Avodah Zarah 70a

עבודה זרה ע׳ ע״א

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Topic

When a גוי's possible contact makes a Jew's wine forbidden as יין נסך: fear of being seen, following the majority, and ספק ספיקא

Overview

This amud is about wine belonging to a Jew that a גוי may have touched, which would make it forbidden as יין נסך. It opens by finishing a case: a respectable Jewish woman dining with גוים keeps her wine permitted, but a זונה's wine is forbidden because the גוים do not respect her. Then רבא rules on a long series of real-life stories: a גוי locked in a wine room with a crack in the door, a quarrel outside, a גוי found at an inn or in a house, a Jew who left to daven or to keep שבת, and a גוי hiding from a lion. The idea running through them is that a גוי who fears being seen or caught will not pour a libation, so the wine stays permitted. A ברייתא is used to challenge one ruling, and the גמרא answers by narrowing it to a גוי who has an excuse for being there. The story of איסור גיורא shows that non-Jews believed Jews would break שבת for money, so the גוי on the boat still expects the Jew back. Finally, רבא and שמואל permit wine opened by thieves. רבא's reason is that most thieves there are Jews. The גמרא asks if שמואל follows רבי אליעזר's rule about a doubtful entry, then answers that the wine case is a ספק ספיקא.

Opening lines

The steps (28)

1. ResponseTheir desire for libation wine is not strong
2. StatementA Jewish prostitute dining with gentiles: the wine is forbidden
3. QuestionWhy is her wine forbidden?
4. ResponseShe is not respected, so she goes along with them
5. StatementStory: a gentile locked inside a wine room with a crack in the door
6. Statementרבא: barrels facing the crack are permitted, the others are forbidden
7. StatementStory: a quarrel outside, and the gentile comes back first
8. Statementרבא: permitted, because the gentile fears the Jew is already upstairs
9. StatementStory: a gentile found sitting among the barrels at an inn
10. Statementרבא: if he acted like a caught thief, the wine is permitted
11. StatementA gentile found standing among the wine barrels in a house
12. StatementIf the gentile has an excuse ready, the wine is forbidden
13. ChallengeA ברייתא seems to forbid the wine even with no excuse
14. ResolutionThe ברייתא is talking about a gentile who has an excuse
15. StatementA Jew leaves his wine to go daven
16. StatementThe wine stays permitted because the gentile expects him back
17. StatementA Jew leaves the boat when the שופר announces שבת
18. StatementSame ruling on the boat: the wine is permitted
19. ChallengeBut on שבת the Jew would not come back
20. Resolutionאיסור גיורא: gentiles thought Jews don't really keep שבת
21. StatementWhy the wallets disappeared: the rule of רבי יצחק
22. StatementA frightened גוי hides among the wine barrels
23. Statementרבא permits the wine because the גוי feared being watched
24. StatementThieves open barrels in פומבדיתא and רבא permits the wine
25. StatementA similar case in נהרדעא, and שמואל permits
26. QuestionWhose opinion does שמואל follow? Perhaps רבי אליעזר
27. ProofThe משנה where רבי אליעזר rules on a doubtful entry
28. RejectionThe wine case is different because it is a double doubt