Sotah - Daf 26
- Machlokes about a possible blessing for an exonerated sotah
The Gemara quotes a Baraisa which explicitly says an aylonis is eligible to drink sotah waters, not like Rav Nachman had said. He answers that it is a machlokes Tannaim and quotes a Tanna who darshens"ונקתה ונזרעה זרע" – then she shall be proven innocent and will bear seed, as he did, to exclude an aylonis who was incapable of bearing children. The Gemara explains that the other Tannaim darshen this pasuk the way it is taught in a Baraisa: Rebbe Akiva says that "ונקתה ונזרעה זרע" – she shall be proven innocent and bear seed teaches שאם היתה עקרה נפקדת – that if she was barren, she will be remembered and bear a child. Rebbe Yishmael objected that if so, all barren women will intentionally make themselves sotahs in order to reap the benefits of this blessing, and a modest woman who does not engage in immoral behavior will not!? Rather, the pasuk teaches more minor blessings (which would not be an incentive to become a sotah): שאם היתה יולדת בצער יולדת בריוח – that if she formerly gave birth with pain, she will give birth with ease; נקבות יולדת זכרים – if she had females, she will bear males; קצרים יולדת ארוכים – if she had short children, she will bear tall ones; שחורים יולדת לבנים – if she had swarthy children, she will bear fair ones.
- עובד כוכבים מקנין על ידו ופוסל בתרומה
Rav Hamnuna said: עובד כוכבים מקנין על ידו ופוסל בתרומה – Regarding an idolator, one can warn his wife [not to be secluded] with him, and he disqualifies a woman from eating terumah if he has relations with her. The Gemara explains the novelty in the first clause: מהו דתימא "נטמאה" "נטמאה" שתי פעמים – One would think, since it says “she became defiled,” “she became defiled,” two times, אחד לבעל ואחד לבועל – one teaching she is prohibited to the husband, and one teaching she is prohibited to the adulterer, היכא דקמיתסרא בהא זנות – so the sotah laws only apply where she becomes forbidden to the adulterer with this suspected adultery, אבל הא הואיל ואסורה וקיימא – but here, since she is already forbidden to [the idolator], perhaps the laws of sotah do not apply (and she would not become prohibited to the husband). Therefore, Rav Hamnuna taught that they do. The novelty of the second law is explained: The pasuk which teaches that relations with someone unfit to marry her disqualify her from terumah uses the words: כי תהיה לאיש זר – she shall “be” to a strange man (meaning relations), so one might think דבר הויה אין דלאו בר הויה לא – someone who is capable of “being” (i.e., kiddushin) does disqualify from terumah, but someone (such as an idolator) who is not capable of “being” (kiddushin) does not. Rav Hamnuna taught that this is not so, based on a derashah.
- אין זנות לבהמה
The Mishnah had taught that the husband cannot warn against “one who is not a man.” After rejecting the first two interpretations, the Gemara concludes: למעוטי בהמה דאין זנות בבהמה – It means to exclude an animal, because there is no harlotry regarding relations with an animal (meaning, they are not considered relations, despite incurring the death penalty). Our Mishnah is teaching that warning against seclusion with an animal would not render her a sotah. The source for this concept is from the pasuk: "לא תביא אתנן זונה ומחיר כלב" – You shall not bring a harlot’s hire or an exchange for a dog as a korban, and a Mishnah teaches: אתנן כלב ומחיר זונה מותרין – the reverse cases, hire for a woman to have relations with a dog, and exchange for a harlot, are permitted to be used as a korban, because the pasuk says: "גם שניהם" שנים ולא ארבעה – both of them, implying two cases of payments cannot be used for a korban, but not four (i.e., the latter pair of cases).
