Gemara Clarity

Shabbos 4a

שבת ד׳ ע״א

Shabbat 4a

Learn Shabbos 4a step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Shabbos 4a in Gemara Clarity

Topic

Bringing a hand back into the same courtyard, removing bread from an oven on שבת, and why a hand needs no 4x4 place according to רבי עקיבא

Overview

The amud opens by finishing the answer to two ברייתות that seemed to contradict each other. They concern a person who stuck his hand, full of fruit, out of his courtyard into the public domain on שבת. He may bring it back into the same courtyard but not into a different one, as רב נחמן ruled for רבא. The reason is that going back to the same courtyard defeats his plan, while going to a different courtyard completes it. The גמרא then discusses רב ביבי בר אביי's question about someone who stuck bread in an oven on שבת: may he take it out before it bakes? After testing several possible cases, and after רב ששת rejects רב שילא's answer, רב אשי concludes that the person acted on purpose. He may remove the bread so that he avoids an איסור סקילה. רב אחא בריה דרבא even teaches this as a plain ruling. Finally, the גמרא asks why the poor person in the משנה is liable when his hand is not a 4x4 place. רבה answers that the משנה follows רבי עקיבא, who holds קלוטה כמי שהונחה דמיא. The amud ends as the גמרא begins to question whether רבה really treats that rule as obvious, and the discussion continues on the next amud.

Opening lines

כָּאן לְחָצֵר אַחֶרֶת.

Here, it refers to a different courtyard.

כְּדִבְעָא מִינֵּיהּ רָבָא מֵרַב נַחְמָן:

As Rava asked Rav Naḥman:

הָיְתָה יָדוֹ מְלֵאָה פֵּירוֹת

If his hand was full of fruit

וְהוֹצִיאָהּ לַחוּץ,

and he stuck it outside (into the public domain),

The steps (18)

  1. ResolutionThe prohibiting ברייתא refers to a different courtyard
  2. ProofSource: רבא's question to רב נחמן
  3. Questionרבא asks why the two courtyards are different
  4. ResponseHis plan was not done versus his plan was done
  5. Questionרב ביבי בר אביי's question about bread in the oven
  6. Questionרב אחא בר אביי asks what the case is
  7. RejectionRuling out someone who acted by mistake and never remembered
  8. RejectionThe case where he later remembers also fails
  9. RejectionThe case where he acted on purpose also fails
  10. Resolutionרב שילא: he acted by mistake, and the question is about other people
  11. Challengeרב ששת: we don't tell someone to sin so another can benefit
  12. Resolutionרב אשי: The case is on purpose, and the wording is about stoning
  13. Statementרב אחא teaches it as a plain ruling
  14. ChallengeWhy is the poor person liable if a hand is not a 4x4 surface?
  15. Resolutionרבה: The משנה follows רבי עקיבא
  16. ProofProof from throwing across the public domain
  17. ProofThe reason: an object in the air counts as resting
  18. ChallengeIs רבה really sure that a flying object counts as put down?