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Bava Metzia 7b

בבא מציעא ז׳ ע״ב

Learn Bava Metzia 7b step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

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Topic

A found שטר or כתובה and the worry about repayment; how two people holding a שטר divide it, and whether 'ויחלוקו' means splitting by value

Overview

The גמרא explains a ברייתא about a found שטר that 'fell into the hand of a judge.' רבא says this means a שטר already ratified by בית דין (הנפק), and even so it is not returned, because we worry the debt was paid. רבי יוסי seems to disagree, but a ברייתא about a found כתובה shows him worrying about payment. The גמרא gives three answers to this problem. One answer swaps the names and reads the כתובה ברייתא as all רבי יוסי. רב פפא says רבי יוסי was arguing from the רבנן's view. רבינא says the רבנן's real worry is that two כתובות were written. The גמרא then turns to two people grabbing a שטר: רבי אלעזר says each keeps the part he holds (טופס or תורף), and רבי יוחנן says they split it, which the גמרא limits to a תורף lying in the middle. רבינא explains that such splitting is by money value, and the גמרא suggests every 'ויחלוקו' means by value, a proof that continues on the next amud.

Opening lines

מַאי שְׁנָא לְיַד דַּיָּין?

What is different about [a document that came] into the hand of a judge?

אָמַר רָבָא, הָכִי קָאָמַר:

Rava said, this is what it is saying:

וְאַחֵר שֶׁמָּצָא שְׁטָר

And another person who found a document

שֶׁנָּפַל לְיַד דַּיָּין,

that had fallen into the hand of a judge,

The steps (24)

  1. QuestionWhy does the ברייתא mention a judge?
  2. Responseרבא explains: a שטר with a court ratification
  3. ResponseEven a ratified שטר is not returned, because maybe it was paid
  4. Statementרבי יוסי: the שטר keeps its status
  5. ChallengeChallenge: does רבי יוסי really not worry about repayment?
  6. Challengeרבי יוסי splits the found כתובה case: married versus widowed or divorced
  7. ResolutionReverse the names in the שטר ברייתא
  8. ChallengeThe reversal makes the רבנן contradict themselves
  9. ResolutionThe whole כתובה ברייתא follows רבי יוסי, with missing words
  10. Resolutionרב פפא: Do not swap the names, because רבי יוסי was arguing from the רבנן's view
  11. RejectionThe רבנן answer רבי יוסי: maybe he paid her with bundles of money
  12. Resolutionרבינא: Swap the first ברייתא, because the רבנן worry about two כתובות
  13. Statementרבי אלעזר limits the dispute about splitting the שטר
  14. Statementרבי יוחנן says they always split it
  15. ChallengeChallenge to רבי יוחנן from the טלית ברייתא
  16. Resolutionרבי יוחנן means a case where the תורף is in the middle
  17. ChallengeThen why say it at all?
  18. ResolutionThe תורף is closer to one of them
  19. ChallengeWhat use is half a שטר?
  20. ResolutionThe split is by value, not by paper
  21. ResolutionHow the value split is calculated
  22. StatementEvery 'they split' means by value
  23. ProofProof from the garment case
  24. RejectionThe garment proof is not a real difficulty