Bava Batra 23

בית סתום יש לו ד' אמות פרץ את פצימיו אין לו ד' אמות

A room that is shut up carries with it four cubits in the courtyard,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' If ever it comes to be divided. ');">¹</span>

(קבר שפתחו סתום אינו מטמא כל סביביו פרץ את פצימיו וסתמו מטמא כל סביביו) בית סתום אינו מטמא כל סביביו פרץ את פצימיו מטמא כל סביביו

but if the posts [of the door] have been taken down, it does not carry with it four cubits. If a room is shut up it does not render unclean all the space around it,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' If there is a dead body lying there. ');">²</span>

אמר רבה בר בר חנה א"ר יוחנן מבואות המפולשות לעיר אחרת ובקשו בני העיר לסותמן בני אותה העיר מעכבין עליהן לא מיבעי כי ליכא דרכא אחרינא דמעכבי אלא אפילו כי איכא דרכא אחרינא נמי מעכבי

but if the posts have been taken down it does render unclean all the space around it [to a distance of four cubits].<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Because then it is regarded no longer as a room but as a grave. V. Tosef. Oh. XVIII. ');">³</span>

משום דרב יהודה אמר רב דאמר מצר שהחזיקו בו רבים אסור לקלקלו (כדרב גידל דא"ר גידל רבים שבררו דרך לעצמן מה שבררו בררו)

Rabbah b. Bar Hana said in the name of R. Johanan: If the people of a town desire to close alley-ways which afford a through way to another town, the inhabitants of the other town can prevent them. Not only is this the case if there is no other way, but even if there is another way they can prevent them, on the ground of the rule laid down by Rab Judah in the name of Rab, that a field path to which the public have established a right of way must not be damaged.

אמר רב ענן אמר שמואל מבואות המפולשין לרה"ר ובקשו בני מבואות להעמיד להן דלתות בני רה"ר מעכבין עליהן

R. 'Anan said in the name of Samuel: If the residents of alleyways which open out on to the public thoroughfare desire to set up doors at the entrance, the public [who use the thoroughfares] can prevent them. It was thought that this right extended only to a distance of four cubits [from the public thoroughfare], in accordance with what R. Zera said in the name of R. Nahman, that the four cubits [in the alley-way] adjoining the public thoroughfare are on the same footing as the public thoroughfare. This, however, is not the case. For R. Nahman's rule applies only to the matter of uncleanness,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' If there is a suspicion of uncleanness in the four cubits up the alley-way it is treated as if it occurred in a public place and is deemed clean. Toh. IV, II. ');">⁴</span>

סבור מינה הני מילי בד אמות כדר' זירא אמר רב נחמן דאמר רבי זירא אמר רב נחמן ד' אמות הסמוכות לרה"ר כרה"ר דמיין ולא היא התם לענין טומאה אבל הכא זימנין דדחקי בני רה"ר ועיילי טובא:

but here [in the case of the doors it does not apply because] sometimes people from the street are pushed in by the crowd a good distance.

ולא את השדה עד שיהא בה תשעה קבין לזה ותשעה קבין לזה כו': ולא פליגי מר כי אתריה ומר כי אתריה

A FIELD SHOULD NOT BE DIVIDED UNLESS THERE WILL BE NINE KABS' SPACE TO EACH. There is no difference [between this authority and R. Judah who said nine half-kabs]; each was speaking for his own district.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., in the district of the first Tanna, less than nine kabs was not reckoned a field worth sowing. V. Tosaf. s.v. [H]. ');">⁵</span>

בבבל מאי אמר רב יוסף בי רדו יומא

What is the rule in Babylon? — R. Joseph said: [There must be] a day's ploughing [for each]. What is meant by a day's ploughing? If a day's ploughing in seed time,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' When the ground is soft, having been already broken up by the first ploughing in the autumn. ');">⁶</span>

מאי בי רדו יומא אי יומא זרעא תרי יומא כרבא לא הוי אי יומא כרבא יומא דזרעא לא הוי

that is not a two full days' ploughing in plough time,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' But something between one and two days, so that the ploughman will not be able to hire oxen to advantage. ');">⁷</span>

אי בעית אימא יומא דכרבא דכריב ותני ואי בעית אימא יומא דזרעא בהדורי

and if a day's ploughing in plough time, that is not a full day's ploughing in seed time?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' And therefore again the ploughman will not be able to hire oxen to advantage. ');">⁸</span>

דוולא אמר רב נחמן בי דאלו יומא פרדסא אמר אבוה דשמואל בת שלשת קבין

— If you like I can say that a day's ploughing in plough time is meant, and in seed time [it takes a full day] where one ploughs twice,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Both before and after putting the seed in, and so takes a full day. ');">⁹</span>

תניא נמי הכי האומר לחבירו מנת בכרם אני מוכר לך סומכוס אומר לא יפחות מג' קבין א"ר יוסי אין אלו אלא דברי נביאות בבבל מאי אמר רבא בר קסנא תלת אציאתה בני תריסר גופני כי היכי דרפיק גברא ביומא

or if you like I can say that a day's ploughing in seed time is meant and in plough time [two full days are needed] where the ground is difficult.

אמר רבי אבדימי דמן חיפה מיום שחרב בית המקדש ניטלה נבואה מן הנביאים וניתנה לחכמים אטו חכם לאו נביא הוא הכי קאמר אע"פ שניטלה מן הנביאים מן החכמים לא ניטלה

If a trench is divided, R. Nahman said [enough must be left for each party to provide] a day's work in watering the field. If a vineyard, the father<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Abba b. Abbu. ');">¹⁰</span>

אמר אמימר וחכם עדיף מנביא שנאמר (תהלים צ, יב) ונביא לבב חכמה מי נתלה במי הוי אומר קטן נתלה בגדול

of Samuel said that three kabs' space must be left to each. It has been taught to the same effect: If a man says to another, I sell you a portion in a vineyard, Symmachus said, he must not sell him less than three kabs' space. R. Jose, however, said that this is sheer imagination.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Lit., 'words of prophesying'. ');">¹¹</span>

אמר אביי תדע דאמר גברא רבה מילתא ומתאמרא משמיה דגברא רבה אחרינא כוותיה אמר רבא ומאי קושיא ודילמא תרוייהו בני חד מזלא נינהו אלא אמר רבא תדע דאמר גברא רבה מילתא ומתאמרא

What is the rule in Babylon? Raba b. Kisna said: Three rows each with twelve vines, enough for a man to hoe round in one day. R. Abdimi from Haifa said: Since the day when the Temple was destroyed, prophecy has been taken from the prophets and given to the wise. Is then a wise man not also a prophet?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., were not wise men prophets also before the Temple was destroyed? ');">¹²</span> — What he meant was this: Although it has been taken from the prophets, it has not been taken from the wise. Amemar said: A wise man is even superior to a prophet, as it says, And a prophet has a heart of wisdom.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ps. XC, 12. The word [H] in the text (E.V. 'that we nay get us') is taken here in the sense of 'prophet'. ');">¹³</span> Who is compared with whom? Is not the smaller compared with the greater?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' And here the prophet is compared with the wise man. ');">¹⁴</span> Abaye said: The proof [that prophecy has not been taken from the wise] is that a great man makes a statement, and the same is then reported in the name of another great man.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The first having hit upon the same idea quite independently. ');">¹⁵</span> Said Raba: What is there strange in this? Perhaps both were born under one star.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' And this was why they hit on the same idea. ');">¹⁶</span> No, said Raba; the proof is this, that a great man makes a statement and then the same is reported