Menachos - Daf 44
- Description of the חלזון
A Baraisa describes the חלזון: גופו דומה לים – its body is similar in color to the sea, וברייתו דומה לדג – its anatomy is similar to a sea creature, ועולה אחד לשבעים שנה – it goes up onto the land once in seventy years, ובדמו צובעין תכלת – and one dyes techeiles with its “blood.” לפיכך דמיו יקרים – Therefore, because the חלזון is so difficult to obtain, [techeiles] is expensive.
- The man whose tzitzis prevented him from sinning
Rebbe Nassan said: אין לך כל מצוה קלה שכתובה בתורה – there is not even a light mitzvah written in the Torah שאין מתן שכרה בעה"ז – whose reward is not given in this world, ולעה"ב איני יודע כמה – and as for the reward in עולם הבא, I do not even know how great it will be. This is demonstrated from an incident about a man who was careful about the mitzvah of tzitzis, a מצות עשה. He once sent four hundred zuz for a distant זונה’s fee, and as he prepared to sin with her, his four tzitzis fringes struck him on his face. He moved away and sat on the floor. She followed him and demanded to know what flaw he saw in her. He replied that he saw none; rather, he was prevented by the mitzvah of tzitzis, about which is written twice "אני ה' אלקיכם" – I am Hashem, your G-d, meaning to say: אני הוא שעתיד ליפרע – I am He Who will later punish sinners, ואני הוא שעתיד לשלם שכר – and I am He Who will later give reward to the righteous. עכשיו נדמו עלי כד' עדים – Now [these four fringes] appeared to me like four witnesses to the sin I was about to commit. She was inspired to convert, and married him. This demonstrates the reward in this world for a “light” mitzvah, and as for עולם הבא, we do not even know.
- Machlokes about the order of the מנחה and נסכים of a מנחת נסכים
In a Baraisa, the Tanna Kamma says that the order of "ומנחתם ונסכיהם" – and their minchah and their nesachim implies: הבא מנחה ואחר כך הבא נסכים – bring the minchah (flour and oil) and only afterwards bring the נסכים (wine libation). Rebbe says that "זבח ונסכים" – a sacrifice and its נסכים implies: הבא זבח ואחר כך הבא נסכים – bring a korban and immediately afterwards bring its נסכים, before its minchah.
The Gemara eventually explains that בבאים עם הזבח – regarding [a מנחת נסכים] brought together with the korban, all agree the מנחה is brought before the נסכים, because "עולה ומנחה" implies that the minchah immediately follows the korban. They argue about באין בפני עצמן – [a מנחת נסכים] being brought by itself. The Rabbonon hold that here, too, the מנחה precedes the נסכים, but Rebbe holds that this only applies where it is brought with the korban, דאיידי דאתחיל באכילה – because once he began to sacrifice something eaten (the korban), he then brings the מנחה, which is something eaten. In this case, however, the נסכים take precedence, הואיל דמיתאמרא שירה עלייהו – since the Leviim’s song is recited over them.
