Rava raises a dilemma: What is the reason of Rabbi Yishmael that a hermaphrodite is definitely blemished? Is it obvious to him that a hermaphrodite animal is a male that has firstborn status, and it comes with its blemish, i.e., the female sex organ, and therefore it is permitted to slaughter it outside the Temple? Or perhaps Rabbi Yishmael is uncertain whether or not a hermaphrodite is considered a male, and he says his ruling in the manner of: If you say. In other words, if you say that a hermaphrodite animal is a firstborn, it comes with its blemish, and it may be slaughtered outside the Temple.

The Gemara asks: What is the practical difference between the reasons? The Gemara answers that there is a difference with regard to being flogged on account of this animal due to violating the prohibition of shearing and utilizing a firstborn animal for labor (see Deuteronomy 15:19). If it is definitely a firstborn, then one would be flogged for violating the prohibition. But if one is uncertain whether it is a firstborn, although one may not shear it or perform labor with it, one is not liable to flogging for doing so. Alternatively, there is a difference with regard to giving it to a priest. If its status is uncertain, the priest cannot demand the animal from him, in accordance with the principle that the burden of proof rests upon the claimant.

The Gemara suggests: Come and hear a baraita: Rabbi Ilai says in the name of Rabbi Yishmael: A hermaphrodite is a firstborn, and it comes with its blemish. Learn from the baraita that it is obvious to Rabbi Yishmael that a hermaphrodite is a firstborn. The Gemara responds: But perhaps he said his ruling in the manner of: If you say, as explained earlier.

The Gemara suggests: Come and hear another baraita. It states with regard to a burnt offering from cattle: “A male” (Leviticus 1:3), from which it can be inferred: But not a female. When it says below, with regard to a burnt offering from sheep: “A male” (Leviticus 1:10), a second time, it is difficult to understand, as there is no need for the verse to state this. Why must the verse state “a male” again? This serves to exclude a tumtum and a hermaphrodite, which are disqualified from being sacrificed as burnt offerings.

The Gemara analyzes this baraita: Whose opinion is this? If we say it is the opinion of the first tanna of the mishna, who maintains that a tumtum and a hermaphrodite may not be slaughtered in the Temple or in the rest of the country, then the status of a hermaphrodite is uncertain, as it is unknown whether it is male or female. But does a verse come to exclude a case of uncertainty?

Rather, perhaps this baraita is in accordance with the opinion of the latter Rabbis in the mishna, who hold that a hermaphrodite is definitely not a male, but a distinct entity. Therefore, it is necessary for a verse to exclude it. This, too, is difficult, as according to these Rabbis the exclusion of a female, a tumtum, and a hermaphrodite is derived from one verse alone. The Gemara elaborates: As with regard to a firstborn, it is one “male” alone that is written, from which the Rabbis exclude all of the three categories from firstborn status. By contrast, the baraita excludes a female from one mention of the word “male” and a tumtum and a hermaphrodite from another mention of the word “male.”

Rather, it is obvious that the baraita is in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Yishmael. And in that case, granted, if you say that it is obvious to Rabbi Yishmael that a hermaphrodite is a firstborn male, that is why a verse was necessary to exclude a hermaphrodite from being brought as a burnt offering. But if you say that Rabbi Yishmael is uncertain whether or not a hermaphrodite is considered a male, is it necessary for the verse to exclude a case of uncertainty?

The Gemara responds: Actually, the baraita is in accordance with the opinion of the latter Rabbis, who maintain that a hermaphrodite is not a male, but a distinct entity. And as for the difficulty that in the case of a firstborn they excluded a female, a tumtum, and a hermaphrodite from a single verse, that is not so. With regard to a firstborn there are also two verses written: “Males” (Deuteronomy 15:19), and: “That is a male” (Exodus 13:12). As in the case of a burnt offering, one of these serves to exclude a female, while the other serves to exclude a tumtum and a hermaphrodite.

§ The mishna teaches: And the Rabbis say: A hermaphrodite does not have firstborn status; rather, its status is that of a non-sacred animal that may be shorn and utilized for labor. Rav Ḥisda says: This dispute applies to a hermaphrodite, which the Rabbis maintain is a distinct entity, as it has both male and female sex organs, and therefore it does not have firstborn status. But with regard to a tumtum, whose genitalia is covered by skin, everyone agrees that it is an uncertain case, as it is definitely either a male or a female, but there is uncertainty as to which it is. And consequently, it is consecrated due to uncertainty, and it may not be slaughtered either in the Temple or in the rest of the country.

Rava said to Rav Ḥisda: If that is so, that a tumtum is certainly either a male or a female, with regard to valuations, when someone vows to give the valuation of a tumtum, it should be valuated, either in accordance with the valuation of a man or a woman.