[34a - 36 lines; 34b - 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 34b [line 4]:
The words "Mei Ragleha" îé øâìéä
should be "Mei Raglayim" îé øâìéí (Rashash)
[2] Rashi 34b DH Chutz mi'Meimei Ragleha she'Bah ã"ä çåõ îéîé øâìéä ùáä:
(a) should be DH Chutz mi'Meimei Raglayim she'Bah ã"ä çåõ îéîé øâìéí ùáä
(b) The words "d'Iy Pesichei b'Meimei Ragleha" ãàé ôúéëé áîéîé øâìéä
should be "d'Iy Pesichei Bah Meimei Raglayim" ãàé ôúéëé áä îéîé øâìéí (this is referring to the urine of the Nochri)
[3] Rashi DH Metamei ã"ä îèîà:
The words "Tum'as Erev b'Keri" èåîàú òøá á÷øé
should be "Tum'as Erev k'Keri" èåîàú òøá ë÷øé
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1)[line 2]"åéàñó ëì àéù éùøàì àì äòéø ëàéù àçã çáøéí""VA'YE'ASEIF KOL ISH YISRAEL EL HA'IR K'ISH ECHAD CHAVERIM" - "And all the men of Yisrael gathered at the city like one man, as comrades" (Shoftim 20:11) (YISRAEL AND THE PILGESH B'GIV'AH)
(a)The Pilegesh b'Giva'ah, or "concubine of Giv'ah," was the daughter of an Eshes Yefas To'ar (according to Tosfos) who fled from her husband, a Levi, who had intimidated her, either for allowing a fly to fall into his food or because he discovered a hair (either in the food or in the Makom Ervah, which women tended to shave in those days).
(b)After she had been away for four months, her "husband" took his servant and a pair of donkeys and set out to try and convince her to return. When his concubine saw him outside, she took him into the house. Her father was overjoyed to see him, and gave him a royal welcome. He remained for three days. On the fourth day they rose early with the intention of leaving, but each time the Levi said goodbye, his host bade him stay and eat, until the evening of the fifth day, when he lost his patience and, ignoring his host's insistence to have a feast and stay one more night, he left with his servant, with the pair of donkeys, and with his concubine. Arriving at the gates of Yevus (Yerushalayim) just before nightfall, the servant suggested that they stay overnight in the city, but his master was loathe to stay in a Nochri town, and suggested that they move on to a Jewish town. Arriving in the city of Giv'ah of Binyamin just as night fell, they settled down in the street, as initially nobody invited them in to lodge. Eventually, however, an old man, originally from Har Efrayim, who had just come in from the fields, invited them to stay with him overnight.
(c)They had just settled in and sat down to eat when the people of the city surrounded the house and began knocking on the door, demanding that the old man hand over his guest, so that they could "have fun" with him. Like the Mal'achim in Parshas Vayera, the man went outside and confronted them, pleading with them not to treat his honored guest in this disgusting manner. He even offered them his virgin daughter and the man's concubine instead, but his pleas fell on deaf ears. They continued to demand the Levi, who took hold of his concubine and forced her outside into the hands of the waiting crowd, who raped her and abused her all night.
(d)When at the break of dawn they let her go, she made her way back to the old man's house and fell dead from exhaustion at the threshold of the house. As soon as it was light, the Levi left the house to return home and discovered his concubine dead. Placing her corpse over the donkey's back, he rode back home. Taking a sharp knife, he cut her body up into twelve pieces, and sent one piece to each tribe.
(e)When the people learned what had happened, they were shocked. After discussing the issue, they decided to gather an army and to prepare to attack the tribe of Binyamin. They mobilized 400,000 swordsmen, who gathered in Mitzpah. Binyamin knew of all this, as well as the final check with the Levi as to exactly what happened, but displayed no remorse for what transpired. It was decided there that nine out of every ten soldiers would go to war, while every tenth man would look after the provisions.
(f)Before attacking Binyamin, however, the tribes first gave the tribe the option of handing over the perpetrators to be punished, and it was only when they refused that the army of Yisrael attacked. Meanwhile, Binyamin had marshaled 26,000 swordsmen, plus 700 highly-qualified sling-shooters, all of whom were left-handed and each of whom could strike a hair without fail with his sling.
(g)The other tribes gathered a large army and encamped in Mitzpah. First they demanded again that the perpetrators be handed over to be duly punished, but the men of Binyamin refused and mobilized their own army in Giv'ah to take on the much larger army of Yisrael.
(h)Eventually, Yisrael decimated Binyamin, but not before they had lost many of their men in the first two battles.
(i)See Background to Yevamos 60b:13a
2)[line 4]çáøéíCHAVERIM (CHAVER)
(a)A Chaver is one who is meticulous in his observance of Halachah. A person is called a Chaver if he accepts upon himself four things: 1. never to give Terumah and Ma'asros to an Am ha'Aretz; 2. never to prepare Taharos in the vicinity of an Am ha'Aretz; 3. to always eat Chulin b'Taharah; 4. to take Ma'aser from all produce that one eats, sells and buys (Tosefta Demai 2:2-3). The Gemara Bechoros 30b explains exactly how one goes about accepting this distinguished status.
(b)If an Am ha'Aretz attempted to become a Chaver, but then returned to his previous ways, he becomes disqualified from becoming a Chaver forever. (See RASHI, TOSFOS, and RITVA to Bechoros ibid.)
(c)Our Gemara states that when all of Klal Yisrael assembled together to avenge the death of the Pilegesh b'Giv'ah (see above, entry #1), the verse calls them Chaverim, colleagues, comrades. At such times, all of the people get the status and the reliability of Chaverim. During the festivals (the Shalosh Regalim of Pesach, Shavu'os and Sukos), which are also a time when all of the people gather together in Yerushalayim, they similarly acquire the same status.
3)[line 4]ãí òåáãú ëåëáéíDAM OVEDES KOCHAVIM- There are three Machlokos Beis Shamai and Beis Hillel in the Mishnah:
(a) Is the menstrual blood of an Ovedes Kochavim (i.e. a Nochris) completely Tahor, or is it Tamei when moist? Beis Shamai hold the former opinion and Beis Hillel, the latter. The point under contention is how much did Chazal differentiate between Jews and Nochrim in their decree.
(b) When a Metzora'as experiences bleeding of Dam Tohar, is it Tamei like her saliva and urine? Beis Shamai rule that it is Tahor. It is not similar to saliva which builds up before it comes out. Beis Hillel rule that even though the blood is not a Ma'ayan, the Torah gives it the status of a Ma'ayan, and it is Metamei when moist.
(c) After a Yoledes finishes her Yemei Tum'ah, does her blood automatically get the status of Dam Tohar? Beis Shamai rule yes and Beis Hillel rule that she must immerse herself first.
4)[line 6]øå÷ä åëîéîé øâìéäROKAH UCH'MEIMEI RAGLEHA
(a)The saliva and urine of a Zavah (see Background to Nidah 7:20) are Metamei mid'Oraysa through Maga and Masa when they are moist.
(b)The moist saliva and urine of the Nochrim are Metamei mid'Rabanan, because the Chachamim gave them the status of Zavin.
(c)Beis Hillel is of the opinion that the menstrual blood of a Nochris was included in the decree of the Rabanan, and that it is Metamei when it is moist.
(d)The blood of a Jewess is Metamei mid'Oraisa whether it is dry or moist.
5)[line 9]éåìãú áæåáYOLEDES B'ZOV
(a)A woman who has labor pains and experiences bleeding is not a Zavah as long as she gives birth due to the labor. The blood is known as "Dam Kishuy." If the labor pains stop after she bleeds on three consecutive days, it is possible that she will be "Yoledes b'Zov" when she gives birth. The Halachah understands that since the labor pains stopped, the three days of bleeding are considered Dam Zivus, as long as there is a prominent interval between the end of her flow and the day that she gave birth. The Tana'im argues as to how long the interval must be when she is not in labor for her to be considered a Yoledes b'Zov.
(b)By Torah Law, a woman who gives birth may immerse in a Mikvah after her Yemei Tum'ah (seven days upon the birth of a boy and fourteen days upon the birth of a girl). Blood that she experiences after the Yemei Tum'ah is Dam Tohar and she is Tehorah, until she experiences bleeding forty-one days after the birth of a boy or eighty-one days after the birth of a girl (see Background to Nidah 29:6).
(c)The laws of Yemei Taharah do not apply if she had been a Zavah before she gave birth. Under such circumstances, she remains Teme'ah after the birth until she counts seven clean days when she experiences no bleeding. According to some, a Yoledes b'Zov must begin her count of seven clean days after the Yemei Tum'ah have ended (Daf 29b and Daf 37a). Others rule that the count of clean days may begin during the Yemei Tum'ah, if the blood flow has stopped (Daf 36a).
(d)Beis Shamai and Beis Hillel agree that any blood that the Yoledes experiences before the seven clean days is Tamei whether it is dry or moist.
34b----------------------------------------34b
6)[line 2]çåõ îîé øâìéí ùáäCHUTZ MI'MEI RAGLAYIM SHE'BAH- except in a case where the Nochri's urine is mixed in with it (with the Shichvas Zera of that Nochri)
7)[line 9]áúåê ùìùä ìà ÷îéáòéà ìéäB'SOCH SHELOSHAH LO KA'MIBA'I LEI- this is the Gemara's answer
8)[line 11]ãééâé áîöåúDA'IGEI B'MITZVOS- they are apprehensive about Mitzvos
9)[line 11]çáéì âåôééäåCHAVIL GUFAIHU- their bodies are heated
10)[line 12]îñøéçMASRI'ACH- and it (the Shichvas Zera) spoils (to the extent that it is impotent, at which state it is not Metamei)
11)[line 21]ôøéòä åôøéîäPERI'AH U'FERIMAH
A Metzora Muchlat (a person whom the Kohen has confirmed to be a Metzora; see Background to Nidah 19:15a) must let his hair grow (Peri'ah), make a tear (Perimah) of at least a Tefach in the upper part of his clothes and cover his head down to his lips like a mourner, as stated in Vayikra 13:45. This Halachah only applies to men who are Metzora'im, and not to women.
12)[line 22]àñåø áúùîéùäîèäA SUR B'TASHMISH HA'MITAH
A Metzora Muchlat (a person whom the Kohen has confirmed to be a Metzora; see Background to Nidah 19:15a) is permitted to have marital relations (see Moed Katan 7b). After he is cured from the Tzara'as, part of the process of becoming Tahor includes counting seven clean days. During these days, marital relations are forbidden. This law applies only to men who are Metzora'im, and not to women.
13)[line 32]ùåí èåîàä ôøëéSHUM TUM'AH PARCHEI- they refute the proposed Limud by any instance of Tum'ah where a female is more stringent than a male; not just in a matter of Tum'as Tzara'as
14)[line 33]àéáòéú àéîà àîøé ìê áéú ùîàéIBA'IS EIMA AMRI LACH BEIS SHAMAI- this is an alternate answer to "u'Beis Shamai Zachar mi'Nekevah Lo Asya" (line 29)
15)[line 35]ëé ôùéè øáé ùîòåï áï ì÷éù áæáKI PASHIT REBBI SHIMON BEN LAKISH B'ZAV- when Rebbi Shimon ben Lakish would teach the Halachos of Zav
16)[line 36]æá ÷èïZAV KATAN- a Zav who was less than nine years old