Zevachim 117b — the Talmud in English

Rabbi Shimon

disagrees with all of them in that they hold that the community offered all its sacrifices at the Great bama, whereas he

says: Even

the

community did not offer

at the Great bama

anything but Paschal offerings ![](pamud.bmp "

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and obligations whose time is fixed,

namely the daily offerings and the additional offerings, but obligations whose time is not fixed, such as the bull for an unwitting communal ruling and the goats for idolatry, the community did not offer during the time when the bamot were permitted.

And we inquire about it:

What is the reason of Rabbi Meir

who said that every offering that is neither vowed nor donated is not offered at a Small bama, whereas the offerings of a nazirite are offered?

And we explain:

For the verse says: “You shall not do according to all that we are doing here today,

each man whatever is proper in his eyes,” and this is its explanation:

Moses said to Israel: When you enter the Land of Israel,

and you will be permitted to offer as an individual at a bama while the Tabernacle is at Gilgal, and there it says, “You shall not do,” you shall not offer each individual’s obligatory offerings as we offer them today in the Tabernacle in the wilderness; rather, “each man whatever is proper in his eyes.” That is to say, “each man”—the individuals,

you shall offer what is proper

there, namely offerings of vows and donations, which are not an obligation upon the person, but rather “are proper” in his eyes to donate. But

obligatory offerings, you shall not offer

the offerings of individuals until you come to Shiloh. And Scripture did not distinguish between a Great bama and a Small one; at both of them an individual did not offer his obligations.

And this is the reason for Rabbi Meir’s view that nothing that is neither vowed nor donated is offered at a Small bama: for the individual did not offer any obligations at that time, whereas the community does not offer its offerings at all at a Small bama, but at a Great bama, as we learned in our Mishna: “Communal offerings are offered in the Tabernacle.”

However,

meal offerings and nazirite offerings

Rabbi Meir holds are offered at a Small bama, since

they are ‘what is proper,’

for the meal offering comes through a vow or donation, and the offerings of a nazirite, although they are an obligation upon him to bring them when the days of his naziriteship are complete, are nevertheless considered “what is proper,” since he accepted the naziriteship itself upon himself through a vow.

And the Rabbis,

who disagreed with Rabbi Meir and held that an individual offers at a bama only burnt offerings and peace offerings, but not meal offerings and nazirite offerings, their reason is:

Meal offerings

were not offered, because

there is no meal offering at a bama,

neither at a Great one nor at a Small one. And it is learned from Scripture, for with regard to the permission to offer at bamot it says “sacrifices,” and the Rabbis expounded: sacrifices, but not meal offerings.

Nazirite offerings

were not offered at a bama according to the Rabbis, because

they are obligations.

For the nazirite does not vow his offerings; rather, through his vow he merely prohibited himself through a vow from wine and shaving, and consequently became obligated to bring the offerings when his days of naziriteship were complete. Obligations were not offered at a bama for an individual.

Samuel said: The dispute

between Rabbi Meir and the Rabbis concerning naziriteship, whether it is an obligation or a vow, applies specifically

to the sin offering and guilt offering

that the nazirite brings;

but concerning the burnt offerings and peace offerings

of the nazirite,

everyone agrees that they are ‘what is proper,’ and they are offered.

For since we find a case in which these offerings come through a vow or donation even when he was not a nazirite, a nazirite too is considered as though he vowed them.

Rava raised an objection:

We learned in a beraita:

the breast and thigh

that are raised for the priest from a peace offering,

and the separation of the loaves of thanksgiving,

the four loaves raised for the priest from among the forty loaves that come with the thanksgiving offering,

are practiced at the Great bama

to give them to the priest from the offerings that they offered there.

But they are not practiced at the Small bama.

For it is said concerning them, “to wave it as a wave offering to the Lord,” and we expound: “to the Lord,” but not at a bama.

And Rava infers:

But the cooked foreleg

that is raised from the ram of the nazirite,

he omitted,

and the beraita did not mention that this raising is not practiced at a Small bama. And what reason is there to distinguish it from the other things that are raised? It must be that the ram of a nazirite is not offered at all at a bama, even though it is a peace offering.

And Rava concludes his objection:

Granted, if you say that they disagree concerning burnt offerings and peace offerings

Rabbi Meir and the Rabbis, and according to the Rabbis even the burnt offerings and peace offerings of nazirites were not offered at a bama, it is possible to say that this beraita, which holds that the nazirite’s ram is not offered at a bama,

whose opinion is it? It is the Rabbis’.

But if you say that they disagree concerning sin offerings and guilt offerings,

whereas concerning burnt offerings and peace offerings everyone agrees that the nazirite offered them at a bama,

whose opinion is it?

According to whom did the beraita omit the law of the cooked foreleg raised from the nazirite’s ram? For the nazirite’s ram is offered at a bama according to everyone.

And we answer:

Rather, if it was stated, this is what was stated: Samuel said: The dispute

between Rabbi Meir and the Rabbis is

concerning the burnt offerings and peace offerings

that the nazirite offers;

but concerning the sin offering and guilt offering

of the nazirite,

everyone agrees that they are obligations.

For they never come through a vow or donation,

and

therefore

they are not offered

at a bama. It follows that the beraita omitted the cooked foreleg according to the Rabbis, because the nazirite’s ram was not offered at all at a bama.

The Master said: And the Sages say: Everything that the community offers in the Tent of Meeting

in the wilderness, they offer in the Tent of Meeting at Gilgal. And in both places they offered for an individual only a burnt offering and a peace offering.

And we inquire about it:

What is the reason of the Rabbis

that the community offers all its offerings at the Great bama, whereas an individual does not offer his obligations even at the Great bama?

And we explain:

The verse says

at the time when bamot were permitted:

“Each man shall do what is proper in his eyes,”

and we expound: specifically

“each man,”

that is, the individual,

“what is proper” is what may be offered; obligations may not be offered.

But

for the community, even obligations may be offered [and so too it implies that “each man” may not offer obligations at all, neither at a Small bama nor at a Great one].

[and likewise, it appears that “each man” means that an individual may not offer obligatory offerings at all, neither on a small altar nor on a large one].