3rd Perek: Laws of Selling
| Related Text: | Mishneh Torah (Rambam): Mechirah - Chapter 3 |
| Podcast: | Subscribe to SIE Daily Rambam (1 chapter) |
Rambam on the Line - A Project of Sichos in English
© Copyright Sichos in English, All rights reserved.
© Copyright Sichos in English, All rights reserved.
© Copyright, all rights reserved. If you enjoyed this article, we encourage you to distribute it further, provided that you comply with Chabad.org's copyright policy.
More in this section
-
36:254th Perek: Laws of Selling
-
37:465th Perek: Laws of Selling
-
38:456th Perek: Laws of Selling
Join the Discussion
Sihara
October 5, 2008
Perek Shlishi Haacha Aleph
I understand how the sages can change or add to the Torah's laws. but in this instance i have a question. The torah says that if i payed Mr. X money for his cow, it's mine.
the chachamim say it's not mine until i lift/pull it.
Say i've payed Mr. X the money acc. to the torah it's already mine. how can the sages' rule that i must lift it have any bearing on this transaction that has ALREADY happened?
Reply
Re: Sages power vis-a-vis a Torah law This is based on the law known as “hefker beth din—hefker.” In simple English this means that the court has the power to appropriate a person’s money away from him and do with it as they see fit (see Talmud, Gittin 36b).
Rabbi Yitzchak teaches that this can be derived from the following verse (Ezra 10:8):
“And they issued a proclamation in Judea and Jerusalem to all the people of the community of the exiles to assemble to Jerusalem. And whoever does not come by three days according to the counsel of the chiefs and the elders all his property shall be confiscated, and he shall be separated from the congregation of the exile.”
Rabbi Elazar sees this power from the juxtaposition of the heads and the fathers in the following verse (Joshua 19:51):
“These are the inheritances, which Eliezer the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the (houses of) the fathers of the tribes of the children of Israel”
He extrapolates that just as a father bequeaths to his children, so may the heads (rabbinical court) appropriate funds as they see fit.