Bekhorot 27A

טובת הנאה לבעלים.

the benefit of discretion for the owners of the produce, i.e., benefit accrued from the option of giving teruma and tithes to any priest or Levite of their choosing.

כיצד? ישראל שהפריש תרומה מכריו, ומצאו ישראל אחר, ואמר לו: ״הא לך סלע זה, ותנהו לבן בתי כהן״⁠ — מותר. אם היה כהן לכהן ⁠— אסור.

The baraita continues: How so? With regard to an Israelite who separated teruma from his pile of grain, and another Israelite found him and said to him: Take this sela coin for yourself and give the teruma and tithes to my daughter’s son who is a priest, it is permitted. But if it was a priest who gave the sela coin for the right to give the teruma and tithes to another priest, it is prohibited. Priests may not pay for the gifts that they receive.

ותנא מאי טעמא לא קאמר מתנות כהונה? אמר לך: תרומה, דקדושת הגוף היא, דכיון דלא מתחלא ⁠— לא אתי למיטעי בה.

The Talmud asks: And according to the tanna of this baraita, what is the reason that he does not state that the owners also have the benefit of discretion with regard to the gifts of the priesthood, i.e., the foreleg, jaw, and maw, which must be given to the priest from every non-sacred animal that one slaughters? Why does he mention teruma alone? The Talmud answers that he could have said to you: In the case of teruma, which has inherent sanctity, and which therefore cannot be redeemed, the priest will not come to err with it and treat it as though it has no sanctity, even if the owner receives payment for it.

הני, כיון דקדושת דמים נינהו, אתי למיטעי בהון, דבר מיתחל קדושתייהו אארבעה זוזי, ואתא למינהג בהן מנהג דחולין.

By contrast, with regard to these gifts of the priesthood, since they have sanctity that inheres in their value, which means that once the priest has received them he may sell them, the priest might come to err with them by saying that the sanctity that they have can be redeemed with 4 zuz, i.e., the one sela, and he might come to treat them in the manner that one treats non-sacred food. This would be a mistake, as a priest must eat his priestly gifts in a dignified manner, i.e., roasted and with seasoning (see Ḥullin 132b).