Menachot 76b — the Talmud in English

And we explain it:

It is

Samuel,

who says in accordance with this tanna,

like the first tanna in the adjacent beraita,

as it was taught: All the meal-offerings in which he increased the measure of their challa, or decreased the measure of their challa—

they are

valid, except for the lechem ha-panim and the chavitei kohen gadol,

which are invalid

; and some say: also except for the loaves of the thanksgiving-offering and the nazirite-offering.

Rav Huna said: If one baked the meal-offering of baked goods as a single loaf, he has fulfilled his obligation.

What is the reason?

For “

matzat”

is written defectively,

it is written,

and this implies: even a single matza.

Rav Pappa objected to him: The reason is that it is written “

matzat,”

a singular expression;

but

if it had

been written “

matzot” in full, which is a plural expression—

in the full form, which is plural—

would he not

have fulfilled his obligation!?

But concerning the loaves of the thanksgiving-offering, for it is written “

matzot,”

and

nevertheless

Rav Tovi bar Kisna said in the name of Samuel: If one baked the loaves of the thanksgiving-offering as four loaves, he has fulfilled his obligation!?

And we explain:

That

of Samuel

disagrees

with Rav Huna.

Mishna:

The omer

which they would bring on the sixteenth of Nisan

consisted of a tenth

of fine flour, after extensive sifting, by which they extracted it

from three seah

of barley.

The two loaves

were brought on Shavuot

[as] two tenths

[a tenth for each loaf] of fine flour, which they extracted

from three seah

of wheat.

The lechem ha-panim

was brought every Shabbat

[as] twenty-four tenths

[two tenths for each loaf], which they extracted

from twenty-four seah,

a tenth from each seah of wheat.

Gemara:

We learned in the Mishna: The omer consisted of a tenth from three seah:

And we explain:

What is the reason?

Since

the omer

comes

from flour

of the new [crop]

[from flour made from new grain, which contains more bran and less fine flour],

and it comes from barley

[the omer was brought from barley], it follows that

a choice tenth comes only from three seah

of grain.

But

the two loaves

would come

as two tenths from three seah:

And the reason is

since they come from wheat,

which contains less bran,

even though

they too

come from the new [crop] —

two tenths

of choice quality

come

also

from three seah

only.

The lechem ha-panim, twenty-four tenths from twenty-four seah:

What is the reason?

Since they come from wheat and they come from old [grain],

for there is no requirement concerning the lechem ha-panim to bring it from the new grain,

a choice tenth comes

even

from a seah.

The Sages taught: All the meal-offerings in which he increased the measure of their tenths,

that is, if he brought a libation meal-offering more than the Torah prescribed, namely, three tenths for a bull, two tenths for a ram, and a tenth for a lamb,

or decreased the measure of their tenths,

these are

invalid.

All the meal-offerings in which he

increased the measure of their seah,

such as when he extracted a tenth for the omer from five seah,

or decreased the measure of their seah,

when he extracted a tenth for the omer from two seah, these are

valid,

because it is a rabbinic enactment and he may change it.

Mishna:

The fine flour of

the omer was sifted through thirteen sieves.

The fine flour of

the two loaves

was sifted

through twelve

sieves.

And

the fine flour of

the lechem ha-panim

was sifted

through eleven

sieves.

Rabbi Shimon says: They had no fixed number

for the number of sieves for the lechem ha-panim,

rather, he would bring fine flour sifted as much as necessary.

That is, eleven sieves are not necessary for the lechem ha-panim; rather, he would even bring fine flour sifted from the marketplace, because

it is stated

concerning the lechem ha-panim [Leviticus 24:5]: “

You shall take fine flour and bake it,”

until it is sifted as much as necessary.

Gemara:

The Sages taught:

This is how they would sift the omer, the two loaves, and the lechem ha-panim:

At first they would sift

with a

sieve

of fine mesh

[whose holes were narrow], and afterward

with a

sieve

of coarse mesh

[whose holes were wide], and again

with the fine-mesh sieve,

which was coarser than the fine-mesh sieve before it, and again

with the coarse-mesh sieve,

which was finer than the coarse-mesh sieve before it, and so on—

Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar

explains the words of the first tanna, and

says:

There were thirteen sieves in the Temple, one above the other, and this one above that one.

The uppermost—

catches bran.

The lowermost—

catches fine flour.

We learned in the Mishna:

Rabbi Shimon says: They had no fixed number:

The Sages taught:

It is written concerning the lechem ha-panim [Leviticus 24:5]: “You shall take

fine flour and bake it,”

this teaches that fine flour is purchased

from the marketplace,

fine flour,

for it implies that from the time of taking it, it is fit to be sifted.

And from where [do we know] that

it is purchased from the marketplace

even as wheat?—

The verse says “

you shall take,”

in any event.

That is, initially they should buy sifted fine flour from the marketplace, but after the fact, it is possible to take wheat from the marketplace, grind it, and sift it.

Could it be that also with the other meal-offerings

of an individual the law

is so,

that one may take wheat from the marketplace and sift it—

The verse says “

it,”

which comes to exclude: specifically for the lechem ha-panim wheat may be purchased, but not for the other meal-offerings brought by an individual, because not everyone is expert in sifting; therefore, one must take sifted fine flour from the marketplace ; and the reason that the Torah was lenient with the lechem ha-panim is

because of the saving,

as it goes on to explain.

And we explain:

What is “

because of the saving”?

Rabbi Elazar said: The Torah took pity on the money of Israel,

so that they would not need to take from the marketplace fine flour, which is more expensive than wheat, and with the lechem ha-panim, which consists of twenty-four tenths [each loaf made from two tenths], the saving through purchasing wheat is substantial. But concerning the other meal-offerings, which consist of a small amount of fine flour, the Torah required that one bring sifted fine flour from the marketplace, which is sifted היטב.

The Gemara asks:

Where is it hinted,

where is it hinted in the Torah that the Torah took pity on the money of Israel:

And the Gemara explains:

For it is written

[Numbers 20:8]: “Take the staff. And bring forth water for them from the rock

and give drink to the congregation and to their beasts.”

And since the miracle of bringing forth the water also relates to giving water to the animals to drink, this is a hint that the Torah took pity on the animals of Israel, and the miracle also occurred in order to give them water to drink.

We shall return to you, chapter “These are the meal-offerings whose handful is taken.”

A. It is written [Leviticus 7:12]: “And this is the law of the sacrifice of the peace-offerings that he shall bring to the Lord. If it is for a thanksgiving-offering, he shall bring it [if it is for a matter of thanksgiving for a miracle that happened to him, such as those who go down to the sea and those who travel through deserts, and those imprisoned in the prison-house, and a sick person who recovered, for they must give thanks; if for one of these he vowed these peace-offerings]:

And he shall bring with the sacrifice of the thanksgiving-offering unleavened cakes mixed with oil, and unleavened wafers spread with oil, and scalded fine flour [bread thoroughly scalded in boiling water], cakes [unleavened] mixed with oil.”

Thus there are three kinds of unleavened bread, for each of which he brings ten cakes, and the measure of the fine flour in each cake and in the three kinds together is explained in our Mishna. “

With cakes of leavened bread he shall bring his offering, with the sacrifice of the thanksgiving peace-offerings”; that is, he must also bring an additional ten leavened cakes, as explained in our Mishna, and they were three times larger than the unleavened cakes.

B. It is explained in our Mishna that the eifa is three se'a. The size of the eifa and the size of the se'a was different in the days of Moses in the wilderness from that in Jerusalem, because in Jerusalem they increased them by a sixth; thus, one Jerusalem eifa was equal to one and one-fifth wilderness eifa. They likewise increased the measure of the se'a, and it follows that five Jerusalem se'a were equal to six wilderness se'a.

C. The measure of an “issaron,” which contains one-tenth of an eifa, was customary in the wilderness; but in Jerusalem they did not use this measure, rather they divided the se'a into six kav. Our Mishna explains the measures of the fine flour for the various thanksgiving cakes according to the measure of the issaron that was customary in the wilderness, and according to the measure of the kav that was customary in Jerusalem.

Mishna:

The thanksgiving-offering was brought

with thanksgiving loaves made from flour in the measure of

five Jerusalem se'a, which are

equal in their measure to

six

se'a

of the wilderness,

because in Jerusalem they increased the measures by a sixth melaber.

And those six wilderness se'a are

two eifa

of the wilderness, and every

eifa is three se'a—

and these six se'a—which are two eifa—contain

twenty “

issaron” [

one-tenth of an eifa].

And these twenty issaron were divided:

Ten

issaron [one half]

for

the loaves of

leavened bread, and ten

issaron [the second half]

for

all the kinds of

unleavened bread,

as he proceeds to explain.

And the Mishna explains how the ten issaron were divided among the leavened loaves, and how the ten issaron of unleavened bread were divided: