Talmud - Sotah 38a סוטה ל״ח א׳

as it is written in the Torah, i.e., the Tetragrammaton, and in the country they use its substitute name of Lordship. In the country, the priests lift their hands so they are aligned with their shoulders during the benediction. And in the Temple they lift them above their heads, except for the High Priest, who does not lift his hands above the frontplate. Since the Tetragrammaton is inscribed on it, it is inappropriate for him to lift his hands above it. Rabbi Yehuda says: Even the High Priest lifts his hands above the frontplate, as it is stated: “And Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them” (Leviticus 9:22).

GEMARA: The Sages taught: The mitzva given to the priests: “So you shall bless the children of Israel” (Numbers 6:23), is that they bless them in the sacred tongue, Hebrew. Do you say that the benediction must be recited in the sacred tongue, or perhaps it may be recited in any language? The baraita answers: It is stated here, with regard to the Priestly Benediction: “So you shall bless,” and it is stated there, with regard to the blessings and curses: “These shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless the people” (Deuteronomy 27:12). There is a verbal analogy between these two usages of the word “bless”: Just as there, the blessings and curses were recited in the sacred tongue, as stated above (33a), so too here, the Priestly Benediction is recited in the sacred tongue.

Rabbi Yehuda says: It is not necessary to derive this from a verbal analogy, as it says with regard to the Priestly Benediction: “Thus,” which means that it is not recited correctly unless they recite it in this exact language, as it is written in the Torah.

It is taught in another baraita: “So you shall bless,” means while standing. Do you say that the benediction must be recited while standing, or perhaps it may even be recited while sitting? It is stated here: “So you shall bless,” and it is stated there, with regard to the blessings and curses: “These shall stand on Mount Gerizim to bless.” Just as there, the blessing was recited while standing, so too here, the priests must recite the Priestly Benediction while standing.

Rabbi Natan says: It is not necessary to derive this from a verbal analogy, as it says in the verse: “At that time the Lord separated the tribe of Levi to bear the Ark of the Covenant of the Lord, to stand before the Lord to minister to Him and to bless in His name” (Deuteronomy 10:8). Just as a priest performs the Temple service while standing, so too, he blesses while standing. The Gemara asks: And from where do we derive that he performs the service itself while standing? As it is written: “To stand to minister in the name of the Lord” (Deuteronomy 18:5).

It is taught in another baraita: “So you shall bless” means with lifted hands. Do you say that the priests must recite the benediction with lifted hands, or perhaps they may recite it without lifted hands? It is stated here: “So you shall bless,” and it is stated there, with regard to the dedication of the Tabernacle: “And Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people and blessed them” (Leviticus 9:22). Just as there, Aaron blessed the nation with lifted hands, so too here, the Priestly Benediction is recited with lifted hands.

This halakha was difficult for Rabbi Yonatan to understand: If this halakha is derived from the dedication of the Tabernacle, then why not also say: Just as there, the High Priest was the one who recited the blessing, and it was the New Moon, and the offerings that were brought were a communal service, so too here, the Priestly Benediction must be recited only by the High Priest, and on the New Moon, and when performing a communal service?

Rabbi Natan says: It is not necessary to derive from a verbal analogy that the Priestly Benediction is recited with lifted hands, as it says with regard to Aaron: “To stand to minister in the name of the Lord, him and his sons forever” (Deuteronomy 18:5). In this verse, his sons are juxtaposed with him. Just as Aaron recited the Priestly Benediction with lifted hands, so too, his sons recite the benediction with lifted hands. And furthermore, it is written “forever,” which indicates that it is referring not only to special occasions. And although the verse is not referring to the Priestly Benediction, the benediction is juxtaposed to the Temple service in another verse: “To minister to Him and to bless in His name” (Deuteronomy 10:8).

And it is taught in another baraita: “So you shall bless the children of Israel” means the blessing should be recited with the ineffable name. Do you say that the Priestly Benediction must be recited with the ineffable name, or perhaps it is recited with only the substitute name, Adonai? The verse states: “So shall they put My name” (Numbers 6:27), which means My name that is unique to Me.

One might have thought that even in the outlying areas, outside the Temple, this ineffable name is used. It is stated here, with regard to the Priestly Benediction: “So shall they put My name,” and it is stated there, with regard to the place one must sacrifice offerings: “The place that the Lord your God has chosen out of all your tribes to put His name there” (Deuteronomy 12:5). The verbal analogy teaches that just as there, the expression “to put His name there” is referring to the Temple, so too here, the mitzva of “so shall they put My name” applies in the Temple and not anywhere else.

Rabbi Yoshiya says: It is not necessary to derive this halakha from the verbal analogy, as it can be derived from a verse. It says in the verse: “In every place where I cause My name to be mentioned I will come to you and bless you” (Exodus 20:20). Does it enter your mind that this verse literally means that the Divine Presence will be revealed everywhere? Rather, this verse must be interpreted by transposition. It must be reordered and read as follows: In every place where I will come to you and bless you, there I will cause My name to be mentioned. Rabbi Yoshiya explains that God is stating: And where will I come to you and bless you? In the Temple. Therefore, he derives: There, in the Temple, I will cause My name to be mentioned, but the ineffable name is not mentioned elsewhere.

It is taught in another baraita: “So you shall bless the sons of Israel” (Numbers 6:23). I have derived only the halakha to bless the sons of Israel. From where do I derive the halakha of blessing converts, women, and emancipated slaves? The verse states immediately afterward: “You shall say to them,” meaning to all of the Jewish people.

It is taught in another baraita: “So you shall bless,” means that the priests must recite the Priestly Benediction face-to-face with the congregation. Do you say that the Benediction must be recited face-to-face, or perhaps it is only recited with the faces of the priests facing the back of the necks of the congregation? The verse states: “You shall say to them,” face-to-face, like a person who is talking to another.

It is taught in another baraita: “So you shall bless” means that the benediction must be recited out loud. Or, perhaps, is it recited only in a whisper? The verse states: “You shall say to them,” like a person who is talking to another.

Abaye said: We have a tradition with regard to the prayer leader calling the priests to recite the Priestly Benediction: When there are two priests, he calls: Priests, but when there is one priest he does not call: Priest, as it is stated: “You shall say to them,” in plural, meaning to a minimum of two priests. And Rav Ḥisda said: We have a tradition that a priest calls: Priests, but an Israelite does not call: Priests, as it is stated: “You shall say to them,” which means that the saying

Traduction : The William Davidson digital edition of the Koren Noé Talmud, with commentary by Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz.

Sotah 38a explores how priests raise their hands during the Priestly Blessing and why it must be recited standing in Hebrew.