- Coals from wood are considered fire, not coals from metal
It was taught in a Baraisa, חתכו ונתנו על גבי גחלים רבי אומר אומר אני שזה צלי אש – If one cut the pesach and placed it over coals, Rebbe says, I say that this is considered fire-roasted. Rashi explains that he did not cut the carcass apart, but rather he sliced it in several places so that it would roast quickly.
Rav Achadvoi bar Ami asked Rav Chisda if in fact Rebbe says coals are considered like fire, since the Torah stated the word מכוה – burn, twice, it teaches us that tzaraas on a burn also applies to a burn from a coal. If the Torah had not included it, based on the repetition, then one would not consider coal equivalent to fire-roasted. How could Rebbe consider a pesach roasted on coals, fire roasted, without a special passuk including it in the pesach? Rav Chisda replied that concerning coal from wood, no passuk is necessary. The passuk was only needed to include גחלת של מתכת - coal produced from metal.
- Why שריפה is done with molten lead
As part of the discussion regarding coals from metal, the Gemara brings a gezeirah shaveh, שריפה שריפה מבני אהרן – burning, burning from the burning of bnei Aharon, to teach how someone condemned to burning is burned. מה להלן שריפת נשמה וגוף קיים אף כאן שריפת נשמה וגוף קיים – Just as there “burning” refers to the burning of the soul with the body remaining intact, so too here it refers to the burning of the soul with the body remaining intact. The Gemara asks why she needs to be burned with molten lead, when immersing her in boiling water would suffice, and answers that it is because of Rav Nachman’s teaching, אמר קרא "ואהבת לרעך כמוך" – The Torah teaches, “and you shall love your neighbor as yourself – ברור לו מיתה יפה – choose for him a favorable death. Death by means of molten lead is less painful.
- The Kohen Gadol takes a shovel full of coals from the mizbeyach
Rava asked if Rebbe actually said coals are classified as fire, based on a conflicting Baraisa regarding the shovelful of fiery coals that the Kohen Gadol takes into the Kodesh Hakedoshim. If the Torah had only said, גחלי – coals, יכול עוממות – It might be thought he should take smoldering coals, תלמוד לומר "אש" – The Torah teaches, fiery. If the Torah had stated only "אש" – it might be thought, he should take a flame. Therefore, the Torah states, גחלי. So how does the Kohen Gadol fulfill his chiyuv? מביא מן הלוחשות – he brings some of the flickering coals. We see from here that even flickering coals are not classified as fire, contradicting Rebbe.
Rava resolves the contradiction by reinterpreting the Baraisa. If the Torah had only stated, גחלי – it might be thought he should bring smoldering coals, not flickering ones, therefore, it states אש. If it had only stated אש, it might be thought he may take a burning piece of wood that is half coal and half flame, so that by the time he enters the Kodesh Kedoshim it should be entirely coal. Therefore, the Torah states, ולקח מלא המחתה גחלי אש מעל המזבח – And he shall take a shovelful of fiery coals from atop the mizbeyach, משעת לקיחה ניהוי גחלים – This teaches that from the time of taking from atop the mizbeyach they should be coals. According to this interpretation the Baraisa agrees with Rebbe that a flickering coal is classified as “fire.”