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Sanhedrin 9b

סנהדרין ט׳ ע״ב

Learn Sanhedrin 9b step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Sanhedrin 9b in Gemara Clarity

Topic

Explaining the dispute over judges for מוציא שם רע, then רב יוסף and רבא on lying witnesses and on testimony that involves the witness himself.

Overview

The amud begins at the end of רבי's view, quoted from a משנה in מכות: a relative who saw a crime but did not act as a witness does not cancel the other witnesses. Otherwise, what could two brothers and an outsider do if they saw a murder? This was one way to explain the dispute in our משנה about how many judges a מוציא שם רע case needs. The גמרא then gives two more explanations. One ties the dispute to רבי יוסי's rule that the witnesses themselves must give the warning (התראה). The other ties it to whether a contradiction in small details (בדיקות) cancels testimony, as in the story of בן זכאי and the fig stems. Next, רב יוסף teaches about rounds of עדים זוממין in a husband's adultery claim. Lying witnesses usually get only the bigger punishment, but they get both death and payment when the harms were aimed at different people. רב יוסף also rules that a man forced into a forbidden act may testify against the sinner, but one who says he consented is a רשע and cannot testify. רבא disagrees, since a person is a relative to himself and cannot make himself a רשע. The amud ends as רבא begins another teaching, which continues on the next amud.

Opening lines

מָה יַעֲשׂוּ שְׁנֵי אַחִים וְאֶחָד,

What should two brothers and one other person do,

שֶׁרָאוּ בְּאֶחָד שֶׁהָרַג אֶת הַנֶּפֶשׁ?

who saw someone kill a person?

וְאִיבָּעֵית אֵימָא:

And if you wish, say:

כְּגוֹן שֶׁהִתְרוּ בָּהּ אֲחֵרִים,

for example, where others warned her,

The steps (11)

  1. ProofWhat would two brothers and a third person do?
  2. ResolutionAnother explanation: others warned her, not the witnesses
  3. ProofThe dispute depends on רבי יוסי and the חכמים
  4. ResolutionA third explanation: contradiction in small details only
  5. ProofThe dispute depends on בן זכאי and the fig stems
  6. StatementThe husband's lying witnesses are executed but pay no money
  7. StatementThe father's lying witnesses are executed and also pay
  8. StatementA victim of forced sin may testify against the sinner
  9. StatementA willing participant is wicked and cannot testify
  10. Statementרבא: a person cannot make himself wicked
  11. Statementרבא introduces a new teaching