1)

(a)Rav Yehudah Amar Shmuel rules that Yesomim do not need to write a 'Pruzbul'. This is supported by a Beraisa cited by Rami bar Chama. What reason does the Tana give for this?

(b)Why can a Pruzbul only be written if the debtor has Karka?

(c)How will the creditor obtain his loan in the event that the debtor does not own any Karka?

(d)What is the minimum Shi'ur Karka that the debtor must own for the Pruzbul to be valid? Why will such a small Shi'ur, worth so much less than the loan, suffice?

1)

(a)Rav Yehudah Amar Shmuel rules that Yesomim do not need to write a 'Peruzbul'. This is supported by a Beraisa cite by Rami bar Chama which gives the reason for this because Raban Gamliel and the Beis-Din are the father of the poor (and it is as if their Shetaros are already handed over to his Beis-Din, and so it is with every Beis-Din in subsequent generations).

(b)A Peruzbul can only be written if the debtor has Karka because Hillel gave the Shtar of Peruzbul the same specifications as other documents, and other documents automatically mortgage all Karka belonging to the debtor, but not Metaltelin.

(c)In the event that the debtor does not own any Karka the creditor can still write a Peruzbul, by inserting in the Shtar, a tiny piece of land that he donates to the debtor.

(d)There is no minimum Shi'ur Karka that the debtor must own for the Peruzbul to be valid. Even a 'Kol she'Hu' in which one can plant a cabbage stalk is sufficient. This is because it is possible to claim and re-claim it until one's entire debt is paid (like the case of 'Ketina d'Ar'a' of Abaye in Kesuvos that we cited earlier in the Perek).

2)

(a)How about renting or lending the debtor a place to put his oven suffice to write a Pruzbul?

(b)What does the Beraisa, quoted by Hillel ha'Katan, say about the creditor lending the debtor a flower-pot in this regard?

(c)Why does the flower-pot require a hole? Why will the fact that the location of the pot is lent to him not suffice?

(d)Rav Ashi was Makneh to the debtor the stump of a date-palm on which he wrote a Pruzbul. What did the Rabanan of bei Rav Ashi do when they borrowed money from each other and the Shemitah arrived?

2)

(a)Renting or lending the debtor a place to put his oven will suffice to write a Peruzbul.

(b)The Beraisa, quoted by Hillel ha'Katan, says that lending the debtor a flower-pot will enable the creditor to write a Peruzbul, provided it is holed.

(c)The flower-pot requires a hole, despite the fact that normally, the fact that the location of the pot is lent to him will suffice because the Tana is speaking about a pot that is suspended above the ground (in which case neither is the ground automatically lent to him, nor is the pot considered attached to the ground unless it is holed).

(d)Rav Ashi was Makneh to the debtor the stump of a date-palm on which he wrote a Peruzbul. When the Rabanan of Bei Rav Ashi borrowed money from each other and the Shemitah arrived they would appoint three of their friends as a Beis-Din, and 'hand them' their Shetaros verbally.

3)

(a)What if either the guarantor or the borrower possesses Karka, but not both?

(b)How is it possible to write a Pruzbul, even if neither of them actually possess Karka?

(c)Why is that?

3)

(a)If only either the guarantor or the borrower possesses Karka, but not both one may write a Peruzbul.

(b)It is possible to write a Peruzbul even if neither of them actually possess Karka if someone who owes the debtor money does ...

(c)... on account of Rebbi Nasan, who Darshened from the Pasuk in Naso "v'Nasan la'Asher Asham Lo", that if Shimon owes Reuven money, he can claim it directly from Levi, who owes Shimon (known as 'Shibuda d'Rebbi Nasan'). It therefore transpires that Levi's lands are Meshubad to Reuven on account of Shimon's debt, permitting the latter to write a Peruzbul to claim from Shimon.

4)

(a)The Mishnah in Shevi'is states that Shemitah cancels debts whether they are documented or not. Rav and Shmuel both interpret 'non- documented' to mean that they do not contain Acharayus Nechasim. What does this mean?

(b)A 'documented debt' therefore means that they do. What will be the Din regarding an oral loan?

(c)Rebbi Yochanan and Reish Lakish disagree. What do they say? What is the basis of their opinion?

(d)Whose opinion has the support of a Beraisa?

4)

(a)The Mishnah in Shevi'is states that Shemitah cancels debts whether they are documented or not. Rav and Shmuel both interpret 'non-documented' to mean that they do not contain Acharayus Nechasim meaning that the documents preclude the right to claim from the purchasers lands that the debtor sold in the interim.

(b)A 'documented debt' therefore means that they do. And if Shevi'is cancels these it will certainly cancel an oral loan.

(c)Rebbi Yochanan and Reish Lakish disagree. According to them 'documented debts' refers to Shetaros without Acharayus Nechasim, and 'non-documented Shetaros', to oral loans. But Shevi'is will certainly not cancel debts, when the creditor has a Shtar with Acharayus Nechasim.

(d)Rebbi Yochanan and Reish Lakish have the support of a Beraisa.

5)

(a)Another Beraisa states that if the debtor merely designated a specific field for the creditor to claim, the debt is not canceled. What does the Tana add to this?

(b)A relative of Rebbi Asi wrote a Shtar with Acharayus Nechasim. On what basis did Rebbi Asi tell him that Shevi'is does not cancel such debts?

(c)Imagine his surprise when Rebbi Yochanan, to whom the creditor turned for 'a second opinion' ruled that it does. How did Rebbi Yochanan explain ...

1. ... this change of heart?

2. ... the Beraisa which supports his initial ruling?

(d)What do Beis Shamai say in this regard?

5)

(a)Another Beraisa states that if the debtor merely designated a specific field for the creditor to claim, the debt is not canceled, to which the Tana adds the case of someone who designated all his fields to the creditor.

(b)A relative of Rebbi Asi wrote a Shtar with Acharayus Nechasim. Rebbi Asi informed him that Shevi'is does not cancel such a debt on the basis of what his Rebbi, Rebbi Yochanan, had taught him.

(c)Imagine his surprise when Rebbi Yochanan, to whom the creditor turned for 'a second opinion' ruled that it does, ascribing ...

1. ... this change of heart to the fact that it is not because a Rav, based on his own logic, issues a certain ruling, that he cannot retract from it.

2. ... the Beraisa which supports his initial ruling to the fact that the author is Beis Shamai.

(d)Beis Shamai say 'Shtar ha'Omed Lig'vos k'Gavuy Dami' (when a creditor holds a valid Shtar that is ready to claim with, the debt is considered to have already been claimed), in which case, he does not transgress "Lo Yigos" (the basis for the prohibition of claiming a debt after the Shemitah).

6)

(a)The Mishnah in Shevi'is states that Shemitah does not cancel the debt of someone who hands his Shtaros to Beis-Din or who lends money against a security. The reason for the former is as we explained by Pruzbul. What reason did Rava initially give for the latter?

(b)Abaye asked Rava why Shevi'is will not then cancel the debt of a creditor who lives in the debtor's Chatzer, seeing as he too, is holding on to his debt. What did Rava reply? What makes a security different?

(c)What is the criterion for acquiring a security?

6)

(a)The Mishnah in Shevi'is states that Shemitah does not cancel the debt of someone who hands his Shetaros to Beis-Din or who lends money against a security. The reason for the former is as we explained by Peruzbul. Rava's initial reason for the latter is because he has already received his debt (in the form of the security).

(b)Abaye asked Rava why Shevi'is will not then cancel the debt of a creditor who went to live in the debtor's Chatzer, seeing as he too, is holding on to his debt, to which Rava (slightly amending his original answer) replied that a security is different, because, as Rebbi Yitzchak Darshened from the Pasuk in Ki Setzei "u'Lecha Tiheyeh Tzedakah", the creditor acquires a security (eliminating the possibility of transgressing the Lav of "Lo Yigos").

(c)The criterion for acquiring a security is the fact that he is obligated to replace it in the event that it gets lost.

37b----------------------------------------37b

7)

(a)What does the Mishnah in Shevi'is mean when it speaks about 'ha'Machzir Chov la'Chaveiro ba'Shevi'is'? Why can this not be understood literally?

(b)What does the Tana learn from the Pasuk in Re'eh "v'Zeh Devar ha'Shemitah"?

(c)Is the creditor permitted to accept the money, should the debtor insist on paying ('Af-Al-Pi-Kein')?

(d)What does Rabah even permit the creditor to do?

7)

(a)When the Mishnah in Shevi'is speaks about 'ha'Machzir Chov la'Chaveiro bi'Shevi'is' the Tana refers to the time when the Shemitah is practiced, not during the actual Shemitah year, because debts are only canceled at the end of the year, and not at the beginning.

(b)The Tana learn from the Pasuk "v'Zeh Devar ha'Shemitah" that, when the debtor comes to pay his debt after the debt is cancelled, the creditor is obligated to say 'Meshamet Ani'.

(c)Should the debtor insist on paying, and says 'Af-Al-Pi-Kein' the creditor is permitted to accept the money.

(d)Rabah even permits the creditor to take a debtor who wants to walk away without paying, and suspend him on a tree, until he says 'Af-Al-Pi-Kein'.

8)

(a)How do we reconcile Rabah with the Beraisa, which permits the debtor to return the debt only on condition that he uses a Lashon of Matanah, but not if he refers to it as the payment of a debt?

(b)What did Aba bar Marsa do when, upon returning money that he owed Rabah at the termination of the Shemitah, Rabah responded with 'Meshamet Ani'!

(c)What did Abaye, who found Rabah (who was a poor man - see Ya'avetz) despondent at Aba bar Marsa's omission, advise the latter to do? What was the latter's reaction?

(d)What did Rabah subsequently comment?

8)

(a)We reconcile Rabah with the Beraisa, which obligates the debtor to return the debt using a Lashon of Matanah, but not if he refers to it as the payment of a debt by establishing Rabah's Din too, when the suspended debtor finally offers to pay in the form of a gift.

(b)When Aba bar Marsa returned money that he owed Rabah at the termination of the Shemitah, and Rabah responded with 'Meshamet Ani' Aba Marsa walked away without saying 'Af-Al-Pi-Kein'.

(c)Abaye, who found Rabah (who was a poor man see Ya'avatz) despondent at Aba bar Marsa's omission advised the latter to pay it then (since he felt that Rabah would accept it), which he did.

(d)Rabah subsequently commented that Aba bar Marsa slipped up by not saying it the first time.

9)

(a)On what basis does Rav Yehudah Amar Rav Nachman (or just Rav Nachman) believe a creditor who says that he had a Pruzbul but lost it?

(b)What did Rav used to ask creditors who claimed their debts after the termination of Shemitah without producing a Pruzbul? What does this have to do with the Pasuk in Mishlei "P'sach Picha l'Ilem"?

(c)What does the Mishnah in Kesuvos say about a creditor who claims his debt after the Shemitah without a Pruzbul?

(d)How do Rav Nachman and Rav reconcile their opinion with the Mishnah in Kesuvos?

9)

(a)Rav Yehudah Amar Rav Nachman (or just Rav Nachman) believes a creditor who says that he had a Peruzbul but lost it based on the logic that a person will not do b'Isur what he can do b'Heter (at no extra cost).

(b)Rav used to ask creditors who claimed their debts after the termination of Shemitah without producing a Peruzbul whether they had not had a Shtar and lost it (because in such obvious cases, we adopt the policy "P'sach Picha l'Ilem", to help the claimant to stake his claim effectively).

(c)The Mishnah in Kesuvos rules that a creditor who claims his debt after the Shemitah without a Peruzbul loses his claim.

(d)Rav Nachman and Rav reconcile their opinion with the Mishnah in Kesuvos by citing a Beraisa which presents this as a Machlokes Tana'im (and in fact, their opinion conforms with that of the Chachamim).

10)

(a)What does the Tana Kama of our Mishnah say about someone who redeems a captured slave ...

1. ... as a slave?

2. ... as a free man?

(b)What problem do we have with this, assuming that the owner had ...

1. ... been Meya'esh (despaired of receiving his slave back)?

2. ... not been Meya'esh?

(c)Abaye establishes the Mishnah when the owner had not been Meya'esh. Why then, if he redeemed him ...

1. ... as a slave, does the slave not become the slave of the man who redeemed him?

2. ... as a free man, does he not belong to the man who redeemed him?

3. ... as a free man, does he not return to his master?

(d)What is then the reason of Raban Shimon ben Gamliel, who says that, either way, the slave returns to his master?

10)

(a)The Tana Kama of our Mishnah rules that if someone redeems a captured slave ...

1. ... as a slave the latter remains a slave.

2. ... as a free man he goes free.

(b)The problem with this, assuming that the owner had ...

1. ... been Meya'esh (despaired of receiving him back) is why he continues to serve as a slave in the Reisha?

2. ... not been Meya'esh is why he goes free in the Seifa?

(c)Abaye establishes the Mishnah when the owner had not been Meya'esh. Nevertheless, if he redeemed him ...

1. ... as a slave, he does not become the slave of the man who redeemed him because, before Yi'ush, that would constitute theft.

2. ... as a free man, he does not become the slave of the man who redeemed him because he redeemed him as a free man.

3. ... his master because we do not want to discourage people from redeeming captured slaves (from his Nochri captors).

(d)The reason of Raban Shimon ben Gamliel, who says that, either way, the slave returns to his master is because, in his opinion, it is a Mitzvah to redeem slaves like it is to redeem Jews who are free.

11)

(a)Rava establishes our Mishnah after Yi'ush. How does he then explain ...

1. ... 'Im l'Shum Eved, Yishta'bed'? Whose slave does he become?

2. ... 'le'Shum ben Chorin, Lo Yishta'bed'? Why does he work neither for the first master nor for the second?

(b)According to Rava, we establish Raban Shimon ben Gamliel ('Bein-Kach u'Vein-Kach Yishta'bed') like Chizkiyah. What did Chizkiyah say? Whose slave is he?

(c)If, as Rava explains, Raban Shimon ben Gamliel's reason is that of Chizkiyah, why did the Tana of the Beraisa give the reason that we cited earlier ('it is a Mitzvah to redeem slaves like it is to redeem Jews who are free')?

(d)According to Rava, in whose opinion the Tana is speaking after Yi'ush, and the slave works for the man who redeemed him, from whom did the latter acquire him?

11)

(a)Rava establishes our Mishnah after Yi'ush. He explains ...

1. ... 'Im l'Shum Eved, Yishta'bed' to mean that he works for the man who redeemed him.

2. ... 'le'Shum ben Chorin, Lo Yishta'bed' to mean that he does not work for his original master because he was Meya'esh; and not for the second one, because he redeemed him in order to set him free.

(b)And we establish Raban Shimon ben Gamliel ('Bein-Kach u'Vein-Kach Yishta'bed') like Chizkiyah who explains that he returns to his original master, in order to discourage errant slaves from thrusting themselves onto marauding bands (to free themselves from their masters).

(c)Despite the fact that, as Rava explains, Raban Shimon ben Gamliel's reason is that of Chizkiyah, the Tana of the Beraisa nevertheless gives the reason that we cited earlier ('it is a Mitzvah to redeem slaves like it is to redeem Jews who are free') because Raban Shimon ben Gamliel was uncertain of the Tana Kama's approach. Consequently, either way, he countered his statement: If he was speaking before Yi'ush, then 'It is a Mitzvah to redeem slaves ... ', whereas if he is speaking after Yi'ush, then the reason is like Chizkiyah explained.

(d)According to Rava, in whose opinion the Tana is speaking after Yi'ush, and the slave works for the man who redeemed him, the latter acquire him from his captors, as we shall now see.

12)

(a)How does a Nochri captor acquire a slave from a Jew?

(b)In what respect does a Nochri captor acquire a slave from a Jew?

(c)What if the slave was circumcised and Toveled by his Jewish master?

(d)How does the Nochri acquire the slave completely?

12)

(a)A Nochri captor acquires a slave from a Jew with Yi'ush.

(b)A Nochri captor acquires a slave from a Jew with regard to the work of his hands.

(c)This applies even assuming that the slave was circumcised and Toveled by his Jewish master.

(d)The Nochri acquires the slave completely by Toveling him.