1,235. What to Do in the Event of a Surplus or Deficit

Shekalim 4:9

Any funds remaining from the treasury and surplus in the chamber are used to buy male animals for use as burnt offerings. The courts stipulated that all leftover funds were to be used for this purpose. These funds are not used to buy birds for burnt offerings because birds are never used for communal sacrifices. The burnt offerings that are purchased using funds left over from the half-shekels are called “summer fruits of the altar.”

Shekalim 4:10

If the money from the half-shekels is insufficient for the communal sacrifices, additional money for whatever is necessary is taken from property sanctified for purposes of Temple maintenance (bedek habayis). If money for bedek habayis proves insufficient, additional funds are not taken from money sanctified to buy communal sacrifices.