TheWholeTorah.aiBeta

Pesachim Chapter 5, Mishnah 10: The Avoda and Erev Pesach on Shabbos

Chavrusa Learning
Listen0:00 / 0:00

We continue with Maseches Pesachim, chapter 5, mishnah 10. The mishnah completes its description of the order of service for the korban Pesach, and from there moves on to discuss a special situation: erev Pesach that falls on Shabbos.

The continuation of the order of service:

  • "Ker'o v'hotzi eimurav" - after the flaying, the wall of the stomach is torn open and the eimurim are removed, these being the fats that are destined to be burned on the altar.

  • "Nesano b'magis" - the eimurim are placed in a magis, which is a large bowl.

  • "Hiktiran al gav hamizbe'ach" - and those fats are burned on top of the altar.

Erev Pesach that falls on Shabbos:

In an ordinary year, once the service is completed each person returns to his home or to wherever he is staying in Jerusalem, and roasts his korban Pesach there in preparation for the seder that evening. But when erev Pesach falls on Shabbos, carrying in Jerusalem is forbidden by rabbinic law, and they cannot leave with the korbanos Pesach in their hands. The mishnah therefore spells out where each of the three groups waits until Shabbos ends:

  1. "Yatz'ah kat rishonah v'yashvu lahem b'Har HaBayis" - the group that finished the service of the korban Pesach first goes out and sits in Har HaBayis, which is an enclosed area in which carrying is permitted, and waits there until Shabbos comes to an end.

  2. "Sheniyah ba'cheil" - the second group, for which there is no room in Har HaBayis, waits in the cheil: the area just outside the wall of the Azarah.

  3. "U'shelishis bimkomah omedes" - the third group remains in the Azarah and stands in its place.

The commentaries note the precise wording the mishnah uses regarding the third group - specifically "stands in its place," and not sitting as with the first group. From here we learn that they were unable to sit, since the halachah is that "there is no sitting in the Azarah except for the kings of the house of David": no one is permitted to sit in the Azarah other than kings from the dynasty of David, and everyone else must remain standing there at all times. For this reason, the third group does its waiting while standing.

"Chasheich yatz'u v'tzalu es piseichen" - once it grew dark and Shabbos ended, they all went out and roasted their korbanos in their places throughout Jerusalem.

In summary: in this mishnah we learned the continuation of the order of service - tearing open the korban, removing the eimurim, placing them in the magis and burning them on the altar; and the law of erev Pesach that falls on Shabbos, when carrying in Jerusalem is not possible: the first group waits in Har HaBayis, the second in the cheil, and the third stands in its place in the Azarah, because there is no sitting in the Azarah except for the kings of the house of David. And once it grew dark, everyone went out and roasted their korbanos Pesach.