Zevachim, Chapter 9, Mishnah 2. In the previous Mishnah we learned the basic rule that the altar sanctifies that which is fitting for it: from the moment the altar receives something, it sanctifies it sufficiently so that it can remain on top, provided it is fitting for it. There we discussed the question of what is considered "for it" - whether the reference is to the altar fires, to the fire, or to anything on the altar. Now we will deal with the second question: what does it mean to be "fitting."
The general principle:
Offerings that were consecrated and were completely valid when they came to the sacrificial service, and only during the service did a technical invalidation occur to them - since they were already brought up, they remain on top and there is no need to take them down. In contrast, things that were invalid from the outset, even before they entered the entrance to the Azarah and before the sacrificial service began, and were not fitting for sacrifice at all - even if they were brought up, they are not fitting and must be taken down. This is the essence of the matter, and now for the details.
"V'elu im alu lo yeireidu" - And these, if they went up, they do not go down:
These are the things that are considered fitting, which, after being improperly brought up, must be left on top:
"Halan" - The sacrificial parts that remained overnight and were not placed on the altar to be burned until the next morning, as "linah" means remaining overnight.
The Bartenura adds the blood here too, and this is a somewhat complex matter: the blood becomes invalid already at sunset and not the following morning, yet nevertheless, the Bartenura explicitly speaks of it remaining overnight. The Bartenura also brings up the question of what the law is when the item was placed on the altar without being sprinkled, or was on the altar without being burned, and learns that this law is different: if it sits on the altar beforehand, it does not become invalid in this way. There is an Amoraic dispute in the Gemara there, and this is not the place to expand upon it. The point is that things that were not offered in their proper time - on the following day they may not be brought up, but if they were brought up late, they remain placed there.
"Vehatamei" - If the item designated to be offered on the altar, such as the sacrificial parts, became impure before they brought it up, it may not be brought up; but if it was brought up, it is left on top.
"Vehayotzei" - Things that went outside the walls of the Azarah. From the moment they went out they may not be brought up, but if they were brought up they remain on top.
"Veshenishchat chutz lizmano vechutz limkomo" - If during the slaughter, and similarly during the receiving, carrying, or sprinkling, there was an invalidating thought, the classic examples of which are outside its time and outside its place - that an action will be done at the wrong time or in the wrong place. And the law is similar for related cases, such as if he thought to sprinkle the blood of the Olah offering in another place, and the like. It may not be brought up, but if it went up - it does not go down.
"Veshekiblu pesulim vezarku et damo" - When someone who is invalid for the Temple service performed the receiving: a non-kohen (zar), or a kohen who is an onen (a mourner before burial), and the like. This refers to the receiving, because an invalid person can perform the slaughter. The same law applies to carrying, which is an essential part of the service, even though the Mishnah does not state it explicitly, and similarly to sprinkling - placing the blood on the altar. All of these render the offering invalid, but if the parts that are to be offered, the sacrificial parts, or the limbs and fats in an Olah offering, were subsequently placed on the altar, they remain there.
The view of Rabbi Yehudah - three exceptions:
Rabbi Yehudah says that there are three exceptional cases, where even though the invalidation occurred after the sacrificial process had begun and after the animal was brought into the Azarah, if they went up - they go down. The basis for this is in three exclusions hinted at in the central verse that we learned: "Command Aaron and his sons, saying, This is the law of the Olah offering, it is the Olah offering on its pyre on the altar all night until the morning, and the fire of the altar shall be kept burning on it" - the same verse that we expounded upon extensively in the previous lesson. Rabbi Yehudah sees in it three separate limitations (and we will not deal with the details of the derivations themselves here), and based on them he establishes three things that if they went up - they go down:
"Shenishchetah balaylah" - Slaughtering the animal at night, which is completely invalid, since the slaughter must be done during the day.
"Veshenishpach damah" - The blood must be received directly from the animal's neck into the sanctified service vessel. If the blood goes from the animal's neck to the floor, it is not valid. While it is possible to receive additional spurting blood if there is more, collecting the blood from the floor and returning it to the service vessel to use it is completely invalid.
"Vesheyatza damah chutz lakla'im" - That the blood was taken out of the Azarah prior to its sprinkling. "Curtains" refers to the hangings, a reference to the Tabernacle where the courtyard was surrounded by curtains, and this parallels the walls of the Azarah.
In these three cases, if one continued and offered the blood after one of them occurred, the offering is not valid, and even if something was brought up onto the altar, such as the sacrificial parts, it must be taken down from the altar.
The view of Rabbi Shimon:
Rabbi Shimon disagrees and holds that these are not three exceptions, but rather these three are included in the rule that they do not go down, for there is one rule: "Kol shepesulo bakodesh - hakodesh mekablo" - Any whose invalidation is in the holy area, the holy area accepts it. Anything whose invalidation occurred in the holy area, meaning in the sanctified zone, the sanctified zone renders it valid to remain on top. Ideally, it should not have been brought up, but once he brought it up - it remains. And in contrast, "Lo hayah pesulo bakodesh - ein hakodesh mekablo" - If its invalidation was not in the holy area, the holy area does not accept it: if the invalidation occurred beforehand and not in the holy area, it was invalid from the outset, and therefore even if it was brought up it is not valid and must be taken down.
What is "pesulo bakodesh" (its invalidation in the Sanctuary)? A dispute between Rashi and Tosafos:
Rashi: "Kodesh" here refers to the geographical area of the Azarah. That is, if the animal was valid for a korban at the time it passed through the doors of the Azarah, and a technical invalidation occurred only after this point - post facto, if it was brought up onto the altar, it remains there. This is Rabbi Shimon's position with no exceptions, and Rabbi Yehudah also agrees with this principle, except that he maintains there are three exceptions listed earlier.
Tosafos: Tosafos does not accept this explanation, since an animal that was worshipped as avodah zarah is no longer valid to be offered. If a person brought a live animal through the doors of the Azarah, ready to be offered - according to Rashi, it has already been established that "it arrived in the Kodesh while valid," and if he subsequently worshipped it before slaughtering it, this certainly should not be acceptable. Therefore, Tosafos explains that "bakodesh" does not mean the animal reached the geographical domain of the Kodesh, but rather the time frame of the Kodesh - during the sacrificial process, from the slaughtering onwards until the sprinkling of the blood.
Thus, according to Tosafos, the explanation and the halachah here is: As long as it was valid up until the technical invalidation occurred after the slaughtering - if it was brought up, it remains there.
The Halachah:
The halachah follows Rabbi Yehudah. The rule is that if the korban was valid before the sacrificial process began, and then a technical issue occurred to it - it may not be brought up since it is invalid, but if it was brought up, those limbs remain on the altar, and for an olah the chelev, and for other animals the eimurim. However, Rabbi Yehudah's three exceptions apply: if it was slaughtered at night, or if its blood spilled onto the floor and was not collected directly into a service vessel, or if the blood left the Azarah - based on those very same derivations, even if the korban or its parts were brought up onto the altar, the parts that were brought up must be taken down.