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Avodah Zarah 15b

עבודה זרה ט״ו ע״ב

Learn Avodah Zarah 15b step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

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Topic

When may we sell something that a buyer might misuse? This covers sales during שביעית, sales to someone suspected of reselling to gentiles, and sales of weapons.

Overview

The גמרא brings a משנה in שביעית as proof that we may assume a buyer will use an animal in a permitted way. רבה rejects the proof by distinguishing cases where a person is commanded to let something rest. אביי (a field) and רב אשי (tools) knock down that distinction. רב אשי then gives a new rule: we assume a permitted use whenever one is realistic, and only then. Next comes a story: רבה sold a donkey to a Jew suspected of selling animals to gentiles. אביי proves from two ברייתות about כותים that one may not sell to someone likely to pass the item on to a gentile. A ruling of רב נחמן settles it, and רבה runs after the buyer to undo the sale, without success. The amud ends with רב דימי בר אבא's ban on selling weapons to a Jewish robber and a ברייתא about selling shields, where רב's explanation continues on the next amud.

Opening lines

וּמְנָא תֵּימְרָא

And from where do you say

דְּאָמְרִינַן כִּי הַאי גַוְונָא?

that we say this in a case like this?

דִּתְנַן: בֵּית שַׁמַּאי אוֹמְרִים:

As we learned in a משנה: בית שמאי say:

לֹא יִמְכּוֹר אָדָם פָּרָה הַחוֹרֶשֶׁת

A person may not sell a plowing cow

The steps (23)

  1. ProofProof that we assume the buyer will use the animal in a permitted way
  2. Rejectionרבה: the two cases are not comparable
  3. Challengeאביי: a field must rest, yet selling it is allowed
  4. Challengeרב אשי: tools need not rest, yet selling them is forbidden
  5. Conclusionרב אשי's rule: assume a permitted use only when one is realistic
  6. Questionרבה sells a donkey and אביי asks why
  7. Responseרבה: I sold it to a Jew
  8. Challengeאביי: but he will sell it to a gentile
  9. Resolutionרבה: he could just as well sell it to a Jew
  10. Challengeאביי cites the law of selling small animals to כותים
  11. ChallengeAre כותים really suspected? A ברייתא on gentiles
  12. ProofThe ברייתא permits keeping animals in the inns of כותים
  13. ProofThe ברייתא ends: כותים are trusted, so they are not suspected
  14. ProofA second ברייתא: no selling weapons to a גוי or a כותי
  15. ChallengeIs the reason that כותים are suspected of murder? No
  16. ResponseThe real reason: the כותי will resell to a גוי
  17. RejectionNo split between a כותי and a Jew
  18. Conclusionרבה runs after the buyer of his donkey
  19. StatementWeapons may not be sold to a Jewish bandit either
  20. ChallengeWhich kind of bandit is meant?
  21. ResolutionA robber who might kill to save himself
  22. StatementA disagreement about selling shields
  23. ChallengeWhy forbid shields? Then food should be forbidden too