[11a - 47 lines; 11b - 57 lines]
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We recommend using the textual changes suggested by the Bach and the marginal notes of the Vilna Shas. This section is devoted to any other important corrections that Acharonim have pointed out in the Gemara, Rashi and Tosfos.
[1] Gemara 11b [line 13]:
The colon should be removed
[2] Gemara 11b [line 54]:
Should be corrected as suggested by Shitah Mekubetzes #10
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1)[line 4]÷úàKATA- a handle
2)[line 7]îúðéúà âåæîàMASNISA GUZMA- the Beraisa is an exaggeration
3)[line 10]ìáñåîé ÷ìàL'VESUMEI KALA- to sweeten the sound [of the singing]
4)[line 13]òé÷ø ùéøä áëìé / òé÷ø ùéøä áôäIKAR SHIRAH BI'CHELI / IKAR SHIRAH B'FEH - the essential aspect of the songs of the Beis ha'Mikdash is the musical instruments / the singing
(a)Wine libations were brought with many of the Korbanos, as it states in Bamidbar 15:5-10. One of the appointments of the Leviyim in the Beis ha'Mikdash was to sing Tehilim and play musical instruments at the time that the wine libations were poured into special pipes at the top of the Mizbe'ach ha'Olah.
(b)There is a Machlokes as to whether the musical instruments are an essential aspect of the songs in the Beis ha'Mikdash. Those who hold that "Ikar Shirah b'Feh" — "the main aspect is the singing," rule that the musical instruments are not necessary, and that instruments may be played by those who are not Leviyim as well as by Leviyim.
5)[line 14]áîòìéï îãåëï ìéåçñéï åìîòùøåúB'MA'ALIN MI'DUCHAN L'YUCHSIN UL'MA'ASROS
If one served on the Duchan (a platform on which the Leviyim sang the Shirah; see Background to Erchin 13:6), it could serve as proof that one is of prestigious ancestry, and that he is a Levi, entitled to receive Ma'aser Rishon.
6)[line 20]äùéø îòëá àú ä÷øáïHA'SHIR [ME'AKEV ES HA'KORBAN] (SHIRAH)
The Leviyim would say Shirah while the Nesachim of a Korban Tzibur were being brought (see above, entry #4). They would sing the same verses of Tehilim that we recite daily as the Shir Shel Yom (Tamid 6:7). On Mo'adim, special chapters of Tehilim were substituted instead of these (Maseches Sofrim). The Shirah was an intrinsic part of the offering of the Korban; if the Shirah was not performed, then the Korban was considered invalid. TOSFOS points out that since the Shirah accompanied the Nesachim, and not the offering of the Korban itself, when the Gemara says that the Shirah was "Me'akev Es ha'Korban" it means that the Nesachim are not valid if done without the Shirah.
7)[line 28]ùøúSHERUS- service
8)[line 29]ðùéàåú ëôéíNESI'AS KAPAYIM (BIRKAS KOHANIM)
The Kohanim are required to bless the people with the three-fold blessing, as described in Bamidbar 6:22-27. In the Beis ha'Mikdash the blessing was said with the Shem ha'Meforash (the Tetragrammaton). (According to Tosfos (Sotah 38a DH Harei Hu Omer), this is only true when there is Giluy Shechinah in the Beis ha'Mikdash. Since there was no Giluy Shechinah after the passing of Shimon ha'Tzadik, the Kohanim stopped saying Birkas Kohanim with the Shem ha'Meforash.) It is called "Nesi'as Kapayim," which literally means "Elevating of the Hands," since the Kohanim recite the blessing with raised arms.
9)[line 36]"åúàîø ìäí äâôï äçãìúé àú úéøåùé äîùîç àì÷éí åàðùéí [åäìëúé ìðåò òì äòöéí]""VA'TOMER LAHEM HA'GEFEN: 'HECHADALTI ES TIROSHI, HA'MESAME'ACH ELOKIM VA'ANASHIM [V'HALACHTI LA'NU'A AL HA'ETZIM?']" - "And the vine said: 'Shall I give up my vintage that gladdens G-d and man [and go to wave over the trees?']" (Shoftim 9:13) (YOSAM'S REBUKE)
(a)Gid'on (also called Yeruba'al) ben Yo'ash succeeded in subduing Midyan. When he died many years later, he left behind seventy sons from his numerous wives, and one son, Avimelech, from his concubine. Soon after his death, the people returned to their former evil ways. They forgot HaSh-m and did not repay Gid'on's family the kindness that Gid'on had done on their behalf during his lifetime.
(b)Avimelech went to Shechem, where his mother's family lived. There he spoke to his mother's brothers and to all the members of his mother's family, and he requested of them to speak to the inhabitants of Shechem and ask them whether they would prefer to have seventy men (Gid'on's sons from his wives) ruling over them, or one man (himself). The people responded that they preferred the latter. They presented him with seventy silver pieces, with which he hired wild, empty-headed men who became his followers. Meanwhile, he went to Ofrah, where his father lived, and murdered his seventy half-brothers in cold blood "on one stone." Only Gid'on's youngest son, Yosam, managed to escape into hiding.
(c)The people of Shechem then crowned Avimelech king. When Yosam heard about it, he ascended Har Gerizim and asked for the people's attention. He told them the parable of the trees that went to crown one of them king over the rest. He explained how the olive-tree, the fig-tree, and the vine all declined to accept the throne because they were busy producing their respective harvests. Eventually, they offered the throne to the thorn-bush, who replied that if their offer was sincere, then they were invited to take shelter in his shade, but if their offer was not sincere, then a fire would go forth from it and consume the cedars of Lebanon.
(d)Yosam pointed out that this is what happened with the people's appointment of Avimelech as king. With reference to the selfless devotion of his father Gid'on, who fought their battles and saved them from the hand of Midyan, he challenged their motivation. If they thought that they were indeed doing justice to his father by appointing the son of his maidservant who had just killed the seventy sons on one stone, they should rejoice with their king, and he with them. Otherwise, if the appointment was based purely on the fact that they considered him their brother, a fire will come out from Avimelech and consume them, and a fire will come out from them that will consume Avimelech.
(e)Following his speech, Yosam once returned to hiding from his brother Avimelech. His prediction proved correct. It was not long before Avimelech was involved in a series of bloody battles with the inhabitants of Shechem, Soon after that, Avimelech received his just punishment when a woman who was standing on the rampart of the tower to which he was about to set fire mortally wounded him when she threw a millstone on his head, and at his own request, his armor-bearer drew his sword and killed him.
10)[line 39]ãøëïDARCHAN- he pressed them
11)[line 40]"åëððéäå ùø äìåéí áîùà (éùåø) éñø áîùà ëé îáéï äåà""U'CHENANYAHU SAR HA'LEVIYIM B'MASA; YASOR BA'MASA, KI MEVIN HU"- "And Kenanyahu, chief of the Leviyim, was over the song; he was master in the song, because he was keen" (Divrei ha'Yamim I 15:22).
12)[line 43]"äîä éùàå ÷åìí éøåðå áâàåï ä' öäìå îéí""HEMAH YIS'U KOLAM, YARONU; BI'GE'ON HASH-M, TZAHALU MI'YAM"- "They shall lift up their voice, they shall sing; for the majesty of HaSh-m they shall shout louder than the din of the sea" (Yeshayah 24:14).
11b----------------------------------------11b
13)[line 1]"åéäé ëàçã (ìîçööøéí) ìîçööøéí åìîùøøéí ìäùîéò ÷åì àçã [ìäìì åìäåãåú ìä' åëäøéí ÷åì áçööøåú åáîöìúéí åáëìé äùéø åáäìì ìä' ëé èåá ëé ìòåìí çñãå åäáéú îìà òðï áéú ä']""VA'YEHI K'ECHAD LA'MECHATZERIM VELA'MESHORERIM L'HASHMI'A KOL ECHAD [L'HALEL UL'HODOS LA'HASH-M. UCH''HARIM KOL BA'CHATZOTZEROS UVI'MTZILTAYIM UVI'CHLEI SHIR, UV'HALEL LA'HASH-M KI TOV KI L'OLAM CHASDO; VEHA'BAYIS MALEI ANAN, BEIS HASH-M]" - "And the trumpeters and the singers performed in unison [to make be heard one sound to praise and thank HaSh-m. And when they raised the tone of the trumpets, the cymbals and the other instruments, and when they praised HaSh-m because He was good, for His kindness endures forever; then the house filled with the cloud, the house of HaSh-m]" (Divrei ha'Yamim II 5:13) (SHLOMO INAUGURATES THE BEIS-MAMIKDASH)
(a)When Shlomo completed the building of the Beis ha'Mikdash, he brought all the silver, gold, and Kelim that David ha'Melech had prepared and placed them in the Temple treasury. He did this because David ha'Melech had captured much of the silver and gold from his enemies' places of worship, and he knew that the Beis ha'Mikdash was destined to be destroyed and he did not want the Nochrim to say that it was their gods that had taken revenge for the plundering of their silver and gold. Another reason he did this was that during the three-year famine that took place at the end of David's reign, Shlomo maintained that his father should have used the silver and gold to feed the starving people.
(b)Shlomo then gathered all of the elders and the princes to Yerushalayim (the rest of the people apparently came of their own accord) to witness the Leviyim (i.e. the Kohanim) transporting the Aron to its place of honor in the Kodesh ha'Kodashim. The remaining holy vessels of the Mishkan he put away together with the silver and gold of David ha'Melech in the Temple treasury.
(c)Meanwhile, Shlomo and the people sacrificed numerous sheep and cattle before the Aron, as the Kohanim carried it to the Kodesh ha'Kodashim to its precise location beneath the wings of the Cheruvim.
(d)They arranged the poles of the Aron in such a way that they protruded and appeared from the other side like the two breasts of a woman, symbolizing the bond of love that existed between HaSh-m and Yisrael (like that of a man and woman).
(e)Shlomo placed all the Kohanim on duty that day and all the Leviyim, including all the famous leading musicians (Asaf, Heiman, and Yedusun) and their families, all dressed in white linen, with their various stringed-harps and cymbals, plus 120 Kohanim with their trumpets. It was when the Kohanim exited the Kodesh ha'Kodashim, after placing the Aron ha'Kodesh there, and the singers and the instrumentalists began singing a song of thanks (Hallel ha'Gadol), that the Beis ha'Mikdash became filled with the holy cloud, rendering it momentarily impossible for the Kohanim to serve. Shlomo knew that the Shechinah would settle in the house that he had just built.
14)[line 6]åäí áùìëíV'HEM B'SHELACHEM (AVODAS HA'LEVIYIM) - when the Kohanim do the Avodah of the Leviyim [they are Chayav Misah]
(a)While Benei Yisrael were in the desert after the Exodus from Egypt, HaSh-m chose the Leviyim to officiate in the Divine Service to replace the Bechoros, who had been the Divine servants until then (Bamidbar 3:12, 18:6). He then separated the family of Aharon to become the Kohanim, the ones actually responsible for the performance of the Divine Service, while the Leviyim were to be their helpers (ibid. 18:1-7, Devarim 18:1-5). Anyone other than a Kohen or a Levi is known as a "Zar," "stranger," with regard to the specific actions that may be performed only by the Kohanim or Leviyim.
(b)While Benei Yisrael encamped in the desert, the Leviyim were responsible for assembling, dismantling, and carrying the Mishkan. Carrying the parts of the Mishkan was limited to Leviyim between the ages of thirty and fifty. In addition, the Leviyim guarded the Mishkan and the Beis ha'Mikdash, and opened and locked the gates of the Beis ha'Mikdash. A Levi who opened gates was known as one of the "Sho'arim."
(c)Many of the sacrifices in the Mikdash required wine libations to be brought with them, as it states in Bamidbar 15:5-10. One of the appointments of the Leviyim in the Beis ha'Mikdash was to sing Tehilim and play musical instruments at the time that the wine libations were poured into special pipes at the top of the Mizbe'ach ha'Olah. At the time that the wine was poured, a signal was given for the Leviyim to begin singing the Tehilim. A Levi who sang in the Mikdash was known as one of the "Meshorerim."
15)[line 8]àîø àáéé ð÷éèéðï îùåøø ùùéòø áùì çáéøå áîéúäAMAR ABAYE, NEKITINAN, MESHORER SHE'SHI'ER B'SHEL CHAVEIRO B'MISAH- Abaye said, "We have a tradition that a singer (a Levi whose designated duty is to sing) who serves as the gatekeeper in place of his friend is punishable with death." Abaye is arguing with the Beraisa based on a tradition he received that the punishment is death and not lashes.
16)[line 12]äëúéá çãà æéîðà!HA'KESIV CHADA ZIMNA!- it is already written once (in Bamidbar 3:10 (RASHI); see also Bamidbar 1:51 (RASHASH))
17)[line 16]äâôú ãìúåúHAGAFAS DELASOS- the locking of the doors
18)[line 24]òåìú ðãáú öéáåøOLAS NIDVAS TZIBUR (KAYITZ HA'MIZBE'ACH)
(a)In many places the Gemara states that when certain items are sold (e.g. Kodshim that became unfit to offer on the Mizbe'ach) their value is designated as a Nedavah ("v'Yiplu Demeihem l'Nedavah"), a contribution towards a Korban. This money was used to purchase Korbenos Tzibur (offerings brought by the entire people) and not Korbenos Yachid (personal Korbanos). A person may also volunteer money as a Nidvas Tzibur. In both cases, the money was placed in one of the six Shofaros (collection boxes) that were kept in the Mikdash and was used to buy Korbenos "Kayitz ha'Mizbe'ach" to be sacrificed as Korbenos Olah (burnt offerings) when the Mizbe'ach was not otherwise in use (Shekalim 6b).
(b)RASHI (Sukah 56a DH Kayitz) explains that these offerings were called "Kayitz," because they were like a "dessert" to the Mizbe'ach ("Kayitz" refers to cut figs, a common dessert food).
19)[line 27]"åéàîø çæ÷éäå ìäòìåú äòìä ìäîæáç [åáòú äçì äòìä äçì ùéø ä' åäçööøåú åòì éãé ëìé ãåã îìê éùøàì]""VA'YOMER CHIZKIYAHU L'HA'ALOS HA'OLAH L'HA'MIZBE'ACH [UV'ES HECHEL HA'OLAH HECHEL SHIR HASH-M VEHA'CHATZOTZEROS V'AL YEDEI KLEI DAVID MELECH YISRAEL]" - "And Chizkiyahu issued the order to bring up the Olah on the Mizbe'ach. [And when they brought the Olah, the music and the trumpets began playing, and the other instruments of David, King of Yisrael]" (Divrei ha'Yamim II 29:26-27) (CHIZKIYAHU REDEDICATES THE BEIS HA'MIKDASH WITH SONG)
(a)In an effort to encourage the Kohanim to sacrifice on the numerous altars that he had built in every corner of Yerushalayim, Achaz, Chizkiyahu's father, had cut up all the holy vessels and locked the doors of the Beis ha'Mikdash. One of the first things that Chizkiyahu did upon ascending the throne was to open the doors of the Beis ha'Mikdash, rededicate it, and re-instate the Kohanim and the Leviyim to their former tasks.
(b)The verse describes one phase of King Chizkiyahu's efforts.
(c)The Leviyim played their instruments and the Kohanim blew on the trumpets until the Olah finished burning. At that point, the king and all the people present knelt on the ground and prostrated themselves before HaSh-m. Chizkiyahu then instructed the princes and the Leviyim to praise HaSh-m with the words of David ha'Melech and the seer Asaf (the chief musician), "Hodu la'Sh-m, Kir'u vi'Shemo," and they knelt and prostrated themselves.
20)[line 38]ëáù äáà òí äòåîøKEVES HA'BA IM HA'OMER - the lamb that is offered with the Minchas ha'Omer
See Background to Erchin 4:4a.
21)[line 43]îâìâìéï æëåú ìéåí æëàéMEGALGELIN ZECHUS L'YOM ZAKAI- the Creator arranges that favorable events happen on days that have a history of favorable events
22)[line 45]åîùîøúå ùì éäåéøéáU'MISHMARTO SHEL YEHOYARIV - and the Mishmar of Yehoyariv (MISHMAROS)
(a)The Kohanim were divided into 24 shifts according to their families (Mishmaros), each of which served in the Mikdash for two weeks out of a year. The Mishmaros changed on Shabbos, when the outgoing Mishmar did the Avodah in the morning and the incoming Mishmar did the Avodah in the afternoon.
(b)Every Mishmar was further divided into six Batei Avos, with the Kohanim of each Beis Av serving on a different day of the week. On Shabbos, all the Batei Avos of the Mishmar did the Avodah together (RASHI Menachos 107b). Some contend that the Mishmaros were divided into seven, and not six, groups, and only one group served on Shabbos (RASHI Ta'anis 26a — for more on this, see Insights to Shekalim 18:1).
(c)On the Shalosh Regalim (the holidays of Pesach, Shavu'os and Sukos) all of the Mishmaros Kehunah came to Yerushalayim to fulfill the Mitzvah of Aliyah l'Regel. At those times, Kohanim from any Mishmar were permitted to do the Avodah of the Regel.
(d)The 24 Mishmaros, as listed in Divrei ha'Yamim I 24:7-18, are:
1.YEHOYARIV
2.YEDAYAH
3.CHARIM
4.SE'ORIM
5.MALKIYAH
6.MIYAMIN
7.HAKOTZ
8.AVIYAH
9.YESHU'A
10.SHECHANYAHU
11.ELYASHIV
12.YAKIM
13.CHUPAH
14.YESHEV'AV
15.BILGAH
16.IMER
17.CHEZIR
18.HAPITZETZ
19.PESACHYAH
20.YECHEZKEL
21.YACHIN
22.GAMUL
23.DELAYAHU
24.MA'AZYAHU
23)[line 46]"åéùá òìéäí...""VA'YASHEV ALEIHEM..."- "He turned upon them their own violence, and with their own evil he will cut them off" (Tehilim 94:23).
24)[line 53]àéìééàILYA- lamentation
25)[line 56]àó ùìîéí ÷åãù ÷ãùéíAF SHELAMIM KODSHEI KODASHIM (KIVSEI ATZERES)
The Torah commands to bring a Minchah offering on Shavu'os called the Shtei ha'Lechem (Vayikra 23:16-17) that consists of two loaves of bread that are Chametz, made from two Esronim of fine wheat flour (approximately equal to 4.32, 4.98 or 8.64 liters, depending upon the differing Halachic opinions). In conjunction with the Shtei ha'Lechem, various Korbenos Olah, a goat as a Korban Chatas and two sheep (the Kivsei Atzeres) that are Zivchei Shelamim are offered (ibid. 23:18-19). (These sheep were the only Shelamim brought by the Tzibur, and the only Shelamim that were Kodshei Kodashim.)