משנה: מִי שֶׁרָאָה אֶת הַחֹדֶשׁ וְאֵינוֹ יָכוֹל לְהַלֵּךְ מוֹלִיכִין אוֹתוֹ עַל הַחֲמוֹר אֲפִילּוּ בַמִּיטָּה. אִם צוֹדֶה לָהֶן לוֹקְחִין בְּיָדָן מַקְּלוֹת. וְאִם הָֽיְתָה דֶרֶךְ רְחוֹקָה לוֹקְחִין בְּיָדָן מְזוֹנוֹת שֶׁעַל מַהֲלַךְ לַיְלָה וָיוֹם מְחַלְּלִין אֶת הַשַּׁבָּת וְיוֹצְאִין לְעֵדוּת הַחֹדֶשׁ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר אֵלֶּה מוֹעֲדֵי ה׳ מִקְרָאֵ֖י קוֹדֶשׁ. MISHNAH: If one who cannot walk saw the new moon one transports him on a donkey, even on a litter313On a Sabbath.. If they are fearful314Of wild animals or any other form of attack., they take sticks with them. If the distance was great they take with them food, for on a distance of walking a night and a day one desecrates the Sabbath and goes for testimony of the new moon, as it is said315Leviticus.23.2">Lev. 23:2., these are the festive times of the Eternal, proclaimed as holy.
הלכה: אָמַר רִבִּי יִצְחָק. דִּיבְּרָה הַתּוֹרָה בְּכָל־לָשׁוֹן. הָאִ֥ישׁ מִשְׁתָּאֵ֖ה לָ֑הּ. כָּל גָּרָב שֶׁהוּא מַחֲזִיק סָאתַיִם. אִם צוֹדֶה לָהֶם לוֹקְחִים בְּיָדָן מַקְּלוֹת. HALAKHAH: Rebbi Isaac said, the Torah uses any expression. And the man looked confidently at her316Genesis.24.21">Gen. 24:21.. “Any amphora which contains two seah.317Mishnah Terumot 10:8.” “If they are fearful.318Both Bible and Mishnah are finite texts and do exhaust the entire Hebrew vocabulary known at their times. Therefore it is not astonishing that occasionally one finds hapax legomena or at least uncommon expressions used in these texts. The use of שאה in the biblical text is hapax. In later texts, the root means “destruction”. The word usually is interpreted as a collateral form of שעה, but since the linguistic background of Genesis is the Accadic of the Patriarchs it may be Accadic šeū “to see” read as ש1א7א instead of ש4א7א, and therefore represents archaic Hebrew. A clay amphora as mentioned in Mishnah Terumot usually is חָבִית. The root of the uncommon word גָּרָב is the same as the biblical word (Leviticus.21.20">Lev. 21:20) “to be bone dry”, but the meaning is totally different. Similarly, in our Mishnah the expression צוֹדֶה does not mean “to hunt” but “to be afraid of an ambush”, comparable to Biblical צָדָה (Exodus.21.12">Ex. 21:12, 1S 24:12) “to intend murder”, Arabic צדּי “to corrode (metal)”. Cf. Responsa Rashba, vol. 1, #523.”
יָכוֹל כְּשֵׁם שֶׁמְחַלְּלִין אֶת הַשַּׁבָּת לְהָעִיד עֲלֵיהֶן כָּךְ מְחַלְּלִין אֶת הַשַּׁבָּת עֲלֵיהֶן לְהוֹדִיעַ שֶׁנִּתְקַייְמוּ. תַּלְמוּד לוֹמַר אֲשֶׁר־תִּקְרְא֥וּ. עַל קְרִיאָתָן אַתְּ מְחַלֵּל אֶת הַשַּׁבָּת. אֵין אַתְּ מְחַלֵּל הַשַּׁבָּת לְהוֹדִיעַ שֶׁנִּתְקַייְמוּ. I could think that just as one desecrates the Sabbath to testify about them, so one desecrates the Sabbath to proclaim that they were fixed319The messengers sent out to inform the people about the fixation of the holidays must keep the Sabbath, in contrast to the people who go to testify about a new moon on the Sabbath. Babli 21b; Sifra Emor Pereq 10(7).. The verse says315Leviticus.23.2">Lev. 23:2., which you shall call out. About its being called you desecrate the Sabbath, you do not desecrate the Sabbath to proclaim that they were fixed.
רִבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן לָקִישׁ בָּעֵי. קְצִירַת הָעוֹמֶר מָהוּ שֶׁתִּדְחֶה אֶת הַשַּׁבָּת בַּיּוֹם. הָתִיב רִבִּי אַבַּיי. וְהָא תַנִּינָן. מִצְוָתוֹ לִקְצוֹר בַּלָּיְלָה. נִקְצַר בַּיוֹם כָּשֵׁר וְדוֹחֶה הַשַּׁבָּת: וְלֹא קִיבְּלָהּ. אָמַר רִבִּי אָחָא. חָזַר רִבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן לָקִישׁ מִן הָדָא. כֵּיוָן שֶׁחֲשֵׁיכָה אָמַר לָהֶן. בָּא הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ. אוֹמְרִים הֵין. בָּא הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ. אוֹמְרִים הֵין. מַה אֲנָן קַייָמִין. אִם לַלַּיָלָה. כְּבָר הוּא אוֹמֵר. אֶלָּא אִם אֵינוֹ עִנְייָן לַלַּיְלָה תְּנֵיהוּ עִנְייָן לַיּוֹם. דָּבָר שֶׁהוּא דוֹחֶה אֶת הַשַּׁבָּת בַּיּוֹם. מַכְשִׁירִין מָהוּ שֶׁיִּדְחוּ אֶת הַשַּׁבָּת בַּלַּיְלָה. וְהָתַנִּינָן. הֶעֱמִידוּ עוֹשֵׂה חֲבִיתִּין לַעֲשׂוֹת חֲבִיתִּן. תִּיפְתָּר. בַּחוֹל. תַּנָּא רִבִּי חִייָה בַּר אָדָא. זֶה סֵדֶר תָּמִיד לַעֲבוֹדַת בֵּית אֱלֹהֵינוּ. בֵּין בַּחוֹל וּבֵין בַּשַּׁבַּת. וְהָתַנִּינָן. קְצָרוּהוּ וּנְתָנוּהוּ בְקוּפּוֹת. הֱבִיאוּהוּ לָעֲזָרָה וְהָיוּ מְהַבְהֲבִין אוֹתוֹ בָאוּר. כְּדֵי לְקַיֵּים בּוֹ מִצְוַת קָלִי. [דִּבְרֵי רַבִּי מֵאִיר. רִבִּי יוֹסֵי אוֹמֵר] מִכֵּיוָן שֶׁהִתְחִיל בַּמִּצְוָה אוֹמְרִים לוֹ. מָרֵק. הָתִיב רִבִּי יוּדָן קַפּוֹדָקַּייָא קוֹמֵי רִבִּי יוֹסֵה. הַגַּע עַצְמְךָ שֶׁבָּא מִן הָעֲלִייָה. מִכֵּיוָן שֶׁהִתְחִיל בַּמִּצְוָה אֵין אוֹמְרִים לוֹ. מָרֵק. הָתִיב רִבִּי יַעֲקֹב בַּר סוֹסַיי. וְהָתַנִּינָן. שֶׁעַל מַהֲלַךְ לַיְלָה וָיוֹם מְחַלְּלִין אֶת הַשַּׁבָּת וְיוֹצְאִין לְעֵדוּת הַחוֹדֶשׁ. אָמַר לָהֶן. מִכֵּיוָן שֶׁהַיּוֹם צָרִיךְ לְלַיְלָה וְלַיְלָה צָרִיךְ לְיוֹם כְּמִי שֶׁכּוּלֹּו יוֹם. אָמַר רִבִּי יוֹסֵי בֵּירִבִּי בּוּן. וְלֹא לְמַפְרֵיעוֹ הוּא קָדוֹשׁ. מִכֵּיוָן שֶׁהוּא קָדוֹשׁ לְמַפְרֵיעוֹ הוּא יוֹם הוּא לַיְלָה. Rebbi Simeon ben Laqish asked, does cutting the `omer during daytime push aside the Sabbath320Since the `omer, the offering of new barley in the Temple, must be brought at a fixed time, in pharisaic-rabbinic tradition on the 16th of Nisan (in the standard Sadducee tradition of the Book of Jubilees on Nisan 22, in Boethusian tradition on the Sunday of the Passover week), the fixed date overrules any Sabbath prohibition. Since the grain has to be parched (Leviticus.2.14">Lev. 2:14), the offering involves a Sabbath violation. It is prescribed that the grain be newly cut (Leviticus.23.10">Lev. 23:10). By tradition this has to be done in the night of Nisan 16. The question is whether it may be done the next morning if the 16th of Nisan is a Sabbath, since in this case the commandment would not be executed in the best manner.? Rebbi Abbai objected, did we not state321Menachot 10:9" href="/Mishnah_Menachot.10.9">Mishnah Menaḥot 10:9. The Mishnah seems to exclude any doubt about R. Simeon ben Laqish’s question., “its obligation is to harvest during nighttime. If it was cut during daytime it is qualified and pushes the Sabbath aside.” But he did not accept it322He interprets the clause “and pushes the Sabbath aside” only as referring to cutting during nighttime.. Rebbi Aḥa said, Rebbi Simeon ben Laqish changed his opinion about this323The clause must refer to the entire statement of the Mishnah.. “After nightfall he says to them, did the sun set? They say, yes. Did the sun set? They say, yes.324Menachot 10:3" href="/Mishnah_Menachot.10.3">Mishnah Menaḥot 10:3, describing the cutting of the barley for the `omer an a Sabbath.” Where do we hold? If about nighttime, that already was said325Why does the priest charged with the cutting have to ask the attending crowd twice whether this is the right time to do the cutting? (The Babli takes it as an anti-Sadducee-Boethusian demonstration.). But if it does not refer to nighttime, let it refer to daytime; it is a matter that pushes aside the Sabbath during daytime. Do the preparations326Transporting the scythe and the storage boxes to the place of harvesting. push aside the Sabbath during nighttime? Did we not state327Tamid 1:3" href="/Mishnah_Tamid.1.3">Mishnah Tamid 1:3. The pan-baked breads are for the daily offering of the High Priest (cf. Yoma 1:1:5" href="/Jerusalem_Talmud_Yoma.1.1.5">Yoma 1:1, Note 26.) Baking the breads only is a preparation for the offering., “they made the maker of pan-baked breads make pan-baked breads.” Explain it, on a weekday. Rebbi Ḥiyya bar Ada stated328Tamid 7:3" href="/Mishnah_Tamid.7.3">Mishnah Tamid 7:3, covering all the preceding rules, without distinction between Sabbath and weekday., “this is the daily order of service of our God’s Temple,” whether on a weekday or a Sabbath. But did we not state329Menachot 10:4" href="/Mishnah_Menachot.10.4">Mishnah Menaḥot 10:4, again about the `omer. Parching the grain usually is done during nighttime but there are no rules prohibiting doing it early in the morning., “they harvested it and put it in boxes, brought it to the Temple courtyard, and were parching it in fire to fulfill the commandment of roasting, [the words of Rebbi Meïr. Rebbi Yose330The Amora. He notes that the Mishnah has no relevance for the question about preparations. Since cutting the grain in the night was a Sabbath violation, it is clear that there is authorization to finish the entire ceremony on the Sabbath. This implies nothing if there was no action during the night. says], since he started the meritorious work, one tells him to complete it.” Rebbi Judah from Kappadokia objected before Rebbi Yose: Think of it, if it came from storage. Since he started the meritorious work, there is no reason to tell him to complete it331If no new grain was growing by Passover and grain from storage was used, there seems to be no authorization to parch it on the Sabbath.. Rebbi Jacob bar Sosai objected, did we not state, “for on a distance of walking a night and a day one desecrates the Sabbath and goes for testimony of the new moon”332As a matter of principle testimony may be received only during daytime. If people leave their Sabbath domain during nighttime in order to testify during daytime, the action in the night has the status of preparation for the main event during daytime.? He said to them, since the daytime needs the nighttime333Otherwise they could not appear in Court during daytime. and the nighttime needs the daytime, it is as if it were all daytime. Rebbi Yose ben Rebbi Abun said, is it not sanctified retroactively334If the day is determined to be one of the New Moon (or in Tishre New Year’s day) it receives this status from the preceding evening. Therefore every year one has to observe the restrictions of the holiday starting with the evening of the 30th of Elul even if no witnesses of the New Moon are yet known.? Since it is sanctified retroactively there is no difference between day and night.