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Perek 9

Mishnayos Zevachim Perek 9 Mishnah 1

זבחים פרק ט׳ משנה א׳

1
Certain unfit items, once they have been placed on the altar, are nevertheless sacrificed. The mishna teaches: The altar sanctifies only items that are suited to it. The tanna’im disagree as to the definition of suited for the altar. Rabbi Yehoshua says: Any item that is suited to be consumed by the fire on the altar, e.g., burnt offerings and the sacrificial portions of other offerings, which are burned on the altar, if it ascended upon the altar, even if it is disqualified from being sacrificed ab initio, it shall not descend. Since it was sanctified by its ascent upon the altar, it is sacrificed upon it, as it is stated: “It is the burnt offering on the pyre upon the altar” (Leviticus 6:2), from which it is derived: Just as with regard to a burnt offering, which is suited to be consumed by the fire on the altar, if it ascended it shall not descend, so too, with regard to any item that is suited to be consumed by the fire on the altar, if it ascended it shall not descend. Rabban Gamliel says: With regard to any item that is suited to ascend upon the altar, even if it is not typically consumed, if it ascended, it shall not descend, even if it is disqualified from being sacrificed ab initio, as it is stated: “It is the burnt offering on the pyre upon the altar,” from which it is derived: Just as with regard to a burnt offering, which is fit for the altar, if it ascended it shall not descend, so too, any item that is fit for the altar, if it ascended it shall not descend. The mishna comments: The difference between the statement of Rabban Gamliel and the statement of Rabbi Yehoshua is only with regard to disqualified blood and disqualified libations, which are not consumed by the fire but do ascend upon the altar, as Rabban Gamliel says: They shall not descend, as they are fit to ascend upon the altar, and Rabbi Yehoshua says: They shall descend, as they are not burned on the altar. Rabbi Shimon says: Whether the offering was fit and the accompanying libations were unfit, e.g., if they became ritually impure or they were brought outside their designated area, or whether the libations were fit and the offering was unfit, rendering the accompanying libations unfit as well, and even if both this and that were unfit, the offering shall not descend, as it was sanctified by the altar, but the libations shall descend.
הַמִּזְבֵּחַ מְקַדֵּשׁ אֶת הָרָאוּי לוֹ. רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ אוֹמֵר, כָּל הָרָאוּי לָאִשִּׁים, אִם עָלָה לֹא יֵרֵד, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (ויקרא ו), הִוא הָעֹלָה עַל מוֹקְדָה עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ. מָה עוֹלָה שֶׁהִיא רְאוּיָה לָאִשִּׁים, אִם עָלְתָה לֹא תֵרֵד, אַף כָּל דָּבָר שֶׁהוּא רָאוּי לָאִשִּׁים, אִם עָלָה לֹא יֵרֵד. רַבָּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹמֵר, כָּל הָרָאוּי לַמִּזְבֵּחַ, אִם עָלָה לֹא יֵרֵד, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר, הִוא הָעֹלָה עַל מוֹקְדָה עַל הַמִּזְבֵּחַ. מַה עוֹלָה שֶׁהִיא רְאוּיָה לַמִּזְבֵּחַ אִם עָלְתָה לֹא תֵרֵד, אַף כָּל דָּבָר שֶׁהוּא רָאוּי לַמִּזְבֵּחַ אִם עָלָה לֹא יֵרֵד. אֵין בֵּין דִּבְרֵי רַבָּן גַּמְלִיאֵל לְדִבְרֵי רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ אֶלָּא הַדָּם וְהַנְּסָכִים, שֶׁרַבָּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹמֵר לֹא יֵרְדוּ, וְרַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ אוֹמֵר יֵרֵדוּ. רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן אוֹמֵר, הַזֶּבַח כָּשֵׁר וְהַנְּסָכִים פְּסוּלִים, הַנְּסָכִים כְּשֵׁרִין וְהַזֶּבַח פָּסוּל, אֲפִלּוּ זֶה וָזֶה פְּסוּלִין, הַזֶּבַח לֹא יֵרֵד, וְהַנְּסָכִים יֵרֵדוּ:
א׳

המזבח מקדש את הראוי לו – but the Tannaim dispute in their explanation of our Mishnah what it is that is appropriate to it.

ר' יהושע אומר כל הראוי לשאים – to be burned on the fire, even though it was invalidated, if it went up to the altar, the altar sanctified it and it became its food, and if it went up, it should not come down. But a thing that is not appropriate for the fire, as, for example, disqualified/unfit blood and disqualified libations, if they went up, they may be taken down.

היא העולה על מוקדה – something that is for the hearth where the fire is maintained and it went up, it is its status/condition and should not come down, it, implies that it will be in its status/condition.

רבן גמליאל אומר כל הראוי למזבח – and even the blood and its libations that were invalidated, if they were brought up, they should not come down. But there is nothing to exclude other than that thing which was not decided ever as to its appropriate portion of the altar, as for example, the handfuls of he meal-offering which the priest takes to be put on the altar (i.e., Leviticus 6:8) that were not sanctified in a utensil after the taking of a fistful of the meal-offering, for even though that the entire meal-offering was sanctified in a utensil, this is not clearly the portion of On-High (i.e., God), for the meal-offering is not entirely offered. And with a fistful of the meal-offering without the offering of the utensil, this is not sifted/selected for the altar, and it is not sanctified even if it was brought up on to the altar.

אלא הדם והנסכים – that are appropriate for the altar, but are not appropriate for the altar-fires.

ר"ש אומר הזבח כשר והנסכים פסולים – Rabbi Shimon holds like Rabbi Yehoshua regarding the libations of the sacrifice, and that the blood and the libations that come on their own like Rabban Gamaliel, and it is not derived from the hearth where the fire is maintained (Leviticus 6:2 – על מוקדה) but rather from a Biblical verse (Exodus 29:37): “whatever touches the altar shall become consecrated.” And it is written after It (Exodus 29:38,42): “Now this is what you shall offer upon the altar: two yearling lambs each day, regularly...a regular burnt offering throughout the generations,” the altar does not sanctify anything other than what is similar to a burnt-offering, just as a burnt-offering that comes on account of itself, so everything that comes on account of itself, excluding libations that come on account of the animal offering. Therefore, whether the animal offering is kosher and the libations are invalid, as for example, that left or were defiled, or whether the animal offering was invalid and the libations were kosher/fit, for since they come on its account, they are invalidated with tit and the law of being sanctified is nullified from them.

ואפילו זה וזה פסולים הזבח לא ירד – from its sanctity.

והנכסים ירדו – since they don’t come on account of themselves, they are not similar to the burnt-offering for the altar does not sanctify them. But the Halakha is according to Rabbi Yehoshua.

המזבח מקדש את הראוי לו. ופליגי תנאי בפירושא דמתניתין מאי ניהו הראוי לו:

ר׳ יהושע אומר כל הראוי לאשים. להשרף על גבי האש, אע״פ שנפסל, אם עלה למזבח קדשו המזבח ונעשה לחמו, ואם עלה לא ירד. אבל דבר שאין ראוי לאש, כגון דם פסול ונסכים פסולים, אפילו אם עלו ירדו:

היא העולה על מוקדה. דבר שהוא למוקד ועלה, הרי הוא בהוייתו ולא ירד. היא, משמע בהוייתה תהא:

רבן גמליאל אומר כל הראוי למזבח. ואפילו דם ונסכים שנפסלו, אם עלו לא ירדו. ואין לך למעט אלא דבר שלא הוברר לחלקו של מזבח מעולם, כגון קמצים שלא קדשו בכלי אחר קמיצה, דאע״ג דהמנחה כולה קדשה בכלי אין זה חלק גבוה ברור, שאין המנחה קריבה כולה. ובקמיצה בלא מתן כלי, אין זה מבורר למזבח, ואינו מתקדש אפילו עלה על גבי המזבח:

אלא הדם והנסכים. שהם ראוים למזבח ואינם ראויים לאשים:

ר״ש אומר הזבח כשר והנסכים פסולים. ר׳ שמעון סבירא ליה בנסכים של זבח כרבי יהושע, ובדם ובנסכים הבאים בפני עצמן כרבן גמליאל. ולא ממוקדה יליף, אלא מקרא דכתיב (שמות כ״ט:ל״ח) כל הנוגע במזבח יקדש, וכתיב בתריה וזה אשר תעשה על המזבח כבשים בני שנה תמימים שנים ליום עולה, אין המזבח מקדש אלא דומיא דעולה, מה עולה הבאה בגלל עצמה, אף כל הבאים בגלל עצמן, יצאו נסכים הבאים בגלל הזבח. הלכך בין שהזבח כשר והנסכים פסולים כגון שיצאו או נטמאו, בין שהזבח פסול והנסכים כשרים, דהואיל והן באים בגללו נפסלים עמו ובטלה תורת הקדש מהן:

ואפילו זה וזה פסולים הזבח לא ירד. שהמזבח מקדשו:

והנסכים ירדו. כיון שאין באים בגלל עצמן אינן דומיא דעולה ואין מזבח מקדשן. והלכה כר׳ יהושע: