Pesachim 12a

פסחים י״ב ע״א

Learn Pesachim 12a step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Pesachim 12a in Gemara Clarity

Topic

How much can witnesses err about the hour? רבא's margins of error for רבי מאיר and רבי יהודה, and how הזמה still works within that margin.

Overview

The background is a משנה in סנהדרין about two witnesses who disagree on the hour of an event. If one says 'the third hour' and the other says 'the fifth hour,' רבי מאיר invalidates the testimony and רבי יהודה accepts it. The עמוד opens with the end of אביי's explanation: one witness erred by only an hour and a bit. רבא rejects this. The witnesses might have meant times almost three hours apart, and a בית דין may not execute based on a doubt, because the Torah says 'והצילו העדה.' רבא then measures the worst-case gap instead. רבי מאיר allows a mistake of two hours less a bit, and רבי יהודה allows three hours less a bit. The גמרא then brings a משנה and ברייתא: the seven חקירות, including 'which hour,' are essential because testimony that cannot be subject to הזמה is void. This leads to a challenge. If people err by hours, witnesses could always escape הזמה by saying 'we erred.' The answer is that the witnesses get their full margin of error, and הזמה works only if the second witnesses cover that whole window. For רבי מאיר the window runs from hour 1 to the end of hour 5, and for רבי יהודה from hour 1 to the end of hour 6. It does not reach back into the night, because people do not confuse day with night.

Opening lines

The steps (17)

1. StatementEnd of אביי's explanation: one witness erred by an hour and a bit
2. Challengeרבא objects: we cannot execute based on a doubtful assumption
3. Proofרבא's verse support: the court must try to save the accused
4. Resolutionרבא's own explanation: how big a mistake each תנא allows
5. StatementExplaining רבי מאיר's two hours less a bit
6. ConclusionExplaining רבי יהודה's three hours less a bit
7. StatementThe seven core questions asked of witnesses
8. StatementA ברייתא contrasts core questions with secondary examinations
9. QuestionWhy are the two kinds of questions treated differently?
10. ResponseMissing a core detail makes the testimony impossible to disprove
11. ResponseMissing a side detail still leaves the testimony disprovable
12. ChallengeIf people err by hours, no testimony could ever be subject to הזמה
13. ResolutionWe give the witnesses their whole margin of error
14. StatementFor רבי מאיר, the window is from hour 1 to the end of hour 5
15. ResolutionWhy the window does not reach back into the night
16. StatementFor רבי יהודה, the window is from hour 1 to the end of hour 6
17. ChallengeFor רבי יהודה too, the window should logically start earlier