Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ibn Ezra · Torah
Ibn Ezra on Deuteronomy 18:1/אבן עזרא על דברים י״ח:א׳
אלא יהיה לכהנים הלוים. כאשר הזכיר משפטי המלך שהוא השופט הזכיר גם משפט הכהנים שהם מורי התורה ואחר שאמר שאין להם נחלה יקחו מאת הזובח הזרוע והלחיים והקיבה הזרוע מהגוף והלחיים שהלשון ביניהם מהראש והקיבה מהקרב ודרך דרש כי הכהן הוא שוחט השלמים הזרוע שכר זרועו בשחיטה והלחיים שכר הברכה והקיבה שכר הבדיקה ועל דרך הפשט כי אלה טובים משאר הבשר גם הזכיר דברי לוי כי גם הם יורו התורה בשערים והעד דברי הימים:
1THE PRIESTS THE LEVITES, EVEN ALL THE TRIBE OF LEVI, SHALL HAVE NO PORTION. When Scripture mentions the laws of the king,1 who is the judge,2 it makes mention of the laws of the kohanim, who are the teachers of the Torah. After Scripture states that they have no inheritance,3 it states that they will take from the sacrificer4 the shoulder, the cheeks, and the maw:5 the shoulder from the body; the cheeks, which have the tongue between them, from the head; and the maw from the insides. There is a midrashic interpretation that since the kohen slaughters the peace offerings, he receives the shoulder as payment for the use of his shoulder in the slaughtering, the cheeks as payment for reciting the blessing,6 and the maw as payment for the investigation.7 checks the innards to see if they are healthy. If they are not, the animal is declared unfit and cannot be eaten. However, according to the plain meaning of the text, these8 are better than the rest of the meat.9 Scripture also mentions the laws regarding the Levites,10 for they too11. will teach the Torah in the gates. The Book of Chronicles shows this to be the case.12 (the Levites) taught in Judah, having the hook of the Law of the Lord with them; and they went about throughout all the cities of Judah, and taught among the people.