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Bava Basra 44b

בבא בתרא מ״ד ע״ב

Bava Batra 44b

Learn Bava Basra 44b step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

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Topic

When a seller may testify for his buyer: liens on movables, sales without a guarantee (רב פפא and רב זביד), and שמואל's rule about a sold field.

Overview

The גמרא explains why someone who sold a cow or cloak can still testify for the buyer, even though the seller owes money. Movables (מטלטלי) are not liened to a creditor once they are sold, and even an אפותיקי does not follow an ox or donkey to a buyer. רבא explains that a slave is different because his designation becomes public. The גמרא then worries that the movables may have been liened together with land. It answers that the seller bought the item and sold it right away, and then that he never owned land at all, which also blocks a proof about a 'דאקני' lien. Next it challenges from רב פפא: if the item was never the seller's, the buyer can claim his money back. It answers that the buyer admits the animal came from the seller's donkey. It also brings רב זביד, who holds that a sale without a guarantee frees the seller from every claim. Finally the גמרא returns to שמואל's rule that a seller cannot testify about a field he sold, and begins to ask what case שמואל means.

Opening lines

בִּסְתָמָא דְּלָא מִשְׁתַּעְבְּדָא לֵיהּ,

In a plain case, where it is not liened to him,

מַאי טַעְמָא?

What is the reason?

מִטַּלְטְלֵי נִינְהוּ,

They are movable property,

וּמִטַּלְטְלֵי לְבַעַל חוֹב לָא מִשְׁתַּעְבְּדִי –

and movable property is not liened to a creditor.

The steps (15)

  1. ResolutionThe case is an ordinary sale where movables are not liened
  2. StatementEven a 'cloak on his shoulders' clause does not reach sold items
  3. StatementEven a designated אפותיקי cannot be taken from the buyer
  4. Proofרבא: a slave versus an ox or donkey as אפותיקי
  5. StatementThe reason: a slave's designation becomes public
  6. ChallengeChallenge: maybe the movables were liened together with land
  7. ResolutionThe seller bought the item and sold it right away
  8. ChallengeWorry about a lien on property bought later
  9. QuestionDoes this prove a lien on later purchases fails once they are sold?
  10. RejectionNo proof: the seller never owned land
  11. Challengeרב פפא: the buyer can go back to the seller if the item was never his
  12. ResolutionThe buyer admits the foal came from the seller's donkey
  13. Statementרב זביד: without a guarantee, the buyer cannot come back at all
  14. StatementBack to שמואל: a seller cannot testify about the field he sold
  15. QuestionWhat case is שמואל talking about?