Zevachim 90b — the Talmud in English

Is it not saying

in the additional offerings

of the festival of Sukkot

that it is speaking, where the goats there are sin-offerings, whereas the sheep are burnt-offerings, and it was stated that sheep precede? We have therefore found a burnt-offering preceding a sin-offering, and this is difficult from our Mishna, which explains that everywhere a sin-offering precedes a burnt-offering.

And we answer:

No,

the beraita is speaking of when all of them come

as free-will offerings,

and the goats too are burnt-offerings.

And the Gemara explains the reason for their precedence:

Bulls precede rams, since they have been increased

the bulls

with libations,

for with a bull they bring three tenths, and with a ram two tenths.

And likewise rams

precede

sheep

for this reason: with the rams they bring two tenths, and with the sheep they bring only one tenth.

Sheep

precede

goats, since they have been increased

the sheep

with the fat-tail,

which is offered upon the altar [in those sacrifices from which only the sacrificial portions are offered], in sheep but not in goats.

We further challenge:

Come and hear: The bull of an anointed priest precedes the bull for the unwitting matter of the community

[even though both are sin-offerings, since this is learned from a verse].

The bull for the unwitting matter

of

the community precedes the bull for idolatry,

since one is a sin-offering and the other is a burnt-offering, the sin-offering precedes.

The bull for idolatry precedes the goats for idolatry.

And we ask:

And even though the bull for idolatry is a burnt-offering

it

and the goats for idolatry are sin-offerings,

nevertheless the bull for idolatry precedes; we have thus found a burnt-offering preceding a sin-offering?

And we respond to the one who asked: Before you challenge from the end of the beraita,

let us say

that you should prove that a sin-offering indeed precedes a burnt-offering

from the beginning,

as it teaches: “

The bull for the unwitting matter of the community precedes the bull for idolatry

because a sin-offering precedes a burnt-offering”?!

And the one who challenged answers: When the sin-offering and the burnt-offering are both

of one kind,

so that neither of them is greater than the other,

at any rate, we do not say that the sin-offering precedes

as is proven from the beginning, where the bull for the unwitting matter precedes, since both of them are bulls.

When do we say this? With two kinds, for with two kinds, at any rate, we find a burnt-offering preceding a sin-offering,

for this reason it was stated at the end that the bull for idolatry preceded the goat for idolatry, since the bull is greater than the goat; and this is difficult from what we said above in the beraita, that the matter does not depend at all on their size, and even a bird sin-offering precedes an animal burnt-offering?

And we answer:

They said in the West in the name of Rava bar Mari: “The sin-offering of idolatry”

is written

defectively,

the letter alef being absent, since

“for a sin-offering” is written,

and therefore it is written defectively, to say that it is not like the other sin-offerings that precede the burnt-offering; rather, here the burnt-offering precedes the sin-offering.

Ravina said:

For this reason the order of offering the bull and goat of idolatry differs from that of the other sin-offerings in the Torah, where the sin-offering precedes the burnt-offering, since

“according to the ordinance” is written concerning them,

concerning the bull and goat of idolatry, to teach that just as the order of the verses is, so is the order of its service; and the bull is mentioned first in the passage, before the goat.

And we conclude:

Now that you have arrived at this, you may even say

that the earlier beraita, which says “bulls precede rams,” is speaking of

the bulls of the festival of Sukkot;

it will not be difficult why sheep, which are burnt-offerings, precede goats, which are sin-offerings. For here

also,

in the passage of the additional offerings of the festival,

“according to their ordinance” is written concerning them,

to say that they should be offered according to the order stated in the passage, and sheep are mentioned before goats.

A question was raised before them: A bird sin-offering, an animal burnt-offering, and a tithe

of animals, all three of which are standing before the priest,

which of them

shall he offer

first?

If you say that

the bird sin-offering should precede,

this cannot be said. For although it precedes the animal burnt-offering, nevertheless

there is a tithe that precedes it,

the birds.

And if you should say that

the tithe should precede,

this is impossible, for

there is an animal burnt-offering that precedes it,

the tithe. And if you say that

the animal burnt-offering should precede,

this too is impossible, for

there is a bird sin-offering that precedes it,

the animal burnt-offering.

And we resolve:

Here,

in Babylonia,

they explained: The kind of sacrifice is preferable!

Therefore, let him offer first the tithe, which is a kind of sacrifice, before the bird sin-offering, which is not a kind of sacrifice; and afterward the bird sin-offering, and the animal burnt-offering after the bird sin-offering, for although it too is a kind of sacrifice, nevertheless the bird sin-offering precedes it by a scriptural decree [and even though we now place the tithe before the burnt-offering, nevertheless the merit of the tithe’s precedence over the bird sin-offering is preferable to the merit of the burnt-offering’s precedence over the tithe].

In the West they say: It enters with it

the importance that

the animal burnt-offering

has, for it is more important than the tithe, since the burnt-offering is most sacred and entirely offered; and it enters

into the bird sin-offering

that comes together with the burnt-offering,

and raises it above the tithe,

so that it too becomes more important than the tithe, even though it is not a kind of sacrifice, just as the bird sin-offering is important and precedes the animal burnt-offering, even though the latter too is a kind of sacrifice. Therefore, he should offer the bird sin-offering first, and afterward the burnt-offering and the tithe.

Mishna:

All the sin-offerings in the Torah precede the guilt-offerings,

as we learned in the previous Mishna,

except for the guilt-offering of a leper,

which precedes the sin-offering

, because it comes to qualify

the leper to eat sacrificial food and to enter the Temple, by placing some of its blood on the ear and thumbs of the leper. And since the leper’s purification depends upon it, it is important.

All the guilt-offerings in the Torah come

when they are

two-year-olds,

because “ram” is stated concerning them, and a ram is two years old.

And they come with silver shekels,

the guilt-offering must be worth at least two shekels,

except for the guilt-offering of a nazirite and the guilt-offering of a leper, which come

when they are

one-year-olds,

since “lamb” is stated concerning them, and a lamb is one year old,

and they do not come with silver shekels,

rather, there is no measure of how much they must be worth.

All those sacrifices that precede their fellows, according to the order that we learned in the previous Mishna,

just as

they

precede in their offering, so

they

precede in their eating.

For the eating of a sin-offering precedes the eating of a guilt-offering, and a guilt-offering precedes a thanksgiving-offering, and so forth.

Offerings of well-being from yesterday,

which were brought yesterday to the Temple courtyard,

and offerings of well-being from today,

which arrived at the Temple courtyard only today and both are standing to be offered—

those of yesterday precede.

Since they came yesterday, one must not treat them lightly and delay their offering further.

And even if there were standing

offerings of well-being from yesterday and a sin-offering and guilt-offering of today,

also

the offerings of well-being from yesterday precede,

for the same reason mentioned above,

the words of Rabbi Meir.

And the Sages say: The sin-offering

of today [and the same applies to the guilt-offering]

precedes

the offerings of well-being from yesterday, because

it is most sacred,

and whatever is more sacred than its fellow precedes its fellow, even though this involves treating the offerings of well-being from yesterday lightly.

And in all of them,

in all the sacrifices that are eaten,

the priests are permitted to alter in their eating, to eat them

in any manner, namely,

roasted, boiled

[cooked excessively],

and cooked, and to place into them non-sacred spices and teruma spices, the words of Rabbi Shimon.

Rabbi Meir says: He may not place teruma spices into them

in order

not to bring the teruma to disqualification,

for if the sacred food comes to the status of leftover, the teruma too will become disqualified, since the taste of the sacred food is absorbed in it. One must not cause disqualification to the teruma.

Gemara:

A question was raised before them:

A sacrifice that is

frequent and

a sacrifice that is

more sacred,

both of which are standing to be offered—for example, the blood of the daily burnt-offering, which is frequent, and the blood of an individual’s sin-offering, which is more sacred than a burnt-offering, since the blood of a sin-offering effects acceptance—

which of them precedes?

Is it that

the frequent one precedes because it is frequent, or perhaps the more sacred one precedes

because

it is sacred?

And we resolve:

Come and hear,

for we learned at the beginning of our chapter:

The daily offerings precede the additional offerings.