Gittin 12

ואי עבדת אהנית מאי אי עבדת אהנית דאי אתי בעל מערער לא משגחינן ביה

but if you have done so, so much the better. What [did Rab] mean by these last words? — [He meant] that if the husband came and raised objections against the Get, they would pay no attention to him;<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Once the declaration was made. ');">¹</span>

כדתניא מעשה באדם אחד שהביא גט לפני רבי ישמעאל אמר לו צריך אני לומר בפני נכתב ובפני נחתם או איני צריך אמר לו בני מהיכן אתה אמר לו רבי מכפר סיסאי אני אמר לו צריך אתה לומר. בפני נכתב ובפני נחתם שלא תיזקק לעדים

as it has been taught: A man once brought a Get before R. Ishmael, and asked him whether he was required to declare, 'In my presence etc. Said R. Ishmael to him: My son, from where are you? He replied: Rabbi, I am from Kefar Sisai. Whereupon R. Ishmael said to him: It is necessary for you to declare that It was written and signed in your presence, so that the woman should not require witnesses [in case the husband raises objections]. After the man left, R. Ila'i came in to R. Ishmael and said to him: Is not Kefar Sisai<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Or Simai, identified with Kefar Sumeija, N.W. of Kefar Hananiah ('Anan); v. Kaftor wa-Ferah, p. 270, and Klein, S., Beitrage, p. 29, n. 4. ');">²</span>

לאחר שיצא נכנס לפניו רבי אלעאי אמר לו רבי והלא כפר סיסאי מובלעת בתחום ארץ ישראל וקרובה לציפורי יותר מעכו ותנן רבי מאיר אומר עכו כארץ ישראל לגיטין ואפי' רבנן לא פליגי עליה דר"מ אלא בעכו דמרחקא אבל כפר סיסאי דמקרבא לא

within the ambit of the border-line of Eretz Israel, and is it not nearer to Sepphoris than Acco is, and does not the Mishnah tell us that R. MEIR HELD THAT ACCO COUNTS AS ERETZ ISRAEL IN MATTERS OF BILLS OF DIVORCE,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Hence the declaration should not be required. ');">³</span>

אמר לו שתוק בני שתוק הואיל ויצא הדבר בהיתר יצא

[and even the Rabbis differ from R. Meir only in regard to Acco, which is some distance away, but not in regard to Kefar Sisai which is near?]<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' [The bracketed sentence is not in the Tosef. Git. I. whence this passage is quoted.] ');">⁴</span>

הא איהו נמי שלא תיזקק לעדים קאמר ליה לא סיימוה קמיה

R. Ishmael said to him: Say nothing, my son, say nothing; now that the thing has been declared permissible, let it remain so. [Why should R. Ila'i have thought otherwise], seeing that [R. Ishmael] also gave as a reason 'that the woman should not require witnesses'? — [R. Ila'i] had not been told of these concluding words.

שלח ליה ר' אביתר לרב חסדא גיטין הבאים משם לכאן אין צריך לומר בפני נכתב ובפני נחתם לימא קסבר לפי שאין בקיאין לשמה והני גמירי

R. Abiathar sent to R. Hisda [the following instruction:] [The bearers of] writs of divorce from there [Babylon] to here [Eretz Israel] are not required to declare, 'In my presence it was written and in my presence it was signed.' May we presume that he was of opinion that the reason for requiring the declaration is because the [Jews outside Palestine] are not familiar with the rule of 'special intention', while these [the Babylonians] are familiar? — Can you really presume this, seeing that Rabbah accepts Raba's reason? No. All agree that [the reason is] because we require someone who can confirm the signatures if necessary, and in this case, as there are always people going to and fro between Babylon and Eretz Israel, witnesses can easily be found.

ותסברא והא רבה אית ליה דרבא אלא דכ"ע בעינן לקיימו וכיון דאיכא רבים דסלקי ונחתי מישכח שכיחי

Said R. Joseph: Can it be maintained that R. Abiathar is an authority who can be relied upon? [Have we not] moreover evidence to the contrary? For it was he who sent a statement to Rab Judah, [running,] 'Jews who come from there [Babylon] to here [Eretz Israel] fulfil in their own persons the words of the Scripture: They have given a boy for a harlot and sold a girl for wine and have drunk,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Joel IV, 3. [He disapproved of the practice of Babylonian students marrying before graduation and then betaking themselves to the Palestinian schools for the completion of their studies, leaving their wives and children in utter destitution. (V. Nashi and Tosaf.)] ');">⁵</span>

אמר רב יוסף מאן לימא לן דר' אביתר בר סמכא הוא ועוד הא איהו דשלח ליה לרב יהודה בני אדם העולין משם לכאן הן קיימו בעצמן (יואל ד, ג) ויתנו (את) הילד בזונה והילדה מכרו ביין וישתו וכתב ליה בלא שירטוט

and he wrote the words from Scripture without ruling lines under them, although R. Isaac has said that a quotation of two words [from Scripture] may be written without lines but not of three (in a Baraitha it was taught that three may be written without lines but not four)? — Said Abaye to him: Because a man does not know this rule of R. Isaac, is he therefore not to be counted a great scholar? If it were a rule established by logical deduction, we might think so.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' As this would show R. Abiathar to be deficient in logical acumen. ');">⁶</span>

וא"ר יצחק שתים כותבין שלש אין כותבין במתניתא תנא שלש כותבין ארבע אין כותבין

But it is purely a tradition,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' [The whole regulation requiring Biblical passages to be underlined is based on an ancient oral tradition going back to Moses at Sinai; v. Soferim I.] ');">⁷</span>

א"ל אביי אטו כל דלא ידע הא דר' יצחק לאו גברא רבה הוא בשלמא מילתא דתליא בסברא לחיי הא גמרא היא וגמרא לא שמיע ליה

and it is a tradition which R. Abiathar had not heard. Nay more, R. Abiathar is the authority whose view was confirmed by his Master,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' God Himself. ');">⁸</span>

ועוד הא ר' אביתר הוא דאסכים מריה על ידיה דכתיב (שופטים יט, ב) ותזנה עליו פילגשו רבי אביתר אמר זבוב מצא לה ר' יונתן אמר נימא מצא לה

[in the following way]. Commenting on the text, And his concubine played the harlot against him,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Judg. XIX, 2. ');">⁹</span>

ואשכחיה ר' אביתר לאליהו א"ל מאי קא עביד הקב"ה א"ל עסיק בפילגש בגבעה ומאי קאמר אמר ליה אביתר בני כך הוא אומר יונתן בני כך הוא אומר

R. Abiathar said that the Levite found a fly with her, and R. Jonathan said that he found a hair on her. R. Abiathar soon afterwards came across Elijah and said to him: 'What is the Holy One, blessed be He, doing?' and he answered, 'He is discussing the question of the concubine in Gibea.' 'What does He say?' said Elijah: '[He says], My son Abiathar says So-and-so, and my son Jonathan says So-and-so,' Said R. Abiathar: 'Can there possibly be uncertainty in the mind of the Heavenly One?' He replied: Both [answers] are the word of the living God. He [the Levite] found a fly and excused it, he found a hair and did not excuse it. Rab Judah explained: He found a fly in his food and a hair in loco concubitus; the fly was merely disgusting, but the hair was dangerous. Some say, he found both in his food; the fly was not her fault, the hair was.

א"ל ח"ו ומי איכא ספיקא קמי שמיא א"ל אלו ואלו דברי אלהים חיים הן זבוב מצא ולא הקפיד נימא מצא והקפיד

R. Hisda said: A man should never terrorise his household. The concubine of Gibea was terrorised by her husband and she was the cause of many thousands being slaughtered in Israel. Rab Judah said in the name of Rab: If a man terrorises his household, he will eventually commit the three sins of unchastity,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' By having intercourse with his wife when she is unclean, because she is afraid to tell him. ');">¹⁰</span>

אמר רב יהודה זבוב בקערה ונימא באותו מקום זבוב מאיסותא ונימא סכנתא איכא דאמרי אידי ואידי בקערה זבוב אונסא ונימא פשיעותא

blood-shedding,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Because the members of his household run away from him and meet with fatal accidents. ');">¹¹</span>

אמר רב חסדא לעולם אל יטיל אדם אימה יתירה בתוך ביתו שהרי פילגש בגבעה הטיל עליה בעלה אימה יתירה והפילה כמה רבבות מישראל

and desecration of the Sabbath.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Because his wife through fear of him lights the lamp after dark. ');">¹²</span>

אמר רב יהודה אמר רב כל המטיל אימה יתירה בתוך ביתו סוף הוא בא לידי שלש עבירות גילוי עריות ושפיכות דמים וחילול שבת

Rabba b. Bar Hanah said:' The three things which a man has to say to his household just before Sabbath commences, 'Have you set aside the tithe? Have you placed the 'Erub? Light the lamp,'<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. Shah. 34a. ');">¹³</span>

אמר רבה בר בר חנה הא דאמרי רבנן שלשה דברים צריך אדם לומר בתוך ביתו ערב שבת עם חשיכה עשרתם ערבתם הדליקו את הנר צריך