The Mitzvah of Pidyon Haben in the Teachings of the Seforno

כִּי לִי כָּל בְּכוֹר

For every firstborn is Mine (Bamidbar 3:13)

Our parsha discusses the transfer of avodat hakorbanot from the domain of the Bechorim (Firstborn) to that of the Levi’im in general, and to the Kohanim in particular. As part of the introduction to this transfer, Hashem says:

כִּי לִי כָּל בְּכוֹר בְּיוֹם הַכֹּתִי כָל בְּכוֹר בְּאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם הִקְדַּשְׁתִּי לִי כָל בְּכוֹר בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל ... לִי יִהְיוּ אֲנִי ה'

For every firstborn is Mine, on the day I smote every firstborn in the Land of Mitzrayim I sanctified every firstborn among Yisrael for Myself … they shall be Mine, I am Hashem.

Before and After Makat Bechorot

The generally held understanding of this pasuk is that the kedushah of bechor came as a result of Hashem saving the Bechorim at the time of Makat Bechorot. In the present discussion we will be looking into the peirush of the Seforno which is unique both in terms of his understanding of kedushat bechor itself, as well as of the role of pidyon (redemption) of the bechor. The Seforno (s.v. ki li) writes:

For every bechor is Mine: Originally, the Avodah lay in the domain of the Bechorim.[1] 

However,[2] when the time came for Makat Bechorot, the Bechorim[3] were deserving of being punished on account of the generation, since they were the most prominent (among Yisrael),[4] and were not deserving of being saved from a widespread plague,[5] similar to that which was said (Bereishit 19:15),[6] “פֶּן תִּסָּפֶה בַּעֲו‍ֹן הָעִיר — Lest you perish due to the sin of the city.”

Nonetheless I saved them by sanctifying them for Myself,[7] which rendered them forbidden to be involved in mundane pursuits, as is the case with a hekdesh animal that may not be shorn or worked.

Therefore, in order for these things to be permitted to them, I required them to undergo pidyon — as is the case for any hekdesh object being released for normal use — as it says (Shemot 13:13) “וְכֹל בְּכוֹר אָדָם בְּבָנֶיךָ תִּפְדֶּה — And every human firstborn among your sons you shall redeem.” However, this pidyon was not something that would exclude them from performing the Avodah.[8]

And now that they have sinned, I have detested them,[9] and I have taken the Levi’im as a redemption in their stead, “וְהָיוּ לִי הַלְוִיִּם — And the Levi’im shall be Mine.” (pasuk 12)

Let us summarize the words of the Seforno as follows:

1.   Historically, the area of Avodah had naturally belonged to bechorim, even prior to Makat Bechorot. This was not a product of any mitzvah in this regard, but rather of convention and natural expectation. However, the bechor did not originally have any intrinsic additional kedushah.

2.   At the time of Makat Bechorot, in order to save the Bechorim from being affected, Hashem “removed them” from their surroundings by imbuing them with a kedushah that transferred them into His domain. At this stage, due to this kedushah, a bechor would not be allowed to involve himself in chol matters.

3.   The mitzvah of pidyon was stated in order for the bechor to be redeemed from his kedushah and to allow him to be involved in chol matters [i.e., to return to the status of bechor as it was prior to Makat Bechorot].

4.   As a result of the Chet Ha’Egel, the Bechorim were deposed from being involved in the Avodah altogether, and were redeemed — i.e. replaced — by the Levi’im.

We see that according to the Seforno, the kedushah of Bechorim did not come about as a result of Makat Bechorot, but rather as a prelude to it, in order to spare the bechorim from being included in the plague.

We also see from the Seforno’s explanation that when it comes to bechor, there are two types of pidyon to consider:

1.   The pidyon of each newborn bechor with five silver shekalim. This is a mitzvah ledorot, as the kedushah with which Hashem imbued the Bechorim continues to be imbued in each newborn bechor. Hence, the pidyon from that kedushah is an ongoing mitzvah.[10]

2.   The pidyon of all bechorim after the Chet Ha’Egel which transferred the Avodah to the Levi’im. That transfer occurred on one occasion only and it was permanent in nature, hence, there is no mitzvah ledorot relating to this aspect of pidyon.

Pidyon Haben at Yetziyat Mitzrayim

The approach of the Seforno to kedushat bechor and pidyon haben can already be found earlier on, in his peirush to Parshat Bo (13:2 kadesh):

All (bechorim) are obligated in pidyon as is the case with all (items of) hekdesh, in order that they be permitted to involve themselves in chol matters, for without pidyon they would be forbidden to engage in chol matters, as it states (Devarim 15:19) “לֹא תַעֲבֹד בִּבְכֹר שׁוֹרֶךָ — Do not work with the firstborn of your oxen.” The amount required for their pidyon is the value specified for a one-month-old male child in the parsha of Arachin,[11] since that is the age at which he is redeemed.[12]

According to the Seforno, we can understand why no specific sum was mentioned regarding pidyon haben when the mitzvah was first given to B’nei Yisrael upon leaving Mitzrayim. On that occasion there was no specific age at which to redeem the bechorim, for they were redeemed at whatever age they happened to be at that time. Indeed, there is room to ponder exactly how they fulfilled the mitzvah at that time.[13]

Between “קדש לי” and “הקדשתי לי”

In light of the above discussion, it is worthwhile noting in conclusion that the terms “קַדֶּשׁ לִי — Sanctify for Me” as directed to B’nei Yisrael and “הִקְדַּשְׁתִּי לִי — I sanctified for Myself” as stated by Hashem do not have exactly the same meaning. The words “הִקְדַּשְׁתִּי לִי” refer to something that Hashem had done, i.e. instilling kedushah within every bechor. As such, the words “קַדֶּשׁ לִי” said to B’nei Yisrael are not telling them to instill the bechor with kedushah — as that is something Hashem has already done! — but rather to recognize the kedushah of the bechor and to relate to him accordingly prior to performing pidyon.

This idea of a verb used to denote not action, but recognition, is something that is found elsewhere in Tanach, especially with regards to our relationship with Hashem. Thus, for example, when the pasuk says (Tehillim 34:4) “גַּדְּלוּ לַה' אִתִּי,” it does not mean “Make Hashem great together with me,” but rather, “Recognize Hashem’s greatness together with me.”

[1] This opening phrase describes the status of the Bechorim as it had always been, even before Makat Bechorot. It was naturally understood that the Avodah accrued to the bechor; however, his involvement in Avodah did not preclude him from being involved in mundane (chol) pursuits as well.

[2] According to the Seforno, the words that follow (ביום הכותי וגו') are not to be understood as a continuation of the opening phrase, but are rather describing a subsequent chapter in the history of the Bechorim, namely, the events surrounding Makat Bechorot which introduced the additional element of “kedushat bechor.”

[3] Among Yisrael.

[4] I.e. they did not necessarily sin more than others among Yisrael, nevertheless, due to their prominent status, they were more susceptible to indictment.

[5] For in order to be saved from such a plague they would have had to be on the level of tzaddikim gemurim (completely righteous individuals).

[6] To Lot, as he was being told to flee the city of Sodom. Lot may have been considered a tzaddik relative to the people of Sodom, but he was certainly not a tzaddik gamur. Hence, he had to flee in order to be spared the destruction that was to befall the city.

[7] The sanctification of the Bechorim was in order to effectively “remove them” from Mitzrayim by placing them in the domain of Hashem. Thus, when Makat Bechorot swept across Mitzrayim, they were not considered as being part of their surroundings, and hence were saved.

[8] Rather, it would simply allow them to revert to their prior status of being involved in Avodah while also being allowed to be involved in matters of chol.

[9] In terms of them being involved in Avodah as they had always been.

[10] [Indeed, it is possible to explain in this vein the concluding phrase of our pasuk which states, “לי יהיו — They shall be Mine,” i.e. bechorim will have this kedushah on an ongoing basis, including those born in future years.].

[11] I.e., Vayikra 27:6 which states that the associated “value” (erech) for a male child from the age of one month until five years is five silver shekalim .

[12] See also Seforno to Bamidbar 8:17, s.v. ki li.

[13] [Presumably, the Rav is referring to the question as to how they gauged the value of each individual bechor. Additionally, he may be referring to the question of to whom the money was paid.]