was performed during the day, including the slaughter of the burnt offering and the sprinkling of its blood upon the altar. The burning of the offering upon the altar, however, could be performed at night. When many offerings were sacrificed during the day, they would remain burning on the pyre throughout the night. The fire on the altar was especially intense, as the wood of the pyre was coupled with the fat of the portions of the animals that were burned on the altar. The burnt offering, which was burned in its entirety, burned slowly on the pyre relative to the other offerings, as its fat was covered by its flesh. It was also offered after all the other offerings had been sacrificed. Consequently, it remained on the altar throughout the night.

וְלָבַ֨שׁ הַכֹּהֵ֜ן מִדּ֣וֹ בַ֗ד וּמִֽכְנְסֵי־בַד֮ יִלְבַּ֣שׁ עַל־בְּשָׂרוֹ֒ וְהֵרִ֣ים אֶת־הַדֶּ֗שֶׁן אֲשֶׁ֨ר תֹּאכַ֥ל הָאֵ֛שׁ אֶת־הָעֹלָ֖ה עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֑חַ וְשָׂמ֕וֹ אֵ֖צֶל הַמִּזְבֵּֽחַ׃

At the end of the night, the priest shall don his linen vestment [ middo ], which is precisely fitted to his size [ midda ], and his linen trousers, another basic article of the priestly garments, he shall don on his flesh; and he shall separate from the altar the ashes of the burnt offering that the fire consumes on the altar, and he shall place it beside the altar. The removal of these accumulated ashes from the altar was a daily ritual that could be likened to an offering itself.

וּפָשַׁט֙ אֶת־בְּגָדָ֔יו וְלָבַ֖שׁ בְּגָדִ֣ים אֲחֵרִ֑ים וְהוֹצִ֤יא אֶת־הַדֶּ֙שֶׁן֙ אֶל־מִח֣וּץ לַֽמַּחֲנֶ֔ה אֶל־מָק֖וֹם טָהֽוֹר׃

He, the priest, shall remove his vestments and don other priestly vestments of lesser quality than the previous vestments. According to tradition, it was prohibited for the priestly vestments to be soiled or worn out; consequently, the priest had to change his clothing when performing this particularly sullying rite. Aside from the symbolic, daily removal of the ashes that was performed after the completion of the day’s rites and before the arrival of the new day, it was also necessary to remove ash from the altar when copious amounts accumulated on it. And in that case, he shall take the ashes outside the camp. In the wilderness, the ashes from the altar in the Tabernacle were placed outside the encampment of the Israelites, while the ashes from the altar in the Temple were placed outside the walls of Jerusalem. The Sages teach that the ashes were placed outside the northern part of the city. These ashes shall be taken to a pure place. They are not of inferior status; rather, they are removed because it is prohibited to make use of them. Accordingly, they must be taken to a pure place.

וְהָאֵ֨שׁ עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֤חַ תּֽוּקַד־בּוֹ֙ לֹ֣א תִכְבֶּ֔ה וּבִעֵ֨ר עָלֶ֧יהָ הַכֹּהֵ֛ן עֵצִ֖ים בַּבֹּ֣קֶר בַּבֹּ֑קֶר וְעָרַ֤ךְ עָלֶ֙יהָ֙ הָֽעֹלָ֔ה וְהִקְטִ֥יר עָלֶ֖יהָ חֶלְבֵ֥י הַשְּׁלָמִֽים׃

The fire on the altar shall be kept burning on it; it shall not be extinguished, and to that end, the priest shall kindle wood on it every morning. He shall arrange a new pyre on the altar every morning to feed the continuously burning fire. In addition, he shall arrange the pieces of the

אֵ֗שׁ תָּמִ֛יד תּוּקַ֥ד עַל־הַמִּזְבֵּ֖חַ לֹ֥א תִכְבֶֽה׃ (ס)

The Torah reiterates what was mentioned in the previous verse, establishing a continuous obligation: A perpetual fire shall be kept burning upon the altar; it shall not be extinguished. This concludes the laws of the burnt offering, although other laws were introduced in this passage as well: the removal of the ashes from the altar, their removal to a pure place outside the camp, the arrangement of the wood on the altar, and the requirement to maintain a perpetual fire upon the altar. This is because these laws are especially relevant to the daily burnt offerings, which were the first and last offerings to be sacrificed during the day.

וְזֹ֥את תּוֹרַ֖ת הַמִּנְחָ֑ה הַקְרֵ֨ב אֹתָ֤הּ בְּנֵֽי־אַהֲרֹן֙ לִפְנֵ֣י יְהוָ֔ה אֶל־פְּנֵ֖י הַמִּזְבֵּֽחַ׃

This is the law of the meal offering. A general overview of the meal offering already appears in the beginning of Leviticus (chap. 2). Here the Torah emphasizes the priestly obligations pertaining to the meal offering. The sons of Aaron shall present it before the Lord to the front of the altar .

וְהֵרִ֨ים מִמֶּ֜נּוּ בְּקֻמְצ֗וֹ מִסֹּ֤לֶת הַמִּנְחָה֙ וּמִשַּׁמְנָ֔הּ וְאֵת֙ כָּל־הַלְּבֹנָ֔ה אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל־הַמִּנְחָ֑ה וְהִקְטִ֣יר הַמִּזְבֵּ֗חַ רֵ֧יחַ נִיחֹ֛חַ אַזְכָּרָתָ֖הּ לַיהוָֽה׃

After the priest presents the meal offering at the foot of the altar, he shall separate from it, from the meal offering, his handful, by inserting his middle three fingers into the meal offering, from the high-quality flour of the meal offering and from its oil. The base of all meal offerings is flour; generally, a large measure of oil is mixed into the flour as well. And he shall also remove all the frankincense that is on the meal offering. The priest would sprinkle frankincense on the mixture of flour and oil. He shall burn its memorial portion, both the handful of flour and all the frankincense, on the altar, as a pleasing aroma to the Lord.

וְהַנּוֹתֶ֣רֶת מִמֶּ֔נָּה יֹאכְל֖וּ אַהֲרֹ֣ן וּבָנָ֑יו מַצּ֤וֹת תֵּֽאָכֵל֙ בְּמָק֣וֹם קָדֹ֔שׁ בַּחֲצַ֥ר אֹֽהֶל־מוֹעֵ֖ד יֹאכְלֽוּהָ׃

The remnant of it Aaron and his sons shall eat in their role as priests in the Temple; as unleavened bread it shall be eaten. Leavened bread was hardly ever brought to the Temple (see 2:11). Here, the verse stresses that the remnants of the meal offering must also be consumed unleavened, and they are to be consumed in a holy place; in the courtyard of the Tent of Meeting they shall eat it.

לֹ֤א תֵאָפֶה֙ חָמֵ֔ץ חֶלְקָ֛ם נָתַ֥תִּי אֹתָ֖הּ מֵאִשָּׁ֑י קֹ֤דֶשׁ קָֽדָשִׁים֙ הִ֔וא כַּחַטָּ֖את וְכָאָשָֽׁם׃

It, the meal offering, shall not be baked leavened. Aside from the general prohibition against allowing the meal offering to become leavened, there is an additional prohibition against baking it leavened. I have given it as their, that is, the priests’, portion from My fire offerings; it, the entire meal offering, is a sacred sacrament like the sin offering and like the guilt offering.

כָּל־זָכָ֞ר בִּבְנֵ֤י אַהֲרֹן֙ יֹֽאכֲלֶ֔נָּה חָק־עוֹלָם֙ לְדֹרֹ֣תֵיכֶ֔ם מֵאִשֵּׁ֖י יְהוָ֑ה כֹּ֛ל אֲשֶׁר־יִגַּ֥ע בָּהֶ֖ם יִקְדָּֽשׁ׃ (פ)

Because of the sacred nature of the meal offering, every male among the children of Aaron shall eat it, but other members of the priest’s family could not partake of it. This is yet another indication that the consumption of the remnant by the priests is itself a sacrificial rite, which may be performed only by the priests themselves, in contrast to other sacred items that are given to the priests as gifts, which may be consumed by all members of the priest’s family (see 22:11–13). It is an eternal statute for your generations from the fire offerings of the Lord. The verse now states an additional law: Anything that touches them, the meal offerings, shall become sacred. Since it is possible to consume meal offerings, sin offerings, and guilt offerings with other foods, the Torah states that anything that touches them and thereby absorbs their taste must be treated with their sanctity.