Kiddushin, Daf Vav, Part 1

 

Introduction

The Talmud continues to discuss what words can be used by the man to betroth the woman.

 

ת"ר הרי את אשתי הרי את ארוסתי הרי את קנויה לי מקודשת

הרי את שלי הרי את ברשותי הרי את זקוקה לי מקודשת

וליתנינהו כולהו כחדא תנא תלת תלת שמעינהו וגרסינהו

 

Our Rabbis taught: [if one declares,] Behold, you are my wife, Behold, you are my arusah, Behold, you are acquired to me, she is betrothed;

Behold, you are mine, Behold, you are under my authority, Behold you are tied to me, she is betrothed.

Then let them all be taught in one clause? The tanna heard each three separately, and recited them [in that order].

 

These are all valid betrothal formulas.

The Talmud notes that the baraita has two lists even though both lists have the same halakhah. This is unusual. Usually if there are two clauses in a baraita, they have opposite halakhot. But this is simply the way the baraita is. The tanna heard two different sets of halakhot and collated them into two lists.

 

איבעיא להו מיוחדת לי מהו מיועדת לי מהו עזרתי מהו נגדתי מהו עצורתי מהו צלעתי מהו סגורתי מהו תחתי מהו תפושתי מהו לקוחתי מהו פשוט מיהא חדא דתניא האומר לקוחתי הרי זו מקודשת משום שנאמר (דברים כד, א) כי יקח איש אשה

 

It was asked: [What if one declares,] You are unique to me, You are designated to me, You are my help, You are my counterpart, You are gathered to me, You are my rib, You are my closed on, You are my replacement, You are kept [seized] by me, [or,] You are taken by me ?

One at least you may solve. For it was taught: If one declares, You are taken by me, she is betrothed, for it is written, when a man takes a wife.

 

The Talmud asks whether certain other formulae are also valid. Many of these words are taken from the stories of Adam and Eve or from elsewhere in the Bible. I will list the references here:

מיוחדת Genesis 2:24

מיועדת Exodus 21:8-9

עזרתי, נגדתי Genesis 2:18

עצורתי Unclear, some say this is from I Samuel 21:6, but Rashi disagrees.

צלעתי, סגורתי Genesis 2:21

תפושתי Deuteronomy 22:28

The only of these that we know is valid is taken by me because the verse explicitly uses the language takes a wife.