שבת דף פז

בתלתא אמר להו מצות הגבלה; בארבעה עבוד פרישה. ורבנן סברי — בתרי בשבא איקבע ירחא, בתרי בשבא לא אמר להו ולא מידי משום חולשא דאורחא; בתלתא אמר להו:

On the third day of the week, God said to them the mitzva of setting boundaries around Mount Sinai. On the fourth day of the week, the husbands and wives separated from one another. And the Rabbis hold: On the second day of the week the New Moon was established, and on the second day of the week God did not say anything to them due to the weariness caused by their journey. On the third day of the week, God said to them: “And you shall be to Me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation; these are the words that you shall speak to the children of Israel” (Exodus 19:6). On the fourth day of the week, God said to them the mitzva of setting boundaries around Mount Sinai. On the fifth day of the week, the husbands and wives separated from one another. The Gemara raises an objection: Doesn’t the verse state: “And the Lord said to Moses: Go to the people and sanctify them today and tomorrow and let them wash their garments” (Exodus 19:10), indicating that the husbands and wives were separated for only two days? This is difficult according to the opinion of Rabbi Yosei, who said earlier that the separation was for three days.

״ואתם תהיו לי״; בארבעה אמר להו מצות הגבלה; בחמשא עבוד פרישה. מיתיבי: ״וקדשתם היום ומחר״, קשיא לרבי יוסי!

אמר לך רבי יוסי: יום אחד הוסיף משה מדעתו. דתניא: שלשה דברים עשה משה מדעתו, והסכים הקדוש ברוך הוא עמו. הוסיף יום אחד מדעתו, ופירש מן האשה,

The Gemara answers: Rabbi Yosei could have said to you: Moses added one day to the number of days that God commanded based on his own perception, as it was taught in a baraita: Moses did three things based on his own perception, and the Holy One, Blessed be He, agreed with him. He added one day to the days of separation before the revelation at Sinai based on his own perception. And he totally separated from his wife after the revelation at Sinai. And he broke the tablets following the sin of the Golden Calf.

ושבר את הלוחות.

הוסיף יום אחד מדעתו, מאי דרש? ״היום ומחר״ — היום כמחר. מה למחר לילו עמו, אף היום לילו עמו. ולילה דהאידנא נפק ליה,

The Gemara discusses these cases: He added one day based on his own perception. What source did he interpret that led him to do so? He reasoned that since the Holy One, Blessed be He, said: “Sanctify them today and tomorrow,” the juxtaposition of the two days teaches that today is like tomorrow; just as tomorrow the men and women will separate for that day and the night preceding it, so too, today requires separation for the day and the night preceding it. Since God spoke to him in the morning, and the night of that day already passed, Moses concluded: Derive from it that separation must be in effect for two days besides that day. Therefore, he extended the mitzva of separation by one day. And from where do we derive that the Holy One, Blessed be He, agreed with his interpretation? It is derived from the fact that the Divine Presence did not rest upon Mount Sinai until Shabbat morning, as Moses had determined.

שמע מינה תרי יומי לבר מהאידנא. ומנלן דהסכים הקדוש ברוך הוא על ידו — דלא שראי שכינה עד צפרא דשבתא.

ופירש מן האשה, מאי דרש? נשא קל וחומר בעצמו, אמר: ומה ישראל שלא דברה שכינה עמהן אלא שעה אחת, וקבע להן זמן, אמרה תורה:

And he totally separated from his wife after the revelation at Sinai. What source did he interpret that led him to do so? He reasoned an a fortiori inference by himself and said: If Israel, with whom the Divine Presence spoke only one time and God set a specific time for them when the Divine Presence would be revealed, and yet the Torah stated: “Prepare yourselves for three days, do not approach a woman” (Exodus 19:15); I, with whom the Divine Presence speaks all the time and God does not set a specific time for me, all the more so that I must separate from my wife. And from where do we derive that the Holy One, Blessed be He, agreed with him? As it is written after the revelation at Sinai: “Go say to them: Return to your tents” (Deuteronomy 5:26), meaning to your homes and wives. And afterward it is written that God told Moses: “And you, stand here with Me” (Deuteronomy 5:27), indicating that Moses was not allowed to return home, as he must constantly be prepared to receive the word of God. And some say a different source indicating that God agreed with his reasoning. When Aaron and Miriam criticized Moses’ separation from his wife, God said: “With him do I speak mouth to mouth, even manifestly, and not in dark speeches; and the similitude of the Lord does he behold; why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant, against Moses?” (Numbers 12:8). This indicates that God agreed with his reasoning.

״והיו נכנים וגו׳ אל תגשו״. אני, שכל שעה ושעה שכינה מדברת עמי, ואינו קובע לי זמן — על אחת כמה וכמה.

ומנלן דהסכים הקדוש ברוך הוא על ידו? — דכתיב: ״לך אמר להם שובו לכם לאהליכם״, וכתיב בתריה: ״ואתה פה עמד עמדי״. ואית דאמרי: ״פה אל פה אדבר בו״.

שבר את הלוחות, מאי דרש? אמר: ומה פסח שהוא אחד מתרי״ג מצות, אמרה תורה: ״וכל בן נכר לא יאכל בו״. התורה כולה [כאן] וישראל משומדים — על

And he broke the tablets following the sin of the Golden Calf. What source did he interpret that led him to do so? Moses said: With regard to the Paschal lamb, which is only one of six hundred and thirteen mitzvot, the Torah stated: “And the Lord said unto Moses and Aaron: This is the ordinance of the Paschal offering; no alien shall eat of it” (Exodus 12:43), referring not only to gentiles, but to apostate Jews as well. Regarding the tablets, which represented the entire Torah, and Israel at that moment were apostates, as they were worshipping the calf, all the more so are they not worthy of receiving the Torah. And from where do we derive that the Holy One, Blessed be He, agreed with his reasoning? As it is stated: “The first tablets which you broke [asher shibarta]” (Exodus 34:1), and Reish Lakish said: The word asher is an allusion to the phrase: May your strength be true [yishar koḥakha] due to the fact that you broke the tablets.

אחת כמה וכמה. ומנלן דהסכים הקדוש ברוך הוא על ידו? — שנאמר: ״אשר שברת״, ואמר ריש לקיש: יישר כחך ששברת.

תא שמע: ״והיו נכנים ליום השלישי״, קשיא לרבי יוסי. הא אמרינן יום אחד הוסיף משה מדעתו. תא שמע: ״שלישי״ — שלישי בחדש ושלישי בשבת, קשיא לרבנן!

Come and hear an additional difficulty from the verse: “And be prepared for the third day, for on the third day God will descend onto Mount Sinai before the eyes of the entire nation” (Exodus 19:11). This indicates that God said that the Torah would be given on the third day after two days of separation. This is difficult according to the opinion of Rabbi Yosei. The Gemara answers: Didn’t we say that Moses added one day based on his own perception? Come and hear a proof against this from what was taught in a baraita. That which is stated in the Torah: “For on the third day,” means the third day of the month and the third day of the week. Apparently, the New Moon was on Sunday. This is difficult according to the opinion of the Rabbis. The Gemara answers: The Rabbis could have said to you: Whose is the opinion in this baraita? It is the opinion of Rabbi Yosei. Therefore, this baraita poses no difficulty to the opinion of the Rabbis.

אמרי לך רבנן: הא מני — רבי יוסי היא.

שלישי למאי? לכדתניא: ״וישב משה את דברי העם אל ה׳״, וכתיב: ״ויגד משה את דברי העם אל ה׳״.

According to the opinion of the Rabbis, that day was the third day of what reckoning? As it was taught in a baraita: It is written: “And Moses reported the words of the people to the Lord” (Exodus 19:8). And it is written immediately thereafter: “And God said to Moses: Behold I will come to you in a thick cloud so that the people will hear when I speak with you, and they will also believe in you forever. And Moses told the words of the people to the Lord” (Exodus 19:9).

מה אמר לו הקדוש ברוך הוא למשה, ומה אמר להם משה לישראל, ומה אמרו ישראל למשה, ומה השיב משה לפני הגבורה? זו מצות הגבלה,

The Gemara asks: What did the Holy One, Blessed be He, say to Moses, and what did Moses say to Israel, and what did Israel say to Moses, and what did Moses report to the Almighty? The verses do not elaborate on the content of God’s command to Moses, which Moses then told the people and which they accepted. It must be that this refers to the mitzva of setting boundaries, which Moses told the people and which they accepted. He then went back and reported to God that the people accepted the mitzva; this is the statement of Rabbi Yosei bar Yehuda. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi says: At first, he explained the punishment and the hardship involved in receiving the Torah, as it is written: “And Moses reported [vayashev],” which is interpreted homiletically as: Matters that shatter [meshabbevin] (Rav Hai Gaon) a person’s mind; and, ultimately, he explained its reward, as it is written: “And Moses told [vayagged],” which is interpreted homiletically as: Matters that draw a person’s heart like aggada. And some say that at first, he explained its reward, as it is written: “And Moses reported,” which is interpreted homiletically as: Matters that restore [meshivin] and calm a person’s mind; and ultimately, he explained its punishment, as it is written: “And Moses told,” matters that are as difficult for a person as wormwood [gidin].

דברי רבי יוסי בר יהודה. רבי אומר: בתחילה פירש עונשה, דכתיב: ״וישב משה״ — דברים שמשבבין דעתו של אדם, ולבסוף פירש מתן שכרה, דכתיב:

״ויגד משה״ — דברים שמושכין לבו של אדם כאגדה. ואיכא דאמרי: בתחילה פירש מתן שכרה, דכתיב: ״וישב משה״ — דברים שמשיבין דעתו של אדם, ולבסוף פירש עונשה, דכתיב:

״ויגד משה״ — דברים שקשין לאדם כגידין.

תא שמע: ״ששי״ — ששי בחודש, ששי בשבת, קשיא לרבנן! הא נמי רבי יוסי היא. ששי למאי? רבא אמר:

Come and hear a proof from that which was taught in a baraita: The sixth was the sixth day of the month and the sixth day of the week. This is also difficult according to the opinion of the Rabbis. The Gemara answers: This baraita is also according to the opinion of Rabbi Yosei. But if so, according to the opinion of the Rabbis, that day was the sixth day of what reckoning? Rava said:

לחנייתן, רב אחא בר יעקב אמר: למסען. וקמיפלגי בשבת דמרה. דכתיב: ״כאשר צוך ה׳ אלהיך״, ואמר רב יהודה אמר רב: ״כאשר צוך״ — במרה. מר סבר: אשבת איפקוד,

the sixth day from their encampment. Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov said: The sixth day from the start of their journey. They left Refidim and arrived and camped in the desert on the same Sunday. And Rava and Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov disagree with regard to the mitzva of Shabbat commanded to the Jewish people at Mara, as it is written in the fourth commandment: “Observe the Shabbat day to keep it holy as the Lord your God commanded you” (Deuteronomy 5:11). And Rav Yehuda said that Rav said: As He commanded you in Mara, as it is stated: “There He made for him a statute and an ordinance, and there He proved him” (Exodus 15:25). Their dispute was: One Master held: They were commanded about Shabbat, but they were not commanded about Shabbat boundaries. Therefore, it was permitted to travel from Refidim on Shabbat, because the restriction of Shabbat boundaries was not yet in effect. And one Master held: They were also commanded about the boundaries, and therefore, it was prohibited to leave Refidim on Shabbat.

אתחומין לא איפקוד. ומר סבר: אתחומין נמי איפקוד.

תא שמע: ניסן שבו יצאו ישראל ממצרים, בארבעה עשר שחטו פסחיהם, ובחמשה עשר יצאו, ולערב לקו בכורות. לערב סלקא דעתך?! אלא: מבערב לקו בכורות,

Come and hear an additional proof with regard to the day of the revelation at Sinai from what was taught in a baraita: In the month of Nisan during which the Jewish people left Egypt, on the fourteenth, they slaughtered their Paschal lambs; on the fifteenth, they left Egypt; and in the evening, the firstborn were stricken. The Gemara asks: Does it enter your mind to say that they were stricken in the evening? Was the Plague of the Firstborn after the Jews left Egypt? Rather, say that the evening before, the firstborn were stricken. And that day was the fifth day of the week. From the fact that the fifteenth of Nisan was a Thursday, the New Moon of Iyyar was Shabbat, as Nisan is typically thirty days long. And the New Moon of Sivan was on the first day of the week, as Iyyar is typically twenty-nine days long. This is difficult according to the opinion of the Rabbis, who hold that the New Moon of Sivan that year was on Monday.

ואותו היום חמישי בשבת היה. מדחמיסר בניסן חמשא בשבא, ריש ירחא דאייר שבתא, וריש ירחא דסיון חד בשבת, קשיא לרבנן!

אמרי לך רבנן: אייר דההיא שתא עבורי עברוה. תא שמע דלא עברוה ניסן שבו יצאו ישראל ממצרים: בארבעה עשר שחטו פסחיהם, בחמשה עשר יצאו, ולערב לקו בכורות.

The Gemara answers: The Rabbis could have said to you that a day was added to Iyyar that year and it was thirty days long. The New Moon was determined by testimony of witnesses who saw the new moon, together with astronomical calculations that the testimony was feasible. Therefore, Iyyar could be thirty days long. If that was the case, the New Moon of Sivan was on Monday. Come and hear an objection from what was taught in a different baraita that they did not add a day to Iyyar that year, as the Sages taught: In the month of Nisan during which the Jewish people left Egypt, on the fourteenth, they slaughtered their Paschal lambs; on the fifteenth, they left Egypt; and in the evening, the firstborn were stricken. The Gemara asks: Does it enter your mind to say that they were stricken in the evening? Was the Plague of the Firstborn after the Jews left Egypt? Rather, say that the evening before, the firstborn were stricken. And that day was the fifth day of the week. Nisan was complete, i.e., it was thirty days long, and the New Moon of Iyyar occurred on a Shabbat.

לערב סלקא דעתך?! אלא אימא: מבערב לקו בכורות. ואותו היום חמישי בשבת היה. השלים ניסן ואירע אייר להיות בשבת.

חסר אייר, ואירע סיון להיות באחד בשבת — קשיא לרבנן! הא מני — רבי יוסי היא.

Iyyar was lacking, i.e., it was twenty-nine days long, and the New Moon of Sivan occurred on the first day of the week. This is difficult according to the opinion of the Rabbis. The Gemara answers: Whose is the opinion in this baraita? It is the opinion of Rabbi Yosei. Therefore, this baraita poses no difficulty to the opinion of the Rabbis.

אמר רב פפא, תא שמע: ״ויסעו מאלים ויבאו כל עדת בני ישראל וגו׳ בחמשה עשר יום לחדש השני״. ואותו היום שבת היה, דכתיב:

Rav Pappa said: Come and hear a different proof from another verse, as it is stated: “And they took their journey from Elim, and all the congregation of the children of Israel came unto the wilderness of Sin, which is between Elim and Sinai, on the fifteenth day of the second month after their departing out of the land of Egypt” (Exodus 16:1). And that day was Shabbat, as it is written: “And in the morning, then you shall see the glory of the Lord; for He has heard your murmurings against the Lord; and what are we, that you murmur against us?” (Exodus 16:7). The next day the glory of God was revealed, and He told them that in the afternoon the manna and quail would begin to fall, and it is written: “Six days you shall gather it; but on the seventh day is Sabbath, there shall be none in it” (Exodus 16:26). Apparently, the first six days after this command were weekdays on which the manna fell, and the fifteenth of Iyyar was Shabbat. And from the fact that the fifteenth of Iyyar was Shabbat, the New Moon of Sivan was on the first day of the week. This is difficult according to the opinion of the Rabbis. The Gemara answers: According to the Rabbis, a day was added to Iyyar that year and it was thirty days long. Therefore, the New Moon of Sivan was on Monday.

״ובקר וראיתם את כבוד ה׳״, וכתיב: ״ששת ימים תלקטהו״. ומדחמיסר באייר שבתא, ריש ירחא דסיון חד בשבא, קשיא לרבנן! אמרי לך רבנן: אייר דההיא שתא עבורי עברוה.

אמר ליה רב חביבי מחוזנאה לרב אשי, תא שמע: ״ויהי בחדש הראשון בשנה השנית באחד לחדש הוקם המשכן״ — תנא, אותו יום נטל עשר עטרות:

Rav Ḥavivi from Ḥozena’a said to Rav Ashi: Come and hear a different proof from the following verse: “And it came to pass in the first month in the second year, on the first day of the month, that the Tabernacle was erected” (Exodus 40:17). It was taught: That day took ten crowns. It was the first day of Creation, meaning Sunday, the first day of the offerings brought by the princes, the first day of the priesthood, the first day of service in the Temple, the first time for the descent of fire onto the altar, the first time that consecrated foods were eaten, the first day of the resting of the Divine Presence upon the Jewish people, the first day that the Jewish people were blessed by the priests, and the first day of the prohibition to bring offerings on improvised altars. Once the Tabernacle was erected, it was prohibited to offer sacrifices elsewhere. And it was the first of the months. And from the fact that the New Moon of Nisan of that year was on the first day of the week, in the previous year, it was on the fourth day of the week.

ראשון למעשה בראשית; ראשון לנשיאים; ראשון לכהונה; ראשון לעבודה; ראשון לירידת האש; ראשון לאכילת קדשים; ראשון לשכון שכינה; ראשון לברך את ישראל; ראשון לאיסור הבמות; ראשון לחדשים.

ומדריש ירחא דניסן דהא שתא חד בשבא — דאשתקד בארבעה.

דתניא, אחרים אומרים: אין בין עצרת לעצרת ואין בין ראש השנה לראש השנה אלא ארבעה ימים בלבד, ואם היתה שנה מעוברת — חמשה.

As it was taught in a baraita, Aḥerim say: Between the festival of Assembly, i.e., Shavuot, of one year and the festival of Assembly of the following year, and similarly, between Rosh HaShana of one year and Rosh HaShana of the following year, there is only a difference of four days of the week. And if it was a leap year, there is a difference of five days between them. There are three hundred and fifty four days in a year, which are divided into twelve months, six months that are thirty days long and six months that are twenty-nine days long. If the New Moon of Nisan was on Wednesday, the New Moon of Iyyar was on Shabbat eve, and the New Moon of Sivan was on Shabbat. This is difficult both according to Rabbi Yosei, who holds that the New Moon of Sivan was on Sunday, and according to the Rabbis, who hold it was on Monday. The Gemara answers: Both Rabbi Yosei and the Rabbis disagree with Aḥerim. According to Rabbi Yosei, they established seven months that were lacking in the first year, i.e., seven months that were twenty-nine days long,

הוה ליה ריש ירחא דאייר מעלי שבתא, וריש ירחא דסיון שבתא, קשיא בין לרבי יוסי בין לרבנן! לרבי יוסי שבעה חסרין עבוד,