Yevamot 86b — the Talmud in English

Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya says:

The first tithe—one gives it

to a priest.

The Gemara raises a question about the statement of Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya:

Does this mean that one gives the tithe only

to a priest and not

to

a Levite?

But the verse explicitly says that it is to be given to the Levites!

And the Gemara answers:

Say

the following instead: Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya says that one gives the first tithe

also to a priest.

The Gemara explains:

What is the reason of Rabbi Akiva,

who says that the first tithe is given only to the Levites?

It is because

it is written [Numbers 18:26]:

“And to the Levites you shall speak, saying:

“And to the Levites you shall speak and say to them:

When you take from the Children of Israel the tithe.”

Thus,

it is speaking about the Levites;

the

verse

is speaking about them.

The Gemara continues to explain why Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya disagrees with him:

But the other one,

Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya, who holds that the first tithe may be given also to a priest, explains that although the verse speaks about Levites, priests are included as well,

in accordance with Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi.

As Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Priests are called “Levites” in twenty-four places, and this is one of them: “The Levitical priests

the sons of Zadok.”

Zadok was a priest, yet the verse calls his sons “Levites.”

And Rabbi Akiva,

who holds that the first tithe is given only to Levites, says:

Here,

with regard to the tithe,

you cannot say

that the verse calls priests “Levites,” and therefore the tithe should be given to them as well.

Since

it is written

with regard to the tithe:

“And you shall eat it

in every place.”

The verse teaches that the tithe is given only to

one who can eat it in every place,

even in an impure place such as a cemetery.

A priest is excluded, because he cannot eat it in a cemetery,

since he is commanded not to become impure.

But the other one,

Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya, explains the phrase “And you shall eat it in every place” as follows:

Wherever he wishes,

he may eat it.

The verse “And you shall eat it in every place” teaches two things:

The first is that

it does not require

the eating of the first tithe

within a wall!

That is, it need not be eaten specifically within the walls of Jerusalem.

And

the second is:

if he eats it

when the first tithe is impure

with bodily impurity, he

does not receive lashes

for doing so!

Not only does he not receive lashes; it is in fact permitted from the outset to eat it while in a state of bodily impurity.

The Gemara relates an incident involving

a certain garden,

one garden,

from which Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya used to take

who was a priest

the first tithe

from it—from its owner.

The owner of the garden would regularly give him the first tithe from what grew in the garden. Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya would take the tithe, in accordance with his view that the first tithe may also be given to a priest.

Rabbi Akiva went and moved its entrance toward the cemetery [he went and moved the entrance of the garden toward the cemetery], so that Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya the priest would be unable to enter it to take the tithe.

This was in accordance with his view that the tithe is given only to a Levite.

Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya said

about this:

“Akiva with his pack”—

“And as for me, I swear by my life!”

Ezra fined the Levites so that they would lose their right to receive the tithe, for the reason that will be explained in the discussion that follows.

The nature of the fine depends on the dispute between Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya and Rabbi Akiva: whether by Torah law the tithe is given only to Levites, or whether by Torah law it is given both to Levites and to priests.

Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya holds that by the basic law the tithe is given to both. Therefore, according to his view, Ezra fined the Levites by decreeing that the tithe should not be given to them, but only to priests.

According to Rabbi Akiva, however, by the basic law the tithe is given only to Levites, and Ezra fined them by granting priests as well the right to receive the tithe, in addition to the Levites [or also the poor; the amoraim disagree about this below].

What is the scriptural source for the fine? The early authorities disagree about this.

Some hold that it is based on what is stated in the Book of Nehemiah, chapter 10: “And the priest, the son of Aaron, shall be with the Levites when the Levites tithe.”

The verse is saying: When the Levites come to divide the tithe at the threshing floors, the priests should come with them as well.

Other early authorities cite the verse in Malachi: “Bring the entire tithe to the storehouse.” The storehouse was the chamber that Ezra established for depositing the priests’ offering.

Since Malachi commanded that the tithe be placed there, this proves that it belongs to the priests.

And we maintain that “Malachi” is Ezra.

It was stated: Why did they impose a fine

in the days of Ezra on the

Levites with regard to the tithe?

Rabbi Yonatan and the Elders disagree about this.

One says:

The reason was

that they did not go up

together with the rest of the Babylonian exiles

in the days of Ezra,

as the Gemara will explain below.

And one says: So that priests could rely on it [on the tithe]

during

during the period of their impurity,

when they were forbidden to eat the priests’ offering; therefore, the tithe was made available to them.

The Gemara asks:

Granted, according to the one who says

that the Levites were fined because

they did not go up

in the days of Ezra, it is understandable that

for that reason Ezra fined them

the Levites.

But according to the one who says: So that priests could rely on it during their period of impurity,

is it the case that

because

the

priests

needed the tithe,

he fined

the Levites

?!

Rather,

the Gemara retracts this explanation and offers another:

Everyone agrees—

both Rabbi Yonatan and the Elders—that the reason for

the fine

imposed on the Levites, whereby the tithe was taken from them, was

that they did not go up in the days of Ezra.

And here is where they disagree,

Rabbi Yonatan and the Elders:

One holds: The fine

imposed by Ezra was to give the tithe, in addition to the Levites, also

to the poor.

But wealthy priests do not receive it.

And one holds:

The fine was to give the tithe—in addition to the Levites—to priests, whether poor or wealthy, because

during their period of impurity priests are considered poor.

The Gemara raises a question against the view that the fine made the tithe available to priests, based on the incident mentioned earlier in the Gemara concerning the garden from which Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya took the tithe:

Granted, according to the one who says: The fine was for the poor, for that reason—

when Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya, who was a wealthy priest, took the tithe—

Rabbi Akiva moved the entrance

of the garden from which he took the tithe

toward the cemetery,

so that he would not take it, since according to Rabbi Akiva Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya was acting improperly.

But according to the one who says

that after Ezra’s fine the tithe was given

to priests,

even if they were wealthy—

this is difficult:

Why did he move

Rabbi Akiva

the entrance toward the cemetery?

After all, Rabbi Akiva lived after Ezra’s fine!

And the Gemara answers:

This is what he said to him,

Rabbi Akiva to Rabbi Elazar ben Azarya:

If you came by virtue of the fine [if you are approaching the tithe under the terms of Ezra’s fine], then indeed

then indeed

you have

a right to the tithe!

But

if

you came by virtue of the basic distribution,

if you are claiming it from the standpoint of the basic law,

you do not have that right.

The Gemara explained above that the reason for Ezra’s fine was that the Levites did not go up in his days.

The Gemara now explains the source for the fact that the Levites did not go up:

And from where do we know that they did not go up in the days of Ezra [from where do we know that the Levites did not go up from Babylonia to the Land of Israel in the days of Ezra]?

We explain: From this,

And the Gemara explains: From this,

as it is written: “And I gathered them [those who went up with Ezra from Babylonia]

[those who ascended with Ezra from Babylonia]

at the river that flows toward

Ahava [near the river flowing toward a place called Ahava, according to the Metzudot].

[near the river that flows to a place called Ahava, according to the Metzudot].

And we camped there [that is, we stayed there]

[that is, we remained encamped there]

for three days. And I examined the people [I considered carefully the people who had gathered with me]

[I paid attention in order to understand the people who had gathered with me],

and the priests. But among the Levites

I found none there.”

I found none there.”

Thus, the priests went up, but the Levites did not.

Rav Chisda said: At first,

before the Levites stopped going up,

they appointed officers [enforcers who compel compliance with the words of the judges]

only from among the Levites, as it is stated: “And the Levitical officers shall be before you

.”

But

now—

they appoint officers only from among Israelites,

as it is stated: “And officers, many

[that is, Israelites, who are more numerous than the Levites]

at your heads.”

Mishna:

This Mishna follows the view of Rabbi Meir, who holds that the first tithe is forbidden for non-priests to eat.

1.

An Israelite woman who married a priest—

she may eat teruma.

Even if

her priest husband dies,

priest husband

and

she has

a son from him—

she may eat teruma

on account of her son.

As it is stated: “And those born in his household [of the priest]—they shall eat of his bread.” And we interpret this to mean: “They shall enable her to eat of his bread.”

If she then

marries a Levite [who is considered a non-priest with regard to teruma], while her son from the priest is still alive, she

may eat

may eat only

the first tithe

the first tithe,

on account of her husband.

She may not eat teruma, however. Since she married a non-priest, she again became a non-priestly woman, and she may not eat on account of her son from the priest.

Even if

her Levite husband dies,

Levite husband

and

she has

a son from him—

she may eat the first tithe

on account of her son from the Levite.

If she then, having a son from the priest and a son from the Levite,

marries an Israelite—

she may eat neither teruma nor the first tithe.

Her marriage to a non-priest disqualifies her from teruma and from the first tithe that she would otherwise eat on account of her sons.

If

her non-priest husband dies,

non-member husband

and

she has

a son from him—

she may eat neither teruma nor the first tithe,

even after his death.

The son she has from the Israelite disqualifies her from eating teruma on account of her son from the priest, and disqualifies her from eating the first tithe on account of her son from the Levite.

If afterward

her son from the Israelite dies,

while her son from the Levite is still alive,

she may eat the first tithe

on account of her son from the Levite.

But she may not eat teruma on account of her son from the priest who is still alive, because her son from the Levite disqualifies her.

If

even

her

son from the Levite dies,

she may eat teruma

on account of her son from the priest.

If

even

her

son from the priest dies,

she may eat neither teruma nor the first tithe,

because she is an Israelite woman.