Commentary for Kiddushin 138:5
בשלמא למאן דאמר עלו היינו דאמר רב יהודה אמר שמואל כל ארצות עיסה לארץ ישראל וארץ ישראל עיסה לבבל אלא למ"ד העלום מידע ידעינהו נהי דידעי לההוא דרא לדרא אחריני לא ידעי
the other Master holds that [even so] he led them up against their will. Now, on the view that they went up [voluntarily], it is well: thus Rab Judah said in Samuel's name: All countries are as dough in comparison with Palestine,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Dough is a mixture of flour and water. I.e., the Jews there have not such a pure descent as those in Palestine.');"><sup>6</sup></span>
Daf Shevui to Kiddushin
Rav Yehudah said that the lineage of most countries is dough in comparison with Israel, meaning it is all muddled. But Israel’s lineage is more muddled than Babylonia. This works well with Abaye who said that they went up to Israel voluntarily and that Ezra did not sort their lineages out before they went up. There was no oversight as to who could marry whom. But to Rava who said that Ezra forced them to go, Ezra sorted their lineage out. So why is Israel like dough in comparison to Babylonia?
The answer is that while that generation knew its lineage, subsequent ones did not.
The answer is that while that generation knew its lineage, subsequent ones did not.
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