Shekalim 10b — the Talmud in English

Mishna: Halakha 2:

The red cow

and

the goat sent away

to Azazel on Yom Kippur,

and the strip of crimson wool [

see the note, in which three opinions of the Rishonim are explained as to which strip of crimson wool is being discussed]—

come

also they

from the chamber’s contribution.

And this is the reason: because the red cow is called in the Torah by the name “sin-offering,” as it is stated: “For the water of sprinkling—it is a sin-offering.” Therefore, its law is like that of offerings, which come from the chamber’s contribution.

And the crimson thread has the law of an offering [see the preceding note as to how it is related to the offering], and therefore it too comes from the chamber’s contribution.

And the goat sent away comes from the chamber’s contribution, even though it is not an offering sacrificed upon the altar, because it is written: “And from the assembly of the children of Israel he shall take two he-goats: one for the Lord, and one for Azazel.” And we derive from the fact that it is written “two he-goats” that the two must be equal, both in their purchase price and in taking them together; and from here we learn that both of them come from the chamber’s contribution.

And see the writings of the author of the Chiddushei Rabbeinu Chaim Halevi, and in Mikdash David, which elaborated on the nature of the goat sent away: whether it has the law of an offering, and whether the strip of crimson wool belongs to the offering.

b. And now the Mishna lists the things that come from the money of the shekels that remained in the chamber after the three contributions had been placed into the boxes [as we learned in chapter 3]:

The ramp of the cow—

a kind of double bridge, one above the other, they would make from the Temple Mount to the Mount of Olives, and upon it they would bring out the red cow, because of concern for impurity from an unknown grave.

And the ramp of the goat sent away—

which they would make from the courtyard until outside the city, and upon it they brought out the goat sent away to Azazel, because of the people who would pull out the hair of the one leading it, in order to hasten him, so that the sins would not remain upon Israel.

And the strip of crimson wool—

which they would tie between the horns of the goat sent away, to know whether the sins of Israel had been atoned for [for if it became white, it was a sign that the sins had been atoned for].

And the water channel

that passed through the courtyard.

And the walls of the city and its towers, and all the other needs of the city—

they

come

from money

of the surplus of the chamber,

since all these are not needs of offerings.

Abba Shaul says: The ramp

upon which they would bring out the

cow

red—

the High Priests would make it from

the money

of their own.

c.

The remainder of the surplus of the chamber,

the shekels that remained in the chamber after they had used them for all the needs mentioned above—

what would they do with them?

They would purchase wines, oils, and fine flour with them,

and sell them to one who needed to bring a meal-offering,

and the profit

that they earned from this would fall

to the Sanctuary. These are the words of Rabbi Ishmael.

Rabbi Akiva says: One may not engage in profit-making [

one may not conduct commerce in order to earn a profit]

with consecrated funds.

For sometimes there is also a loss.

And one may not

engage in profit-making

with

charity money

of the poor,

when there are no poor, for this reason. Rather, the money should lie until poor people come.

d. And now the Mishna explains what they would do with what remained in the boxes into which they had contributed money from the chamber.

For with the money remaining from the previous year they would not bring communal offerings, since communal offerings are brought only from the new contribution.

The remainder of the contribution

that remained in the boxes on the first of Nisan—

what would they do with it?

Sheets of gold [

thin plates of gold],

covering

the walls, the ceiling, and the floor

of the Holy of Holies.

Rabbi Ishmael says: The remainder of the produce [

and the Gemara explains what it is]—it is what they bring

for the warming of the altar.

For when the altar was idle, and the people were not offering offerings, they would sacrifice upon it burnt-offerings of “the public’s voluntary offerings,” and from the remainder of the produce they would bring such burnt-offerings.

And these burnt-offerings are called “the warming of the altar.”

And the burnt-offerings of the public’s voluntary offerings are called by this name because “summer produce” means “fruit” [II Samuel 16:2]; and just as it is customary to bring fruit and types of sweets to the table at the end of the meal, so, after they had finished bringing the offerings obligatory for the day, they would bring these burnt-offerings as a “dessert” for the altar.

But

the remainder of the contribution

that remained in the boxes from which they had contributed the shekels in the chamber, Rabbi Ishmael holds that it was intended

to

purchase

sacred vessels.

For Rabbi Ishmael holds that the requisites of an offering are like the offering, and therefore they come from the money from which the offerings come.

Rabbi Akiva says: From the remainder of the contribution

that remained in the chamber they would purchase burnt-offerings

for the warming of the altar,

in accordance with the words of the first tanna.

And

from

the remainder of the libations [

and the Gemara explains what it is] they would take

to

purchase with them

sacred vessels.

Rabbi Hanina, deputy of the priests, says: The remainder of the libations

was

for the warming of the altar.

And

if

the remainder of the contribution

were designated

for

the purchase of

sacred vessels.

Both this and that,

Rabbi Akiva and Rabbi Hanina, deputy of the priests,

would not concede

to Rabbi Ishmael

with regard to

the remainder

of the produce.

For they hold that there was no remainder of produce at all, since one may not engage in profit-making with consecrated money.

Gemara:

We learned in the Mishna:

The ramp of the cow

and the ramp of the goat sent away and the strip between its horns.

In three matters in the Torah we find that there is a need for a “strip of wool,” dyed red, called “crimson worm.”

And concerning this

Rabbi Ishmael bar Naḥman said in the name of Rabbi Yonatan:

There are three strips

of red crimson wool

that are,

and they differ in their weights:

a.

The strip of crimson wool

of the goat

sent away, which they would tie between its horns, its weight was

a sela.

Since it had to be divided in two, as we learned in tractate Yoma: Half of it is tied to the rock, and half of it is tied between its horns. Therefore, its weight was large.

b.

The strip of crimson wool required for the purification of

the one afflicted with leprosy,

for dipping it in the water with which he is sprinkled, was sufficient at a weight of

a shekel,

which is half a sela, since it does not need to be divided in two.

c.

The strip of crimson wool

of the cow,

red, which they cast into the burning of the cow, needed to be heavy so that they could cast it; therefore, it needed to be

at

a weight of

two sela.

Rabbi Hanuyah of Beit Ḥavrin

said in the name of

Rabbi Ba bar Zavda, in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta:

The strip of crimson wool

of the cow,

red—its weight was

two and a half sela.

And some take out the wording [

and some say this law in another wording]: Its weight was

ten zuz.

And there is no difference between the wordings, since a sela is four zuz; it follows that two and a half sela are ten zuz.

And now the Gemara lists additional “performers of tasks” who took their wages from the chamber’s contribution:

Rabbi Yehuda said

in the name of Rabbi Shmuel: Torah scholars who taught the priests the laws of slaughter, and the laws of receiving

the blood,

and the laws of sprinkling

the blood of the offerings—

take their wages from the chamber’s contribution.

Rabbi Yitzḥak bar Radifa said

in the name of Rabbi Imi: Those who inspect blemishes of

animals

dedicated [

who were appointed to examine the blemishes of the animals]—

take their wages from the chamber’s contribution.

Rabbi

Aḥa

said in the name of

Rabbi Tanḥum bar Ḥiyya in the name of Rabbi Simlai: Those who proofread a Torah scroll

that was lying

in the courtyard—

take their wages from the chamber’s contribution.

Rabbi

Giddel bar Binyamin said in the name of Rabbi Asi: The two judges of robbery

who judged cases of robbery in Jerusalem—

would take their wages from the chamber’s contribution.

Shmuel said: The women who wove the curtain

that separated between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies—

take their wages from the chamber’s contribution.

In the First Temple, Solomon built a wall one cubit wide [called the “cubit of partition”] in order to separate between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies. But in the Second Temple the ceiling was very high, and the partition wall could not be maintained at such a great height. Therefore, they made there two curtains, with a cubit between them.

And Shmuel held that the women who wove these curtains received their wages from the chamber’s contribution.

Rabbi Huna said:

They received their wages

from the contribution for the repair of the House.

And the Gemara explains: With regard to

what does

Rabbi Huna disagree with Shmuel?

Shmuel treated it

—he considered the curtain

as vessels,

in accordance with the law of sacred vessels purchased from the chamber’s contribution.

But

Rav Huna treated it

—he considered it

as a building,

since it came in place of the wall-building of the “cubit of partition,” which was a building in the House that Solomon built, and not a curtain; and the building was not constructed from the chamber’s contribution, but from what will be explained below.

Rabbi Ḥizkiya said: Rabbi Yehuda Gagdud taught [

that was his name]:

The incense, and all the communal offerings—

come from the chamber’s contribution.

The golden altar,

which is portable and is considered a vessel,

and all sacred vessels—

come from the remainder of the libations [

from the profit that comes to the Sanctuary through the libations, as explained below].

The altar of burnt-offering,

which is built,

and the Sanctuary, and the courtyards—

come

from the funds [the version of the Vilna Gaon]

for the repair of the House.

The building that they built

outside the courtyards,

such as the walls of the city and its towers—

comes from the surplus of the chamber [

the version of the Vilna Gaon]. [

That is, from the surplus remaining in the chamber after all the offerings of that year had been sacrificed].

And we raise an objection: How did you say that the building of Jerusalem, which is outside the courtyards, comes from the surplus of the chamber?

And

is it not taught: The stones of Jerusalem—

one commits sacrilege with them!

And is there sacrilege with the surplus [

of the chamber]?

And we answer: Indeed, there is sacrilege with the surplus,

according to

the method of

Rabbi Meir.

For Rabbi Meir said: One commits sacrilege with the surplus.

Rabbi Ḥiyya said [

as an objection]:

Did Rabbi Meir say anything

that one commits sacrilege with the surplus that remained in the chamber

except during its year,

when it is still possible that this money will be needed for offerings, if the money in the boxes is exhausted?

But after its year, when offerings are no longer sacrificed from the surplus, he did not say that one commits sacrilege with it.

But here—

we are dealing with after its year [

this is the case under discussion]. For during its year it is forbidden to take the money out for other matters, lest it be needed for communal offerings.

And the Gemara left the objection without an answer.

Rabbi Ḥizkiya said: Rabbi Yehuda Gagdud taught: The table, the menorah, the altars, and the curtain—

hold back the offerings,

for if they are lacking, offerings are not sacrificed,

the words of Rabbi Meir.

And the Sages say: You have nothing

—a thing

that holds back the offering except

the lack of

the basin and its base,

of the basin,

alone.

And we raise an objection:

And

yet

did Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Yose ben Ḥanina not say so?

For

both of them

—

said:

Everywhere

where it is written “opposite

[

“opposite”]”—

it

holds back

if it is lacking.

And similarly the menorah, concerning which it is written: “And you shall place the menorah opposite the table.”

And from here we learn that the lack of the menorah holds back the offering of the offerings.

But where it is written

“side”,

and similarly concerning the table, where it is written: “And you shall place the table on the northern side”—

it does not hold back

its lack from the offering of the offerings.

And Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman said in the name of Rabbi Yonatan: And even

a thing concerning which it is written

“side”—

holds back.