Sifrei on Deuteronomy Sifrei Devarim 235

English · Shraga Silverstein

(Devarim 22:13) "If a man take a wife, and he come upon her, and he hate her": R. Yehudah says: If he cohabits with her, he receives stripes (for libeling her [viz. Devarim 22:14]); if not, he does not receive stripes.

2

English · Shraga Silverstein

R. Yishmael says: Come and see what hatred causes. It leads to slander (viz. Ibid. 14, "And he libel her and give out about her an evil name.")

3

English · Shraga Silverstein

From here it is derived: If a man transgresses a "light" mitzvah, he is destined to transgress a "grave" mitzvah. If he transgresses (Vayikra 19:18) "and you shall love your neighbor as yourself," he is destined to transgress (Ibid.) "You shall not take revenge … and you shall not bear a grudge," and (Ibid. 17) "You shall not hate your brother" and (Ibid. 25:36) "And your brother shall live with you" — until he comes to the spilling of blood. This is the intent of "If a man take a wife, etc."

4

English · Shraga Silverstein

(Ibid.) "If he libel her": I might think, even if he said to her "You spoiled my meal," when she did not; it is, therefore, written (here) "libel," and further, (Ibid. 17) "libel," as an identity (gezeirah shavah). Just as "libel" there is a claim of (non-) virginity, so, "libel" here is a claim of (non-) virginity. — But perhaps just as "libel" there involves the site of virginity, so, here, too, it involves the site of virginity. Whence do I derive (the same for) a different act of coitus (i.e., not in the site of virginity)? From "and he give out above her an evil name."

5

English · Shraga Silverstein

(Ibid.) "and he say": We are hereby taught that the plaintiff has the first word.

6

English · Shraga Silverstein

"This woman": We are hereby taught that he states his case only while she is standing. ("This woman) I took and I drew near to her": and there are witnesses that she was adulterous in her father's house (i.e., during her betrothal).

7

English · Shraga Silverstein

What is the intent of this? Because it is written (Vayikra 20:10) "If a man commits adultery with another man's wife" — whether witnesses testify in the house of her husband that she committed adultery (while yet) in her father's house (i.e., while she was betrothed), or whether they testified in her father's house that she committed adultery in her father's house, I would think that she is executed at the gate of that city (viz. Devarim 22:24), Scripture (here) excludes (from "the gate of the city") the instance of witnesses testifying in the house of her husband that she committed adultery in the house of her father, (and indicates [viz. Ibid. 21]) that she is executed at "the door of her father's house." This is the intent of "If a man take a wife."

8

English · Shraga Silverstein

(R. Yishmael says: Come and see what hatred causes. It leads to slander.)

9

English · Shraga Silverstein

(Ibid. 15) "Then the father of the maiden and her mother shall take (and they shall bring out the virgin signs of the maiden"): This tells me only of one who has a father and a mother. Whence do I derive (the same for) one who has a father but not a mother, or one who has a mother but no father, or one who has neither father nor mother? From "and they shall bring out the virgin signs of the maiden" — in any event. If so, why is it written "the father of the maiden and her mother"? "They (in the event of her being found guilty) who nurtured evil growths, let them come and be shown their growths!"

10

English · Shraga Silverstein

(Ibid. 16) "And the father of the maiden shall say to the elders": We are hereby taught that the woman (herself) is not permitted to speak (in refutation) before her husband.

11

English · Shraga Silverstein

"My daughter did I give to this man as a wife": We are hereby taught that the father has a right to betroth his daughter (who is) a minor.

Sifrei Devarim 235

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