Sifra 11.0.25

Emor, Chapter 14

1) (Vayikra 23:27) ("Only on the tenth day of this seventh month it is the day of atonement. A holy calling shall it be for you. And you shall afflict your souls and you shall present a fire-offering to the L–rd.") "the day of atonement, a holy calling," "the day of atonement and you shall afflict your souls," (Vayikra 23:28) "And all work you shall not do for it is a day of atonement." (Why three times?) For I might think that Yom Kippur does not atone unless he made it a holy calling (in the blessings of the day), and afflicted himself, and abstained from labor. Whence do I derive that even if he did not do these, the day atones? From "It is the day of atonement." I might think that Yom Kippur atoned only with the offerings and with the he-goats. Whence do I derive that the day atones even without them? From "It is the day of atonement." I might think that it atones both for those who repent and those who do not. — No would this follow? A sin-offering and a guilt-offering atone. Just as they atone only for penitents (viz. Bamidbar 5:7), so, Yom Kippur should atone only for penitents!

2) — No, this may be so for a guilt-offering and a sin-offering, which do not atone for witting sin as for unwitting sin. Would you say the same for Yom Kippur, which does atone for witting as for unwitting sin? And since it does, we would say that it atones both for those who do repent and for those who do not. It is, therefore, written "Only" (a term of exclusion). To teach that it atones only for those who repent.

3) (Vayikra 23:28) ("And all work you shall not do on this self-same day; for it is a day of atonement to atone for you before the L–rd your G d.") "And all work you shall not do on this self-same day": This is the exhortation against labor (on Yom Kippur). (Vayikra 23:30) "And every soul that shall do any labor on this self-same day, I shall make that soul go lost from the midst of its people.": This is the punishment against labor.

4) (Vayikra 23:29) "For every soul which will not be afflicted on this self-same day will be cut off from its people." This is the punishment for (non-) application. (Vayikra 23:30) "I shall make that soul go lost": What is the intent of this? (i.e., What do we learn from this equivalence between kareth ["cutting-off"] and "aveidah" ["going lost"]?) Because "kareth" is mentioned in every place and I do not know what it is, "I shall make that soul go lost" indicates that "kareth" refers to complete destruction (and not merely to the cutting off of the soul from the body.) And whence is it derived that eating, drinking, washing, anointing, cohabitation, and shodding are forbidden on Yom Kippur? From (Vayikra 23:32) "A Sabbath of resting … and you shall afflict" (The connotation is extension of affliction). I might then think that all of these are forbidden on the Sabbath of creation (i.e., Saturday, which is also referred to as "a Sabbath of resting"); it is, therefore, written "A Sabbath of resting it (Yom Kippur) shall be for you and you shall afflict, etc." "It" is forbidden in all (of these things), and not the Sabbath of creation.

5) (Vayikra 23:32) ("and you shall afflict your souls on the ninth day of the month in the evening; from evening until evening shall you rest your resting.") I might think that he should fast on the ninth day itself; it is, therefore, written "in the evening." If "in the evening," I might think when it became dark; it is, therefore, written "and you shall afflict your souls "on the ninth." How is this to be resolved? He begins fasting (on the ninth) when it is still light, adding "from the profane to the holy." This tells me (that we add) only before. Whence do we derive the same ("adding") for after? From "from evening until evening."

6) This tells me only of (adding on) Yom Kippur. Whence do I derive (the same for) the Sabbath of creation? From (the redundant) "shall you rest." Whence do we derive (the same for) the festivals? From "your resting." Wherever there is "resting" you add from the profane to the holy, both before and after.

7) I might think that there is (kareth) liability for (labor on) the "addition" (above). It is, therefore, written (Vayikra 23:30) "And every soul that should do any labor on this self-same day, I shall make go lost" — (for labor on) the self-same day there is kareth, but not for labor on the "addition."

8) I might think that there is no kareth liability for labor (on the addition), but that there is such liability for (non-) affliction on the addition; it is, therefore, written (Vayikra 23:29) "For every soul which will not be afflicted on this self-same day will be cut off." For (non-) affliction on the self-same day there is kareth liability, but not for (non-) affliction on the addition. I might think that he is not subject to the punishment, but that he is subject to (transgression of) the exhortation. It is, therefore, written "All work you shall not do on this self-same day." There is exhortation against (labor on) this self-same day, but not against labor on the addition.

9) I might think that (though) there is no exhortation against labor on the addition, there is exhortation against (non-) affliction on the addition. But it follows a fortiori (that this is not so, viz.: If (the ban against) labor, which obtains on festivals and Sabbaths, is not exhorted against (vis-à-vis labor on the addition), then (non-) affliction, (the ban against which does not obtain on festivals and Sabbaths — how much more so is it not exhorted against (on the addition)! But we have not heard any exhortation against (non-) affliction on the day (Yom Kippur) itself! (It is derived, however, as follows:) Let the punishment against labor not be stated, for it may be derived a fortiori, viz.: If (non-) affliction, (the ban against which) does not obtain on festivals and Sabbaths, is (on Yom Kippur) punishable by kareth, then labor (the ban against which) does obtain on festivals and Sabbaths, how much more so should it be punishable (by kareth!) Why, then, is the punishment for labor (on Yom Kippur) stated? To derive from it the exhortation against (non-) affliction (on Yom Kippur), viz.: Just as the punishment for labor follows a (written) exhortation, so, the punishment for (non-) affliction follows an (understood) exhortation.