חולין 94:1 — Soncino English Talmud

then one should be allowed to send it even though it was cut up, for no [Jew] would buy it from him. And if we are speaking of a place where they do proclaim it, then one should not be allowed to send even an entire thigh, for he [the gentile] will cut it up and sell it! — If you wish I can say that it is a place where they do proclaim it, and if you wish I can say that it is a place where they do not proclaim it. If you wish, I can say that it is a place where they do proclaim it , [and yet there is nothing to fear] because the cutting up [of the thigh] by a gentile is recognizable. ‘And if you wish, I can say that it is a place where they do not proclaim it’, [and yet it is forbidden to send a portion] lest he should give it to the gentile in the presence of another Israelite. Alternatively, I can say, [it is forbidden] because he thereby deceives him, and Samuel holds that it is forbidden to deceive people even gentiles. This view of Samuel was not expressly stated but was inferred from the following incident. Samuel was once crossing on a ferryboat and he said to his attendant, ‘Reward the ferryman’. He rewarded him, but [Samuel] became angry. Why was he angry? — Abaye said: Because he [the attendant] had a trefah hen and he gave it to the ferryman representing it as one that was ritually slaughtered. Raba said: Because he [Samuel] told him to give him [the gentile] anpaka to drink, and he gave him mixed wine to drink. And what if it was only inferred? — Because according to him who says that he gave him a trefah hen, it can be said [that Samuel was angry with his attendant] for keeping with him [a forbidden thing]. And according to him who says that he told him to give him anpaka, it can be said [that Samuel was angry] because anpaka really means unmixed wine. It was taught: R. Meir used to say: A man should not urge his friend to dine with him when he knows that his friend will not do so. And he should not offer him many gifts when he knows that his friend will not accept them. And he should not open [for a guest] casks of wine which are to be sold by the shopkeeper, unless he informs [the guest] of it. And he should not invite him to anoint himself with oil if the jar is empty. If, however, the purpose is to show the guest great respect, it is permitted. But surely this cannot be right. For Ulla once came to Rab Judah's house and the latter opened up for him casks that were later to be sold by the shopkeeper! — He must have informed him of this fact. Or if you wish, I can say that the case of Ulla is different, for he was so dear to Rab Judah that he would have opened for him even those that were not [to be sold by the shopkeeper]. Our Rabbis taught: A man should not go to the house of a mourner with a bottle in which the wine shakes about; neither should he fill it with water because he thereby deceives him. If, however, there is a large assembly present, it is permitted. Our Rabbis taught: A man should not sell to his neighbour shoes made of the hide of an animal which died, [representing them] as made of the hide of a living animal which was slaughtered, for two reasons: first, because he is deceiving him, and secondly, because of the danger. A man should not send to his neighbour a barrel of wine with oil floating at the mouth of it. It once happened that a man sent his friend a barrel of wine, and there was oil floating at the mouth of the barrel. He went and invited some guests to partake of it. When they came and he found that it was only wine he went and hanged himself. The guests may not give from what is set before them to the son or daughter of the host, unless they have the host's permission to, do so. It once happened that a man in a time of scarcity invited three guests to his house and he only had three eggs to set before them. When the child of the host entered, one of the guests took his portion and gave it to him, the second guest did likewise, and so did the third. When the father of the child came and saw him stuffing one [egg] in his mouth and holding two in his hands, he [in rage] knocked him to the ground so that he died. When the child's mother saw this she went up to the roof and threw herself down and died. He too went up to the roof and threw himself down and died. R. Eliezer b. Jacob said: Because of this three souls in Israel perished. What does he [R. Eliezer b. Jacob] tell us? — It means that the whole story was related by R. Eliezer b. Jacob. Our Rabbis taught: If a man sends to his friend a whole thigh he need not remove beforehand the sciatic nerve; if [he sends it] cut up he must remove beforehand the sciatic nerve. To a gentile, however, whether he sends it cut up or whole, he need not remove beforehand the sciatic nerve. And for two reasons they said, a man should not sell to a gentile animals that have become nebelah or trefah: first because he is deceiving him, and secondly because he in turn might sell it to another Israelite. A man should not say to a gentile. ‘Buy for me meat with this denar’, for two reasons:^ᵃ^ᵇ^ᶜ^ᵈ^ᵉ^ᶠ^ᵍ^ʰ^ⁱ^ʲ^ᵏ^ˡ^ᵐ^ⁿ^ᵒ^ᵖ^ᵠ^ʳ^ˢ^ᵗ^ᵘ

^ᵃnote:So that on any day when no proclamation about trefah has been made Jews may buy meat without hesitation from gentiles.
^ᵇnote:Unless the nerve had been removed beforehand, for the gentile might cut it up in portions and sell it to Jews, and when cut up it is no longer easy to ascertain whether the nerve has been removed or not.
^ᶜnote:A whole thigh, therefore, may be sent but not a portion of one.
^ᵈnote:Although in this place it is not the practice for Jews to buy meat from gentiles, in this particular case where the Jew sees the gentile receiving the meat, even if only a portion, from his fellow Jew, he might buy it and assume that the nerve had been removed.
^ᵉnote:Lit., ‘steals his mind’, i.e., creates a false impression upon him. The gentile would be delighted in the thought that his Jewish friend is sending him meat fit for his own table, and would be the more grateful to him, whereas in reality the meat sent was not fit for his own table as the nerve had not been removed therefrom, and so the gratitude of the gentile will have been falsely earned.
^ᶠnote:tepbt, a form of the word dcbt (v. Jast. s.v.), strictly, a small cup the capacity of one fourth of a log, cf. B.B. 58b. A popular term also for strong, unmixed wine.
^ᵍnote:And the gentile thought it was unmixed wine.
^ʰnote:And not because he deceived the gentile.
^ⁱnote:And by giving mixed wine he disregarded the orders of Samuel. Hence his anger.
^ʲnote:He is merely gaining the gratitude of his friend through something which he had no intention of doing. This is the reason in all the cases mentioned.
^ᵏnote:It was not unusual for a private person when about to open a barrel of wine for his table to make arrangements with a shopkeeper to dispose of that which is left after the meal; a necessary arrangement, for once the barrel has been opened the wine will in a very short time turn sour. To open up a barrel of wine for a guest without informing him of the arrangement with the shopkeeper is taking credit for something one has not merited.
^ˡnote:Knowing full well that his friend will not do so.
^ᵐnote:It was the custom to drink wine at the house of a mourner, and over each cup of wine certain Benedictions and appropriate words of consolation to the mourners were recited; v. Keth. 8b. The visitors would come bringing with them bottles of wine; and one must not deceive people by coming with a bottle filled with water or only half-filled with wine.
^ⁿnote:I.e., it contains only a little wine and therefore shakes about in the bottle.
^ᵒnote:rhg rcj Lit., ‘an assembly of the city’. If this man also wishes to show his respect to the mourners among the large gathering of people and he cannot afford to bring wine he may adopt this deception, for the motive justifies the means. [Aliter: a town scholar, vocalizing rcj; i.e., if there is a scholar among the visitors and the man wishes to show his respect to the scholar present, cf. Meg. (Sonc. ed.) p. 164, n. 1.]
^ᵖnote:As the animal may have died through the bit of a serpent and the hide of the animal may thereby have become contaminated.
^ᵠnote:Leading him to believe that the whole barrel contains oil.
^ʳnote:Because of shame, for he had nothing else prepared to set before his guests.
^ˢnote:So Bah. Cur. edd. as (the size of) three eggs.
^ᵗnote:Without informing him of this fact.
^ᵘnote:For a gentile when buying meat of a Jew believes that he is buying the meat of an animal that has been ritually slaughtered, and it is forbidden to take advantage of his ignorance and to pass on to him trefah meat.