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Sanhedrin 111b

סנהדרין קי״א ע״ב

Learn Sanhedrin 111b step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

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Topic

The end of the story of משה and ארך אפים, the crown of humble צדיקים, and the משנה and גמרא on עיר הנדחת, including whether a city can be split between two שבטים

Overview

The amud opens by finishing the story of משה and ארך אפים: משה reminds הקב״ה that patience is even for רשעים. רבי חגא then learns from two פסוקים in תהלים that what משה saw was ארך אפים. Next, the גמרא teaches that הקב״ה will be a crown for humble צדיקים. It also reads ישעיהו 28:6 as praise for people who control their יצר, judge truthfully, and toil in תורה, while those who stumble in judgment end up in גיהנם. Then a new משנה begins about עיר הנדחת, a city led into idol worship. It lists the conditions for judging the city as a whole, what happens to the people and their property, and the מחלוקת between רבי יוסי הגלילי and רבי עקיבא about the ruined land. The גמרא starts by learning the conditions from the words of the פסוק. It then brings a מחלוקת between רבי יוחנן and ריש לקיש on whether one city can be split between two שבטים. רבי יוחנן's two proofs are pushed aside, and the challenge to the second answer continues on the next amud.

Opening lines

אָמַר לְפָנָיו:

He said before Him:

רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם,

Master of the World,

וְלֹא כָּךְ אָמַרְתָּ לִי:

didn't You say this to me:

״אַף לָרְשָׁעִים״?

"even for the wicked"?

The steps (34)

  1. Responseמשה reminds God: You said slow to anger is even for the wicked
  2. ProofThe verse where משה says 'as You have spoken'
  3. Statementרבי חגא overhears a child reciting verses
  4. Conclusionרבי חגא concludes משה saw ארך אפים
  5. StatementGod will be a crown on the head of every righteous person
  6. QuestionWhat do 'crown of glory' and 'diadem of beauty' mean?
  7. ResponseFor those who do His will and wait for His salvation
  8. RejectionOnly for those who make themselves humble
  9. StatementThe next verse in Isaiah is quoted
  10. StatementRuling over the inclination and judging truthfully
  11. StatementStrength, the battle of Torah, and the gate of the study hall
  12. QuestionThe attribute of justice asks why these people are different
  13. ResponseGod answers with the verse about those who stumble in judgment
  14. StatementExplaining the words פוקה and פלילה
  15. Statementמשנה: people of a city led astray lose the World to Come
  16. StatementThree conditions for a city to be punished as a whole
  17. StatementWhen the conditions are missing, they are judged as individuals
  18. StatementIndividuals get a harsher death but keep their property
  19. StatementTraveling caravans can save the city
  20. StatementProperty of the righteous and the wicked
  21. StatementGathering the spoils into the city square
  22. StatementHoly items in the city are not burned
  23. StatementJudging the city is like a complete burnt offering
  24. StatementThe ruined city may not even become gardens and orchards
  25. Statementרבי עקיבא: only rebuilding the city is forbidden
  26. StatementWhen the wicked disappear, anger leaves the world
  27. StatementThe leaders must act themselves, be at least two, and be grown men
  28. StatementMore conditions from the פסוק: not a border city, same city, and warning for each person
  29. StatementCan one city be split between two tribes?
  30. Challengeרבי יוחנן challenges ריש לקיש from the משנה
  31. RejectionThe person may simply own property in a city of another tribe
  32. ChallengeNine cities from two tribes suggests a split city
  33. RejectionIt could be four from one tribe and five from the other
  34. ChallengeThen the verse should say which tribe gave more