Parshat Pinchas 5769

Rabbi Ari Kahn

To Fight for Peace

The Reward
In the aftermath of the debacle that had unfolded in the
camp, Pinchas killed the lecherous Zimri, and was
rewarded by Divine decree:

‫ספר במדבר פרק כה‬

‫(יא) פִינְחָס בֶן אֶלְעָזָר בֶן אהֲרֹן הַכֹהֵן הֵשִיב‬:‫(י) וַיְדַבֵר ה' אֶל משֶה לֵאמֹר‬
‫אֶת חֲמָתִי מֵעַל בְנֵי יִשְרָאֵל בְקַנְאו אֶת קִנְאתִי בְתוכָם וְלֹא כִלִיתִי אֶת בְנֵי‬
‫(יג) וְהָיְתָה לו‬:‫(יב) לָכֵן אֱמֹר הִנְנִי נֹתֵן לו אֶת בְרִיתִי שָלום‬:‫יִשְרָאֵל בְקִנְאתִי‬
‫ולְזַרְעו אחֲרָיו בְרִית כְהֻנַת עולָם תַחַת אֲשֶר קִנֵא לֵאלֹהָיו וַיְכַפֵר עַל בְנֵי‬
:‫יִשְרָאֵל‬
And God spoke to Moshe, saying: 'Pinchas, the son of
Elazar, the son of Aharon the Kohen, has turned My
wrath away from the Children of Israel, in that he was
very jealous for My sake among them, so that I did
not consume the Children of Israel in My jealousy.
Therefore say: 'Behold, I give unto him My covenant
of peace; and it shall be for him and his descendents
after him, the covenant of everlasting kehuna;
because he was jealous for his God, and made
atonement for the Children of Israel.' Bamidbar
25:10-13

Had it not been for the action of Pinchas, the Jews might
well have been annihilated. Pinchas zealously restored
order to the camp. God therefore rewards Pinchas with a
covenant of peace. Pinchas and his descendents will enjoy
the status of Kohen, as payment for his zeal.

It is unclear if these are two separate rewards, or if they

are in fact one and the same. Indeed, a careful reading of
the verses indicates that two separate rewards are
enumerated. One is the covenant of peace and the other
is eternal kehuna (priesthood).

The things with which God rewards Pinchas are far from
random. When we consider that Pinchas' actions may have
been looked upon askance by many in the camp, that his

1
method for restoring harmony in the camp was to kill
another Jew, we may conclude that peace was the one
thing Pinchas desperately needed. It may be safe to
assume that there were many people who would have
taken umbrage at Pinchas' zeal, and still others who would
seek to further the cycle of violence by taking revenge for
the murder of Zimri.1 God gives Pinchas a covenant of
peace; He endorses Pinchas and the extreme measures
Pinchas took to restore peace in the camp, while at the
same time effectively protecting Pinchas from his
detractors.2 These practical and specific goals might be
seen as quite separate from the reward of kehuna
described in the next verse.

On the other hand, it is not difficult to support the

opposite claim, that the covenant of peace and kehuna
are, in fact, one and the same. “Peace” is so closely
intertwined with the kehuna that the equation is almost
inescapable: When the kohanim bless the people, it is
specifically a blessing of peace that they transmit, and this
blessing is recited specifically within the context of the
blessing of peace at the conclusion of the amida.3 The
equation of kehuna and peace goes all the way back to
1
See comments of Hizkuni, Daat Zekanim Baale Tosfot and Rabbenu Bachaya Bamidbar 25:12
‫חזקוני על במדבר פרק כה פסוק יב‬
.‫ אין לו לירא מקרובי זמרי וכזבי‬- ‫את בריתי שלום‬
‫דעת זקנים מבעלי התוספות על במדבר פרק כה פסוק יב‬
‫ שעשה דבר הגון לפני הנני נותן לו את בריתי שלום ואם ישנאוהו ישראל לא יחוש ואין לו לירא לא מקרובי זמרי‬- ‫(יב) לכן‬
‫ולא מקרובי כזבי שהיתה בת מלך ובקידושין פרק האומר מסיק וי"ו דשלום קטיעה היא למדרש כשהוא שלם ולא כשהוא חסר‬
:‫מכאן לכהן בעל מום שעבודתו פסולה‬
‫רבנו בחיי על במדבר פרק כה פסוק יב‬
,‫ ומה יהיה שכרו‬,‫ על דרך הפשט הבטיחו בברית שלום שלא יפחד מאחי זמרי שלא ינקמו נקמתו‬.‫הנני נותן לו את בריתי שלום‬
:‫ שתהיה לו הכהונה נצחית‬,‫והיתה לו ולזרעו אחריו ברית כהונת עולם‬
2
Rashi Bamidbar 25:11, notes that many thought that Pinchas has acted inappropriately, and his
behavior was influenced from pagan influences.
‫רש"י במדבר פרק כה פסוק יא‬
‫ הראיתם בן פוטי זה שפיטם אבי אמו עגלים לעבודה זרה‬,‫ לפי שהיו השבטים מבזים אותו‬- ‫פינחס בן אלעזר בן אהרן הכהן‬
:‫ לפיכך בא הכתוב ויחסו אחר אהרן‬,‫והרג נשיא שבט מישראל‬
Verse 11: Pinchas the son of Elazar, the son of Aharon the kohein: Because the tribes disparaged him,
[saying] 'Have you seen that son of "Puti," whose mother's father fattened calves for idol worship, and
who murdered the chieftain of a tribe of Israel?' Therefore, Scripture traces his lineage to Aharon.
3
The blessing of Sim Shalom – give peace
‫ סדר עמידה‬- ‫ נוסח אשכנז‬- ‫סדור תפלה‬
:‫והכהנים מברכים‬
‫ וְצִוָנו לְבָרֵךְ אֶת עַמו‬,‫בָרוךְ אתָה יְהׂוָה אֱלֹהֵינו מֶלֶךְ הָעולָם אֲשֶר קִדְשָנו בִקְדֻשָתו שֶל אהֲרׂן‬
:‫יִשְרָאֵל בְאהֲבָה‬
:‫וְיָשֵם לְךָ שָלום‬...
:‫ הַמְבָרֵךְ אֶת עַמו יִשְרָאֵל בַשָלום‬.'‫בָרוךְ אתָה ה‬...‫שִים שָלום טובָה ובְרָכָה‬

2
the first kohen, the quintessential kohen. In the words of
Hillel:

‫משנה מסכת אבות פרק א‬

‫ אוהֵב‬,‫ אוהֵב שָלום וְרודֵף שָלום‬,‫ הֱוֵי מִתַלְמִידָיו שֶל אהֲרֹן‬,‫הִלֵל אומֵר‬
:‫אֶת הַבְרִיות ומְקָרְבָן לַתורָה‬
Hillel used to say: Be of the disciples of Aharon,
loving peace and pursuing peace, loving your fellow
creatures and bringing them close to Torah. Avot 1:12

Aharon was the perfect example of the man of peace; he

uncomplainingly played the role of his younger brother's
second, he made peace with himself and with God even
when challenged by personal loss. When the people press
Aharon to make for them a Golden Calf he complies,
effectively sacrificing truth for the sake of peace. Pinchas’s
road is very different: while both Aharon and Pinchas
pursue peace, they take divergent paths: When the plague
of peor spreads like a cancer in the Israelite camp, and
culminates in an inappropriate public display of sexuality,
Pinchas leaps into action and sacrifices peace for the sake
of truth. While Aharon’s essence was peace, Pinchas killed
for the sake of peace - certainly a circuitous route of
achieving peace. Pinchas surely needed the covenant of
peace to protect him, but even more so, he needed the
covenant of peace to realign him with the role of kohen, to
reconnect with that essential nature that was passed down
from his grandfather Aharon.

Covenant of Kehuna
The commentaries are divided regarding the meaning and
significance of the covenant of eternal kehuna. Rashi
teaches that Pinchas was not originally a kohen, and was
only anointed in the aftermath of the Zimri affair. This
approach is found in rabbinic literature, yet is somewhat
problematic: Being that Pinchas' father and grandfather
were kohanim, why should Pinchas have been initially
excluded from kehuna? According to this approach,
Pinchas was an anomaly, the victim of a strange clause:
Aharon was made a kohen, 4 his son Elazar was made a

4
Shmot 28:1
‫ספר שמות פרק כח‬

3
kohen, 5 and any male child subsequently born to this
family line would automatically be born a kohen. However,
Pinchas "suffered" from having already been born; he was
therefore not among those specifically anointed, nor was
he among “those who would subsequently be born”6.
Rashi explains that Pinchas is here granted kehuna by
Divine directive:

‫רש"י במדבר פרק כה פסוק יג‬

:‫ בריתי זאת‬- ‫(יג) והיתה לו‬
‫ לא נתנה אלא לאהרן‬,‫ שאע"פ שכבר נתנה כהונה לזרעו של אהרן‬- ‫ברית כהנת עולם‬
‫ אבל פינחס שנולד קודם‬,‫ שנמשחו עמו ולתולדותיהם שיולידו אחר המשחתן‬,‫ולבניו‬
‫ וכן שנינו בזבחים (קא ב) לא נתכהן‬.‫ לא בא לכלל כהונה עד כאן‬,‫לכן ולא נמשח‬
:‫פינחס עד שהרגו לזמרי‬
A covenant of eternal kehuna: Although the kehuna
had already been given to Aharon's descendants, it
was given solely to Aharon and his sons who were
annointed with him, and to their generations who
would be born after their anointment. Pinchas,
however, who was born before, and was not
annointed, was not included in the kehuna until here.
Similarly, we learned in Zevachim (101b), 'Pinchas
was not rendered a kohen until he killed Zimri.' (Rashi
Bamidbar 25:13)

Other commentaries disagree: Pinchas was already a

kohen, was always a kohen along with his father and
grandfather and uncles and cousins. The meaning of the
verse is that the covenant that was forged granted him
and his descendents the position of Kohen Gadol.7
‫(א) וְאתָה הַקְרֵב אֵלֶיךָ אֶת אהֲרֹן אחִיךָ וְאֶת בָנָיו אִתו מִתוךְ בְנֵי יִשְרָאֵל לְכַהֲנו לִי אהֲרֹן נָדָב‬
:‫וַאֲבִיהוא אֶלְעָזָר וְאִיתָמָר בְנֵי אהֲרֹן‬
And take to you Aaron your brother, and his sons with him, from among the people of Israel, that he
may minister to me in the priest’s office, Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons.
5
See Rabbi M Kasher, Torah Shelemah volume 20, Shmot chapter 28, section 12.
6
Shmot 28:43
‫ספר שמות פרק כח‬
‫(מג) וְהָיו עַל אהֲרֹן וְעַל בָנָיו בְבֹאם אֶל אֹהֶל מועֵד או בְגִשְתָם אֶל הַמִזְבֵחַ לְשָרֵת בַקֹדֶש וְלֹא‬
:‫יִשְאו עָון וָמֵתו חֻקַת עולָם לו ולְזַרְעו אחֲרָיו‬
43. And they shall be upon Aaron, and upon his sons, when they come in to the Tent of Meeting, or
when they come near to the altar to minister in the holy place; that they bear not iniquity, and die; it
shall be a statute forever to him and his seed after him.
7
Ibn Ezra Bamidbar 28:12
‫אבן עזרא על במדבר פרק כה פסוק יב‬
‫ טעמו את בריתי ברית שלום כמו כסאך אלהים ורבים כן והטעם שלא יגור מאחי זמרי כי הוא נשיא בית‬- ‫(יב) את בריתי שלום‬
‫אב ושכרו שתהיה לו ולזרעו אחריו ברית כהונת עולם ונצח כי הכהנים הגדולים היו מבני פינחס ויתכן שהיו בנים אחרים‬
:‫לאלעזר‬

4
The Riva8 has a different approach. Jewish law states that
a Kohen who kills is invalid to serve; therefore, when
Pinchas killed Zimri and Kosbi, he should have been
disqualified as a kohen. Only divine intervention in the
form of a promise of everlasting kehuna allowed him to
remain a kohen. 9 In fact, the text supports this approach:
When he was awarded the kehuna, the Torah describes
Pinchas' actions as bringing about atonement:

‫ספר במדבר פרק כה‬

‫(יג) וְהָיְתָה לו ולְזַרְעו אחֲרָיו בְרִית כְהֻנַת עולָם תַחַת אֲשֶר קִנֵא לֵאלֹהָיו‬
:‫וַיְכַפֵר עַל בְנֵי יִשְרָאֵל‬
… and it shall be for him, and for his descendents
after him, the covenant of everlasting kehuna;
because he was jealous for his God, and made
atonement for the Children of Israel.' Bamidbar
25:13

Taking the wider view, we realize that the role of the kohen
is to bring about atonement for the People of Israel. Most
kohanim achieve this by bringing offerings. Pinchas
brought an unorthodox offering – he killed Zimri. Instead

8
Riva Bamidbar 25:12, citing Rav Moshe MiCoucy, known as the S”mag )Sefer Mitzvot Gedolot(
‫פירוש הריב"א על במדבר פרק כה פסוק יב‬
‫ לפי שכפיו נגואלו בדם וכהן שהרג את הנפש לא ישא את כפיו והיה מתירא שמא יפסיד כהונתו‬.‫הנני נותן לו את בריתי שלום‬
:‫ כפר"מ מקוצ"י‬.‫לכך נתן לו הקב"ה את בריתו שלם‬
9
The Zohar makes a similar suggestion. I have seen it suggested that in fact God knew that Pinchas
would kill Zimri and therefore suffer disqualification, Pinchas' kehuna was purposely held in abeyance
until after he killed Zimri in order to avoid this problem: at the moment he killed Zimri, Pinchas was
not a Kohen. He became a kohen only subsequently. Zohar Volume 3 214a: "Now it is a rule that a
priest who kills a human being becomes disqualified for the priesthood, and therefore by rights Pinchas
should have been disqualified. But because he was jealous for the Holy One, blessed be He, the
priesthood was assigned to him and to his descendants in perpetuity."’
‫שפתי כהן על במדבר פרק כה פסוק יא‬
‫ וכמו שאהרן אוהב שלום ורודף שלום‬,‫ מאחר שתפס במדותיו של אהרן ראוי הוא לכהונתו של אהרן‬,‫לזה אמר בן אהרן הכהן‬
:‫כן פינחס נאמר לו הנני נותן לו את בריתי שלום‬
‫ ובני‬,‫ נתקבצו שבטו של שמעון להורגו ופרחה נשמתו של פינחס‬,‫ אלא כשהרגו לזמרי‬,‫) למה אמר בן בן‬.‫אמר בזוהר (ח"ג רי"ז‬
‫ ואף על פי שהם שנים ואין גוף אחד יכול לקבל שתי‬,‫ נכנסו בגופו‬,‫ לפי שלא נשאו נשים‬,‫אהרן נדב ואביהוא שהיו ערטלאין‬
,‫ והם היו כהנים‬,‫ שנכנסו בגופו‬,‫ ולזה לא נתכהן פינחס עד שהרגו לזמרי‬,‫ לפי שלא נשאו נחשבים כל אחד כחצי גוף‬,‫נשמות‬
‫ אלה ראשי אבות‬,‫ כ"ה) ואלעזר בן אהרן הכהן לקח לו מבנות פוטיאל ותלד לו את פינחס‬,'‫לזה רמז בפרשת וארא (שמות ו‬
‫ אלא‬,‫ ואם תאמר נשמתו היכן הלכה‬.‫ הן נכללין בפינחס‬,‫ לומר מראשי בית אבותם שהן נדב ואביהוא שהיו סגני כהונה‬,‫הלוים‬
‫ לפי‬,‫ אלא כדי שלא תאמר שהוא לכתחילה עשה כן ולא הלך אחר היחס‬,‫ לא אמר בת פוטיאל‬,‫לפי שאלעזר לקח מבנות פוטיאל‬
‫ והיה קשה‬,‫ לפי שהדבר הוא מאתו יתברך‬,‫ תהיה מה שתהיה‬,‫ לזה לא אמר בת פוטיאל אלא מבנות פוטיאל‬,‫שישרה בעיניו‬
‫ והנשמה חזרה להיות גוף בערך נשמות‬,‫ וכשפרחה נשמתו מת אותו גוף‬,‫ ולזה לא נמשח‬,‫בעיניו איך יקח בת כהן לעבודה זרה‬
‫ ואין‬,‫ שגופו היה נשמה‬,‫ לזה נתן לו חיים לעולם‬,‫ והנשמה בן אהרן‬,‫ אם כן הוא בן אלעזר שהוא הגוף שנזדכך‬,‫נדב ואביהוא‬
:‫מיתה אלא לגוף‬

5
of being seen as an outrage, God accepted this offering,
and spared the People.10

Aharon was elevated to the position of Kohen Gadol when

he attempted to maintain peace by sacrificing truth. In
essence, every kohen who brought about atonement for
the People through offerings was involved in a similar
gesture: Truth is sacrificed for the sake of atonement, for
the sake of peace. In a world of absolute truth, every sin
should be followed by punishment; the very idea that God
could choose to accept a sacrifice for repentant man is
antithetical to the concept of truth. Nonetheless, this is
one of the ruling principles with which God created and
continues to sustain the universe. God chooses peace over
truth.11 Man, with his myriad sins great and small, would
not survive without God’s enormous capacity for
forgiveness, without God's willingness to put aside
absolute truth. The price to be paid for human existence is
just this: truth is trampled upon.

Pinchas embraced truth. He would not, could not ignore

the outrage transpiring in the camp. He therefore acted
with violence, and upset the balance, broke the peace.
The “festival of free love” spearheaded by Zimri was
shattered with stark truth - the truth of Torah. Those
embracing peor, with its scatological practices12 and
10
It is interesting that after the Golden Calf, the tribe of Levi is distinguished from the mainstream
when they answer Moshe’s call “Whoever is with God – join me” (Shmot 32:26(. There, too, an act of
violence catapults the Tribe of Levi into their special status.
‫שמות פרק לב‬
:‫(כו) וַיַעֲמֹד מֹשֶה בְשַעַר הַמַחֲנֶה וַיֹאמֶר מִי לַה' אֵלָי וַיֵאסְפו אֵלָיו כָל בְנֵי לֵוִי‬
‫(כז) וַיֹאמֶר לָהֶם כֹה אמַר ה’ אֱלֹהֵי יִשְרָאֵל שִימו אִיש חַרְבו עַל יְרֵכו עִבְרו וָשובו‬
)‫ (כח‬:‫מִשַעַר לָשַעַר בַמַחֲנֶה וְהִרְגו אִיש אֶת אחִיו וְאִיש אֶת רֵעֵהו וְאִיש אֶת קְרֹבו‬
:‫וַיַעֲשו בְנֵי לֵוִי כִדְבַר מֹשֶה וַיִפֹל מִן הָעָם בַיום הַהוא כִשְלֹשֶת אלְפֵי אִיש‬

11
See Yerushami Makot 7a, Yalkut Shimoni Yehchezkel 358.
‫א‬/‫תלמוד ירושלמי מסכת מכות דף ז‬
‫אמר רבי פינחס (תהלים כה) טוב וישרא למה הוא טוב שהוא ישר ולמה הוא ישר שהוא טוב על כן יורה חטאים בדרך שמורה‬
‫ שאלו לחכמה חוטא מהו עונשו אמרו להם חטאים תרדף רעה שאלו לנבואה חוטא מהו עונשו אמרה להן הנפש‬.‫דרך תשובה‬
.‫החוטאת היא תמות שאלו לקודשא בריך הוא חוטא מהו עונשו אמר להן יעשו תשובה ויתכפר לו‬
‫ רמז שנח‬- ‫ פרק יח‬- ‫ילקוט שמעוני יחזקאל‬
‫ א"ל הנפש‬,‫ שאלו לנבואה חוטא מהו ענשו‬,‫ שאלו לחכמה חוטא מהו ענשו א"ל חטאים תרדף רעה‬,‫הנפש החוטאת היא תמות‬
‫ שאלו להקב"ה חוטא מהו ענשו מהו ענשו א"ל‬.‫ שאלו לתורה חוטא מהו ענשו א"ל יביא אשם ויתכפר לו‬,‫החוטאת היא תמות‬
‫ שאלו להקב"ה חוטא מהו ענשו א"ל יעשה תשובה ויתכפר לו הה"ד טוב וישר ה' על כן יורה חטאים‬.‫יביא אשם ויתכפר לו‬
.‫בדרך‬
12
See Talmud Bavli Sanhedrin 60b, 64a
“Rau Yehudah said in Rab's name: A gentile woman once fell sick. She vowed, 'If I recover, I will go
and serve every idol in the world.' She recovered, and proceeded to serve all idols. On reaching Peor,

6
pantheistic theology, were involved in idolatry. Zimri and
Kosbi hoped to bring a message of false peace and
universal love - love of nature and natural love; Pinchas
showed them and all of the congregation that this was not
service of God through nature, but avoda zara, foreign
theology. Zimri and Kozbi, who may have viewed their
carnal performance as a “natural” act, part and parcel of
the worldview of worship of peor, were in fact guilty of a
terrible outrage, a transgression against the boundaries of
holiness and purity which are dictated by belief in One
God and the Torah's path to achieve kedusha.

Pinchas embraced truth and sacrificed peace; God

accepted this sacrifice and stopped the plague. Pinchas
averted the annihilation of the Jewish People, and in doing
so, showed that that he was truly a son of Aharon, a true
kohen.

she asked its priests, 'How is this worshipped?' They replied, 'People eat beets, drink strong drink, and
then uncover themselves before it.' She replied, 'I would rather fall sick again than serve an idol in such
a manner.' But you, O House of Israel, were not so [as it is written, Slay ye every one his men( that
were joined unto Baal Peor: you were attached to it like an air-tight lid. Whereas, 'While you that did
cleave unto the Lord your God,' implies merely like two dates sticking to each other. In a Baraitha it
has been taught: that were joined unto Baal Peor: [loosely] like a bracelet on the hands of a woman;
whereas 'While you that did cleave unto the Lord your God' indicates that they were firmly attached.
Our Rabbis taught: Sabta, a townsman of Avlas, once hired an ass to a gentile woman. When she came
to Peor, she said to him, Wait till I enter and come out again. On her issuing, he said to her, Now do
you wait for me too until I go in and come out again. But, said she, are you not a Jew? He replied,
'What does it concern you?' He then entered, uncovered himself before it, and wiped himself on the
idol's nose, whilst the acolytes praised him, saying, 'No man has ever served this idol thus.'’He that
uncovers himself before Baal Peor thereby serves it, even if his intention was to degrade it. He who
casts a stone at Merculis thereby serves it, even if his intention was to bruise it.