Megillah 23b (כג:) — the Talmud in English

And we answer:

Since it is because of the honor of the Torah

that he ascends to read

opposite him

from the Prophets,

he likewise need not.

Rava raised an objection to this:

the haftara of

“Add your burnt offerings”

[which is the haftara for Parashat Tzav],

does not contain twenty-one

verses—

and yet we read it!?

And we answer:

There it is different,

for the subject is concluded

[the matter concludes before twenty-one verses, and therefore we do not read further].

And we ask:

But where the subject is not concluded,

do

we not reduce the reading below twenty-one verses?

But Rav Shmuel bar Abba said: Many times I stood before Rabbi Yohanan, and when we had read ten verses

in the haftara,

Rabbi Yohanan said to us:

“

Stop!”

And we answer:

Where there is a translator,

it is different,

because there is a burden on the congregation if they read many verses .

For Rav Taḥalifa bar Shmuel taught: They stated

that one may not reduce the reading below twenty-one verses

only where there is no translator. But where there is a translator,

one stops

where the subject is concluded, even if it does not contain twenty-one verses .

Mishna:

One may not divide the Shema recitation,

that is, if a quorum of men came to the synagogue after the congregation had recited the Shema, one of them stands and recites Kaddish, Barekhu , and the first blessing of the Shema [“dividing” is from the language of a portion, that is, half of a matter ],

And one may not pass before the ark

[as the prayer leader] ,

And

the priests

raise their hands ,

And one may not read from the Torah

in public,

and one may not read the haftara from the Prophets,

and one may not perform the standing and sitting ceremony

for the dead: When they carried the dead person to bury him, they would sit to mourn him, then stand, and this is what they would do seven times; and anyone who wished to eulogize him would eulogize him.

And one may not recite the mourners’ blessing,

that is, the blessing of the square [the Gemara will explain what this is],

and

likewise one may not perform

the comforting of mourners,

that is, when they returned from the grave, they would stand and console the mourner,

and

likewise one may not recite

the bridegrooms’ blessing,

that is, the seven blessings,

and one may not invite

for the Grace after Meals

with the Divine Name,

that is, to say: “Let us bless our God,”

None of these matters may be performed with

fewer than ten

men.

And for the

redemption of

consecrated lands

of the Sanctuary , ten are required:

nine

of them Israelites

and

one

priest.

And a person,

if he comes to redeem himself from the Sanctuary, his law is

like theirs,

like that of land [the Gemara explains how a person can be consecrated].

Gemara:

From where are these matters

that ten are required derived?

Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said that Rabbi Yohanan said: The verse states: “And I shall be sanctified among the Children of Israel.”

And we derive:

Any matter involving sanctity

shall not

be performed with

fewer than ten .

What is the indication,

how is this matter indicated by this verse?

For Rabbi Ḥiyya taught: It is derived

by a gezerah shavah of

“among” \-

“among.”

For

it is written here: “And I shall be sanctified among the Children of Israel,” and it is written there,

in the account of Korah:

“Separate yourselves from among this assembly.”

And

the account of Korah is derived by a gezerah shavah of

“assembly”—

“assembly”

from the spies.

For it is written there,

concerning the spies:

“How long shall I bear this evil assembly?”

Just as there,

concerning the spies, there were

ten

for there were twelve spies, and Joshua and Caleb were excluded from the category of “evil assembly,” since they had not participated in that counsel,

so too here,

in the account of Korah, there were

ten.

Now we derive from Korah, by the gezerah shavah of “among”—“among,” with regard to a matter involving sanctity, concerning which it is written: “And I shall be sanctified among the Children of Israel,” that ten are required.

We learned in our Mishna:

And one may not perform the standing and sitting ceremony

with

fewer than ten.

What is the reason?

Since

the appointed person

must say

to those who were offering consolation:

“Stand, dear ones, stand; sit, dear ones, sit”

[that is, after they had sat for a short while, the appointed person would say to them: Stand and go to another place. Rashbam, Bava Batra 100b], with

fewer than ten—

it is not proper conduct

to trouble an emissary in this way, to call them “dear ones.” For if so, what distinction would remain for the larger number? We learned in our Mishna:

And one may not recite the mourners’ blessing or the bridegrooms’ blessing.

And we inquire:

What is the mourners’ blessing?

And we explain:

The blessing of the square.

That is, when they provided the mourner with the first meal after the burial, they would prepare the meal in the square, and there they would recite the blessing [as we say in tractate Ketubot 8b; see there. See also Tosafot here].

For Rabbi Yitzḥak said that Rabbi Yohanan said: The mourners’ blessing—

it is recited

with ten, and the mourners are not included in the quorum,

since a special blessing is recited for the mourners separately and for those offering consolation separately, and they are not included together [as we say there, in tractate Ketubot].

The bridegrooms’ blessing—

with ten, and the bridegrooms are included in the quorum .

We learned in our Mishna:

And one may not invite for the meal with the Divine Name with fewer than ten.

What is the reason?

Since one must say: “Let us bless our God” ,

with

fewer than ten—

it is not proper conduct

to recite a blessing with the Divine Name.

We learned in our Mishna:

And for land, nine and a priest, and a person—

his law is like theirs.

From where are these matters

that land requires nine and a priest derived?

Shmuel said: Ten instances of the word “priests” are written in the passage

concerning consecrated property.

One “priest” is required

“koen” is required

for itself,

to teach that a priest is required for the redemption of consecrated land.

And the other

verses mentioning “priest”—

constitute a restrictive expression followed by another restrictive expression, and a restrictive expression followed by another restrictive expression—

serves only to include,

teaching that even an Israelite is effective. Therefore,

nine Israelites

and one priest are required .

And we object:

Perhaps

it is required to have

five priests and five Israelites,

for the second priest mentioned in the passage comes to exclude, but the third priest is no longer needed for exclusion. If so, the verse teaches that another priest is required, and likewise with all of them: one serves to exclude and teach that an Israelite suffices, and one teaches that another priest is required!?

And we conclude:

It is difficult.

We learned in our Mishna:

And a person

who comes to redeem himself

has the same law as they do.

And we wonder:

Can a person become consecrated ?

Rabbi Abbahu said: It concerns

a person who

says: “My monetary value is upon me.”

This is the case under discussion.

For it was taught in a beraita: One who says, “My monetary value is upon me,” is assessed like a slave

and gives his value to the Sanctuary.

And a slave—

he

was compared to land .

As it is written

concerning them:

“And you shall hold them as an inheritance for your sons after you, to inherit as a possession.”

Therefore, just as land requires ten, so too one who says, “My monetary value is upon me,” who is assessed like a slave, requires ten.

Mishna:

One who reads from the Torah may not read fewer than three verses.

And he may not read more than one verse for the translator,

so that the translator will not err, since he translates orally and is liable to make a mistake .