Comentario sobre Tamid 6:10

החלו – those who won the spoon of the incense and the coal pan of the coals to ascend on the steps of the hall leading to the interior of the Temple, for there were twelve steps to the hall. But in front of them, they would go first [to ascend]: whomever won the cleansing of the inner altar in order to to take the basket that was placed there, after it was needed to place the ashes near the eastern altar like the Menorah, he would wait until after the sprinkling of the daily offering, for the person who won the cleansing of the Menorah/candelabrum would make the preparations of the two lamps/candles/lights and finish the completion of the cleansing of the Menorah, and then both of them would remove – this one the basket and that one the oil vessel (in the shape of a large wine cup) and they would pour the ashes in one place near the altar eastward.

Introduction The priests now make their way into the Sanctuary.

והשתחוה ויצא – for now the Mitzvah had been completed.

They began to ascend the steps of the Sanctuary. The two priests, one who had won the right to offer the incense and the other who had won the right to bring the coals from the outer altar to the inner altar, begin to make their way up the twelve steps that lie in front of the Sanctuary.

מצאו שכבה – as for example, after Shimon the Righteous had died, there was no miracle, whether it (i.e., the lamp) went out now after the slaughtering of the daily offering, or whether they found that it had gone out prior to the slaughtering of the daily offering, and they kindled, as we stated above in the first “The Superintendent said to them” (Tractate Tamid, Chapter 3, Mishnah 9), even though that now they found that it was still burning/flickering, since there was no miracle existing, they would put it out and clean its ashes in order to finish the preparation of the two lamps/candles/lights together.

Those who had won the right to clear the ashes from the inner altar and from the candlestick went in front. The two priests, one who had won the right to clear the ashes off the inner altar and the other who had won the right to clear the candlestick, went before them. We should note that the Mishnah described these two jobs in 3:9. Our mishnah takes place after they have already done the work referred to there.

ומדליקו מעל מזבח העולה – for they would not kindle the western lamp/candle/light ever other than from the fire of the altar of the burnt offering, as it is written (Leviticus 6:6): “A perpetual fire shall be kept burning on the altar [not to go out],” and it is written (Leviticus 24:2): “for kindling lamps regularly”, above the outer altar it was kindled.

The one who won the right to clear the inner altar went in and took the teni and bowed down and went out again. The teni is the basket that the priest left inside the Sanctuary after clearing the altar. He now goes in takes the teni, bows down and then goes out again.

ממעלה שניה – of three steps that were before the Menorah/candelabrum.

The one who had been chosen to clear the candlestick went in, and if he found the two eastern lights still burning he cleared out the eastern one and left the western one burning, since from it he lit the candlestick for the evening. This section is largely a repeat of mishnah 3:9. The two eastern lights are the first that he encounters when he enters. If both are still burning, then he cleans out the first one, which is called “the eastern one” but he leaves the “western one,” the second of these two lights, still lit. This is the light that he will use to light the other branches in the night.

והשתחוה ויצא – for his Mitzvah was completed.

If he found that this one had gone out, he cleared the ash away and lit it from the altar of burnt-offering. If he finds that both are out, then he lights the menorah with fire taken from the outer altar.

He then took the kuz from the second step and bowed down and went out. He then takes the kuz (another vessel) from the second step where he left it (3:9), bows down and then goes out. These two priests will now put the ashes from the inner altar and the menorah near the ramp, as we learned at the very end of 1:4.

צבר את הגחלים – that were in the coal-pan.

The one who had won the right to bring in the firepan made a heap of the coals on the top of the altar and then spread them about with the end of the firepan and bowed down and went out. This mishnah describes what the priest who took the firepan into the Sanctuary would do. First he would make a heap of the coals on top of the altar. Then he would spread them out over the altar so that the incense could be easily placed on top. Then he bowed and went out.

על גבי המזבח – of the incense.

ורדדן בשולי המחתה (he flattened – the heap of coals – with the bottom of the coal-pan) – in order that the incense would not fall from on top of the coals, therefore, he would spread [the glowing coals] and stretch them so that they would not be sloping/slanting this way or that. The Aramaic translation of וירקעו/he spread is ורדידו/flatten, stamp, beat. And he would offer it on the golden altar, but not within the coal-pan. But the incense of Yom Kippur, he would place the cals within the coal-pan, and upon it he would offer it, for there is no flattening/stamping of the coals on Yom Kippur.

ונותנו – into the spoon.

The one who had won the right to the incense took the dish from the middle of the spoon and gave it to his friend or his relative. The chapter concludes with the burning of the incense. The priest who held the incense takes the incense dish out of the large spoon and gives the spoon to a fellow priest or a related priest who had entered with him.

לאוהבו – that came with him to the hall containing the golden altar for this this purpose. If there scattered from incense that was in the dish/vessel into the pan/censer, because the censer/dish was full and overflowing, and sometimes, it would fall from him into the pan/censer, he would give the incense to his friend/fellow when it had scattered into the palm of the handfuls of the person offering the incense.

If some of it spilled into the spoon, he would put it into his hands. Any incense that had spilled into the large spoon, he would gather up into his hands.

ומלמדין אותו – because he had never offered incense before, as is taught in the Mishnah above (see Tractate Tamid, Chapter 5, Mishnah 2): “Those who are new [to the preparation of] the incense, come and cast lots,” therefore, they had to teach him.

They used to instruct him: Be careful not to begin immediately in front of you or else you may burn yourself. He was warned not to scatter the incense first on the side immediately in front of him, because he would burn himself as he tried to scatter the incense on the other side of the altar. Very interesting to note how concerned the rabbis were with fire safety!

שלא תתחיל לפניך לפניך שלא תכוה – he would pour the incense on the coals on the western side far from him, and when it would scatter to his side, he would heap it up, as we have stated in [Tractate] Yoma [49b] so that its smoke would delay in coming, and this is the honor/glory that he would tarry/delay during the [Divine] Service. And he would heap up and make a pile on the western side, and when he would come to drag the incense that is adjacent/near him, he would pile it up to the western side far from him, and he wouldn’t be burned from the incense that would be bunrf. Bu if he had made the pile in front of him, when he gathered the incense that had scattered outside of him and he brought it near him, it would be that his arm would be singed/burned by the gathering of the incense that is burning in front of him. That is what is taught in the Baraitha in the chapter [five of Tractate Yoma], “They brought out for him” [at the bottom of 52b] that he would gather in front of him which is outside of him.

He then began to scatter the incense and [after finishing] went out. Rather, he would scatter the incense first on the side opposite from him, and then on the close side. When he was done, he would go out.

התחיל מרדד ויוצא (he flattened the heap of coals and went out) – meaning to say, immediately that he flattened the incense on top of the coals, he went out.

The one who burned the incense did not do so until the superintendent said to him: burn the incense. If it was the high priest who burned: he would say to him: Sir, high priest, burn the incense. The priest who would scatter the incense did not begin to do so, until told by the superintendent that he could begin. If he was speaking to the high priest, he would address him with some extra respect.

פרשו העם – all of the Kohanim depart from between the hall with the golden altar and the Altar at the time of the offering of the incense, as it is written (Leviticus 16:17): “When he goes in to make expiation in the Shrine, no one else shall be in the Tent of Meeting [until he comes out],” all atonement is made holy, no person shall be in the Tent of Meeting, therefore, whether at the time of the incense, whether at the time of the giving of the blood of the bullock of the anointed Priest or the bull for an unwitting communal sin and the goats of idolatry, the Kohanim would leave from the area between the Entrance hall and the altar. But at the time of the offering of the incense of Yom Kippur, they would not leave other than from the hall containing the golden altar, because the incense of Yom Kippur was not outside in the hall of the golden altar on the golden altar, but rather in the innermost section in the house of the Holy of Holies, therefore, there is no need that they should leave from between the Entrance hall and the altar, other than from the hall of the golden altar alone.

Everyone left and he burned the incense and bowed down and went out. All of the priests would leave the area between the altar and the Sanctuary while the incense was being offered, because it is forbidden for anyone to be there at this time (see Leviticus 16:17).