Gittin 60a (ס.) — the Talmud in English

After them [

after the kohein, Levite, and Israelite] the

who is called?

That is: Is there any order for those called after them, because of the ways of peace?

He did not have it at hand [

Rabbi Ḥelbo did not know how to answer].

Rabbi Ḥelbo came and

Rabbi Ḥelbo

asked him [

Rabbi Ḥelbo came and asked]

Rabbi Yitzḥak Nappaḥa

the question that had been asked:

He said to him:

Rabbi Yitzḥak Nappaḥa said to Rabbi Ḥelbo:

After them, they call

the

Torah scholars appointed as communal leaders.

And after them,

the

Torah scholars fit to be appointed as communal leaders,

namely, those who are asked a matter of halakha in any area and can state it.

And after them,

the

sons of Torah scholars whose fathers are appointed as communal leaders,

because this accords honor to their fathers.

And after them,

the

heads of synagogues, and

the

rest of the people.

The people of the Galilee sent

a messenger

to Rabbi Ḥelbo

to ask him:

What is the ruling concerning reading from scrolls of the Five Books [

written like a Torah scroll, except that they are divided into the five Books],

in the synagogue in the presence of the congregation?

Rabbi Ḥelbo did not have it at hand

to answer.

Rabbi Ḥelbo came,

Rabbi Ḥelbo

asked

and asked

Rabbi Yitzḥak Nappaḥa

the question that had been asked, and he too

did not have it at hand [

did not know what to answer].

Rabbi Ḥelbo came,

Rabbi Ḥelbo

asked

this question

in the beit-midrash [

in the house of study];

and they resolved it from that which Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani said in the name of Rabbi Yonatan: In the case of a Torah scroll from which one sheet is missing,

one may not read from it;

and all the more so, when it is only a single Book, one may not read from it.

The Gemara rejects the proof:

That is not so!

There,

in the case of a Torah scroll from which one sheet is missing,

it is

missing

in its definition,

that is: It is called a “Torah scroll,” yet it is deficient.

But

here,

with regard to the Books,

it is not deficient in its definition,

since, according to what they are called—“Books”—they are not deficient.

Rabba and Rav Yosef both say: One may not read from the Books in the synagogue, because of the honor of the congregation,

so that people will not say that they do not possess a complete Torah scroll, which would be disgraceful for them.

Rabba and Rav Yosef both say: This scroll

of the Haftarot [

a scroll in which the Haftarot are written],

it is forbidden to read from it on Shabbat [

it is forbidden to read from it on Shabbat].

And we explain:

What is the reason?

Because

it was not permitted to be written

as anything less than one complete book in its own right.

Bar Rav Ashi said: Carrying it

on Shabbat

is also forbidden.

What is the reason?

For it is not fit to read from

since it is not fit to read from.

The Gemara rejects this:

That is not so!

It is permitted to carry it

and it is permitted to read from it [

it is permitted to carry it and it is permitted to read from it]—

And because

the

we find that

Rabbi Yoḥanan and Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish

both

study from a book of aggada [

an aggadic book]

on Shabbat—

But it was not permitted to be written,

for it is forbidden to write the Oral Torah, so how did they read from it!?

Rather,

necessarily,

since it is impossible

not to write them, because hearts have become diminished and the Torah is forgotten, this is what is referred to by the verse: “

It is time to act for the Lord;

they have violated Your Torah.”

And if so,

here too,

with regard to a scroll of the Haftarot,

since it is impossible

for every congregation to write a complete book of the Prophets, as they lack the means to do so, this is what is referred to by the verse: “

It is time to act for the Lord;

they have violated Your Torah.”

He asked,

asked

Abaye of Rabba:

What is the ruling concerning writing a scroll for a child

in which one or two passages from the Torah are written, in order

to study from it?

Let the question be raised,

this doubt applies both

according to the one who says: “

The Torah was given scroll by scroll,”

each passage that Moses heard from the Всевышний he would write; and when the entire Torah was completed, Moses joined the passages with sinews and sewed them together.

And

let the question also be raised according to the one who says: “

The Torah was given

complete, finalized, and whole,

as a sealed unit,”

that is: Before all the passages had been stated, Moses did not write them; rather, he preserved them orally, and only when all the passages had been completed did Moses write the entire Torah as one.

And the Gemara explains how

the question is raised according to the one who says: “

The Torah was given scroll by scroll”:

Should we say:

since

at first

each scroll

was given separately,

then even today

one may write

them as separate scrolls.

Or perhaps: Since they have been joined, they have been joined,

and once all the passages were joined, one may write only the entire Torah as a single unit.

Or perhaps:

since the question is raised according to the one who says: “

The Torah was given as a sealed unit”:

Should we say:

since “

the Torah

was given as a sealed unit,”

one may not write?

Or perhaps: Since it is impossible, we write.

He said to him:

Rabba said to Abaye:

One may not write! And what is the reason?

Because one may not write.

He raised an objection

to Rabba, who had said that one may not write:

But we learned concerning Queen Helena:

“She too made a tablet of gold, on which the passage concerning the sota was written;”

thus, apparently, one may write even a single passage.

He said

and answered

Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish in the name of Rabbi Yannai:

They did not write the passage on the tablet as it is, but

They did not write the passage on the tablet as it is, but rather

in alef-bet

alone—that is, in initials.

He raised an objection

from a beraita:

When he

the kohein

writes

the passage for the sota, to erase it in the water, he

looks at the tablet

made by Queen Helena,

and writes what is written on the tablet;

thus, it appears that the passage itself was written on the tablet as it is!?

And we answer:

Say instead: As it is written on the tablet,

that is, the kohein would write on the basis of the initials that were written on the tablet.

He raised an objection

from a beraita in which it is explicitly taught:

“When he writes, he looks at the tablet and writes what is written on the tablet. What was written on the tablet? ‘

If

he lay with her, if he did not lie with her’”!?

And we answer:

Here, with what are we dealing? With alternating writing,

that is, at the beginning of each verse a complete word was written, and afterward initials.

This is subject to a dispute between tannaim,

the tannaim disagree concerning this law, whether one writes a scroll for a child to study from it:

One does not write a scroll for a child to study from it, but if his intention is to complete it,

then it is

permitted.

Rabbi Yehuda says:

In

a scroll of

Genesis,

it is permitted to write a single scroll

up to

the passage of

the Generation of the Flood,

because it is one subject.

And

in Torat Kohanim [

the Book of Leviticus] it is permitted to write a single scroll

until “

And it was on the eighth day,”

which is the completion of the command concerning the offerings.

Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Bana’a: The Torah—

was given as separate scrolls, as it is stated: “Then I said: Behold, I have come; in the scroll of the book it is written concerning me,”

meaning that he recalled the scroll in the Torah in which it is mentioned, as it is stated concerning the daughters of Lot [Genesis 19:15]: “And the angels hastened Lot, saying: Arise, take your wife and your two daughters who are found.” Therefore Scripture said “who are found,” to say that this was in the merit of David, who was destined to emerge from Ruth the Moabite [who was the one daughter of Lot who gave birth to Moab], and in the merit of Naamah the Ammonite [who was the second daughter of Lot who gave birth to Ammon]. This is alluded to in the expression “who are found,” for it is written concerning David: “I have found David My servant.”

And therefore he called the Torah a scroll, because initially the portion of Bereshit was written, then the portion of Noah, and then the scroll of Abraham. This is what David said: “In the scroll of Abraham it is written concerning me.”

Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish says: The Torah—

was given as a complete, sealed work, as it is stated: “

Take this scroll of the Torah,”

which indicates that it is one scroll.

And we challenge this:

But the other one—

Rabbi Yoḥanan—

can also say: Is it not written “

take,”

which indicates that “the Torah was given as a complete, sealed work”? And we answer:

That was after they had been attached,

for initially it was not one scroll of the Torah; rather, ultimately, when all the portions were attached to one another, it became one scroll.

We raise another challenge:

But the other one—

Reish Lakish—

can also say: Is it not written: “

In the scroll of the book it is written concerning me,”

which indicates: “The Torah was given as separate scrolls”?

And we answer: The intention is not that part of the Torah was written in a scroll; rather,

that

verse in which “scroll” is mentioned refers to the entire Torah, because

the entire Torah is called a “

scroll,”

as it is written: [Zechariah 5:3] “

I saw a flying scroll.”

And he said to me: What do you see? And I said: “

I see a flying scroll,”

and this verse refers to the Torah.

Alternatively,

the Torah is called a “scroll”

according to Rabbi Levi,

because of Rabbi Levi,

who said:

Eight portions were stated on the day on which the Tabernacle was erected,

and those portions were written on separate scrolls because they were needed for that day. Even afterward, when Moses completed the Torah, he did not write it in sequence; rather, he filled in what was missing between one scroll and another. Therefore the entire Torah is called a “scroll.”

And these are

the eight portions that were stated and written on the day on which the Tabernacle was erected:

1.

The portion of the kohanim

in the portion of Emor, in which several laws concerning kohanim were stated: “He shall not become impure,” “These he shall not take [marry],” and “A blemish is in him; he shall not approach to offer the food of his God.” This portion was stated on that day because the kohanim began offering on that day, and it was necessary to make their sanctity known.

2.

And the portion of the Levites

in the portion of Beha’alotekha [Numbers 8:5]: “Take the Levites from among the children of Israel and purify them.” It was stated on that very day because the Levites began singing in the Tabernacle on that day.

3.

And the portion of those who were impure

in the portion of Beha’alotekha [Numbers 9:6]: “And there were men who were impure through contact with a human corpse and could not perform the Paschal offering on that day.” This portion was stated because the time for the approaching Passover offering had arrived.

4.

And the portion concerning the sending out of those who were impure

in the portion of Bamidbar [Numbers 5:2]: “Command the children of Israel that they send out from the camp every leper, and everyone with a discharge, and everyone impure through contact with a human corpse.” This portion was stated because on that day three camps were established: the Camp of the Divine Presence, the Camp of the Levites, and the Camp of Israel.

5.

And the portion “

After the Death,”

which is the portion [Leviticus 16:1]: “Speak to Aaron your brother, that he should not come at all times into the Sanctuary, within the curtain.” Although the primary subject of this portion concerns Yom Kippur, nevertheless it was stated on that day because Aaron’s sons died on that day on account of entering without need. Therefore the warning that Aaron should not enter at all times was stated on that day.