בשלשה מקומות הכהנים שומרים בבית המקדש – because of the honor, and it is greatness to the Temple that it should not be without guards/watchmen, and three places we derive as it is written (Numbers 3:38): “Those who were to camp before the Tabernacle, in front, before the Tent of Meeting, on the east – were Moses and Aaron and his sons, attending to the duties of the sanctuary, as a duty on behalf of the Israelites...],” those who guard from one watch to another, which is a hint to three divisions of duty for priests [and Levites] in three places, but just as we find in the Tabernacle that the Kohanim, Aaron and his sons were guarding in it in three places, even so too in the Temple.

בית אבטינס ובית הניצוץ היו עליות – [According to the Jerusalem Talmud, Tractate Yoma, Chapter 1, Halakhah 5, the chamber of the House of Avtinas (see also Tractate Shekalim, Chapter 5, Mishnah 1 and Tractate Yoma, Chapter 1, Mishnah 5 concerning facts about this clan) was in the southern part of the Temple courtyard by the side of the Water Gate – which was the gate where they would enter on the holiday of Sukkot with a flask of water that was drawn from the Shiloah spring fo the libations on the altar, but according to the Talmud, Tractate Yoma 19a, there were doubts as to where this chamber was – in the south or in the north, which is the preference of this commentary to the Mishnah] – that were built on the side of the gates of the Temple courtyard.

והרובין (young priests, or possibly “archers”) – children; the Aramaic Targum/translation is רביא /child. Another explanation: הרובין/ those who shoot arrows with bows, from the language of {Genesis 21:20): “[God was with the boy (i.e., Ishmael) and he grew up; he dwelt in the wildeness] and became a bowman.”

בית המוקד כפה – there was nothing over the bulding of the House of the Hearth other than a [round] arch, AREUVLETU in the foreign language, made m the earth.

והיה מוקף רובדים של אבן (was surrounded with stone pavements) – colonnades/porticos surrounding, [made] of hewn stones that were sunk in the wall and came out from the wall into the House of the Hearth/בית המוקד – to the side of the ground, and on top of them were other stones, shorter than them that also came out from the wall. And they were similar to steps one on top of the other.

וזקני בית אב – the division for duty of priests and Levites/guard that was divided into seven priest’s divisions corresponding to the days of the week, each one serves on his day, and the elders of the priest’s division of that day would sleep there on those paved level spaces between steps in the Temple hall.

ופרחי כהונה (fledgling priests) – young boys whose hair begins to sprout, and they were guards.

כסתו – the language of pillows and cushions.

איש כסתו בארץ – there were not able to lie down there on the beds but rather on the ground in the manner of those who guard the courtyards of the kings.

ומניחים אותן תחת ראשיהן – corresponding to their heads, but not actually under their heads, because there are the clothes of the Kohen that have in them Kilayim/mixture of linen and wool, as for example, the belt, and it is not permitted to use them other than at the time of [Divine] service.

ומתכסים בכסות עצמן – in weekday clothing.

במסבה (winding staircase)- in a cavity/cave that goes underneath the Temple, for the cavity was underneath the Sanctuary, and the entire Sanctuary is called בירה /the chosen Divine residence/the Temple, as it is written (I Chronicles 29:19 – the verse is slightly misquoted by Rabbi Obadiah of Bertinoro in the printed editions: He writes: אל הבירה אשר הכינותי – whereas the correct quote is:לבנות הבירה אשר הכינותי ): “and to build this temple for which I have made provision.” But because he was one to whom a nocturnal emission/pollution had occurred, he would not walk on the path of the Temple courtyard, but rather on he path of the cavities/caves, for he holds that these cavities were not sanctified.

והנרות היו דולקים – in the cavity/cave from this side and that side.

ומדורה היה שם – hat the Kohen would warm himself in it after he immersed [in a ritual bath].

וזה היה כבודו – that no person who enter in it ever all the while that his fellow was there.

מצאו נעול – this is his sign that there is a person there, and he would not enter.

נסתפג – wiped off the water that was on his skin.

בא וישב לו – in the house of the Hearth.

עד שהשערים נפתחים – he would leave and go outside, because one who has immersed [in a Mikveh] must wait for sunset to be perfectly clean – see Leviticus 22:7) is sent off outside of the Temple courtyard, as we stated in these matters that every person who had a flux, including one with a nocturnal emission.

לתרום את המזבח – the removal of the ashes from the Altar (see Leviticus 6:3).

משכים וטובל – for no person enters the Temple courtyard to perform Divine service, even if he is ritually pure, until he immerses [in a ritual bath].

וכי באיזו שעה הממונה בא (superintendent/deputy/officer) -meaning to say, is there a fixed time for the coming of the superintendent/officer, for it is stated that he (i.e., the Kohen) would get up early and immerse [in a ritual bath] prior to the arrival of the superintendent, but rather, definitely there was no fixed time for his arrival, for all of the times were not equal, for sometimes he would come from the crowing of the cock (see Tractate Yoma, Chapter 1, Mishnah 8), etc., but therefore, whomever wanted to remove the ashes would wake up whenever he could, and afterwards, the superintendent would come and he would knock on them, to those who were in the House of the Hearth, and they would open it for him.

מקריאת הגבר – there are those who interpret It as the calling of the rooster, and there are those who interpret that [an individual] would customarily call [to the Kohanim] near the rising of the sun [saying: “Arise Kohanim to your Divine service”].

מי שטבל יבוא ויפיס (see Tractate Yoma, Chapter 2, Mishnah 1) – all of those to whom they would give a white [slip of paper] to remove the ashes from the Altar, would immerse prior to the superintendent’s coming and afterwards they would take a lottery between them, and the one to which the lottery comes (i.e., the one who wins) goes up and removes the ashes. And the order of the lottery and its actions is explained in Tractate Yoma, Chapter 2.

פשפש (wicket) – small opening that is within the body of the lare opening, and through it they wouold enter from the House of the Hearth to the Temple courtyard.

אלו – they would walk in the parlor/covered place in front of the house in the Temple courtyard in the eastern direction. For the parlors/recesses were around the Temple courtyard from the inside, with pillars going out beyond the walls of the Temple courtyard, and from the pillars until the walls of the Temple courtyard, there was overhanging boughs/twigs on top of them and they are called in the foreign language PRITIKAN (i.e., Porticos), and from the pillars towards the outside it was without overhanging boughs/twigs, and he Altar was in a place without overhanging boughs. And they were divided into two divisions/parties, in order that they would check and see all of the sacred vessels, that all of them will be in their places in peace. And they would walk on the parlors that were made in the northern direction, these walk on it on the eastern half and those walk on it on the half of he western side until they come in contact with each other in the place where they make the cakes of the meal of offering of the High Priest, who would bring each day half of it in the morning and half of It in the evening (see Leviticus 6:13-14 and Tractate Menahot, Chapter 4, Mishnah 5), and this was near the Nicanor Gate, and there they would say “Shalom” to each other, everything is “peace/Shalom,” meaning to say, we found all of the utensils in peace and no utensil was missing.

הזהר של תגע בכלי – in the coal-pan which is a sacred vessel, for a person is not permitted to draw close to the Altar nor to any [Divine] Service until he sanctifies his hands and his feet.

במקצוע (corner) – in the corner-piece.

בן קטין – this was the name of the High Priest who made the wheel work (a machine for sinking the wash basin (the laver for the Kohanim in the Temple courtyard) into the well (see Tractate Yoma, Chapter 3, Mishnah 10 and Tractate Tamid, Chapter 3, Mishnah 8). It was a revolving wheel that through it the wash basin was sunk into the cistern, so that their waters would not be invalidated/unfit for use by being kept overnight, because anything that was sanctified in a sacred vessel is invalidated/unfit for use by being kept overnight, but when the wash basin was sunk into the cistern, its waters were not invalidated. But Maimonides states, that the wheel work which is a utensil surrounding the wash basin, that was not sanctified in the Temple vessel, and there they would leave the water at night in order that it not become sanctified and would be invalidated overnight.

מהאכלות הפנימיות (the thoroughly lighted coals in the center) – the coals that are in the center of the fire that were well consumed/burned up to be ashes.

צבר את הגחלים על גבי הרצפה (he heaped up the cinders on the pavement) – because it is written (Leviticus 6:3): "ושמו" /”[and he shall take up the ashes to which the ffire has reduced the burnt offering on the altar] and place them beside the altar,” and we expound [Tractate Temurah 34a], “and place them” – all of it, and “place them” – so that it should not scatter.