BSD
Shkolim 18b
20 Shevat, 5785 – 2/18/2025
1- We continued from last week.
יהוידע הכהן had an issue with a פסוק חומש.
Here are some parameters to understand his issue.
קרבנות in general are of two categories.
Obligatory ones – חובה, such as עולה, חטאת and אשם.
Donated ones – נדבה. Such as שלמים and עולה.
A חטאת or אשם are brought as a כפרה – sin offering, with part of the animal placed on the מזבח and the rest (meat and hide) going to the כהנים.
An עולה is all burnt on the מזבח, except for the hide which the כהנים keep.
However, when discussing the laws of an אשם, where the meat in eaten by the כהנים, the פסוק surprisingly concludes by saying:
אָשָׁם הוּא אָשֹׁם אָשַׁם לַהשם.
להשם usually means, like an עולה , totally consumed on the מזבח.
So how do we reconcile this with an אשם that usually is partly eaten by the כהנים?
2- יהוידע הכהן explained that the פסוק is indeed discussing an אשם. However not the actual and usual אשם, but the extra money that may be left over after one purchases an אשם.
The extra מותר of an אשם and חטאת , the פסוק is telling us, is collected to buy עולות that are completely placed and burnt on the מזבח and (only) the hides go to the כהנים. Thus, this type of (hybrid) קרבן, brought when there is nothing else to place on the מזבח, is in a sense an אשם (having been originally designated as an אשם) but it is totally consumed by the מזבח – as the פסוק states אָשָׁם הוּא אָשֹׁם אָשַׁם לַהשם.
3 – Speaking of an אשם we mentioned the famous רבינו יונה of Girona. Here and here. From Chabad- org.
רבינו יונה has an interesting explanation as to why the cost of אשם , brought on a ספק עבירה, is by far much more expensive than a חטאת, which is brought on a ודאי שוגג.
Here.
‘Why is it that the תורה is מחמיר on an אשם more than a ודאי?
My teacher (רבינו יונה) said that when doing תשובה on a ודאי one is truly contrite ,regretful and his repentance is whole heartedly.
However, when repenting on a ספק, human nature is to come up with many excuses (סברות) thinking that ‘perhaps there was no sin committed at all’ and there is no need to repent….
So the תורה says that an אשם should be far more expensive, resulting to compel this person to do a proper תשובה’.
Quoted by the Alter Rebbe in his Shulchan Aruch. OC 603.
See also לקו”ש ח”ג ע 944.
4 – The גמרא continues discussing a קרבן עצים and the minimum amount of wood one must bring.
Interesting point about the size of the logs placed on the מזבח. Due to the rather small area of the מערכה, the logs needed to be an exact אמה, to allow an area for the כהנים to walk around it.
קרבן עצים is a great מצוה, but make sure that it allows room for others….
When giving צדקה one needs to use, in addition to his heart, also his שכל…..
We mentioned the humorous story (unsure if it actually happened) of the carp inside the תשליך……