Chapter 1 – Advance Preparations Advance preparations for the Passover meal included: A. Readying a suitable room in which to celebrate, one furnished (ἐστρωνον, Mk 14:15; Lk 22:12) with the necessary dining cushions, B. Selecting a regulation Passover lamb, C. Deciding which persons were going to partake in the eating of a particular lamb, D. Taking the animal to the temple and having it slaughtered, E. Skinning and guWing the animal, F. Bringing it back to the place where the festival would be celebrated, and G. Preparing the meat for consumption. Jesus’ disciples would also have had all of this in mind when they asked their Master, “Where do you want us to prepare for you to eat the Passover lamb?” (Mt 26:17). (Regarding the removal of anything leavened from the houses, which likewise had to be finished before the Passover celebration began, see our commentary at 1 Corinthians 5:7a, p. 359, and in the excursus “Date of Jesus’ Death” [Der Todestag Jesu], vol. 2, p. 814.) A. Readying a Celebration Room Considering the large number of festival pilgrims that ordinarily aWended the Passover festival in Jerusalem every year, 1 the question of lodging may have ojen posed considerable difficulties. Certainly a good portion of the visitors would have sought and found shelter in the towns and villages closest to Jerusalem, just as Jesus himself had stayed in Bethany at the time of his final Passover (Jn 12:1). But all of them not only had to celebrate the Passover meal in Jerusalem itself, according to the regulations in force at that time, 2 but they also had to remain in the city that night. 3 So the question of where in Jerusalem they should hold the Passover meal and spend the night ajerwards was also one of no liWle consequence for them. In order to overcome the difficulties, the theory had been developed that when the land of Canaan had been divided into the twelve tribes, the capital city of Jerusalem was not included in that division, but had been reserved as a national possession for the benefit of all the Israelites. Accordingly the homeowners in Jerusalem should not have the right to rent out their dwellings and rooms to the festival pilgrims at a high price, but should rather be obligated, if visitors were asking to be accommodated, to do so free of charge, and, as far as room was available, to place a dining room at their disposal where they could solemnly celebrate the Passover meal. 4 This theory was not developed without success. It is counted among the ten wonders experienced by the fathers when 1
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Transcript
Passover Meal (Chapter 1)! Advance preparations for
the Passover meal included:
A. Readying a suitable room in
which to celebrate, one furnished
(στρωµμνον, Mk 14:15; Lk 22:12)
with the necessary dining
cushions,
B.!Selecting a regulation Passover lamb,
C.!Deciding which persons were going
to partake in the eating of
a particular lamb, D.!Taking the
animal to the temple and having
it slaughtered, E.!Skinning and guWing
the animal, F.!Bringing it back to
the place where the festival
would be celebrated, and G.!Preparing
the meat for consumption.
Jesus’ disciples would also have
had all of this in mind
when they asked their Master,
“Where do you want us to
prepare for you to eat the
Passover lamb?” (Mt 26:17).
(Regarding the removal of anything
leavened from the houses, which
likewise had to be finished
before the Passover celebration
began, see our commentary at 1
Corinthians 5:7a, p. 359, and
in the excursus “Date of Jesus’
Death” [Der Todestag Jesu], vol.
2, p. 814.)
A.!Readying a Celebration Room
! Considering the large number of
festival pilgrims that ordinarily
aWended the Passover festival in
Jerusalem every year,1 the question
of lodging may have ojen posed
considerable difficulties. Certainly a
good portion of the visitors
would have sought and found
shelter in the towns and
villages closest to Jerusalem, just
as Jesus himself had stayed in
Bethany at the time of his
final Passover (Jn 12:1). But
all of them not only had
to celebrate the Passover meal in
Jerusalem itself, according to the
regulations in force at that
time,2 but they also had to
remain in the city that night.3
So the question of where in
Jerusalem they should hold the
Passover meal and spend the
night ajerwards was also one
of no liWle consequence for
them. ! In order to overcome the
difficulties, the theory had been
developed that when the land
of Canaan had been divided into
the twelve tribes, the capital
city of Jerusalem was not
included in that division, but
had been reserved as a national
possession for the benefit of
all the Israelites. Accordingly the
homeowners in Jerusalem should not
have the right to rent out
their dwellings and rooms to
the festival pilgrims at a high
price, but should rather be
obligated, if visitors were asking
to be accommodated, to do so
free of charge, and, as far
as room was available, to place
a dining room at their disposal
where they could solemnly celebrate
the Passover meal.4 This theory
was not developed without success.
It is counted among the ten
wonders experienced by the fathers
when
1
the temple still stood, that the
complaints about lack of shelter
in Jerusalem had never been
loud.5
Since a Passover meal could only
be held if at least ten
persons took part in it
together around the same table,6 and
since furthermore the meal could
be eaten only in festal board,
i.e. in reclining position,7 the
dining room ( = τρκλινον,
triclinium) naturally had to be
large enough to house the
required number of dining cushions.
According to the Mishnah a
room 10 cubits long and 10
cubits deep (a floor space of
about 23 square meters *) would
have been required for this
purpose.8 In a larger dining
hall several dining parties were also
permiWed to celebrate the Passover
meal simultaneously.9
1. We have two reports regarding
the population of Jerusalem during
a Passover festival: Toseja, Pesahim
4, 3 (163), quoted at Acts
12:3 (p. 710); according to
this passage more than 12
million people had been present
at the Passover festival in
Jerusalem referred to there. The
second report, from Josephus, The
Wars of the Jews 6.9.3, stays
within more modest limits: “[Cestius
Gallus, 63-66 AD] instructed the
chief priests, if by any means
possible, to take a census of
the population [in Jerusalem].
Accordingly, on the occasion of
the feast called Passover, at
which they sacrifice from the
ninth to the eleventh hour,†
and a liWle fraternity, as it
were, gathers round each sacrifice,
of not fewer than ten persons
(feasting alone not being permiWed),
while the companies ojen include
as many as twenty, the victims
were counted and amounted to
two hundred and fijy-five thousand
six hundred [255,600]; allowing an
average of ten diners to each
victim, we obtain a total of
[roughly] two million seven hundred
thousand, all pure and holy.
For those afflicted with leprosy
or gonorrhoea, or menstruous women,
or persons otherwise defiled were
not permiWed to partake of this
sacrifice.”‡
2. Sifre to Numbers 9:10 §69
(18a): “What is the place where
it [the Passover lamb] is
eaten? From the gates of Jerusalem
inward [i.e. in Jerusalem].” •
Zebahim 56b Mishnah: “The firstling,
[caWle-]tithe and Passover-offering are
sacrifices of lesser sanctity.”§ —
Concerning the holy things of
lesser sanctity, it says in
Kelim 1, 8 Mishnah: “The area
within the wall [of Jerusalem]
is holier [than the area within
the other walled cities], for
it is there that holy things
of a minor degree [including
2
* At 18 inches to a cubit, the floor space would be closer to 21
square meters. - trans.
† The ninth hour began at 2 p.m. The eleventh hour ended at 5 p.m.
- Billerbeck
‡ Josephus: The Jewish War, Books IV-VII, trans. H. St. J.
Thackeray (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press, 1961), p.
499.
§ Soncino, 283.
the Passover lamb]…may be eaten.”* •
Makkoth 17a Mishnah: “One who
eats…of lesser holy [meats]
[including the Passover lamb]…outside
the city wall [of Jerusalem]
[incurs a flogging of forty
lashes].Ӡ
3. For proofs, refer to the
excursus “Date of Jesus’ Death”
(Der Todestag Jesu, 2:833f, no.
6).
4.!For proofs, see at Luke 2:41
(p. 144, no. 5) and at
MaWhew 26:17b (p. 988f).
5. Aboth 5, 5 Mishnah: “Ten
wonders were wrought for our
fathers in the sanctuary [at
the time when the temple still
stood]: … No man [in Jerusalem]
said to his fellow: The place
is too strait for me to
lodge overnight in Jerusalem.”‡ •
Aboth of Rabbi Nathan 35 (9b):
“No man has ever said to
his fellow: I have not found
an oven for roasting the
Passover lambs in Jerusalem. No
man has ever said to his
fellow: I have not found a
bed on which to sleep in
Jerusalem. No man has ever said
to his fellow: The place is
too strait for me to lodge
overnight in Jerusalem.”
6.!See Toseja, Pesahim 4, 3 and
Josephus, Wars 6.9.3 on p.
2.
7.!On the reclining at the time
of the Passover meal, see p.
28-30.
8. Baba Bathra 98b Mishnah:
“He who desires to erect…a
[dining] hall [] [is to build
it in the dimensions of no
less than] ten [cubits] by ten
[i.e. 10 cubits long and 10
cubits wide or deep]. The
height […must be] half its
length and half its width
[thus also 10 cubits].Ӥ
9. See Pesahim 86a Mishnah on p.
8.
3
B.!Selecting the Passover Lamb
! The regulation in Exodus 12:3 that
the Passover lamb should be
taken, i.e. selected, on the
10th of Nisan, four days before
being slaughtered, was no longer
in force in later years. It
could thus be picked out also
on the days that followed the
10th.1 Any year-old male lamb
or kid without defect was
acceptable.2 It was also not
necessary that the animal be
selected by the head of the
household. He could delegate someone
to select it for him.3
1. Pesahim 96a Mishnah: “What
is the difference between the
Passover-offering of Egypt [ ]
and the Passover-offering of
[subsequent] generations [
according to Exodus 12:14]? The
Passover-offering in Egypt was
taken , on the tenth [of
Nisan], [its blood] required
sprinkling with a [i.e.
selected ,] bunch of hyssop on
the lintel and on the two
door-posts, and it was eaten
in haste on one night; whereas
the Passover-offering of [subsequent]
generations is kept the whole
seven [days] [and the regulations
given concerning the Passover in
Egypt became obsolete].”* • Mekhilta
on Exodus 12:3 (4b): “‘On the
tenth of this month [Nisan]
they should take’ [Ex 12:3]. In
this passage I hear that only
the tenth is acceptable for
selecting. How is it that the
fourteenth is also acceptable? Draw
the conclusion from the lesser
to the greater: If the tenth,
which is not acceptable for
slaughtering, is acceptable for selecting,
then is it not right that
the fourteenth, which is acceptable
for slaughtering, is acceptable for
selecting? How is it that the
thirteenth is acceptable? Draw the
conclusion from the lesser to
the greater: If the tenth,
which is not close to the
slaughtering, is acceptable for
selecting, then is it not
right that the thirteenth, which is
close to the slaughtering, is
acceptable for selecting? And the
same judgment applies to the
eleventh and tweljh. ‘On the
tenth of the month’ [Ex 12:3]
is said exclusive of the
Passover of [subsequent] generations.
For the Passover of Egypt, the
lamb’s selection should take place
on the tenth, but for the
Passover of [subsequent] generations,
its selection can take place at
any time.” Cf. also Pesahim
96a.†
2. Mekhilta on Exodus 12:5
(5b): “‘You should have a
year-old male lamb [] without
defect; you may take it from
the sheep or the goats’ [Ex
12:5]. ‘Lamb’ – The general
word lamb includes the [goat-]kid
and the [sheep-]lamb, as it
says in Deuteronomy 14:4:
‘sheep-lamb and goat-lamb’
[thus Midrash]. ‘Without defect’ –
This excludes an animal that
has an injury. ‘Male’ – This
excludes an animal whose sex
is not discernible, or one that
is male and female, or one
that is
4
† Ibid., 514, 515.
female. ‘Year-old’ [ , ‘son of
a year’] – In this place
I hear only of a lamb
that has been born in the
[current] year. How can it be
acceptable throughout its entire
year [until it has completed its
first year of life]? Rabbi
Ishmael [† c. 135] has said
on the basis of an argument
from the greater to the lesser:
If it [the lamb] is qualified
to be offered as a year-old
as a burnt offering, which is
subject to more difficult
regulations, up until the completion
of its [first] year [cp. Lev
12:6], then is it not right
that the Passover lamb, which
is subject to lighter regulations,
is qualified up until the
completion of its year, as if
it had been born during the
year?” • Sifre to Leviticus
12:6 (232a): “‘A year-old lamb’
[ , ‘a lamb, a son
of its year’] [Lev 12:6]. Its
year is meant, not the year
of the world’s counting [i.e.
the calendar year].” — Likewise
Rabbi Aha b. Jacob (c. 325),
in Bekoroth 27b;* ‘Arakin 18b.†
• Pesahim 97b Mishnah: “If a
man sets aside a female or
a two-year old male for his
Passover- offering, it must be leW
to graze until it becomes
unfit, then be sold, and its
money is spent on a voluntary
sacrifice, on a peace-offering.”‡
3. Mekhilta on Exodus 12:3 (4b):
“‘They should take for themselves’
[Ex 12:3]. What, have they all
[each individual] taken? No, the
words of a man make the
one whom he has delegated the
same as himself. From this
comes the saying: The one
delegated by a man is like
the man himself.” — So also
Jesus had the Passover lamb
selected by one of his
disciples.
5
C.!Finalizing the Members of a Meal
Company
According to Exodus 12:3f, the
Passover meal was supposed to
be celebrated as a family
meal, to whose number also the
“neighbor who is near [the]
house” could be added as
circumstances warranted. In Jesus’
day this identity did not
generally fit the Passover meal
any more. The festival pilgrims
who did not have any close
family connections in Jerusalem
banded together with smaller groups
and formed their own companies
(, sing. ) among themselves for
the purpose of mutually celebrating
the Passover meal. So the
original family gathering was
gradually replaced by a specially
formed meal- or table-company. It
was not as though the
celebration by the family within
its own circle had ceased
completely,1 but the arrangement of
companies had become so prevalent
that it gave the evening of
the 14th of Nisan its own
distinct character. Jesus and his
disciples also celebrated their final
Passover meal as a company
meal.
Membership in a given company of
pilgrims remained open up until
the slaughtering of the lamb
that had been obtained for
them. Until then new persons
could still enter the company,
and those already in it could
still leave.2 Once the lamb was
slaughtered the company was
considered firmly established. Only
those persons with whose consent
and in whose names the
respective lamb was slaughtered were
members of the company ( );i3
no further changes to its
constituency were to be made
later.4 The assignment of women,
slaves, and minors to a
particular company was governed by
special regulations. Children of age
could have a Passover lamb
slaughtered for themselves and thus
also form their own company.5
In the event that several
companies were forced to hold
their celebration together in one
and the same room, their
separateness was also to be
formally maintained in every way.6 Y
The number of persons united in
a meal-company was not legally
fixed. Since, however, none of
the meat of the Passover lamb
was to be lej over if at
all possible (Ex 12:10), there
had to be at least enough
persons partaking of the meal
as were needed to consume the
entire lamb. From experience ten
persons appeared to be sufficient
to do so. This, then, was
usually the minimum number of
members in a company.7 Yet it
was also conceded that a lamb
could be slaughtered even for
just one person.8
The maximum number of meal companions
was even more undefined. One
restriction lay only in the
regulation that every table companion
should be given at least an
olive-size piece of lamb meat.9
Naturally, with such a small
amount of meat, there could no
longer be any talk of anyone
actually geWing full from the
Passover lamb,*
6
* Mekhilta on Exodus 12:8 (8b): “‘With unleavened bread and bitter
herbs they should eat [the Passover lamb]’ [Ex 12:8]. On the basis
of this passage it is said: The Passover lamb is eaten as food to
fill a person up, but the unleavened bread and the bitter herb is
not eaten as food to fill one up.”
especially since people usually abstained
from food all ajernoon on the
14th of Nisan* in order to
arrive at the Passover meal
with a healthy appetite.10 From
this, therefore, had developed the
custom that, if there were a
larger number of persons in a
company, another special festival
offering (, hagigah) was prepared
for the Passover meal. This
was then consumed, as a rule,
immediately before the eating of
the Passsover lamb. In this
way the eating of the Passover
lamb itself could cause someone
to feel satiated, even if he
had not eaten more than a
small olive-size piece of it.
However, a special festival offering
could only be prepared for the
Passover meal when the meal was
held on a weekday. If it
fell on a Sabbath, then the
preparation of a hagigah was
forbidden.11
1. Toseja, Pesahim 8, 12f
(169): “Of the Passover-offering of
Egypt it is said: ‘He and
his neighbor who is near his
house should take [the Passover
lamb], according to the number
of persons’ [Ex 12:4]. This
does not hold true of the
Passover-offering of the [subsequent]
generations in the same way.
Rabbi Simeon ben Eleazar [c.
190] said: It does hold true
of the Passover-offering of the
generations in the same way.
And what is the reason for
all this? So that a man
does not abandon his neighbor
who is near his house and
that his Passover-offering does not
get prepared with others [by
his joining of any company
whatsoever], in order to fulfill
what is said: ‘BeWer is a
neighbor nearby than a brother
far away’ [Pr 27:10].”
2. Pesahim 89a Mishnah: “One
may always register for it [the
Passover lamb of a company] as
long as there is as much
as an olive therein for each
[table companion] [registered]. They
may register and withdraw their
hands from it until it is
slaughtered; R. Simeon [c. 150]
said: Until the blood is
sprinkled [on the altar].Ӡ (The
Halacha does not conform to R.
Simeon’s views.) — In Toseja,
Pesahim 7, 3 (166), the saying
of R. Simeon reads: “One may
always register for a Passover
lamb until it is slaughtered, and
may withdraw his hands from it
until the blood is sprinkled.”
! 3.!See Toseja, Pesahim 7, 4 (166)
in note 5 below, and Zebahim
46b Mishnah on p. 16.
! 4.!This follows from the citations
in note 2 above.
5. Women, as a rule, would
have taken part in the Passover
meal of their respective husbands.
Pesahim 87a Mishnah: “A woman,
when she is in her husband’s
home, and her husband slaughtered
on her behalf and her father
slaughtered on her behalf, must
eat of her husband’s [lamb]. If
she went to spend the first
[Passover] festival [ajer her
marriage] in her father’s home,
[as was customary,] and her
father slaughtered on her behalf and
her husband slaughtered on her
behalf, she
7
† Soncino, 474.
may eat wherever she pleases.”* —
The Baraita in Pesahim 88a
accordingly requires that a man
slaughter on behalf of his wife
only with her consent.† •
Regarding children and slaves, see
Toseja, Pesahim 7, 4 (166): “A
man should slaughter [the Passover
lamb] on behalf of his grown
[i.e. of age] son or on
behalf of his grown daughter,
on behalf of his Hebrew slave
or his Hebrew bondmaid, only
with their consent [lest they
might slaughter on their own
behalf separately, to which they
are entitled]. On the other
hand, he may slaughter on
behalf of his minor son and
his minor daughter, on behalf
of his Canaanitish slave and
his Canaanitish bondmaid, either
with their consent or without
it [since they do not have
any determining right of their
own]. And all of these, if
they have slaughtered [on their
own behalf] and their master
has [also] slaughtered on their
behalf, eat of their own
[lamb], except the slave, who
eats of his master’s.” — The
conclusion is different in the
second Baraita, Pesahim 88a.‡ •
Pesahim 87a Mishnah: “A slave
of two partners may not eat
of either. [The partners or
companions must first agree with
whose lamb their mutual slave
should be registered.] He who
is half slave and half free
[which occurred ojen enough] must
not eat of his master’s [but
of his own Passover lamb].”§ •
Pesahim 91a Mishnah: “One may
not form a company of women
and slaves and minors.”** —
Toseja, Pesahim 8, 6 (168)
specifies as a reason: “[T]hat
wildness not be increased.” —
Similarly Pesachim 91a,b.††
6. Pesahim 86a Mishnah: “If
two companies are eating in one
room, these may turn their
faces in one direction and
those may turn their faces in
another direction, with the boiler
[in which water was heated for
mixing the wine] in the middle.
When the waiter rises to mix
[the wine in a cup], he
must shut his mouth and turn
his face away [from the other
company] until he [once again]
reaches his own company.”‡‡ The
prescribed formalities should make it
clear that it is talking about
two distinct meal-companies.
! 7.!See Toseja, Pesahim 4, 3 (163)
and Josephus, Wars 6.9.3 on p.
2.
8
‡‡ Ibid., 454.
8. Pesahim 91a Mishnah: “One
may not slaughter the
Passover-offering for a single
person: This is R. Judah’s [c.
150] view; but R. Jose [c.
150] permits it [and this
corresponds to the Halacha].”* — To
this point Pesahim 91a: “R.
Jose maintained: A single person
and he is able to eat it
[by himself], one may slaughter
[a Passover lamb] on his
behalf.Ӡ
9. Pesahim 89a Mishnah: “One
may always [up to the
slaughtering of the Passover lamb]
register for it as long as
there is as much as an
olive therein for each one
[registered].”‡ • Toseja, Pesahim 7,
6 (166): “The members of a
company registered for a
Passover-offering may eat as long
as there is as much as an
olive available for each one;
if not, they may not eat.
If they were registered one
ajer the other [not together],
then the first ones for whom
[an olive-size piece of Passover
meat] is available may eat.
The later ones may not eat
and must keep the second
Passover [a month later on the
14th of Iyyar; see Numbers
9:1-14], since the blood has
already been sprinkled on their
behalf.”
10. Pesahim 99b Mishnah: “On
the eve of Passover [i.e. on
the 14th of Nisan] close to
minhah a man must not eat
until nightfall.”§ — The same
is found in Toseja, Pesahim
10, 1 (172, 12). — The
reason for this we learn from
JT Sukkah 2:7: “Just as in
the case of the Passover
seder, one must eat the
unleavened bread with a ravenous
appetite, so here one must
enter the sukkah with a
ravenous appetite.”** — For more,
see note 1 on p. 28.
11. Pesahim 69b Mishnah: “When
does one bring a hagigah with
it [the Passover sacrifice]? When
it [the Passover sacrifice] comes
during the week, in purity, and
in small [portions] [on account
of the large number of people
registered to eat from it].
But when it comes on the
Sabbath, in large [portions], and
in uncleanness [of the majority
of the priests or of those
congregated], one does not bring
the hagigah with it. The
hagigah was brought of flocks,
herds, lambs or goats, of the
males or the females, and it
is eaten two days and one
night [between the two days].”††
In the parallel in Toseja,
Pesahim 5, 3 (163), it reads
at the end: “[The hagigah with
the Passover lamb] is eaten
two days and one night, and
one does not incur guilt with
it for breaking a bone [as
he does with the Passover
lamb]. The hagigah which is
9
** Neusner, 50.
†† Soncino, 356.
brought with it is eaten first,
so that the Passover sacrifice
may be eaten with satiation. …
R. Simeon ben Eleazar [c. 190]
said: The hagigah that comes
with it on the table and
the foods that come with it on
the table are cleared away with
it.”* Cf. Pesahim 70a,† and
note 9 on p. 45, 46.
10
D.!Slaughtering the Lamb at the
Temple
The Mishnah uses the term i() –
literally, the “causing to ride”
– for the transporting of the
lamb to the temple. We may
gather from this that the
animals were mostly carried off
to the temple on one’s
shoulders. On the Sabbath this
was obviously forbidden as work;1
on that day the animals had
to be led.2 It was not
required that only the owner
(head of the household) bring
the lamb to the temple. He
could also delegate someone else
for the task, even a (Hebrew)
slave.3 The slaughtering of the
lambs could take place anywhere
in the inner court (though as
close as possible to the altar
of burnt offering),4 and indeed
they began to be slaughtered
ajer the daily evening burnt
offering, or evening tamid, had been
made,5 about 2:30 in the
ajernoon, and when the 14th of
Nisan* fell on the day of
Preparation for the Sabbath, even
an hour earlier.6 This was
done to avoid having people
infringe upon, and thus defile,
the Sabbath as they prepared
the lamb at home for the
Passover meal. ! Since the slaughtering
place in the inner court could
not hold the large number of
sacrificers all at once, the
slaughtering was undertaken in three
divisions, one ajer the other.9
The owner of the lamb or
his delegate carried out the
slaughtering itself;7 at the same
time it was announced for what
purpose and for whom the animal
was being slaughtered.8 The priests
stood there in long rows up
to the altar of burnt offering
and collected the blood in
gold and silver basins. They
then passed the basins along to
each other from hand to hand
until the priest standing closest
to the altar emptied them with
one sprinkling against the base
of the altar before handing
them back again.9 The entire
affair was accompanied by the singing
of the Hallel (Psalms
113-118).9
1. Pesahim 65b Mishnah:
“These things in [connection with]
the Passover offering override the
Sabbath: Its shechitah [slaughtering]
and the sprinkling of its blood
and the cleansing of its
bowels and the burning of its
fat. But its roasting [at
home] and the washing of its
bowels do not override the
Sabbath [and so may be
undertaken only ajer the Sabbath is
over]. Its carrying [] [to the
temple] and bringing it from
without the tehum [i.e. from
any place which lies more than
2000 cubits from Jerusalem] and
the cuaing off of its
[potential] wart do not override
the Sabbath. R. Eliezer [c.
90] said: They do override [the
Sabbath].”† — Pesahim 66a Mishnah:
“R. Akiba [† c. 135] stated
a general rule: Every work
which could be done on the
eve of the Sabbath [or ajer
the Sabbath is over] does not
override the
11
† Soncino, 332.
Sabbath…”* — For more, see JT
Pesahim 6:1† and parallels, and
Mekhilta on Exodus 12:6 (7a)
in note 7 below.
2. Leading an animal was
permiWed on the Sabbath. —
Shabbath 51b Mishnah: “[A] horse
[may go forth] with its chain
[around its neck on the
Sabbath], and all chainwearing
animals may go out with their
chains and be led by their
chains.”‡ — For more, see
Shabbath 128b Mishnah;§ cf. also
the discussion between Hillel the
Elder (c. 20 BC) and the
Master in JT Shabbat 19:1;** JT
Pesahim 6:1;†† and Pesahim
66af.‡‡
! 3.!This follows from Pesahim 88b
Mishnah in note 8 below, and
from Mekhilta on Exodus 12:6
(7a) in note 7 below.
4. Zebahim 56b Mishnah: “The
firstling [of caWle], tithe [of
caWle] and Passover- offering are
sacrifices of lesser sanctity. They
are slaughtered in any part of
the [inner] temple court…”§§ —
That the inner court is meant
is clear from Pesahim 64a,b
(see p. 19). Sacrifices of higher
sanctity could be slaughtered only
at the north side of the
altar of burnt offering, as
opposed to the sacrifices of
lower sanctity; see Zebahim 47a
Mishnah & ff.*** Regarding the
task of the priesthood in
connection with the slaughtering of
the Passover lambs, refer to
the excursus, “Date of Jesus’
Death” (Der Todestag Jesu, 2:845),
and notes 8 & 9
below.
5. Pesahim 58a Mishnah: “The
Passover offering [is slaughtered]
aWer it [i.e. the daily
evening burnt offering].”††† • Sifre
to Numbers 28:8 §143 (53b):
“Only the incense [which is
offered in the morning in the
Holy Place of the temple]
precedes the daily
12
* Soncino, 333. Soncino is confusing here. The translation reads:
“Work which could be done on the eve of the Sabbath overrides the
Sabbath.” But the note on “overrides” reads: “Lit., ‘every
work…does not override’.” I have stayed with the literal which, as
the note suggests, is in accord with the Vilna edition and with
Billerbeck’s German.
† Neusner, 189f.
‡ Soncino, 234.
§ Ibid., 639.
** Neusner, 391f.
†† Ibid., 180ff.
‡‡ Soncino, 333ff.
§§ Ibid., 283.
*** Ibid., 238.
††† Ibid., 287.
morning burnt offering, and ajer the
daily evening burnt offering comes
only the [evening] incense and
the lamps [namely their enkindling]
and the Passover offering [namely
its slaughtering]…” — This Baraita
is referred to in Pesahim 59a.*
The sequence of each of these
activities is different in the
Baraita in Pesachim 58b: “The
[evening] tamid is [sacrificed] before
the Passover offering, the Passover
offering is [sacrificed] before the
[burning of the evening] incense,
the incense before [the kindling
of] the lights.Ӡ
6. See Pesahim 58a Mishnah
at John 4:52 at the end
(p. 442). According to this
passage the daily evening burnt
offering was offered at 2:30
p.m. on the 14th of Nisan,
and when the 14th of Nisan
fell on a Friday, already
around 1:30 p.m. The slaughtering
of the Passover lambs began
ajerwards.‡ Josephus agrees with this
when he says in The Wars
of the Jews 6.9.3 (see p.
2) that the slaughtering of the
Passover lambs took place from
the ninth hour until the
eleventh hour. The ninth hour
began at 2 p.m. and the
eleventh hour ended at 5 p.m.§
— The aWempts to provide a
more detailed explanation from
Scripture for the time of the
slaughtering appear somewhat strange.
The following are some examples.
Sifre to Deuteronomy 16:6 §133
(101b): “‘You should slaughter the
Passover in the evening, when
the sun goes down, at the
time of your departure from
Egypt’ [Dt 16:6]. Rabbi Eliezer
[c. 90] said: ‘In the evening’
you should slaughter, and ‘when
the sun goes down’ you should
eat [i.e. observe the Passover
meal], and ‘at the time of
your departure from Egypt’ [in
the morning] you should burn
[the lejovers; Ex 12:10]. Rabbi
Joshua [c. 90] said: ‘In the
evening’ you should slaughter, and
‘when the sun goes down’ you
should eat. For how long?
Until ‘the time of your
departure from Egypt’ [i.e. until
midnight].” — The same is
found in Berakoth 9a.** — R.
Eliezer and R. Joshua understand
, evening, to mean the time
in which the sun begins to
turn to the west until the
time it goes down, thus from
noon to sunset. The Passover
may be slaughtered during this
time. A more exact indication
of time is missing. • Mekhilta
on Exodus 12:6 (7b): “Ben
Bathyra [c. 110?] said: ‘Between
the evenings’ [ ] [Ex 12:6].
That is, slaughter it ‘between
the two evenings.’ Take one
evening for its slaughtering and
the other for its eating.” —
The first evening is the time
from noon
13
† Ibid., 292.
‡ Ibid., 287.
§ Since Billerbeck just said that the evening tamid was offered at
2:30 p.m., which he took from the original Mishnaic phrase “eight
and a half hours” (counting from 6 a.m.), it is somewhat difficult
to understand how he can interpret “from the ninth until the
eleventh hour” to mean 2-5 p.m., instead of 3-5 or 3-6 p.m. -
trans.
** Ibid., 47.
onward. The second evening is the
actual evening, when darkness sets
in. The slaughtering should be
done during the first evening.
• JT Pesahim 5:1 Baraita:
“Hananiah b. Judah [c. 120] says,
‘I may understand the Hebrew
phrase ([ Exod. 12:6) [as]
“Between the two evenings:” between
the evening of the [ fourteenth
[i.e. the evening which follows
the 13th of Nisan] and the
evening of the fijeenth [i.e.
the evening which concludes the
14th of Nisan]. Perhaps it
should include the day and the
night [i.e. the entire 24 hours
between those two evenings should
be used for slaughtering],
[therefore] the teaching says “day”
([] Num. 28:16). When it says
“day” it excludes the night. If
[you say] “day,” perhaps [the
offering is to be slaughtered] at
the second hour of the day
[8 a.m.]? [Therefore] the teaching
says, in the “evening” ([]
Deut. 16:4). If [you say] in
the “evening,” perhaps [it should
be done] once it gets dark?
Behold, [however,] the teaching says,
“between the evenings.” Lo, how
[should it be understood]? Divide
between the evenings [i.e. the
time from 12 p.m. to the
actual evening, about 6 p.m.]
and assign two-and-one-half hours
before it [the sacrifice] [from
12:00-2:30 p.m.] and two-and- one-half
hours ajer it [from 3:30-6:00
p.m.] and one hour [from
2:30-3:30 p.m.] for involvement
with [the Passover offering.] You
as a result may say [as
it says in Pesahim 58a
Mishnah; see at John 4:52, p.
442] that the Passover sacrifice
is [usually] offered at the
ninth-and-one-half hour [3:30 p.m.].’”*
— On the 14th of Nisan,
however, the daily burnt offering was
offered one hour earlier, thus
around 2:30 p.m. The slaughtering
of the Passover lambs then came
right ajerward, thus almost exactly
in the middle “between the two
evenings,” of which the first
began around 12 p.m. and the
second around 6 p.m. — For
a similar exposition by R.
Joshua b. Levi (c. 250) refer
to JT Pesahim 5:1† and Pesahim
58a.‡ • Sifre to Leviticus 23:5
(404a): “‘In the first month,
on the fourteenth of the month,
between the two evenings [begins
the Passover of the Lord]’ [Lev
23:5]. Perhaps once it gets
dark? Scripture teaches, ‘day’ []
[Ex 12:6]. If ‘day,’ perhaps
from the second hour [i.e. 8
a.m.] onward? Scripture teaches,
‘between the two evenings’ [Lev
23:5]. Just as ‘between the
two evenings’ means, ‘once the
day has turned [waned]’ [which
happens ajer 12 noon], so also
‘day’ [Ex 12:6] means, ‘once
the day has turned, from the
sixth hour onward [i.e. from
12 noon onward]. Even if there
is no proof for this, there
is an allusion to it: ‘Woe
to us, for the day has
turned, the shadows of the
evening grow
14
* Neusner, 140f. The end of this quote in Neusner differs from that
in Billerbeck. Billerbeck reads: “‘…and one hour [from 2:30-3:30
p.m.] for involvement with [the daily evening burnt offering.] You
as a result may say [as it says in Pesahim 58a Mishnah; see at John
4:52, p. 442] that the daily evening burnt offering is [usually]
offered at the ninth-and-one-half hour [3:30 p.m.], while its
involvement takes up one hour [from 2:30-3:30 p.m.]’” (italics
Billerbeck’s).
† Ibid., 140.
‡ Soncino, 287.
long!’ [Jer 6:4].” • Mekhilta on
Exodus 12:6 (7b): “‘Slaughter it
between the two evenings’ [Ex
12:6]. Should I understand this
to mean, ‘at the onset of
dusk’ [ Scripture teaches,
‘in the evening’ [Dt 16:6]. If
in the evening, then ?[ perhaps
once it gets dark? Scripture
teaches, ‘when the sun has gone
down’ [Dt 16:6]. If once the
sun goes down, then what about
‘and you should cook [roast]
and eat it’ [Dt 16:7]?
Scripture teaches, ‘at the time
of your departure from Egypt’
[Dt 16:6]. That breaks up the
context – ‘and you should cook
and eat it,’ namely once it
gets dark. Rabbi [† 217?]
said: See, it says: ‘There you
should slaughter the Passover in
the evening’ [Dt 16:6]. [The
arrangement of the sentence
corresponds to the accents.] Should
I understand this according to
its wording [thus ‘in the
evening’ meaning ‘once it gets
dark’]? Scripture teaches, ‘at the
time of your departure from
Egypt.’ When did the Israelites
depart from Egypt? From the
sixth hour [12 noon] onward,
and so it says, ‘On exactly
this day [interpretation of ;
‘in the strength of the day’
= midday] all the hosts of
the Lord went out from the
land of Egypt’ [Ex 12:41]. R.
Nathan [c. 160] said: From
where will you prove that the
expression ‘between the two
evenings’ means from the sixth
hour [12 noon] onward? Even if
there is no proof for it,
there is an allusion to it:
‘Sanctify against her a baWle!
Up, let us go up at midday!
Woe to us, for the day
has turned, the shadows of the
evening grow long [i.e. the
shadows fall from west to
east]!’ [Jer 6:4]. R. Simeon b.
Yohai [c. 150] said: Scripture
comes forth and makes the first
last and the last first. ‘At
the time of your departure from
Egypt’ [Dt 16:6] [that is said
last, but should be positioned
first] – this refers to its
[the Passover lamb’s] slaughtering
[he presupposes that the departure
from Egypt took place from
midday onward]. ‘When the sun
has gone down’ [Dt 16:6] –
this refers to its roasting.
And ‘in the evening’ [Dt 16:6]
refers to its eating.” • The
interpretation of the expression
“between the two evenings” as
“from midday onward until nightfall”
is always connected to the fact
that, when a Passover lamb was
slaughtered before the daily evening
burnt offering but aKer 12
noon, it was declared valid,
whereas if it was slaughtered
before 12 noon, it was
declared invalid. Pesahim 61a
Mishnah: “If he killed it [the
Passover lamb] before midday, it
is disqualified, because it is
said, [And the whole assembly… shall
kill it] at dusk [lit. between
the evenings; Ex 12:6]. If he
killed it before the [evening]
tamid [but aKer midday], it is
fit, providing that one shall
stir its blood [to prevent it
from congealing] until [that of]
the tamid is sprinkled; yet if
it [the blood of the Passover
lamb] was sprinkled [before the
blood of the tamid], it is
fit.”* — Cf. also Zebahim 11b
Mishnah† and Toseja, Pesahim 3,
8 (162) in part 2, p.
845, before section G.
15
* Soncino, 305.
† Ibid., 58.
7. Mekhilta on Exodus 12:6
(7a): “‘The assembly…shall slaughter
it’ [Ex 12:6]. What, should
all of them slaughter it?
Rather [as has been said], in
order to make the one whom
a man has delegated the same
as himself. From this comes the
saying: The one delegated by a
man is like the man
himself.”
8. Zebahim 46b Mishnah: “The
sacrifice [so too the Passover
lamb] is slaughtered for the
sake of six things: for the
sake of the [respective] sacrifice
[so that, for example, it is
not announced as a peace
offering, when it was intended
as a burnt offering], for the
sake of the sacrificer [the
actual owner, not in the name
of some other man], for the
sake of the [divine] name, for
the sake of fire-offerings, for
the sake of a savour, for
the sake of pleasing [God], and
a sin-offering and a guilt-
offering for the sake of sin
[for which it should make
atonement].”* — In the parallel
passage, Toseja, Zebahim 5, 13
(487), the text is not correct.
• Pesahim 59b Mishnah: “If a
man slaughtered the Passover
sacrifice for another purpose [i.e.
not as a Passover offering],
and he caught [the blood] and
went and sprinkled it for
another purpose [not as the blood
of a Passover offering]…it is
disqualified.”† • Pesahim 63a
Mishnah: “R. Simeon said: [If
he slaughters] the Passover offering
[with leaven] [i.e. with anything
leavened in his possession] on
the fourteenth [of Nisan] for
its own purpose [i.e. as a
Passover overing], he is liable
[to punishment]; [if] for a
different purpose [i.e. under the
name of a different sacrifice],
he is exempt [for now it
does not count as a Passover
offering, and it is not
forbidden to slaughter other
sacrifices with anything leavened in
one’s possession].”‡ • Toseja,
Zebahim 1, 1 (479): “R. Joshua
[c. 90] said: All sacrifices
slaughtered not in their own
name [i.e. for their own
purpose] are valid, save that
they do not free their owners
of their obligation [i.e. do
not free them from offerings
they already vowed; they must
still bring these later], with
the exception of the
Passover-offering and the sin-offering
[i.e. these two are always
invalid when offered under an
incorrect designation].” — The same
is said anonymously in Zebahim
2a Mishnah.§ • Pesahim 71b
Mishnah: “If the Passover was
slaughtered for a different purpose
on the Sabbath, he [the
slaughterer] is liable to a
sin-offering on its account [because
no offering apart from the
Passover offering could be
slaughtered for someone on the
Sabbath].”** • Pesahim 88b Mishnah:
“If a man says to his
[Hebrew] slave, ‘Go forth and
slaughter the Passover-offering on
my behalf’ [without further
indicating whether he should
16
§ Ibid., 1.
** Ibid., 367.
take it from the sheep or the
goats]: If he slaughtered a
kid, he eats [thereof]. If he
slaughtered a lamb, he eats
[thereof]. If he slaughtered a
kid and a lamb, he must
eat of the first. If he forgot
what his master told him, how
shall he act? He slaughters a
lamb and a kid and declares,
‘If my master told me [to
slaughter] a kid, the kid is
his [for his Passover-offering] and
the lamb is mine; while if
my master told me [to
slaughter] a lamb, the lamb is
his and the kid is mine.’
If his master [also] forgot
what he told him, both
[animals] go forth to the place
of burning [where the unfit
offerings were burned], yet they
are exempt from sacrificing the
second Passover [four weeks later].”*
A designation of a sacrificial
animal that is either lacking or
questionable on the part of the
one sacrificing the animal thus
makes the sacrifice unfit.
9. Pesahim 64a Mishnah: “The
Passover offering is slaughtered in
three divisions, for it is
said, And the whole assembly of
the congregation shall kill it
[Ex 12:6]: [i.e.] ‘assembly,’
‘congregation,’ and ‘Israel’ [these
three words indicated the three
divisions; see Mekhilta on Exodus
12:6 (7b)]. The first division
entered, the temple court was
filled, they closed the doors
of the temple court, they
sounded a teki‘ah [a long,
straight blast on the ram’s
horn], a teru‘ah [series of
three short, consecutive blasts],
and [again] a teki‘ah. The
priests stood in rows, and in
their hands were basins of
silver and basins of gold; a
row which was entirely of
silver was of silver, and a
row which was entirely of gold
was of gold: they were not
mixed; and the basins had no
[flat] boaoms, lest they put
them down and the blood become
congealed. The Israelite killed [the
lamb],‡‡ and the priest caught
[the blood]; he handed it to
his colleague and his colleague
[passed it on] to his
colleague; and he received the
full [basin] and gave back the
empty one. The priest nearest
the altar sprinkled it once
over against the base [of the
altar]. The first division [then]
went out and the second
entered; the second went out
and the third entered. As the
manner of the first [group],
so was the manner of the
second and the third. They
recited the Hallel [Psalms 113-118];†
if they finished it they
repeated, and if they repeated
[and were not finished yet],
they recited it a third time,
though they never did recite
it [to the end] a third
time. R. Judah [c. 150] said:
The third division never reached
‘I love that the Lord should
hear’ [etc.; Ps 116:1], because
the people for it were few.”‡
— For a parallel passage
interspersed with commentary, see
Toseja, Pesahim 3, 10-12, where
one finds the observation that
the third division was called
the “lazy division.”
17
‡ Soncino, 323, 324.
E.!Skinning and GuWing the Lamb
Pesahim 64a,b Mishnah: “How did they
hang up [the sacrifices] and
flay [them]? There were iron
hooks fixed in the walls and
in the pillars [on the north
side of the altar of burnt
offering], on which they suspended
[the sacrifices] and flayed [them].
If any one had no place
to suspend and flay, there were
there thin smooth staves which
he placed on his shoulder and
on his neighbour’s shoulder, and
so suspended [the animal] and
flayed [it]. R. Eliezer [c. 90]
said: When the fourteenth fell
on the Sabbath, he placed [not
those staves, but] his hand on
his neighbour’s shoulder and his
neighbour’s hand on his shoulder,
and he [thus] suspended [the
sacrifice] and flayed [it]. Then
he [the owner of the animal]
tore it and took out its
emurim* [cf. Lev 3:9f], [then]
placed them in a tray and
burnt them on the altar [via
a priest].Ӡ The owner of the
animal was responsible for skinning
it. • Toseja, Pesahim 3, 10
(162): “A man [a priest]
removed its [the lamb’s] emurim,
from as many as four or
five animals, laid them in a
tray and burnt them on the
altar, and on the Sabbath [when
one could not carry the animal
home immediately, but had to
wait in the sanctuary for the
Sabbath to end] one covered it
with its wool [i.e. wrapped it
in its own hide] and lej
it lying there and went out.
R. Ishmael son of Johanan son
of Berokah [c. 150] said: When
the 14th of Nisan fell on
a Sabbath, one only skinned it
to the breast [in order to
be able to gut it].” —
For the rubbing off () of
the bowels (removal of the
excrement), which was done
immediately even on the Sabbath, cf.
Pesahim 65b Mishnah at on p.
11.
18
† Soncino, 324, 325.
F.!Bringing the Lamb Home
Pesahim 65b Baraita: “Each one
placed his paschal lamb in its
hide and slung it behind him
[and carried it home]. Said R.
‘Ilish: In Arab-like fashion.”* •
If the 14th of Nisan† was
a Sabbath, one could not carry
the animal home immediately, but
first had to wait in the
sanctuary for the Sabbath to
end. Pesahim 64b Mishnah alludes
to this: “The first division
[of the three divisions of
those who slaughtered; see Pesahim
64a Mishnah on p. 17] went
out [when the 14th of Nisan
was a Sabbath] and sat down
on the temple mount [i.e. in
the outer court], the second
[sat] in the hel [i.e. terrace
around the outer part of the
wall that enclosed the inner
court], while the third remained
in its place. [Toseja, Pesahim
4, 12 (162) is more precise:
“R. Eliezer son of Jacob
[probably the Elder; c. 90]
said: The third division went
and sat down &nbs