Avodah Zarah, Daf Kaf Daled, Part 3

 

Introduction

The sugya continues to discuss the acceptability of sacrifices brought from non-Jews.

 

מיתיבי (שמות י, כה) ויאמר משה גם אתה תתן בידנו זבחים ועולות

קודם מתן תורה שאני

 

They raised an objection: And Moses said: You must also give into our hand sacrifices and burnt-offerings (Exodus 10:25).

It was different before the giving of the Torah.

 

Moses tells Pharaoh that he must provide him with sacrifices which they will offer to God in the wilderness. This proves that animals can be received from non-Jews.

The Talmud says that the law was different before the giving of the Torah. The Torah is what prohibits taking animals as sacrifices from non-Jews.

 

ת"ש (שמות יח, יב) ויקח יתרו חתן משה עולה וזבחים לאלהים יתרו נמי קודם מתן תורה הוה

 

Come and hear: And Jethro, Moses father-in-law, took a burnt-offering and sacrifices for God (Exodus 18:12).

Jethro also occurred before the giving of the Torah.

 

The Talmud cites another verse where non-Jews offer sacrifices to God. However, this too occurred before the giving of the Torah, or at least this is what seems.

 

הניחא למ"ד יתרו קודם מתן תורה הוה אלא למ"ד יתרו לאחר מתן תורה הוה מאי איכא למימר

אלא יתרו מישראל זבן.

 

This works according to the one who says that Jethro’s [visit to Moses] came before the giving of the Torah, but according to the one who says that Jethro’s [visit] came after the giving of the Torah, what can you say?

Rather, Jethro bought it from an Israelite.

 

Rabbis dispute whether Jethro s visit to Moses (in Exodus 18) happened before or after the giving of the Torah (chapters 19-20). For those who hold that it happened after the giving of the Torah, we still need to resolve how Jethro could bring his own animal as an offering.

The answer is that Jethro bought the animal from an Israelite.

 

ת"ש (שמואל א טו, טו) ויאמר שאול מעמלקי הביאום אשר חמל העם על מיטב הצאן והבקר (המשנים והכרים ועל כל הצאן) למען זבוח לה’ אלהיך

מאי מיטב דמי מיטב

ומ"ש מיטב כי היכי דליקפץ עליהן זבינא

 

Come and hear: And Saul said, They have brought them from the Amalekites; for the people spared the best of the sheep and of the oxen, to sacrifice to the Lord your God! (I Samuel 15:15).

What is meant by the best is the price of the best.

Then why bring the best?

So that they find eager buyers.

 

Saul, when he conquers the Amalekites, offers up the best of their animals as sacrifices (instead of doing what he is supposed to do and killing everyone and everything). Again, animals brought from non-Jews are acceptable.

The answer is that Saul did not actually sacrifice these animals. He sold them and then used the money to buy sacrifices.

But this is strange if he s just selling the animals, why does it matter that they are the best? He could sell any of them.

The answer is that the best animals are most easily sold.