Yoma 52 - Inside the Holy of Holies

The High Priest, with the incense and the coals in his hands, would walk into the Holy of Holies. For that, he had to move between the two curtains separating it from the Sanctuary, first, all the way in one direction and then, inside of Holy of Holies, in the opposite direction, until he would reach the Ark.

Once he reached the Ark, he placed the shovel full of burning coals between the two poles of the Ark, heaped the incense on top of the coals, and the whole chamber filled with smoke. Then he walked back, still facing the Ark as the sign of respect, and before leaving the chamber, he recited a short prayer. He would not prolong it so as not to frighten the people by his delay.

Now, which Temple are we dealing with in this description? In the first Temple, there were no curtains, and in the Second, there was no Ark, since King Yoshiyahu hid it!? The answer is that we are talking about the Second Temple, and we did not mean the Ark itself but rather the place where the Ark stood before. But it says, “between the poles of the Ark!?” - Here too, understand “between the place of the poles.”

Art: Smoke. Autumn by Jozef Chelmonski

Yoma 51 - The way to the Holy of Holies

The High Priest continues on his way with the incense to the Holy of Holies. He walks through the Sanctuary until he reaches the two curtains that separate it and the Holy of Holies. The space between the two curtains measured one amah (about two feet). Rabbi Yose says there was only one curtain, as the Torah describes it, “And the curtain shall divide between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies.”

Rabbi Yose seems to be right since he has a quote from the Torah to support him. What do the Sages answer? They say that this was true in the First Temple, which was relatively low. The wall, which had a thickness of one amah, served as a partition, and a door in that wall was used as an entrance. However, the Second Temple was higher, and the wall could no longer stand on its own due to its weight. Therefore, there were two curtains instead, marking the outer and inner parts of the would-be wall.

Art: White Walls in Sunlight Morocco by John Singer Sargent

Yoma 50 - High Priest dies

If the High Priest confessed his errors, then slaughtered the bull over which he confessed but then died, can a substitute High Priest enter the Holy of Holies with the blood of this bull? When the Torah said, “With this Aaron enters… with a bull,” - did it mean to include (with the bull or even with its blood), or to exclude (with the bull but not with its blood)? Rav Ashi suggested the following answer: “Does Aaron really enter dragging the bull by the horns!? - Of course not! Rather, he brings in the blood. Thus, the substitute High Priest can also bring the blood.” And Rav Ami, who disagreed, what is his logic? - He says, “With this Aaron is ready to come into the Holy of Holies” - that is, with the bull which he slaughters, not with its blood.

Does this bull represent communal offering or his private offering? If you accept that it is his private offering, then I have another question for you: can you exchange it for another (a prohibited act, but does the holiness transfer?) We know that transfer (Temurah) only works for a personal offering, not for partners. Does the High Priest take all other Kohanim as partners in his offering (Temurah is invalid), or does he make his own atonement and achieve it as a side effect (Temurah is valid)? - No definite answer.

Art: Bulls fighting By Albertus Verhoesen

Yoma 49 – A mistake of Rav Sheshet

They asked Rav Sheshet a question, “If a Kohen carries a part of a sacrifice in his left hand, is it valid or not?” He replied, “We should learn the answer from Yom Kippur: the High Priest carries the incense in his left hand, and the coals in his right, and that is OK!” Firstly, why does he have to bring such strong proof from Yom Kippur? – Because he wants to show that even in this serious case where atonement depends upon it, the service done with the left hand is still valid. But secondly, we learned an explicit ruling that any service done by a blemished Kohen while sitting or with the left hand is invalid! With this, Rav Sheshet's answer is completely disproved.

And Rav Sheshet, how could he make such a mistake? We have heard him quote this explicit ruling in another situation!? The answer is exactly that: previously, he did not know this ruling, so he compared it to Yom Kippur, then they taught him this ruling; now he changed his mind, and in fact, later taught it to others.

Another question: if a High Priest scooped the incense but died before he got a chance to bring it to the Holy of Holies, can a substitute High Priest use his prior scooping, or does the procedure have to be repeated? Here, after a few attempts, the Talmud does arrive at the answer: since later on the High Priest will have to pour the incense out into the shovel and then scoop from it again, we see that a substitute High Priest can do the same in case the first one dies. This proves it.

Art: Study Of Clasped Hands By Andrea Boscoli

Yoma 48 - Unanswerable questions of Rav Pappa

“In between, obvious, leveled, scattered” is a mnemonic sign to remember the following inquires; however, this is nothing but a hidden mystical key. All of the Talmud used to be learned by heart, so having a key such as this one would be of little help in other places.

First question: the incense between the fingers and hands of the High Priest on Yom Kippur - should it be burned on the coals or no? In the phrase, “and he will scoop with full hands, and he will bring...” which word is more important? If it is “he will scoop with full hands,” then even the particles in between are included, but if it is “and he will bring,” - then it is not his intention to bring them, and so they are not included.

Second: it is obvious that scooping should be done in the normal way? However, what if he did it just with his fingertips, or by pushing his hands into the incense and allowing it to collect inside - is this still acceptable or not?

As a preface to his third question, we need to recall that if one spilled the blood of a sacrifice on the floor and then scooped it back up, it is invalid, but if he received it into a vessel, then spilled from the vessel and scooped back, then it is valid. In the case of High Priest, if he spills the incense from his hands onto the floor and picks it up - is this valid, or does he have to scoop again from the shovel? Do we compare his hands to the animal's neck so that his procedure is invalid, as above, or do we compare his hands to a Temple's vessel, and then it is valid? The questions above remain without an answer.

Art: Brass Cooking Vessel By Antoine Vollon

Yoma 47 – Kimchit, the flour girl

The incense service continues: they bring the High Priest a shovel and a ladle. But he already used the shovel!? – That one was for coals, and this one is with incense, from which he scoops two handfuls, and whether his hands are large or small – that is the measure. Why the ladle? - He puts the incense there – and he cannot do it in any other way because he will need to carry both the incense and the shovel with the coals together into the Holy of Holies.

He takes the shovel into his right hand and the spices into the left one. Even though the incense is the main point, he carries it in the left because he needs the right hand for the heavier shovel with coals, which measured three “kav” (about three liters). This would be true even for the High Priest by the name of Ishmael, son of Kimchit, whose enormous hands held four “kav” of incense – because, in addition to being heavy, the coals are also hot.

Kimchit had seven sons, and they all served as High Priests during her lifetime – not because anyone died, but because of accidents when one was disqualified due to ritually impure saliva landing on his garment. The Sages asked Kimchit why she merited seven sons serve as High Priests, and she answered, “The beams of my house never saw the braids of my hair.” They answered, “Many did so, and it did not help them.”

What is the status of incense or flour particles that are found between the fingers of a Kohen? They are not properly inside or outside his hand, so it is unclear if they are part of the offering or the remainder. Because of this doubt, some say that only fat Kohanim could do this service. However, this opinion is not universal.

Art: Portrait of Wilhelmine with Her Hair in Braids By Lovis (Franz Heinrich Louis) Corinth

Yoma 46 - The fourth pyre

The fourth pyre on the Altar - which was only required according to Rabbi Meir - was for burning the limbs of the daily offering on those days when some were left from the previous night. It was fired even on Shabbat, and therein lies the problem: lighting fire on Shabbat is prohibited. We understand that the Temple service overrides this rule, but to what extent? Therefore, Rav Avin qualified it: the pyre is started even for invalid (such as ritually impure) parts, but only if a fire had singed them.

Two potential prohibitions need to be overridden when burning sacrifices in the Temple: Shabbat and ritual impurity. Rav Huna said it is the first one overridden but not the second one, and Rabbah said it is only the second one. Abaye asked a question that is a problem equally for both: the Torah said, “Bring the sacrifice in its time,” which seems to mean, “even on Shabbat and even if ritually impure.” Why prefer one exemption and leave out the other?

However, both have their answers. Rabbah uses the rule “ending should be like the beginning,” that is, since we may suspend the laws of purity at the beginning of bringing the sacrifice if we have no alternative, so too, in the end, we can burn parts that have become impure. There is no such logic for Shabbat. On the other hand, Rav Huna disagrees with the “ending like the beginning” principle. Rather, he says that Shabbat can be abrogated in this case since communal sacrifices are freely brought on Shabbat, but we never totally dispense with the laws of purity.

Art: A Night Scene With An Old Lady Holding A Basket And A Candle by Peter Paul Rubens

Yoma 45 – Two, three, or even four pyres on the Altar?

The High Priest proceeds with the Yom Kippur service, which in some aspects differs from the daily one: every day, they used a silver shovel to scoop up coals – in order not to waste money had it been from gold. However, today he uses a golden one throughout, and a light one at that – to preserve his strength because it is a hard day for the High Priest, who is fasting like everybody. Every day a Kohen burned half of the incense in the morning and a half in the afternoon, but today the High Priest prepares two handfuls of incense to burn in the Holy of Holies.

There are differences in walking and washing the hands – for the honor of the High Priest. Finally, every day there were four pyres on the Altar, but today five, with the fifth added for the coals to burn the incense. The number of pyres is actually a disagreement: all agree that there were at least two, one of the sacrifices and another one for the daily incense, according to the verse “it is a burned offering on the flame on the Altar... and the (other) fire of the Altar shall be aflame.” Some say, though, that there is an additional pyre to maintain the large pyre. Finally, those who require the fourth pyre say that it was used to burn the limbs of the sacrifices not consumed at night.

Art: An old man warming his hands over coals by (after) Jacob Cornelisz Van Oostsanen

Yoma 44 - The slaughter of the High Priest's bull

The High Priest makes two confessions on the bull that he had bought with his own money: the first on himself and his house (wife), the second - for his brothers the Kohanim. This is logical, for when he asks for forgiveness for others, he should already have achieved one for himself.

Now he comes to slaughter this bull. Just as with the previous morning sacrifice, he makes only the initial, most essential cut and lets another Kohen complete it. This is because he also needs to receive the blood - the second of the four sacrificial services, which are all to be done by him - and for this, he needs to be in front of the bull. He leaves that blood in a vessel with another Kohen, who stands on the paving stone outside the Sanctuary and stirs it so that it does not congeal while he proceeds with the incense service. He takes the shovel, goes up the Altar, scoops the innermost coals, and places them in the shovel. Then he places the shovel on another paving stone in the Courtyard and directs himself to bring the handful of incense.

Art: Bull by John Glover

Yoma 43 - A checkerboard of logic

The laws of red heifer include multiple double exclusions, where one phrase excludes something, while the next one excludes part of the exclusion and, thus, includes a new law. For example, when the Torah said, "And you shall give it (the heifer) to Elazar the Kohen," this means that only "it" - the heifer in the time of Moses - is given to Elazar, but subsequent cows need not be given to Elazar (who was deputy High Priest). Rather, the service is done by the High Priest himself. Others say that rather it means that the cow is given to a regular Kohen.

It is easy to understand those who claim that "not Elazar" means a regular Kohen. But how can it be "not Elazar but the High Priest himself?" What is the logic here? - It is based on the same word "the law" used both in the description of Yom Kippur, where all the service is done by the High Priest and in the description of the service of the red heifer.

The Talmud goes through the subsequent fifteen phrases of the red heifer service, showing the exclusions and multiple opinions. When Rabbi Yochanan and Resh Lakish studied this area of law, they could never come up with a consistent set of rules, but sometimes the next phrase would negate the previous, and sometimes not. Thus, they said that they were like foxes in a grain field, which can only take away the dust on its feet.

Art: Watering cows by Willem Roefols

Yoma 42 - You say, two strips of wool, and I say - three

Our last discussion concerned two strips of red wool used in Temple services. However, when Rav Dimi came back from one of these numerous learning trips to Israel, he brought back the teaching of Rabbi Yochanan, which was later enhanced by Rabbi Yonatan, and they said that there were three such strips. They also provided the minimal measures: the strip for burning the red heifer was the heaviest, the weight of ten "zuz" coins - since it had to land inside the fire in which the red heifer was burning. Next was the strip tied to the horns of the sent-away goat and, since it had to be divided in two, it needed a minimum of two "sela" coins or eight "zuz." Finally, the third one was used to purify a leper (metzora), and it could be as light as four zuz. Thus the question was now completely resolved.

On the subject of the red heifer, the Torah said that "it will be slaughtered in front of Elazar, the priest." From here, we see that one who slaughters it does not have to be a priest (Kohen). Others say that since it is a Temple service, the one who slaughters had to be a priest also. Regardless, the High Priests made a point of always slaughtering the red heifer themselves and otherwise showing their appreciation for this mitzvah.

Art: Goats in a landscape by (after) Johann Rudolf Byss

Yoma 41 – A strip of red wool

The two goats having been designated earlier, the High Priest now ties a strip of red wool on the goat's horns designated to be sent to Azazel and positions this goat next to the eastern gate (Gate of Nikanor), through which it will be sent. The goat that stands to be slaughtered, he positions opposite the place of slaughter.

The last words “opposite a place of slaughtered” are intentionally ambiguous: it may mean next to the area where it is slaughtered, or it may mean that the strip of wool is tied next to the place of the cut in slaughter. The Talmud concludes that it is the latter; this was done so that the High Priest can tell this goat apart from all the other ones. This conclusion will change on the next page where Rabbi Yochanan does not mention the strip of wool that would go on the goat's throat.

There were two strips of red wool: one here, on Yom Kippur, and another was thrown into the fire while burning the red heifer. Rabbi Yitzhak said that he heard from his teachers that one of them had a minimal weight, while the other did not, but he did not remember which one. On the one hand, the Yom Kippur strip was cut in pieces, with one piece remaining on the goat's horns and the other placed for observation in the Temple. When the remaining piece became white, people knew that they were forgiven. So it is reasonable to say that this strip needed to have at least some weight. On the other hand, the one thrown in the fire had to land inside it, not be burned on the first contact, so maybe it needed to be heavy. This remains unresolved.

Art: A Study For The Head Of A Goat by (after) Philipp Peter Roos

Yoma 40 – High Priest's Voice

During the Yom Kippur service, the High Priest pronounced the Name of God ten times, and, as one of the miracles, his voice was heard far away from Jerusalem – up until Jericho, which is ten “parsah,” or over twenty miles away. He pronounces the name three times in the first confession, three times in the second, another three – during the confession while sending a goat to Azazel, and once – during the lottery. Similarly, the goats in Jericho sneezed from the smell of the incense in Jerusalem, and women in Jericho did not have to perfume themselves because of this fragrance.

Earlier, we described how the High Priest would snatch the lot from the lottery box and place each lot on the designated goat. If he omitted the procedure, the service would become invalid. Since the Torah said, “And Aharon will place the lots,” the absence of this would become a show-stopper – these are the words of Rabbi Yannai. However, Rabbi Yochanan disagrees: in his opinion, the High Priest designates the goat on which the lot falls, and his words alone are sufficient. Thus, even if they omitted the lots altogether, the service would still be valid. All would agree that the lot's actual placement on the goats is not essential and could be skipped – although it is a mitzvah to do it.

Art: The road to Jericho by George Lambert

Yoma 39 – He snatched the lot from the lottery box

The High Priest would snatch the lots from the lottery box with two hands and then raise the hand with the “for God” inscription. In the other hand, he held the lot “for Azazel.” He then placed the lot on the appropriate goat and pronounce “For God.” The people would again answer, “Blessed is the name of the glory of His kingship, forever and ever.” Why did he have to snatch and not just take the lots? – So that he did not intentionally direct his right hand to the one marked “For God.”

For the forty years of Shimon the Righteous, the lot “For God” always came up in the right hand of the High Priest. After his death, at times, it came in the right hands of the High Priest, but at times in the left. So too, during his tenure, the fire on the Altar was strong and never extinguished; even so, the priests continued to bring their two blocks of wood, but it was only to fulfill the mitzvah.

For forty years before the destruction of the Temple, the lot “For God” would never come up in the right hand of the High Priest, the tongue of crimson wool would not whiten on Yom Kippur, and the doors of the Sanctuary would open on their own – until Rabbi Yochanan ben Zakkai rebuked them, saying that it is enough for the misfortune to come in its time.

Art: Woman Carrying Firewood and a Pail by Jean-Francois Millet

Yoma 38 – What is bad?

While earlier we mentioned the good deeds and stopped to praise the people who performed them, now we need to mention the bad ones. The family of Garmu possessed the secret of baking the Bread of Vision for the Temple so that it would never crumble, and they did not want to teach this to anybody. Their official excuse was that they did not want it to fall into the wrong hands and be used in the service of idols. However, they were praised for never giving refined bread to their children so that nobody would suspect them of using the Temple bread.

The family of Avtinas knew the secret of mixing the incense so that its smoke would always go straight up and did not want to teach it, with the same excuse. Their good quality was that their women would never use perfume – to avoid the suspicion of using Temple's incense. Hugras the Levite knew a special way to produce captivating singing but refused to teach it, not wishing it to be used for idols.

Ben Kamtzar would take four pens in his hand and write the four-letter name of God, finishing all the letters simultaneously, thus never leaving the name of God incomplete. He, too, did not want to teach this skill but could not quote a selfless reason for it. Thus, the bad people are all mentioned together with derision, but there is an additional blessing any time we mention a good person.

Art: A Writer Trimming His Pen by Jan the Younger Ekels

Yoma 37 - Remembered for good

The High Priest would next come, with his two attendants, to the two goats prepared for the lot. The chest for the lottery contained two lottery tickets made out of boxwood, one with the inscription "For God" and the other - "For Azazel." He would draw the lots with his two hands and designate the goats, one for the sacrifice and the other to be sent to the desert.

Later Ben Gamla made the lottery pieces out of gold, and the Sages would recall him with praise. Other individuals should also be remembered for good. Ben Katin made twelve spouts for the laver so that the twelve Kohanim involved with the morning sacrifice could wash their hands and feet at once. He also invented a mechanical device that prevented the water in the laver from becoming unfit because of staying overnight.

King Munbaz made all handles of vessels used for Yom Kippur out of gold. His mother Helene made a golden candelabrum at the Temple entrance so that when the sun rested on it, people knew to say the "Shema, Israel" prayer. Finally, Nikanor was a man for whom a miracle happened, and the heavy copper gate he had made for the Temple floated through the storm to the shores of Israel, and they kept that door and named it after him, long after the other doors were replaced with golden ones.

Art: The Candelabrum by John Singer Sargent

Yoma 36 – The Name

Next the High Priest would come to his bull – the one that he bought with his own money, to atone for the his sins and for those of his household (his wife). The bull was standing between the Altar and the Temple's entrance, along the wall of the Altar, with its head turned to the right, in the direction of the Temple. The High Priest would also stand facing the Temple, put his hands on the head of the bull, and pronounce the following confession.

He would say, “Please, the Name, I have sinned willfully, rebelliously and inadvertently. Please, the Name, please grant atonement for the willful, rebellious and inadvertent sins – that I have committed before you, I and my household." Then he would quote from the Torah where the promise of forgiveness was given. The people who listened would prostrate and say, “Blessed is the name of the glory of His kingship, forever and ever.”

What was this Name? Some say it is was the four letter name of God, the Tetragrammaton, that the Torah commanded to conceal and that is commonly pronounced instead as “Adonai”, or my Master. Others say that the name that the High Priest pronounced was completely different from what we have in our texts, and that it was a secret name of forty-two letters. One of the reasons for concealment was the power that the name could give to the wrong person.

And where did the Torah command to conceal the Name? – When God told Moses, “This is My Name forever (leolam)” - read this word as “lealem” - to conceal.

Art: Portrait of a Bull's Head by Thomas Sidney Cooper

Yoma 30 – Cleanliness in the Temple

When a priest in the Temple urinated, he needed to clean his hands and feet for service by washing them. If he moved his bowels, he needed a complete immersion in a mikveh. In general, anybody who entered the Temple needed to go to the Mikveh first, even if he knew he was ritually pure.

Why are these extra measures of cleanliness? If one urinates, he may have drops left on his feet. Such drops may indicate the penis being cut in some serious way, in which case he may not be able to make a woman conceive. If he is married, people may think that his children are not really his, and to prevent this possible rumor, he needs to clean his feet. And since he will wipe the feet with his hands, he must now wash both.

On Yom Kippur, the High Priest will have to immerse himself in a mikveh five times, every time that he goes to a different part of the service. From here, we reason: if for going from one service to another a mikveh was required, then of course for entering the Temple to do the first service, certainly a mikveh was required – hence the requirement for anyone who enters the Temple to first go to a mikveh. Others say that the reason for the first immersion was different. While going through the water to purify himself, one may recall about an old, more serious ritual impurity that he had forgotten about. Thus it was only a device to remind him of his status.

Art: Pilate Washing His Hands by Rembrandt Van Rijn

Yoma 29 – Things to be done in the morning

Earlier, we mentioned how the priests mistook the moon's light for the light of the sun and slaughtered the morning sacrifice before its time. But how was it possible? The light of the moon shows in a column, and the light of the sun is spread out!? – It was a cloudy day. This teaches us an additional lesson: the sun behind the clouds diffuses its heat. Why is that important? – for example, this may affect the leavening of matzah.

Rav Nachman continues with teachings about the sun. The sun bursting through the cloud feels stronger than in the open sky, just as the smell of vinegar in a jar, when released, feels stronger. The thoughts of wrongdoing are more harmful to a man than an actual act, just as the smell of roasting meat is more pleasing than the meat itself. Relearning something once learned but forgotten is harder than acquiring new knowledge, similar to making new cement from old cement.

The rising of the sun spread behind the clouds is compared to the antlers of a morning hind. On that subject, why was Ester compared to hind? – Just as a hind has a narrow womb and is desirable to her mate every time as the first one, so was Ester desirable to the king Ahasuerus. And so are the words of the Torah always beloved to those who learn them. And just as the antlers always grow, so too the prayers of the righteous become stronger as they persist in them.

When did the incident of invalid early sacrifice occur? If on a weekday, why is it mentioned here talking about Yom Kippur. And if on Yom Kippur, the moon is yet small!? - Really, it occurred on a weekday, and this is a digression. Incidentally, bird offerings and flour offerings would also be invalid if offered before daybreak.

Art: An Old Man At Prayer By Jacques des Rousseaux

Yoma 28 – Abraham the philosopher and astrologer

Back to the order of Yom Kippur, the next event that happened in the morning, the administrator would tell the assembled priests, “Go and see if the time for the slaughter of the morning offering has arrived.” One of them would step outside, observe the sky and cry out, “Dawn!” They would confirm, “As far as Hebron?” - and he would say “Yes.” Why did they have to confirm? Because once they have mistaken the light of the moon for that the sun and slaughtered the morning sacrifice, but then had to take it out to the burning place for invalid offerings.

The first Jew, Abraham, was very precise with timings, and his Afternoon prayer, Mincha, was exactly at midday. We, however, cannot know the times as precisely as Abraham did because he was a master astronomer and astrologer. Moreover, he observed the whole Torah before it was given, having figured out what protective ordinances the Sages later enacted. From where do we know this? Because God says about Abraham that he “...obeyed My voice, and kept My charge, My commandments, My decrees, and My Torahs” – that is, the written Torah and the additional Torah laws established by the Sages. In fact, the tradition continued in the family, and Isaac and Jacob also learned Torah and taught it.

Art: Johannes Vermeer The Astronomer

Yoma 27 – The hide

Depending upon the type of the offering, a varying number of Kohanim was required. Thus, a ram was offered by eleven and a bull – by twenty-four priests. Each carried his own part of the animal; for the larger parts, more than one priest was required, and the flour offering, which consisted of three “hin” measures (about 3 liters each), each Kohen was bringing a “hin” in its own vessel. This was only done for communal offerings, for added honor, but for a private offering, if its owner designated one Kohen, this Kohen could bring the whole thing. For flaying and cutting up the sacrifices into parts – everybody was equal in that respect.

By “everybody was equal,” the teacher really means that even a non-Kohen was allowed to do the flaying and the cutting. But how do we know this? – Since the Torah said, “He shall have the burned offering skinned and cut into pieces. Aharon's sons shall place the fire on the Altar...” we understand that starting from the fire service, a Kohen is required, but before that – he is not.

In a similar vein, although normally a non-Kohen who performs priestly service is liable to death at the hands of Heaven, slaughtering is an exception and can be done by a regular Jew. Since the Torah said, “He shall have the young bull slaughtered... and the sons of Aharon will bring its blood to the Altar,” we see that beginning from the blood service, a Kohen is required. Still, that slaughter can be done by anybody – usually the owner of the sacrifice.

Art: Moroccan Butcher Shop By Theo van Rysselberghe

Yoma 26 – The last two lotteries of the day

The third lot was for burning the incense, and only the Kohanim who never burned incense before would be allowed to take part in it. Why? – Because it makes one rich. And how do we know that? – Because the Torah said, “They shall bring incense in Your presence,” and right after that, “bless, O God, his resources.” Finally, the fourth and last lot was to select who will take the limbs of the sacrifice from the ramp and bring them to the Altar.

Depending on the festivities and the additional rituals for the occasion, the daily sacrificed could be offered by anywhere from nine to twelve Kohanim, but not less or more than that. The sacrifice itself was divided into nine pieces, and each was carried by another Kohen. On the Shabbat within the festival of Sukkot, there were the following additions: a flask of water to be poured on the Altar -- a special for Sukkot, the two blocks of wood, and the new Bread of Vision.

Art: Still Life Of Apples And A Glass Of Water by Philippe Rousseau

Yoma 25 – What garments to wear for the lottery?

In total, there were four lotteries every day to dole out the Temple services. Why were lots used for that? – What kind of question is this, for we already said it was to avoid discord!? – Actually, the meaning of the question is why assemble four times when one lot for all services could be sufficient? - It is good to stir up the Courtyard, for the greater the number of people serving God – the better.

Did they use their regular garments or holy garments for the lots? Some say that they used the regular garments because otherwise, the bullies among the priests could seize services by force had they already been attired. Others say that if they drew lots in regular garments, they might rush and do the services in them, which would be wrong.

What was awarded in the second drawing? - Slaughtering the daily offering, throwing its blood on the Altar, cleaning the Inner Altar, cleaning the Menorah, and bringing the limbs of the daily offering onto the ramp of the Altar. Then we have the argument about the order in which the limbs were carried.

Art: A woman cleaning pots at a casement by (after) Gerrit Dou

Yoma 24 – Removal of the ashes

The first service of the day, the one auctioned in the lottery, was removing the ashes. What garments did it have to be performed in? That answer depends on the argument whether it was a real service or just a preparation, with the conclusion that it was a real service, and thus the regular four items of the Kohen's attire were required.

How much of the ashes had to be put down on the ground next to the Altar? Should we learn from the separation of tithes and say it is one-tenth, or from the separation of the spoils of Midian and say it was one in five hundred? The conclusion is that we should learn from the separation of the flour offering, and it was a handful.

At times, besides the symbolic removal of the ashes, there was a real cleaning. What garments should this be performed in (they are called “other garments” in the Torah) – better or worse quality? Using the principle that “when a servant mixes wine for his master, he should not use the same garments as when he is preparing a dish for his master,” we conclude that the removal of the ashes was done in better quality garments.

In general, if a non-Kohen performs a Temple service, he is liable to death at the hand of Heaven. However, only a complete, final service carries that responsibility. For example, is a non-Kohen liable for arranging the lamps of the Menora? - No, because there are also wicks. Is he liable or the wicks? - No, because there is also putting them in the lamps? Is he liable for that, then? - No, because there is also putting oil. And he is not liable for it either, because there is also kindling. Then surely he must be liable for kindling!? - No, he just holds a flame to the wick, and the wick ignites by itself.

Art: Study Of Garments by Ghirlandaio Domenico

Yoma 23 - David and Shaul

On the previous page, we mentioned that one should not count the Jews. Two people who did count were King Shaul and King David, and Talmud continues with them. King Shaul was without a blemish, and that exactly was his blemish. One needs to have a “basket of creepy-crawlies” behind his back so that if he becomes haughty, they can tell him, “Looks where you come from!” So even though Shaul did fewer wrong acts, David, when he erred, cried and asked for forgiveness, which counts more.

Also, Shaul renounced his honor and did not take revenge on Amalek, as a king should. Any Sage who is not vengeful and does not keep a grudge like a snake - is not a true sage. Now, this last statement is problematic because the Torah said not to take revenge!? - It is only meant in monetary matters. But still, we learned that one should be forgiving!? - Yes, if the offender comes to apologize, but otherwise, the Sage should keep the offense in mind.

Before there was a lottery and people were still running up the ramp to claim the Temple services, once a priest, seeing the other one in front of him, thrust a knife and mortally wounded him. They eulogized him right there, and then the boy's father came and said that the death of his son should be the atonement and that his son was still alive, so they should take the knife out of him and avoid ritual contamination of the knife. 

He cared more about the knife than about his son! How could this happen? Did the purity become more important, or did the bloodshed become cheaper in their eyes? Alas, they cared little about life.

Art: The Wounded Trumpeter by Horace Vernet

Yoma 22 - Priestly lottery

The very first service of the day in the Temple was the separation of a small portion of ashes from the Altar and putting it down on the ground. Initially, any Kohen who wanted to do it could do it. When many Kohanim vied for the privilege, they would run up the Altar’s ramp, and the first to reach the Altar would win. However, people started to fight. It happened that one pushed the other, who then broke his leg. The Sages, therefore, instituted a lottery, which was conducted in the following manner.

All Kohanim would assemble in a circle. One would take off his hat - he was the one from whom the count started. The Temple administrator told them to stick out one of two fingers; he would call out a large number and start counting from the first Kohen in a circle. The one on whom the count ended was the winner.

Why was there no lottery at first? Because the Sages expected that not too many people would rise early enough for this service. They reasoned that it is easier to stay late than to wake up early. Then they established running competition and later a lottery. However, the people stopped coming, saying, “Who knows if I will win the lottery!” So the Sages increased the reward, and the winner would get the removal of the ashes and two more subsequent mitzvot.

And why did they count fingers and not people? Because one should not count the Jews.

Art: An old man with a raised finger by Jacob Jordaens