Rabbinic JudaismSifrei Devarim 248HOLYMAP · SACRED TEXTS
Sifrei on DeuteronomySifrei Devarim 248

Sifrei on Deuteronomy

Sifrei Devarim 248

1
English · Shraga Silverstein

(Devarim 23:3) "A mamzer may not come into the congregation of the L-rd." ("mamzer" =) "mum zar" ("a foreign blemish" [i.e., a blemish resulting from "foreign" (i.e., non-permitted) relationships]), whether a man or a woman.

2
English · Shraga Silverstein

Who is a "mamzer"? All kin who are subsumed in "may not come." These are the words of R. Akiva. For it is written (Ibid. 1) "A man shall not take the wife of his father and he shall not uncover the lap of his father … (3) "A mamzer may not come, etc." Just as "the wife of his father" is distinct in being kin and subsumed in "may not come," and the child is a mamzer, so, in all who are thus characterized, the child is a mamzer.

3
English · Shraga Silverstein

Shimon Hatemani says: All who are liable to kareth (cutting-off) at the hands of heaven — the child is a mamzer, it being written "A man shall not take the wife of his father … A mamzer may not come, etc." Just as "the wife of his father" is distinct in being liable to kareth at the hands of heaven and the child is a mamzer, so, in all who are thus characterized, the child is a mamzer.

4
English · Shraga Silverstein

R. Yehoshua says: All who are liable to judicial death penalty — the child is a mamzer, it being written "A man shall not take the wife of his father … A mamzer may not come, etc." Just as "the wife of his father" is distinct in being subject to judicial death penalty and the child is a mamzer, so, in all who are thus characterized, the child is a mamzer.

5
English · Shraga Silverstein

"even the tenth generation": It is written here "the tenth generation," and below (4) (in respect to an Amoni and a Moavi) "the tenth generation." Just as "the tenth generation" there is for all time, so, "the tenth generation" here.

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Sifrei Devarim 248English
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Sifrei Devarim 2480%

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Public-domain Hebrew editions, digitized by Sefaria (sefaria.org). · Source ↗

Mechilta, Sifra and Sifrei, translated by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein. CC BY. Text from Sefaria (sefaria.org). · Source ↗

English translation: Sifrei Devarim, translated by Rabbi Shraga Silverstein, via Sefaria (sefaria.org). Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/). Changes: footnotes and HTML formatting removed.

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