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Horayos 3a

הוריות ג׳ ע״א

Horayot 3a

Learn Horayos 3a step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Horayos 3a in Gemara Clarity

Topic

Whose view the משנה follows on an individual who acted on a court's ruling, and how the majority of the קהל is defined and counted

Overview

The גמרא first finishes proving that a ברייתא follows רבי יהודה, then brings רב נחמן in the name of שמואל, who says the משנה (an individual who follows the בית דין's mistaken ruling is פטור) is only רבי מאיר's view. It tries to prove this from a ברייתא where רבי מאיר exempts and the חכמים obligate. רב פפא and three איבעית אימא answers show the ברייתא can be read other ways, so the proof falls away. Next, רב אסי teaches from a פסוק that the majority of the קהל is counted only among those living in ארץ ישראל. The גמרא then asks what happens when the sinners change from a majority to a minority or the reverse, and shows that רבי שמעון requires both the sin and the finding out to happen at a time of obligation. A chain of questions asks whether two separate minorities can combine into a majority: the same חלב, two kinds of חלב, חלב and דם, and חלב and עבודה זרה. This chain ends in תיקו. Finally, the גמרא asks about a second court that repeats the ruling after the first court has died, and this question continues on the next amud.

Opening lines

״זֹאת תּוֹרַת הָעוֹלָה הִיא״ –

"This is the law of the burnt offering, it is"

הֲרֵי אֵלּוּ שְׁלֹשָׁה מִיעוּטִין.

these are three exclusions.

וְאִיבָּעֵית אֵימָא:

And if you want, say:

עֲדַיִין אֲנִי אוֹמֵר

"Still I say"

The steps (31)

  1. Proofרבי יהודה learns three exclusions from one verse
  2. ProofA second proof: the 'still I say' ברייתא cannot be רבי יהודה
  3. Proofרבי יהודה holds the tribes bring the bulls, not the court
  4. Statementרב נחמן: the משנה follows רבי מאיר
  5. QuestionWhere do רבי מאיר and the Rabbis argue?
  6. ResponseThe baraita: רבי מאיר exempts, the Rabbis obligate
  7. QuestionWho did the act?
  8. ChallengeIf the judges acted, why would the Rabbis obligate?
  9. ChallengeTesting the case where a majority of the community acted
  10. ProofThe case must be a minority, so the argument is about an individual
  11. Rejectionרב פפא: the argument is whether the judges count toward the majority
  12. RejectionAnother answer: a real majority, and the חכמים are רבי שמעון
  13. RejectionA tribe following its own court, with רבי יהודה as the חכמים
  14. RejectionSix tribes that are most of the people, or seven tribes that are not
  15. ProofThe ברייתא of רבי שמעון בן אלעזר
  16. Statementרב אסי: the majority is counted by those living in ארץ ישראל
  17. QuestionWhy does the פסוק add 'from Hamath to the Brook of Egypt'?
  18. ConclusionOnly those living in ארץ ישראל are called 'קהל'
  19. StatementMany who became few: already covered by a known argument
  20. QuestionFew who became many: do they argue here too?
  21. ChallengeDoes רבי שמעון really follow the finding out alone?
  22. ProofProof: otherwise they would bring the offering of their new status
  23. Conclusionרבי שמעון needs both the sin and the finding out
  24. QuestionTwo minorities sin with forbidden fat after two separate rulings
  25. QuestionTwo minorities eat two different kinds of fat
  26. QuestionOne minority eats fat and the other eats blood
  27. QuestionOne minority eats fat and the other serves idols
  28. ConclusionThe questions stay unanswered
  29. QuestionA new court repeats the ruling and a second minority acts
  30. StatementNo question if the court brings the offering
  31. QuestionThe question only matters if the congregation brings the offering