The incense offering (Hebrew : קְטֹרֶתqəṭōreṯ) in Judaism was related to perfumed offerings on the altar of incense in the time of the Tabernacle and the First and Second Temple period, and was an important component of priestly liturgy in the Temple in Jerusalem. [1]
The sacred incense prescribed for use in the wilderness Tabernacle was made of costly materials that the congregation contributed (Exodus 25:1, 2, 6; 35:4, 5, 8, 27-29). The Book of Exodus describes the recipe:
And the LORD said unto Moses, Take unto yourself sweet spices, stacte, and onycha, and galbanum; these sweet spices with pure frankincense: of each shall there be a like weight: And you shall make it a perfume, a confection after the art of the apothecary, tempered together [salted], pure and holy: And you shall beat some of it very small, and put of it before the testimony in the tabernacle of the congregation, where I will meet with you: it shall be unto you most holy. And as for the perfume which you shall make, you shall not make to yourselves according to the composition thereof: it shall be unto you holy for the LORD. Whosoever shall make like unto it, to enjoy the smell thereof, shall even be cut off from his people.-Exodus 30:34-38; 37:29.
At the end of the Holy compartment of the tabernacle, next to the curtain dividing it off from the Most Holy, was located the incense altar (Exodus 30:1; 37:25; 40:5, 26, 27). According to the Books of Chronicles, there was also a similar incense altar in Solomon's temple in Jerusalem (1 Chronicles 28:18, 2 Chronicles 2:4). Every morning and evening the sacred incense was burned (Ex 30:7, 8; 2 Chronicles 13:11). Once a year, on the Day of Atonement, coals from the altar were taken in a censer, or fire holder, together with two handfuls of incense, into the Holy of Holies, where the incense was made to smoke before the mercy seat of the ark of the testimony (Leviticus 16:12–13 ).
The Book of Exodus lists four components of the incense, while the Talmud lists seven additional components from the oral Torah. The four components from the Book of Exodus are
The components are still being studied and are not determined with absolute certainty. Stacte is variously described as being the extract of the transparent portion of the myrrh resin which exudes spontaneously from the tree, or a balsam from a tree such as opobalsamum or a styrax. Onycha, which in Greek means "nail", is variously described as being the operculum from a shell found in the Red Sea (which are said to resemble a fingernail), the exudation from the rock rose bush called labdanum (both petals and markings which are said to resemble a fingernail), Styrax benzoin, bdellium, or even cloves. Galbanum is generally considered to be Ferula galbaniflua. Also considered is a milder variety from the Levant or possibly even a close relative of Ferula galbaniflua called narthex or giant fennel.[ dubious ] Pure frankincense is the resin of a tree of the boswellia species.[ citation needed ]
Josephus mentions the incense, numbering thirteen ingredients. [2]
The rabbis of the Talmud expanded the description of the recipe for the incenses from 4 ingredients of the Hebrew Bible to 11 ingredients. [3] as follows:
The Rabbis taught: How is the incense mixture formulated? Three hundred and sixty eight mina were in it: three hundred sixty five corresponding to the days of the solar year - a mina for each day, half in the morning and half in the afternoon, and three extra mina, from which the Kohen Gadol would bring both his handfuls [into the Holy of Holies] on Yom Kippur. He would return them to the mortar on the day preceding Yom Kippur, and grind them very thoroughly so that they would be exceptionally fine. Eleven kinds of spices were in it, as follows: (1) stacte, (2) onycha, (3) galbanum, (4) frankincense - each weighing seventy mina [and each comprising 19.02% of the total weight]; (5) myrrh, (6) cassia, (7) spikenard, (8) saffron, each weighing sixteen "mina" [and each comprising 4.35% of the total weight]; (9) costus - twelve mina [comprising 3.26% of the total weight]; (10) aromatic bark - three "mina" [comprising 0.82% of the total weight]; and (11) cinnamon - nine "mina" [comprising 2.45% of the total weight]; [Additionally] Carshina lye, nine kab ; Cyprus wine, three se'ah and three kab - if he has no Cyprus wine, he brings old white wine; Sodom salt, a quarter-kab; and a minute amount of maaleh ashan . Rabbi Nathan of Babylon says: Also a minute amount of Jordan amber. If he added honey, he invalidated it; if he [deliberately] omitted one of the spices, he was liable to the death penalty. Rabbi Shimon ben Gamaliel says: The stacte is nothing more than the sap that drips from the branches of the balsam tree. Why was Carshina lye brought? To refine the onycha, that it be pleasant. Why was Cyprus wine brought? To steep the onycha, that it be pungent; while urine (מי רגליים - mei raglaiim) was more suited for this, nevertheless, one did not bring urine into the Temple, out of respect. [4]
According to the Talmud, the House of Avtinas was responsible for compounding the qetoret incense in the days of the Second Temple.[ citation needed ]
The New Testament makes several typological references to incense, including a Christological reference to the coals from the altar of incense taken behind the veil on the Day of Atonement (Hebrews 9:3–4), [5] and a reference to the prayers of believers as incense (Revelation 5:8). [6] In later Christian typology the smoke of incense in the tabernacle typically signifies offered prayer. [7] This was developed in medieval Christian art. [8] In the Catholic Church, the Eastern Orthodox Church and a considerable part of the Anglican Church, and among some Lutheran churches as well, incense is still used in liturgical rites as well as in some popular devotions outside of church liturgies.[ citation needed ]
Yom Kippur is the holiest day of the year in Judaism and Samaritanism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October.
According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle, also known as the Tent of the Congregation, was the portable earthly dwelling used by the Israelites from the Exodus until the conquest of Canaan. Moses was instructed at Mount Sinai to construct and transport the tabernacle with the Israelites on their journey through the wilderness and their subsequent conquest of the Promised Land. After 440 years, Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem superseded it as the dwelling-place of God.
Myrrh is a gum-resin extracted from a few small, thorny tree species of the Commiphora genus, belonging to the Burseraceae family. Myrrh resin has been used throughout history in medicine, perfumery, and incenses. Myrrh mixed with posca or wine was widely used in many ancient cultures to produce pleasurable feelings and as an anti-inflammatory and analgesic.
The Holy of Holies is a term in the Hebrew Bible that refers to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle, where God's presence appeared. According to Hebrew tradition, the area was defined by four pillars that held up the veil of the covering, under which the Ark of the Covenant was held above the floor. According to the Hebrew scripture, the Ark contained the Ten Commandments, which were given by God to Moses on Mount Sinai. The Temple in Jerusalem was said to have been built by King Solomon for keeping the Ark.
In Judaism, the korban, also spelled qorban or corban, is any of a variety of sacrificial offerings described and commanded in the Torah. The plural form is korbanot, korbanoth, or korbanos.
In Judaism, ritual washing, or ablution, takes two main forms. Tevilah (טְבִילָה) is a full body immersion in a mikveh, and netilat yadayim is the washing of the hands with a cup.
Onycha, along with equal parts of stacte, galbanum, and frankincense, was one of the components of the consecrated Ketoret (incense) which appears in the Torah book of Exodus (Ex.30:34-36) and was used in Solomon's Temple in Jerusalem. This formula was to be incorporated as an incense, and was not to be duplicated for non-sacred use. What the onycha of antiquity actually was cannot be determined with certainty. The original Hebrew word used for this component of the ketoret was שחלת, shecheleth, which means "to roar; as a lion " or “peeling off by concussion of sound." Shecheleth is related to the Syriac shehelta which is translated as “a tear, distillation, or exudation.” In Aramaic, the root SHCHL signifies “retrieve.” When the Torah was translated into Greek the Greek word “onycha” ονυξ, which means "fingernail" or "claw," was substituted for shecheleth.
Terumah, Terumoh, Terimuh, or Trumah is the nineteenth weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the seventh in the Book of Exodus. The parashah tells of God's instructions to make the Tabernacle and its furnishings. The parashah constitutes Exodus 25:1–27:19. It is made up of 4,692 Hebrew letters, 1,145 Hebrew words, 96 verses, and 155 lines in a Torah Scroll. Jews in the Diaspora read it the nineteenth Sabbath after Simchat Torah, generally in February and rarely in early March.
Tetzaveh, Tetsaveh, T'tzaveh, or T'tzavveh is the 20th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the eighth in the Book of Exodus. The parashah reports God's commands to bring olive oil for the lamp, make sacred garments for the priests, conduct an ordination ceremony, and make an incense altar.
Parashat Vayikra, VaYikra, Va-yikra, Wayyiqra, or Wayyiqro is the 24th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the first in the Book of Leviticus. The parashah lays out the laws of sacrifices. It constitutes Leviticus 1:1–5:26.
Yoma is the fifth tractate of Seder Moed of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. It is concerned mainly with the laws of the Jewish holiday Yom Kippur, on which Jews atone for their sins from the previous year. It consists of eight chapters and has a Gemara ('Completion') from both the Jerusalem Talmud and the Babylonian Talmud.
Acharei Mot is the 29th weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading. It is the sixth weekly portion in the Book of Leviticus, containing Leviticus 16:1–18:30. It is named after the fifth and sixth Hebrew words of the parashah, its first distinctive words.
Emor is the 31st weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the eighth in the Book of Leviticus. The parashah describes purity rules for priests, recounts the holy days, describes the preparations for the lights and bread in the sanctuary, and tells the story of a blasphemer and his punishment. The parashah constitutes Leviticus 21:1–24:23. It has the most verses of any of the weekly Torah portions in the Book of Leviticus, and is made up of 6,106 Hebrew letters, 1,614 Hebrew words, 124 verses and 215 lines in a Torah Scroll.
Atonement in Judaism is the process of causing a sin to be forgiven or pardoned. Judaism describes various means of receiving atonement for sin, that is, reconciliation with God and release from punishment. The main method of atonement is via repentance. Other means may be involved in the atonement process, together with repentance.
Religious use of incense has its origins in antiquity. The burned incense may be intended as a symbolic or sacrificial offering to various deities or spirits, or to serve as an aid in prayer.
Stacte and nataph are names used for one component of the Solomon's Temple incense, the Ketoret, specified in the Book of Exodus. Variously translated to the Greek term or to an unspecified "gum resin" or similar, it was to be mixed in equal parts with onycha, galbanum and mixed with pure frankincense and they were to "beat some of it very small" for burning on the altar of the tabernacle.
The Hebrew term kareth, or extirpation, is a form of punishment for sin, mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and later Jewish writings. Kareth in its simplistic meaning refers to an individual being expelled from the Nation of Israel. In the Talmud, kareth means not necessarily physical "cutting off" of life, but can also mean the extinction of the soul and denial of a share in the world to come.
Altars in the Hebrew Bible were typically made of earth or unwrought stone. Altars were generally erected in conspicuous places. The first time the word altar is mentioned and recorded in the Hebrew Bible is that it was erected by Noah, although it does not specify that there was an altar in. Other altars were erected by Abraham, by Isaac, by Jacob, by Moses, and by Saul.
The incense offering, a blend of aromatic substances that exhale perfume during combustion, usually consisting of spices and gums burnt as an act of worship, occupied a prominent position in the sacrificial legislation of the ancient Hebrews.
In Judaism, the Yom Kippur Temple service was a special sacrificial service performed by the High Priest of Israel on the holiday of Yom Kippur, in the Temple in Jerusalem. Through this service, according to the Bible, the Jewish people would achieve atonement for their sins once each year. The service is notable as the only time in the year any person was allowed to enter the Holy of Holies, and is the source of the term scapegoat.
This would imply that the incense was composed of only four elements, which would contradict the talmudic record that the incense had eleven ingredients, as well as Josephus' account of thirteen ingredients.
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