2,711 pages of Talmud. A gem a day.

Zevachim 71

Today’s daf gives a new picture of what the Temple looked like. It discusses what to do when animals brought to the get mixed up. A few pages ago we read about what to do if two women brought bird sacrifices and the priest was not sure which birds for which woman. This made me think that he simply forgot as they handed them over, but today’s daf teaches us that the Temple really had tons of animals at any time that were either waiting to be scrificed or that were unable to be sacrificed for some reason and so they were put out to pasture either until they could be sold (to purchase an equivalent animal that was kosher for sacrifice) or until it becomes unfit. This means that there were herds of animals at the Temple!

Studying Talmud has changed how I view the priests, how I imagined sacrifice happened, and now the picture I had of the Temple as being a metro center into more of a pasture/slaughterhouse.

Zevchim 70

Today’s gem is a one liner that just reminds us the importance of those in leadership positions to set a good example and only teach what they really know.

Rava said to him (Rav Ya’akov bar Abba): How many elders have you caused to err in the interpretation of this baraita?

What if every leader, every politician, every “influencer” was asked: How many have you caused to err?

Maybe people would be a little more careful in what they say, do and teach.

Zevachim 69

There are many terms that the Talmud uses to derive laws, one is a “kal vachomer” which means “light to heavy” and is usually translated as “a fortiori.” They express that if something is true in one situation then it should also be true in another situation where that second example has more weight. So, if you get in trouble for stealing a piece of gum, all the more so you would get in trouble for stealing an entire case!

Today’s gem is why we use this method of deriving laws. AND what this particular example might teach us.

How is it derived from the Torah that derivation by means of an a fortiori inference is a valid method of biblical exegesis? The Torah states with regard to Miriam, who was reprimanded by God: “And the Lord said to Moses: If her father had but spit in her face, should she not hide in shame seven days? Let her be shut up outside the camp seven days” (Numbers 12:14). If one who was reprimanded by her father would hide in shame for seven days, one could infer through an a fortiori inference that one reprimanded by the Divine Presence should be shut up outside the camp for fourteen days.

One question from the above is why stop at 14 days? Yes, God is above a parent, so why not 100 days? 1000?

Rabbeinu Tam is quoted as connecting this with the idea that there are three partners in the creation of a person their mother, their father and God. This shows that God is the equivalent of both mother and father and offense against God deserves double banishment, hence 14 days.

So we learn kal vachomer, we learn that there are 3 partners in creation, and we learn that God is like both our parents put together.

Zevachim 68

Today’s gem is what was apparently an old colloquialism that I find fantastic!

The mishna concludes: Rabbi Yehoshua said that there is a parable that explains this situation: This is what people say about a sheep: When it is alive it makes one sound, and when it is dead it makes seven sounds.

What does this mean? When it’s alive it can baa, but it’s body is used for many instruments: 2 horns become shofarot (trumpets), Shinbones become flutes, its skin becomes a drumhead, its large intestines become harp strings, and its small intestines become lyre strings.

I love it simply, but there is also something about not allowing the loss of the animal to remain just a loss, it can also be turned into something beautiful – like music.

Zevachim 67

On our daf, we continue to learn about the bird offerings. So, I wanted to share this beautiful explanation from the Ramban about which birds we can offer and why only those.

Ramban: God chose grown up turtledoves because they abstain from pairing with strangers, and attach themselves only to their mates, and once they lose their companions they never associate with another. So too Israel cleave to their God, and never attach themselves to another god. Pigeons, however, are very jealous and as a result of their jealousy they part from their previous mates and take on another. God chose them only when they are young before mating begins, for as long as the pigeon is young it is attached with greater love to the nest where it is reared than other birds. Our Rabbis say that if one touches the nest of all other birds to take the young ones or the eggs, they leave it and never nest there again, but the pigeon never abandons it under any circumstances. So too Israel who will never exchange their Creator and His Torah, “but either Jews or nailed to the stake.”

Zevachim 66

This is the first time I have read a Mishna and said “Duh” out loud reading it.

MISHNA: If the priest sacrificed a bird sin offering in its designated place below the red line, and he sacrificed it according to the procedure of a sin offering with pinching, i.e., cutting from the nape with a fingernail, and sprinkling, and he sacrificed it for the sake of a sin offering, the offering is fit.

Of course it’s kosher! We have been reading all week that this is exactly how the priest is supposed to do it! so, why is it saying it’s “fit”? At this point, we know the daf never wastes time saying the obvious.

What’s stranger is the Tosafot (medieval commentary from 12th and 13th century on the side of the page of Talmud) suggest that this statement is superfluous and comes only by way of introducing other, problematic cases. However, the Sefat Emet says that it’s really talking about a case that they did everything right but they were thinking about a different procedure. . .

There have been so many days that I just wanted the daf to say: this is the rule. And leave it at that. Today’s daf made me realize that I am reading like a Talmudist – because when it finally did what I wanted, I could not accept that it had no hidden meaning.

Zevachim 65

In the past few days, we move from the place of learning about zevachim – land animal sacrifices – to learning about sacrifices brought of fowl (doves or pigeons) which look different. While land animal sacrifices are performed one way, fowl sacrifices are prepared for sacrifice by means of melika, a process by which the priest would pierce the neck of the bird with his fingernail! Two days ago the daf described this sacrifice as the most difficult service that was performed in the Temple. While we discussed how hard it would be to throw feathers yesterday, and the description of how the priest had to hold the bird sounded challenging two days ago, today’s daf might tell us what really made it so hard: that the slaughter was with his bare hands.

One might have thought that the priest should pinch its nape with a knife. And one could derive this through a logical inference: And if with regard to slaughtering, with regard to which the verse did not establish that it must be performed by a priest, it established that it must be performed with an instrument, i.e., a knife (see 97b); then in the case of pinching, which the verse established must be performed by a priest, is it not logical that the verse establishes that it must be performed with an instrument? To counter this, the verse states: “And the priest shall bring it near the altar and pinch off its head.” In explanation of this verse, Rabbi Akiva said: Could it enter your mind that a non-priest may approach the altar in order to sacrifice an offering? Since this is impossible, the verse does not need to state that the sacrificial rite is performed by a priest. Rather, what is the meaning when the verse states: “The priest”? It means that the pinching must be performed with the very body of the priest.

I grew up in Indiana, my sister’s third word after mom and dad was “cow.” I remember as a teen eating burgers and hearing a small child look at a cow, while eating a burger, and saying she could never eat a cow. All to say – we are so separated from where our meat comes from. People say how grossed out they are when the fish they order comes out with it’s head. We prefer it de-boned and after breaded so we just can’t recognize what it is we are eating. We slaughter animals behind walls, we often never see where our meat comes from, if we did . . . maybe we would eat a little less meat, or be more appreciative and mindful as we ate.

Here, the priest feels the live bird in his hands, he has to take it’s life with his thumb – there is nothing more intimate, nothing to shield him from what he is doing, which is taking a life.

We read this and are disgusted (or at least I am), but this is the reality of where our food comes from. This may be why this is the hardest service, not even a knife to separate the priest from the act of slaughter. He has to feel the life leave the bird while it’s in his hands. That should be hard, very hard . . .

Zevachim 64

I loved studying physics in school. Physics shows us how all that math we learn applies to the real world. And so, today’s gem is a physics question:

Rabbi Yoḥanan says: Come and see how great was the strength of the priests, as you have no parts of birds lighter than the crop and feathers, and there were times when the priest would toss them more than thirty cubits from the southwest corner of the altar to the place of the ashes.

How can you throw feathers? And how can someone throw them 45 feet at that? Remember in physics how we learned about acceleration? The feathers acceleration would be counteracted by the force of air resistance. so, was this amazing strength or a miracle?

Eyn Eliyahu writes that the lengthy throws of the kohanim were miracles. He explains that God wants to demonstrate that those doing His service are blessed with great strength and abilities. This is how commentators explain the fact that God sent Moses, who had a speech difficulty, to speak to Pharaoh. Normally, it was hard for Moses to get the words out, especially when he was in a stressful situation. But when he brought Divine messages to Pharaoh he had no problem saying all the words fluently. This shows that God was putting the words in his mouth. The same would occur with the priest who had to throw the feathers.

Others, like the Shu”t Torah Lishmah believe that the priest being able to throw a light object a far distance was a display of strength and incredible skill.

So, what do we learn? That to do the impossible, we have to work hard, practice and gain skills. And, that with the power of God, the impossible might just be possible.

Zevachim 63

A spiritual nourishment on the daf today

From where is it derived that if gentiles surrounded the entire Temple courtyard and were attacking, making it impossible for the priests to remain there, the priests may enter that area, i.e., the Sanctuary, and eat the offerings of the most sacred order there? The verse states: “In a most holy place shall you eat it” (Numbers 18:10).

The daf says that when the Temple is attacked, the priests should enter sanctuary and nourish themselves.

What an important lesson, when it feels the world is closing in on us, when we are under attack, it’s time to seek sanctuary. Closeness to God can nourish us even in the hardest of times.

Zevachim 62

Today’s gem is magical. We have angels, prophets, and the changing of Hebrew writing!

We don’t often think of Judaism as having angelology, and yet the angels from Christianity and Islam come from Judaism. Today, the archangel Michael tells us where the location of the altar will be.

We also see the transition from ancient Hebrew script to the script we use today. I will put a picture after the Talmudic text so you can see.

The Gemara discusses the construction of the altar in the Second Temple. The Gemara asks: Granted, with regard to the location of the House, its shape was discernable from the vestiges of its foundations; but how did they know the proper location of the altar? The Gemara answers that Rabbi Elazar says: They saw a vision of the altar already built and Michael the archangel standing and sacrificing offerings upon it. And Rabbi Yitzḥak Nappaḥa says: They saw a vision of the ashes of Isaac that were placed in that location. And Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani says: From the entire House they smelled the scent of incense, yet from there, the location of the altar, they smelled a scent of burned animal limbs. Rabba bar bar Ḥana says that Rabbi Yoḥanan says: Three prophets ascended with them from the exile: One who testified to them about the size and shape of the altar, and one who testified to them about the proper location of the altar, and one who testified to them that one sacrifices offerings even if there is no Temple, provided that there is a proper altar. It was taught in a baraita that Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov says: Three prophets ascended with the Jewish people from the exile: One who testified to them about the size and shape of the altar and about the proper location of the altar, and one who testified to them that one sacrifices offerings even if there is no Temple, and one who testified to them about the Torah and instructed that it be written in Assyrian script [Ashurit] rather than the ancient Hebrew script used in the times of Moses.