Kiddushin, Daf Nun, Part 6

 

Introduction

The main point of the mishnah we learn here is that a man who tries to simultaneously betroth two women whom cannot be simultaneously betrothed to him has betrothed neither woman.

 

מתני׳ המקדש אשה ובתה או אשה ואחותה כאחת אינן מקודשות

 

If one betroths a woman and her daughter or a woman and her sister at one time, they are not betrothed.

 

A man cannot simultaneously marry a woman and her daughter or a woman and her sister. If he was already married to a certain woman and he attempted to betroth her daughter or sister, the betrothal would not be effective. The mishnah deals with a case where a man tried to betroth two such women simultaneously. Since they cannot both be effective neither is.

 

ומעשה בחמש נשים ובהן שתי אחיות וליקט אדם אחד כלכלה של תאנים ושלהן היתה ושל שביעית היתה ואמר הרי כולכם מקודשות לי בכלכלה זו וקיבלה אחת מהן ע"י כולן ואמרו חכמים אין אחיות מקודשות

 

And it once happened that five women, among whom were two sisters, that a man gathered a basket of figs, which was theirs, and which was of the seventh year, and he said, Behold, you are betrothed to me with this basket, and one accepted it on behalf of them all and the sages said: the sisters are not betrothed.

 

This is a classic rabbinic story, utterly packed with information. The main thing which we learn is that if one tries to simultaneously betroth two sisters, neither sister is betrothed. However, we also learn the following halakhot.

1)     A man can betroth a group of women with one act of betrothal, and even if the betrothal is ineffective with some of the women (the sisters) it is effective with the others.

2)     During the seventh year (the sabbatical year) a man can betroth using the agricultural produce of the women he is betrothing. This is because such produce is considered ownerless during the sabbatical year and when the man picks it up he owns it.

3)     One woman can simultaneously accept kiddushin for herself and for other women.

By packing all of these details into one brief story, the story becomes an excellent didactic opportunity, far exceeding that which it is brought to explicitly demonstrate that if one tries to simultaneously betroth two sisters, neither sister is betrothed

 

גמ׳ מנהני מילי

אמר רמי בר חמא דאמר קרא (ויקרא יח, יח) אשה אל אחותה לא תקח לצרור התורה אמרה בשעה שנעשו צרות זו לזו לא יהא לו ליקוחים אפי’ באחת מהם

 

GEMARA. From where do we know this? Rami b. Hama said: For the verse says, Do not take a woman and her sister to become rival wives (Leviticus 18:18). The Torah said that at the time when they become rivals to each other, he can have no marital acquisition with [even] one of them.

 

Rami b. Hama uses the verse that prohibits marrying two sisters to teach that if he marries them (or tries to) simultaneously, neither of them is considered married.

אמר ליה רבא אי הכי היינו דכתיב (ויקרא יח, כט) ונכרתו הנפשות העושות מקרב עמם אי קידושין לא תפסי בה כרת מי מחייב אלא אמר רבא קרא בזה אחר זה ומתניתין כדרבה דאמר רבה כל שאינו בזה אחר זה אפי’ בבת אחת אינו

 

Rava said to him: If so, how is it written, And those that do so shall be cut off from among their people (Leviticus 18:29): if kiddushin with her is not valid, is he then liable to karet?

Rather the verse refers to consecutive [marriage], and our mishnah is in accordance with Rabbah, who said: Anything which cannot be [done] consecutively cannot be [done] simultaneously.

 

Rava points out that the verse prescribes karet (cutting off) for anyone who marries two sisters. But if the verse is talking about someone who tries to marry two sisters simultaneously and the betrothal is not valid, then why should he (or they) receive any punishment? He (and they) did not do anything.

Therefore, he explains that the mishnah follows Rabbah who said that when an act, such as marrying two sisters, cannot be performed consecutively, it can also not be performed simultaneously. If he tries to marry two sisters at the same time, neither are married.