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Daf Ditty

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

Zevachim 83: אִם עָלָה לֹא יֵרֵד

jyungar December 6, 2025

For the source text click/tap here: Zevachim 83

To download, click/tap here: PDF

The various responsibilities of the kohanim who were working in the Temple would invariably lead to mistakes and confusion on occasion (see above daf 70). Having completed the examination of the laws regarding sacrifices that became mixed up with one another, the ninth perek of Massekhet Zevaḥim, which begins on today’s daf, focuses on a different question – what should be done with invalid sacrifices that somehow make their way to the altar.

From the passage in Sefer Shemot (29:37) that teaches that “anything that touches the altar will become holy” the Sages derive that animals that are appropriate for sacrifice will become fully sanctified if they are brought onto the altar, even if there is a problem that would, ordinarily, cause them to be invalid for sacrifice. In the language of the Mishna, keivan she-alu, shuv lo yerdu -once they were elevated onto the altar, they cannot be brought down, and they will be sacrificed.

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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.​