Devar/5770/Pinchas
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And thou shalt say unto them: This is the offering made by fire which ye shall bring unto the LORD: he-lambs of the first year without blemish, two day by day, for a continual burnt-offering. (Num 28:3)
God commanded the Children of Israel to bring two lambs each day as a "perpetual offering". That is to say, to bring this offering every day, whether shabbat or a weekday, forever. And indeed it is rendered in the Law: It is a positive commandment to bring two lambs as elevation offerings, every day; and they are called 'perpetual offerings' -- one in the morning, and one in the afternoon, as the verse states "two day by day, for a continual burnt-offering" (Laws of Perpetual and Additional Offerings 1:1). But today, due to our many sins, we have no possibility whatever of bringing them since one may not being elevation offerings outside the Temple -- and as is well known, the Temple has been desolate over two-thousand years.
God commanded we bring these offerings, and He, may He be blessed, removed the Chosen House from our hands because of our sins. How does He expect us to fulfill His commandment when He Himself prevents us from performing it? There is no doubt that the destruction of the Temple is our fault. However, our righteous King Messiah is the one who will rebuild the Temple -- and until such time as he appears, it will remain impossible for us to bring any offerings!
The prophets already wrote: we render for bullocks the offering of our lips (Hoshea 14:3) -- and our Sages understood that God is giving us the possibility of achieving the same goal of closeness to Him, by means of verbal prayer. Therefore they established two daily prayers (called the "eighteen"), to parallel the two perpetual offerings which were brought in the Temple; and another prayer to be said at night, to correspond to the burning of the remainders of the daily offerings, which took place at night. (see Laws of Prayer 1:7 etc.).
Nevertheless, there is no equivalence between a verbal prayer and bringing an offering in the great and holy House in which His name is called! Since the arrival of the Messiah is that which will allow us to rebuild the Temple (because that is still incumbent upon us even now), we must act in order to bring closer the day on which he will be revealed to us. It is not enough to hope, rather we must repent wholeheartedly and worship God with our entire being, and to be zealous in performing His words. As that same prophet concluded: Whoso is wise, let him understand these things, whoso is prudent, let him know them. For the ways of the LORD are right, and the just do walk in them; but transgressors do stumble therein. (Hoshea 14:10) When the Temple is rebuilt, the perpetual offerings and all the rest of the commandments of the Torah will return and resume their exalted place, and we will return to being a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation (Num 19:6). May it be His will!
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