Kiddushin, Daf Kaf Bet, Part 1
Introduction
This week s daf begins with a baraita about the beautiful captive woman.
ת"ר וראית בשביה בשעת שביה אשת ואפילו אשת איש יפת תואר לא דברה תורה אלא כנגד יצר הרע מוטב שיאכלו ישראל בשר תמותות שחוטות ואל יאכלו בשר תמותות נבילות (דברים כא, יא)
וחשקת אע"פ שאינה נאה
בה ולא בה ובחברתה
ולקחת ליקוחין יש לך בה
לך לאשה שלא יקח שתי נשים אחת לו ואחת לאביו אחת לו ואחת לבנו (דברים כא, יב) והבאתה מלמד שלא ילחצנה במלחמה:
Our rabbis taught: And you see among the captives, when taking her captive;
a woman even married;
of beautiful appearance the Torah spoke against the evil inclination: it is better for Israel to eat flesh of [animals] about to die, yet [ritually] slaughtered, than eat flesh of dying animals which have died natural deaths;
and you desire even if she is not beautiful;
her but not her and her companion;
you shall take you have the ability to marry her;
as a wife for you, that he must not take two women, one for himself and another for his father, or one for himself and another for his son:
then you shall bring her [into your house] you may not engage with her (in sexual intercourse) on the field of battle.
This baraita goes through every word or phrase of the passage about the beautiful captive woman and explains what it teaches. I will go through these rules one at a time:
1) This rule applies only when in war. This is not something that can be done in peace time.
2) The rule applies even if she is already married to a non-Jewish man.
3) The reason that the Torah calls her beautiful is that it realizes the evil inclination of men. The Torah preferred to the lesser evil of basically forced marriage to what would basically be rape. This is a concession, not an ideal
4) While the Torah calls her beautiful, the law applies to any woman the man desires.
5) The soldier can only take one such wife, not two.
6) He must marry her (after the first intercourse).
7) He cannot take two women, one for him and one for a family member.
8) He cannot have sex with her there on the battlefield. He must bring her home.
Note that while there is still much that is disturbing in these laws (what about her consent?) the rabbis do seem to be modifying the Torah s rulings such that the situation is slightly better for her.
ת"ר (שמות כא, ה) אם אמר יאמר עד שיאמר וישנה אמר בתחילת שש ולא אמר בסוף שש אינו נרצע שנאמר (שמות כא, ה) לא אצא חפשי עד שיאמר בשעת יציאה אמר בסוף שש ולא אמר בתחילת שש אינו נרצע שנאמר אם אמר יאמר העבד עד שיאמר כשהוא עבד
Our Rabbis taught: But if the servant shall surely say (Exodus 21:5); he must say and reiterate [it].
If he said [this] at the beginning of his six years but not at the end, he is not bored, for it says. I will not go out free : [hence] he must say it when about to depart.
If he says it at the end of the six[th year], but not at the beginning, he is not bored, for it is said: But if the slave shall surely say : he must say it while still a slave.
The baraita teaches that the slave must twice make the declaration that he wants to remain a slave at the beginning of his term of servitude and at the end. We will see below how later rabbis interpret this. It seems somewhat absurd that the slave should have to make this statement at the beginning of his term of servitude.
אמר מר אמר בתחילת שש ולא אמר בסוף שש אינו נרצע שנאמר לא אצא חפשי מאי איריא מלא אצא חפשי תיפוק ליה דבעינן (שמות כא, ה) אהבתי את אדוני את אשתי ואת בני וליכא
The Master said: If he said [this] at the beginning of his six years but not at the end, he is not bored, for it says, I will not go out free.
Why specifically [learn this] from I will not go out free : deduce it because we require [that he can say]. I love my master, my wife, and my children, and this is not possible.
The verse I will not go out free is not the only indication that the slave must make his statement at the end of his servitude. We could also derive this from the verse, I love my wife and children which he could not say at the very beginning of his servitude.
ותו אמר בסוף שש ולא אמר בתחילת שש אינו נרצע שנאמר העבד אטו סוף שש לאו עבד הוא אמר רבא מאי בתחילת שש בתחילת פרוטה אחרונה ומאי בסוף שש בסוף פרוטה אחרונה:
Furthermore, if he says it at the end of the six[th year], but not at the beginning, he is not bored, for it is said . . . the slave : is he then not a slave at the end of the sixth year?
Rava said: [It means the following:] At the beginning of the last perutah s worth of service, and at the end of the last perutah s worth of service.
Rava interprets beginning and end to be referring to a very small window. He must make his statement some time before he begins to do his last perutah s worth of work. At this time he already could have a wife and kids. He must also reiterate the statement later on, while he is doing his last perutah s worth of work.