Peninei Halakha

7 – Terumot and Ma’asrot

01. The Mitzva

The Jewish people are commanded to separate terumot and ma’asrot from grain and fruit they grow in Eretz Yisrael. This mitzva has four components: two forms of teruma and two forms of ma’aser. For this reason, it is called terumot and ma’asrot.

The terumot are sacred and designated for kohanim, who must eat them in a state of purity. Ma’aser rishon is given to the levi’im. Since it has no sanctity, it may be eaten without restriction. The second ma’aser depends on the year of the shemita cycle. In the first, second, fourth, and fifth years, it is called ma’aser sheni and is brought to Jerusalem to be eaten there in purity. In the third and sixth years, this same ma’aser is instead given to the poor and is therefore called ma’aser ani. Since it has no sanctity, it may be eaten without restriction.

Since the destruction of the Temple, we can no longer fulfill the mitzva of terumot and ma’asrot as it was meant to be fulfilled. First, kohanim cannot eat teruma, as it may only be eaten in a state of ritual purity. Today, everyone, including kohanim, is presumed to have the impurity imparted by a corpse. This impurity is contracted by touching a corpse, being under the same roof as one, or touching a metal utensil that became impure through contact with a corpse. It can be removed only through the prescribed sprinkling of water mixed with the ashes of the red heifer. Since the destruction of the Temple and the exile, that purification process is no longer available to us.

Second, the produce separated as ma’aser sheni must be eaten in a state of purity in Jerusalem, near the altar. Apart from our inability to become pure, the Temple and altar no longer stand, so it is impossible to eat ma’aser sheni as the Torah commands. Ma’aser rishon, which is designated for the levi’im, presents a separate difficulty. When the Temple stood, kohanim and levi’im served there, so their lineage had to be verified. Once that service ceased after the destruction, the practical need for such verification ceased as well. Consequently, some uncertainty remains about who truly has levi status. Nevertheless, in practice, one must still fulfill this mitzva and give it to levi’im who are engaged in Torah, as explained below, 9:8.

The only ma’aser that can be fulfilled today le-khatḥila and without any halakhic uncertainty is ma’aser ani, which must be separated in the third and sixth years of the shemita cycle. The obligation today is limited in another respect as well: since most of the Jewish people live in the Diaspora, most authorities maintain that the mitzva today is rabbinic, as explained below, 12:11.

In practice, although the original purpose of terumot and ma’asrot is only faintly expressed today, the obligation remains. By observing this mitzva, we remember the great vision embedded within it, and the foods we eat become sanctified through their connection to sacred values. As long as terumot and ma’asrot have not been separated, the produce is forbidden to eat. The Sages call such produce tevel, a term meaning tov-lo – “not good” – because it is not yet fit to be eaten. It may not be used for planting either (MT, Laws of Ma’aser 6:3).

In this chapter, we will explain the principles behind the mitzva as it is meant to be fulfilled in an ideal national setting. In the following chapters, we will explain the halakhic principles and practical methods through which it is fulfilled today.

02. The Four Stages of the Mitzva

The Torah commands that terumot and ma’asrot be separated in their proper order (MT, Laws of Terumot 3:23).

First, one must separate teruma gedola for the kohen. As God says to Aharon the kohen: “All the best of the oil, and all the best of the wine and grain, their first portion, which they give to the Lord, I have given to you” (Bamidbar 18:12). By Torah law, teruma gedola has no fixed measure. Each person may give as his heart desires. Even if he separates one kernel of wheat from an entire granary, he has fulfilled the mitzva. The Sages, however, established three measures: an ordinary person gives one-fiftieth of the produce (2%); one with a “poor eye,” who is sparing with his property, gives one-sixtieth (1.67%); and one with a “generous eye” gives one-fortieth (2.5%).

The mitzva is to separate teruma gedola by estimate, so that the generosity of one’s heart finds expression. Therefore, even after the Sages established a measure, they instructed that it be separated by estimate, without weighing, measuring, or counting the produce (Yerushalmi, Terumot 1:4, based on Bamidbar 18:27).

Second, one separates ma’aser rishon. After teruma gedola has been separated, a tenth of the remaining produce is given to a levi, as it says: “To the descendants of Levi, I hereby give every tithe in Israel as an inheritance, in exchange for their service, the service that they perform in the Tent of Meeting” (Bamidbar 18:21).

Third, one separates terumat ma’aser. From the ma’aser he receives, the levi must separate a tenth – a tithe from the tithe – and give it to the kohen. As it says: “Speak to the Levites and say to them: When you take from the Children of Israel the tithe that I have given you from them as your inheritance, you shall separate from it the Lord’s teruma, a tithe from the tithe… the Lord’s teruma, for Aharon the kohen” (ibid. 18:26–28). After terumat ma’aser is separated, about nine percent of the original produce remains with the levi. The kohen receives about three percent through the two terumot.

Fourth, after ma’aser rishon has been separated, another tithe is taken from the remaining produce. In the first, second, fourth, and fifth years of the shemita cycle, it is called ma’aser sheni. It remains in the owner’s possession, but he must bring it to Jerusalem and eat it there in purity. In the third and sixth years, this tithe is called ma’aser ani and is given to the poor.

When the Jewish people are established as they should be – with their feet planted firmly in Eretz Yisrael and their head reaching toward heaven – their strength depends in large measure on the mitzva of terumot and ma’asrot. This mitzva forges a deep bond between the world of action and the world of spirit, between those engaged in work and those engaged in Torah and education. Through the terumot and ma’aser rishon separated from their produce, the kohanim and levi’im are able to devote themselves to their spiritual work. In this way, people of action and people of spirit become partners in sustaining a full and meaningful national life.

Moreover, terumot and ma’asrot reveal the sacred values latent within the fruit that grows in Eretz Yisrael. The terumot given to the kohanim express the yearning to support sacred service and to increase Torah among the Jewish people. Ma’aser rishon, given to the levi’im, expresses the aspiration to support education and the teaching of Torah. In the four years when ma’aser sheni is separated, a person’s desire to connect personally with holiness is revealed through his ascent to Jerusalem and his eating his produce in purity. The fruit contains one further hidden aspiration: support for the poor. This is expressed in the two years when ma’aser ani is separated, as well as through leaving leket, shikḥa, and pe’a for the poor. Once all these values have been expressed, the fruit is restored to its proper order and fit to eat, giving the Jewish people strength and joy for a good life.

03. Upholding Torah in Israel

The role of the kohanim and levi’im is to be Israel’s Torah scholars and educators. As it says: “They shall teach Your laws to Yaakov and Your Torah to Israel” (Devarim 33:10). Similarly, when the Torah describes difficult legal questions, it directs the people to the kohanim and the central court: “If a matter of judgment is too difficult for you, between blood and blood, between law and law, between lesion and lesion – matters of dispute within your gates – you shall arise and ascend to the place that the Lord your God will choose. You shall come to the Levitical kohanim and to the judge who will be in those days; you shall inquire, and they shall tell you the matter of judgment” (ibid. 17:8–9).

To ensure that the kohanim and levi’im would be spread throughout the Land and free for their spiritual work – learning Torah and teaching it – the Torah established that they would not receive their own inheritance in the Land. Rather, each tribe was to set aside cities for them within its inheritance. As it says: “The Lord spoke to Moshe… Command the Children of Israel that they give the Levites, from the inheritance of their possession, cities in which to dwell; and you shall give the Levites open land around the cities. The cities shall be theirs to dwell in, and their open lands shall be for their animals, their property, and all their needs… All the cities that you shall give the Levites shall be forty-eight cities… From the larger tribe you shall take more, and from the smaller tribe you shall take less; each tribe, according to the inheritance that it receives, shall give from its cities to the Levites” (Bamidbar 35:1–8).

In other words, the kohanim and levi’im received cities and their surrounding open land, but no agricultural land. Instead, they were to be sustained by the terumot and ma’asrot they received from the rest of Israel. As it says: “There shall not be for the Levitical kohanim, the entire tribe of Levi, any portion or inheritance with Israel; the fire offerings of the Lord and His inheritance shall they eat. He shall have no inheritance among his brothers; the Lord is his inheritance, as He spoke to him” (Devarim 18:1–2). In the days of Yehoshua, the Children of Israel fulfilled this command, as it says: “The Children of Israel gave the Levites, from their inheritance, by the word of the Lord, these cities and their open lands” (Yehoshua 21:3). Over the generations, as the need arose, additional cities were allocated to kohanim and levi’im, such as Nov and Anatot.

Since the purpose of giving terumot to kohanim and ma’aser to levi’im is to support them in their spiritual role, the mitzva is best fulfilled by giving these gifts to the Torah scholars among them, who learn and teach Torah. This is reflected in what King Ḥizkiyahu instructed: “He told the people, the inhabitants of Jerusalem, to give the portion of the kohanim and levi’im, so that they might be strengthened in the Torah of the Lord” (2 Divrei Hayamim 31:4).

Even when no kohanim or levi’im engaged in Torah are present, the obligation to give the gifts to kohanim and levi’im remains. Since the tribe as a whole was set aside for this role and therefore received no inheritance in the Land, the obligation applies regardless. However, because the ideal is to give the gifts to the teachers and scholars among them, once such kohanim and levi’im are present, the gifts should again be given to them. [1]

Beyond the tribe of Levi, which was specifically assigned responsibility for Torah study and instruction in Israel, any Jew who wished to do so could also dedicate his life to Torah, studying and teaching (MT, Laws of Shemita and Yovel 13:13). Since terumot and ma’asrot were not designated for Jews from the other tribes, those among them who wished to devote themselves to Torah had to scale back their work in the fields and be content with less, so that they could make time for Torah study. Presumably, those who chose this path were people of unusual talent, diligence, and character. As a result, many reached levels of Torah knowledge above the average among members of the tribe of Levi, and many became heads of yeshivot, members of rabbinic courts, and members of the Sanhedrin.

At times, their families supported them, as in the model of Zevulun and Yissachar. At other times, the public paid them compensation for time away from work so that they could devote themselves to teaching or judging. Even so, the essential role of the tribe of Levi remained in place. Its members bore the overall responsibility for sustaining Torah in Israel: educating children and adults, establishing regular Torah classes for adults, making peace between people and between husband and wife, providing emotional support to those in need, and rehabilitating murderers and other offenders. Upon this solid foundation, Jews from other tribes who devoted themselves to Torah added another important tier, expanding and glorifying Torah through halakhic ruling, education, and the enrichment of communal life in all the areas entrusted to the tribe of Levi. (The enactment of ma’aser kesafim continues the same ideal as terumot and ma’asrot, extending it from agriculture to other forms of work and business.)

[1]. According to R. Shimshon and Rosh, one may not give priestly gifts to a kohen who is an am ha’aretz, an unlearned person not presumed to be careful in halakhic observance. Rambam, however, maintains that the gifts may be given to a kohen or levi who is an am ha’aretz, though they should preferably be given to a Torah scholar. In practice, the halakha follows the majority of Rishonim: the preferred fulfillment of the mitzva is to give the priestly gifts to a kohen or levi who is a Torah scholar. If no such Torah scholar is present, however, they may be given to an am ha’aretz instead, and one need not make the extra effort to bring them to a Torah scholar. This is the view of Tosafot, Ramban, Rashba, Ran, Ritva, and Meiri to Ḥullin 130b, and this is the ruling of SA YD 61:7.

According to R. Shimshon and Rosh, one may not give priestly gifts to a kohen who is an am ha’aretz, an unlearned person not presumed to be careful in halakhic observance. Rambam, however, maintains that the gifts may be given to a kohen or levi who is an am ha’aretz, though they should preferably be given to a Torah scholar. In practice, the halakha follows the majority of Rishonim: the preferred fulfillment of the mitzva is to give the priestly gifts to a kohen or levi who is a Torah scholar. If no such Torah scholar is present, however, they may be given to an am ha’aretz instead, and one need not make the extra effort to bring them to a Torah scholar. This is the view of Tosafot, Ramban, Rashba, Ran, Ritva, and Meiri to Ḥullin 130b, and this is the ruling of SA YD 61:7.

Even when no kohen who is a Torah scholar is present, one must nonetheless be careful to give teruma only to a kohen who is careful about the laws of purity. Since teruma is sacred and must be eaten only in purity, giving it to an am ha’aretz would cause him to violate the prohibition of eating teruma in impurity (Sanhedrin 90b; MT, Laws of Terumot 6:2). However, when a kohen who was an am ha’aretz came to the Temple during the week of his family’s priestly watch, he was allowed to participate in the service and eat from the sacrificial meat, because even kohanim who were amei ha’aretz were careful about the laws of purity in the Temple.

04. The Distribution of the Gifts

The owner of the produce has the right to decide which kohen will receive his terumot and which levi will receive his ma’asrot. As it says: “Each man’s sacred things shall be his; whatever a man gives to the kohen shall be his” (Bamidbar 5:10). This right is meant to create a personal bond between the produce owners and the kohanim and levi’im, encouraging the kohanim and levi’im to devote themselves to sacred service within their communities, so that community members will want to give them their gifts. A kohen or levi who is diligent in teaching Torah to children and adults, and whose wisdom and counsel benefit others, will naturally be preferred when people distribute their gifts. By contrast, one who keeps his distance from the community, acts arrogantly, or is lazy and fails to teach Torah will naturally find that the community responds in kind when the gifts are distributed.

Once a kohen receives produce separated as teruma, it becomes his property. He may sell it to other kohanim, who will eat it in purity, and use the money to buy whatever he wishes (Ḥullin 131a). However, since a kohen may not engage in commerce with teruma (Mishna, Shevi’it 7:3), the system was not meant to create a situation in which beloved and respected kohanim and levi’im receive far more than they need, while others receive nothing. These gifts, after all, consisted of food. Once the most admired kohanim and levi’im receive enough to provide for their families generously, it made little sense to give them more than their households could eat. It is better for the owner to form a relationship with other kohanim and levi’im, who are more available to build a spiritual and Torah-learning bond with those who choose to give them their gifts.

In this way, the mitzva creates an ongoing bond between Jewish landowners as a whole and the full body of kohanim and levi’im. The most devoted kohanim and levi’im are given preference and receive everything they need in abundance. Those who are less welcoming, or who do not make the effort to teach their students well, receive fewer gifts. When difficult years come and the harvest is small, so that the gifts are not enough to support all the kohanim and levi’im, those who have not served their communities properly suffer shortage.

The usual practice was for the kohanim and levi’im who had a relationship with the owner of the produce to come to the place where the produce was gathered in the fields and receive their gifts there. The owner’s obligation was to separate terumot and ma’asrot, not to deliver them to the homes of the kohen and levi. If the kohen or levi did not come to the field, the Sages enacted that the owner should bring the gifts to the kohen or levi at home, or hire someone to do so, while the kohen or levi would pay the standard cost of transport (Ḥullin 134b; MT, Laws of Terumot 12:17). Presumably, when a landowner wished to give his gifts to a kohen or levi who was great in Torah, he would volunteer to bring them to his home, so as not to interrupt his Torah study.

Kohanim and levi’im may not take the gifts without permission. Similarly, they may not help the owner with his work in order to receive the gifts, because doing so deprives their fellow kohanim and levi’im and desecrates the name of Heaven. Those who behave this way disgrace their sacred role, and it may be assumed that they do not teach Torah properly either. About them the prophet said: “You have turned aside from the way; you have caused many to stumble in the Torah; you have corrupted the covenant of Levi, says the Lord of Hosts. Therefore I too have made you despised and lowly before all the people, because you do not keep My ways and show partiality in Torah” (Malakhi 2:8–9).

Kohanim and levi’im may not ask for terumot or ma’aser in an undignified way either. These gifts are God’s, and He commanded that they be given to them with honor. As it says: “Behold, I have given you charge of My terumot, from all the sacred things of the Children of Israel; I have given them to you le-mashḥa” (Bamidbar 18:8). Le-mashḥa means “for greatness and honor,” so that they can teach Torah with dignity. As it says: “For the lips of a kohen shall guard knowledge, and they shall seek Torah from his mouth, for he is an angel of the Lord of Hosts” (Malakhi 2:7; Bekhorot 26b; Tosafot, Bekhorot 51b, s.v. hilkhakh; MT, Laws of Terumot 12:18–19).[2]

[2]. Just as kohanim and levi’im may not assist at the threshing floors in order to receive the gifts, they also may not pay in order to receive them, nor may they pay to have the gifts directed to another kohen or levi, because doing so demeans the dignity of their position. However, a Yisrael may pay a modest amount to the produce owner to give his gifts to a particular kohen or levi. Likewise, if a Yisrael has a grandson who is a kohen or levi, he may pay a modest amount to the produce owner so that the gifts are given to his grandson (Bekhorot 26b–27a). This is permitted only if the produce owner had already considered giving the gifts to that recipient because of his relationship with him. If that possibility had not occurred to him beforehand, he may not do so (MT, Laws of Terumot 12:20–21).

Although the produce owner has tovat hana’a – the personal benefit of choosing which kohen will receive his teruma – Rambam maintains that if a kohen seizes the teruma, it is not taken back from him, because tovat hana’a is not considered money (MT, Laws of Terumot 12:15). Tosafot, however, maintain that since the right to choose the kohen remains with the produce owner, the teruma is taken back from the kohen who seized it (Ḥullin 131a, s.v. yesh). The same law applies to a levi who seizes the ma’aser.

A kohen may eat teruma whose obligation applies by Torah law only if his lineage has been verified by testimony. For example, witnesses might testify that his father or grandfather had offered sacrifices, since a kohen could not offer sacrifices without proper testimony that he was descended from Aharon the kohen. By contrast, teruma whose obligation is rabbinic, such as teruma separated from demai, may be given even to kohanei ḥazaka – kohanim who are accepted by the community as such, even though their lineage has not been formally established by testimony (Ketubot 25a; MT, Laws of Terumot 6:2; Laws of Forbidden Relations 20:1).

05. Laws of Eating Teruma

The kohen’s wife and children may eat teruma together with him, for the kohen’s sacred calling is not his alone; his entire household shares in it. They too are therefore expected to observe the laws of purity required for eating teruma.

If the daughter of a kohen marries a zar – a non-kohen, that is, a levi or Yisrael – she may no longer eat teruma. If she is later widowed or divorced and has no child from him, she returns to her father’s household and may once again eat teruma. If she does have a child from that marriage, she remains connected to her husband’s household and may not eat teruma, as it says: “If a kohen’s daughter becomes the wife of a non-kohen, she may not eat of the sacred teruma. But if a kohen’s daughter becomes widowed or divorced and has no offspring, and she returns to her father’s house as in her youth, she may eat of her father’s bread” (Vayikra 22:12–13).

The reverse is also true. If the daughter of a Yisrael marries a kohen, she may eat teruma with him. If she is widowed or divorced and has no descendant from him, she returns to her original Yisrael status and may no longer eat teruma. If, however, she has a descendant from him, even a grandson or granddaughter, she remains connected to the priestly household through that descendant. Were she then to marry a Yisrael, she would again lose the right to eat teruma, even though she has a child who is a kohen (MT, Laws of Terumot 6:7–12, 17).

Before eating teruma, in addition to reciting the appropriate berakha over the food, the kohanim recite: “Blessed are You, the Lord our God, King of the universe, Who sanctified us with the sanctity of Aharon and commanded us to eat teruma” (MT, Laws of Terumot 15:22).

Teruma may be consumed or used only in its normal manner: foods that are normally eaten may be eaten, beverages that are normally drunk may be drunk, and oil normally used on the body may be used for anointing. One may not, however, anoint his body with wine, since wine is not normally used for that purpose. Similarly, one may not eat or drink teruma in an unusual manner. Doing so is considered wasting the teruma and is prohibited (MT, Laws of Terumot 11:1–9; see Peninei Halakha: Shevi’it 4:1, note 1).[3]

[3]. An uncircumcised kohen may not eat teruma, even if he could not be circumcised because doing so would have endangered his life. His wife and children, however, may eat teruma (MT, Laws of Terumot 7:10–12).

If a kohen had male or female slaves from among the nations who had undergone the conversion process required of slaves, they too may eat teruma, provided they are ritually pure. By contrast, if a kohen had an eved Ivri, the Hebrew slave was not entitled to eat teruma. We have already learned (see Peninei Halakha: Shevi’it and Yovel 10:11) that even after the yovel is restored, it will not be permitted to own slaves. The Torah’s permission to maintain slavery applied only under socioeconomic conditions in which, without slavery, such people would have lacked any means of support and would have died of starvation. Therefore, today, when society has the means to provide food for all the poor, owning slaves is prohibited.

06. Teruma and the Laws of Purity

The role of the kohanim is to connect Israel with God, and safeguarding purity is one of the conditions that enables them to fulfill that role. Therefore, only a kohen who is ritually pure may eat teruma. For this reason, kohanim and their families must be careful not to become impure and must also protect their clothing and utensils from impurity. The laws of purity and impurity are numerous and highly complex; we will mention only a few.

In general, impurity is associated with death. A corpse is therefore the highest source of impurity, an avi avot ha-tum’a. A Jew or utensil that touches a corpse or remains together with it in an ohel – that is, under the same roof – becomes a primary source of impurity, an av ha-tum’a. A Jew who becomes impure through contact with a corpse can become pure only through a seven-day process: water mixed with the ashes of the red heifer is sprinkled on him on the third and seventh days, and on the seventh day he immerses in a mikveh. A lower level of impurity applies to a zav and a nidda. In these cases as well, impurity emerges from something that was connected to the potential for life but died, and they are therefore considered avot ha-tum’a. A zav, zava, and nidda become pure by counting seven days and immersing in a mikveh, without the sprinkling of the red-heifer waters.

A person or utensil that touches an av ha-tum’a – such as a zav, a nidda, or a person who became impure through contact with a corpse – becomes impure. After immersion, once the day ends, he or it becomes pure. A neveila or dead sheretz is also impure at the level of an av ha-tum’a. A person or utensil that touches one of them becomes impure and becomes pure through immersion and nightfall. Utensils made of stone or earth do not contract impurity.

The produce separated as teruma must also be protected from impurity. If, after being picked, the produce becomes wet with one of the seven liquids – water, wine, honey, olive oil, milk, dew, or blood – it becomes susceptible to impurity. Once that happens, if an impure person or utensil touches it, even after it has dried, the produce becomes impure. However, if it never became wet, then it was never made susceptible to impurity, and even contact with an impure person or utensil does not render it impure.

Even though teruma is specifically meant to be eaten by kohanim in purity, the obligation to separate teruma applies even when the produce has become impure. As it says: “Behold, I have given you charge of My terumot” (Bamidbar 18:8), which the Sages interpret to mean: whether the teruma is pure or impure. When the teruma is pure, it is designated for eating. When it is impure, it must be burned. However, since one may benefit from it while it burns, it is preferable that the kohen receive that benefit: if it is fruit, he may use it to fuel an oven; if it is oil, he may use it to light lamps (Shabbat 25a; MT, Laws of Terumot 2:14–15).

07. The Difference Between Kohanim and Levi’im

For most of the year, the kohanim and levi’im lived in their designated cities throughout the Land. When their family’s turn to serve in the Temple arrived, they would go up to Jerusalem. The main Temple service and the offering of the sacrifices were entrusted to the kohanim, while the levi’im assisted them in two ways: guarding the Temple gates and accompanying the public sacrifices with song and music. To that end, the levi’im formed choirs and musical ensembles.

When the kohanim and levi’im were in the Temple, the kohanim were sustained by the portions of sacrificial meat designated for them, as well as by the menaḥot and bikurim. The levi’im, by contrast, were sustained from the produce of ma’aser sheni that Jews brought up to Jerusalem, as it says: “You shall eat there before the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household. And do not abandon the Levite within your gates, for he has no portion or inheritance with you” (Devarim 14:26–27). They also shared in the meat of the shelamim offerings and ma’aser behema that the people brought, as it says: “Before the Lord your God you shall eat it, in the place that the Lord your God will choose – you, your son, your daughter, your male servant, your maidservant, and the Levite within your gates – and you shall rejoice before the Lord your God in all your endeavors. Guard yourself, lest you abandon the Levite all your days upon your land” (ibid. 12:18–19).

For most of the year, when they lived at home, the kohanim were sustained by terumot, and the levi’im by ma’aser rishon. The Torah commands the levi’im to separate terumat ma’aser from the ma’asrot they receive and give it to the kohen, thereby strengthening the bond between levi’im and kohanim.

A basic difference between kohanim and levi’im shapes their daily lives. Teruma is sacred and may be eaten only in purity, whereas the ma’aser given to a levi is non-sacred produce and may be eaten even in impurity. Kohanim and their families must therefore guard themselves from impurity at all times. Levi’im, like other Jews, need to be pure when they go up to the Temple, but during the rest of the year they do not have to live with that same constant vigilance.

Since the role of the kohanim is to extend the sanctity of the Temple throughout the Land, they must live with a higher degree of separation and purity. From within that atmosphere, they teach Torah to Israel. The levi’im, by contrast, come into closer contact with the people and, presumably, are therefore more involved in teaching and educating children. Since the levi’im do not need to guard themselves constantly from impurity, they can, when necessary, work in other occupations.

The kohanim, by contrast, receive many gifts. Some come through their service in the Temple, allowing them to remain in Jerusalem for longer periods. They also receive important gifts throughout the Land that have no sanctity attached to them, such as the foreleg, cheeks, and stomach from every slaughtered animal. These gifts help sustain the kohanim when they are impure and cannot partake of teruma. For example, a kohen may become impure when one of his close relatives dies. Women have days of impurity, men may become zavim, and one who has marital relations or experiences a seminal emission may not eat teruma until he immerses and the day ends.

In any case, relative to their numbers in the early days of the nation, the kohanim received far more gifts than the levi’im. It seems that this led the kohanim to increase in numbers at a faster rate than the levi’im. Perhaps this was the Torah’s intention: to strengthen the priesthood, whose way of life inclined more toward piety and purity, in comparison with the levi’im. By the beginning of the Second Temple period, the kohanim who returned to the Land already numbered ten times as many as the levi’im.[4]

[4]. The Levi’im, Their Inheritance, and Their Livelihood: From the days of Moshe Rabbeinu, each tribe’s officers were appointed from among its own members. Later, in the days of Yehoshafat, officers were appointed specifically from the tribe of Levi, as it says: “And the Levitical officers are before you” (2 Divrei Hayamim 19:11). This was part of Yehoshafat’s broader effort to strengthen the people in the service of God, in the observance of the mitzvot, and in the appointment of judges throughout his cities. Ya’avetz explains that after Yerovam ben Nevat split the Kingdom of Israel away from the Kingdom of Yehuda and led its people into idolatry, many levi’im left his territory and moved to the Kingdom of Yehuda. In order to provide them with a livelihood, Yehoshafat – who began to reign thirty-nine years after Yerovam’s death – appointed them as officers. By the Second Temple period, however, most officers once again came from the non-levi tribes, as explained in Yevamot 86b.

The special status of the tribe of Levi was shaped by two events. The first was when Shimon and Levi killed the men of Shekhem. In response, Yaakov Avinu said of them in his final testament: “Shimon and Levi are brothers; weapons of violence are their trade. Let my soul not enter their council; let my honor not join their assembly, for in their anger they killed a man, and in their will they uprooted an ox. Cursed is their anger, for it is fierce, and their wrath, for it is harsh. I will divide them in Yaakov and scatter them in Israel” (Bereishit 49:5–7). This is why they did not receive a territorial inheritance in the Land. There is also a view that they were punished in this way because they were the main initiators of the sale of Yosef (Rashi to Bereishit 49:5).

The second event was their standing with Moshe Rabbeinu against those who sinned with the Golden Calf (Shemot 32:29). Through this, they merited being set apart for God, as it says: “The Lord spoke to Moshe, saying: Take the Levites from among the Children of Israel and purify them… You shall separate the Levites from among the Children of Israel, and the Levites shall be Mine” (Bamidbar 8:5–6, 14; see the entire chapter, and Devarim 10:8). Instead of receiving an inheritance in the Land, God became their inheritance, as it says: “There shall not be for the Levitical kohanim, the entire tribe of Levi, any portion or inheritance with Israel; the fire offerings of the Lord and His inheritance shall they eat. He shall have no inheritance among his brothers; the Lord is his inheritance, as He spoke to him” (Devarim 18:1–2). Similarly, it says: “To the descendants of Levi, I hereby give every tithe in Israel as an inheritance, in exchange for their service, the service that they perform, the service of the Tent of Meeting… For the tithe of the Children of Israel, which they separate to the Lord as teruma, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance. Therefore I said to them: Among the Children of Israel they shall not inherit an inheritance” (Bamidbar 18:21–24).

It may be said that their zealotry contains both danger and greatness. When misdirected, it can become destructive; when directed toward God with dedication and self-sacrifice, it becomes a great virtue, as when the tribe of Levi stood against those who sinned with the Golden Calf: “Moshe stood at the gate of the camp and said: Whoever is for the Lord, come to me. And all the descendants of Levi gathered to him” (Shemot 32:26). Yet in order to keep their zealotry within holiness, they were not given an inheritance in the Land. Instead, the Torah mandated that they be sustained by the gifts of Israel and devote themselves to teaching Torah to Israel. In this way, they would remain bound to Israel in love and would not turn excessive zeal against sinners, so long as those sinners were not destroying Israel’s vineyard. In later generations, the Ḥashmona’im, who were kohanim, indeed raised the banner of revolt against the Greeks, who had issued decrees of religious persecution against Israel. Through them, the Jewish people continued to keep God’s Torah and mitzvot.

The difference between kohanim and levi’im and its practical ramifications should be emphasized. At first, the kohanim were very few compared to the levi’im – less than ten percent of their number – yet they received gifts of far greater value. In addition to receiving a tithe of the tithe given to the levi’im, the kohanim also received many other gifts, twenty-four in all, including the firstborn animal; the foreleg, cheeks, and stomach of every slaughtered animal; ḥalla; reishit ha-gez; and others. Even though teruma and bikurim have no fixed measure by Torah law, the Sages ordained that about two percent be given for each, presumably after the kohanim had multiplied. Thus, while the kohanim were required to live in purity, as explained in sections 6–7, their livelihood was relatively comfortable. The levi’im, by contrast, were not required to live in purity and could work in other professions, but since they had no inheritance in the Land, their livelihood was strained.

It appears, then, that the many gifts given to the kohanim allowed their numbers to grow more rapidly over the generations than those of the levi’im, until, eventually, the kohanim became more numerous. Perhaps this was the Torah’s intention: to strengthen the priesthood. This may also be seen from Bamidbar 31, where the kohanim received ten percent of what the levi’im received from the spoils of Midian, even though the levi’im numbered about 22,000 while the kohanim consisted only of the families of Aharon’s sons. A similar pattern appears in the cities they received in the Land: thirteen cities were given to the kohanim, as opposed to thirty-five given to the levi’im, as explained in Yehoshua 21:19, 39.

The kabbalists explain that the root of the kohanim is in the attribute of ḥesed, while the root of the levi’im is in the attribute of din, whose influence must be kept within bounds (Zohar 3:121a, 151b; Pardes Rimmonim 23:12). Perhaps this is why the service of the levi’im involves poverty and self-sacrifice: it serves to temper the attribute of judgment. Yet when they engage in Torah with devotion and sacrifice, they attain the highest level, the crown of Torah. Indeed, Moshe Rabbeinu, the greatest of Israel, was a levi, as was Shmuel, the greatest prophet after him. Both lived with exceptional restraint and separation: Moshe is called “the man of God,” and Shmuel is the model of one who did not wish to benefit from this world, as explained in Berakhot 10b. Their spiritual level, at its root, is lofty and hidden. Their task is to reveal it to the world, and from there the root of blessing flows. Yet because their level is hidden, they themselves do not receive that blessing in abundance.

08. Ma’aser Rishon

The Torah’s mitzva is to give ma’aser rishon to a levi, not to a kohen. Although kohanim are also members of the tribe of Levi, and when kohanim own tevel produce they may keep the ma’aser rishon after separating it, and then separate terumat ma’aser from it for themselves, nevertheless, when a Yisrael owns produce, he must give ma’aser rishon specifically to a levi. This follows R. Akiva in Yevamot 86a–b, Yerushalmi, Ma’aser Sheni 5:3, and MT, Laws of Ma’aser 1:1.

At the beginning of the Second Temple period, Ezra called upon the levi’im to ascend to Eretz Yisrael, though only a few did so. They numbered less than one-tenth of the kohanim and less than one percent of all those who ascended. Ezra therefore instituted a penalty against the levi’im: people would no longer be required to give them the entire ma’aser rishon, which amounts to about nine percent of the total produce. After all, ma’aser rishon is given to the levi’im to support them in their service, as it says: “To the descendants of Levi, I hereby give every tithe in Israel as an inheritance, in exchange for their service that they perform” (Bamidbar 18:21), not in order to make them wealthy. It was therefore established that the ma’aser could also be given to kohanim, or directed to other purposes as the beit din saw fit. The beit din had authority to institute this penalty because ma’aser rishon is monetary property and has no sanctity. The beit din could therefore expropriate it from the levi’im and direct it wherever it saw fit.

The Yerushalmi (Ma’aser Sheni 5:5) explains that, at first, they ordained that the ma’aser be brought to the Temple treasury. One-third was given to the kohanim and levi’im in Jerusalem, one-third was kept in the treasury for communal needs in Jerusalem, and one-third was distributed to the poor and to Torah scholars in Jerusalem. It appears that as Jewish life spread throughout the Land, people once again distributed ma’aser rishon locally. However, because of Ezra’s penalty, they no longer gave it only to levi’im; they also gave it to kohanim (Yevamot 86b, based on Tosafot, Rosh, and others).

Some authorities maintain that Ezra’s penalty was annulled after the destruction of the Second Temple. Since then, ma’aser rishon must again be given specifically to levi’im, and this is the proper practice (Beit Yosef and SA YD 331:19, based on MT, Laws of Ma’aser 1:4).[5]

[5]. R. Elazar b. Azarya maintains that, on a Torah level, ma’aser rishon may be given to kohanim as well, since they too belong to the tribe of Levi, and the Torah sometimes refers to kohanim as “Levites.” R. Akiva, however, maintains that the ma’aser must be given specifically to a levi. This is the accepted halakha, in keeping with the general rule that the halakha follows R. Akiva when he disputes one colleague (MT, Laws of Ma’aser 1:1; Mahari Kurkus to MT, Laws of Ma’aser 1:1; Tosafot Yeshanim and Meiri to Yevamot 86b; Vilna Gaon, Bi’ur ha-Gra, YD 331:52).

The Bavli (Yevamot 86b) explains that at the beginning of the Second Temple period, Ezra penalized the levi’im with respect to ma’aser rishon, because they did not go up to the Land. As Ezra says: “I gathered them to the river that comes to Ahava, and we camped there for three days. I examined the people and the kohanim, but I found none of the sons of Levi there” (Ezra 8:15). This does not mean that no levi’im went up at all. Ezra 3:8 mentions levi’im who had returned, and Neḥemya 10:29, describing events shortly after Ezra, mentions levi’im as well. Several passages in Neḥemya also state that ma’aser was given to levi’im (Neḥemya 10:38; 12:47; 13:13). Rather, the problem was that very few levi’im returned in comparison with the kohanim. The kohanim who came up with Zerubavel numbered 4,289, while the levi’im numbered only 360 (Ezra 2:36–42; Neḥemya 7:43–45; see also Neḥemya 11:10–18, which requires further study).

In the Torah’s original framework, the levi’im would receive about nine percent of the produce, while the kohanim would receive about three percent. Against this background, Ezra’s penalty is clear. The small number of levi’im, who made up less than one percent of those who returned, could not reasonably receive the entire ma’aser rishon. The purpose of the ma’aser is to support them in their service, not to turn them into the wealthy class of the Land.

The Yerushalmi (Ma’aser Sheni 5:5) explains that ma’aser rishon was brought to Jerusalem and divided into three portions: one-third for kohanim and levi’im, one-third for communal needs, and one-third for the poor and Torah scholars. The Bavli (Yevamot 86b), however, records a dispute as to whether, when kohanim are impure, the ma’aser is nevertheless given to them, or instead to the poor. It appears that these passages are not contradictory but complementary: the Yerushalmi refers to the main arrangement, in which the ma’aser was brought to Jerusalem, while the Bavli discusses a person who had difficulty bringing the ma’aser to Jerusalem, and the dispute concerns whom he was instructed to give it to instead.

Later, as Jewish settlement expanded throughout the Land, people were no longer expected to bring ma’aser rishon to Jerusalem. Each person distributed it locally. At this stage, Ezra’s penalty continued to affect the distribution of ma’aser rishon, but Rishonim disagree concerning how. According to many Rishonim, the penalty meant that ma’aser rishon no longer had to be given exclusively to levi’im; it could be given to kohanim as well. This weakened the status of the levi’im, since they were no longer its sole recipients (Tosafot; Tosafot Rosh, Yevamot 86b; Hagahot Ya’avetz to Yevamot 86b; Ramban, Rashba, and Ra’ah to Bava Batra 81b). Rambam understands the penalty differently: kohanim were not merely eligible to receive the ma’aser; they were given preference. Nevertheless, if no kohen was present, or if a levi was in great need, the ma’aser was given to the levi (MT, Laws of Ma’aser 1:4, based on Radvaz to MT, Laws of Ma’aser 1:4; see Kesef Mishneh to MT, Laws of Ma’aser 1:4).

This disagreement also affects the law today. According to Tosafot and most Rishonim, ma’aser rishon may still be given to kohanim, since Ezra’s penalty was never annulled. Rambam, followed by SA YD 331:19, maintains that today the ma’aser must once again be given specifically to a levi, since Ezra established the penalty only for his own time – or, according to many, only for the duration of the Second Temple period – and it later lapsed. In practice, one should give ma’aser rishon specifically to a levi, in accordance with Rambam and SA. If it was given to a kohen, however, the obligation is nevertheless fulfilled, since Tosafot and most Rishonim permit this, and ma’asrot today are rabbinic in force. A kohen who wishes to be stringent should pass it on to a levi.

09. Ma’aser Sheni

After separating ma’aser rishon for the levi, one separates an additional tithe from the remaining produce, amounting to about nine percent of the original total. In the first, second, fourth, and fifth years of the shemita cycle, this additional tithe is ma’aser sheni; in the third and sixth years, it is ma’aser ani.

Ma’aser sheni has a unique status: it is sacred and considered mamon gavoha – property of Heaven – yet it remains in the owner’s possession, because the mitzva is for him and his family to eat it in purity within the walls of Jerusalem. As it says: “You shall surely tithe all the produce of your seed that comes out of the field year by year. You shall eat before the Lord your God, in the place that He will choose to make His name dwell there, the tithe of your grain, your wine, and your oil… so that you will learn to fear the Lord your God all the days” (Devarim 14:22–23).

When the distance to Jerusalem or the amount of produce makes it difficult to bring the ma’aser sheni itself, the owner may redeem it by transferring its sanctity to money. The produce then becomes non-sacred, while the money assumes the sanctity of ma’aser sheni. The owner brings that money to Jerusalem and uses it to buy food, which is then eaten there in purity, in accordance with the laws of eating ma’aser sheni. As it says: “If the way is too long for you, so that you cannot carry it, because the place that the Lord your God will choose to place His name there is far from you, when the Lord your God blesses you, then you shall place it in money. You shall bind up the money in your hand and go to the place that the Lord your God will choose. You shall spend the money on whatever your soul desires: cattle, sheep, wine, strong drink, or anything your soul asks of you. You shall eat there before the Lord your God and rejoice, you and your household” (ibid. 14:24–26).

When redeeming the ma’aser sheni, the owner must add a fifth to the value of the produce, as it says: “Every tithe of the land, from the seed of the land and from the fruit of the tree, belongs to the Lord; it is sacred to the Lord. If a man redeems any of his tithe, he shall add its fifth to it” (Vayikra 27:30–31). This added fifth is calculated as one-fifth of the final amount, which in practice means adding one-quarter to the original value. Thus, if the produce is worth 100, the owner redeems it for 125.

Because ma’aser sheni is sacred, it may not be treated like ordinary produce. For example, one may not sell it or exchange it.[6]

[6]. Unlike teruma, which may be sold outside the framework of commerce, ma’aser sheni may not be sold or pledged as collateral, since the Torah declares it sacred: “Every tithe of the land, from the seed of the land and from the fruit of the tree, belongs to the Lord; it is sacred to the Lord” (Vayikra 27:30). Such transactions demean its sanctity (Mishna, Ma’aser Sheni 1:1).

For the same reason, ma’aser sheni may not be used as part of an exchange. Thus, a person who has ma’aser sheni wine may not say to his friend, “Take some of my ma’aser sheni wine and give me oil in its place.” He may, however, invite his friend to drink with him, or give him ma’aser sheni wine to complete his meal (Yerushalmi, Ma’aser Sheni 1:1). He may even hint to the friend drinking his wine that he needs oil, so that if the other person wishes, he can give him some of the ma’aser sheni oil in his possession. As long as the produce is not given as part of a sale or exchange, there is no prohibition (see MT, Laws of Ma’aser Sheni and Neta Reva’i 3:17–18). Since ma’aser sheni is mamon gavoha, property of Heaven, it may not be given as a gift through a standard act of acquisition (Kiddushin 54b).

When the owner redeems his own ma’aser sheni produce, he must add a fifth to its value. If someone else redeems it, that added fifth is not required. The money paid by the redeemer becomes the owner’s property and assumes the sanctity of ma’aser sheni, while the produce passes to the redeemer and becomes non-sacred (see Mishna, Ma’aser Sheni 4:3; MT, Laws of Ma’aser Sheni and Neta Reva’i 5:7).

If the owner wants to redeem his ma’aser sheni but is under financial strain and cannot easily add the fifth, he may give the redemption money to a friend and ask him to redeem the produce instead. Since the friend is not the owner, he does not need to add the fifth. They may do this with the understanding that the friend will then return the produce, now non-sacred, to the owner. The owner then takes the money that became sanctified through the redemption to Jerusalem and uses it to buy food for his family (Mishna, Ma’aser Sheni 4:3–4). Although this is a form of ha’arama – a legal device used to avoid the added fifth – the Sages permitted it under such circumstances. From the verse “when the Lord your God blesses you” (Devarim 14:24), they understood that ma’aser sheni is meant to bring a person blessing. Since that blessing is meant to come through natural means, they instructed a person under financial strain to proceed this way (Yerushalmi, Ma’aser Sheni 4:3).

10. The Meaning of Ma’aser Sheni

Through ma’aser sheni, the mitzva of going up to Jerusalem for the pilgrimage festivals – Pesaḥ, Shavu’ot, and Sukkot – was woven into the regular rhythm of national life. Over the six working years of the shemita cycle, about six percent of a person’s total yield is designated for eating in Jerusalem, most naturally during the festival meals. These meals are meant to be shared with levi’im and the poor as well. The more blessing a person receives, the longer his family can remain in Jerusalem, in the shade of the Shekhina, and the more generously he can host levi’im and the poor at his table. If he has children capable of sustained Torah study, he can encourage them to stay in Jerusalem, study there, and be supported by the ma’aser sheni funds. This is the meaning of the Torah’s statement: “So that you will learn to fear the Lord your God” (Devarim 14:23). The Sages explain: “This teaches that the ma’aser brings a person to Torah study” (Sifrei, Re’eh §106; Tosafot, Bava Batra 21a, s.v. ki).

A person who cannot go up to Jerusalem for the nearby festivals may keep the ma’aser sheni money until a later festival, when he is able to go. Its use, however, may not be postponed indefinitely. The Torah therefore sets a time by which the ma’aser sheni must be finished; this is the time of bi’ur ma’asrot, as explained below, section 12.[7]

The mitzva of ma’aser behema is also meant to connect Israel to the Temple (see below, 19:9). Thus, when the Jewish people went up on pilgrimage, their festival meals were supplied by the produce of ma’aser sheni, the food bought with its redemption money, and the meat of the ma’aser behema offering. The more blessing a person had received, the more people he could bring into the joy of his meal. In this sense, ma’aser sheni and ma’aser behema functioned as a kind of sacred reserve fund, set aside for pilgrimage and an extended stay in Jerusalem.

The same additional tithe becomes ma’aser sheni in four years of the cycle and ma’aser ani in two. This teaches that holiness and concern for the poor are not separate ideals, but two parts of a single vision. Indeed, those who have ma’aser sheni or ma’aser behema have a special mitzva to include the poor in the joy of their meals (see Peninei Halakha: Mo’adim 1:11, note 6).

[7]. Ma’aser sheni amounts to about nine percent of the yield. However, since it is separated only in the first, second, fourth, and fifth years out of the six years of the shemita cycle in which terumot and ma’asrot are separated, it comes to about six percent overall. In the seventh year, the produce is ownerless, and terumot and ma’asrot are not separated. Spread across the full seven-year cycle, ma’aser sheni produce comes to 5.14 percent of the total yield.

A similar proportion emerges when we look at the pilgrimage festivals. If we count the days of the three festivals on which there is a mitzva to go up to Jerusalem, and add half a day before and half a day after each festival, the total is nineteen days – close to 5.2 percent of an average 365-day year. True, there is no ma’aser sheni for Shavu’ot of the shemita year or for Sukkot following the shemita year, so eleven days should be subtracted over the seven-year cycle. However, seven days may be added for arriving a day early to bring the Pesaḥ offering each year. Perhaps another half-day should be added after Shavu’ot for each of the six working years, since its isru ḥag has greater significance.

If we also take into account the mitzva of ma’aser behema, as well as the obligation of every male who goes up on pilgrimage to bring a ḥagiga offering and shelamei simḥa, then with respect to meat, the pilgrims had far more available to them during the festivals than during the rest of the year. In addition, since women are exempt from the obligation to go up on pilgrimage, and some therefore do not go, the food available to those who are in Jerusalem during the festivals is far more abundant than what people ordinarily eat during the year. This abundance is meant to allow them to include the poor and levi’im in their meals and to enable family members to extend their stay in Jerusalem.

It should be noted that, according to many authorities, the Torah obligation of terumot and ma’asrot applies only to grain, wine, and oil, while the Sages extended the obligation to all fruit, legumes, and vegetables. Others maintain that the obligation applies by Torah law to all these produce categories. Still others maintain that only with respect to ma’aser sheni does the obligation apply to all of them by Torah law (see below, 8:1, note 1).

11. Ma’aser Ani

In the third and sixth years of the shemita cycle, the additional tithe is given to the poor instead of being separated as ma’aser sheni. As it says: “At the end of three years, you shall bring out all the tithe of your produce in that year and leave it within your gates. Then the Levite – meaning a poor levi – for he has no portion or inheritance with you, and the stranger, the orphan, and the widow within your gates, shall come, eat, and be satisfied, so that the Lord your God will bless you in all the work of your hands that you do” (Devarim 14:28–29; see also Devarim 26:12). Thus, the additional tithe follows a three-year rhythm: in the first two years it is ma’aser sheni, and in the third year it is ma’aser ani. Ma’aser ani has no sanctity; the poor person may eat it wherever he wishes and may also sell it.

The ma’aser is distributed in the field after the produce has been fully gathered, as explained above, section 4. Ideally, each poor person receives enough for one day’s food – the value of two meals – as it says, “They shall eat within your gates and be satisfied.” A married recipient receives enough for his wife and young children as well. If there is not enough ma’aser for everyone to receive that amount, the produce is placed before the poor, who then divide it among themselves.

If some of the ma’aser remains after the owner has already given each poor person who came to his field enough to satisfy him, he may either continue giving them more until all of it has been distributed or save the remainder for his poor relatives, provided he does not reserve more than half of the ma’aser for them (Mishna, Pe’a 8:5; Yerushalmi, Pe’a 8:5). However, if no poor people come to the field, thereby requiring the owner to bring the ma’aser to them, he has tovat hana’a – the personal benefit of choosing which poor person will receive it. In that situation, if he has poor relatives, he may give them the entire ma’aser (Nedarim 84b; MT, Laws of Gifts to the Poor 6:7–13).

This raises a basic question. If the Torah wants both to draw people to Jerusalem and to support the poor, why structure the cycle this way – with ma’aser sheni in the first, second, fourth, and fifth years, and ma’aser ani only in the third and sixth? Why not divide the additional tithe every year, with two-thirds set aside for pilgrimage and one-third for the poor? And if the poor need this added support, why provide it only two years out of seven?

It appears that the Torah intends the poor to receive their basic support through leket, shikḥa, and pe’a, together with additional tzedaka as needed. Ma’aser ani serves a different purpose: it gives them good years in which they can enjoy a measure of comfort and abundance. This experience of relief and plenty may also encourage the poor, or their children, where possible, to work with greater energy and effectiveness in the other years, perhaps helping them escape the cycle of poverty and achieve independence. Had they instead received a modest allotment every year, they might have grown accustomed to getting by on it, without the special joy produced by years of abundance and without the desire, born in leaner years, to change their circumstances.

12. The Mitzva of Bi’ur Ma’asrot

The ma’aser cycle is built around two repeating three-year patterns. During the six working years, terumot and ma’aser rishon are always separated; what changes is the additional tithe. The first two years of each pattern are years of ma’aser sheni, while the third is a year of ma’aser ani. Thus, ma’aser sheni is separated in the first, second, fourth, and fifth years, and ma’aser ani in the third and sixth. In the seventh year, the produce is ownerless, and terumot and ma’asrot are not separated.

At the end of each three-year cycle, the Torah requires one to complete the separation and distribution of all terumot and ma’asrot from the previous years. This is the mitzva of bi’ur ma’asrot, as it says: “At the end of three years, you shall bring out all the tithe of your produce in that year and leave it within your gates” (Devarim 14:28). In other words, by the time of bi’ur, one must have completed all the obligations of terumot and ma’asrot for the produce of the three years that have passed: the terumot and ḥalla must be given to the kohen, ma’aser rishon to the levi, and ma’aser ani to the poor. The produce of ma’aser sheni and neta reva’i must be brought to Jerusalem and eaten there in purity. If the time of bi’ur arrives before one has brought them to Jerusalem, he must remove them from his possession by burning them or destroying them in some other way. The kohen, levi, and poor person, however, do not need to finish eating the gifts they received before the end of the bi’ur period. Once the gifts reached their possession before the time of bi’ur, the mitzva had been fulfilled (Yerushalmi, Bikurim 2:2; Rash Sirilio; Sha’arei Tzedek 11:22).

The time for bi’ur is at the end of Pesaḥ following each three-year cycle – Pesaḥ of the fourth year and Pesaḥ of the seventh. This allows enough time for all the produce of the third year to become obligated in ma’asrot. Fruit that grows from the rains of the third year reaches ḥanata by Tu Bi-Shvat of the fourth year, and its harvest is generally completed by Pesaḥ. Only then can all the ma’asrot of the third year be completed. Grain, legumes, and vegetables that become obligated in ma’aser during the fourth year before Pesaḥ, however, already belong to the fourth year. Their bi’ur ma’asrot therefore takes place at the next bi’ur, on Pesaḥ of the seventh year (Yerushalmi, Ma’aser Sheni 5:3, 5:5; MT, Laws of Ma’aser Sheni and Neta Reva’i 11:7).[8]

The mitzva of bi’ur was especially effective with regard to ma’aser sheni and neta reva’i, which ultimately had to be brought to Jerusalem. Since the journey could be difficult, and people might find reasons to keep postponing it, one could otherwise hold on to the redemption money indefinitely and never use it for its intended purpose – buying food to be eaten in Jerusalem in purity. The Torah therefore establishes a time of bi’ur: by then, the money must either be used in Jerusalem or destroyed. Ideally, one goes up to Jerusalem and uses it to buy food there. If he cannot, he may give the money to relatives or friends who will use it in Jerusalem. If that too is not done, he must destroy it by the time of bi’ur. As for terumot and the ma’asrot given to the levi and the poor, other mitzvot require them to be given earlier, as explained below, section 14.

[8]. By Torah law, the time for bi’ur is the end of Pesaḥ, since ma’aser sheni produce may still be eaten until then. In practice, however, the bi’ur cannot be performed on the festival itself, because one may not burn the remaining produce on Yom Tov. The Sages therefore moved the time of bi’ur earlier, to before the beginning of the festival. According to Rashi, R. Shimshon, Tosafot, and Yere’im, the correct text of the Mishna is that bi’ur takes place on the eve of the first Yom Tov of Pesaḥ. According to Rambam (MT, Laws of Ma’aser Sheni and Neta Reva’i 11:7), Meiri, Smag, SA YD 331:144, and the Vilna Gaon (Bi’ur ha-Gra, YD 331:144), it takes place on the eve of the final Yom Tov of Pesaḥ.

According to all views, however, vidui ma’asrot was recited at Minḥa on the final Yom Tov of the festival. This is because some ma’aser sheni produce was left out of the earlier bi’ur so that it could be eaten until the end of Pesaḥ. Only toward the end of the festival, once the ma’aser sheni had truly been finished, could one recite the vidui.

13. The Mitzva of Vidui Ma’asrot

One who has properly cleared out all the ma’asrot from his possession has a mitzva to declare this before God at Minḥa on the final Yom Tov of Pesaḥ in the fourth and seventh years of the shemita cycle (Mishna, Ma’aser Sheni 5:10). As the Torah states: “When you finish tithing all the tithe of your produce in the third year, the year of the tithe… you shall say before the Lord your God: ‘I have removed the sacred from the house, and I have also given it to the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow, in accordance with all Your commandment that You commanded me. I have not transgressed Your commandments, and I have not forgotten. I have not eaten of it in my mourning, I have not removed any of it while impure, and I have not given any of it to the dead. I have listened to the voice of the Lord my God; I have done according to all that You commanded me. Look down from Your holy dwelling, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land that You have given us, as You swore to our fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey’” (Devarim 26:12–15).

From the fact that the Sages call this mitzva vidui ma’asrot, we learn that vidui is not confined to confession of sins. There is also a positive vidui for the fulfillment of mitzvot. At its root, vidui is a formal summary presented before God. The mitzva is to recite this vidui in the Temple, as it says: “You shall say before the Lord your God” (Devarim 26:13). However, one who did not have the privilege of going up on pilgrimage at the time of bi’ur should recite the vidui wherever he was. One who does not understand Hebrew may recite it in translation (MT, Laws of Ma’aser Sheni and Neta Reva’i 11:5–6).

Only one who observed the laws of terumot and ma’asrot properly throughout the three-year cycle is entitled to recite the vidui. Each phrase of the declaration refers to another aspect of proper observance. “I have removed the sacred from the house, and I have also given it to the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow, in accordance with all Your commandment that You commanded me” indicates that all the required gifts were given, and that the order of separation was not changed. “I have not transgressed Your commandments” indicates that he did not separate from one species for another, from detached produce for attached produce, from attached produce for detached produce, from new produce for old, or from old produce for new. “I have not forgotten” indicates that he did not forget to recite the berakha before performing the mitzva.

The declaration continues: “I have not eaten of it in my mourning” – he did not eat ma’aser sheni while he was an onen. “I have not removed any of it while impure” – he did not cause it to become impure. “I have not given any of it to the dead” – he did not use the redemption money of ma’aser sheni for any other mitzva, even for the burial of the dead. “I have listened to the voice of the Lord my God” – he brought ma’aser sheni to the Temple. “I have done according to all that You commanded me” – he rejoiced with it and brought joy to others, as it says: “You shall rejoice in all the good that the Lord your God has given you and your household, you, the Levite, and the stranger in your midst” (Devarim 26:11; Mishna, Ma’aser Sheni 5:11–12; MT, Laws of Ma’aser Sheni and Neta Reva’i 11:15).

After a person has had the privilege of fulfilling the mitzva of terumot and ma’asrot in all its details and refinements, the Jewish people can be blessed in his merit. Yet without prayer, that blessing will not come. Therefore, the Torah commands him to pray and ask: “Look down from Your holy dwelling, from heaven, and bless Your people Israel and the land that You have given us, as You swore to our fathers, a land flowing with milk and honey.”

Today, vidui ma’asrot is not recited, since the Temple is destroyed and we cannot eat ma’aser sheni in purity in Jerusalem as the Torah requires. Some nevertheless observe a commemoration of the mitzva by reading from the Torah the full passage that contains the verses of the vidui.[9]

[9]. Sha’arei Tzedek 11:23 writes that vidui ma’asrot is not recited today because ma’aser sheni is meant to be separated in purity, whereas today it is separated in impurity. We therefore cannot recite the positive declaration of complete fulfillment. Maran Rav Kook inclined this way as well in Mishpat Kohen 56:1. We find a similar precedent in the Mishna: Yoḥanan Kohen Gadol abolished the recitation of the vidui because the mitzva was no longer being fulfilled properly (Mishna, Ma’aser Sheni 5:15). This was either because, under Ezra’s enactment, ma’aser rishon was being given to kohanim, or because, due to uncertainty, people did not always separate ma’aser rishon and ma’aser ani. The Yerushalmi explains: “It is angering before God when a person says, ‘I have done according to all that You commanded me,’ but has not in fact done so” (Yerushalmi, Ma’aser Sheni 5:5). Derekh Emuna 11:17 writes similarly.

14. When Terumot and Ma’asrot Must Be Separated and Distributed

Once the produce has been gathered from the field, the owner should not wait until the deadline of bi’ur to separate and distribute the terumot and ma’asrot. Rather, he should separate them immediately and give each portion to its proper recipient, as the Torah commands. As the Sages teach: when a mitzva comes to hand, one should not let the opportunity pass (Mekhilta de-Rabbi Yishmael, Bo 9).

However, until the first pilgrimage festival passes, he has not yet neglected a positive mitzva. Once a festival passes and he has still not given the gifts, he has neglected that mitzva. This first-festival deadline is learned from the Torah’s command that when a person goes up on pilgrimage, he must bring with him the sacred obligations already in his possession – such as vowed offerings, ma’aser sheni, and ma’aser behema. As it says: “You shall come there, and there you shall bring your burnt offerings, your sacrifices, your tithes, and the contribution of your hand” (Devarim 12:5–6). Therefore, one who is exempt from going up on pilgrimage – for example, because he is ill – does not neglect this mitzva by failing to bring his vowed offerings or ma’aser behema on the first festival.

If three pilgrimage festivals pass and he still has not brought or given these obligations, he violates the Torah prohibition against delay, as it says: “When you vow a vow to the Lord your God, do not delay in paying it, for the Lord your God will surely demand it of you, and it will be a sin in you… What comes out of your lips you shall guard…” (Devarim 23:22–24). The Sages explain that once three festivals have passed, he is considered to have delayed fulfilling his obligation. This applies not only to offerings, but also to terumot that must be given to the kohen and to ma’asrot that must be given to the levi and the poor (Rosh Ha-shana 4a; Tosafot, Rosh Ha-shana 4a, s.v. tzedakot and u-ma’asrot; MT, Laws of Sacrificial Procedure 14:13).

In addition, as explained above, section 12, there is a distinct mitzva that applies to terumot and ma’asrot: bi’ur ma’asrot. Its purpose is to complete the fulfillment of the mitzva of separating and distributing terumot and ma’asrot from all the produce of the first three years of the shemita cycle by Pesaḥ of the fourth year, and from all the produce of the fourth, fifth, and sixth years by Pesaḥ of the seventh year.[10]

[10]. As we learned in Rosh Ha-shana 4a–b, ma’asrot and tzedaka obligations follow the same basic timetable as offerings one is obligated to bring: one should bring or give them by the next pilgrimage festival. If that festival passes and he has not done so, he has neglected a positive mitzva. If three festivals pass, he violates the prohibition of bal te’aḥer, “do not delay.” Tosafot writes likewise (Rosh Ha-shana 4a, s.v. u-ma’asrot).

The connection to the festivals is clear in the case of offerings: the festivals are when one goes up to the Temple, and that is when he is expected to bring the offerings he has undertaken. If he fails to do so, he has neglected a positive mitzva; if three festivals pass, he violates a prohibition. With terumot and ma’asrot, however, the connection is less obvious, since these gifts are distributed throughout the Land. Why, then, should they depend on the festivals? Because festival joy is meant to be shared. The kohanim, levi’im, and poor must receive their gifts before the festival so that they too can rejoice in its meals. In this way, these gifts are also bound to the rhythm of the pilgrimage festivals.

Regarding tzedaka, Rava states that one who delays giving what he obligated himself to give violates bal te’aḥer immediately (Rosh Ha-shana 6a). Tosafot explains that this applies only when poor people are present and need the pledged tzedaka or ma’aser. If no poor people are present, bal te’aḥer is violated only after three festivals have passed (Rosh Ha-shana 4a, s.v. tzedakot).

The same principle applies to ma’aser ani and to the gifts owed to kohanim and levi’im who are poor. If those in need are present, the gifts must be given immediately; delaying them violates bal te’aḥer. If no poor recipients are present, the gifts must be given by the next festival. Failing to do so neglects a positive mitzva, and after three festivals one violates bal te’aḥer (see MT, Laws of Sacrificial Procedure 14:13; Mahari Kurkus to MT, Laws of Sacrificial Procedure 14:13. Rashba and Ran understand the matter differently, as explained in the Herḥavot).

If one leaves the produce as tevel, Tosafot maintains that he has not yet violated either the positive mitzva or bal te’aḥer. Since the gifts were never separated, the deadlines for giving them have not yet begun; only at the time of bi’ur ma’asrot must he rectify the produce (Rosh Ha-shana 4a, s.v. u-ma’asrot). According to Meiri and Shiltei Giborim, citing Riaz, however, one violates bal te’aḥer after three festivals even by failing to separate the gifts.

Torah punishments: When the obligation of terumot and ma’asrot applies by Torah law, one who intentionally eats a kezayit of produce from which the terumot have not been separated is liable to death at the hands of Heaven. Below, 8:1, we will explain when terumot and ma’asrot apply by Torah law and to which produce they apply. If the terumot were separated but the ma’asrot were not – even if only ma’aser ani was left untaken – one violates a Torah prohibition and is liable to lashes, but not to death at the hands of Heaven (MT, Laws of Forbidden Foods 10:19–20).

A zar – a non-kohen – who intentionally eats teruma is liable to death at the hands of Heaven. If witnesses warned him not to eat it and he ate it anyway, he receives lashes and is exempt from death at the hands of Heaven. If he ate teruma unwittingly, he must pay the value of what he ate plus an added fifth (MT, Laws of Terumot 6:6; 10:1). An impure kohen who intentionally eats pure teruma is likewise liable to death at the hands of Heaven; if witnesses warned him not to eat it and he ate it anyway, he receives lashes. An impure kohen who eats impure teruma violates a prohibition but does not receive lashes, while a pure kohen who eats impure teruma violates a positive mitzva but does not receive lashes (MT, Laws of Terumot 7:1–3).

An impure person who intentionally eats ma’aser sheni in Jerusalem receives lashes. If he eats it outside Jerusalem, he receives rabbinic lashes, makkat mardut. Likewise, one who eats ma’aser sheni produce while pure before it has entered Jerusalem violates a positive mitzva and receives rabbinic lashes (MT, Laws of Ma’aser Sheni and Neta Reva’i 3:1; 2:5–6). The punishment of lashes was administered only when there were courts with ordained judges, whose ordination traced back from teacher to student to Moshe Rabbeinu. A person became liable to lashes only if witnesses warned him before he sinned and he nevertheless brazenly sinned before them.

15. Bikurim

When the Temple stood, there was an additional mitzva of bringing the bikurim – the first fruits – to the kohanim in the Temple. A Jew who owned a field in Eretz Yisrael and grew one of the seven species would mark the first fruit he saw beginning to develop, tie a string around it, and declare, “These are bikurim.” Once the fruit ripened, he would pick it, place it in a beautiful vessel, and bring it up to Jerusalem, as the Torah commands: “When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you as an inheritance, possess it, and settle in it, you shall take from the first of all the fruit of the ground that you bring from your land, which the Lord your God gives you. You shall place it in a basket and go to the place that the Lord your God will choose to make His name dwell there. You shall come to the kohen who will be in those days and say to him: I declare today to the Lord your God that I have come to the land that the Lord swore to our fathers to give us” (Devarim 26:1–3).

Once the fruit reached the Temple, the kohen and the owner would wave the bikurim together, as indicated by the verse: “The kohen shall take the basket from your hand and place it before the altar of the Lord your God.” The owner would then recite mikra bikurim, the declaration of the first fruits, recounting the story of Israel: “You shall respond and say before the Lord your God: ‘An Aramean sought to destroy my father. He went down to Egypt and sojourned there, few in number, and there he became a nation, great, mighty, and numerous. The Egyptians mistreated us, afflicted us, and placed hard labor upon us. We cried out to the Lord, the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil, and our oppression. The Lord took us out of Egypt with a strong hand, an outstretched arm, great awe, signs, and wonders. He brought us to this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. And now, behold, I have brought the first of the fruit of the ground that You have given me, the Lord’” (Devarim 26:5–10). Afterward, the owner would place the fruit beside the altar, and the kohen would take it and eat it in sanctity.

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