Answer #3: Rather, "v'Chek ha'Amah" is the height of the Yesod. "V'Amah Rochav" is the width of the Yesod. "U'Gevulah El Sefasah Soviv" is the height of the Keranos. (Each of these is five Tefachim). It does not matter if the width of each Keren was five or six Tefachim. (The Sovev was six Tefachim wide, so in any case the Ma'arachah was less than 25 Amos. It is not difficult if the Navi says that it was 12 from the middle (in every direction), since it was less than 12 and a half - Rashash.)

Question: How tall is the Mizbe'ach?

Answer: It is 58 Tefachim. (The Yesod and Keranos are five-Tefachim Amos, and the others are six.) Half the height is 29. Six Tefachim above this is the Sovev, for it is 23 Tefachim below the top.

(Beraisa): If he squeezed out the blood even an Amah below his legs, it is Kosher.

Support: The verse "v'Chek ha'Amah v'Amah Rochav" changes form 'Chek' to 'Rochav' to teach that they are different. (Chek refers to height, and Rochav refers to width.)

Question: What is a medium Amah?

Answer (R. Yochanan): It is six Tefachim.

Support (R. Yosi bar Avin - Mishnah - R. Meir): The Shulchan was 12 Tefachim long and six Tefachim wide. (The Torah says that it is two Amos long and one Amah wide. Above (97a), R. Meir said that all Amos of the Mikdash (except for the Mizbe'ach) are medium.)

Question: If it is called a medium Amah, this implies that there is a bigger Amah!

Answer: Yes!

(Mishnah): There were two rods for measuring an Amah in Shushan ha'Birah (a place in the Mikdash, like we explain below). One was in the northeast corner, and one in the the southeast corner. The one in the northeast corner was half an Etzba (finger) bigger than the (six Tefachim) Amah of Moshe, and the one in the southeast corner was one Etzba bigger.

Question: Why were there a big Amah and a small Amah?

Answer: Workers (who contracted to build for Hekdesh) were hired (to build) based on the Amah of Moshe. What they made was measured by a larger Midah, lest they be overpaid and transgress Me'ilah. (Tosfos - even if they were overpaid they would not transgress Me'ilah, Even so, they did not want to be overpaid.)

Question: Why were there two [Amos bigger than Moshe's]?

Answer: One was for gold and silver, and one was for building.

(Mishnah): There was a picture of Shushan ha'Birah on top of the eastern gate. (This Mishnah discusses gates of Har ha'Bayis. The Rashash questions those who say it was the eastern gate of the Azarah (Rashi here) or of the Ezras Nashim (R. Shimshon).)

Question: What is the reason?

Answer #1 (Rav Chisda or R. Yitzchak bar Avodimi): It was to remind Yisrael from where they came (to make them grateful to Hash-m for redeeming them);

Answer #2 (The other of Rav Chisda and R. Yitzchak bar Avodimi): It was to put the fear of the Persian kingdom upon them (so they would not rebel).

(R. Yanai): One should fear the kingdom. Moshe told Paro "v'Yardu Chol Avadecha Eleh Elai v'Hishtachavu Li." (Paro himself would come and bow. Moshe euphemstically attributed this to Paro's servants.)

(R. Yochanan): We can learn from "...Eliyahu vay'Shanes Masnav va'Yaratz Lifnei Ach'av." (Eliyahu ran in front of Achav, for it is not honorable for a king to be unattended.)

Question: What is the meaning of "v'Alehu li'Srufah" (regarding the river from the Kodesh ha'Kodoshim)?

Answer #1 (R. Yitzchak bar Avodimi or Rav Chisda): It is LehaTiR PeH (to open the mouth, i.e. cures muteness (Rashi) or gives appetite to eat (Aruch));

Answer #2 (the other of R. Yitzchak bar Avodimi and Rav Chisda, also Bar Kapara): It opens the lower mouth (womb, i.e. cures barren women).

Answer #3 (Chizkiyah): It cures muteness. (According to Rashi, Chizkiyah merely explains Answer #1.)

(Beraisa): Had it said 'v'Lakachta Soles v'Afisa Osam Shteim Esreh Chalos v'Samta Osam Shtayim Ma'arachos', without saying 'six', we would have thought that the piles need not be even. E.g. one could be four and the other eight. Therefore, it says 'Shesh";

Had it said 'Shtayim Ma'arachos Shesh ha'Ma'areches', without saying '12', we would have thought that (Shesh ha'Ma'areches alludes to another pile, so in all) there are three piles of six. Therefore, it says "Shteim Esreh";

Had it said 'Shteim Esreh Chalos' and 'Ma'arachos', without saying 'two' and 'six', we would have thought that there may be three piles of four. Therefore, it says "Shtayim" and "Shesh";

Summation: All of these are needed to teach that there are two piles of six.

If one pile has four and the other eight, the Mitzvah was not fulfilled;

Question: If each pile has seven, was the Mitzvah fulfilled?

Answer (Rebbi): We ignore the top Chalah in each pile. (It is as if each has six. The Mitzvah was fulfilled.)

Question: We must fulfill "v'Nasata Al" (the Bazichei Levonah must be on top of the Lechem ha'Panim. The extra Chalah in each piles is a Chatzitzah!)

Answer (Rav Chisda or Rav Hamnuna): We know that Rebbi holds that "Al" can mean 'near'. (The Bazichim are placed in between the Ma'arachos):

(Beraisa - Rebbi): "V'Nasata Al ha'Ma'areches Levonah Zakah" - "Al" means nearby;

Suggestion: Perhaps it literally means 'on'!

Rejection: It says "v'Sakosa Al ha'Aron Es ha'Paroches." (We know that the Paroches was not over the Aron. Surely) this means 'near'.

(Mishnah): All Kelim in the Mikdash...

(Beraisa): All Kelim in the Mikdash are placed lengthwise towards the length of the Mikdash (east-west), except for the Aron. Its length is towards the width of the Mikdash. So it was placed, and so were its staves.

Question: What does this mean?

Answer: We know that the Aron was placed this way (north-south) due to its staves (which were east-west).

Question: How do we know that the staves must be east-west?

Answer (Beraisa) Suggestion: Perhaps "va'Ya'arichu ha'Badim" (the staves were long), but they did not touch the Paroches!

Rejection: "Va'Yira'u" (they were seen).

Suggestion: Perhaps they stuck out of a hole in the Paroches!

Rejection: "V'Lo Yera'u ha'Chutzah" (they were not seen).

Resolution: They press against the Paroches and cause humps to stick out - "Dodi Li Bein Shadai Yalin." (The Paroches is east of the Aron. This shows that the staves were east-west.)

Question: How do we know that the staves go along the width of the Aron (i.e. the length of the Aron is between the staves). Perhaps they go along its length!

Answer (Rav Yehudah): (Two men stand side by side in front of the Aron between the staves to carry the Aron, and another two stand similarly in back.) Two men cannot fit in one and a half Amos (the Aron's width. Rather, its length (two and a half Amos) is between the staves!)

(Regarding the size of a Mikveh, we say that an average person is one Amah wide. This is like one opinion in Sukah (7b). In burial caves, the cavities for coffins were an Amah wide. This includes the wall of the coffin. This implies that people are less than an Amah wide. The other opinion in Sukah (8a) says that people are two thirds of an Amah wide. Perhaps it is not proper for two people to walk side by side in one and a half Amos, even though it is possible.)

Question: What is the source that four men carry the Aron?

Answer: "V'Nas'u ha'Kehasim" teaches about two. "Nos'ei ha'Mikdash" teaches another two.

(Beraisa): Shlomo made 10 Shulchanos - "va'Ya'as Shulchanos Asarah va'Yanach ba'Heichal Chamishah mi'Yamin va'Chamishah mi'Smol."

Question: If this means that five were to the right of the opening (of the Heichal) and five to its left, the latter were in the south half of the Heichal. However, it says "veha'Shulchan Titen Al Tzela Tzafon"!

Answer: It means that five were to the right of Moshe's Shulchan, and five were to its left.

(Beraisa): Shlomo made 10 Menoros - "va'Ya'as Es Menoros ha'Zahav Eser k'Mishpatam va'Yiten ba'Heichal Chamesh mi'Yamin va'Chamesh mi'Smol."

Question: If five were to the right of the opening and five to its left, the former were in the north. However, it says "v'Es ha'Menorah Nochach ha'Shulchan"!

Answer: It means that five were to the right of Moshe's Menorah and five to its left.

(Beraisa #1): The Shulchanos were in the inner half (of the Heichal).

(Beraisa #2): They were (all at least) a third of the way in.

Resolution: (The length of the Heichal (east-west) spans 40 Amos of (plain) Kodesh, and 20 Amos of Kodesh ha'Kodoshim. Both Beraisos agree that the Shulchanos began 20 Amos into the Kodesh:)

Beraisa #1 teaches that they were in the inner half of the Kodesh, Beraisa #2 teaches that they were a third of the way into the (entire) Heichal.

(Beraisa - Rebbi): The Shulchanos were aligned east-west;

R. Elazar b'Rebbi Shimon says, they were north-south.

Rebbi learns from the Menorah. Just like it was east-west, also the Shulchanos;

Question: What is the source for the Menorah?

Answer: Regarding the Ner Ma'aravi (the westernmost lamp (Tosfos - of the two easternmost lamps)) it says "Ya'aroch Oso... Lifnei Hash-m", i.e. it is more Lifnei Hash-m (i.e. close to the Kodesh ha'Kodoshim in the west) than the others;

If the Menorah were north-south, none of them would be more west than the others!

R. Elazar learns from the Aron. Just like it was north-south, also the Shulchanos.

Question: Why doesn't Rebbi learn from the Aron?

Answer: (He holds that) we learn (Kelim of the) Kodesh from Kodesh, not from the Kodesh ha'Kodoshim.

Question: Why doesn't R. Elazar learn from the Menorah?

Answer: (He says that) the Menorah itself was north-south.

Question: It says "Ya'aroch Oso... (Lifnei Hash-m)"!

Answer: They would tilt the (wick of the) central lamp to the west:

(Beraisa): "El Mul Pnei ha'Menorah Ya'iru Shiv'as ha'Neros" teaches that the six lamps of the branches are tilted towards the middle lamp.

R. Noson says, this teaches that the middle is most praiseworthy (Rashi - when three people read from the Torah, the second should read the most verses. Tosfos - when three walk together, the greatest of them should be in the middle.)

(Each Shulchan was like Moshe's, i.e. two Amos long and one Amah wide.) According to Rebbi, the Shulchanos were east-west. We understand how they fit in the Kodesh (the total length is 20 Amos, the Kodesh is 40 Amos long);

Questions: According to R. Elazar, who says that they were north-south:

Question #1: One cannot squeeze them into the 20 Amos width of the Kodesh without any space in between!

Question #2: If so, they filled the entire width of the Kodesh. Kohanim could not pass through (to enter the Kodesh ha'Kodoshim on Yom Kipur, or for Avodas Lechem ha'Panim (the new bread is placed on the Shulchan at the same time that the old Lechem is removed from the other side of the Shulchan)!)

Question #3: Five of the Shulchanos are in the south!

Question #4: There was no room for Moshe's Shulchan!

Counter-question: Also according to Rebbi, there was no room for Moshe's Shulchan! (We learned that all the Shulchanos were in the inner half of the Kodesh!)