1. Hebrew Bible, Exodus, 21.10, 21.22, 23.26 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 21.22. וְכִי־יִנָּצוּ אֲנָשִׁים וְנָגְפוּ אִשָּׁה הָרָה וְיָצְאוּ יְלָדֶיהָ וְלֹא יִהְיֶה אָסוֹן עָנוֹשׁ יֵעָנֵשׁ כַּאֲשֶׁר יָשִׁית עָלָיו בַּעַל הָאִשָּׁה וְנָתַן בִּפְלִלִים׃ 23.26. לֹא תִהְיֶה מְשַׁכֵּלָה וַעֲקָרָה בְּאַרְצֶךָ אֶת־מִסְפַּר יָמֶיךָ אֲמַלֵּא׃ | 21.10. If he take him another wife, her food, her raiment, and her conjugal rights, shall he not diminish." 21.22. And if men strive together, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart, and yet no harm follow, he shall be surely fined, according as the woman’s husband shall lay upon him; and he shall pay as the judges determine." 23.26. None shall miscarry, nor be barren, in thy land; the number of thy days I will fulfil." |
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2. Hebrew Bible, Genesis, 5.22, 5.24, 6.9, 11.30, 16.2-16.3 (9th cent. BCE - 3rd cent. BCE)
| 5.22. וַיִּתְהַלֵּךְ חֲנוֹךְ אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִים אַחֲרֵי הוֹלִידוֹ אֶת־מְתוּשֶׁלַח שְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת שָׁנָה וַיּוֹלֶד בָּנִים וּבָנוֹת׃ 5.24. וַיִּתְהַלֵּךְ חֲנוֹךְ אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִים וְאֵינֶנּוּ כִּי־לָקַח אֹתוֹ אֱלֹהִים׃ 6.9. אֵלֶּה תּוֹלְדֹת נֹחַ נֹחַ אִישׁ צַדִּיק תָּמִים הָיָה בְּדֹרֹתָיו אֶת־הָאֱלֹהִים הִתְהַלֶּךְ־נֹחַ׃ 16.2. וַתֹּאמֶר שָׂרַי אֶל־אַבְרָם הִנֵּה־נָא עֲצָרַנִי יְהוָה מִלֶּדֶת בֹּא־נָא אֶל־שִׁפְחָתִי אוּלַי אִבָּנֶה מִמֶּנָּה וַיִּשְׁמַע אַבְרָם לְקוֹל שָׂרָי׃ 16.3. וַתִּקַּח שָׂרַי אֵשֶׁת־אַבְרָם אֶת־הָגָר הַמִּצְרִית שִׁפְחָתָהּ מִקֵּץ עֶשֶׂר שָׁנִים לְשֶׁבֶת אַבְרָם בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן וַתִּתֵּן אֹתָהּ לְאַבְרָם אִישָׁהּ לוֹ לְאִשָּׁה׃ | 5.22. And Enoch walked with God after he begot Methuselah three hundred years, and begot sons and daughters." 5.24. And Enoch walked with God, and he was not; for God took him." 6.9. These are the generations of Noah. Noah was in his generations a man righteous and wholehearted; Noah walked with God." 11.30. And Sarai was barren; she had no child." 16.2. And Sarai said unto Abram: ‘Behold now, the LORD hath restrained me from bearing; go in, I pray thee, unto my handmaid; it may be that I shall be builded up through her.’ And Abram hearkened to the voice of Sarai." 16.3. And Sarai Abram’s wife took Hagar the Egyptian, her handmaid, after Abram had dwelt ten years in the land of Canaan, and gave her to Abram her husband to be his wife." |
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3. Plato, Laws, 713d, 713e, 713c (5th cent. BCE - 4th cent. BCE)
| 713c. is pertinent, you will be quite right in going on with it to the end. Ath. I must do as you say. Well, then, tradition tells us how blissful was the life of men in that age, furnished with everything in abundance, and of spontaneous growth. And the cause thereof is said to have been this: Cronos was aware of the fact that no human being (as we have explained) is capable of having irresponsible control of all human affairs without becoming filled with pride and injustice; so, pondering this fact, he then appointed as king |
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4. Anon., 1 Enoch, 38-71, 37 (3rd cent. BCE - 2nd cent. BCE)
| 37. The second vision which he saw, the vision of wisdom -which Enoch the son of Jared, the son,of Mahalalel, the son of Cai, the son of Enos, the son of Seth, the son of Adam, saw. And this is the beginning of the words of wisdom which I lifted up my voice to speak and say to those which dwell on earth: Hear, ye men of old time, and see, ye that come after, the words of the Holy,One which I will speak before the Lord of Spirits. It were better to declare (them only) to the men of old time, but even from those that come after we will not withhold the beginning of wisdom.,Till the present day such wisdom has never been given by the Lord of Spirits as I have received according to my insight, according to the good pleasure of the Lord of Spirits by whom the lot of,eternal life has been given to me. Now three Parables were imparted to me, and I lifted up my voice and recounted them to those that dwell on the earth. |
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5. Philo of Alexandria, On The Eternity of The World, 12 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
| 12. But some say that it was not Aristotle who invented this doctrine, but some of the Pythagoreans; but I have met with a work of Ocellus, a Lucanian by birth, entitled, "A Treatise on the Nature of the Universe," in which he has not only asserted that the world is indestructible, but he has even endeavoured to prove it so by demonstrative proofs. IV. |
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6. Philo of Alexandria, On The Cherubim, 99 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
| 99. For if when we are about to receive kings, we prepare our houses to wear a more magnificent appearance, neglecting nothing which may give them ornament, but using every thing in a liberal and unsparing manner, having for our object that they shall have an abode pleasant to them, and in all respects suitable to their majesty; what sort of habitation ought we to prepare for the King of kings, for God the ruler of the whole universe, condescending in his mercy and lovingkindness for man to visit the beings whom he has created, and to come down from the borders of heaven to the lowest regions of the earth, for the purpose of benefiting our race? 99. But God, on one occasion, employed the six days for the completion of the world, though he had no need of any length of time for such a purpose; but each man, as partaking of a mortal nature, and as being in need of ten thousand things for the unavoidable necessities of life, ought not to hesitate, even to the end of his life, to provide himself with all requisites, always allowing himself an interval of rest on the sacred seventh day. |
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7. Philo of Alexandria, On The Life of Joseph, 43 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
| 43. in other nations the youths are permitted, after they are fourteen years of age, to use concubines and prostitutes, and women who make gain by their persons, without restraint. But among us a harlot is not allowed even to live, but death is appointed as a punishment for any one who adopts such a way of life. Therefore, before our lawful marriage we know nothing of any connection with any other woman, but, without ever having experienced any similar cohabitation, we approach our virgin brides as pure as themselves, proposing as the end of our marriage not pleasure but the offspring of legitimate children. |
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8. Philo of Alexandria, On The Creation of The World, 81 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
| 81. But if the immoderate violence of the passions were appeased by temperance, and the inclination to do wrong and depraved ambition were corrected by justice, and in short if the vices and unhallowed actions done in accordance with them, were corrected by the virtues, and the energies in accordance with them, the war of the soul being terminated, which is in good truth the most grievous and heavy of all wars, and peace being established, and founding amid all our faculties, a due regard for law, with all tranquillity and mildness, then there would be hope that God, as being a friend to virtue, and a friend to honour, and above all a friend to man, would bestow upon the race of man, all kinds of spontaneous blessings from his ready store. For it is evident that it is easier to supply most abundantly the requisite supplies without having recourse to agricultural means, from treasures which already exist, than to bring forth what as yet has no existence. XXVII. |
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9. Philo of Alexandria, On Curses, 108 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
| 108. A lyre, indeed, or any similar instrument, if it be not struck by some one, is silent; and speech, too, if it be not struck by the principal part, that is to say, the mind, is of necessity tranquil. And, again, as musical instruments are transposed and adapted to an infinite number of mixtures of airs, so also speech corresponds to them, becoming an interpreter of things; |
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10. Philo of Alexandria, On The Special Laws, 1.138, 3.30-3.31, 3.34-3.35, 3.171-3.174 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1.138. But nevertheless, he consecrates also their own first-born male children after the fashion of other first fruits, as a sort of thanks-offering for fertility, and a number of children both existing and hoped for, and wishing at the same time that their marriages should be not only free from all blame, but even very deserving of praise, the first fruit arising from which is consecrated to God; and keeping this in their minds, both husbands and wives ought to cling to modesty, and to attend to their household concerns, and to cherish uimity, agreeing with one another, so that what is called a communion and partnership may be so in solid truth, not only in word, but likewise in deed. 3.30. But if, proceeds the lawgiver, a woman having been divorced from her husband under any pretence whatever, and having married another, has again become a widow, whether her second husband is alive or dead, still she must not return to her former husband, but may be united to any man in the world rather than to him, having violated her former ties which she forgot, and having chosen new allurements in the place of the old ones. 3.31. But if any man should choose to form an alliance with such a woman, he must be content to bear the reputation of effeminacy and a complete want of manly courage and vigour, as if he had been castrated and deprived of the most useful portion of the soul, namely, that disposition which hates iniquity, by which the affairs both of houses and cities are placed on a good footing, and as having stamped deeply on his character two of the greatest of all iniquities, adultery and the employment of a pander; for the reconciliations which take place subsequently are indications of the death of each. Let him, therefore, suffer the punishment appointed, together with his wife.VI. 3.34. But those people deserve to be reproached who are ploughing a hard and stony soil. And who can these be but they who have connected themselves with barren women? For such men are only hunters after intemperate pleasure, and in the excess of their licentious passions they waste their seed of their own deliberate purpose. Since for what other reason can they espouse such women? It cannot be for a hope of children, which they are aware must, of necessity, be disappointed, but rather to gratify their excess in lust and incurable incontinence. 3.35. As many men, therefore, as marry virgins in ignorance of how will they will turn out as regards their prolificness, or the contrary, when after a long time they perceive, by their never having any children, that they are barren, and do not then put them away, are still worthy of pardon, being influenced by habit and familiarity, which are motives of great weight, and being also unable to break through the power of those ancient charms which by long habituation are stamped upon their souls. 3.171. Therefore let no woman busy herself about those things which are beyond the province of oeconomy, but let her cultivate solitude, and not be seen to be going about like a woman who walks the streets in the sight of other men, except when it is necessary for her to go to the temple, if she has any proper regard for herself; and even then let her not go at noon when the market is full, but after the greater part of the people have returned home; like a well-born woman, a real and true citizen, performing her vows and her sacrifices in tranquillity, so as to avert evils and to receive blessings. 3.172. But when men are abusing one another or fighting, for women to venture to run out under pretence of assisting or defending them, is a blameable action and one of no slight shamelessness, since even, in the times of war and of military expeditions, and of dangers to their whole native land, the law does not choose that they should be enrolled as its defenders; looking at what is becoming, which it thinks desirable to preserve unchangeable at all times and in all places, thinking that this very thing is of itself better than victory, or then freedom, or than any kind of success and prosperity. 3.173. Moreover, if any woman, hearing that her husband is being assaulted, being out of her affection for him carried away by love for her husband, should yield to the feelings which overpower her and rush forth to aid him, still let her not be so audacious as to behave like a man, outrunning the nature of a woman; {16}{#de 25:11.} but even while aiding him let her continue a woman. For it would be a very terrible thing if a woman, being desirous to deliver her husband from an insult, should expose herself to insult, by exhibiting human life as full of shamelessness and liable to great reproaches for her incurable boldness; 3.174. for shall a woman utter abuse in the marketplace and give vent to unlawful language? and if another man uses foul language, will not she stop her ears and run away? But as it is now, some women are advanced to such a pitch of shamelessness as not only, though they are women, to give vent to intemperate language and abuse among a crowd of men, but even to strike men and insult them, with hands practised rather in works of the loom and spinning than in blows and assaults, like competitors in the pancratium or wrestlers. And other things, indeed, may be tolerable, and what any one might easily bear, but that is a shocking thing if a woman were to proceed to such a degree of boldness as to seize hold of the genitals of one of the men quarrelling. |
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11. Philo of Alexandria, On The Virtues, 188 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
| 188. For when God determined to establish this in us out of his own exceeding mercy and love for the human race, he would not find any temple upon earth more beautiful or more suited for its abode than reason: for the mind makes, as it were, an image of the good and consecrates it within itself, and if any persons disbelieve in it of those who have either never tasted wisdom at all, or else have done so only with the edges of their lips (for silver and gold, and honours, and offices, and vigour and beauty of body, resemble those men who are appointed to situations of authority and power, in order to serve virtue as if she were their queen), never having obtained a sight of the most brilliant of all lights. |
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12. Philo of Alexandria, On The Contemplative Life, 22, 34, 1 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
| 1. Having mentioned the Essenes, who in all respects selected for their admiration and for their especial adoption the practical course of life, and who excel in all, or what perhaps may be a less unpopular and invidious thing to say, in most of its parts, I will now proceed, in the regular order of my subject, to speak of those who have embraced the speculative life, and I will say what appears to me to be desirable to be said on the subject, not drawing any fictitious statements from my own head for the sake of improving the appearance of that side of the question which nearly all poets and essayists are much accustomed to do in the scarcity of good actions to extol, but with the greatest simplicity adhering strictly to the truth itself, to which I know well that even the most eloquent men do not keep close in their speeches. Nevertheless we must make the endeavour and labour to attain to this virtue; for it is not right that the greatness of the virtue of the men should be a cause of silence to those who do not think it right that anything which is creditable should be suppressed in silence; |
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13. Philo of Alexandria, Hypothetica, 11.14 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
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14. Philo of Alexandria, Questions On Genesis, 4.154 (1st cent. BCE - 1st cent. CE)
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15. Josephus Flavius, Jewish Antiquities, 4.260, 4.278 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 4.278. He that kicks a woman with child, so that the woman miscarry, let him pay a fine in money, as the judges shall determine, as having diminished the multitude by the destruction of what was in her womb; and let money also be given the woman’s husband by him that kicked her; but if she die of the stroke, let him also be put to death, the law judging it equitable that life should go for life. |
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16. Josephus Flavius, Jewish War, 2.119-2.161 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 2.119. 2. For there are three philosophical sects among the Jews. The followers of the first of which are the Pharisees; of the second, the Sadducees; and the third sect, which pretends to a severer discipline, are called Essenes. These last are Jews by birth, and seem to have a greater affection for one another than the other sects have. 2.121. They do not absolutely deny the fitness of marriage, and the succession of mankind thereby continued; but they guard against the lascivious behavior of women, and are persuaded that none of them preserve their fidelity to one man. 2.122. 3. These men are despisers of riches, and so very communicative as raises our admiration. Nor is there anyone to be found among them who hath more than another; for it is a law among them, that those who come to them must let what they have be common to the whole order,—insomuch that among them all there is no appearance of poverty, or excess of riches, but every one’s possessions are intermingled with every other’s possessions; and so there is, as it were, one patrimony among all the brethren. 2.123. They think that oil is a defilement; and if anyone of them be anointed without his own approbation, it is wiped off his body; for they think to be sweaty is a good thing, as they do also to be clothed in white garments. They also have stewards appointed to take care of their common affairs, who every one of them have no separate business for any, but what is for the use of them all. 2.124. 4. They have no one certain city, but many of them dwell in every city; and if any of their sect come from other places, what they have lies open for them, just as if it were their own; and they go in to such as they never knew before, as if they had been ever so long acquainted with them. 2.125. For which reason they carry nothing at all with them when they travel into remote parts, though still they take their weapons with them, for fear of thieves. Accordingly, there is, in every city where they live, one appointed particularly to take care of strangers, and to provide garments and other necessaries for them. 2.126. But the habit and management of their bodies is such as children use who are in fear of their masters. Nor do they allow of the change of garments, or of shoes, till they be first entirely torn to pieces or worn out by time. 2.127. Nor do they either buy or sell anything to one another; but every one of them gives what he hath to him that wanteth it, and receives from him again in lieu of it what may be convenient for himself; and although there be no requital made, they are fully allowed to take what they want of whomsoever they please. 2.128. 5. And as for their piety towards God, it is very extraordinary; for before sunrising they speak not a word about profane matters, but put up certain prayers which they have received from their forefathers, as if they made a supplication for its rising. 2.129. After this every one of them are sent away by their curators, to exercise some of those arts wherein they are skilled, in which they labor with great diligence till the fifth hour. After which they assemble themselves together again into one place; and when they have clothed themselves in white veils, they then bathe their bodies in cold water. And after this purification is over, they every one meet together in an apartment of their own, into which it is not permitted to any of another sect to enter; while they go, after a pure manner, into the dining-room, as into a certain holy temple 2.131. but a priest says grace before meat; and it is unlawful for anyone to taste of the food before grace be said. The same priest, when he hath dined, says grace again after meat; and when they begin, and when they end, they praise God, as he that bestows their food upon them; after which they lay aside their [white] garments, and betake themselves to their labors again till the evening; 2.132. then they return home to supper, after the same manner; and if there be any strangers there, they sit down with them. Nor is there ever any clamor or disturbance to pollute their house, but they give every one leave to speak in their turn; 2.133. which silence thus kept in their house appears to foreigners like some tremendous mystery; the cause of which is that perpetual sobriety they exercise, and the same settled measure of meat and drink that is allotted to them, and that such as is abundantly sufficient for them. 2.134. 6. And truly, as for other things, they do nothing but according to the injunctions of their curators; only these two things are done among them at everyone’s own free will, which are to assist those that want it, and to show mercy; for they are permitted of their own accord to afford succor to such as deserve it, when they stand in need of it, and to bestow food on those that are in distress; but they cannot give any thing to their kindred without the curators. 2.135. They dispense their anger after a just manner, and restrain their passion. They are eminent for fidelity, and are the ministers of peace; whatsoever they say also is firmer than an oath; but swearing is avoided by them, and they esteem it worse than perjury for they say that he who cannot be believed without [swearing by] God is already condemned. 2.136. They also take great pains in studying the writings of the ancients, and choose out of them what is most for the advantage of their soul and body; and they inquire after such roots and medicinal stones as may cure their distempers. 2.137. 7. But now, if anyone hath a mind to come over to their sect, he is not immediately admitted, but he is prescribed the same method of living which they use, for a year, while he continues excluded; and they give him also a small hatchet, and the fore-mentioned girdle, and the white garment. 2.138. And when he hath given evidence, during that time, that he can observe their continence, he approaches nearer to their way of living, and is made a partaker of the waters of purification; yet is he not even now admitted to live with them; for after this demonstration of his fortitude, his temper is tried two more years; and if he appear to be worthy, they then admit him into their society. 2.139. And before he is allowed to touch their common food, he is obliged to take tremendous oaths, that, in the first place, he will exercise piety towards God, and then that he will observe justice towards men, and that he will do no harm to any one, either of his own accord, or by the command of others; that he will always hate the wicked, and be assistant to the righteous; 2.141. that he will be perpetually a lover of truth, and propose to himself to reprove those that tell lies; that he will keep his hands clear from theft, and his soul from unlawful gains; and that he will neither conceal anything from those of his own sect, nor discover any of their doctrines to others, no, not though anyone should compel him so to do at the hazard of his life. 2.142. Moreover, he swears to communicate their doctrines to no one any otherwise than as he received them himself; that he will abstain from robbery, and will equally preserve the books belonging to their sect, and the names of the angels [or messengers]. These are the oaths by which they secure their proselytes to themselves. 2.143. 8. But for those that are caught in any heinous sins, they cast them out of their society; and he who is thus separated from them does often die after a miserable manner; for as he is bound by the oath he hath taken, and by the customs he hath been engaged in, he is not at liberty to partake of that food that he meets with elsewhere, but is forced to eat grass, and to famish his body with hunger, till he perish; 2.144. for which reason they receive many of them again when they are at their last gasp, out of compassion to them, as thinking the miseries they have endured till they came to the very brink of death to be a sufficient punishment for the sins they had been guilty of. 2.145. 9. But in the judgments they exercise they are most accurate and just, nor do they pass sentence by the votes of a court that is fewer than a hundred. And as to what is once determined by that number, it is unalterable. What they most of all honor, after God himself, is the name of their legislator [Moses], whom, if anyone blaspheme, he is punished capitally. 2.146. They also think it a good thing to obey their elders, and the major part. Accordingly, if ten of them be sitting together, no one of them will speak while the other nine are against it. 2.147. They also avoid spitting in the midst of them, or on the right side. Moreover, they are stricter than any other of the Jews in resting from their labors on the seventh day; for they not only get their food ready the day before, that they may not be obliged to kindle a fire on that day, but they will not remove any vessel out of its place, nor go to stool thereon. 2.148. Nay, on theother days they dig a small pit, a foot deep, with a paddle (which kind of hatchet is given them when they are first admitted among them); and covering themselves round with their garment, that they may not affront the Divine rays of light, they ease themselves into that pit 2.149. after which they put the earth that was dug out again into the pit; and even this they do only in the more lonely places, which they choose out for this purpose; and although this easement of the body be natural, yet it is a rule with them to wash themselves after it, as if it were a defilement to them. 2.151. They are long-lived also, insomuch that many of them live above a hundred years, by means of the simplicity of their diet; nay, as I think, by means of the regular course of life they observe also. They condemn the miseries of life, and are above pain, by the generosity of their mind. And as for death, if it will be for their glory, they esteem it better than living always; 2.152. and indeed our war with the Romans gave abundant evidence what great souls they had in their trials, wherein, although they were tortured and distorted, burnt and torn to pieces, and went through all kinds of instruments of torment, that they might be forced either to blaspheme their legislator, or to eat what was forbidden them, yet could they not be made to do either of them, no, nor once to flatter their tormentors, or to shed a tear; 2.153. but they smiled in their very pains, and laughed those to scorn who inflicted the torments upon them, and resigned up their souls with great alacrity, as expecting to receive them again. 2.154. 11. For their doctrine is this: That bodies are corruptible, and that the matter they are made of is not permanent; but that the souls are immortal, and continue forever; and that they come out of the most subtile air, and are united to their bodies as to prisons, into which they are drawn by a certain natural enticement; 2.155. but that when they are set free from the bonds of the flesh, they then, as released from a long bondage, rejoice and mount upward. And this is like the opinions of the Greeks, that good souls have their habitations beyond the ocean, in a region that is neither oppressed with storms of rain or snow, or with intense heat, but that this place is such as is refreshed by the gentle breathing of a west wind, that is perpetually blowing from the ocean; while they allot to bad souls a dark and tempestuous den, full of never-ceasing punishments. 2.156. And indeed the Greeks seem to me to have followed the same notion, when they allot the islands of the blessed to their brave men, whom they call heroes and demigods; and to the souls of the wicked, the region of the ungodly, in Hades, where their fables relate that certain persons, such as Sisyphus, and Tantalus, and Ixion, and Tityus, are punished; which is built on this first supposition, that souls are immortal; and thence are those exhortations to virtue, and dehortations from wickedness collected; 2.157. whereby good men are bettered in the conduct of their life by the hope they have of reward after their death; and whereby the vehement inclinations of bad men to vice are restrained, by the fear and expectation they are in, that although they should lie concealed in this life, they should suffer immortal punishment after their death. 2.158. These are the Divine doctrines of the Essenes about the soul, which lay an unavoidable bait for such as have once had a taste of their philosophy. 2.159. 12. There are also those among them who undertake to foretell things to come, by reading the holy books, and using several sorts of purifications, and being perpetually conversant in the discourses of the prophets; and it is but seldom that they miss in their predictions. 2.161. However, they try their spouses for three years; and if they find that they have their natural purgations thrice, as trials that they are likely to be fruitful, they then actually marry them. But they do not use to accompany with their wives when they are with child, as a demonstration that they do not marry out of regard to pleasure, but for the sake of posterity. Now the women go into the baths with some of their garments on, as the men do with somewhat girded about them. And these are the customs of this order of Essenes. |
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17. Josephus Flavius, Against Apion, 2.202 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 2.202. The law, moreover enjoins us to bring up all our offspring, and forbids women to cause abortion of what is begotten, or to destroy it afterward; and if any woman appears to have so done, she will be a murderer of her child, by destroying a living creature, and diminishing human kind: if any one, therefore, proceeds to such fornication or murder, he cannot be clean. |
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18. Mishnah, Ketuvot, 7.1 (1st cent. CE - 3rd cent. CE)
| 7.1. If a man forbade his wife by vow to have any benefit from him, for thirty days, he may appoint a provider, but if for a longer period he must divorce her and give her the ketubah. Rabbi Judah ruled: if he was an Israelite he may keep her [as his wife, if the vow was] for one month, but must divorce her and give her the ketubah [if it was for] two months. If he was a priest he may keep her [as his wife, if the vow was] for two months, but must divorce her and give her the ketubah [if it was for] three." |
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19. New Testament, 1 Corinthians, 7.3-7.5 (1st cent. CE - 1st cent. CE)
| 7.3. Let the husband render to his wife the affectionowed her, and likewise also the wife to her husband. 7.4. The wifedoesn't have authority over her own body, but the husband. Likewisealso the husband doesn't have authority over his own body, but thewife. 7.5. Don't deprive one another, unless it is by consent for aseason, that you may give yourselves to fasting and prayer, and may betogether again, that Satan doesn't tempt you because of your lack ofself-control. |
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20. Tosefta, Ketuvot, 8.3 (1st cent. CE - 2nd cent. CE)
| 8.3. A man who takes possession of his wife's property and [then] decides to divorce her, if he goes first and plucks any amount from the ground [i.e. uses up any amount of the property], behold he is rewarded by his haste [i.e. he gets to keep anything he \"plucked\"]. One who takes possession of the property of captives and hears about them that they are slowly approaching, if he goes first and plucks any amount from the ground, behold he is rewarded by his haste. This is the property of captives: Anyone whose father or brother or one of his inheritors went to the land beyond the sea, and he heard about them that they died, and he took possession of it as an inheritance [and he may get to keep what he takes]. This is the property of fugitives: Anyone who did not hear about them [his relatives that went to the land beyond the sea] that they died, but he took possession as an inheritance [but he won't get to keep what he took]. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: I heard that fugitives' [property] is the same as captives' [property, in that he gets to keep both, whatever he took]. One who took possession of the property of exiles, they take it from him." |
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21. Babylonian Talmud, Nedarim, 20a (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 20a. big strongמתני׳ /strong /big נדר בחרם ואמר לא נדרתי אלא בחרמו של ים בקרבן ואמר לא נדרתי אלא בקרבנות של מלכים,הרי עצמי קרבן ואמר לא נדרתי אלא בעצם שהנחתי לי להיות נודר בו: קונם אשתי נהנית לי ואמר לא נדרתי אלא באשתי הראשונה שגירשתי,על כולן אין נשאלין להם ואם נשאלו עונשין אותן ומחמירין עליהן דברי רבי מאיר,וחכמים אומרים פותחין להן פתח ממקום אחר ומלמדין אותן כדי שלא ינהגו קלות ראש בנדרים:, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big הא גופא קשיא אמרת אין נשאלין להן והדר תני אם נשאלו עונשין אותן ומחמירין עליהן,אמר רב יהודה הכי קתני וכולן אין צריכין שאלה במה דברים אמורים בתלמיד חכם אבל בעם הארץ שבא לישאל עונשין אותו ומחמירין עליו,בשלמא מחמירין דלא פתחינן ליה בחרטה אלא עונשין היכי דמי,כדתניא מי שנזר ועבר על נזירותו אין נזקקין לו עד שינהוג בו איסור כימים שנהג בהן היתר דברי רבי יהודה אמר רבי יוסי במה דברים אמורים בנזירות מועטת אבל בנזירות מרובה דיו שלושים יום,אמר רב יוסף הואיל ואמרי רבנן אין נזקקים לו בי דינא דמזדקקי לא עביד שפיר רב אחא בר יעקב אומר משמתינן ליה:,וחכמים אומרים פותחין לו פתח כו': תנא לעולם אל תהי רגיל בנדרים שסופך למעול בשבועות ואל תהי רגיל אצל עם הארץ שסופך להאכילך טבלים אל תהי רגיל אצל כהן עם הארץ שסופך להאכילך תרומה ואל תרבה שיחה עם האשה שסופך לבוא לידי ניאוף,רבי אחא ברבי יאשיה אומר כל הצופה בנשים סופו בא לידי עבירה וכל המסתכל בעקבה של אשה הויין לו בנים שאינן מהוגנין אמר רב יוסף ובאשתו נדה אמר רבי שמעון בן לקיש עקבה דקתני במקום הטינופת שהוא מכוון כנגד העקב,תניא בעבור תהיה יראתו על פניכם זו בושה לבלתי תחטאו מלמד שהבושה מביאה לידי יראת חטא מיכן אמרו סימן יפה באדם שהוא ביישן אחרים אומרים כל אדם המתבייש לא במהרה הוא חוטא ומי שאין לו בושת פנים בידוע שלא עמדו אבותיו על הר סיני,אמר רבי יוחנן בן דהבאי ארבעה דברים סחו לי מלאכי השרת חיגרין מפני מה הויין מפני שהופכים את שולחנם אילמים מפני מה הויין מפני שמנשקים על אותו מקום חרשים מפני מה הויין מפני שמספרים בשעת תשמיש סומין מפני מה הויין מפני שמסתכלים באותו מקום,ורמינהו שאלו את אימא שלום מפני מה | 20a. strongMISHNA: /strong One who btook a vowby associating an item bwith a dedication [ iḥerem /i],saying: This item is hereby forbidden to me like an item dedicated to the Temple, bandthen bsaid: I took a vow only withthe intention that it would be like ba sea net [ iḥermo shel yam /i]that is used to catch fish; or one who took a vow by associating an item bwith an offering, andthen bsaid: I took a vow only withreference to bofferings to kings,i.e., a gift for a king, not an offering to God.,Or one who said: bI am hereby an offering myself [ iatzmi /i], andthen bsaid: I took a vow only withreference to ba bone [ ietzem /i] that I set aside for myself to vow with,as iatzmimeans both myself and my bone, i.e., he set aside a bone so as to pretend to take a vow upon himself; or one who said: bDeriving benefit from me is ikonamfor my wife, andthen bsaid: I took a vow only with regard to my first wife whom I divorced,not with regard to my current wife., bFor allof the above vows, those who took them bdo notneed to brequestof a halakhic authority to dissolve bthem,as the speaker interpreted the vows in a manner that caused them not to take effect at all. bHowever, if they requesteddissolution, apparently due to their being uncertain of their explanations, the court bpunishes them and treats them stringentlyand the vows are not dissolved. This is bthe statement of Rabbi Meir. /b, bAnd the Rabbis say:These vows are not treated stringently. Rather, dissolution bis broached with them bysuggesting ba different extenuation,i.e., the halakhic authority suggests extenuating circumstances that undermine the vow but do not pertain to its wording. bAnd we teach themthat they should not take this kind of vow in the future, bin order that they will not take vows lightly. /b, strongGEMARA: /strong bThismatter bis itself difficult.On the one hand, byou said they do notneed to brequestto dissolve bthem, and then it is taughtthat bif they requesteddissolution, the court bpunishes them and treats them stringently,i.e., the vows took effect and the vows are not dissolved., bRav Yehuda saidthat bthis is whatthe mishna bis teaching: All of thesevows bdo not need a request.However, bin whatcase bis this statement said? Inthe case of ba Torah scholar,who knows that these vows do not take effect, and he obviously did not intend for them to take effect in the first place. bHow-ever,in the case of ban ignoramus who comes to requestdissolution of the vow, the court bpunishes him and treats him stringently. /b,The Gemara asks: bGranted,the court btreatshim bstringentlyin bthatthe halakhic authorities bdo not broachdissolution bwith himmerely bby means of regret;rather, extenuating circumstances must be found. bHowever, what are the circumstancesin which the court bpunisheshim?,The Gemara answers that the circumstances are bas it is taughtin a ibaraita /i: With regard to bone who vowed to be a nazirite and violated his naziriteship,the halakhic authority bdoes not attend to himto dissolve his vow buntil he observesthe bprohibitionsof naziriteship bfor the samenumber of bdays in which he behaved with permissivenessconcerning the restrictions of a nazirite. This is bthe statement of Rabbi Yehuda. Rabbi Yosei said: In whatcase bis this statement,that he must observe naziriteship for a period of time corresponding to his vow, bsaid?It is said binthe case of ba shortterm of bnaziriteship,which is not longer than the minimum thirty days. bHowever, inthe case of a blongterm of bnaziriteship it is enough for himto observe it for bthirty days,even if he violated it for a greater number of days. This explains the punishment mentioned in the mishna: An ignoramus who requests the dissolution of his vow must first observe the vow for a certain period of time., bRav Yosef said: Since the Sages saythat the halakhic authority bdoes not attend to him, a court that does attendto him and dissolves his vow immediately bis not acting properly. Rav Aḥa bar Yaakov says:A halakhic authority who dissolves the vow prematurely bis excommunicated. /b,§ It is stated in the mishna that bthe Rabbis say:Dissolution bis broached with himby suggesting a different bextenuation,and he is taught not to take this kind of vow so that he will not take vows lightly. It is btaughtin a ibaraita /i: bNever be accustomed totaking bvows, because ultimately you willdisregard them, and you will even babuse oaths,which are more grave. bAnd do not regularly be around an ignoramus, because ultimately he will feed you untithed produce,as he is not careful to tithe. bDo not regularly be by an ignorant priest, because ultimately he will feed you iteruma /idue to his close relationship with you, and iterumais forbidden to a non-priest. bAnd do not talk extensively with a woman, because ultimately you will come to adultery. /b, bRabbi Aḥa, son of Rabbi Yoshiya, says: Anyone who watches women will ultimately come to sin, and anyone who looks at the heel of a woman will have indecent childrenas a punishment. bRav Yosef said: Andthis brelates toall women, including bhis wifewhen she has the status of ba menstruating woman. Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: The heelof a woman bthat is mentionedis not the heel of the foot, but bthe place of uncleanliness,i.e., the genitalia, and it is called a heel as a euphemism, bas it is situated opposite the heel. /b,§ bIt is taughtin a ibaraita /i: b“That His fear may be upon your faces”(Exodus 20:17); bthisis referring to bshame,as shame causes one to blush. b“That you not sin”(Exodus 20:17) bteaches that shame leads to fear of sin. From herethe Sages bsaid: It is a good sign in a person that he is one who experiences shame. Others say: Any person who experiences shame will not quickly sin, andconversely, bone who does not havethe capacity to be bshamefaced, it is known that his forefathers did not stand at Mount Sinai. /b,§ bRabbi Yoḥa ben Dehavai said: The ministering angels told me four matters: For whatreason bdo lame people come into existence?It is bbecausetheir fathers boverturn their tables,i.e., they engage in sexual intercourse in an atypical way. bFor whatreason bdo mute people come into existence?It is bbecausetheir fathers bkiss that placeof nakedness. bFor whatreason bdo deaf people come into existence?It is bbecausetheir parents bconverse while engaging in sexual intercourse. For whatreason bdo blind people come into existence?It is bbecausetheir fathers bstare at that place. /b, bAndthe Gemara braises a contradiction: Imma Shalom,the wife of Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, bwas asked: For whatreason |
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22. Babylonian Talmud, Yevamot, 61b (3rd cent. CE - 6th cent. CE)
| 61b. ויש לו בנים לא ישא אילונית שהיא זונה האמורה בתורה דאזונה כהנים הוא דמפקדי וישראל לא מפקדי משום הכי קתני כהן,אמר רב הונא מאי טעמא דר' יהודה דכתיב (הושע ד, י) אכלו ולא ישבעו הזנו ולא יפרוצו כל ביאה שאין בה פירצה אינה אלא בעילת זנות,תניא רבי אליעזר אומר כהן לא ישא את הקטנה אמר ליה רב חסדא לרבה פוק עיין בה דלאורתא בעי לה רב הונא מינך נפק עיין בה רבי אליעזר סבר לה כרבי מאיר וסבר לה כרבי יהודה,סבר לה כרבי מאיר דחייש למיעוטא וסבר לה כרבי יהודה דאמר אילונית זונה הויא,וכרבי מאיר מי סבר לה והתניא קטן וקטנה לא חולצין ולא מיבמין דברי רבי מאיר אמרו לו לרבי מאיר יפה אמרת שאין חולצין (דברים כה, ז) איש כתיב בפרשה ומקשינן אשה לאיש אלא מאי טעמא אין מיבמין,[א"ל] קטן שמא ימצא סריס קטנה שמא תמצא אילונית ונמצאו פוגעין בערוה ותניא קטנה מתייבמת ואינה חולצת דברי רבי אליעזר,וכרבי יהודה מי סבר לה והתניא זונה זונה כשמה דברי רבי אליעזר רבי עקיבא אומר זונה זו מופקרת רבי מתיא בן חרש אומר אפי' הלך בעלה להשקותה ובא עליה בדרך עשאה זונה,רבי יהודה אומר זונה זו אילונית וחכמים אומרים אין זונה אלא גיורת ומשוחררת ושנבעלה בעילת זנות ר' אליעזר אומר פנוי הבא על הפנויה שלא לשם אישות עשאה זונה,אלא אמר רב אדא בר אהבה הכא בכ"ג עסקינן לאימת קני לה לכי גדלה בעולה היא,אמר רבא מכלי לב אי דקדשה אבוה מההיא שעתא הוא דקני לה ואי דקדשה נפשה הא רבי אליעזר היא ולא רבנן,אלא אמר רבא לעולם בכהן הדיוט וחיישינן שמא תתפתה עליו א"ה ישראל נמי פתויי קטנה אונס הוא ואונס בישראל מישרא שרי,רב פפא אמר בכ"ג והאי תנא הוא דתניא (ויקרא כא, ג) בתולה יכול קטנה ת"ל אשה אי אשה יכול בוגרת ת"ל בתולה הא כיצד יצתה מכלל קטנות ולכלל בגרות לא באתה,רב נחמן בר יצחק אמר האי תנא הוא דתניא בתולה אין בתולה אלא נערה וכן הוא אומר (בראשית כד, טז) והנערה טובת מראה מאד בתולה,ר' אלעזר אומר פנוי הבא על הפנויה שלא לשם אישות עשאה זונה אמר רב עמרם אין הלכה כרבי אלעזר:, big strongמתני׳ /strong /big לא יבטל אדם מפריה ורביה אלא א"כ יש לו בנים ב"ש אומרים שני זכרים וב"ה אומרים זכר ונקבה שנאמר (בראשית ה, ב) זכר ונקבה בראם:, big strongגמ׳ /strong /big הא יש לו בנים מפריה ורביה בטיל מאשה לא בטיל מסייעא ליה לרב נחמן אמר שמואל דאמר אע"פ שיש לו לאדם כמה בנים אסור לעמוד בלא אשה שנאמר (בראשית ב, יח) לא טוב היות האדם לבדו,ואיכא דאמרי הא יש לו בנים בטיל מפריה ורביה ובטיל נמי מאשה נימא תיהוי תיובתא דרב נחמן אמר שמואל לא אין לו בנים נושא אשה בת בנים יש לו בנים נושא אשה דלאו בת בנים נפקא מינה למכור ספר תורה בשביל בנים:,בית שמאי אומרים שני זכרים: מאי טעמייהו דבית שמאי ילפינן ממשה דכתיב (דברי הימים א כג, טו) בני משה גרשום ואליעזר ובית הלל ילפינן מברייתו של עולם ובית שמאי לילפי מברייתו של עולם אין דנין אפשר | 61b. band he has children, he may not marry a sexually underdeveloped woman, as she is the izona /iabout whom it is bstated in the Torahthat a priest may not marry her. bIt is priests who were commandednot to marry ba izona /i, but Israelites were not commandedthis. It is bdue to thatreason that bhe taughtthe first clause of the mishna about ba priest,even though that ihalakhaapplies equally to Israelites., bRav Huna said: What is the reasonfor the opinion of bRabbi Yehuda? As it is written: “And they shall eat, and not have enough, they shall commit harlotry, and shall not increase”(Hosea 4:10). He expounds the verse as follows: bAny intercourse that does nothave the possibility to bincreasethe population because the woman is incapable of having children, bis nothing otherthan blicentious sexual intercourse. /b,§ bIt is taughtin a ibaraitathat bRabbi Eliezer says: A priest may not marry a minor. Rav Ḥisda said to Rabba: Goand binvestigatethis ihalakha /i, bas in the evening Rav Hunawill bask youthe reason for Rabbi Eliezer’s ruling. bHe wentand binvestigated it,and arrived at the following conclusion: bRabbi Eliezer holds in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Meir, and healso bholds in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Yehuda. /b,Rabba explains: bHe holds in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Meir, whosays that bone must be concerned for the minority.Rabbi Meir does not allow one to assume that an unknown case is similar to the majority of cases. Consequently, one must take into account the possibility that a minor will turn out to be sexually underdeveloped, although this will not be true of most individuals. bAndhe also bholds in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Yehuda, who saidthat ba sexually underdeveloped woman is a izona /iand therefore forbidden to a priest.,The Gemara challenges Rabba’s explanation: bAnd doesRabbi Eliezer bhold in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Meir? Isn’t it taughtin a ibaraita /i: bA boy minor and a girl minor may not perform iḥalitzaor levirate marriage;this is bthe statement of Rabbi Meir.The Rabbis bsaid to Rabbi Meir: You spoke wellwhen you said bthat they may not perform iḥalitza /i,as the term b“man” is written in the passageof iḥalitza(Deuteronomy 25:7–10), which limits the ihalakhato an adult male, band we compare a woman to a manand therefore limit iḥalitzato an adult woman. bHowever, what is the reasonthat bthey may not perform levirate marriage? /b,Rabbi Meir bsaid to them: A boy minormay not perform levirate marriage blest he be foundto be ba eunuch,i.e., one who is incapable of fathering children for his late brother. Similarly, ba girl minormay not perform levirate marriage blest she be foundto be bsexually underdevelopedwhen she grows up. In either case, the mitzva of levirate marriage does not apply, band they turn outto have bencountered a forbidden relative. And it was taughtin a different ibaraita /i: bA girl minor enters into levirate marriage but does not perform iḥalitza /i;this is bthe statement of Rabbi Eliezer.This proves that Rabbi Eliezer disagrees with Rabbi Meir and is not concerned that a girl may turn out to be sexually underdeveloped.,The Gemara continues to challenge Rabba’s explanation of Rabbi Eliezer’s ruling. bAnd doesRabbi Eliezer bhold in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Yehuda? Wasn’t it is taught ina ibaraita /i: The izona /iforbidden to a priest is as bthe name izona /iimplies, i.e., a married woman who committed adultery; this is bthe statement of Rabbi Eliezer. Rabbi Akiva says: A izonaisa woman, even an unmarried woman, bwhois bavailableto all, i.e., she has intercourse with whoever is interested. bRabbi Matya ben Ḥarash says: Evenif bher husband went to make her drinkthe bitter waters after she disregarded his warning not to seclude herself with a certain man, and bhe had intercourse with her on the way, he hasthereby bcaused herto become ba izona /ibecause she was forbidden to him at the time, despite the fact that she is his wife., bRabbi Yehuda says: A izonais a sexually underdeveloped woman. And the Rabbis say:The term izona /iapplies bonly to a female convert, a freedmaidservant, band one who engaged in licentious sexual intercourse. Rabbi Elazar says:Even in the case of ban unmarried man who had intercourse with an unmarried woman not for the purpose of marriage, he hasthereby bcaused herto become ba izona /i.This ibaraitaproves that Rabbi Eliezer does not agree with Rabbi Yehuda., bRather, Rav Adda bar Ahava saidthat Rabbi Eliezer’s ruling that a priest may not marry a minor must be explained differently: bHere we are dealing with a High Priest,and the problem is as follows: bWhen can he acquire heras his wife? Only bwhen she is grown up.However, if they had started living together as husband and wife when she was a minor, then when she is grown up and the marriage can legally take effect, bshe isalready ba non-virgin,and a High Priest is commanded to marry a virgin., bRava said:This explanation is bwithout reason. If her father betrothed herto her husband, her husband bacquired her from that time,as betrothal that a father carries out on his daughter’s behalf when she is a minor is effective by Torah law. bAnd ifthe minor bbetrothed herself,is bthis Rabbi Eliezer’sopinion band notthat of bthe Rabbis?The Rabbis would certainly agree that a High Priest may not marry a minor under these circumstances., bRather, Rava said: Actually,Rabbi Eliezer’s ruling includes ba common priest,and the reason he cannot marry a minor is that bwe are concerned lest she be seducedby another man, due to her tender age and naïveté, while married bto him.The Gemara asks: bIf so,the same concern should apply to ban Israelite also.The Gemara answers: bThe seduction of a minor isconsidered brape, and a rapevictim remains bpermittedto her husband bina case where she is married to ban Israelite,but not if she is married to a priest., bRav Pappa said:Rabbi Eliezer’s ruling applies specifically bto a High Priest, and it isthe opinion of bthis itanna /i, as it is taughtin a ibaraitathat when the verse states: b“A virginof his own people shall he take for a wife [ iisha /i]” (Leviticus 21:14), one bmighthave thought a High Priest may marry ba minor; the versetherefore bstatesthat he must marry ba woman [ iisha /i],i.e., an adult. bIfhe must marry a bwoman,one bmighthave thought it means ba grown woman. The versetherefore bstatesthat he must marry ba virgin,which excludes a grown woman, who is considered only a partial virgin because her hymen is not fully intact. bHow so?He must marry a woman who bhas left the class of minority butwho bhas notyet breached the class of grown womanhood,i.e., he must marry a maiden., bRav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said: It isthe opinion of bthis itanna /i, as it is taughtin a ibaraita /i: The High Priest must marry ba virgin, andthe term bvirginrefers bonlyto ba maiden. Anda verse bsimilarly states: “And the maiden was very fair to look upon, a virgin,and no man had known her” (Genesis 24:16).,The ibaraitacited above mentioned that bRabbi Elazar says:In the case of ban unmarried man who had intercourse with an unmarried woman not for the purpose of marriage, he has caused herto become ba izona /i. Rav Amram said: The ihalakhais not in accordance withthe opinion of bRabbi Elazar. /b, strongMISHNA: /strong bA man may not neglectthe mitzva to bbe fruitful and multiply unless healready bhas children. Beit Shammai say:One fulfills this mitzva with btwo males, and Beit Hillel say: A male and a female, as it is stated: “Male and female He created them”(Genesis 5:2)., strongGEMARA: /strong The Gemara infers from the mishna’s wording that if bhealready bhas children he may neglectthe mitzva to bbe fruitful and multiply,but bhe may not neglectthe mitzva to have ba wife.This bsupportswhat bRav Naḥman saidin the name of bShmuel, who said: Evenif ba man has several children, it is prohibited to remain without a wife, as it is stated: “It is not good that the man should be alone”(Genesis 2:18)., bAnd some saya different version of the inference from the mishna: If bhealready bhas children, he may neglectthe mitzva to bbe fruitful and multiply andhe bmay also neglectthe mitzva to have ba wife. Shall we saythis bis a conclusive refutation ofwhat bRav Naḥman saidthat bShmuelsaid? The Gemara responds: bNo,it means that bif he does not have children he must marry a womancapable bofbearing bchildren,whereas if bhe has children he may marry a woman who is notcapable bofbearing bchildren. A practical differencebetween a man who has children and one who does not is whether he is permitted bto sell a Torah scroll in order tomarry a woman capable of having bchildren.This is permitted only for one who does not yet have children.,§ The mishna states that bBeit Shammai saythat one fulfills the mitzva to be fruitful and multiply when he has btwo males.The Gemara asks: bWhat is the reason of Beit Shammai?The Gemara answers: bWe learnthis bfrom Moses as it is written: “The sons of Moses, Gershom and Eliezer”(I Chronicles 23:15). Since Moses did not have any other children, two sons must be sufficient to fulfill the mitzva. bAndthe reason of bBeit Hillelis that bwe learn from the creation of the world,as mankind was created male and female. The Gemara asks: bAnd Beit Shammai, let them learn from the creation of the worldas well. The Gemara answers that Beit Shammai could say to you: bWe do not derivea case where it is bpossible /b |
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