Menachot 13 – Rabbi Yose on Frankincense

We have learned that if a priest takes off a handful of flour with the intent to eat the remnants beyond allotted time, the offering becomes invalid and one who eats it is cut off from the people, and Rabbi Yose agrees on that.

However, if the priest intends to burn the frankincense the next day, then Rabbi Yose disagrees and say that the offering does not bear the penalty of being cut off. They asked Rabbi Yose, “What is the difference between that and an animal sacrifice?” He answered, “With an animal, its blood, meat, and sacrificial parts are one unit, but the frankincense is not a part of the flour offering itself.”

Resh Lakish explained that Rabbi Yose's reasoning is a bit more complex. The handful of flour permits the sacrifice, and the frankincense also permits the sacrifice, and one permitter cannot not ruin another permitter. And the Sages? They agree that one permitter does not ruin another permitter – but only if they are in separate places. In the case of the flour offering, however, the flour, oil, and frankincense are all in the same vessel and are considered as one.

Art: Rudolph Ernst - An Arab Sage