Kesubos 109a

כתובות ק״ט ע״א

Ketubot 109a

Learn Kesubos 109a step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

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Topic

The dowry dispute between אדמון and the חכמים, when the הלכה follows אדמון, and whether signing as a witness on a field's sale cancels one's own claim to it.

Overview

The amud opens with the end of a משנה. A father promised his future son-in-law a dowry and could not pay. The חכמים say the bride waits unmarried, while אדמון says she can demand 'marry me or release me,' and רבן גמליאל agrees with אדמון. A ברייתא of רבי יוסי ברבי יהודה says everyone agrees when the father promised, and the real dispute is when the bride promised the money herself. Another ברייתא adds that with a קטנה the court forces someone, and רבא explains that this means forcing the groom to give a גט. Next, רבי יצחק בן אלעזר rules that wherever רבן גמליאל says 'I see the words of אדמון,' the הלכה follows אדמון, even in a ברייתא. The גמרא then tests several readings of רבי זירא's statement about חנן and אדמון. It concludes that only the rulings of אדמון that רבן גמליאל endorsed are the הלכה. Finally, a new משנה discusses a man who claims a field even though he signed as a witness on its sale, and אביי limits the loss of his claim to a witness, not a judge.

Opening lines

The steps (23)

1. StatementThe משנה's dispute: must the bride wait, or can she demand a decision?
2. Statementרבן גמליאל sides with אדמון
3. StatementA ברייתא says there is no dispute when the father promised
4. StatementWhere they really argue: the bride promised the money herself
5. StatementAnother ברייתא: this applies to a גדולה, but for a קטנה they force
6. QuestionWhom does the court force?
7. ChallengeIt can't mean the father: then it should be the other way around
8. Resolutionרבא: the court forces the groom to give a גט
9. StatementWhen רבן גמליאל agrees with אדמון, the הלכה follows אדמון
10. QuestionDoes the rule apply to a ברייתא too
11. ResponseYes, the rule says 'anywhere'
12. Statementרבי זירא on the rulings of חנן and אדמון
13. QuestionWhat does רבי זירא mean
14. ChallengeFirst reading clashes with the rule about רבן גמליאל
15. ResolutionCorrect reading: the הלכה follows אדמון in all seven
16. ChallengeThe הלכה follows אדמון only where רבן גמליאל agreed
17. ResolutionNew reading: Some of אדמון's rulings are the הלכה and some are not
18. ConclusionWhere the split falls: wherever רבן גמליאל agreed
19. StatementNew משנה: A man claims a field even though he signed as a witness on its sale
20. StatementThe חכמים say the signer lost his claim
21. StatementUsing the field as a boundary marker loses the claim
22. Statementאביי: only a witness loses the claim, not a judge
23. Proofרבי חייא: witnesses read a document before signing