Gittin, Daf Yod Daled, Part 3

 

Introduction

The story of Rav Sheshet sending an agent to get his cloaks. Maybe Rav Sheshet was an early Jewish garment worker?

 

רַב שֵׁשֶׁת הֲוָה לֵיהּ אֲשַׁרְתָּא דְּסַרְבָּלֵי בְּמָחוֹזָא

אֲמַר לֵיהּ לְרַב יוֹסֵף בַּר חָמָא בַּהֲדֵי דְּאָתֵית אַיְיתִינְהוּ נִיהֲלִי

אֲזַל יַהֲבִינְהוּ לֵיהּ אָמְרִי לֵיהּ נִיקְנֵי מִינָּךְ

אֲמַר לְהוּ אִין

ְלסוֹף אִישְׁתְּמִיט לְהוּ

כִּי אֲתָא לְגַבֵּיהּ אֲמַר לֵיהּ שַׁפִּיר עֲבַדְתְּ דְּלָא שַׁוִּית נַפְשָׁךְ עֶבֶד לֹוֶה לְאִישׁ מַלְוֶה

לִישָּׁנָא אַחֲרִינָא שַׁפִּיר עֲבַדְתְּ עֶבֶד לֹוֶה לְאִישׁ מַלְוֶה

 

Rav Sheshet had a credit of cloaks in Mehoza.

He said to Rav Yosef bar Hama: When you come back here, bring it to me.

He went. They gave it to him and said to him: Let us make a formal acquisition. He said yes. At the end, he escaped from them [and didn t make the formal acquisition].

When he came back to Rav Sheshet he said to him, You acted well, for you have not made yourself a borrower is a slave to a lender (Proverbs 22:7).

Another version: You acted well, for a borrower is a slave to a lender.

 

The important part of this story is that Rav Yosef avoids making a formal acquisition of Rav Sheshet s cloaks. The liability remains in the hands of those who are sending them back, at least until they arrive in Rav Sheshet s hands. Rav Sheshet praises Rav Yosef for avoiding the liability and applies to him the verse from Proverbs. Rav Yosef knows to avoid owing the cloaks to anyone and thereby becoming like a borrower.