Pesachim 57 - Bad priests, good priests

When a sacrifice was brought in the Temple, the hide remaining from it belonged to all the Kohanim (priests). They used to leave these hides in a special chamber in the Temple for later distribution. However, the bullies among the Kohanim would take the hides by force. They tried to push the hide distribution to the end of the week, hoping that bullies would not misbehave in the presence of multitudes. But now, the high-ranking Kohanim would appropriate the hides. Since nothing helped, the owners dedicated the hides to the Temple treasury. As a result, the treasury gained much money, and soon the Sanctuary was covered with gold plates. These beautiful plates were then displayed for the pilgrims on the Holidays.

Sometimes, the Temple courtyard itself cried out in anguish because of the wrongdoings. The first was "Depart from here, the sons of Eli, the High Priest!" The second was because of Issachar from Barkai - who wore silken gloves while doing the services. This invalidated the service, which has to be done with bare hands. But for a High Priest Yochanan ben Narbi, the courtyard proclaimed, "Raise your heads, O gates!" He generously served his guests three hundred calves for dinner, three hundred wine barrels, and the volume of mikveh of meat of young birds for dessert. As a result, there were never sacrifice meat leftovers.

Art: Weaning the Calf by Winslow Homer