Smoke Signals from Sodom And More Menachos 26-29

Menachos 26 — Smoke Signals from Sodom

Our Gemara on Amud Beis uses a prooftext from the story of the destruction of Sodom for a Halacha regarding the handful of the Mincha offering burned on the altar (Vayikra 2:2). The verse (Bereishis 19:28) states:

“And, looking down toward Sodom and Gomorrah and all the land of the Plain, he (Avraham) saw the smoke of the land rising like the smoke of a furnace.”

The Gemara’s derasha learns that since a furnace does not release smoke (“haktara”) until the fire takes hold of the majority of the fuel, so too the majority of the handful of the meal offering must be consumed by the fire in order to fulfill the mitzvah of haktara, which then allows the rest of the meal offering to be eaten.

Aside from the Gemara’s derasha, there is a chronological difficulty with the verse. First, at the beginning of Bereishis chapter 19, we read about the destruction of Sodom and Lot’s escape. Then, after the narrative in verses 27 and 28, we hear the story again from Avraham’s perspective. It is odd that after reviewing the entire story, we hear it once again through Avraham’s eyes.

There are two fascinating exegetical answers that take us in entirely different directions. The Rambam (Guide for the Perplexed II:42) famously asserts that whenever the verse states an angel speaking to a prophet, it means by way of a prophetic vision or dream. Therefore, many of the seemingly miraculous stories in Scripture are actually happening in visions and not in physical reality. This has to do with a broader philosophical concern of limiting the number of miracles performed, because in order for them not to represent a change in the will of God—which would be something temporal and mortal—all miracles need to be pre-programmed and predestined (see Rambam Avos 5:6). Therefore, it is logical that the majority of miracles do not represent physical changes in reality, but rather visions.

In this case, Abravanel (Commentary on Guide for the Perplexed, ibid.) points out that the story of Sodom and the way Scripture pieces together the narrative is a powerful vindication of the Rambam’s position. This is because first we hear the story as experienced by Lot via the angels, which means that Lot really had all this in a vision. Sodom itself was going to be destroyed in some way; God was going to save Lot and compel him to leave the city, but the entire narrative was a vision. From the time he leaves the city until he comes to the cave, it is all a dream. It is interesting that eventually he wakes up from a dream in the cave (ibid., verses 30–38), as if to say that unknowingly, Lot felt the urge to flee Sodom suddenly, then slept in the cave and had a vision that explained what the urge was about, and eventually woke up.

That a person could have a feeling or a hunch—a sense of dread—and act upon it without knowing why, is a valid Torah concept. See, for example, Megillah 3a, which states that if a person feels afraid for no reason, it may be that his mazal perceived a danger, and therefore he should recite Shema as a soteriological act. And then Avraham also wakes up in the morning and sees the destruction of Sodom and the pillar of smoke. According to the Rambam, the verses are giving us alternate narratives so that we can understand how prophecy works. Lot had a sense of dread and ran away, then dreams about his encounter with the angels and what is happening to Sodom, so he gets the spiritual, behind-the-scenes drama. Externally and physically, Sodom is destroyed—however it was destroyed – (what was that pillar of smoke? A mushroom cloud? Did a planet-buster meteor hit Sodom?). So too, Avraham wakes up from his vision—as he experienced the story of Sodom, his praying and bargaining with God, etc.—and sees the result physically in the world as Sodom burning.

Be’er Mayim Chaim (Bereishis 19:27) grapples with the same chronological problem in the verses, but offers a different and beautiful answer. In the evening, when Avraham was given the prophetic message that Sodom was to be destroyed, he engaged in prayer on their behalf. Yet he perceived that the prayers were not received; Sodom was still fated to be destroyed. He resolved to pray again in the morning, because evening is a time of divine justice while morning is a time of divine mercy. This is why it says explicitly in the verse that “Avraham got up in the morning,” to stress, as in other places in Scripture, the zeal and eagerness to perform a mitzvah first thing. In this case, the mitzvah was to pray on behalf of the people of Sodom. However, Avraham’s plans were interrupted. He saw that it was too late. Sodom was destroyed.

To sum it up: the verses and their narrative structure are woven with implication and meaning. The Rambam can use it as a primer indicating the nature of the interweave between prophetic visions, physical reality, and miracles. Be’er Mayim Chaim uses it as an indicator of the virtue of a tzaddik. He won’t give up. He will be a zealot and pray immediately, and if that doesn’t work, he will seek a different time—perhaps where there is a greater manifestation of divine mercy. He won’t delay, and at the first opportunity to tap into that, he will wake up early and try again. Yet sometimes all the prayer in the world cannot change what needs to happen. This too Avraham saw and accepted.

Menachos 27 — Rolling It Heavenward

Our Gemara on Amud Aleph wrestles with the meaning and usage of the Hebrew word “al,” which roughly translates as “on” or “upon.” The question is: in Hebrew, does “al” imply being placed directly upon, or does it mean adjacent?

Tzidkas Hatzaddik (142) works off this interpretive implication and uses it to explain powerful concepts in redemption and repentance. The verse in Psalms (37:5) states:

“Place it (gal—roll) all upon God; be trusting; [God] will do it.”

Tzidkas Hatzaddik states that even though we have a principle that one may not rely on a miracle, that is only regarding physical, earthly matters. However, spiritual matters operate beyond logic, calculation, or any particular boundary. Therefore, when it comes to repentance, at the right moment—even if it makes no sense and even if a person doesn’t “deserve it”—he may succeed in being fully forgiven and returned to God.

There are two processes in repentance. A person undergoes a personal arousal to repent, and then God assists him. As it states, “Make an opening the size of a needle-point and I will create an opening the size that wagons can pass through” (Shir Hashirim Rabbah 5:2). Yet another kind of repentance may occur, where God takes you to a place that, according to the great amount of sin and corruption, you could never reach without a “miracle.” This form of reliance on miracles is absolutely permitted.

These two parts of repentance are represented in the two meanings of “al”—adjacent or upon. The verse in Psalms above states to “place and roll it upon God.” First, it is just to roll it near, like a heavy object you cannot lift.. Then God intervenes and takes it directly upon Himself.

Menachos 28 — A Jewish Soul is Always Whole

Our Gemara on Amud Aleph describes structural and artisanal requirements for the Menorah in the Temple. It should be constructed from a complete block (eshes) and from gold. If they fashioned it from fragments (gerutaos) of gold, then it is unfit. If the Menorah was fashioned from other types of metal rather than gold, it still may not be made from fragments; however, the other standards—such as being hammered out of one piece or having the various adornments—are not required.

What is the symbolic meaning of these differences? Rav Hirsch (Shemos 25:39) explains that the Menorah represents wisdom (light = enlightenment) in its many facets and branches (the various stems). Even within the wisdom process, there are those that possess full purity (pure gold); as such, they meet the highest requirements. Others, who are less refined (other metals), cannot contribute in the same capacity. They may not have all the frills and bells and whistles. They are not assembled from one hammered-out piece, as their road to perfection might have been in different stages. Yet there is a pure and uncorrupted Jewish soul within them, and that is why one standard remains: he is not from scrap metal and broken fragments.

Menachos 29 — Steps, Stones, and Sudden Light

Our Gemara on Amud Aleph tells us that the Menorah in the Temple had a stone before the candelabrum, and it had three steps upon which the priest would stand and prepare the lamps for kindling.

What is the meaning of these steps? It is especially curious because, as I heard Rabbi Rosner remark in his Daf Yomi shiur, the altar was forbidden to have steps (Shemos 20:23).

According to Toras HaOlah (I:19), the use of a stone itself represents a basic block of matter—namely, the entire world—and is reminiscent of the even ha-shesiya, the foundational stone of the earth found in the Holy of Holies. The three steps represent the three dimensions of process which uphold the world: spiritual truth and ideas, which are pure Torah; the formation of guiding principles, that is, Torah in its regulatory and halachic sense; and finally, the realm of action, which is the most physical realm, mitzvos and avodah. This can be thought of as Briah, Yetzira, and Asiyya, or machashava, dibbur, v’maaseh.

He adds a final thought. The wicks for the Menorah were made out of the worn-out, used priestly garments. This tells us that even the remnants of a mitzvah continues to burn bright. The after-effects of the performance of a mitzvah lead to continuous enlightenment.

I will add a comparison between the altar and this stone. The altar represented service to God. In serving God, one goes gradually up and ascends a ramp. There can be no rush jobs in approaching God—at least on our side (see blogpost Psychology of the Daf, Menachos 27). The Menorah is God’s enlightenment back to this world from the Torah. Enlightenment and the various manifestations of Torah can happen in quantum leaps, so steps are appropriate.