[31a - 49 lines; 31b - 44 lines]
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We recommend using the textual changes suggested by the Bach and the marginal notes of the Vilna Shas. This section is devoted to any other important corrections that Acharonim have pointed out in the Gemara and Rashi.
[1] Gemara 31a [line 39]:
The words "u'Chesiv 'ha'Kel ha'Me'azreni Chayil' (Tehilim 18:33)" åëúéá ä÷ì äîàæøðé çéì
should be "u'Chesiv 'va'Te'azreni Chayil' (Tehilim 18:40)" åëúéá åúàæøðé çéì (as is found in Ein Yakov to Yoma 47a)
[2] Rashi 31a DH Tzaba ã"ä öáò:
The words "l'Tzov'o b'Yorah Achas" ìöåáòå áéåøä àçú
should be "li'Tzvo'a b'Yorah Achas" ìöáåò áéåøä àçú
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1)[line 1]"îîòé àîé àúä âåæé""MI'ME'EI IMI ATAH GOZI"- "from the innards of my mother, You drew me out" (Tehilim 71:6) - Our Gemara interprets the words "Atah Gozi" as "You made me take an oath"; the Gemara goes on to prove that Gozi is related to a word for an oath.
2)[line 3]"âæé ðæøê åäùìéëé""GOZI NIZRECH V'HASHLICHI"- "Cut off your hair (of Nezirus) and cast it away" (Yirmeyahu 7:29) - Nezirus is a vow, which is similar to an oath (RASHI; see next entry).
3)[line 3]"âæé ðæøê åäùìéëé""GOZI NIZRECH V'HASHLICHI"- the word "Gozi" in this verse is being translated as "Shevu'ah." This is referring to the Shevu'ah of: (a) the fetus. Yirmeyahu is telling the wicked people of his generation to keep the Shevu'ah of the fetus ("Nizrech"), i.e. to keep the Torah, and abandon their evil ways (MAHARSHA); (b) the people. Yirmeyahu is recommending to the wicked people that they should make Shevu'os to keep the laws of the Torah (see Nedarim 8a) and Nezirus, in order to strengthen their resolve (ARUCH LA'NER).
4)[line 7]îãåø äúçúåïMADOR HA'TACHTON- lit. the lowest section of the womb; fig., at the lowest level of development. The time in the womb is a parable that alludes to life in general (See MAHARAL, Chidushei Agados).
5)[line 11]"àùø òËùÌÒÅéúÄé áñúø, ø÷îúé áúçúéåú àøõ""ASHER USEISI BA'SESER, RUKAMTI B'SACHTIYOS ARETZ"- "that I was made in concealment, I was knit together in the nethermost earth (in the lowest part of the womb)" (Tehilim 139:15).
6a)[line 19]îìåáïMELUBAN- refined, polished
b)[line 20]îæåøæMEZURAZ- of strong vitality
7)[line 20]"ùåîø ôúàéí ä""SHOMER PESAYIM HASH-M"- "HaSh-m is the One Who protects fools" (Tehilim 116:6).
8)[line 23]÷ìñúø ôðéíKELASTER PANIM- radiance; shining countenance
9)[line 25]ôåõ îìçà, åùãé áùøà ìëìáà!PUTZ MILCHA, V'SHADI BISRA L'CHALBA!- If you take away the salt (the preservative) you will have to throw the meat to the dogs! If the Neshamah (which preserves the body) departs, the body rots.
10)[line 26]çîú öøåøäCHEMES TZERURAH- a sealed flask
11)[line 29]"àåãê òì ëé ðåøàåú ðôìéúé ðôìàéí îòùéê åðôùé éåãòú îàã""ODECHA AL KI NORA'OS NIFLEISI, NIFLA'IM MA'ASECHA V'NAFSHI YODA'AS ME'OD"- "I give thanks to You since my creation [is full of] hidden wonders, Your works are awesome, and my soul knows it very well" (Tehilim 139:14).
12)[line 30]àãí ðåúï æøòåðéí áòøåâäADAM NOSEN ZER'ONIM B'ARUGAH- a person plants various seeds in a vegetable patch
13)[line 32]öáò ðåúï ñîðéï ìéåøäTZABA NOSEN SAMANIM L'YOREH- a dye-master puts various pigments into a dye-vat
14)[line 33]"àåãê ä', ëé àðôú áé; éùåá àôê, åúðçîðé""ODECHA HASH-M, KI ANAFTA BI; YASHOV APECHA, U'SENACHAMENI"- "I will thank You, HaSh-m, because You appeared to be angry with me (e.g. by causing me to step on a splinter); let Your anger turn away from me, and comfort me (since the splinter saved my life)" (Yeshayah 12:1).
15)[line 37]"àøçé åøáòé æøéú åëì ãøëé äñëðú""ORCHI V'RIV'I ZEIRISA V'CHOL DERACHAI HISKANTAH"- "You confine my path and my repose and You are familiar with all of my ways" (Tehilim 139:3) - The Gemara renders this as, "You have selected the choicest of the issue and seed from which I was formed...."
16)[line 38]äáøåø ùáäHA'BARUR SHE'BAH- the choicest [of the seed]
17)[line 39]"åÇúÌÇæÀøÅðé çéì ìîìçîä" ... "(ä÷-ì äîàæøðé çéì) [åÇúÌÀàÇæÌÀøÅðÄé çéì ìîìçîä]""VA'TAZRENI CHAYIL [LA'MILCHAMAH]" / "(HA'KE-L HA'ME'AZRENI CHAYIL) [VA'TE'AZRENI CHAYIL LA'MILCHAMAH]"- "You girded me with strength in battle" - The first verse is from Shmuel II 22:40, and the second verse is from Tehilim 18:40 (see above, Girsa secton #1). Both chapters are the Song of David, with slight variations.
18a)[line 40]æéøéúðéZEIRISANI- (a) You winnowed me (refined me; selected the choicest of the seed) (RASHI); (b) You "winnowed" me (selected the choicest of the seed), and then winnowed me again (selected the best part of the choicest of the seed) (RASHI to Yoma 47a)
b)[line 40]æøæúðéZEIRAZTANI- and You filled me with vitality
19)[line 40]"îé îðä òôø éò÷á åîñôø àú øåáò éùøàì""MI MANAH AFAR YAKOV U'MISPAR ES ROVA YISRAEL"- "Who has counted the dust of Yakov or the number of one quarter of Yisrael?" (Bamidbar 23:10) - The word "Rova" is related to the word "Revi'ah," marital relations.
20)[line 41]øáéòéåúéäíREVI'IYOSEIHEM- times of their marital relations
21)[line 43]"ðàí äâáø ùúåí äòéï""NE'UM HE'GEVER SHESUM HA'AYIN"- "The speech of the man whose eye is open (who sees well)" (Bamidbar 24:3). Since eye is singular, we learn that his other eye was blinded recently (TOSFOS DH Shesum).
22)[line 44]"éùùëø çîåø âøí""YISACHAR CHAMOR GAREM"- "Yisachar is a large-boned donkey" (Bereishis 49:14) - The word "Garem" is related to the word "Garam," to cause. The donkey that brayed caused Leah to hear that Yakov was coming, and she was able to greet him as he came home from the field (see Bereishis 30:14-18). Yisachar was conceived that night.
23)[line 48]"åéäéå áðé àåìí àðùéí âáåøé çéì ãåøëé ÷ùú åîøáéí áðéí åáðé áðéí""VA'YIHEYU VENEI ULAM ANASHIM GIBOREI CHAYIL DORCHEI KESHES U'MARBIM BANIM U'VENEI VANIM"- "And the sons of Ulam were valiant warriors, archers, and they produced many sons and grandsons" (Divrei ha'Yamim I 8:40) - As the Gemara explains, they were able to control themselves so that their wives gave birth to boys.
31b----------------------------------------31b
24)[line 6]àéï àùä îúòáøú àìà ñîåê ìåñúäEIN ISHAH MIS'ABERES ELA SAMUCH L'VESTAH- a woman only becomes pregnant from relations that take place one day before her Veses (before she menstruates) (for a discussion of Vestos, see Background to Nidah 9:1)
25)[line 8]"äï áòåï çåììúé åáçèà éçîúðé àîé""HEN B'AVON CHOLALTI; UV'CHET YECHEMASNI IMI"- "Behold, in iniquity I was fashioned; and in sin did my mother conceive me" (Tehilim 51:7) - The Gemara explains that "b'Avon" can be understood to mean "at a time of iniquity, (when my mother was about to be forbidden as a Nidah)" and "uv'Chet" can be understood to mean "at a time of purification."
26)[line 11]"åçèà àú äáéú""V'CHITEI ES HA'BAYIS"- "and he shall purify the house" (Vayikra 14:52) - This verse has been brought to prove that "uv'Chet" is a "Lishna d'Dachuyei" (a word that connotes purification; see previous entry).
27)[line 11]åéãëé éú áéúàV'YIDKEI YAS BEISA- "and he shall purify the house"
28)[line 12]"úçèàðé áàæåá åàèäø""TECHAT'ENI V'EZOV V'ET'HAR"- "Purge me with a hyssop and I will become pure" (Tehilim 51:9) - Ezov (hyssop) was used in various purification rituals (see Vayikra 14:4-6, 49-52).
29)[line 14]"ùìçå ëø îåùì àøõ""SHILCHU CHAR MOSHEL ERETZ"- "Send a fattened lamb as a gift to the ruler of the land" (Yeshayah 16:1) - "Notrikon" (which means either (a) splitting a word into numerous words; or (b) making an acronym out of it) for "Zachar," "male" is "Zeh Char," "this is a gift." This verse is brought to prove that when a boy is born, peace comes to the world, since gifts are given as a prelude to or as a result of peace.
30)[line 17]"åéëøä ìäí ëéøä âãåìä åéëìå åéùúå""VA'YICHREH LAHEM KEIRAH GEDOLAH VA'YOCHELU VA'YISHTU..."- "And he prepared a great feast for them, and they ate and they drank; [and he sent them away, and they went to their master. And the bands of Aram came no more to the land of Yisrael]" (Melachim II 6:23).
31)[line 18]òã ãàîøä îæåðéAD D'AMRAH MEZONEI- until she prays for food
32)[line 19]"ð÷áä ùëøê òìé åàúðä!""NAKVAH SECHARCHA ALAI V'ETENAH!"- "Specify your wage to me and I will give it!" (Bereishis 30:28) - The word "Nakvah," similar to "Nekevah," is used in this verse with a connotation of speaking in order to receive benefit.
33)[line 20]ùàìå úìîéãéå àú øáé ùîòåï áï éåçéSHA'ALU TALMIDAV ES REBBI SHIMON BAR YOCHAI- the students asked Rebbi Shimon ben Yochai these questions because he used to look for "Ta'ama d'Kera," the underlying reasons for the Mitzvos (ARUCH LA'NER)
34)[line 25]÷øáï ùáåòäKORBAN SHEVU'AH (SHEVU'AS BITUY)
(a)A person can take an oath, or a "Shevu'as Bituy," by swearing to do something or not to do something, or by swearing that he did or did not do something in the past. If he does not keep his word, or if his oath regarding an action of the past is false, he transgresses the Torah's prohibition not to swear falsely (Vayikra 19:12 — RAMBAM Hilchos Shevu'os 1:3). If his oath was made regarding an action that he will or will not do in the future, he transgresses the Torah's prohibition not to violate one's word as well (Bamidbar 30:3, see Background to Nedarim 2:1a:a — KESEF MISHNEH to the Rambam ibid.). It is prohibited to take an unnecessary or ridiculous oath. Such a Shevu'ah is known as a "Shevu'as Shav," which the Torah prohibits in the Ten Commandments, Shemos 20:7. (See Rambam, Hilchos Shevu'os 1:4, for a description of the various categories of Shevu'as Shav and Background to Sanhedrin 27:14.)
(b)Shevu'os in which a person prohibits certain acts upon himself are similar to Nedarim (vows). However, as opposed to Nidrei Isur and Charamim, in which a person places a prohibition on a specific object (e.g. "this bread is prohibited"), when making Shevu'os a person places a prohibition upon himself which prohibits him from performing a certain action (e.g. "I am prohibited to eat this bread"), as the Gemara states in Nedarim 2b (see Background to Nedarim 2:1a:b, and Insights to Nedarim 2:3).
(c)Some Rishonim maintain that when expressing a Shevu'ah, one must mention a name of or a reference to Hash-m in order for the Shevu'ah to take effect (see RAN and Rishonim to Nedarim 2a).
(d)If one unintentionally transgresses his oath (Shevu'as Bituy), he is required to bring a Korban Shevu'ah. The Korban Shevu'ah is a Korban Oleh v'Yored, which varies based on the means of the penitent:
1.If he is wealthy, he brings a female sheep or goat as a Chatas (Korban Ashir).
2.If he cannot afford this, he brings two Torim (turtledoves) or two Bnei Yonah (common doves), one as an Olah and one as a Chatas (Korban Oleh v'Yored b'Dalus).
3.If he cannot even afford the birds, he brings one tenth of an Eifah of fine flour as a Minchas Chatas (Korban Oleh v'Yored b'Dalei Dalus) (Vayikra 5:6-13). The Minchas Chatas is not mixed with oil, and Levonah (frankincense) is not sprinkled on top of it (Vayikra 5:11). When a non-Kohen brings a Minchas Chatas, a Kometz of the flour alone is burned on the Mizbe'ach and the Kohanim receive the Shirayim (the rest of the flour, which they must eat before the following sunrise — RAMBAM Hilchos Ma'aseh ha'Korbanos 10:7).
(e)If a person takes an oath prohibiting himself to do a certain act and he knowingly transgresses his oath, or if he knowingly takes a false oath that he did or did not do a certain act, he is punished with Malkus. However, if he swears to do something and does not do it, he does not get Malkus, since no action is involved (RAMBAM Hilchos Shevu'os 4:20). If one unintentionally makes a Shevu'as Shav, he is not punished. If he intentionally makes such a Shevu'ah, he is punished with Malkus (RAMBAM Hilchos Shevu'os 1:7).
35)[line 37]"... ëé ÷åìê òøá åîøàê ðàåä""... KI KOLECH AREV U'MAR'ECH NAVEH"- "[O my dove, in the clefts of the rock, in the secret places of the cliff, let me see your countenance, let me hear your voice;] for your voice is sweet, and your countenance is comely" (Shir ha'Shirim 2:14).
PEREK #4 BNOS KUSIM
36)[line 39]áðåú ëåúéí ðãåú îòøéñúïBENOS KUSIM NIDOS ME'ARISASAN (KUSIM / SAMARITANS)
(a)The King of Ashur brought the people of Kusa to Eretz Yisrael and made them settle in the Shomron. They converted to Judaism after they found themselves under attack from lions. The Chachamim disagree as to whether their conversion was honest and valid (Geirei Emes) or not (Geirei Arayos - converts because of lions).
(b)After the times of the Mishnah, the Kusim were found worshipping an image of a dove and the Chachamim gave them the status of Nochrim. (According to most Rishonim, this means that they decided to treat them like Nochrim l'Chumra, even if they were Geirei Emes. According to the RAMBAM (Peirush ha'Mishnayos), however, this means that they decided that their conversion was not sincere and deemed them Nochrim (Geirei Arayos) for all Halachic matters.)
(c)The Kusim kept many Mitzvos of the Torah down to their last detail. For example, Matzos that were baked by the Kusim, besides being perfectly free of Chometz, were fit to be used for the Mitzvah d'Oraisa of eating a k'Zayis of Matzah Shemurah on the Seder night (Tosefta Pesachim 2:2, Kidushin 76a). As is evident from another Sugya (Chulin 3a), they were also meticulous with regard to Shechitah. However, there were other Mitzvos that they did not keep at all. For example, the Kusim did not refrain from causing others to sin (which is prohibited by the verse, "Lifnei Iver Lo Siten Michshol" - "You shall not put a stumbling block before the blind" — Vayikra 19:14). They interpreted this verse literally, stating that it only applies to a stumbling block, and only before the blind.
(d)One of the Halachos about which the Kusim were not careful was the requirement of Kidushin (betrothal) before marriage. Kidushin forms a bond of husband and wife that is only severed by a Get (bill of divorce), but Kusim would not give their wives a Get when they wanted to terminate their marriages. It is possible that one Kusi affected Kidushin with a woman and another Kusi married her before she received a Get from her first husband, a situation that led Chazal to fear that many of their offspring might be Mamzerim (RASHI to Yevamos 37a).
(e)The Chachamim decreed that the daughters of the Kusim have the status of Nidos from birth. TOSFOS (Nidah 32a, DH Rebbi Meir) explains the disagreement of Rebbi Meir and Rebbi Yosi as to the nature of the decree. According to Rebbi Yosi, the Rabanan gave Benos Kusim the status of Nidos in order to prevent Jews from mingling with them. According to Rebbi Meir, the Rabanan gave them the status of Nidos from an early age because the Kusim did not accept the Torah Law that a one-day-old girl becomes a Nidah through a discharge of blood, and we suspect every Bas Kusi of having had a discharge of blood. See Insights to Nidah 31:2.
37)[line 39]òøéñúïARISASAN- their cribs
38)[line 39]îùëá úçúåï ëòìéåïMISHKAV TACHTON K'ELYON (TUM'AS MIDRAS / BO'EL NIDAH)
(a)A Nidah (see Background to Nidah 11:3), Yoledes (see Background to Nidah 29:6), Zav (see Background to Nidah 22:4), or Zavah (see Background to Nidah 30:5), can cause objects (other than Klei Cheres, earthenware objects) that are under them to become Avos ha'Tum'ah whether they touch them or not. The objects become Tamei Midras (lit. an object that is treaded upon). Two examples of Midras are known as Mishkav or Moshav ha'Zav, ha'Zavah, etc. (or the Tachton, of a Zav, etc.). An object that is under these people becomes a Midras only if it was made for lying, sitting, or leaning upon.
(b)A person who touches (Maga) or carries (Masa) either a Midras or a Zav, Zavah, Nidah or Yoledes themselves gets the status of Rishon l'Tum'ah, and so do the clothes he is wearing and other utensils (except for earthenware utensils) that he is touching at the time.
(c)Utensils or clothes that lie above the Zav, etc. also get the status of a Rishon l'Tum'ah, whether he touches them or not. These are called the Elyon of a Zav, Zavah, Nidah or Yoledes.
(d)A man who has relations with a Nidah becomes Tamei for seven days, like the Nidah herself. His laws of Tum'ah, however, are less stringent. The objects he touches, as well as Tachtono, the objects underneath him, have the same status as the objects above a Nidah, namely, Rishon l'Tum'ah, as it states in Vayikra 15:24 (see Nidah 33a, and Charts to Nidah 33:8b). After seven days, he immerses in a Mikvah during the day to complete his purification process.
39)[line 41]áéàú î÷ãùBI'AS MIKDASH (TUM'AS MIKDASH V'KODASHAV)
(a)See Background to Nidah 28:18.
(b)Since the Tum'ah of the Kusim is in doubt, they are not liable for Bi'as Mikdash unless they are certainly Teme'im.
40)[last line]øáé îàéø çééù ìîéòåèàREBBI ME'IR CHAYISH L'MI'UTA
Rebbi Meir is of the opinion that we do not follow the majority if there is a Safek (a doubt), but rather we consider the matter to be still in doubt. (According to one opinion in TOSFOS, Rebbi Meir only considers it a Safek mid'Rabanan, for according to the Torah we can rely on a Rov — Tosfos to Chulin 12a DH Pesach, and to Chulin 86b DH Semoch. Tosfos to Bechoros 19b DH b'Ruba implies that Rebbi Meir's law is mid'Oraisa, but it pertains only to a Ruba d'Leisa Kaman - see Background to Bechoros 19:11b.)