In this chapter, we reach the last of the offerings - the lowest of the sacrifices, which are classified as offerings of lesser sanctity: the firstborn, the tithe, and the Pesach offering.
What are these offerings:
The firstborn - the one that opens the womb, the first offspring of a cow, goat, or sheep. If this first offspring - the calf, kid, or lamb - is a male, it automatically becomes sanctified at birth as a firstborn, and we are obligated to give it to the kohanim. Assuming it has no blemish, it is offered up and the kohanim eat it. This law applies to all firstborn offspring of these animals, provided they are male.
The tithe - literally the tenth. At the end of every birthing season, once a year at the end of the summer, a person gathers all the offspring born to him - the calves, kids, and lambs - into the pen, provided he has more than ten. They exit one by one, and every tenth animal to exit the pen is marked and becomes the tithe; it is offered up, and the owners of the animals eat it.
The Pesach offering - the well-known Pesach sacrifice, which is offered on the fourteenth of Nissan and eaten on the fifteenth at the Seder night, and is subject to many restrictions, as will be explained below.
To be precise: One who had only nine goats born to him in that year ending at the end of the summer - is exempt, and he does not give an animal tithe at all. If nineteen were born to him - he gives only one animal tithe, because when he brings all nineteen into the pen, the tenth one to exit is marked for the tithe and brought as an offering, whereas the twentieth does not exist.
The words of the Mishnah:
"HaBechor ve'hama'aser ve'haPesach kodashim kalim" - The firstborn, the tithe, and the Pesach offering are offerings of lesser sanctity: Their sanctity is like that of the thanksgiving offering and the peace offering: the laws of me'ilah (misuse of consecrated property) do not apply to them, they are offered up in the holy area - in the Courtyard, and they may be eaten even by non-kohanim, as will be explained below.
"Shechitatan bechol makom ba'azarah" - Their slaughter may be performed anywhere in the Courtyard: They do not need to be slaughtered specifically in the north, but rather anywhere in the Courtyard.
"Vedaman ta'un matanah achat" - And their blood requires one placement: A single sprinkling of blood is sufficient. The Torah did not specify that their blood must be placed all around the altar, and therefore any single placement of blood on the altar is sufficient.
"Uvilvad she'yiten keneged hayesod" - Provided that he places it opposite the base: That single placement must be applied opposite the base, above the base. The base, the bottom layer of the altar, does not surround its entire perimeter: it is present along the entire western side and the entire northern side, but on the southern and eastern sides it extends for only one ammah. Therefore, the blood must be applied on the western or northern side, or on that single corner on the southern and eastern sides.
Furthermore, like the rest of these offerings - excluding the sin offering - the blood must be placed specifically below the red line (chut hasikra), that red line at the midpoint of the altar's height, five amos above the ground, and if it is placed above it, it is not sufficient.
Even though they are the same - they differ regarding their eating:
Everything stated so far is identical for all three of them - for the Pesach offering, the firstborn, and the tithe; however, in the laws concerning their eating, they differ from one another:
The bechor: The firstborn animal given to the kohanim is eaten only by the kohanim, similar to Terumah. The kohanim are not allowed to invite their non-kohen friends to participate in the meal, as this is not merely a financial gift - the meat is for the kohanim and their families alone.
The maaser: This is entirely the property of the person bringing it. It is eaten by anyone, kohen and non-kohen alike, and nothing is given to the kohen - not even the breast and thigh. The one who brings it receives all the meat for himself, his family, and his guests.
Both of them are eaten anywhere within the city of Jerusalem, inside the walls, and they may not be taken outside the wall, in accordance with the law for all such holy offerings.
It should be noted that the following two words in the text before us are not from the accurate version, and they should be deleted.
As for the bechor and the maaser: The method of preparation is any way one wants - baked, boiled, or fried. Their time for eating is like the shelamim and the todah: two days and the intervening night, with the exact same rules. Ideally, it is proper to eat the meat on the first day and that night, while it is fresh, but after the fact, even on the following day.
The Pesach offering - other laws:
Its time for eating: The Pesach offering is eaten only at night. Even though it is unusual, the offering is brought on the fourteenth of Nissan and is not eaten on that day; we wait for nightfall - for what we call the Seder night - and eat it on that night alone, and only until midnight.
A dispute among the Tanna'im: Is the midnight restriction a Torah obligation or rabbinic? Rabbeinu Tam holds that the time for eating until midnight is a Torah law, and after that time he no longer fulfills his obligation. According to Rabbi Akiva, by Torah law its time is all night, and by rabbinic law until midnight - similar to the previous Mishnayos.
A dispute among the Rishonim: Tosafos rule like Rabbi Elazar ben Azariah, that the time until midnight is a Torah law, whereas the Rambam holds that this is only rabbinic.
This halachah has far-reaching implications, since the mitzvos of eating matzah and maror are linked to eating the Pesach offering. Nowadays we do not have a Pesach offering, but we do have matzah and maror, and therefore a person must try with all his strength to eat the obligatory matzah and the maror before midnight, and this includes the afikoman. If he was delayed significantly and did not reach the eating of the matzah or maror before midnight, there is a question regarding the berachah due to the doubt as to whether he fulfills his obligation after midnight.
"V'eino ne'echal ella limnuyav" - the Pesach offering is eaten only by those appointed for it, those registered for it. The Rishonim dispute whether there is a prohibition for others, or if they merely do not fulfill the obligation of the mitzvah; regardless, it is eaten only by someone who is registered for it. Before bringing the offering, it is determined and decided who is registered and belongs to that offering, and afterward they divide into groups and families and eat separately.
What is required for this registration? Rashi understands that everyone registered would pay and contribute to cover the cost of the animal - even a mere perutah - since the main thing is that he has a share in the offering. Other Rishonim, including the Rambam, hold that it is merely a matter of designation: as long as the person is designated for that specific offering and not another, he is registered for it.
"V'eino ne'echal ella tzali" - unlike any other offering that is eaten prepared in any food manner, meaning any method of preparation he wants, the Pesach offering must specifically be roasted, a dry roast over the fire. And one who eats a kezayis of the Pesach offering when it is raw or boiled in water - violates a negative prohibition for which one is liable to lashes.
In summary: In this chapter, we learned the laws of the three minor sacrifices - the bechor, the maaser, and the pesach: their sanctity is like the sanctity of the todah and the shelamim, their slaughter may take place anywhere in the Azarah, and their blood requires only one placement, against the base and below the red line. We also learned that although they share these laws, they differ regarding their consumption: the bechor is eaten only by kohanim, the maaser by anyone and in any method of preparation, for two days and one night; and the pesach - during one night and only until midnight, only by those registered for it, and only roasted over a fire.