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Week 86 - Monday - 16 July 2001

GITTIN: CHAPTER 6: MISHNAH 4

"Bring me my get" - she eats terumah until the get comes into her hand; "Receive for me my get" - she is prohibited from eating terumah immediately. "Receive for me my get in a certain place" - she eats terumah until the get reaches that place. Rabbi Eliezer prohibits immediately.

Kehati

We learned in the preceding mishnah that a woman may appoint two types of agents: (1) an agent of receipt, to whom she says, "Receive my get on my behalf' and when the get comes into the hand of the agent, she is divorced, as if it had reached her hand, and (2) an agent of bringing, to whom she says: "Bring me my get," and whose legal status is the same as that of an agent of delivery who is sent by the husband to deliver a get to his wife), but she is not divorced until the get comes into her hand. Our mishnah discusses from which time the daughter of an Israelite who married a priest, and is then divorced by him is prohibited from eating terumah. The mishnah teaches that there is a difference in this regard between an agent of bringing and an agent of receipt.

The wife of a priest who says to her agent "Bring me my get" - appointing him an agent of bringing, she eats terumah until the get comes into her hand - for it is only then she is divorced, as mentioned above. But if she says to the agent, "Receive for me my get" - thus appointing him an agent of receipt, she is prohibited from eating terumah immediately - as soon as the agent sets out, since he may have received the get immediately and her divorce took effect, for even if her divorce is in doubt, she is forbidden to eat terumah. (Hameiri).

If she said to the agent, "Receive for me my get in a certain place" - appointing him an agent of receipt to receive her get in a specific place, she eats terumah until the get reaches that place - until the get comes into the hand of the agent in that place, i.e., until the estimated time of arrival of the agent at that place (Rambam, Hil. Terumot 9:1; Hameiri; Tosefot Rid; Tosafot Hadashim). According to the Gemara's interpretation of our mishnah, the get received at a different place is valid only when the agent takes it to the place designated by the woman. This is borne out by the mishnah text "until the get reaches that place." However, this does not contradict the previous mishnah which states: "Receive my get…and he received it in another place - it is invalid" since the Gemara explained that our mishnah refers to a case in which the woman said, Receive my get for me at a certain place, but my husband may be in another place. Thus this last phrase indicates that the woman is not particular that the get should be received in that specific place, but only that it should not take effect elsewhere. She therefore eats terumah until the get arrives at the designated place.

Rabbi Eliezer prohibits immediately - for the agent may have met the husband as soon as he left and the divorce was effected, since Rabbi Eliezer holds (see previous mishnah) that if the woman says "receive my get on my behalf in a certain place" and the agent received it in another place - the get is valid.

GITTIN: CHAPTER 6: MISHNAH 5

If one says, "Write a get and give it to my wife," "Divorce her," "Write a letter and give it to her" - then they may write and give. "Dismiss her" "Provide for her," "Deal with her according to the law," "Deal with her as is proper" - he said nothing. At first they said, If a man is led out in chains, and says, "Write a get for my wife" - then they write and give. They added, Even one who goes on a sea voyage or on a journey with a caravan. Rabbi Shimon Shezuri says, Also for a person who is dangerously ill.

Kehati

Rambam writes: "If one says to two people, 'Write a get for my wife,' then they write and sign, but they do not give the get to his wife until he tells them to give it to her" (Hil. Gerushin 2:12). Our mishnah teaches: (1) with which words the husband must tell them to write a get and give it to his wife in order that it should be valid; and (2) when the husband is in a state of panic because of some danger he is in, then even if he says only, "Write a get for my wife," they may write, sign, and give it to his wife.

If one says - to two people, "Write a get and give it to my wife," or he says, "Divorce her," or he says: "Write a letter and give it to her" - Since a get is also called "a letter of release", as it is written in the text of the get, then they may write - the get and sign it, and give - it to his wife, for all these are expressions of signifying divorce, and "divorce her" implies writing and giving, too.

But if the husband said to them: "Dismiss her," or if he said, "Provide for her," or if he said, "Deal with her according to the law" or, "Deal with her as is proper" - he said nothing - since these words can be understood in different ways and do not necessarily mean divorce, for "Dismiss her," might mean to "free her from her debts," "Provide for her" - "to care for her upkeep;" and "Deal with her according to the law," or "Deal with her as is proper" - to provide food and clothing, therefore - he said nothing - and if they wrote a get and gave it to her, it is invalid (Rambam).

At first they - the Sages, said, If one is led out in chains - to be judged by state law, and is in danger of losing his life, and says - to two people, "Write a get for my wife" then - even though he did not say, "and give," they write and give - because we are certain that he wanted them to give her the get, but did not finish his words because he was panic-stricken. They - the Sages, added, Even one who goes on a sea voyage - or - on a journey with a caravan -which is fraught with danger, and says, "Write a get for my wife," they write and give. Rabbi Shimon Shezuri says, Also for a person who is dangerously ill - who said, "Write a get for my wife," they write it and give it to her. According Hameiri, the reason is that all ill people are regarded as being in danger. According to Rambam, however, it refers to a person "who became ill suddenly and whose condition deteriorated immediately."

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