כִּֽי־יִמָּכֵ֨ר לְךָ֜ אָחִ֣יךָ הָֽעִבְרִ֗י א֚וֹ הָֽעִבְרִיָּ֔ה וַעֲבָֽדְךָ֖ שֵׁ֣שׁ שָׁנִ֑ים וּבַשָּׁנָה֙ הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔ת תְּשַׁלְּחֶ֥נּוּ חָפְשִׁ֖י מֵעִמָּֽךְ׃
Kung maipagbili sa iyo ang iyong kapatid, isang lalaking Hebreo o isang babaeng Hebreo, at maglingkod siya sa iyo nang anim na taon, sa ikapitong taon ay palalayain mo siya mula sa iyo.
Jerusalem Talmud Kiddushin
HALAKHAH: “A Hebrew slave is acquired by money,” etc. It is written: “If your Hebrew brother or sister be sold to you,” he bracketed the male Hebrew with the female159Deut. 15:12. The Babli, 14b, points out that the verse only covers persons sold by others, the girl by her father and the man by the court, not the person who sells himself. Sifry Deut. 118 disputes the entire argument and holds that the female had to be mentioned separately from the male since the rules of her acquisition and liberation are distinct from those of the male. (E. g., the female cannot sell herself; the adult female cannot be a Hebrew slave.). Since the female Hebrew can be acquired by money or contract, also the male Hebrew can be acquired by money or contract. One understands money since it is written160Ex. 21:11. Since after six years, or after she reached adulthood, she leaves without payment, it follows that her work was worth money; cf. Note 18.: “She leaves gratis, without money [due].” From where by contract? The female Hebrew is inferred from the free woman161Ex. 21:10 equates the marriage of the Hebrew slave girl to her master to the latter’s marriage with another, free, woman. (Babli 16a; Mechilta dR. Šimon b.Jochai, ed. Epstein-Melamed, p. 167)., and the male Hebrew from the female. This is a combination of inferences. That follows Rebbi Aqiba who accepts combination of inferences162Except for texts based on Lev. For the intricacies of his position, cf. H. Guggenheimer, Über ein bemerkenswertes logisches System aus der Antike, Methodos 1951, pp. 150–164; Logical Problems in Jewish Tradition, in: Confrontations with Judaism, ed. Ph. Longworth, London 1966, pp. 171–196.
The problem before the rabbis of the second and third generations of Tannaïm was to derive a consistent legal system which intellectually could compete with the Roman law from the scattered remarks offered in the Biblical text. R. Ismael allows no more than one intermediate step between biblical text and legal statement.. Following Rebbi Ismael who rejects combination of inferences? It was found that Rebbi Ismael stated: In the case of the word חֻפְשָׁה, “free” is inferred from חֻפְשָׁה163The expression חפשי is used in Ex. 21:2,5 in reference to the male Hebrew slave. In R. Ismael’s opinion, the ḥâruphah slave girl is a former Gentile who needs manumission (Notes 147,148) and חֻפְשָׁה mentioned in Lev. 19:20 is her bill of manumission. Since the Gentile slave girl can be manumitted by a document, it is concluded that the Hebrew slave can be acquired by a document. As noted later, this is a non sequitur.. Everywhere Rebbi Ismael rejects combination of inferences and here, he accepts combination of inferences? Rebbi Ismael stated it in the name of the Sages164This translation follows the sentence structure of A.. From where is it derived for Rebbi Ismael? “Sending away, sending away.” Since “sending away” mentioned there means by a contract, also “sending away” here means by a contract165Divorce, which requires a written document, is called “sending away” (of the wife) in Deut. 24:1. Therefore, the “sending away” of the Hebrew slave (Deut. 15:12,13) also refers to a written document. As noted immediately, this only would prove that the master can terminate the indenture by a written document, not that he could acquire the Hebrew’s services by a document.. But it does not compare. There it is to gain autonomy, here it is to be acquired by others! Rebbi Mattaniah166In A: “Rebbi said, a baraita.” This reading is preferable since a fifth-generation Amora is unlikely to appear in a Tannaïtic discussion. said, “sale, sale”167In Lev. 25:42 it is stated that a Hebrew “shall not be sold as in the sale of a [Gentile] slave.” In Deut. 15:12 it says, “If your Hebrew brother or sister be sold to you.” It is an accepted principle (Sifry Deut. 72, Yerushalmi Baba batra 8:5 (16b), Babli Temurah5a) that if the verse notes that “something shall not be done,” if it is done it is sinful but legally valid since an invalid action does not have to be forbidden. Since the Gentile slave can be bought by contract (Mishnah 3), the Hebrew slave also can be bought by contract. The question remains whether he can be bought by contract without the buyer sinning.. Since “sale” mentioned there means by a contract, “sale” here also means by a contract. But since there168Since the laws regarding Gentile slaves in general follow the rules of real estate, undisturbed possession for three years accompanied by a claim of rightful acquisition legally establishes ownership. Nobody claims that the same holds for Hebrew slaves. it is possible by possession, then here it should be possible by possession. Rebbi Ḥiyya bar Ada169A: R. Ḥiyya bar Abba (an Amora of the third generation). The reading of L is the only one acceptable, referring to R. Ḥiyya bar Ada I, of the generation of transition between Tannaïm and Amoraïm. said, the male Hebrew is like the female Hebrew170This essentially is the argument given at the start of this paragraph, Note 159. The reason for the female to be mentioned in Deut. 15:12 at the start of rules mostly dealing only with the male, is to transfer the rules of acquisition from the female to the male..
The problem before the rabbis of the second and third generations of Tannaïm was to derive a consistent legal system which intellectually could compete with the Roman law from the scattered remarks offered in the Biblical text. R. Ismael allows no more than one intermediate step between biblical text and legal statement.. Following Rebbi Ismael who rejects combination of inferences? It was found that Rebbi Ismael stated: In the case of the word חֻפְשָׁה, “free” is inferred from חֻפְשָׁה163The expression חפשי is used in Ex. 21:2,5 in reference to the male Hebrew slave. In R. Ismael’s opinion, the ḥâruphah slave girl is a former Gentile who needs manumission (Notes 147,148) and חֻפְשָׁה mentioned in Lev. 19:20 is her bill of manumission. Since the Gentile slave girl can be manumitted by a document, it is concluded that the Hebrew slave can be acquired by a document. As noted later, this is a non sequitur.. Everywhere Rebbi Ismael rejects combination of inferences and here, he accepts combination of inferences? Rebbi Ismael stated it in the name of the Sages164This translation follows the sentence structure of A.. From where is it derived for Rebbi Ismael? “Sending away, sending away.” Since “sending away” mentioned there means by a contract, also “sending away” here means by a contract165Divorce, which requires a written document, is called “sending away” (of the wife) in Deut. 24:1. Therefore, the “sending away” of the Hebrew slave (Deut. 15:12,13) also refers to a written document. As noted immediately, this only would prove that the master can terminate the indenture by a written document, not that he could acquire the Hebrew’s services by a document.. But it does not compare. There it is to gain autonomy, here it is to be acquired by others! Rebbi Mattaniah166In A: “Rebbi said, a baraita.” This reading is preferable since a fifth-generation Amora is unlikely to appear in a Tannaïtic discussion. said, “sale, sale”167In Lev. 25:42 it is stated that a Hebrew “shall not be sold as in the sale of a [Gentile] slave.” In Deut. 15:12 it says, “If your Hebrew brother or sister be sold to you.” It is an accepted principle (Sifry Deut. 72, Yerushalmi Baba batra 8:5 (16b), Babli Temurah5a) that if the verse notes that “something shall not be done,” if it is done it is sinful but legally valid since an invalid action does not have to be forbidden. Since the Gentile slave can be bought by contract (Mishnah 3), the Hebrew slave also can be bought by contract. The question remains whether he can be bought by contract without the buyer sinning.. Since “sale” mentioned there means by a contract, “sale” here also means by a contract. But since there168Since the laws regarding Gentile slaves in general follow the rules of real estate, undisturbed possession for three years accompanied by a claim of rightful acquisition legally establishes ownership. Nobody claims that the same holds for Hebrew slaves. it is possible by possession, then here it should be possible by possession. Rebbi Ḥiyya bar Ada169A: R. Ḥiyya bar Abba (an Amora of the third generation). The reading of L is the only one acceptable, referring to R. Ḥiyya bar Ada I, of the generation of transition between Tannaïm and Amoraïm. said, the male Hebrew is like the female Hebrew170This essentially is the argument given at the start of this paragraph, Note 159. The reason for the female to be mentioned in Deut. 15:12 at the start of rules mostly dealing only with the male, is to transfer the rules of acquisition from the female to the male..
Jerusalem Talmud Kiddushin
Rebbi Simeon ben Laqish asked before Rebbi Joḥanan: Should not the Hebrew slave girl leave by definitive marriage, by an argument de minore ad majus? Since indications [of puberty] which do not emancipate her from her father’s power, free her from her master’s power279An adolescent girl remains in her father’s power for six months after her formal puberty (Nedarim 10:1, Note 1) but leaves servitude at the actual onset of puberty., is it not logical that definitive marriage, which emancipates her from her father’s power, shall free her from her master’s power? He said to him, I have only the Mishnah: “The Hebrew slave girl in addition regains her autonomy by indicators of puberty155While a father can forcibly marry off his daughter until she has reached adulthood (12 years six months and one day) he cannot sell her into slavery beyond adolescence (12 years and a day if she shows signs of puberty). He cannot sell her to work for longer than he had the right to sell..” Bar Pedaiah280In the Babli, 17b, “R. Pada”. said, the Hebrew slave girl leaves at the death of her master. What is the reason? “Also your slave girl you shall treat in the same way;” and it is written: “He shall be for you a permanent slave.281Deut. 15:17, making it clear that the servitude of the “pierced slave” is personally to his master; cf. Note 157. By consensus of all sources, the final clause of that verse, speaking of the Hebrew slave girl, cannot refer to the piercing of the earlobe since this would contradict Ex. 21:5.” He bracketed the Hebrew slave girl with the “pierced slave”. Since the “pierced slave” leaves at his master’s death, the Hebrew slave girl also leaves at her master’s death282Babli 17b; Sifry Deut. #122; Mekhilta dR.Ismael,Neziqin 2; Mekhilta dR.Šim‘on b.Jochai p. 164.. It turns out that Bar Pedaiah parallels the following Tanna, as it was stated: The Hebrew slave283The one indentured for six years, not the “pierced slave” (parallel sources cf. Note 282). serves the son but not the daughter; the Hebrew slave girl serves the daughter but not the son284In the Babli 17b: Neither son nor daughter.. Some Tannaїm state: The Hebrew slave girl as well as the Hebrew slave285The “pierced slave”, not the one indentured for six years. This is Bar Pedaiah’s statement. serve neither the son nor the daughter. How does the Tanna confirm “your slave girl you also shall treat in the same way”? He explains it about the allowance286A supply of produce, required to be given the departing slave by Deut. 15:14. This is the standard interpretation (Babli 17b; Sifry Deut. #122)., as it was stated: The following are given allowances: The one who leaves after six years or in the Jubilee, and the Hebrew slave girl who becomes autonomous by indicators of puberty. But one does not give allowances to one who leaves by the reduction of the amount287Who buys his freedom by repaying the amount given for his services reduced proportionally to the time served. or following the master’s death288In the Babli, 16b, and Sifry Deut. #119, the person leaving at his master’s death is entitled to an allowance. The Yerushalmi restricts allowances to persons serving a predetermined period. (In Masekhet ‘Avadim 2, allowances are given only to those sold by the court.).