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Week 38 - Friday - 18 August 2000

BETZAH: CHAPTER 3: MISHNAH 6

They may not allot shares of an animal from the outset on Yom Tov, but they may allot shares of it from before Yom Tov and may slaughter and divide among them. R. Yehudah says, One may weigh meat against a utensil or against a chopper. But the Sages say, One may not use scales at all.

Kehati

This mishnah deals with certain activities which were forbidden by the Sages because of the prohibition against trading.

They may not allot shares of an animal from the outset on Yom Tov - The Gemara explains: "One may not, from the outset, fix a price for an animal on Yom Tov," i.e., a group of people who come to a butcher on Yom Tov to buy an animal may not say to him, "Give us this cow for so and so much money," and one of us will owe you for his share (Rambam; Hameiri; Bartenura); similarly if people wish to be partners in an animal on Yom Tov, they may not fix the amounts, saying, for example, "I will take a selah's worth of meat and you take two," as explained in the baraita in the Gemara: "A person may not say to his fellow: I join you with a sela," or "I join you with two," for price fixing is the way of trading, which is forbidden on Yom Tov; but they may allot shares of it from before Yom Tov and may slaughter and divide among them - on Yom Tov, i.e., if they fixed the price before Yom Tov, as to how much worth of meat each one will take, they can divide the meat among them on Yom Tov, in accordance with the division they decided upon before Yom Tov (see Tosefot Yom Tov; Tiferet Yisrael). Rashi explains: "but the butcher may slaughter the animal without fixing the price and they divide it among them, and the following day he determines costs." Tiferet Yisrael writes that it appears that Rashi did not have the version of the mishnah, "but they may allot shares of it before Yom Tov," but rather "but they may slaughter and divide among them." It is also possible that Rashi is explaining, "they may allot shares of it…or they slaughter and divide among them."

R. Yehudah says, One may weigh meat - on Yom Tov, against a utensil or against a chopper - a large knife used to chop meat and bones. Though it is forbidden to weigh with weights on Yom Tov, because that is a weekday activity, it is nevertheless permitted to weigh on scales against some type of utensil or chopping knife, and to ascertain after Yom Tov the weight of the utensil or chopping knife (Bartenura). Others explain that this refers to a case in which the weight of the utensil or chopping knife is known (Maharam).

But the Sages say, One may not use the scales at all - on Yom Tov; the Gemara explains that the Sages use the words "at all" to teach us that one may not even place the meat on the pan of a balance to keep it out of the reach of rodents, because it appears as if one were using the scales for weighing. The halakhah is in accordance with the Sages.

BETZAH: CHAPTER 3: MISHNAH 7

One may not whet a knife on Yom Tov, but one may pass it over another. One may not say to a butcher, Weigh me a dinar's worth of meat, but he may slaughter and they divide among themselves.

Kehati

One may not whet a knife on One may not whet a knife on Yom Tov - on a grindstone, because that is like repairing a utensil, but one may pass it over another - knife, because that is not a real repair and is done differently from the usual manner, it is permitted (Hameiri); others state that this is permitted because it is different from the week-day practice (Rashi; Bartenura).

One may not say to a butcher - on Yom Tov, Weigh me a dinar's worth of meat - for one is forbidden to set a price on Yom Tov, as we saw in the previous mishnah (See Tosefot Yom Tov, who wonders why this law is repeated here). But he - the butcher, may slaughter - on Yom Tov, and they divide among themselves - the parts of the carcass as usual. Whoever wants meat asks the butcher to give him a slice or half a slice, without mentioning the price. Regarding the phrase, "weigh me," Tiferet Yisrael explains that it is meant to weigh in one of the permitted ways, estimating the weight in one's hand (see Tiferet Yisrael, who explains this halakhah in an entirely different manner). Some explain: "Weigh me" as meaning "give me" (Korban Netanel). Others have the version: "Sell me a dinar's worth of meat" (R. Nissim; Maggid Mishneh). Rambam writes: One may not say to a butcher: "give me a dinar's worth of meat, but may say, "give me a part" or "half a part;" and on the following day they settle accounts.

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