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Sefer Hamitzvosספר המצוות

Day 163: Negative Commandment 124; Positive Commandment 88, 83; Negative Commandment 155

Wednesday, 1 Av 5786 / July 15, 2026

Negative Commandment 124 (Digest)

Baking the Remainder of a Meal Offering as Leaven

"It shall not be baked leavened. It is their portion; I have given it to them of My fire offerings "—Leviticus 6:10.

It is forbidden to bake the remainder of the Meal Offerings (i.e., the part of the offering not offered on the altar, to which the priests are entitled) as leaven.

Unabridged English Text of this Mitzvah »

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> And the 124th prohibition is that we are forbidden from baking the leftover part of the meal-offerings [remaining after the handful is burned on the altar] as chametz.

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> The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement;) (exalted be He), "It shall not be baked as chametz. I have given this to them as their portion of My fire-offerings." It is as if the verse says that their portion [i.e., that of the kohanim] — which is the leftover part of the meal-offering — may not be baked as chametz.

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> One who does bake it as chametz is punished by lashes, as the Mishneh;) explains, "One is punished for baking it."

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> The details of this mitzvah are explained in the 5th chapter of tractate Menachos.;)

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> Footnotes

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> Ibid., 6:10.

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> Menachos 5:2.

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> Ibid., 55a.

Positive Commandment 88 (Digest)

Consumption of the Meal Offerings

"And the remainder of it, Aaron and his sons shall eat as unleavened bread"—Leviticus 6:9.

The kohanim (priests) are commanded to eat the remainder (i.e., the part that has not been offered on the altar) of the meal offerings.

This mitzvah is restricted to male kohanim.

Unabridged English Text of this Mitzvah »

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> And the 88th mitzvah is that kohanim are commanded to eat the leftover parts of the meal-offerings.

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> The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement;) (exalted be He), "Aaron and his descendants shall then eat the rest of [the meal-offering]. It must be eaten as matzah."

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> In the words of the Sifra: "The verse 'It must be eaten as matzah' constitutes a positive commandment. This is similar to the verse,;) '[When brothers live together and one of them dies childless...] her husband's brother must cohabit with her,' which also constitutes a positive commandment." This means that eating the leftover portion of the meal-offerings is an obligation and not just a statement giving permission, just like the commandment of cohabiting with a yevamah.;)

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> The details of this mitzvah are explained in the relevant place — tractate Menachos.;)

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> Scripture itself states that this commandment is exclusively for male [kohanim], as seen from the verse,;) "Every male among Aaron's descendants may eat it."

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> Footnotes

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> Lev. 6:9.

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> Deut. 25:5.

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> See P216.

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> 72b.

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> Lev. 6:11.

Positive Commandment 83 (Digest)

Fulfilling Sacrificial Obligations

"You shall inquire after His dwelling and come there. And there you shall bring your burnt offerings"—Deuteronomy 12:5-6.

We are commanded to satisfy all our pledges on the first festival – of the three biblical festivals: Passover, Shavuot and Sukkot – following the undertaking of the pledge.

This includes all pledged sacrifices, monies, as well as the various mandatory gifts for the poor.

Unabridged English Text of this Mitzvah »

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> And the 83rd mitzvah is that we are commanded to fulfill all our responsibilities;) on the next of the three festivals.;) In this way not a single festival will pass by without our having offered every sacrifice which was promised.

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> The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement;) (exalted be He), "You shall seek His presence and you shall go there, and there you must bring your burnt-offerings..."

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> The idea conveyed by this commandment is that at the time that you go to the Temple — i.e., each of the three festivals — you must bring every offering in which you are obligated. In the words of the Sifri: "Why was the phrase 'you shall go there...you must bring...' written? To make it obligatory to bring [your offering] on the next festival." It also says there, "One transgresses the prohibition 'do not be late';) only when all the year's festivals have passed." This means that if all three festivals have passed and one still did not bring the offering, one has transgressed a prohibition; but if only one festival has passed, one violates only the positive commandment.

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> In tractate Rosh Hashanah,;) "Rava said, 'Once one festival has passed, one violates the positive commandment.' " The Talmud;) also says: "What is the source for the opinion of Rabbi Meir [who says that there is also a prohibition, even if only one festival has passed]? It is the phrase, 'you shall go there; and there you must bring' — when you come, you must bring [and if you do not, you transgress the prohibition]. But the Sages say that this phrase is only for the positive commandment.";) It is therefore clearly explained that the phrase "there you must bring" constitutes a positive commandment.

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> This commandment dictates that one must fulfill all one's obligations on each festival, and includes everything the person donates to G‑d. All sacrifices, damim,;)erachin,;)charamim,;) objects donated to the Temple fund, leket, shikchah, and pe'ah;) are identical as far as this law is concerned. It is a positive commandment to bring all of them on the very next festival, as explained in tractate Rosh Hashanah.

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> I.e., promises to bring sacrifices, agricultural gifts, etc. See Kapach 5731, note 71.

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> I.e., Pesach, Shavuos, and Sukkos.

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> Deut. 12:5-6.

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> See N155 below.

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> 6a.

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> Ibid., 4b.

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> Therefore, according to the Sages, once one festival has passed, the positive commandment is violated. Once the third festival has passed, the prohibition is also violated.

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> Such as saying, "I will give the value (damim) of this."

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> See P114-117.

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> See P145.

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> See P120-122.

Negative Commandment 155 (Digest)

Delaying the Fulfillment of a Pledge

"When you vow a vow to G‑d, your G‑d, do not be late in paying it"—Deuteronomy 23:22

It is forbidden to postpone the fulfillment of a sacrificial pledge. One has not transgressed this prohibition until three festivals have passed after the pledge was made.

Unabridged English Text of this Mitzvah »

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> And the 155th prohibition is that we are forbidden from delaying nedarim,;)nedavos,;) or any other sacrifices which we are obligated to bring.

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> The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement;) (exalted be He), "When you make a pledge to G‑d your L‑rd, do not be late in paying it."

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> The Oral Tradition teaches us that one does not transgress this prohibition until three festivals have passed.

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> The details of this mitzvah are explained in the beginning of tractate Rosh Hashanah.;)

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> A promise made that "I will bring a sacrifice."

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> A promise made that "This animal will be a sacrifice."

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> Deut. 23:22.

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> 4b. See P83 above.

Courtesy of Chabad.org · Sefer Hamitzvot, Sichos in English

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