Yoma 1:8 - 2:1

תורמין את המזבח – the removal of the ashes from the altar (based upon Leviticus 6:3), through which he takes the coals out with a (silver) coal-pan (see Mishnah Yoma, Chapter 4, Mishnah 4) whether there is a lot or whether there is a little on the eastern side of the ramp and it is absorbed there in its place, and it was at the beginning of the Divine Service in the morning.

או סמוך לו – near the time of the cock’s crowing or from before it or from after it.

ביוה"כ – he removes them from midnight, because of the weakness of the High Priest, since everything is upon him alone, he needs to wise earlier.

וברגלים – since there are many Israelites and many sacrifices and a lot of ashes in the place of the pile of wood on the altar in the Temple, and he must take up the ashes from the place of the pile of wood to a place that is in the middle of the altar, which is called תפוח/TAPUACH, for there is a large of pile of the ashes and the community which is directed like an apple, it was necessary to arise earlier and they would rise from the first watch which is one-third of the night (i.e. 10 pm, assuming that the sun sets at 6 pm and rises at 6 pm).

ולא היתה קריאת הגבר מגעת – on the Festivals.

עד שהיתה עזרה מלאה מישראל – who bring their sacrifices to offer them immediately after the morning daily-offering.

בראשונה כל מי שרוצה לתרום – Every Kohen who is from the same priestly division and wants to remove the ashes in the morning, removes the ashes, for there was no arbitration (by counting out a certain number on the raised fingers of those among whom a decision is to be made) in the matter.

ובזמן שהם מרובים – who come to remove the ashes, this one says: “I am removing the ashes” and that one says “I am removing the ashes,” this is their judgment.

רצים ועולים בכבש – of the altar, which is thirty-two cubits in length.

וכל הקודם – to enter into the upper four cubits of the ramp nearest the top of the altar, is worthy of/merits removing the ashes, and this is their lottery.

ואם היו שניהם שוים – through their entrance, neither one of them merits removing the ashes, but from now, all of them come to take a lottery. And what is the lottery? He who is appointed over the arbitration says to all of them to raise their fingers, that is to say, they should release their fingers so that each person can see his finger, since it is forbidden to count people from the Israelites; therefore, it was necessary for them to release the fingers in order that the fingers can be numbered, and not the people. And how would they do this? They would go around and stand together in a circle and the appointed one comes and takes hold of the turban from the head of one them (see Talmud Yoma 25a) and from him, the arbitration begins to count. And each one of them removes his finger and the appointed one/officer enunciates from his mouth a number and counts, either one hundred or sixty, many more than there are Kohanim present there, and says, whomever finishes with this total, through him will merit. And he begins to count from the one who took it from the head of the turban, and such were all of the arbitrations in the Temple Sanctuary.

אחת או שתים – one finger if he is health or two if he is sick, for the sick are unable to control/have mastery over his fingers, and we releases one [finger], its neighbor is released with it. But the two are not counted other than as one [finger].

ואין מוציאין אגודל במקדש – because of the deceivers, when the end of the numbering draws near and they would understand who would finish, that one standing before him would set out two fingers in order that he would count for two people and the number would hurry to end with him. But the appointed official did not comprehend because a person can distance his thumb from his finger a great deal until it appears as the fingers of two people, which one cannot do with the other fingers.