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Week 87 - Tuesday - 24 July 2001

GITTIN: CHAPTER 8: MISHNAH 4

Bet Shammai say, A man may divorce his wife with an old get; Bet Hillel forbid it. And which is an old get? One after the writing of which he has been alone with her.

Kehati

If a person writes a get to his wife, and was alone with her before he gave it to her, it is called an "old get," as explained in the mishnah. Bet Shammai and Bet Hillel disagree in our mishnah on whether it is permitted to divorce with an old get.

Bet Shammai say, A man may divorce his wife with an old get; but Bet Hillel forbid it - to divorce with an old get The Gemara that Bet Hillel forbid it, "lest they say that her get preceded her child," i.e., Bet Hillel fear that two or three years might elapse between the writing and the giving of the get and if in the meantime she will have children from him, and he will later divorce her with this get, people will see its date and think that the get was given to her on the day it was written, a slur will be cast on her children for it will be said that they were born to an unmarried woman. It is therefore forbidden to divorce with an old get. This is not a predated get, for it was written and signed on the same day, and the later delivery is of no concern. Bet Shammai, however, do not fear that it will be said that her get preceded her child, and therefore permit to divorce with an old get.

And which is an old get? One after the writing of which he - the husband, has been alone with her - his wife, before giving it to her, as explained above. The law is in accordance with Bet Hillel that it is forbidden to divorce with an old get; after the fact, however, if she was divorced with an old get, the divorce is effective, and she may ab initio marry on the basis of this get (Gemara, Rambam, Hil. Gerushin 3:5). Rashi, however, writes that this 'after the fact' law applies only if the husband has gone to a land beyond the sea, and cannot give her another get.

GITTIN: CHAPTER 8: MISHNAH 5

If he wrote in the name of an unworthy government in the name of the government of Media, in the name of the government of Greece, of the building of the Temple, of the destruction of the Temple; if he was in the East and he wrote, "In the West"; in the West and he wrote, "In the East" - she must leave this one and this one, and she requires a get from this one and from this one; and she has neither ketubah, nor produce, nor maintenance, nor compensation, from this one or from this one. And if she took from this one or from this one - she must return it. And the offspring from this one and from this one is a mamzer. Neither this one nor this one may render himself impure for her; and neither this one nor this one has a right to her finds, or to the work of her hands, or to annul her vows. If she was the daughter of an Israelite she is ineligible for the priesthood, the daughter of a Levite - from the tithe, the daughter of a priest from the terumah. And the heirs of neither this one nor of this one inherit her ketubah. And if they died, the brothers of this one and the brothers of this one perform halitzah but do not contract levirate marriage. If he changed his name and her name, the name of his city or the name of her city she leaves this one and this one, and all these conditions apply to her.

Kehati

At the time this mishnah was taught, the years were counted according to the years of the rule of their kings. The Sages ruled that the Jews should also date their documents according to the years of the ruling king, in the interests of maintaining good relations with the authorities. This mishnah teaches that the date must be written in the get according to the years of the local ruling sovereign. If the date in the get was written according to the years of a sovereign not ruling in that country, of an extinct kingdom, and similarly if he based the date on the construction of the Temple or on the destruction of the Temple, the get is invalid, since this is not in accordance with the ruling of the Sages.

He wrote - the date in the get, in the name of an unworthy government - which does not rule in that country, e.g., he was in Babylon and wrote a date according to the years of rule of a foreign kingdom. The Gemara explains that the mishnah refers to the Roman empire, which is called "an unworthy government," because it had neither an alphabet nor a language of its own, but of another nation; and similarly, if he wrote in the name of the government of Media, or - in the name of the government of Greece - long since extinct; or if he wrote, in the year such-and-such - of the building of the Temple, or - of the destruction of the Temple - then the get is invalid, since the date in the get was not written according to the ruling of the Sages, as explained above; or -

if he - the scribe, was in the East and he wrote - in the get, that it was written - "In the West"; or if he was - in the West and he wrote - in the get, that it was written - "In the East" - the get is invalid, and if she married on the strength of such a get, she must leave this one - her first husband, and this one - her second husband. She is forbidden to both of them, in accordance with the law of a married woman who engaged in adultery, who is forbidden to her husband and to her paramour (Mishnah Sot. 5:1), and she requires a get from this one and from this one - she is not permitted to remarry until she receives a get from each one of them (see our explanation of Mishnah Yev. 10:11; see also Tosefot Yom Tov); and she has neither - the money of her - ketubah, nor produce - compensation for the produce consumed from her property, nor maintenance - not even that which she borrowed and consumed before she married the second husband, nor compensation - for the wear and tear of her property, from this one or from this one - she cannot claim payment of her ketubah, or for any of the others enumerated either from her first or second husband. And if she took from this one or from this one - her ketubah, or produce, etc., from one of them, she must return it - she is obligated to return it, and we do not say let her keep that which she has already taken.

And the offspring from this one and from this one is a mamzer - an illegitimate child (see glossary); if the first husband took her back and she bore him a son, the child is only a mamzer by rabbinic law, whereas her son from the second husband is a mamzer by Torah law (Rashi; Rambam, Hameiri). According to other authorities, the child from the first husband (if they had relations while she was still married to the second husband) is a mamzer by Torah Law, whereas a child from the second marriage is only a mamzer by Rabbinic law (Ran). And if they are priests, neither this one nor this one may render himself impure for her - at her burial, for a priest may do so only for his eligible wife, and neither this one nor this one has a right to her finds - because the Sages decreed that any object found by the wife becomes the husband's property to prevent enmity between them, and we are not concerned with enmity in this case, or to the work of her hands - which belongs to her husband in requital for providing her with maintenance, and since she does not receive maintenance from them, the work of her hands belongs to her, or to annul her vows - the Torah empowered the husband to annul his wife's vows so that she would not become repulsive to him. In this case, however, we are not concerned with this.

If she was the daughter of an Israelite - she is ineligible for the priesthood - if her husband died before divorcing her she is prohibited from marrying a priest owing to her illicit relations; if she was - the daughter of a Levite - she is prohibited from the tithe - from partaking of tithes. Although a wanton woman may eat tithes, this prohibition is a penalty - and if she was - the daughter of a priest - she is forbidden to eat from the terumah - even from Rabbinical terumah (Gemara). And the heirs of neither this one nor of this one inherit her ketubah - the Gemara explains that this refers to a case of "a ketubah of male children," for in the ketubah it is stipulated that if a wife dies during her husband's lifetime, her male children fathered by him inherit the money of the ketubah and the dowry that she brought into the marriage. In this case, however, if the wife dies during the lifetime of the two husbands, her sons from both marriages are also fined, and they do not receive a "ketubah of male children."

And if they - the two husbands, died - without offspring, the brothers of this one - the first husband, and the brothers of this one - the second husband, perform halitzah but do not contract levirate marriage - with her. The Gemara explains that our mishnah is in accordance with Rabbi Meir, who holds that if the standard form of the get as prescribed by the Sages, is changed, the woman must leave the husband, and the child is a mamzer. The halakhah is not in accordance with Rabbi Meir. If he changed his or her name, the name of his city or the name of her city - the get is invalid, and if she marries on the basis of this get, she leaves this one and this one, and all these conditions - all the laws listed above in the mishnah, that she requires a get from each one, that she does not receive her ketubah, produce, etc., apply to her.

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