The Torah describes three meal offerings that accompanied the ram sacrificed on the occasion of the inauguration of the tabernacle, the portable sanctuary the Israelites carted through the wilderness: “And out of the basket of unleavened bread that was before the Lord, he took one unleavened challah, and one challah of oiled bread, and one wafer.” (Leviticus 8:26)
A mishnah on today’s daf also lists three unleavened meal offerings that were made on the occasion of the inauguration of the tabernacle:
The loaves that accompanied the ram on the inauguration of the tabernacle were like the three types of matzah that accompany the thanksgiving offering: challah, wafer and revicha.
You may have noticed that these lists don’t perfectly align. Both mention unleavened challah, and both mention wafers. But the third item in the Torah is oiled bread, while the third item in the mishnah is described as revicha — a word that is unfamiliar to the rabbis and, indeed, shows up also in some version as revucha (adding to the sense that the rabbis were not familiar with the word).
It seems clear that revicha should be what the Torah describes as oiled bread. But what exactly is this? The Gemara takes a stab at explaining:
Rav Hisda said that Rav Hama bar Gurya said: … what is oiled bread referring to? Is this not referring to matzah poached in water and made with oil?
Rav Avya objects to this: One might say that oiled bread is referring to a challah of oil. Rather, derive it as Rav Nahman bar Rav Hisda taught in the name of Rabbi Tavla, that the verse states: “This is the offering of Aaron and of his sons, which they shall bring to the Lord on the day when he is anointed.”
We have now a few ideas of the technique used to make this third mysterious unleavened loaf. Rav Hisda has a tradition that it is matzah made with oil and flour which is subsequently poached in water. Rav Avya, on the other hand, presents two other possibilities. One is that it is a “challah of oil”. This is not terribly descriptive, but Rashi suggests it is either a thick piece of dough fried in oil or a round cake of congealed oil that resembles bread. But Rav Avya himself is skeptical of this reading, and prefers that of Rav Nahman and Rabbi Tavla who argue that it is the same bread that was brought on the day Aaron and his sons were anointed to the priesthood, which happens to be matzah fried in oil and subsequently poached.
There’s more to bolster this final take in the Gemara but no definitive conclusion. Similarly, the commentaries devolve into dispute with no clear resolution. It depends on which offering is used as comparison: Is the revicha similar to the offering made at the high priest’s anointment or to his regular daily offering?
In the absence of a definitive statement, where does this leave us? Still waiting for the final word on how this particular loaf was prepared.
Read all of Menachot 78 on Sefaria.
This piece originally appeared in a My Jewish Learning Daf Yomi email newsletter sent on March 30, 2026. If you are interested in receiving the newsletter, sign up here.
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