4,069. The Wages of Prostitution
An important note: The Hebrew word “zonah” is typically translated as, and used in the sense of, a prostitute. However, the word actually applies to much broader halachic contexts.
Hilchos Issurei Mizbeiach 4:8
Anything associated with an idol may not be used in the Temple service even if it’s permitted to derive benefit from that thing. "The wages of prostitution" are when someone tells a prostitute, “This is given as payment for your services.” This could be a non-Jewish prostitute, a servant woman, or a Jewish woman who is prohibited to this man as a forbidden relationship or by any other Torah prohibition. However, if a woman is unmarried [but permitted for this man to marry], the gift given her may be brought on the altar even if the man is a kohein. Similarly, if a man’s wife is a niddah (menstruant), a gift given her may be brought on the altar even though she is currently prohibited to him.
Hilchos Issurei Mizbeiach 4:9
If a man married a women who was forbidden to him by a Torah prohibition, anything he might give her in exchange for intimacy is considered the wages of prostitution and may not be brought on the altar. A gift given by one man to another in exchange for intimacy likewise may not be brought on the altar. If a woman gives a man a gift in exchange for intimacy, it is not considered the wages of prostitution and may be brought on the altar.
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