Commentary for Yevamot 38:4

אלא לאו רבי שמעון ובייבם ואח"כ נולד פליג בנולד ואחר כך ייבם לא פליג ש"מ

may take in levirate marriage whichever of them he desires or he may participate in the <i>halizah</i> with whichever of them he desires. Now, in accordance with whose view was the case in the latter clause<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Marriage between the second brother and the first widow, followed by the birth of the third brother, which again was followed by the death of the second. ');">⁹</span> taught?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., in accordance with whose view was it necessary to have the case of marriage prior to birth separated from that of marriage after birth? ');">¹⁰</span> If it be suggested that it was taught in accordance with the view of R. Meir,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' To indicate that even in such a case he forbids marriage. ');">¹¹</span> it might be observed that, as R. Meir draws no distinction between marriage that was followed by birth and birth that was followed by marriage, all these cases should have been combined in one statement!<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Lit., 'let him mix them and teach them'; the third case, 'if he married her and (after that a third) brother was born and then he himself died' should not have been separated from the previous two cases, since according to R. Meir it matters little whether marriage of the second brother with the first widow preceded or followed the birth of the third brother. ');">¹²</span>

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