Kiddushin, Daf Yod Zayin, Part 2

 

Introduction

According to Deuteronomy 15, when a slave goes free his master must provide him with a gift. In our sugya tannaim debate how much that gift must be.

 

תנו רבנן כמה מעניקים לו חמש סלעים מכל מין ומין שהן חמש עשרה סלעים דברי ר’ מאיר

ר’ יהודה אומר שלשים כשלשים של עבד

ר"ש אומר חמשים כחמשים שבערכין

 

Our Rabbis taught: How much is he [the freed slave] granted?

Five sela’s [worth] of each kind, which is fifteen sela’s in all: the words of R. Meir.

R. Judah said: Thirty, as the thirty [paid] for [the accidental killing of a slave] slave. R. Simeon said: Fifty, as the fifty of arakin.

 

Deuteronomy 15:14 states that the slave must be granted from your flock, your threshing floor and your winepress. R. Meir says he must get five selas worth of each, for a total of fifteen selas worth of a gift.

R. Yehudah derives his number from the law concerning an ox that kills a slave the owner pays 30 shekels (selas).

R. Shimon derives his law from the laws concerning a person who dedicates his own value to the Temple. An adult male is worth fifty shekels.

 

אמר מר חמש סלעים מכל מין ומין שהם חמש עשרה סלעים דברי ר’ מאיר

ור"מ מנינא אתא לאשמועינן

הא קמ"ל מיבצר הוא דלא מבצר ליה מהאי מנינא ואי בצר ליה מחד מינא וטפי ליה מחד מינא לית לן בה

The master said: Five sela’s [worth] of each kind, which is fifteen sela’s in all: the words of R. Meir.

Does then R. Meir come to teach us a number?

He teaches us this: He may not diminish the total, but if he gives him less of one kind and more of another, we have no objection.

 

R. Meir did not need to say which is fifteen sela s in all. We could have done that math ourselves! He added that number in order to teach that the total must be fifteen selas. But if the master gives 8 of one, 4 of the other and 3 of the other (for instance), he has fulfilled his duty.

 

מאי טעמא דרבי מאיר יליף ריקם (שמות לד, כ) ריקם מבכור מה להלן חמש סלעים אף כאן חמש סלעים

 

What is R. Meir’s reason? He derives the meaning of empty from a firstborn: just as there it refers to five sela’s, so too here it refers to five sela’s.

 

The five selas is derived from the redemption of the first born in Exodus 34:20. Since the word empty is used in both this context and in the context of freeing the slave, Rabbi Meir applies the laws of one to the other.

 

ואימא חמש סלעים מכולהו

אי כתיב ריקם לבסוף כדקאמרת השתא דכתיב ריקם ברישא שדי ריקם אצאן ריקם אגורן ריקם איקב

 

Then say five sela’s total from all [flock, threshing floor and winepress]?

If empty had been written at the end [of the verse], [it would be] as you say. Now, that empty: is written at the beginning, apply [the word] empty to flock, threshing floor, and winepress.

 

But why five sela s from each? Why not five sela s in all? After all, this is the total for redemption of the first born.

The answer is that empty is written before the three categories. Therefore it applies individually to each of them.

 

ונילף ריקם ריקם מעולת ראיה אמר קרא (דברים טו, יד) אשר ברכך יי’ אלהיך

 

But let us learn the meaning of empty from the pilgrimage burnt-offering? Scripture says, As the Lord your God has blessed you.

 

The word empty also appears in the context of the pilgrimage burnt offering (Exodus 23:15). This offering has no fixed value. So why not say that the gift also has no fixed value?

The answer is that the Torah hints that this must be a substantial gift when it says that the gift must come from all that God has blessed you with.