Shalom, How is מעידנא דמתחיל שמשא למערב implied in "בין הערבעים"? Thank you very much for your help. Kol Tuv, Avraham Sacks
AS, RBS
Shalom R' Avraham,
This is an excellent question. We know that according to Rava, "Bein ha'Arbayim" means anywhere in the range of hours when the sun is going down.
You might wish to look at the Rabeinu David on this Gemara who explains as follows. The term "Bein" has two possible meanings.
1) It usually means "between," as in between two extremes. (That is the sense in which Rebbi Yehoshua ben Levi understood it: midway between midday and nightfall.)
2) It alternatively can mean "among," i.e., anywhere in a given range; and that is how Rava understands it. (By the way, Rabeinu David gives three examples of this second usage of the term "Bein": Bereishis 26:28, Yechezkel 31:10, and Bamidbar 17:2.)
May you continue to attain greatness in Torah and Yir'as Shamayim!
Warmly,
Yishai Rasowsky