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Week 141 - Wednesday - 7 August 2002

ZEVAHIM: CHAPTER 3: MISHNAH 1

If any ineligible person slaughtered, his slaughtering is valid, for the slaughtering by non-priests, women, bondmen and unclean is valid, even of the most holy - provided the unclean does not touch the flesh. Therefore their intention renders invalid. And if any of these collected the blood after its time or outside its place, if there is life-blood, an eligible one shall collect again.

Kehati

At the beginning of the preceding chapter the mishnah enumerated those who are ineligible for the sacrificial service. This mishnah teaches that they are eligible for slaughtering, and therefore if they slaughtered the sacrifice with an "after-its-time" or "outside-its-place" intention it renders the offering invalid. But if the collecting of the blood, its conveyance or sprinkling was performed by an ineligible person with an "after-its-time" or "outside its place" intention it does not invalidate the sacrifice, since only the intention of one who is eligible for the service invalidates it, as the mishnah will explain.

If any ineligible person who is excluded from the Temple service slaughtered an offering, his slaughtering is valid, thus (Lev. 1:5): "And he shall slaughter the bullock before the Lord, and the priests, Aaron's sons, shall bring the blood" - this implies that only from the collection of the blood onward is the service performed specifically by the priests, for the slaughtering by non-priests, women, Canaanite bondmen and a person who had become unclean, e.g., by contact with a creeping creature, and who is able to stand outside the Temple Court with a long knife and slaughter the animal held inside the Court (Gemara); or having entered the Court unwittingly or willfully, he there slaughtered the animal (Rambam), is valid, even in the case of the most holy sacrifices, i.e., burnt- sin- or guilt-offering - ·

provided the unclean person does not touch the flesh of the offering while he slaughters it, and thus render the offering unclean. According to the Gemara, all those mentioned in the mishnah except the unclean person may slaughter the sacrifice even in principle. Thus, our mishnah's phrasing "if any ineligible person slaughtered" (i.e., after the fact and not in principle) is prompted by the unclean, who may not slaughter in principle lest by touching the flesh, he render the offering unclean).

Therefore their intention renders invalid - if any of these ineligibles slaughtered the offering with an "after-its-time" or "outside-its-place'' intention, e.g., intending to eat of the meat after the prescribed time or outside the Temple Court (in the case of the most holy offerings) or outside Jerusalem (in the case of lesser holy things), the sacrifice is rendered invalid, since they are eligible for this part of the service.

And if any of these ineligible persons collected the blood in a holy service vessel, and likewise if they conveyed or sprinkled it intending to eat or burn it after its time or outside its place then if there is left any life-blood whose loss renders the animal lifeless, and which alone is fit for sprinkling (Ker. 22a)- an eligible one - a priest fit for the service - shall collect again the blood from the neck of the animal in a service vessel and shall sprinkle it on the altar, and the offering is valid, since the intention of the ritually ineligible does not disqualify the offering during the collection, conveyance or the sprinkling of the blood. Thus regarding pigul the Torah states (Lev. 7:18): "it shall not be imputed to him who offers it" - which implies a person qualified to offer (Gemara); however, if one who is disqualified from the sacrificial service performed any of its rituals with an "after-its-time" or "outside-its-place'' intention, this does not render the offering invalid.

ZEVAHIM: CHAPTER 3: MISHNAH 2

If any eligible person collected and gave it to an ineligible person, he must return it to the eligible one. If he collected with his right hand and passed it into his left hand, he must return it to his right hand. If he collected it in a sacred vessel and put it into a non-sacred vessel, he must return it to a sacred vessel. If it spilled from the vessel onto the pavement and he collected it, it is valid. If he sprinkled it onto the ramp, not against the base, or sprinkled above what must be sprinkled below, or below what must be sprinkled above, outside what must be sprinkled inside, or inside what must be sprinkled outside, if there is life-blood, an eligible person must collect again.

Kehati

This mishnah further elaborates the subject of disqualification dealt with in 2:1, and teaches that in some cases where the fault can be corrected, the offering remains valid, as will be explained.

If an eligible person, i.e., a priest, collected the blood in a service vessel and gave it - the vessel containing the blood - to an ineligible person - one unfit for the service - he - the latter - must return it - the vessel containing the blood to the eligible one - to the priest; the blood does not become unfit by the ineligible person's handling. The Gemara confines this to an ineligible person who did not convey the blood, but if he did, the fault cannot be remedied. If he - the priest

collected the blood in the service vessel as required (see 2:1 above), with his right hand and passed it - the vessel containing the blood into his left hand, he must return it to his right hand and the blood remains fit to be sprinkled upon the altar. If he - the priest - collected it - the blood from the animals' neck - in a sacred vessel and put it into a non-sacred vessel, he must return it to a sacred vessel and may then sprinkle it on the altar; though poured into a non-sacred vessel, the blood is not rendered unfit. If after the priest collected the blood in a service vessel

it spilled from the vessel onto the - Temple Courtyard – pavement and he - the priest - collected it into the vessel, it is valid and the blood may be sprinkled upon the altar. However, if the blood spilled onto the pavement from the animal's neck and was then collected in a vessel, the blood is unfit, as taught above (see mishnah 2:1). If he who is unfit for the service

sprinkled it onto the ramp of the altar, or if he sprinkled on the altar but not against the base, i.e., he applied it to the wrong place, or sprinkled above the red line what - i.e., the sacrificial blood that must be sprinkled below the red line (see 2:1), or- he sprinkled - below the red line what - the sacrificial blood that - must be sprinkled above - the red line, or sprinkled outside what - the sacrificial blood that - must be sprinkled inside on the altar in the inner Sanctuary, or – sprinkled - inside on the inner altar - what - the sacrificial blood that - must be sprinkled outside - on the outer altar, if there is - i.e., remains - life-blood - in the animal, i.e., the blood which alone is fit for sprinkling, as explained in the preceding mishnah –

an eligible person must collect again - a priest fit for service must again collect in a service vessel the blood from the animal's neck and sprinkle it on the altar in the appropriate place, and the sacrifice is valid; the earlier sprinkling in the wrong place does not invalidate the sacrifice when performed by one unfit to execute the sprinkling, just as an ineligible person's intention does not invalidate, as taught in the preceding mishnah (Rambam). p> We associated "if he sprinkled it onto the ramp" in the second section of the mishnah with an ineligible person, since such action by an eligible person is irreparable because once the blood has reached the altar, even if sprinkled in the wrong place, the owners have obtained atonement, though the meat may not be eaten, and this cannot be remedied by a second sprinkling, since sprinkling not performed for the purpose of atonement does not render the meat permitted for consumption (Zev. 26b).

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