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Week 27 - Wednesday - 31 May 2000

SHEKALIM: CHAPTER 6 : MISHNA 3

And where did they prostrate? Four in the north, and four in the south, three in the east and two in the west, opposite the thirteen gates. The southern gates near the west: the Upper Gate, the Fuel Gate, the Firstlings Gate, the Water Gate, and why was it called the Water Gate? Because through it they would bring in the flagon of water for the libation on the festival. R. Eliezer b. Yaakov says: Through it the waters trickle and are destined to issue from beneath the threshold of the Temple. Opposite them on the north near to the west: the Gate of Yekhonyah, the Gate of the Offering, the Women's Gate, the Gate of Song. And why was it called the Gate of Yekhonyah? For through it Yekhonyah went to his exile. In the east, the Gate of Nicanor, and it had two wickets: one to its right and one to its left, and two in the west unnamed.

And where did they prostrate -The thirteen prostrations mentioned in the previous mishnah? Four -Prostrations In the north, and four in the south, three in the east and two in the west, opposite the thirteen gates -For they would prostrate themselves and thank God for the beauty of the building (Tosefot Yom Tov in the name of R. Shemayah). And these are the thirteen gates:

The southern gates near the west -The southern gates nearer the western side were: The Upper Gate -The gate closest to the west, for the Temple Mount sloped downward from west to east, The Fuel Gate -the wood for the altar pyre was brought through it -The Firstlings Gate -Where the firstborn animals, which were slaughtered in the south, were brought in, The Water Gate -As the mishnah explains below,

And why was it called the Water Gate? because through it they would bring in the flagon of water for the libation on the festival -of Sukkot (as described in the Mishnah (Sukkah 4:9). R. Eleazar b. Yaakov says: Through it the waters trickle and are destined to issue from beneath the threshold of the Temple -It was from there that the water prophesied by Yehezkel flowed, as we see (Ezek.47:1-2), "Afterward He brought me back unto the door of the house; and, behold, water was coming out form under the threshold of the house eastward...Then he brought me out by the way of the gate northward, and led me about round by the way without unto the outer gate by the way of the gate that looks eastward; and, behold, there trickled forth waters on the right side."

Opposite them on the north near to the west: the Gate of Yekhonyah -As explained below, The Gate of the Offering -Through which sacrifices which were slaughtered in the north were brought in, The Women's Gate -Through which women came to perform semikhah -lean -on their sacrifices. According to those who hold that women did not perform semikhah, the women would come in to be present during the sacrifice, The Gate of Song -Through this gate, the musical instruments were brought in.

And why was it called the Gate of Yekhonyah? For through it Yekhonyah went to his exile -He entered the Temple to prostrate himself through that gate and left by that gate to go into exile in Babylon (II Kings 24:15). In the east, the Gate of Nicanor -Named after Nicanor, who brought its doors from Egypt (Tractate Yoma 38a), And it had two wickets -Small gates, One to its right and one to its left -And these were included in the count of the thirteen gates, And two in the west -And two gates on the west, unnamed -that had no special name, because they had very little use except to go out into the open area behind the Temple (Hameiri; and see Tosefot Yom Tov). The Jerusalem Talmud explains that this mishnah follows Abba Yose b. Hanan, who holds that the prostrations were opposite the thirteen gates of the Temple, but the Sages hold that there were seven gates to the Temple courtyard, and according to them the thirteen prostrations were opposite the thirteen breaches made by the Greek kings in the Temple courtyard, and when the Hasmonean kings emerged victorious and sealed these breaches, the Sages decreed thirteen prostrations opposite them.

SHEKALIM: CHAPTER 6 : MISHNA 4

There were thirteen tables in the Temple: eight of marble in the slaughterhouse, upon which the entrails would be rinsed; and two to the western side of the ramp; one of marble and one of silver -upon that of marble they would place the limbs, on that of silver the service utensils; and two in the hall inside near the entrance of the Temple: one of marble and one of gold -upon that of marble they placed the Showbread when it was brought in, and upon that of gold taken out, for sanctified objects ascend but do not descend; and one of gold inside, upon which the Showbread was always.

There were thirteen tables in the Temple: eight of marble in the slaughterhouse -That was north of the altar, and in it were rings that had been set into the floor for the slaughtering of the sacrifices, and low posts with hooks upon which to hang the animals, and between the rings and the posts stood eight marble tables (as explained in Mishnah Middot 3:5), upon which the entrails would be rinsed -The entrails of the sacrifices, And two -Tables, to the western side of the ramp -On the west of the ramp leading to the altar, which was on the south of the altar:

One of marble and one of silver -one table was of marble and one of silver, upon that of marble they would place the limbs -until they were offered on the altar, for the marble cooled the meat so that it would not begin to spoil, and even though we have learned (Mishnah Avot 5:5) that ten miracles were performed for our ancestors in the Temple, and one of them was that the meat of the sacrifices never spoiled, they nevertheless did not rely on a miracle, and placed the flesh on marble and not on gold or silver; On that of silver -On the silver table which stood to the west of the ramp, the service utensils -they would place the gold and silver utensils used during the service which they took out each morning from the utensil chamber,

And two -tables, in the hall -the ante-chamber before the Temple proper, inside -The ante-chamber -near the entrance of the Temple -next to the Temple doorway:

One of marble and one of gold -One table was of marble and one of gold. Upon that of marble they placed the Showbread when it was brought in -to the Temple proper, for after the bread was baked on Friday, they would place it on the marble table so that it would cool down and not become mouldy until it was brought into the Temple proper on Shabbat to be arranged on the table; And upon that of gold when taken out -from the Temple proper, for when they took out the old Showbread from the temple proper, they would place it on a gold table in the ante-chamber, until it was divided up among the kohanim; And why was this table a gold one? For sanctified objects ascend but do not descend -For after the Showbread had been lying in the Temple proper for an entire week on a gold table, one did not lower them from that level by placing it on marble or silver, but would put it on a gold table;

And one of gold inside -There was one gold table inside the Temple proper, as we noted above, upon which the Showbread was always -as we read (Ex. 25:23-30), "You shall also make a table of shittim wood...and you shall overlay it with pure gold...And you shall set upon the table Showbread before Me always." Thus there was a total here of thirteen tables.

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