1)

(a)If the Sheluchim who are carrying the town's Shekalim to Yerushalayim lose them on the way or if the money is stolen ...

1. ... after the Terumas ha'Lishkah has already been emptied they must swear to the treasurers of Hekdesh that they were not careless ... .

2. ... before the Terumas ha'Lishkah has been emptied they must swear to the townspeople, to whom they are still answerable.

(b)The reason for the difference is because once the Terumas ha'Lishkah has been collected, Hekdesh accepts full responsibility for all the Shekalim except for what is known to have been lost (in which case the owner remains obligated to replace it).

(c)In the event that the money is found, this Tana rules that both lots are Shekalim (though that does not absolve the losers from giving their half-Shekel again the following year).

2)

(a)In light of the fact that there is no Shevu'ah on Hekdesh, Shmuel explains the Shevu'ah in the Reisha by establishing the Mishnah by a Shomer Sachar, who swears in order to receive his remuneration ...

(b)... and when the Tana says 'Nishba'in le'Gizbarin', he means that the Sheluchim swear in the presence of the Gizbarim (but the Shevu'ah is to the B'nei ha'Ir who sent them).

(c)And the two possible reasons for this Shevu'ah are either to avoid falling under suspicion that they actually stole the money (and swore falsely), or so that the townspeople should not accuse them of negligence.

3)

(a)Shmuel concludes that the Sheluchim are Shomrei Sachar, as we explained. The problem with the Shevu'ah then is that a Shomer Sachar pays for Geneivah va'Aveidah, and cannot exempt himself with a Shevu'ah.

(b)Rabah therefore interprets ...

1. ...'Nignevu' to mean through armed robbers, and ...

2. ... 'Avdu' to mean that his ship sunk in the sea, both of which are Onsin.

(c)Alternatively, Rebbi Yochanan tries to establish the Beraisa by Kodshim on which the townspeople retained responsibility, like Rebbi Shimon, who holds 'Kodshim she'Chayav be'Achrayusan, Yesh Lahen Ona'ah, ve'Nishba'in Aleihen'.

4)

(a)The problem with Rebbi Yochanan's explanation from the Reisha 'Im Nisremah ha'Terumah ... is why the Tana concludes Nishba'in le'Gizbarin'? Once the Terumas ha'Lishkah has been separated, the townspeople are no longer responsible (so if the author is Rebbi Shimon, back comes the Kashya 'Why the Shevu'ah'?)

(b)This Kashya is based on the Mishnah in Shekalim 'Tormin al he'Avud ve'al ha'Gavuy'.

1. 'Avud' is half-Shekalim that were already collected and were on their way to Yerushalayim, when the Kohanim performed the Terumas ha'Lishkah.

2. 'Gavuy' is half-Shekalim that have already been collected but not yet sent.

(c)The third case covered by the Terumas ha'Lishkah is that of 'al he'Asid Ligavos', which means the half Shekalim that have yet to be collected.

(d)The Trumas ha'Lishkah was performed three times annually, before Pesach, before Shevu'os and before Sukos.

(e)According to Rebbi Elazar, this Shevu'ah is only a Takanas Chachamim, to stop people from failing to give Kodshim their due respect, and looking after them properly.

5)

(a)The Beraisa states that if the Gizbar of Hekdesh hires a Shomer to look after a cow, a child or seeds, the Shomer does not receive remuneration for Shabbos. The ramifications of this ruling are that should something go wrong on Shabbos, he is not held responsible.

(b)The ...

1. ... cow referred to by the Tana is the Parah Adumah, which requires guarding to prevent it from becoming Pasul by carrying something on its back or by becoming blemished.

2. ... child referred to by the Tana is one that is being raised in seclusion (to prevent him from coming into contact with Tum'as Meis), in order to prepare the Parah Adumah (as we learned in Sukah).

3. ... barley (or wheat)-seeds is to cultivate them either for the Omer seventy days before the Omer is due to be brought, or in the Sh'mitah-year for the Omer (barley) or for the Sh'tei ha'Lechem (wheat).

(c)The guard will get paid S'char Shabbos (and therefore be held responsible should anything happen on Shabbos) if he is hired to work for a week, a month, a year or a cycle of seven years (because then the wages for Shabbos are absorbed in the rest of the wages).

6)

(a)Bearing in mind that the Tana is talking about Hekdesh, Rami bar Chama asked Rabah from the Seifa of the Beraisa 'Lefichach, Acharayus Shabbos Alav' and we have learned that a Shomer Sachar is Patur from paying Hekdesh?

(b)And when, in reply, Rabah established the Shomer's obligation with regard to losing his wages (rather than an obligation to pay), he retorted that in that case, we would have a problem with the Reisha 'Ein Achrayus Shabbos Alav', which will also then mean that he receives his wages for that Shabbos, the Kashya arises which wages?

(c)Rabah was stymied. Rami bar Chama however, establishes 'Achrayus Shabbos Alav' to mean that he is indeed liable to pay and he deals with the problem by further establishing the case where they initially made a Kinyan, in which case, the Shomer was Meshabed all his property, and became obligated to pay come what may, even to Hekdesh.

(d)Rebbi Yochanan explained it that way, too.

7)

(a)A Beraisa expert quoted a Beraisa 'Kodshim she'Chayav be'Achriyusan, Chayav she'Ani Korei bahen " ... ba'Hashem ve'Kichesh", she'Eino Chayav be'Achriyusan, Patur, she'Ani Korei bahen "ba'Amiso ve'Kichesh". The Torah actually writes " ... ba'Hashem, ve'Kichesh ba'Amiso".

(b)According to this version, the Tana presumes that the cause of the Chiyuv is the fact that it belongs to Hekdesh.

(c)When Rebbi Yitzchak bar Aba's heard this version, his reaction ...

1. ... to the text was that, according to the current assumption, the Tana ought rather to have said 'Kodshim she'Chayav be'Achriyusan, Patur she'Ani Korei bahen " ... ba'Amiso ve'Kichesh", she'Eino Chayav be'Achriyusan, Chayav, she'Ani Korei bahen "ba'Hashem ve'Kichesh" (because it is more logical to say that the animal which the owner is not responsible for belongs to Hekdesh).

2. ... to the presumption was that, in any event, it would make more sense to be obligate a Shevu'ah on the animal that belongs to a Hedyot.

(d)His opening remark was 'K'lapei Laya, which means 'Which way is this turning' (it ought to be learned the other way round).

(e)When the Beraisa expert suggested erasing the Beraisa he replied that this was not necessary. All that was needed was to invert the D'rashos and to read it 'Kodshim she'Chayav be'Achriyusan, Chayav, she'Ani Korei bahen " ... ba'Amiso ve'Kichesh", ve'she'she'Eino Chayav be'Achriyusan, Patur, she'Ani Korei bahen "ba'Hashem ve'Kichesh".

8)

(a)Rebbi Yehudah in our Mishnah exempts a Sefer-Torah, animals and jewels from Ona'ah. The reason that the Beraisa attributes to Rebbi Yehudah's ruling with regard to ...

1. ... a Seifer Torah is because it is priceless anyway.

2. ... an animal and jewels because someone who has one and needs a second one to make up a pair, will willingly pay more than the regular price for the second ox or jewel that will achieve that.

(b)The Rabbanan argue with Rebbi Yehudah regarding the latter two because in that case, they say, people will try and find a match for just about anything.

(c)Rebbi Yehudah counters that by differentiating between other things, which they would not be willing to pay a higher price for, and an animal and jewels, for which, due to their high value, they would.

(d)The ceiling above which Rebbi Yehudah will concede that the above are liable to Ona'ah, says Ameimar is double their market value.

9)

(a)Rebbi Yehudah ben Beseira adds (to Rebbi Yehudah's list) a horse, a sword and a Tittum (or T'ris [a shield]), during war-time ...

(b)... because they involve Chayei Nefesh (life preservation).

(c)Our Mishnah equates Ona'as Devarim with Ona'as Mamon. The definition of 'Ona'as Devarim' is teasing someone or hurting him verbally.

10)

(a)One contravenes Ona'as Devarim in the realm of buying and selling by asking the price of something that he has no intention of buying (also known as 'Geneivas Da'as').

(b)Because it involves Ona'as Devarim, one should not say to a Ba'al Teshuvah 'Remember your past deeds'.

(c)We learn from the Pasuk in Mishpatim "ve'Ger Lo Sonu ve'Lo Silchatzenu" that one should not say to a ben Geirim 'Remember the deeds of your fathers'.

11)

(a)The Beraisa knows that the Pasuk "Lo Sonu Ish es Amiso" pertains to Ona'as Devarim because we already learn Ona'as Mamon from the earlier Pasuk ("ve'Chi Simkeru Mimkor la'Amisecha, Lo Sonu ... ".

(b)The Tana of the Beraisa forbids one to say ...

1. ... to a Ger 'How can the same mouth that ate Neveilos and T'reifos ... now expect to study Torah'?

2. ... to a person who is suffering from an illness or who has lost a number of children that this can only have happened because all his apparent Yir'as Shamayim was not genuine. Otherwise, Hash-m would have spared him all this suffering.

(c)In fact Iyov's friends said that to Iyov (see Agados Maharsha).

(d)If Reuven asks Shimon for wheat, and he doesn't have any he should not send him to Levi to buy it, knowing that Levi does not have any.

12)

(a)Rebbi Yehudah adds that one should not examine an article as if he intends to purchase it, if in reality, he has no intention of doing so. The reason the Tana finally gives for the Torah inserting "ve'Yareisa me'Elokecha" in connection with "Lo Sonu" is because, one's intentions are often hidden in one's heart, and only Hash-m is aware of what they really are. For example, he can always say that he thought that Levi had wheat, or that he had really meant to buy the article he was examining (even though in reality, he didn't).

(b)Rebbi Yochanan in the name of Rebbi Shimon bar Yochai learns from the fact that the Torah writes it in connection with Ona'as Devarim, and not Ona'as Mamon that Ona'as Devarim is a worse sin than Ona'as Mamon.

(c)Rebbi Elazar ascribes this to the fact that whereas the latter is only a monetary issue, the former is a personal one. The third reason that Rav Shmuel bar Nachmeini gives for it is the fact that Ona'as Mamon can be returned, whereas Ona'as Devarim cannot.

13)

(a)The Beraisa quoted by the Beraisa-expert compares someone who shames his fellow-Jew in public to someone who commits a murder.

(b)He describes the act of 'shaming' as causing his face to turn white.

(c)Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak corroborates this because he had seen how the red (that initially appears in the form of a blush [see Tosfos DH 'de'Azil']) disappears, and the face then turns white.

14)

(a)The B'nei Eretz Yisrael were particularly careful not to shame one another because that is one of the three things for which one descends to Gehinom and does not come up again (see Tosfos DH 'Chutz').

(b)Besides someone who committed adultery with a married woman, they also include in the list someone who calls a fellow-Jew by a derogatory nickname.

(c)Having already listed 'Malbin P'nei Chavero', the Tana nevertheless needs to add someone who calls his friend by a derogatory nickname because he is referring to a case where the person concerned has already grown accustomed to being called by that name, and who therefore feels no embarrassment at being called by it one more time.