Gemara Clarity

Shevuos 19a

שבועות י״ט ע״א

Shevuot 19a

Learn Shevuos 19a step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Shevuos 19a in Gemara Clarity

Topic

שבועות יט. — Knowing the exact cause of one's טומאה (רבי אליעזר and רבי עקיבא), forgetting both the טומאה and the מקדש, and the case of two doubtful paths.

Overview

The גמרא finishes explaining the מחלוקת between רבי אליעזר and רבי עקיבא about whether a person who entered the מקדש while טמא must know exactly what made him טמא. First it shows how רבי אליעזר uses the extra words in the פסוק in other ways: the list of animals is there for רבי's teaching, and 'בה' excludes a מתעסק. Then רבי יוחנן says the two תנאים agree in practice and argue only about which פסוק teaches the rule. רב ששת seems to agree, since he freely swapped their names. Next רבא asks רב נחמן about someone who forgot both that he was טמא and that he was in the מקדש. רב נחמן says he is חייב. רב אשי suggests watching which reminder makes him leave, but רבינא shows this test does not work, so there is no difference between the two ways of leaving, and רש״י explains that he is פטור. Finally a ברייתא brings a case of two paths, one טמא and one טהור, with רבי שמעון disagreeing. The גמרא begins to question the claim that רבי שמעון exempts 'in all of them', and that discussion continues on the next amud.

Opening lines

דְּבָעֵי לְמִיכְתַּב בְּהֵמָה וְחַיָּה

Since it needs to write 'domesticated animal' and 'wild animal'

לְכִדְרַבִּי,

for the teaching of רבי,

כָּתֵיב נָמֵי שֶׁרֶץ.

it also writes 'creeping animal.'

כִּדְתָנָא דְּבֵי רַבִּי יִשְׁמָעֵאל:

As the school of רבי ישמעאל taught:

The steps (16)

  1. ResolutionWhy the verse lists שרץ according to רבי אליעזר
  2. ProofSupport: the Torah repeats a passage for one new detail
  3. QuestionWhat does רבי אליעזר learn from the word 'בה'?
  4. Response'בה' excludes a מתעסק
  5. Statementרבי יוחנן: they disagree only about the source
  6. Proofרב ששת agrees, since he swaps the two names
  7. Questionרבא asks about forgetting both the טומאה and the מקדש
  8. Responseרב נחמן: he forgot the טומאה, so he is חייב
  9. ChallengeOn the contrary: he forgot the מקדש, so he should be פטור
  10. Resolutionרב אשי: Watch what makes him leave
  11. Challengeרבינא: Each reminder only works with the other
  12. ConclusionThere is no difference
  13. StatementTwo paths: walked the first without entering, then the second and entered
  14. StatementEntered after each path, with purification in between
  15. Statementרבי שמעון and רבי שמעון בן יהודה exempt
  16. ChallengeQuestioning 'in all of them'