Beitzah 5b

ביצה ה׳ ע״ב

Learn Beitzah 5b step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Beitzah 5b in Gemara Clarity

Topic

Does the ban on an egg laid on ראש השנה still stand after רבן יוחנן בן זכאי's תקנה? The amud draws on the rule that a decree made by vote needs a new vote to cancel it.

Overview

The amud finishes the ברייתא about רבי אליעזר's כרם רבעי. His students tell him that his colleagues, led by רבן יוחנן בן זכאי, already voted to cancel the decree. From this the גמרא learns that a decree made by a vote needs a new vote to end it, even when its reason is gone. Two verses from מתן תורה prove the same rule, and the case of כרם רבעי shows that it applies to bans that are דרבנן too. רב יוסף uses this rule to keep the egg of ראש השנה forbidden, because רבן יוחנן בן זכאי voted only about witnesses, not about the egg. אביי answers that the egg was never voted on separately: it depended on the witness rule, so it became permitted along with it. רב אדא and רב שלמן still forbid the egg, out of fear of a mix-up once the בית המקדש is rebuilt, and רבא forbids it because even today the two days can be one holiness. רבא ends by ruling that the הלכה follows רב in his three rulings, whether lenient or strict.

Opening lines

The steps (19)

1. Proofרבי אליעזר wants to make his vineyard ownerless, and his students stop him
2. QuestionWho were the 'colleagues'?
3. ProofThe inference: without a vote, the decree would still stand
4. QuestionWhy did רב יוסף bring a second verse?
5. ResponseThe second verse is the real proof: 'Return to your tents' would be unnecessary otherwise
6. ChallengeMaybe 'Return to your tents' was about the marital obligation
7. ProofA new proof: 'When the שופר sounds long, they may go up the mountain'
8. ProofWhy the extra signal at סיני proves the rule
9. ChallengeMaybe the rule only applies to דאורייתא, not דרבנן
10. Proofכרם רבעי shows the rule applies to bans that are דרבנן
11. ChallengeDidn't רבן יוחנן בן זכאי already vote to permit the egg?
12. ResolutionThe vote was about witnesses, not the egg
13. Rejectionאביי: the egg was never banned by its own vote
14. Statementרב אדא and רב שלמן: The egg stays forbidden because of a future mix-up
15. ChallengeThen we should not accept witnesses all day either
16. ResolutionWitnesses are handled by the court, but eggs are handled by everyone
17. Statementרבא also rules the egg stays forbidden
18. ProofEven רבן יוחנן בן זכאי keeps both days holy when witnesses come late
19. ConclusionThe הלכה follows רב in all three rulings