Study Zevachim folio 55A with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
גמ׳ מנא לן דבעי צפון? דתני רבה בר רב חנן קמיה דרבא: ״ועשיתם שעיר עזים אחד לחטאת״ – מה חטאת בצפון, אף שלמי צבור בצפון.
Talmud: From where do we derive that the communal peace offerings, i.e., the two sheep brought on Shavuot, require slaughter in the north of the Temple courtyard? The Talmud answers: As Rabba bar Rav Ḥanan taught before Rava: The passage in the Torah discussing the offerings of Shavuot states: “And you should offer one he-goat for a sin offering, and two male sheep in their first year for a sacrifice of peace offerings” (Leviticus 23:19). The peace offerings are juxtaposed with the sin offering. Just as the sin offering must be slaughtered in the north of the Temple courtyard, so too, communal peace offerings must be slaughtered in the north of the Temple courtyard.
אמר ליה רבא: וכי חטאת מהיכן למדה – מעולה; דבר הלמד בהיקש חוזר ומלמד בהיקש?!
Rava said to him: But from where is the requirement to slaughter a sin offering in the north of the Temple courtyard derived? It is derived from its juxtaposition with a burnt offering, as the verse states: “Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying: This is the law of the sin offering: In the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered should the sin offering be slaughtered before YHWH; it is most holy” (Leviticus 6:18). In the realm of consecrated matters, can a matter derived via a juxtaposition then teach its halakha via a juxtaposition? The Talmud (49b) demonstrates that it cannot.
אלא מדתני רב מרי בריה דרב כהנא: ״על עלתיכם ועל זבחי שלמיכם״ – מה עולה קדשי קדשים, אף זבחי שלמי צבור קדשי קדשים; מה עולה בצפון, אף זבחי שלמי צבור בצפון.
Rava explains: Rather, the source that communal peace offerings must be slaughtered in the north of the Temple courtyard is derived from that which Rav Mari, son of Rav Kahana, teaches: The verse states: “Also in the day of your gladness, and in your appointed seasons, and in your New Moons, you should blow with the trumpets over your burnt offerings, and over your peace offerings; and they should be to you for a memorial before your God: I am YHWH your God” (Numbers 10:10). This verse directly juxtaposes burnt offerings with communal peace offerings. Just as burnt offerings are offerings of the most sacred order, so too, communal peace offerings are offerings of the most sacred order. Furthermore, just as a burnt offering must be slaughtered in the north of the Temple courtyard, so too, communal peace offerings must be slaughtered in the north of the Temple courtyard.