Additional Duties Awarded By the First Lottery: Adding Wood for the Fire

In discussing the altar, we learned that three arrangements of wood burn atop it. Following the raking of the ashes into the "apple," the next task is to bring new wood up to the altar for the large fire. The sages have established that the same priest who figured in this first drawing and thus attended to the altar's ashes also received responsibility for several other tasks: He would fix the arrangement of wood on the altar, and bring up two smaller pieces of wood which were added to the first arrangement atop the altar. For it is a positive commandment to add two additional pieces of wood to the fire every morning, at the time the daily sacrifice is offered - as it is written (Lev. 6:5), "The priest shall kindle wood on them each morning."