Derasha 17 on Vayikra 1:3

Parashas Vayikra · Aliyah 1 · Passuk 3

The Complete Passuk

אִם־עֹלָ֤ה קָרְבָּנוֹ֙ מִן־הַבָּקָ֔ר זָכָ֥ר תָּמִ֖ים יַקְרִיבֶ֑נּוּ אֶל־פֶּ֜תַח אֹ֤הֶל מוֹעֵד֙ יַקְרִ֣יב אֹת֔וֹ לִרְצֹנ֖וֹ לִפְנֵ֥י יְהוָֽה׃

Chabad.org — English translation + Rashi

Source Citation

Torah Temima points to Bekhorot 41b.

E-Daf / Tsurras Hadaf (size=3 where available)
PDF of the daf / source

Core Text

Core Text
זכר – זכר ולא נקבה; ומה ת״ל למטה זכר – להוציא טומטום ואנדרוגינוס

English: “Male” – a male and not a female; and the later mention of “male” (in verse 10) comes to exclude an animal of indeterminate sex or a hermaphrodite.

Type of Learning

Diyuk clarifying the precise gender requirement for the olah — the Torah’s language fixes that the olah of cattle must be male.

What Is Learned

The Torah insists on a clearly male animal for the burnt-offering, teaching the value of clarity and completeness in whatever we dedicate to Hashem.

Audio (Daf Yomi):
dafyomi.org — Bekhorot
YICC / Rav Etshalom series