Pesachim 91a — the Talmud in English

And one who clears away the heap.

For example, a wall fell upon a person, and he is beneath a heap of stones, and there is concern that perhaps he is dead; and it follows that there is concern that the one who clears away the heap, who overshadows him with his body, will become impure.

And nevertheless, they slaughter the Pesach for him, for in the meantime, as long as we have not found a dead person beneath the heap, he has the presumptive status of purity.

And likewise one whom they promised to release from the prison,

which is outside Jerusalem, and there is concern that ultimately they will not release him and he will be unable to eat the Pesach; nevertheless, they rely upon the fact that they promised to release him, and they slaughter the Pesach for him.

And the ill person and the elderly person who are able to eat an olive-sized portion,

even though there is reason for concern that at night they will become weaker and will be unable to eat an olive-sized portion.

All these,

they slaughter for them

the Pesach, if they were counted in a group together with other people.

But

for all of them—

they do not slaughter for them separately

without other people, because

perhaps they will bring the Pesach to a state of invalidity.

For there is reason for concern regarding them that they will not be fit to eat the Pesach at night, as follows, and it follows that the Pesach offering will come to a state of invalidity.

In the case of an acute mourner, there is reason for concern that he may become impure through his dead person at the time of burial.

In the case of one who clears away the heap, there is reason for concern that he may find a dead person beneath the heap and become impure because he overshadowed him.

In the case of one whom they promised to release from the prison, perhaps they will not release him.

In the case of the ill person and the elderly person, perhaps they will become weaker at night and will be unable to eat an olive-sized portion.

And since we learned that they slaughter the Pesach for all these in a group together with other people,

therefore, if

the blood was sprinkled upon them, and after the sprinkling

an invalidating circumstance occurred to them,

and they are now unfit to eat the Pesach at night, even so—

they are exempt

from

performing Pesach Sheni,

since at the time of slaughter and sprinkling of the blood they were fit.

Except for the one who clears away the heap,

for if it is found that there was a dead person at the bottom of the heap, he is obligated to perform Pesach Sheni, because

he was impure from the outset.

For it has now become clear retroactively that before the slaughter he had already become impure, since he overshadowed the dead person from the moment that he began clearing away the heap. And the Gemara establishes the Mishna as referring to a round heap whose top is pointed, in such a manner that it is certain that he overshadowed the dead person. But if the heap is long, so that it is possible that he did not overshadow the dead person, he is exempt from performing Pesach Sheni.

Gemara:

We learned in the Mishna concerning one whom they promised to release from the prison, that they do not slaughter for him separately.

Rabba bar Huna said that Rabbi Yohanan said: They taught this only with regard to the prison of gentiles,

for we are concerned that perhaps they will not fulfill their promise and will not release him from the prison.

But with regard to the prison of Jews,

for example, they placed him in the prison in order to compel him to divorce his wife or to pay money,

they slaughter for him separately.

Because we say:

since they promised him—

they will release him.

Since they promised him, they will release him from there.

As it is written

in Zephaniah 3]

“The remnant of Israel shall not commit injustice and shall not speak falsehood.”

Rav Hisda said: This that you said, that with regard to the prison of gentiles they do not

slaughter for him separately,

we said this

we did not say this]

only

if the prison was

outside the wall of Beit Pagi,

which is the outermost place in Jerusalem.

But inside the wall of Beit Pagi—

they slaughter for him separately.

What is the reason?

What is the reason?]

It is possible that they will bring it to him and he will eat it.

For it is possible to bring him meat of the Pesach to the prison, and he will eat there.

We learned in the Mishna:

Therefore, if it occurred

to them that they became invalid, they are exempt from performing Pesach Sheni. Except for the one who clears away the heap, who was impure from the outset.

Rabba bar bar Hana said that Rabbi Yohanan said: They taught

that the one who clears away the heap is obligated to perform Pesach Sheni

only

if it was a

round heap,

with the dead person beneath its center, so that then certainly the one who clears away the heap overshadowed him when he stood upon its point [Meiri].

But if it was a

long heap,

so that it is possible that the one who clears away the heap stood upon its point not opposite the dead person,

he is exempt from performing Pesach Sheni.

For

perhaps

it may be said]

he was pure at the time of slaughter.

It was also taught so: Rabbi Shimon, son of Rabbi Yohanan ben Beroka, says: One who clears away a heap—

sometimes

at times]

is exempt

from performing Pesach Sheni,

at times he is obligated.

How so?

If it is a round heap and impurity is found beneath it, he is obligated. If it is a long heap and impurity is found beneath it, he is exempt,

for

perhaps he was pure at the time of slaughter.

Mishna:

They do not slaughter the Pesach for an individual; these are the words of Rabbi Yehuda,

and in the Gemara its reason is explained.

And Rabbi Yosei permits.

For the slaughter of the Pesach is not dependent upon the number of people counted for it, but only upon whether they are fit to eat an olive-sized portion.

There is an individual for whom they slaughter—for example, one who is fit to eat an olive-sized portion— and there are many for whom they do not slaughter—

even a group of one hundred who are unable to eat an olive-sized portion,

for example, because they are weak,

they do not slaughter for them.

And they do not

make

a group of women, slaves, and minors.

And the reason for this is explained in the Gemara.

Gemara:

The Sages taught: From where is it derived that they do not slaughter the Pesach for an individual?

The verse states:

Deuteronomy 16]

“You shall not be able to slaughter the Pesach in one

of your gates.” And they expound from here: “You shall not be able to eat the Pesach in one”—as one person.

These are the words of Rabbi Yehuda.

And Rabbi Yosei says: An individual who is able to eat it—

they slaughter for him;

ten who are unable to eat it,

even an olive-sized portion of it—

they do not slaughter for them.

And we raise a difficulty:

And Rabbi Yosei, this “

You shall not be able to eat the Pesach

in one”—

what does he do with it?

What does he expound from the word “in one”?

And we answer:

He requires it—

he needs the word “in one” to learn from it

in accordance with Rabbi Shimon,

who expounded this verse with regard to one who slaughters the Pesach on the fourteenth of Nisan before midday on a private bama, who transgresses a prohibition, as follows:

At the time when the Children of Israel were in the wilderness, they offered their offerings only in the Tabernacle, and not on bamot.

When they entered the Land of Israel, before the Tabernacle at Shiloh was built, they offered communal offerings on the great public bama. And they could also offer individual offerings on a small private bama.

The Pesach offering has the status of a communal offering with regard to this matter.

And once the Tabernacle at Shiloh was chosen, the bamot became forbidden, and they offered only in the Tabernacle. And after the Tabernacle at Shiloh was destroyed, the bamot again became permitted, until the Temple was built in Jerusalem.

Communal offerings that one offered on a private bama incur karet [as is the law with regard to one who slaughters and offers sacred offerings outside

]. But all this applies to a valid offering, for had it been offered on the great bama, it would have effected atonement.

But a communal offering that is not valid, or, for example, one offered not at its proper time, does not incur karet if one offered it on a small private bama.

And Rabbi Shimon learned from the verse “You shall not be able to slaughter the Pesach” that if one slaughtered the Pesach or the other communal offerings on a private bama not at their proper time, he transgresses a prohibition, even though he is exempt from karet, as follows:

For it was taught: Rabbi Shimon says: From where is it derived concerning one who slaughters his Pesach on a private bama

at a time when the bamot are forbidden

at a time when they were in the wilderness, when they offered only in the Tabernacle, and likewise at the time when the Tabernacle was at Shiloh, and at the time when the Temple in Jerusalem was built], from where

is it derived that he violates a prohibition,

even though he slaughtered the Pesach on the fourteenth of Nisan before its proper time, before midday?

The verse states: “You shall not be able to slaughter the Pesach in one of your gates.”

And it did not come to teach about one who slaughters the Pesach on a private bama at its proper time, after midday, that he violates a prohibition, because there is no need to teach this to us, for it even carries karet. Rather, it is necessarily speaking of before midday, and teaching us that despite the fact that he does not incur karet, he transgresses a prohibition. Zevahim 114b

And this is how they expounded the verse: “You shall not be able to slaughter the Pesach,” even before its proper time, but only in the place stated later in the passage: “But only at the place that the Lord your God will choose to cause His name to dwell.” That is, in the Temple.

And it follows that the words “in one of your gates” are superfluous, since at the end of the verse it says, “But only at the place.”

And what did they come to teach us? Rather, “in one of your gates” was stated for this reason:

For

it might have been possible

that

even at a time when the bamot were permitted

it would be said

so.

For example, at the time when they were at Gilgal, Nob, and Gibeon, perhaps even then it would be said that there is a prohibition if one slaughtered the Pesach before its proper time on a private bama. [For even at a time when the bamot were permitted, only an offering that comes through a vow or a voluntary offering was offered on a small bama. But the Pesach, which is an obligatory offering on the fourteenth of Nisan, is not offered on bamot.]

The verse states: “In one of your gates.”

They said

that one who slaughters the Pesach before its proper time on a private bama transgresses a prohibition—

only at a time when all Israel enters through one gate

into the Temple, and not through many gates of private bamot.

And we raise a difficulty:

And Rabbi Yehuda,

who learns from “in one of your gates” that they do not slaughter the Pesach for a single person—

this,

this matter that we said, that at a time when the bamot are permitted there is no prohibition for one who slaughters the Pesach before its proper time,

from where does he derive it?

From where did Rabbi Yehuda learn this matter?

And we answer: Rabbi Yehuda holds that

you learn two things from it.

It is possible to learn two things from “in one of your gates”: a. that they do not slaughter the Pesach for an individual; b. that at a time when bamot are permitted, there is no prohibition for one who slaughters the Pesach before its proper time.

And we raise a difficulty:

And for Rabbi Yosei,

who expounded the verse “in one of your gates” with regard to one who slaughters the Pesach outside the Temple, there is a difficulty:

From what

that is what Rabbi Shimon said, from where do we know that the verse came to teach us Rabbi Shimon’s words?

Perhaps it came for what Rabbi Yehuda said.

Perhaps the verse came to teach us that they do not slaughter the Pesach for an individual, as Rabbi Yehuda said!

And we answer:

He could say to you,

Rabbi Yosei:

It does not enter your mind.

It is impossible to say as Rabbi Yehuda said.

For it is written

in Exodus 12] concerning the Pesach:

“A man according to his eating

shall you count for the lamb.” That is, a single man according to his eating, you shall slaughter the lamb for him.

Rav Ukva bar Hinana of Parishana raised a contradiction

a place-name]

to Rava,

for there is a contradiction in Rabbi Yehuda’s words:

Is it true that

—is it so that—

Rabbi Yehuda said that

they

do not slaughter the

Pesach

for an individual?

And he contradicted it:

we learned in a beraita:

A woman in

Pesach

the first

on the fourteenth of Nisan is obligated in the Pesach, and

they slaughter for her

the Pesach offering even if she is

by herself.

And in

Pesach

the second,

a woman is not obligated in it, and they do not slaughter an offering for her separately. And if she wishes to offer the Pesach—

they make her ancillary to others,

they attach her to a group of men.

These are the words of Rabbi Yehuda.

It follows that Rabbi Yehuda explicitly said that for the first Pesach they slaughter for a woman separately, even though she is alone!

He said to him,

Rava offered an answer:

Do not say,

do not say that in Rabbi Yehuda’s words, “they slaughter for her

by herself”

is in the singular.

Rather, say

say

“by themselves,”

in the plural. And Rabbi Yehuda came to teach us that they slaughter the first Pesach for a group of women.

He said to him,

Rav Ukva bar Hinana said to Rava as a difficulty:

Do we make

—do we make—

a group consisting entirely of women?

But did we not learn

after all, we learned in our Mishna:

“They do not make a group of women, slaves, and minors.”

Is this not referring,

to a group of

women by themselves

alone],

and slaves by themselves, and minors by themselves?

And if so, it is explained in our Mishna that they do not make a group of women.

He said to him,

Rava answered:

No!

The intention of the Mishna is not that it is forbidden to make a group of women by themselves. Rather, it refers to groups of

women, slaves, and minors

together.

Women and slaves

are forbidden to be in one group

because of promiscuity,

sexual transgression.