Julian Ungar-Sargon

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Daf Ditty

A wide-ranging commentary on the daily page of Talmud.

The High Priest offers incense on the Golden Altar. Wellcome Collection.

Zevachim 34: בָּקָר וָצֹאן אָמַרְתִּי לְךָ, וְלֹא חַיָּה

jyungar October 18, 2025

For the source text click/tap here: Zevachim 34

To download, click/tap here: PDF

On our daf Reish Lakish is quoted as saying that someone who brings a non-kosher animal on the altar in the Temple is liable to receive malkot – lashes. Rabbi Yoḥanan agrees that it is forbidden to do but argues that there is no punishment for doing so. The source of their argument is how to extrapolate from the passage that requires sacrifices to be brought from kosher animals (see Vayikra 1:2).

Rabbi Yoḥanan views this as a mitzvat aseh – a positive commandment – and there is no formal punishment meted out for neglecting to fulfill a positive commandment. According to Reish Lakish this would be considered a lav ha-ba mikhlal aseh – a negative commandment derived from a positive one – which he considers equivalent to a negative commandment.

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Julian Ungar-Sargon

This is Julian Ungar-Sargon's personal website. It contains poems, essays, and podcasts for the spiritual seeker and interdisciplinary aficionado.​