404 A Mistake in the Raffle
The system of goralos (drawing lots) is mentioned several times in Chumash and throughout Tanach. In the Beis Hamikdash (The Holy Temple) a goral was often used to determine whose turn it was to carry out the avodah. In halachah we consider the outcome of a goral to be binding. A passuk in Mishlei tells us that the outcome of a goral is determined by Hashem—He chooses the winner. The Geonim strongly condemned a person who is oveir al hagoral (violates the outcome of a goral), k’oveir al Aseres Hadibros (like one who violates the Ten Commandments). However, this applies only if the goral was done properly; if not, it loses its validity and needs to be redone. For example, if two tickets were entered for an individual instead of one—even if that person was not the winner—or if someone’s name was left out, or if anything at all was done improperly, the goral has no validity and should be redone.