Today we begin Chapter 9 of Tractate Zevachim, which asks a big question: What happens if you put something on the altar which was not fit to be placed on the altar? The mishnah begins:
The altar sanctifies that which is suited to it.
Rashi explains that the mishnah is discussing a sacrifice that has been disqualified in some way. If such a sacrifice was “suited to” or “fit for” the altar, and is placed upon the altar even though it is disqualified, it is made holy and should not be removed But what does it mean for something to be suited to the altar?
Rabbi Yehoshua says: Any item that is suited to the fire, if it ascended, it shall not descend, as it is stated: “It is the burnt offering on the pyre upon the altar” (Leviticus 6:2). Just as a burnt offering, which is suited to the fire, if it ascended it shall not descend, so too, anything that is suited to the fire, if it ascended it shall not descend.
According to Rabbi Yehoshua, for something to be suited to the altar means that, had it not been disqualified, it would have been burnt in the fire on the altar.
Rabban Gamliel says: Any item that is suited to the altar, if it ascended, it shall not descend, as it is stated: “It is the burnt offering on the pyre upon the altar.” Just as a burnt offering, which is fit for the altar, if it ascended it shall not descend, so too, anything that is fit for the altar, if it ascended it shall not descend.
At first glance, Rabban Gamliel’s position is identical to that of Rabbi Yehoshua. He even uses the same prooftext. But his position is missing the words “to the fire.” Rabban Gamliel is therefore stating that anything which would have been placed on the altar, whether or not it was meant to be burned there, takes on the holiness of the altar if placed there erroneously and should not be taken off. If you’re having trouble teasing out the difference between these two positions, you’re not alone. The mishnah next explains it explicitly:
The difference between the statement of Rabban Gamliel and the statement of Rabbi Yehoshua is only blood and libations, as Rabban Gamliel says: They shall not descend. And Rabbi Yehoshua says: They shall descend.
Blood and libations are presented on the altar, but poured out instead of burned in the fire. If they are disqualified in some way, Rabban Gamliel thinks the altar makes them so holy that they can’t be removed anyways. Rabbi Yehoshua thinks it doesn’t.
Rabbi Shimon says: If the offering was fit and libations unfit, the libations fit and the offering unfit, even if this and that were unfit, the offering shall not descend, but the libations shall descend.
At first glance, Rabbi Shimon seems to be agreeing with Rabbi Yehoshua that only things meant to be burned on the altar are sanctified by being placed there. Everything else should be taken off. But the Talmud on today’s daf is going to add some important nuance to Rabbi Shimon’s position:
It is taught: Rabbi Shimon says: “This is the law of the burnt offering: It is the burnt offering on the pyre upon the altar” (Leviticus 6:2). Just as a burnt offering that comes (upon the altar) for its own sake (shall not descend), so too all items that come for their own sake (shall not descend). Excluded are libations, which come for the sake of the offering.
According to this earlier tradition, Rabbi Shimon agrees with Rabbi Yehoshua that if libations were meant to accompany an animal sacrifice, which is then disqualified, they are removed from the altar. But if someone had intended to offer only a libation, and it was disqualified and then placed on the altar, it takes on the sanctity of the altar and should not be removed. (For those wondering what to do if this exact situation arises in a rebuilt Third Temple, Maimonides in his commentary on the Mishnah states that the law follows Rabbi Yehoshua.)
It’s easy to get bogged down in the technical details of sacrifices and their constitutive elements as we move through Tractate Zevachim. But as we study this chapter, let’s remember that ultimately, the rabbis are exploring the power of the altar itself — how it relates to those items placed upon it and how it interacts with the world. In the rabbinic imagination, the altar is sacred, but it is also powerful, imparting a degree of holiness even to things that are unfit to be placed upon it. And as we read the next six pages, let’s also ask ourselves what we miss by not living in a world with such an altar ourselves.
Read all of Zevachim 83 on Sefaria.
This piece originally appeared in a My Jewish Learning Daf Yomi email newsletter sent on December 6, 2025. If you are interested in receiving the newsletter, sign up here.
