Sanhedrin 14a (יד.) — the Talmud in English

Rather,

they abolished the laws of fines in Eretz Yisrael.

For on one occasion the wicked Roman government

Rome

issued a decree against the Jewish people,

to abolish semikha, and they decreed

that anyone

who ordained would be killed, and anyone ordained would be killed; the city in which ordination was performed would be destroyed, and the boundaries

two thousand cubits surrounding the city

in which ordination was performed would be uprooted.

What did Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava do

so that semikha would not be abolished from the Jewish people

? He went and sat between two great mountains, between two great towns, and between two Shabbat boundaries,

between

the city of

Usha and the

city of

Shefar’am,

and not inside the city, so that they would not destroy the city.

And there he ordained five elders,

sages,

and these are they: Rabbi Meir, Rabbi Yehuda, Rabbi Shimon, Rabbi Yosei, and Rabbi Eliezer ben Shamua.

Before he finishes relating the story, the Gemara adds another version, according to which six people were ordained.

Rav Avya adds: Rabbi Neḥemya as well.

When their enemies became aware of them,

as the matter became known to the wicked government,

Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava said to them

the elders:

My sons! Flee,

escape from the Roman troops!

They said to him

the elders to Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava:

Rabbi! What will become of you!?

He said to them:

I cannot flee,

and I am lying before them like a

like a

stone that cannot be turned over.

The Sages said,

the Sages related:

The Roman troops did not move

from there

until they had driven into him

Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava

three hundred lunkhiyot

spears,

and made him

perforated

like a sieve.

Thus, Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava ordained by himself.

The Gemara answers:

Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava,

several ordainers

were with him,

they were together with him,

but the reason they were not mentioned

the reason the narrator of the story did not mention them was

out of regard for Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava.

Since this story states that Rabbi Meir was among those whom Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava ordained, the Gemara raises a difficulty:

B

ut

did Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava ordain Rabbi Meir,

was he the one who ordained him!?

But,

did he not say

Rabba bar bar Ḥana said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: Anyone who says, “Rabbi Meir was not ordained by Rabbi Akiva,”

is nothing but mistaken.

Thus, Rabbi Meir was ordained by Rabbi Akiva!

The Gemara answers: Initially,

indeed Rabbi Akiva ordained him.

But

it was not accepted,

the matter was not accepted, because he was still young. And afterward

Rabbi Yehuda ben Bava ordained him, and it was accepted,

the matter was accepted.

The Gemara now discusses: Where is the place in which semikha may be performed?

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Ordination is not performed outside Eretz Yisrael.

The Gemara asks:

What

is meant by the statement that

“ordination is not performed

outside Eretz Yisrael”?

If you say

that ordination performed there is ineffective for judging there,

as no cases involving laws of fines are judged at all outside Eretz Yisrael,

even by ordained judges,

that cannot be,

for we learned in the Mishna,

as we learned in our Mishna,

“The Sanhedrin functions both in Eretz Yisrael and outside Eretz Yisrael.”

This proves that if they were ordained in Eretz Yisrael, they may judge cases involving laws of fines even outside Eretz Yisrael.

The Gemara answers:

Rather, we do not ordain outside Eretz Yisrael.

The Gemara continues its discussion, asking whether the person being ordained must be together with the ordainer at the time of ordination.

This

is obvious,

there is no doubt about it, and it is clear that if the

ordainers

are

outside Eretz Yisrael, while those being ordained

are

in Eretz Yisrael,

the ordination is ineffective. For

we have said that it is not.

Ordination is not performed when the ordainers are outside Eretz Yisrael, even if those being ordained were there with them. All the more so, ordination is not performed outside Eretz Yisrael when those being ordained are in Eretz Yisrael, as those being ordained are not with them.

Rather,

the question is: If the

ordainers

are

in Eretz Yisrael

Israel, while those being

ordained

are

outside Eretz Yisrael,

and the person being ordained is not with the ordainer,

what is the law?

Does ordination performed by the ordainer in Eretz Yisrael take effect as though the person being ordained were with him at the time of ordination, thereby making him ordained to judge even outside Eretz Yisrael?

Or, since the person being ordained is not present with the ordainer, the ordination is ineffective?

The Gemara resolves that such ordination is ineffective. For Rabbi Yoḥanan wished to ordain Rabbi Shaman bar Abba, but did not ordain him because he was not with him, and Rabbi Yoḥanan grieved over this.

Come and hear

and hear:

For Rabbi Yoḥanan was distressed on account of Rav Shaman bar Abba

because he had not ordained him, since

he was not with them so that he could ordain him.

Rabbi Shaman bar Abba was not present with him so that he could ordain him.

The Gemara relates an incident involving a pair of tannaim:

Rabbi Shimon ben Zerud and one who was with him,

and another tanna with him,

and who was he?

Who was the tanna who was with him?

Rabbi Yonatan ben Akhmai.

And some say

that it was

Rabbi Yonatan ben Akhmai and one who was with him,

and another person with him,

and who was he,

who was that person?

Rabbi Shimon ben Zerud.

One,

one of the two,

who was with them,

who was present with Rabbi Yoḥanan—

they ordained him.

And the other,

the second,

who was not with them,

who was not present with Rabbi Yoḥanan—

they did not ordain him.

The Gemara relates another incident involving two amoraim whom Rabbi Yoḥanan wished to ordain.

Rav Ḥanina and Rabbi Hoshaya, Rabbi Yoḥanan was constantly striving

seeking and awaiting the opportunity

Rabbi Yoḥanan—

to ordain them.

to ordain them.

The matter did not come about,

he was unable to accomplish it, because there were not two other people with him who could join him in ordaining Rav Ḥanina and Rabbi Hoshaya.

He was greatly distressed,

Rabbi Yoḥanan was very distressed.

They said to him,

Rav Ḥanina and Rabbi Hoshaya said to Rabbi Yoḥanan:

Let our master not be distressed,

let our master not be distressed,

for we come from the house of Eli,

we are descendants of Eli the kohen,

as Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani said that Rabbi Yonatan said:

From where do we know

that those ordained

descendants

from the house of Eli are not ordained?—

As it is stated,

the prophet said to the house of Eli that as punishment for their deeds,

“There shall not be an elder in your house for all time.”

And

what is meant by “elder”?

What is the meaning of “elder”?

If you say

that it means

a literal elder—

one advanced in years,

but it is written,

it is already stated there:

“All the increase of your house shall die as men,”

for most of Eli’s descendants would die at the age of eighteen; so why was it necessary to repeat, “There shall not be an elder”?

Rather,

we are compelled to say that its meaning is

ordination,

so that even the minority of Eli’s descendants who would merit reaching old age through Torah and acts of kindness would not attain “old age,” meaning to be ordained. Therefore they said to Rabbi Yoḥanan that he should not be distressed, since the punishment that they would not be ordained applied to them.

The Gemara relates another story concerning ordination.

Rabbi Zeira would hide himself,

he would conceal himself

from being ordained,

because he did not want Rabbi Yoḥanan to ordain him, and his reason was that

Rabbi Elazar said: Always remain obscure

be in the shadows, keeping away from authority, like one who stands in darkness,

and you will live,

for authority buries those who hold it.

When he heard this statement of Rabbi Elazar,

when he heard another teaching of Rabbi Elazar:

“A person rises to greatness only if all his sins are forgiven,”

he applied himself,

he exerted himself to be ordained so that his sins would be forgiven.

The Gemara relates the ordination of Rabbi Zeira.

When they ordained

him,

Rabbi Zeira, his colleagues sang to him

his colleagues

the following:

this song:

“No eye paint

is needed to paint his eyes,

nor rouge,

he does not need color to redden his face,

nor adornment,

a beautiful arrangement of the hair—

and

nevertheless, he is

a graceful doe.”

This song, which was sung for a bride, they sang for Rabbi Zeira, to say that although he was modest and did not adorn himself with garments of honor, his character traits beautified him.

The Gemara relates the ordination of Rabbi Ami and Rabbi Asi.

When they ordained Rabbi Ami and Rabbi Asi, their colleagues sang to them

their colleagues

the following

this song: “

Anyone like these, anyone like these

anyone who is like these

ordain them for us;

they should be ordained for us; that is, they are worthy of ordination.

Do not ordain for us

do not ordain for us—

not ragged ones

rags, meaning, they do not give sound reasons for their statements,

and not reversers

those who reverse things, who turn the reasons of the Torah upside down.”

And some say

that some members of the academy recited it this way:

not extortionists

extortioners who state only a fifth of the reason, meaning that they withhold the reasons of the Torah,

and not empty-headed ones,

empty people.”

The Gemara proceeds from one matter to another and relates:

When Rabbi Abbahu would come

when he arrived

from the academy

from the study hall

to the house of the Caesar

to the Caesar’s palace to speak with him about public affairs,

the noblewomen of the Caesar’s household would go out

the important women of the Caesar’s household would come out to greet him

and sing before him:

and sing before him: “

Great one of his people,

a prince among his people,

leader of his nation,

leader of his nation, for he was a communal leader close to the Roman government,

light of the lamp,

a radiant light, referring to his beauty, as his countenance shone—

blessed is your arrival in peace

blessed is your coming in peace.”

We learned in our Mishna:

The breaking of the heifer’s neck is performed by three,

the statement of Rabbi Shimon; Rabbi Yehuda says: By five.

The beraita derives from the biblical exegesis the number of judges required for measuring the egla arufa, and the Gemara explains the basis of the dispute between Rabbi Shimon and Rabbi Yehuda.

The Sages taught

that the Torah states, concerning the measurement of the city nearest the corpse:

“And your elders and your judges shall go out,”

and we expound:

“Your elders,”

in the plural—there are

two

judges;

“your judges,”

another

two

judges;

and

since

a court may not be evenly divided —

another

judge is added to them,

making five here;

these are

the words of Rabbi Yehuda. Rabbi Shimon says: “Your elders”—

two, and since a court may not be evenly divided, another one is added to them, making three here.

Rabbi Shimon does not expound “your judges” as adding two judges, and the Gemara asks:

And Rabbi Shimon! What does he do with this “your judges”?—

For what exposition does he require it, such that he cannot use this exposition to add two judges?

The Gemara answers:

That

“your judges”

is needed by him

he requires it

to

derive from it:

the distinguished among your judges,

meaning that the judges of the egla arufa must be among the elders of the Great Sanhedrin.

The Gemara asks:

And Rabbi Yehuda!

From where does he derive that they must be from the Great Sanhedrin?

The Gemara answers:

It follows from “elders” and “your elders,”

as the Torah could have written “elders,” and from the fact that the Torah wrote “your elders,” meaning your elders, it is implied that they are from the Sanhedrin.

The Gemara asks:

And Rabbi Shimon!

Why does he not expound “the elders of your elders”?

The Gemara answers:

If it were from “elders,”

if the Torah had written “elders”— \-

I would have thought

we would say that the reference is

to the elders of the marketplace,

ordinary elderly people. Therefore

the Merciful One wrote: “your elders,”

to teach that your elders are required, meaning members of the Sanhedrin.

And if the Merciful One had written “your elders,”

and the Torah had indeed written “your elders,”

I would have thought

that the reference is

to a lesser Sanhedrin. Therefore

the Merciful One wrote: “and your judges,”

“and your judges”

to expound:

the distinguished among your judges,

meaning specifically members of the Great Sanhedrin.

The Gemara asks:

And Rabbi Yehuda!

How does he derive from “your elders” that they must be members of the Great Sanhedrin? The Torah gives no such indication, and perhaps the reference is to the lesser Sanhedrin.

The Gemara answers: Even without the verse “and your judges,” we would derive that they must be from the Great Sanhedrin, because—

he derives “elders” from “elders”

by means of a gzera shava,

from

the verse:

“And the elders of the congregation shall place their hands,”

which is written concerning the bull brought for a communal error,

just as there

in the interpretation of that verse, “elders” means

the distinguished of the congregation

as expounded in the discussion there,

so here

what is written as “elders” means

the distinguished among your elders,

who are the Great Sanhedrin.

The Gemara challenges Rabbi Yehuda’s answer:

If he derives it,

if Rabbi Yehuda received this gzera shava from his teachers,

let him derive the entire matter from there.

For he could derive the entire law from there, including the requirement of five judges. If so, the difficulty is:

Why do I need “your elders and your judges”?

Why did the Torah write them? [Would it be to expound that two more are derived from “your elders” and another two from “your judges,” making nine? This is untenable.]

The Gemara retracts its answer: The truth is that Rabbi Yehuda did not receive this gzera shava from his teachers. The question therefore returns: How does he derive from “your judges”? It is not superfluous for an exposition, since it is needed to teach that they must be from the Great Sanhedrin.

Rather,

from where does Rabbi Yehuda derive the additional two?

The vav of “and your judges,”

as the Torah could have written “your elders, your judges,” and the superfluous vav comes

for enumeration,

to add two more.

And the Gemara raises an objection:

But what will Rabbi Shimon say?

What will Rabbi Shimon answer concerning this superfluous word?

And the Gemara answers:

He does not expound the vav;

Rabbi Shimon does not derive this exposition from the vav.

And the Gemara raises an objection:

Rather

if one expounds the plural form to add judges,

from now on

we have additional words in the plural form, for it is written there in the Torah:

“And they shall go out”;

and it is possible to derive from this an additional

two

judges. And it is further written there:

“And they shall measure”,

another

two.

Should we say

that according to Rabbi Judah there are nine

judges,

whereas according to Rabbi Shimon

there are

seven?

And the Gemara answers that “and they shall go out” and “and they shall measure” are not superfluous.

That verse

is needed for

another derivation,

as

it is taught

in a beraita:

We learned in a beraita: It is written in the Torah:

“And they shall go out”,

and we expound:

They

the judges themselves shall go out to measure,

and not their agents.

And it is written:

“And they shall measure”,

and we expound:

Even if the slain person is found

in plain view

of the city,

clearly visible to the city—that is, close to one city and far from the other towns—even so,

the

bet din

must engage in the measuring.