“Hashem spoke to Moshe after the death of the two sons of Aharon, when they came near before the Lord, and died.” (Vayikra 16:1)

There are many different explanations offered as to what exactly were the sins of the sons of Aharon. The Yismach Moshe (Moshe Teitelbaum, 1759 –1841), offers his explanation, based on the two ways to serve Hashem – with Ahava (love) and with Yira (fear, awe, trepidation).

The Ramban in Chumash tells us that to serve Hashem out of love is greater than to serve out of fear. When the Bnei Aharon saw Moshe and Aharon in the service of Hashem, they saw a great amount of reverence to the point that it seemed to them that Moshe and Aharon were serving out of fear. They, on the other hand, felt that they were serving Hashem out of happiness and love. With this premise, the Yismach Moshe ties together a few of the explanations of what their sin was. Chazal tell us that they walked behind Moshe and Aharon and said, “When will these elders die and so that we can take over!?” This in itself sounds odd, for as we know that not only does the Torah uphold the dignity of the elderly, but considers it an advantage. So why would the sons of Aharon consider Moshe and Aharon’s age a negative?

He explains that in general older people lack the ability to be emotionally excited to the same level as younger people. Therefore, the sons felt that there was something lacking in the leadership because their service of Hashem was lacking joy. They thought, “If we would be ruling, our delight in serving Hashem would be apparent to all!”

In addition, drinking intoxicating beverages is a way that can bring one to simcha. They felt that it would be beneficial to drink something before they served Hashem, as this would add excitement and joy to their service. The Yismach Moshe explains, that there is a level of somberness, which is a higher level of service than that of exuberance, but it is not easily discerned. Moshe and Aharon were not lacking simcha, rather they had advanced to the higher level of serving Hashem in a reserved manner with awe (yiras haromemus). This was bnei Aharon’s mistake, as they misjudged Moshe and Aharon’s service and thought that they themselves were on a higher level than these two elders.

As we have just finished Pesach and the seder is still fresh in our memories, I would like to point out an interesting difference in customs whether a mourner should wear a kitel on the seder night. The kitel itself has an aspect of somberness as it is the clothing of the dead, but it is also a garment that shows distinction and dignity. The Netziv (Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin 1816-1893) says that the reason that the leader of the seder wears a kitel is because he is administering the rites of the night, just as the kohen gadol did in the Holy Temple.

As we walk away from Pesach full of exhilaration counting towards Shavuos, we have a rush of positive emotion. Though that is an important feeling, this should be coupled with an aspect of fear: We are going to be accepting Hashem’s Torah. Are we indeed worthy to do so?

When Chassidim count the omer, they have an interesting custom to do so with great emotion, screaming out the brocho and number. This is because they feel the awe increasing as they approach kabalas Hatorah.

It seems to me that as we have finished our holiday of Pesach, feeling satisfied that we have imbued ourselves with more emunah and bitachon, and are more willing to serve Hashem, we should take the lesson of the Yismach Moshe and keep in mind that the greater we are, the more “lofty fear” of Hashem we should have.