Whether a Master May Give His Hebrew Servant a Wife

Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 312:1

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

(Exodus 21:4) "If his master gives him a wife." Is this permission, or is it perhaps an obligation? Scripture teaches, saying, "If he comes in by himself, etc." (Exodus 21:3) - permission and not obligation; these are the words of Rabbi Ishmael. "If his master gives him a wife" - one who is designated for him, so that she should not be like an ownerless maidservant. "If his master gives him a wife" - Scripture speaks of a Canaanite maidservant. Or is it perhaps of a Hebrew woman? When it says, "the woman and her children shall belong to her master" (Exodus 21:4), behold, Scripture speaks of a Canaanite maidservant. "And she bears him sons." I have here only sons and daughters; from where do I include one of indeterminate sex and one of double sex? Scripture teaches, saying, "the woman and her children shall belong to her master" - in any case. Rabbi Nathan says: There is no need for Scripture to say "and she bears him," except to include the master who comes upon his maidservant, that her children are slaves.

Themes

CommandmentsOral TorahMarriage

Continue Reading

Mekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiWhen a Divine Command Binds All Future GenerationsHow can you tell whether a command God gave Moses was meant only for that hour or meant to bind Israel forever? Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai found the signal hidden Mekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiThe Servant Who Comes In Alone and the Wife Who Goes Out With HimThe Torah draws a careful line around the Hebrew servant's freedom. If he came in alone, he leaves alone. If he came in married, his wife goes out with him. ButMekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiWhen the Master Gives the Servant a Wife and Her Children RemainThis law has long unsettled readers, and the sages do not soften its hard edges; they map them precisely. If a master gives his Hebrew servant a wife, the TorahMekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiA Husband May Not Diminish Her Food, Clothing, or RightsSuppose a master designated his maidservant as a wife and then took a second wife. Does the first lose her standing? The Torah answers with three words that becMekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiHow the Ban on Their Daughters Teaches the Ban on MarriageHere the verse describes a chain of consequences. You make a treaty, you share their sacrifices, and then you take their daughters for your sons. On its face thPesikta de-Rav KahanaHow the Sages Identified Each of the Four SpeciesThe sages read "on the first day" with great care. By day, they ruled, not by night. Even on the Sabbath, but only on the first day of the festival does taking