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1) [line 2] HA'NOTEH - bending over

2) [line 3] MEVI V'KOREI (BIKURIM)
(a) The Mitzvah of Bikurim consists of bringing the first fruits to emerge in one's field every year to the Beis ha'Mikdash. The verse states, "v'Hayah Ki Savo El ha'Aretz...vi'Rishtah v'Yashavta Bah...v'Lakachta me'Reishis Kol Pri ha'Adamah..." - "And it shall be that when you come to the land...and you inherit it and you settle in it. You shall take of the first fruits of the land..." (Devarim 226:1-2). Each farmer enters the Azarah (courtyard) of the Beis ha'Mikdash with his Bikurim fruit in a decorative basket. While the basket is on his shoulder, he recites the *Mikra Bikurim*, specific verses from Devarim (26:3, 5-10) thanking HaSh-m for taking us out of Egypt and giving us the land of Yisrael. He then places the basket of fruit at the base of the southwestern corner of the Mizbe'ach (RAMBAM Hilchos Bikurim 3:12) and bows down before HaSh-m. Afterwards, he gives the Bikurim to a Kohen (Mishnah Bikurim 3:8, RAMBAM ibid. 3:1).
(b) The Mitzvah of Bikurim applies only to the seven species with which the land of Eretz Yisrael was blessed (Devarim 8:8) -- wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives and dates (Bikurim 1:3, RAMBAM ibid. 2:2). (Although many other types of produce now grow in Eretz Yisrael, these are the *only* species of produce truly indigenous to Yisrael. Other, "immigrant," species can be destroyed by drought or harsh weather, but these 7 species will always be part of the land -- heard once from a leading botanist -MK.)
(c) In certain instances, the owner only brings the fruit, without reciting the declaration (Mevi v'Eino Korei). For example, if he brings them between Sukos and Chanukah, he does not recite the verses (see Gemara Pesachim 36b and Rashi there).
(d) Kohanim eat the Bikurim within the walls of Yerushalayim. If a person eats them outside of Yerushalayim after the Bikurim have entered Yerushalayim (according to the Rambam, or after the Bikurim have entered the Azarah according to Rashi in Makos 18b), he receives Malkos. They must be brought back into Yerushalayim and eaten there.

3) [line 6] BEI KASIL - the name of a place
4) [line 12] SHUM - garlic
5) [line 13] CHOGERES B'SINAR - gird herself with an undergarment
6) [line 14] CHOFEFES - scrub her hair (RABBEINU TAM) *and* body (R.SHEMAYA in the name of RASHI; these opinions are brought in the Rosh at the end of Hilchos Mikva'os)

7) [line 14] YEHU ROCHLIN MACHZIRIN BA'ARAYOS - the peddlers (of spices) shall be permitted to walk around the cities [selling their spices]

8) [line 15] TIKEN TEVILAH L'VA'ALEI KERYIN (BA'AL KERI:TEVILAH / TAKANAS EZRA)
(a) A man who has emitted Keri (semen) becomes a Rishon l'Tum'ah. He may not enter the Machaneh Leviyah (i.e. the Temple Mount), nor may he eat Ma'aser, Terumah or Kodshim. After he immerses in a Mikvah during the day, he becomes Tahor and may eat Ma'aser and enter Machaneh Leviyah once again (mid'Oraisa -- the Rabanan however prohibited him from entering the Ezras Nashim (TY #10) until nightfall). He remains a "Tevul Yom" until nightfall, after which he may once again eat Terumah or Kodshim.
(b) Ezra instituted that a Ba'al Keri may not recite verses or learn Torah before he immerses. The Gemara discusses whether Takanas Ezra was repealed or not (Berachos 22b-23b). The Takanah for a sick person was more lenient, only requiring him to pour over himself nine Kabin of water.

9) [line 16] YOSHVEI KERANOS - lit. those who sit in the corners, referring to shopkeepers who are always involved in their businesses

10) [line 19] DORSHEI RESHUMOS - those who expound verses
11) [line 21] "HOY KOL TZAMEI LECHU LAMAYIM" - "Ho! Everyone who is thirsty, go to the water...." (Yeshayah 55:1)

12) [line 22] NIL'U - they become tired, they lose their strength

13) [line 27] ASARAH BATLANIN - (a) ten people supported by the community to stay in the Beis Keneses throughout the day and be available to make a Minyan for prayer (RASHI here and in Megilah 5a and 21a); (b) ten people who work during the day but arrive at the Beis Keneses early in the morning and stay late in the evening to be available to make a Minyan for prayer (RAN Megilah 5a)

14) [line 28] DI'SHECHICHEI D'ASU L'MIKRA B'SIFRA - they are often there [at that time,] because they come to read the Sefer Torah

15) [line 29] KEVOD SHABBOS - It is a Mitzvah to give honor to the Shabbos. This includes making preparations before Shabbos in the honor of Shabbos. See Shulchan Aruch OC 242.

16) [line 29] ONAH - the obligation of a husband to his wife with regard to marital relations

17a) [line 32] MASBI'A - it satiates
b) [line 32] MASHCHIN - it warmsw
c) [line 32] MATZ'HIL PANIM - it brightens one's face
d) [line 32] KINIM - lice

18) [line 36] CHOTZETZ - [a substance that] intervenes [between the water of the Mikvah and her body]

19) [last line] L'IYUNEI - to examine
20) [last line] MIKTAR - became tied
21) [last line] MA'US MIDI - [there is] some filth

22) [line 3] YISGANU - become disgusting
23) [line 7] AFILU L'DIVREI TORAH - even in order to learn Torah (see above, entry #8)

24) [line 8] EIN HA'BAYIS CHALUT BAH (BATEI AREI CHOMAH) - a house that was sold does not become permanently the property of the buyer
BATEI AREI CHOMAH
Batei Arei Chomah are houses from a city that was walled at the time of Yehoshua's conquest of Eretz Yisrael. If a person sold a house in one of the Arei Chomah, the Torah gives him the right to purchase it back within *one year* of selling it. If he does not buy it back during that time, it becomes the permanent ("Chalut") property of the buyer (Vayikra 25:29-30).

25) [line 9] EGLAH ARUFAH
(a) If a Jew is found murdered in a field (in Eretz Yisrael) and it is not known who the murderer is, the Torah requires that an Eglah Arufah be brought in order to atone for the blood that was spilled (Devarim 21:1). The procedure is as follows:
(b) Five elders of the Beis Din of the Lishkas ha'Gazis (the Jewish Supreme Court) measure the distance between the dead body and the cities around it to determine which city is closest to it.
(c) The elders of the city that is closest to the corpse must bring a female calf that has never been worked to a Nachal Eisan (a swiftly flowing stream - RAMBAM Hilchos Rotze'ach 9:2; a valley with tough soil - RASHI). They strike it on the back of its neck (Arifah) with a cleaver, severing its spinal column, gullet and windpipe.
(d) The elders of the closest city then wash their hands there and say, "Our hands have not spilled this blood, and our eyes did not see [the murder]." (Devarim 21:7) This includes a proclamation that the dead man was not sent away from the city without the proper food for his journey or the proper accompaniment. The Kohanim that are present say, "Atone for Your people Yisrael whom You have redeemed, HaSh-m, and do not place [the guilt for] innocent blood in the midst of Your people Yisrael" (ibid. 21:8). After this procedure, HaSh-m will grant atonement for the innocent blood that was spilled (RAMBAM Hilchos Rotze'ach 9:3).

26) [line 10] IR HA'NIDACHAS
A city that was led astray (Nidach) to the extent that its inhabitants willfully committed idolatry, must be destroyed. All of those who were led astray must be killed and the city burned, along with all of the possessions of its inhabitants, as stated in Devarim 13:13-19. The righteous people who were not led astray are not killed, but their possessions are burned.

27) [line 10] NEGA'IM (NIG'EI BATIM - Tzara'as that infects houses)
(a) The marks of Tzara'as for houses consist of intense green or intense red streaks or spots that are at least the size of two Gerisin (a Gris is a Cilician bean, approximately the size of a dime) (Nega'im 12:3). If Tzara'as is found on the walls of a house, it is put into quarantine by a Kohen for a week. Before the Kohen puts the house into quarantine, he commands that the house be emptied of its contents to prevent its utensils from becoming Tamei.
(b) The Torah states (Vayikra 14:39) "v'*Shav* ha'Kohen," to prescribe that the Kohen *return* six days later to check the house. If the Tzara'as has spread, one must remove (Choletz) the stones with Tzara'as from the house, scrape off the surrounding plaster, insert new stones and re-plaster the entire house. The house is then put into quarantine for another week. If the Tzara'as returns to the house during the following week, the owner must dismantle (Notetz) the entire house (Vayikra 14:45). The stones from the house must be taken out of the city, and they remain Asur b'Hana'ah forever.
(c) On the other hand, if the Tzara'as did not change after the first week, the Kohen leaves it as is and returns again six days later. The verse states (Vayikra 14:44) "u'*Va* Ha'kohen," which means "if, when the Kohen *comes* back to the house to inspect it a second time, he finds that the spot of Tzara'as has spread, the house is Tamei." Chazal teach that this verse is referring to a spot of Tzara'as that does *not* spread during its first week. The Kohen "comes back to the house" after a second week to see whether the spot has spread, remains, or has disappeared. If the Tzara'as has *either* spread *or* remained, one must remove (Choletz) the stones with Tzara'as from the house, scrape off the surrounding plaster, insert new stones and re-plaster the entire house. The house is then put into quarantine for another week (Vayikra 14:40). If the Tzara'as returns to the house during the following week, the owner must dismantle (Notetz) the entire house (Vayikra 14:45). The stones from the house must be taken out of the city, and they remain Asur b'Hana'ah forever.
(d) Even though the words "v'Shav" and "u'Va" are not identical, they are referring to the same action; namely, the Kohen entering the house to inspect it. This relates the two verses to each other with a Gezerah Shavah. Just as the house is not dismantled if the Tzara'as spreads during the first week -- unless the stones are scraped and the Tzara'as returned to the house after a week of quarantine -- so, too, the house is not dismantled if the Tzara'as spread during the second week unless it returns to the house after the quarantine period that follows the scraping.
(e) If during one of the inspections at the end of the first or second week the Kohen finds that the Tzara'as has disappeared or diminished in intensity such that it can no longer be classified as a Nega, the location of the spot alone is scraped and the house is declared Tahor after the owner follows the procedure for being Metaher houses (see Background to Sukah 13:11:IV). (RAMBAM Hilchos Tum'as Tzara'as 15:2)

28) [line 10] EIN MOTZ'IN BAH ZIZIN U'GEZUZTERA'OS - we may not extend [from the walls and houses throughout the city] roof beams and balconies

29) [line 12] ASHPASOS - garbage dumps
30) [line 12] KIVSHONOS - furnaces
31a) [line 13] GANOS - gardens
b) [line 13] PARDESOS - orchards

32) [line 13] GANOS (RASHI: GINAS) VERADIN - gardens (RASHI: the Garden) of Roses (which contained elements needed for the production of the Ketores)

33) [line 14] NEVI'IM HA'RISHONIM - the early Prophets
34) [line 16] "V'KAM HA'BAYIS ASHER LO CHOMAH LA'TZEMISUS..." - "[And if it is not redeemed by the end of the full year,] then the house that is in the city that has a wall will belong to the buyer of it permanently, for his generations of descendants; [it will not go out at Yovel.]" (Vayikra 25:30)

35) [line 18] LO NISCHALKAH YERUSHALIM LA'SHEVATIMVATIM
(a) Even though the border between the tribes of Yehudah and Binyamin ran through the city of Yerushalayim, the city itself was not divided among the tribes, but rather it collectively belongs to all of them.
(b) The verses regarding Batei Arei Chomah and Eglah Arufah states teach that those laws apply only where the city or land is in the possession of one of the tribes, which excludes Yerushalayim, which was not the *possession* of any one tribe.

36) [line 19] "KI YIMATZEI CHALAL BA'ADAMAH ASHER HASH-M ELOKECHA NOSEN LECHA L'RISHTAH..." - "If one is found slain in the land which HaSh-m your Elokim gives you to possess...." (Devarim 21:1)

37) [line 22] "ARECHA" - "your cities" (Devarim 13:13)

38) [line 26] OHEL HA'TUM'AH (TUM'AS MES)
(a) A k'Zayis of the flesh of a *Mes* (corpse) is an "Avi Avos ha'Tumah" and is Metamei through Maga (contact), Masa (carrying), and Ohel (being in the same room (lit. tent). An Ohel is defined as a covered space that is at least one Tefach in length, width and height). If a person becomes Tamei by touching Tum'as Mes or being in the same room as a Mes or something that is Metamei b'Ohel, he must wait seven days to go to the Mikvah. Furthermore, on the third and seventh days he must have Mei Chatas (water mixed with ashes of the Parah Adumah -- see Background to Kidushin 62:9) sprinkled on him.
(b) In an Ohel ha'Mes, the house or room becomes Tamei even if the Mes is passing through it and does not stop moving. A person who enters an Ohel ha'Mes becomes Tamei even if only a bit of his body enters, even when entering backwards. A Mechitzah (partition) in an Ohel ha'Mes only prevents the spread of Tum'ah if it reaches the ceiling. (RASH to Keilim 1:4)

39) [line 28] SHEKATZIM - forbidden animals and reptiles mentioned in Vayikra 11:29-30 (see Background to Shabbos 107:5). A Sheretz, even if it is only the size of an Adashah (lentil bean) is an Av ha'Tum'ah. It makes a person or object Tamei through Maga (contact). If a person becomes Tamei by touching a Sheretz, he can immediately go the Mikvah. After nightfall he becomes Tahor and may eat Terumah or Kodshim. Garbage dumps, were Shekatzim tend to grow, were prohibited in Yerushalayim, where Terumah and Kodshim were handled.

40) [line 29] KUTRA - smoke (air pollution)
41) [line 30] SIRCHA - (a) weed grass; (b) the foul smell of fertilizer
42) [line 32] GEMARA - according to a tradition received

43a) [line 33] KESH'TZARU BEIS CHASHMONA'I ZEH AL ZEH - when one of the two brothers Hyrkanus and Aristobulus (two of the last descendents of the Hasmonean kings), laid siege to the other one (there are two contradictory sources as to who laid siege to whom; the next entry follows the Girsa of the Gemara in Menachos (64b) and in Sotah (49b); the Girsa in our Gemara should also be emended to read that *Aristobulus* was *inside* and Hyrkanus was *outside*, which is the Girsa in all of the other manuscripts of our Gemara, as the DIKDUKEI SOFRIM points out) in order to capture the throne

b) [line 33] BEIS CHASHMONA'I (THE CIVIL WAR)
(a) Before Yochanan Kohen Gadol (Yochanan Hyrkanus), the grandson of Matisyahu, died, he commanded that his reign as ruler of the land of Yehudah be passed on to his wife. However, his son Yehudah Aristobulus, paid no attention to his father's testament. He imprisoned his mother and brothers, except for one brother named Antigonus and seized power for himself. He appointed Antigonus as head of the army. Aristobulus was the first Hasmonean ruler to call himself "king;" all of his predecessors had the title of "prince." He was hostile to the Sages, and pursued them with ruthlessness. He ruled over Yehudah for only one year and died childless in the year 3658 (103 BCE).
(b) He was succeeded by his widow, Queen Shlomtziyon or Shelomis [Salome] Alexandra, a sister of Shimon Ben Shetach, the leading sage of the period, to whom she was loyal even when married to an archenemy of the sages. After her husband died, she freed his brothers from prison. The oldest brother, Alexander Yanai, performed Yibum with her, and later succeeded his dead brother to the throne.
(c) Under the influence of his wife, Yanai halted the suppression of the Perushim and the Sages for a time, so that he could pursue the war against the hostile Nochri enclave in the Land of Yisrael. He did this throughout most of the twenty-seven years of his reign, motivated by lust for battle and glory. As time went on, however, he used the foreign soldiers in his army to suppress his own people and hunt down the Perushim. His reign lasted until either 3684 or 3685 (77 or 76 BCE).
(d) During the next 11 years, when Shelomis was queen, peace and tranquility reigned in the land. It was the only golden era during the time of the Second Temple. The last testament of Queen Shelomis declared Hyrkanus, her first-born son, to be the legal ruler of the land, but he held power for only three months. Her younger son Aristobulus put together a large army and fought his brother near Yericho. Aristobulus won the battle and Hyrkanus abdicated the throne and withdrew from public life. But Antipater the Edomite provoked Hyrkanus into reopening the war against his brother. They asked Aretas, the Arab king of the Nabateans, for support, and marched with a large army to the gates of Yerushalayim. Hyrkanus's supporters let him into the city, forcing Aristobulus and his soldiers to retreat behind the massive fortifications of the Temple Mount. Aristobulus's forces demolished the bridge that connected the Temple mount with the Upper City of Yerushalayim, leaving a deep valley between themselves and the attackers.
(e) At this time the Roman general Pompey was conquering the lands of Asia Minor one after the other. In 63 BCE Hyrkanus and Aristobulus turned to Pompey's proconsul in Damascus to intervene in their dispute. Rome's representatives were notorious for their greed, and when the messengers of Aristobulus offered the larger bribe, the Roman proconsul decided in his favor. King Aretas and Hyrkanus were commanded to lift the siege and leave Yerushalayim.
(f) When Pompey returned to Damascus after completing his victorious military campaigns, the two brothers appeared before him. Because Pompey was interested in imposing the imperial rule of Rome upon the land of Judea, he preferred Hyrkanus, the weaker and more submissive of the two brothers, and declared him to be both king and Kohen Gadol. He also commanded that Aristobulus surrender all the fortresses of the country. Aristobulus meekly capitulated to his demands. His men, however, decided to defend the city against the approaching Roman army. Hyrkanus's men opened the city gates for Pompey, while Aristobulus and his soldiers withdrew behind the fortifications of Har ha'Bayis. Eventually, the Romans succeeded in breaching the walls of Har ha'Bayis. Some 12,000 Kohanim and defenders were killed. Aristobulus and his two sons and two daughters were taken as captives to Rome for a victory procession before the Roman populace. One of Aristobulus's sons managed to escape and returned to his homeland to encourage the people to continue their resistance against the invaders.
(g) Pompey thus put an end to Judean political independence and imposed a tax upon the land. The coastal cities, as well as the cities of Transjordan, were excluded from Jewish rule. All that remained of the Jewish State was Judea, part of Edom, the Galilee and a narrow stretch of land in the south of Transjordan. Even in this limited territory Jewish rule was not sovereign, for it came under the jurisdiction of the Roman proconsul in Damascus.
(from The History of the Jewish People/The Second Temple Era, Artscroll Publishers, Brooklyn, New York, 1982, adapted by Rabbi Hersh Goldwurm from Dr. E. Ebner's translation of Yekusiel Friedner's Divrei Yemei ha'Bayis ha'Sheni, Pages 103 - 107)

44) [line 34] MESHALSHIM - they would lower down [to them]
45) [line 35] CHOCHMAS YEVANIS - a sign language invented by the Greeks using non-verbal gestures

46) [line 35] AMAR (MAHARSHAL: LA'AZ) LAHEM - he communicated to them in Chochmas Yevanis

47) [line 37] NA'ATZ TZIPORNAV BA'CHOMAH - it stuck its hoofs (lit. nails) into the wall

48) [line 37] NIZDA'AZE'AH - trembled
49) [line 38] ARBA ME'OS PARSAH - 400 Persian miles, approximately 1459.2, 1536 or 1843.2 kilometers, depending upon the differing Halachic opinions

50) [line 40] OMER
(a) There is a Mitzvah to bring the Korban ha'Omer on the second day of Pesach. A large quantity of barley is reaped after nightfall after the first day of Pesach. At this time the grain is still moist, and the process of extracting one Omer (approximately 2.2, 2.5 or 4.3 liters, depending upon the differing Halachic opinions) of barley flour is extremely difficult. The flour is baked and offered as a Korban Minchah on the 16th of Nisan. It is also referred to as the Minchas Bikurim -- Vayikra 2:14-16).
(b) In addition, a lamb is offered as an Olah, as it states in Vayikra 23:12.
(c) The Korban ha'Omer is the first offering of the new grain of the year (Chadash), and as such it removes the prohibition against eating from the new grain.

51) [line 40] GAGOS TZERIFIM - a coastal town in Eretz Yisrael, near the modern-day Ramleh

52) [line 40] SHTEI HA'LECHEM
(a) The Shtei ha'Lechem is an offering of two loaves of bread (that are Chametz) that is brought on Shavuos. It is baked from the newly grown wheat (Vayikra 23:17). One loaf is given to the Kohen Gadol and the other is divided among the rest of the Kohanim in the Mikdash at the time. They are eaten on the day of Shavuos and the night afterwards, until midnight (RAMBAM Hilchos Temidin u'Musafin 8:11).
(b) Afterwards, all new wheat is permitted to be used for Menahcos.

53) [last line] BIK'AS EIN SOCHER - the valley of Ein Socher, a fertile valley in the Shomron near Shechem, believed to be the modern-day Arab village of 'Askar

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