The
149th prohibition is that kohanim are
forbidden from eating bikkurim
outside [Jerusalem].
The
source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement, "In your own settlements, you may not
eat...the terumah of your hand." The
Oral Tradition explains that [the phrase] " 'the terumah of your hand' refers to bikkurim," since the verse explicitly
mentions everything else which must be brought [to Jerusalem]. The general phrase, "the terumah of your hand" undoubtedly refers
to bikkurim, which the Torah clearly
says must be brought [to Jerusalem]. [We know that this phrase could
not refer to regular terumah because]
it is well known that regular terumah
need not be brought [to Jerusalem];
so how could there be a prohibition to eat it "in your own settlements"? [This
point is said clearly] in the words of the Sifri:
"This phrase speaks only of bikkurim,
which the verse does not mention explicitly as being prohibited."
It
is explained in the end of Makos that the prohibition applies only [if he eats
them] before they are placed in the Temple
courtyard. But once they have been placed in the courtyard — even if the
proclamation has not yet been made — one is exempt from
punishment.
The
same condition which applies to ma'aser
sheni governs bikkurim, i.e. the
prohibition applies only after they have "seen the face of the Temple"
[i.e. were brought inside the walls of Jerusalem].
The prohibition is transgressed if they are eaten after they have entered Jerusalem and before they
have been placed in the courtyard. If he is a kohen, he is punished by lashes; if an Israelite, his punishment
for eating bikurim is a heavenly
death sentence [misah biy'dei shamayim],
even if the proclamation was made. Our Sages explicitly said, "For terumah
and bikkurim one must add a fifth;
their punishment is death; and they are prohibited to non-kohanim." [This means that] if he ate them intentionally, he is
punished with misah biy'dei shamayim;
if it was unintentional, he must [pay the value and] add on an additional fifth,
as is the case with terumah. The
reason for this is since the verse calls it "the terumah of your hand," all the laws of terumah apply.
You
should understand this well in order to avoid confusion: a kohen who eats bikurim
after they have entered Jerusalem
and before they have been placed in the courtyard is punished by lashes. The
source of this prohibition is the verse, "In your own settlements, you may not
eat...the terumah of your hand," as
explained in Makos. This is just like
the law of an Israelite who eats ma'aser
sheni outside the proper place — he is punished by lashes even though the
food belongs to him.
But
an Israelite who eats bikurim after
they were brought to Jerusalem
is punished by misah biy'dei shamayim
regardless of where he ate them. The source of this prohibition is the verse, "Any non-kohen
may not eat sanctified objects," as explained in Prohibition 133.
The
details of this mitzvah are explained
in tractate Makos.