'The Sacrificial Service': Leviticus has been mistranslated for centuries - review

Jonathan Grossman, a professor of Bible at Bar-Ilan University, presents a novel interpretation of the sacrificial system in Leviticus in his book, 'The Sacrificial Service: Gestures of Flesh and Spirit.' Contrary to prevailing views that see the system as a concession to Israel's pagan past or an archaeological relic, Grossman argues it functions as a precise, nonverbal language through which humans communicate specific intentions to God.

Grossman challenges the traditional understanding of the first word in Leviticus's sacrificial code. He highlights that "when one of you brings an animal offering to the Lord..." uses the conditional "when," not a command. Furthermore, he emphasizes that the Hebrew word for offering, "korban," derives from "karov," meaning "near." This suggests the worshiper is not merely giving something up but actively approaching God, with the subsequent detailed specifications ensuring this approach is favorably received.

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When one of you brings an animal offering to the Lord... The operative word is “when,” not “shall.” Commentators have always noticed the conditional. Grossman notices something else. The word for offering is “korban,” from karov, near. The worshiper is not giving something up. He is approaching.

A central element of Grossman's argument involves re-examining the verb "hiktir," which appears frequently in sacrificial descriptions. Most translations render it as "burn." However, Grossman, following Rabbi Ezra Bick, contends that the word relates to "kitor," meaning smoke, not fire. This distinction reframes the altar not as a furnace for destruction but as a threshold for transformation, where matter is lifted as vapor to rise.

This reinterpretation significantly alters the meaning of various offerings. The burnt offering, where the entire animal is consumed, is seen as the body's gesture when the spirit wishes to convey everything without reservation. The peace offering, with its division of the animal among the altar, priest, and worshiper, symbolizes the grammar of covenant and shared sustenance with God. The purification offering's blood, which purifies the altar itself, addresses the contamination sin deposits.

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Hiktir appears at the conclusion of nearly every sacrificial description in Leviticus, and most translations render it as “burn.” Grossman, following his teacher Rabbi Ezra Bick, shows the word has nothing to do with fire; it comes from kitor, smoke. To burn something is to destroy it; to hiktir something is to transform it, to take matter and lift it as vapor so that it rises. The altar is therefore not a furnace but a threshold.