Midrash su Deuteronomio 24:1

A Tale of Rabbi Kahana: Rabbi Kahana and his wife were blessed by God with a (only) son, whom they named Saliq. And when the boy was just five years old, Rabbi Kahana seized him with his hand and wished to take him from their home to the House of Study to learn Torah. The boy's mother spoke up and said to [Rabbi Kahana] "where are you taking my boy?" [Rabbi Kahana] replied "we must entrust him to someone who is able to teach him Torah." She responded to him "it would be far better for both of us to die than for for us to witness our son's departure. He must not leave us, neither to study Torah nor to pursue a trade." Her husband replied "quickly, fetch your marriage contract and I will read it and pay what is stipulated in it per the conditions of a divorce settlement." She said to him "what blemish do you see in me that you wish to divorce me. For is it not written: "If a man marries a woman and it happens that she does not find favor in his eyes for he has found something indecent about her, and he will write for her a certificate of divorce..." (Deuteronomy 24:1). Her husband replied and said "there is no greater blemish than your action, for you preventing my son from drinking the Living Waters (i.e., the words of Torah). And "water" is none but Torah. As it is written "all those who are thirsty, come to the waters" (Isaiah 55:1). And it is written "For they are life to those who find them" (Proverbs 4:22). The wife then said "let us make a compromise between you and I." Says he, "how so?" She replied "go to the marketplace and find us an expert rabbi, and offer an agreement for him to teach our son at home for many days and years, and I will attend to him honorably, and [prepare his meals and launder his clothes]." Immediately, the husband ran to the marketplace and found a wise man sitting and tying his tzitzit (tassels) in seven loops. [Rabbi Kahana] said to the [Wise Man] "peace be upon you, Rabbi." The [Wise Man] replied "peace be upon you, my lord." [Rabbi Kahana] asked "what is your name?" The [Wise Man] replied "my name is Eliezer the Small One." [Rabbi Kahana] then asked "do you have a wife and children?" The [Wise Man] replied "indeed, and they are here with me. My wife is the Torah." As it is written "enjoy happiness with a woman you love all the fleeting days of life that have been granted to you under the sun—all your fleeting days. For that alone is what you can get out of life and out of the means you acquire under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 9:9). The Wise Man continued "And the children of my master are my students, they are now men of Torah." And indeed, each person is obligated to teach their child Torah once they reach the age of six or seven. As it is written "This people I formed for Myself so that they will declare My praise." (Isaiah 43:21). [The Hebrew word "this" (זו) contains the numbers six (ו) and seven (ז)]. Immediately, the woman said to the Wise Man "you will teach my son at our home and my son Saliq will not leave the entrance of my home." The Wise Man replied "I accept your proposal." Immediately, Rabbi Kahana wrote an employer's contract for Rabbi Eliezer. And similarly, Rabbi Eliezer wrote an employee's contract for Rabbi Kahana and taught [Rabbi Kahana's] son Saliq. And so it happened that from the day of his birth from his mother's womb, Saliq never once crossed the doorway of his home. Instead, he remained and studied for twenty-five years, until he reached the age of thirty. And Rabbi Kahana paid Rabbi Eliezer the Small one thousand measurements of gold.

"And Yithro, Moses' father-in-law, took Tzipporah, Moses' wife, after she had been sent": R. Yehoshua says: after she had parted from him with a divorce (a "get"). It is written here "sending," and elsewhere (Devarim 24:1) "sending." Just as there, with a get, so, here, with a get. R. Elazar says: after she parted from him with a ma'amar (i.e., by word of mouth). For when the L rd said to Moses: Go and take My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt, viz. (Exodus 3:10) "Go and I will send you to Pharaoh, etc.", he took his wife and his two sons and brought them to Egypt, as it is written (Ibid. 4:20) "and Moses took his wife and his sons, and he rode them on the ass, and he returned to the land of Egypt." At that time He said to Aaron: Go to meet Moses. He went out to meet him and embraced him and kissed him. Aaron: Moses, where were you all these years? Moses: In Midian. Aaron: Who are these women and little ones with you? Moses: My wife and my sons. Aaron: Where are you taking them? Moses: To Egypt. Aaron: We are afflicted with the first ones, and now shall we be afflicted with these, too? At that time he said to Tzipporah: Go to your father's house. At that time she went to her father's house, taking her two sons — wherefore, "after she had been sent."

(Bamidbar 5:12) "Speak to the children of Israel and say to them: A man, a man, if his wife go astray, and she be faithless to him": What is the intent of this section? From (Devarim 24:1) "If a man take a woman and he cohabit with her, etc.", we hear only that if he had two witnesses (to her adultery) and she had not been forewarned, that she leaves him by divorce. But if she were adulterous in the presence of only one witness or it is in doubt whether she had or had not been adulterous after having been secreted (with the one she had been forewarned against), we did not hear what is to be done with her. It is, therefore, written "Speak to the children of Israel and say to them: "A man, a man, if his wife go astray, etc.", that (in the above instance) she must drink the bitter waters. This is the intent of this section. "A man, a man": to include the wife of a deaf mute, an imbecile, one who has gone abroad or been incarcerated, or a dullard — that beth-din forewarns her (if she is deporting herself immodestly) to the end of invalidating her kethubah (her marriage contract). I might think, even to the end of making her drink (the bitter waters); it is, therefore, written (to negate this) (Ibid. 11) "Then the man shall bring his wife." R. Yossi b. Yehudah says: also to the end of making her drink when her husband is released from incarceration. Variantly: "A man, a man": to include a woman awaiting levirate marriage (yibum). "if his wife go astray": Scripture speaks of those who are fit to be "wives" — to exclude a widow married to a high-priest, a divorcée or a chalutzah (one who has performed the chaliztah ceremony to break a levirate connection), who are married to a regular priest, a mamzereth or a Nethinah (a descendent of the Geveonites) married to an Israelite, and a daughter of an Israelite married to a Nathin or a mamzer. And, according to Akavya b. Mehallalel, (to exclude) a woman who is a proselyte or a freed slave. They (the sages) said to him (Akavya): But there was a freed slave, Charkemis, in Jerusalem, and Shemaya and Avtalyon had her drink (the bitter waters)! He replied: They dissimulated their doing so — whereupon they excommunicated him and he died in his state of excommunication, and beth-din stoned his coffin. ("if his wife go astray,) and she is guilty of ma'al against him": ("ma'al") In the area of illicit relations or in the area of monetary (fraudulence)? (Ibid. 5:13) "And a man lie with her a lying of seed" indicates that ma'al here is in the area of illicit relations, and not in that of monetary (fraudulence). "and she is guilty of ma'al against him": "me'ilah" in all places is "lying." And thus is it written (I Chronicles 5:25) "Vayimalu ('and they lied') against the G-d of their fathers," and (Joshua 7:1) "And the children of Israel yimalu ma'al ('falsified') in respect to the ban," and (I Chronicles 10:13) "And Saul died because of his falsification ('bema'alo ma'al') against the L-rd." And, in respect to Uzziyahu, king of Judah, (II Chronicles 26:18) "Leave the sanctuary, for you have acted falsely (ma'alta)," and (Vayikra 5:21) "and he (the denier) ma'ala ma'al against the L-rd" — whence we see that "me'ilah" in all places is "lying."