English: “And the two kidneys” — and not one that has a single kidney, and not one that has three kidneys.
In the midrash: The precise number “two” is read as a miyut that excludes animals with an abnormal kidney count.
Type of Learning
Miyut of abnormal kidney count — the offering requires the normal two kidneys.
What Is Learned
The offering requires the normal two kidneys. An animal that possesses only one kidney or that possesses three kidneys is excluded from the shelamim. The Sifra treats the Torah’s explicit count as both a positive requirement and a negative exclusion of anatomical anomalies.