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Bekhorot 19: Questionable First-borns

October 07, 2026 | כ״ו בתשרי תשפ״ז

2 mishnayot to close out chapter 2! Two ewes bear 2 male lambs — both are first-born. One male, one female – the kohen gets the male. But with twins, what goes to the kohen? What about a C-section? Chapter 3 – and a new mishnah: When a Jew purchases an animal from a non-Jew… has that animal given birth already? Or no? And the certainty for not having given birth depends on the youth of the animal. A goat is considered certainly off-spring-free until 1 year old; a sheep, until 2 years old; and an ox or donkey until 3 years old. What if the animal conceived and miscarried, instead of bearing offspring?

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Anne and Yardaena

Anne Gordon is the deputy editor of Ops & Blogs at The Times of Israel. She is a veteran educator, having taught in high school and post-high school institutions in Israel and America for several decades. Yardaena Osband is a pediatrician and teaches in her community and online. They both hail from Boston, proud alumna of Maimonides School, where they first learned Gemara. Talking Talmud is their conversation (via podcast) on the daf yomi. They say: “Learning the daf? We have something for you to think about. Not learning the daf? We have something for you to think about! (Along with a taste of the daf…) Join the conversation with us!”

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