Four lotteries were conducted in the Temple each day in order to determine which priests would perform which of the Temple rites. After describing the first of the lotteries, for removal of the ashes, the tanna describes the second lottery. The priest appointed to oversee the lotteries said to the priests: Come and participate in the lottery to determine who is the priest who will slaughter the daily offering; and who is the priest who will sprinkle its blood; and who will remove the ashes from the inner, golden altar; and who will remove the ashes from the Candelabrum; and who will take the limbs of the daily offering up to the ramp to be burned afterward. The limbs of the daily offering taken up to the ramp were divided among the priests in the following manner: One priest took the head and the right hind leg up to the altar; and a second took the two forelegs; a third the haunch, including the lower spine and the tail, and the left hind leg; a fourth the breast and the cud, i.e., the neck and appended internal organs, including the windpipe, liver, and heart; and a fifth the two flanks; a sixth the innards; and a seventh the fine flour from the accompanying meal offering; and an eighth the griddle-cake offering; and a ninth the wine for the libation. They conducted the lottery to determine the thirteen tasks, i.e., slaughtering, carrying the nine items or pairs of items, sprinkling the blood, removing the ashes from the inner altar, and removing the ashes from the Candelabrum. And whoever won that lottery won the right to perform the slaughter, and the twelve priests standing to his right won the other privileges.
The appointed one said to the priests: Go out and observe if it is day and the time for slaughter has arrived. If the time has arrived, the observer says: There is light. Matya ben Shmuel says that the appointed priest phrased his question differently, saying: Is the entire eastern sky illuminated as far as Hebron? And the observer says: Yes.
The appointed priest said to the priests: Go out and bring me a lamb from the Chamber of the Lambs, where lambs that had been examined and found to be unblemished were kept. And the Chamber of the Lambs is located in the northwestern corner of the building of the Chamber of the Hearth. There were four chambers there, in that building: One was the Chamber of the Lambs; and one was the Chamber of the Seals, located in the northeastern corner, where the priest stored receipts given to those seeking to purchase animal offerings; and one was the Chamber of the Hearth, where there was a fire burning to warm the priests; and the last one was the chamber in which the priests prepared the shewbread.
The priests entered the Chamber of the Vessels, where the service vessels required for the daily Temple service were stored. They took out from there ninety-three silver vessels and gold vessels. They then gave the lamb selected for the daily offering water to drink in a cupof gold. Although the lamb was examined and deemed unblemished earlier in the evening, the priests examine it now by the light of the torches.
The priest who won the lottery to slaughter the daily offering pulled the lamb, and he would go to the slaughterhouse to slaughter it as the daily offering. And the priests who won the right to take the limbs up to the ramp would go with him. The slaughterhouse was to the north of the altar. Adjacent to it there were eight low stone pillars. And cedarwood squares were affixed upon them, and iron hooks were fixed in the wooden squares. And there were three rows of hooks on each and every one of those wooden squares, upon which the priests would suspend the animal after it was slaughtered. And they would flay the animal’s hide onto marble tables that were positioned between the pillars.
The priests who won the privilege of the removal of ash from the inner altar and of the removal of ash from the Candelabrum would precede the other priests and would hold four vessels in their hands: The basket, and the jug, and the two keys. The basket is similar to a large gold vessel with a capacity of three kav [letarkav], but it holds only two and a half kav. And the jug is similar to a large flask [lekitton] of gold. And as for the two keys, with one of them the priest would lower his arm to his armpit through a small opening in the door and open the lock that was at the bottom of the door on the inside, and he would pass through that door into a compartment. And the other one is the key with which the priest opened the lock on the inner door of the compartment, through which he entered the Sanctuary, and that lock he opened directly.
The priest came to the northern wicket. There were two wickets for the large gate, one in the northern part of the gate and one in the southern part. Through the wicket that was in the southern part, no person entered. In its regard, the wicket’s status is clarified by the prophet Ezekiel, as it is stated: “Then he brought me back the way of the outer gate of the Sanctuary, which looks toward the east; and it was shut. And the Lord said unto me: This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, neither shall any man enter in by it, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered in by it; and it shall be shut” (Ezekiel 44:1–2). The priest took the key, opened the wicket north of the gate, and entered the compartment. He went from the compartment to the Sanctuary and continued until he would reach the large gate. Once he reached the large gate, which was locked from the inside, he moved the bolt and the locks fixing the bolt in place and opened the gate. The priest who slaughters the daily offering would not slaughter the animal until he would hear that the large gate had been opened.
From Jericho the people would hear the sound indicating that the large gate had been opened. From Jericho the people would hear the sound produced in the Temple by the instrument that had the form of a shovel. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of the wood that ben Katin crafted into a mechanism of pulleys for the Basin. From Jericho the people would hear the voice of Gevini the Temple crier, who would proclaim in the Temple each day: Arise, priests, to your service, and Levites to your platform, and Israelites to your non-priestly watch. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of the flute that was played in the Temple twelve days each year. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of ben Arza clashing the cymbals in the Temple. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of the song of the Levites in the Temple. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of the shofar that was sounded several times each day in the Temple. And some say that in Jericho the people would hear even the voice of the High Priest at the moment that he mentioned the ineffable name of God on Yom Kippur.From Jericho the people would smell the fragrance emanating from the preparation of the incense in the Temple. Rabbi Elazar ben Diglai said: There were goats belonging to my father that grazed in the cities of Mikhvar, located at a distance from Jerusalem, and they would sneeze from the fragrance of the preparation of the incense that they smelled.
The priest who won the right of the removal of ash from the inner altar entered through the Sanctuary gate, and he took the basket with him and placed it before him on the floor between him and the altar. And he would take handfuls of ashes from upon the altar and place them in the basket. Ultimately, when only a small amount of ashes remained on the altar, the priest swept the rest into the basket, and placed the basket back on the Sanctuary floor, and emerged from the Sanctuary. The priest who won the right of the removal of ash from the Candelabrum entered the Sanctuary. And if he found in the Candelabrum the two easternmost lamps, the second of which is called the western lamp, still burning, he would first remove the ashes and the burned wicks from the rest of the lamps and place them in the jug, and place new wicks and oil in those lamps. And he would leave these two lamps burning in their own place. If he found that the two easternmost lamps were extinguished, he would remove the ashes and the burned wicks from them and kindle them from the lamps that were still burning. If none were still burning, he would kindle them from the fire on the outer altar. And afterward, the priest would remove the ashes and the wicks from the rest of the lamps. And there was a stone in front of the Candelabrum and in it there were three stairs upon which the priest would stand and prepare the lamps for kindling. Since the Candelabrum was eighteen handbreadths high, it was necessary for the priest to stand on an elevated surface to reach the lamps. And after he placed the ashes and the wicks from the five westernmost lamps in the jug, he would place the jug on the second stair of that stone, and then he emerged from the Sanctuary. When the priest later returned to prepare the two easternmost lamps for kindling, he would remove the jug with the ashes from the Candelabrum, and together with the priest removing the basket with the ashes from the inner altar would pour the ashes from the jug and the basket at the side of the altar.
אָמַר לָהֶם הַמְמֻנֶּה, בֹּאוּ וְהָפִיסוּ, מִי שׁוֹחֵט, מִי זוֹרֵק, מִי מְדַשֵּׁן מִזְבֵּחַ הַפְּנִימִי, מִי מְדַשֵּׁן אֶת הַמְּנוֹרָה, מִי מַעֲלֶה אֵבָרִים לַכֶּבֶשׁ, הָרֹאשׁ וְהָרֶגֶל, וּשְׁתֵּי הַיָּדַיִם, הָעֹקֶץ וְהָרֶגֶל, הֶחָזֶה וְהַגֵּרָה, וּשְׁתֵּי דְפָנוֹת, הַקְּרָבַיִם, וְהַסֹּלֶת, וְהַחֲבִתִּים, וְהַיָּיִן. הֵפִיסוּ, זָכָה מִי שֶׁזָּכָה:
Four lotteries were conducted in the Temple each day in order to determine which priests would perform which of the Temple rites. After describing the first of the lotteries, for removal of the ashes, the tanna describes the second lottery. The priest appointed to oversee the lotteries said to the priests: Come and participate in the lottery to determine who is the priest who will slaughter the daily offering; and who is the priest who will sprinkle its blood; and who will remove the ashes from the inner, golden altar; and who will remove the ashes from the Candelabrum; and who will take the limbs of the daily offering up to the ramp to be burned afterward. The limbs of the daily offering taken up to the ramp were divided among the priests in the following manner: One priest took the head and the right hind leg up to the altar; and a second took the two forelegs; a third the haunch, including the lower spine and the tail, and the left hind leg; a fourth the breast and the cud, i.e., the neck and appended internal organs, including the windpipe, liver, and heart; and a fifth the two flanks; a sixth the innards; and a seventh the fine flour from the accompanying meal offering; and an eighth the griddle-cake offering; and a ninth the wine for the libation. They conducted the lottery to determine the thirteen tasks, i.e., slaughtering, carrying the nine items or pairs of items, sprinkling the blood, removing the ashes from the inner altar, and removing the ashes from the Candelabrum. And whoever won that lottery won the right to perform the slaughter, and the twelve priests standing to his right won the other privileges.
אָמַר לָהֶם הַמְמֻנֶּה, צְאוּ וּרְאוּ אִם הִגִּיעַ זְמַן הַשְּׁחִיטָה. אִם הִגִּיעַ, הָרוֹאֶה אוֹמֵר, בַּרְקַאי. מַתְיָא בֶן שְׁמוּאֵל אוֹמֵר, הֵאִיר פְּנֵי כָל הַמִּזְרָח. עַד שֶׁהוּא בְחֶבְרוֹן, וְהוּא אוֹמֵר, הֵין:
The appointed one said to the priests: Go out and observe if it is day and the time for slaughter has arrived. If the time has arrived, the observer says: There is light. Matya ben Shmuel says that the appointed priest phrased his question differently, saying: Is the entire eastern sky illuminated as far as Hebron? And the observer says: Yes.
אָמַר לָהֶם, צְאוּ וְהָבִיאוּ טָלֶה מִלִּשְׁכַּת הַטְּלָאִים. וַהֲרֵי לִשְׁכַּת הַטְּלָאִים הָיְתָה בְמִקְצוֹעַ צְפוֹנִית מַעֲרָבִית. וְאַרְבַּע לְשָׁכוֹת הָיוּ שָׁם, אַחַת לִשְׁכַּת הַטְּלָאִים, וְאַחַת לִשְׁכַּת הַחוֹתָמוֹת, וְאַחַת לִשְׁכַּת בֵּית הַמּוֹקֵד, וְאַחַת לִשְׁכָּה שֶׁהָיוּ עוֹשִׂין בָּהּ לֶחֶם הַפָּנִים:
The appointed priest said to the priests: Go out and bring me a lamb from the Chamber of the Lambs, where lambs that had been examined and found to be unblemished were kept. And the Chamber of the Lambs is located in the northwestern corner of the building of the Chamber of the Hearth. There were four chambers there, in that building: One was the Chamber of the Lambs; and one was the Chamber of the Seals, located in the northeastern corner, where the priest stored receipts given to those seeking to purchase animal offerings; and one was the Chamber of the Hearth, where there was a fire burning to warm the priests; and the last one was the chamber in which the priests prepared the shewbread.
נִכְנְסוּ לְלִשְׁכַּת הַכֵּלִים, וְהוֹצִיאוּ מִשָּׁם תִּשְׁעִים וּשְׁלשָׁה כְלֵי כֶסֶף וּכְלֵי זָהָב. הִשְׁקוּ אֶת הַתָּמִיד בְּכוֹס שֶׁל זָהָב. אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁהוּא מְבֻקָּר מִבָּעֶרֶב, מְבַקְּרִין אוֹתוֹ לְאוֹר הָאֲבוּקוֹת:
The priests entered the Chamber of the Vessels, where the service vessels required for the daily Temple service were stored. They took out from there ninety-three silver vessels and gold vessels. They then gave the lamb selected for the daily offering water to drink in a cup of gold. Although the lamb was examined and deemed unblemished earlier in the evening, the priests examine it now by the light of the torches.
מִי שֶׁזָּכָה בַתָּמִיד, מוֹשְׁכוֹ וְהוֹלֵךְ לְבֵית הַמִּטְבָּחַיִם, וּמִי שֶׁזָּכוּ בָאֵבָרִים הוֹלְכִין אַחֲרָיו. בֵּית הַמִּטְבָּחַיִם הָיָה לִצְפוֹנוֹ שֶׁל מִזְבֵּחַ, וְעָלָיו שְׁמֹנָה עַמּוּדִים נַנָּסִין, וּרְבִיעִית שֶׁל אֶרֶז עַל גַּבֵּיהֶן, וְאֻנְקְלָיוֹת שֶׁל בַּרְזֶל הָיוּ קְבוּעִין בָּהֶן, וּשְׁלשָׁה סְדָרִים הָיָה לְכָל אֶחָד וְאֶחָד, שֶׁבָּהֶן תּוֹלִין. וּמַפְשִׁיטִין עַל שֻׁלְחָנוֹת שֶׁל שַׁיִשׁ שֶׁבֵּין הָעַמּוּדִים:
The priest who won the lottery to slaughter the daily offering pulled the lamb, and he would go to the slaughterhouse to slaughter it as the daily offering. And the priests who won the right to take the limbs up to the ramp would go with him. The slaughterhouse was to the north of the altar. Adjacent to it there were eight low stone pillars. And cedarwood squares were affixed upon them, and iron hooks were fixed in the wooden squares. And there were three rows of hooks on each and every one of those wooden squares, upon which the priests would suspend the animal after it was slaughtered. And they would flay the animal’s hide onto marble tables that were positioned between the pillars.
מִי שֶׁזָּכָה בְדִשּׁוּן מִזְבֵּחַ הַפְּנִימִי וְהַמְּנוֹרָה הָיוּ מַקְדִּימִין, וְאַרְבָּעָה כֵלִים בְּיָדָם, הַטֶּנִי וְהַכּוּז וּשְׁנֵי מַפְתְּחוֹת. הַטֶּנִי דוֹמֶה לְתַרְקָב גָּדוֹל שֶׁל זָהָב, מַחֲזִיק קַבַּיִן וָחֵצִי. וְהַכּוּז דּוֹמֶה לְקִיתוֹן גָּדוֹל שֶׁל זָהָב. וּשְׁנֵי מַפְתְּחוֹת, אֶחָד יוֹרֵד לְאַמַּת הַשֶּׁחִי וְאֶחָד פּוֹתֵחַ כֵּיוָן:
The priests who won the privilege of the removal of ash from the inner altar and of the removal of ash from the Candelabrum would precede the other priests and would hold four vessels in their hands: The basket, and the jug, and the two keys. The basket is similar to a large gold vessel with a capacity of three kav [letarkav], but it holds only two and a half kav. And the jug is similar to a large flask [lekitton] of gold. And as for the two keys, with one of them the priest would lower his arm to his armpit through a small opening in the door and open the lock that was at the bottom of the door on the inside, and he would pass through that door into a compartment. And the other one is the key with which the priest opened the lock on the inner door of the compartment, through which he entered the Sanctuary, and that lock he opened directly.
בָּא לוֹ לַפִּשְׁפָּשׁ הַצְּפוֹנִי. וּשְׁנֵי פִשְׁפָּשִׁין הָיוּ לוֹ לַשַּׁעַר הַגָּדוֹל, אֶחָד בַּצָּפוֹן וְאֶחָד בַּדָּרוֹם. שֶׁבַּדָּרוֹם לֹא נִכְנַס בּוֹ אָדָם מֵעוֹלָם, וְעָלָיו הוּא מְפֹרָשׁ עַל יְדֵי יְחֶזְקֵאל (יחזקאל מד), וַיֹּאמֶר אֵלַי ה', הַשַּׁעַר הַזֶּה סָגוּר יִהְיֶה לֹא יִפָּתֵחַ וְאִישׁ לֹא יָבֹא בוֹ כִּי ה' אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בָּא בוֹ וְהָיָה סָגוּר. נָטַל אֶת הַמַּפְתֵּחַ וּפָתַח אֶת הַפִּשְׁפָּשׁ, נִכְנַס לַתָּא, וּמִן הַתָּא אֶל הַהֵיכָל, עַד שֶׁהוּא מַגִּיעַ לַשַּׁעַר הַגָּדוֹל. הִגִּיעַ לַשַּׁעַר הַגָּדוֹל, הֶעֱבִיר אֶת הַנֶּגֶר וְאֶת הַפּוֹתְחוֹת וּפְתָחוֹ. לֹא הָיָה שׁוֹחֵט הַשּׁוֹחֵט, עַד שֶׁשּׁוֹמֵעַ קוֹל שַׁעַר הַגָּדוֹל שֶׁנִּפְתָּח:
The priest came to the northern wicket. There were two wickets for the large gate, one in the northern part of the gate and one in the southern part. Through the wicket that was in the southern part, no person entered. In its regard, the wicket’s status is clarified by the prophet Ezekiel, as it is stated: “Then he brought me back the way of the outer gate of the Sanctuary, which looks toward the east; and it was shut. And the Lord said unto me: This gate shall be shut, it shall not be opened, neither shall any man enter in by it, for the Lord, the God of Israel, has entered in by it; and it shall be shut” (Ezekiel 44:1–2). The priest took the key, opened the wicket north of the gate, and entered the compartment. He went from the compartment to the Sanctuary and continued until he would reach the large gate. Once he reached the large gate, which was locked from the inside, he moved the bolt and the locks fixing the bolt in place and opened the gate. The priest who slaughters the daily offering would not slaughter the animal until he would hear that the large gate had been opened.
מִירִיחוֹ הָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִין קוֹל שַׁעַר הַגָּדוֹל שֶׁנִּפְתָּח. מִירִיחוֹ הָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִין קוֹל הַמַּגְרֵפָה. מִירִיחוֹ הָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִין קוֹל הָעֵץ שֶׁעָשָׂה בֶן קָטִין מוּכְנִי לַכִּיּוֹר. מִירִיחוֹ הָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִין קוֹל גְּבִינִי כָּרוֹז. מִירִיחוֹ הָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִין קוֹל הֶחָלִיל. מִירִיחוֹ הָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִין קוֹל הַצֶּלְצָל. מִירִיחוֹ הָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִין קוֹל הַשִּׁיר. מִירִיחוֹ הָיוּ שׁוֹמְעִים קוֹל הַשּׁוֹפָר. וְיֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים, אַף קוֹל שֶׁל כֹּהֵן גָּדוֹל בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁהוּא מַזְכִּיר אֶת הַשֵּׁם בְּיוֹם הַכִּפּוּרִים. מִירִיחוֹ הָיוּ מְרִיחִים רֵיחַ פִּטּוּם הַקְּטֹרֶת. אָמַר רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר בֶּן דִּגְלַאי, עִזִּים הָיוּ לְבֵית אַבָּא בְּהַר מִכְוָר, וְהָיוּ מִתְעַטְּשׁוֹת מֵרֵיחַ פִּטּוּם הַקְּטֹרֶת:
From Jericho the people would hear the sound indicating that the large gate had been opened. From Jericho the people would hear the sound produced in the Temple by the instrument that had the form of a shovel. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of the wood that ben Katin crafted into a mechanism of pulleys for the Basin. From Jericho the people would hear the voice of Gevini the Temple crier, who would proclaim in the Temple each day: Arise, priests, to your service, and Levites to your platform, and Israelites to your non-priestly watch. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of the flute that was played in the Temple twelve days each year. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of ben Arza clashing the cymbals in the Temple. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of the song of the Levites in the Temple. From Jericho the people would hear the sound of the shofar that was sounded several times each day in the Temple. And some say that in Jericho the people would hear even the voice of the High Priest at the moment that he mentioned the ineffable name of God on Yom Kippur. From Jericho the people would smell the fragrance emanating from the preparation of the incense in the Temple. Rabbi Elazar ben Diglai said: There were goats belonging to my father that grazed in the cities of Mikhvar, located at a distance from Jerusalem, and they would sneeze from the fragrance of the preparation of the incense that they smelled.
מִי שֶׁזָּכָה בְדִשּׁוּן מִזְבֵּחַ הַפְּנִימִי, נִכְנַס וְנָטַל הַטֶּנִי וְהִנִּיחוֹ לְפָנָיו, וְהָיָה חוֹפֵן וְנוֹתֵן לְתוֹכוֹ, וּבָאַחֲרוֹנָה כִּבֵּד אֶת הַשְּׁאָר לְתוֹכוֹ וְהִנִּיחוֹ וְיָצָא. מִי שֶׁזָּכָה בְדִשּׁוּן הַמְּנוֹרָה, נִכְנַס וּמָצָא שְׁנֵי נֵרוֹת מִזְרָחִיִּים דּוֹלְקִים, מְדַשֵּׁן אֶת הַשְּׁאָר וּמַנִּיחַ אֶת אֵלּוּ דּוֹלְקִין בִּמְקוֹמָן. מְצָאָן שֶׁכָּבוּ, מְדַשְּׁנָן וּמַדְלִיקָן מִן הַדּוֹלְקִים, וְאַחַר כָּךְ מְדַשֵּׁן אֶת הַשְּׁאָר. וְאֶבֶן הָיְתָה לִפְנֵי הַמְּנוֹרָה וּבָהּ שָׁלשׁ מַעֲלוֹת, שֶׁעָלֶיהָ הַכֹּהֵן עוֹמֵד וּמֵטִיב אֶת הַנֵּרוֹת. וְהִנִּיחַ אֶת הַכּוּז עַל מַעֲלָה שְׁנִיָּה וְיָצָא:
The priest who won the right of the removal of ash from the inner altar entered through the Sanctuary gate, and he took the basket with him and placed it before him on the floor between him and the altar. And he would take handfuls of ashes from upon the altar and place them in the basket. Ultimately, when only a small amount of ashes remained on the altar, the priest swept the rest into the basket, and placed the basket back on the Sanctuary floor, and emerged from the Sanctuary. The priest who won the right of the removal of ash from the Candelabrum entered the Sanctuary. And if he found in the Candelabrum the two easternmost lamps, the second of which is called the western lamp, still burning, he would first remove the ashes and the burned wicks from the rest of the lamps and place them in the jug, and place new wicks and oil in those lamps. And he would leave these two lamps burning in their own place. If he found that the two easternmost lamps were extinguished, he would remove the ashes and the burned wicks from them and kindle them from the lamps that were still burning. If none were still burning, he would kindle them from the fire on the outer altar. And afterward, the priest would remove the ashes and the wicks from the rest of the lamps. And there was a stone in front of the Candelabrum and in it there were three stairs upon which the priest would stand and prepare the lamps for kindling. Since the Candelabrum was eighteen handbreadths high, it was necessary for the priest to stand on an elevated surface to reach the lamps. And after he placed the ashes and the wicks from the five westernmost lamps in the jug, he would place the jug on the second stair of that stone, and then he emerged from the Sanctuary. When the priest later returned to prepare the two easternmost lamps for kindling, he would remove the jug with the ashes from the Candelabrum, and together with the priest removing the basket with the ashes from the inner altar would pour the ashes from the jug and the basket at the side of the altar.