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Week 144 - Tuesday - 27 August 2002

ZEVAHIM: CHAPTER 8: MISHNAH 8

The blood of the unblemished with the blood of the blemished - it must be poured out into the sewer. A cup with cups - R. Eliezer says, If he offered one cup let all the cups be offered. But the Sages say, Even if all except one have been offered - it must be poured out into the sewer.

Kehati

This mishnah lists further instances of the mixture of diverse kinds of blood.

If the blood of the unblemished sacrifices was mixed up with the blood of the blemished animals which render it unfit for sprinkling - it must be poured out into the Temple Court sewer, also according to R. Eliezer, since it is written (Lev. 22:20), "Whatever has a blemish, you shall not offer".

If a cup of blood, rather than the blood itself, of blemished offerings intermingled with cups of blood, and not the blood itself, of unblemished offerings, and we cannot determine which held that of the blemished offerings -

R. Eliezer says, If he - the priest, unaware of the mix-up, offered, i.e., erroneously sprinkled the blood of one cup, then let all the cups be offered, he may sprinkle the blood of the other cups, for we associate the blood of the cup sprinkled first with that of the blemished animals, and consider the rest to be fit blood.

But the Sages say, Even if all the cups except one have been offered erroneously, it is unfit for sprinkling, since it might be the blood of the blemished animals and hence - it must be poured out into the sewer. The present dispute between R. Eliezer and the Sages recalls that (see mishnah 5 above) regarding the mixture of sacrificial limbs. Here, too, R. Eliezer permits the offering up in pairs alone, as explained above, and the Sages' "except one" means one pair. According to the Gemara, it is necessary to present both cases to teach us that although in the first instance the blood had been sprinkled in the prescribed manner, the Sages nevertheless hold such limbs to be unfit. In the latter instance our mishnah teaches that even when that which effects the atonement, i.e., the blood, is mixed up, R. Eliezer nevertheless rules that if one cup was offered, the rest may likewise be offered.

ZEVAHIM: CHAPTER 8: MISHNAH 9

If that which is applied below became mixed up with that which is applied above - R. Eliezer says, He must apply above, and the lower applied above I regard as water, and he must apply again below. But the Sages say, it must be poured out into the sewer. If he did not consult, and applied it, it is valid.

Kehati

If that blood of the sacrifices which is applied below the hut hasikra, e.g., that of burnt-, guilt- or peace-offerings, became mixed up with that - with the blood of sin-offerings which is applied above the hut hasikra, on the four corners of the altar (see 5:3 above) -

R. Eliezer says, He must first apply above four sprinklings of the mixture on the four corners of the altar as for a sin-offering, since it takes precedence over the burnt-offering and the lower - the blood of the mixture that must be applied below but was applied above I regard as water, and he must subsequently apply again of the mixture below the hut hasikra, and the application below the hut hasikra will also count as the pouring away of the sin-offering blood residue which is poured away below over the southern base (see 5:3 above).

But the Sages say, it must be poured out into the sewer since they do not regard the "lower applied above" as water, and the location of the blood must not be changed, there is no alternative for the mixture but to flow out into the Court sewer.

If he did not consult as to whether the mixture is fit for sprinkling and applied four times above, it is valid and he must repeat the procedure below (baraita cited in the Gemara).

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