Let Aaron kindle it

Joseph Ibn Abītūr

Late 10th or Early 11th Century

About This Entry

This Hebrew poem is for the Sabbath when the Torah portion Tetsaveh is read, which begins with Exodus 27:20, where Moses is told to instruct Aaron to light the menorah in the Temple with pure olive oil. In each stanza, the poet says that it must be lit with “pure olive oil and not [another oil].” The other oils are drawn from a list in Mishnah Shabbat, Chapter 2, of those fuels that may not be used for illumination for the Sabbath. By inserting them here, the poet implicitly likens kindling the Sabbath lights to lighting the holy Temple menorah. Like Exodus 27:20, the poem is in God’s voice, addressed to Moses.

Let Aaron kindle it,

and count seven lamps, opposite the ark of the covenant.

Oil of the first pressing and not of the last—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

If [the priests], who pour oil on their [grain-offering] wafers, listen to my utterances,

I’ll raise them up from rock-crevices to lofty throne;

Pure olive oil and not castor oil—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

Explain my words to [the priests], wearing their miters,

to light lamps when I gather the community.

Pure olive oil and not oil destined to be burned¹—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

Let the first pressing be for the menorah, for the tribes of God,

Let the last pressing be for grain-offerings, offered by all the people.

Pure olive oil and not tail-fat—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

May My upright laws untie every knot,

when they are performed with a clean heart.

Pure olive oil and not fat—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

Let the strong² and the weak participate,

and the ruler, the ruled, and the fragile.

Pure olive oil and not cooked [fat]—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

Every believer should contribute a portion,

and the menorah should be placed to the right [of the shewbread].

Pure olive oil and not sesame [oil]—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

Keep My utterances, O [Moses], father of all seers,

Turn and see! All secrets are revealed to Me.

Pure olive oil and not walnut [oil]—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

If [the Jews], who set their prayers in order, keep My words,

I will feed sharpened swords to their enemies.

Pure olive oil and not radish [oil]—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

If the congregations, bathed by bright light, observe My words,

I will strengthen their arms, and they will not falter.

Pure olive oil and not fish [oil]—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

Sing of My greatness upon heights and in valleys,

And I’ll pour fourth overflowing plenty from the firmament to the firm earth.

Pure olive oil and not gourd [oil]—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

I’ll make their appearance shine and their glow radiate,

I’ll let them trample, yes, trample, the high places of Uz and Aran.³

Pure olive oil and not tar—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

May the hordes of your enemies be like rotten refuse,

And may your multitudes be protected from the four types of retribution.⁴

Pure olive oil and not naphtha—

In front of the Lord, as a memorial.

Translated by Gabriel Wasserman.

Notes

1

[Oil that has been separated as terumah, the so-called “heave offering,” but has become ritually impure is forbidden for the priests to eat. Such oil must be burned, but not on a holiday. The Mishnah lists it in the list of fuels that may not be used for Sabbath illumination, to cover the case when Friday falls on a holiday.—Trans.]

2

[Hebrew ne’eshal, the poet’s neologism from the noun eshel, a type of tree, meaning “a person strong as a mighty tree.”—Trans.]

3

[These are clans of Seir (Genesis 36:28), and thus, due to the equation Seir = Edom = Christendom, stand in for the Christian kingdoms persecuting the Jews.—Trans.]

4

[Four types of retribution: sword, famine, wild beasts, epidemic (Ezekiel 14:21).—Trans.]

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 3: Encountering Christianity and Islam.

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About This Entry

This Hebrew poem is for the Sabbath when the Torah portion Tetsaveh is read, which begins with Exodus 27:20, where Moses is told to instruct Aaron to light the menorah in the Temple with pure olive oil. In each stanza, the poet says that it must be lit with “pure olive oil and not [another oil].” The other oils are drawn from a list in Mishnah Shabbat, Chapter 2, of those fuels that may not be used for illumination for the Sabbath. By inserting them here, the poet implicitly likens kindling the Sabbath lights to lighting the holy Temple menorah. Like Exodus 27:20, the poem is in God’s voice, addressed to Moses.

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