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With the English translation
of the Kehati Commentary on The Mishnah
Masechet Midot
Chapter 3
Mishnah 8
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Poles of cedar extended from the wall of the Sanctuary to the wall of
the ulam, to prevent it from tilting. And golden chains were fixed in
the ceiling of the ulam, by which the young kohanim would ascend to see
the crowns, as it says: "And the crowns will be to Helem and to Toviah
and to Yedaya and to Hen hen Tzefaniah, as a memorial in the Sanctuary
of God" (Zech. 6:14). A golden grapevine stood over the doorway of
the Sanctuary, and it was trained on poles. Whoever donated a leaf or
a berry or a cluster would bring it and suspend it from there. R. Elazar
b. R. Tzadok said: It happened that they enlisted for it three hundred
kohanim.
Kehati
This mishnah continues the description of the ulam.
Poles of cedar extended - for reinforcement -
from the wall of the Sanctuary to the - outer - wall
of the ulam on either side of the doorway (see above) - to
prevent it from tilting - the ulam wall, 100 amot from floor
to ceiling, would collapse without support; not so the Sanctuary,
which divided into upper and lower storeys (Tiferet Yisrael). And
golden chains were fixed in the ceiling of the ulam - hanging
down to the floor - by which the young kohanim -
i.e., novices - would ascend to see the crowns -
donated for the Second Temple, hanging in the windows between the
Sanctuary and the ulam (Rashi) - as it says: "And the
crowns will be to Helem and to Toviah and to Yedaya and to Hen hen
Tzefaniah, as a memorial in the Sanctuary of God" -
some identify the crowns as the window frames, which were made of
gold (Tosafot Git. 7a, citing the Geonim; Rosh).
A golden grapevine stood - in the ulam - over
the doorway of the Sanctuary, and it was trained on poles
- i.e., it drooped between the poles, like a natural grapevine. Whoever
donated - gold to the Temple would make of it - a
leaf or a berry or a cluster, would bring it - to the Temple
- and - a kohen would suspend it from there
- the vine, until it was needed. The grapevine symbolized blessing;
the prophets compared the Israelites to a grapevine (Rambam).
R. Elazar b. R. Tzadok said: It happened - once -
that they needed to take the vine down, and they
enlisted for it - i.e., to carry it - three hundred
kohanim - as it was heavy with gold. This is not meant literally,
since such a load would be too heavy to hang; the mishnah means that
several kohanim were required to carry it (Hul. 90b).
Masechet Midot
Chapter 4
Mishnah 1
The entrance of the Sanctuary was twenty amot high and ten amot wide,
and it had four doors, two inside and two outside, as it says: "And
two doors for the Sanctuary and the holy place" (Ezek. 41:23). The
outer ones opened inside the entrance, to cover the thickness of the wall,
and the inner ones opened to the interior of the building, to cover behind
the doors, because the entire building was overlaid with gold, except
behind the doors. R. Yehudah says: Within the entrance they stood, and
they resembled an itzteramitah, and they folded backwards
- these two amot and a half, and those two amot and a half; half an amah
of doorpost from here, and half an amah of doorpost from there; as it
says: "And two doors for the doors, two turning doors, two for one
door, and two doors for the other" (Ezek. 41:24).
Kehati
This chapter describes the Sanctaary (herbal, lit. apalace") 3~,
the division of the main temple building between the ulam 13 and the Holy
of Holies "y.
The - main - entrance of the Sanctuary
- from the slam C'the Great Gate"; see hext mishnah) , was
twenty amot high and ten amot wide - like the other gates of
the Temple, not double-sized like the gate of the slam (2:3). The Great
Gate provided a corridor through the thickness of the Sanctuary wall and
it had four doors, two inside - i.e., at the end of the corridor,
facing the interior - and two outside - facing the ulam
- as it says: "And two doors for the Sanctuary and the holy
place" - i.e., one set of doors was in a holier location
(i.e., deeper inside) than the other (Rash; Tiferet Yisrael); others connect
this with the next verse: "And two doors for the doors"- i.e.,
a second pair of doors alongside the first (Rashi on Ezek. 41:24). The
outer ones - each five amot wide - opened -
90 degrees - inside the entrance - corridor -
to cover the thickness of the wall - i.e., six amot. The outer
doors stood on either side of the gate, inset one amah into the corridor,
each door covering half the entrance, and touching when closed. Thus they
covered five of the six amot of the sides of the corridor when opened
- the outermost amah served the doorposts. And the -
two - inner ones - also five amot wide - opened
- 180 degrees - to the interior of the - Sanctuary -
building, to cover the part of the walls behind the doors. The
interior of the Sanctuary was twenty amot wide (4:7), and the Great Gate
was ten; thus, the five amot of wall on either side of the gate were covered
by the doors - because the entire building - the interior
of the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies - was overlaid with gold
except the hidden part of the wall behind the gold-plated
(2:3) doors.
R. Yehudah says: Within the entrance they stood - i.e.,
both sets of doors opened 90 degrees into the corridor - and they
resembled an itzteramitah (from Greek for "pivot"),
i.e., each door contained two boards joined by hinges - and when
they opened, they - the outer boards - folded
backwards - behind the inner boards. Hence, these -
the two outer doors - each covered two amot and a half -
of the six amot of the corridor - and those - the two
inner doors - also each covered two amot and a half - leaving
one amah teJen up by half an amah of doorpost from here -
on either side of the inner end of the corridor - and half an amah of
doorpost from there - at the outer end - all four doors being inset half
an amah.
R. Yehudah derives the folding doors from Scripture - as it says:
"And two doors for" - each of - "the doors,
two turning" - i.e., folding - "doors, two
for one door, and two doors for the other" - i.e., the same
arrangement for both sets of doors.
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