Bava Kamma 79b

בבא קמא ע״ט ע״ב

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Topic

גנב vs. גזלן and the ארבעה וחמשה payments; the משנה on animals one may not raise

Overview

The amud opens by finishing an earlier discussion: a rental that comes with a שטר must be a rental of land, since movables are not acquired with a document. Next comes רבי אלעזר's ruling that a thief who hid in the woods and then slaughtered or sold an animal pays ארבעה וחמשה. The גמרא explains that he moved the animal with a stick, and that because he was hiding, he counts as a גנב even though people saw him. רבי אבהו and רבי יוחנן then each give an example of a real גזלן: בניהו בן יהוידע, or the בעלי שכם who robbed from ambush. רבן יוחנן בן זכאי explains that the Torah is stricter with a גנב because he fears people more than הקב״ה, and a parable of two feasts supports this. Two sages then give reasons why an ox pays five and a sheep pays four. A new משנה lists animals that may not be raised: small animals in settled parts of ארץ ישראל, chickens in ירושלים or by כהנים, pigs anywhere, unchained dogs, and pigeon traps near settled areas. The גמרא brings ברייתות that explain where small animals are allowed, why large animals were never banned, and the short thirty-day allowance before a רגל.

Opening lines

The steps (30)

1. ChallengeMovables are not acquired with a document
2. ResolutionIt is a rental of land
3. StatementA hidden thief who slaughters or sells pays four or five times
4. ChallengeBut he never pulled the animal
5. ResolutionHe drove it with a stick
6. ChallengeIf people saw him, isn't he a robber?
7. ResolutionHiding from people makes him a thief
8. QuestionThen what is a robber?
9. ResponseA robber is like בניהו בן יהוידע
10. Responseרבי יוחנן's example: the בעלי שכם
11. QuestionWhy didn't רבי אבהו use the example of the בעלי שכם?
12. Responseרבי אבהו: people who hide are not robbers
13. Resolutionרבי יוחנן: they hid only so travelers wouldn't run away
14. QuestionWhy is the Torah stricter with a thief than a robber?
15. ResponseThe thief fears people more than God
16. StatementThe thief acts as if God doesn't see or hear
17. ProofThree verses about people who think God doesn't see
18. ProofThe parable of the two feasts
19. StatementAn ox pays five because work matters
20. StatementA sheep pays less because of human dignity
21. StatementNew משנה: where sheep and goats may be raised
22. StatementNo chickens in Jerusalem, and no chickens for priests
23. StatementNo pigs anywhere, and dogs only on a chain
24. StatementPigeon traps must be far from settled areas
25. StatementA ברייתא on where small animals may be raised
26. StatementA second ברייתא names specific wilderness areas
27. StatementLarge animals were never forbidden, since the public could not keep such a decree
28. StatementWhy large animals were not included in the decree
29. StatementKeeping small animals for thirty days before a festival or a son's wedding feast
30. StatementOnce the festival passes, the animal may not be kept any longer