Commentary for Avodah Zarah 30:14
ואי דלא קטיל אמאי לא לעולם דלא קטיל והב"ע במשמוטא דזימנין דעביד לאצולי נפשיה
If [on the other hand] he has never committed murder, why not [sell them to him]? It refers indeed to one who has not committed murder; but we may be dealing here with a sneaky thief who is apt at times [when caught] to save himself [by committing murder].
Daf Shevui to Avodah Zarah
Dimi b. Abba extends the prohibition of selling weapons to Jewish robbers. The Talmud explains that this refers even to a robber not known to murder. The robber referred to here is even one who is sneaky, more of a thief than a robber. The thief may not intend to murder, but if he gets caught, he might commit murder in order to save himself. Therefore, one should not sell weapons to them.
Ask RabbiBookmarkShareCopy