## Ketubot Daf 53a

###### Ketubot 53a:1
[Ketubot 53a:1](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:1)

חַזְיֵיהּ דְּלָא הֲוָה נִיחָא לֵיהּ, אֲמַר לֵיהּ: מַאי דַּעְתָּיךְ — מִשּׁוּם דַּאֲמַר לֵיהּ שְׁמוּאֵל לְרַב יְהוּדָה: שִׁינָּנָא, לָא תִּיהְוֵי בְּעַבּוֹרֵי אַחְסָנְתָּא אֲפִילּוּ מִבְּרָא בִּישָׁא לִבְרָא טָבָא — דְּלָא יְדִיעָא מַאי זַרְעָא נָפֵיק מִינֵּיהּ, וְכׇל שֶׁכֵּן מִבְּרָא לִבְרַתָּא,

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
Rav Pappa **saw that** Yehuda bar Mareimar **was not amenable** to the idea of entering the house. **He said to him: What is** on **your mind?** Do you not wish to enter **due to that** which **Shmuel said to Rav Yehuda: *Shinnana*, do not be** a partner **in the transfer of an inheritance even from a bad son to a good son, as it is not known what seed will come from him?** Perhaps the bad son will father worthy children. **And all the more so,** one should not be a partner in the transfer of an inheritance **from a son to a daughter.**


###### Ketubot 53a:2
[Ketubot 53a:2](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:2)

הַאי נָמֵי תַּקַּנְתָּא דְרַבָּנַן הִיא, דְּאָמַר רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן מִשּׁוּם רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן יוֹחַי: אֲמַר לֵיהּ: הָנֵי מִילֵּי מִדַּעְתֵּיהּ. לְעַשּׂוֹיֵיהּ נָמֵי? אֲמַר לֵיהּ: אַטּוּ מִי קָאָמֵינָא לָךְ דְּעוּל וְעַשְּׂיֵיהּ? עוּל וְלָא תְּעַשְּׂיֵיהּ קָאָמֵינָא. אֲמַר לֵיהּ: מַעֲלַאי דִּידִי הַיְינוּ עִשֻּׂיֵיהּ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
Rav Pappa continued: Are you worried that your arrival will pressure Abba of Sura to give his daughter a more substantial dowry? But **this too is an ordinance of the Sages,** that a father must provide a dowry for his daughter. This is **as Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai,** as quoted above, that the Sages enacted this matter so that a man should take the initiative and write an agreement to give his daughter a dowry as large as the portion of his possessions that his son will receive as an inheritance. Yehuda bar Mareimar **said to him: This applies only** if the man gives **of his own** free **will,** but should one **force him as well?** Rav Pappa **said to him: Did I say to you that you should enter and force him? I** merely **said** that you should **enter, but do not force him. He said to him: My** very **entrance is** an act that will effectively **force him,** as he will increase her dowry in my honor.


###### Ketubot 53a:3
[Ketubot 53a:3](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:3)

אַכְפְּיֵיהּ וְעוֹל. אִישְׁתִּיק וִיתֵיב. סְבַר הָהוּא מִירְתָּח רָתַח. כַּתְבֵיהּ לְכֹל מַאי דַּהֲוָה לֵיהּ. לְסוֹף אֲמַר לֵיהּ: הַשְׁתָּא נָמֵי לָא מִישְׁתַּעֵי מָר? חַיֵּי דְּמָר, לָא שְׁבַיקִי מִידֵּי לְנַפְשַׁאי.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
Eventually, Rav Pappa **forced** Yehuda bar Mareimar **and he entered. He was silent, and sat** without uttering a word. Abba of Sura **thought** that Yehuda bar Mareimar **was angry** with him for his failure to grant his daughter a suitable dowry. **He** therefore **wrote** down in the marriage contract **all that he had** as her dowry, to appease him. **Ultimately,** when he observed that Yehuda was still silent, Abba of Sura **said to him: Even now the Master will not talk? By the Master’s life, I have left nothing for myself.**


###### Ketubot 53a:4
[Ketubot 53a:4](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:4)

אֲמַר לֵיהּ: אִי מִינַּאי דִּידִי — אֲפִילּוּ הַאי נָמֵי דִּכְתַבְתְּ לָא נִיחָא לִי. אֲמַר לֵיהּ: הַשְׁתָּא נָמֵי אֶהְדַּר בִּי. אֲמַר לֵיהּ: שַׁוּוֹיֵי נַפְשָׁךְ הַדְרָנָא — לָא קָאָמֵינָא.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
Yehuda bar Mareimar **said to him: If** you are acting **for my** sake, **that which you wrote is also not amenable to me.** Finally understanding his wishes, Abba of Sura **said to** Yehuda bar Mareimar: **Now too, I will retract,** as I acted in error. Yehuda bar Mareimar **said to him: I did not speak** so that you **should turn yourself into** the kind of person **who retracts** once he gives his word. You should uphold your agreement, but the agreement was not to my liking.


###### Ketubot 53a:5
[Ketubot 53a:5](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:5)

בְּעָא מִינֵּיהּ רַב יֵימַר סָבָא מֵרַב נַחְמָן: מָכְרָה כְּתוּבָּתָהּ לְבַעְלָהּ, יֵשׁ לָהּ כְּתוּבַּת בְּנִין דִּכְרִין אוֹ אֵין לָהּ כְּתוּבַּת בְּנִין דִּכְרִין? אֲמַר לֵיהּ רָבָא: וְתִבְּעֵי לָךְ מוֹחֶלֶת.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
§ **Rav Yeimar the Elder raised a dilemma before Rav Naḥman:** If a wife **sold her marriage contract to her husband,** i.e., she sold him the right not to have to pay her the marriage contract if they divorce or if she is widowed, does **she have the marriage document concerning male children, or** does **she not have the marriage document concerning male children? Rava said to him: And you can raise** the same **dilemma** with regard to a wife **who forgoes** her right to her marriage contract. Does she retain the marriage document concerning male children in this case?


###### Ketubot 53a:6
[Ketubot 53a:6](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:6)

אֲמַר לֵיהּ: הַשְׁתָּא, מוֹכֶרֶת קָמִיבַּעְיָא לִי, דְּאַף עַל גַּב דְּאִיכָּא לְמֵימַר זוּזֵי אַנְסוּהָ, דְּאָמֵינָא כְּמַאן דְּקָא מָחוּ לַהּ מְאָה עוּכְלֵי בְּעוּכְלָא, מוֹחֶלֶת מִיבַּעְיָא?!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
Rav Yeimar **said to him: Now,** the *halakha* of **one who sells** her marriage contract **is a dilemma for me. As, although there is** room **to say** that **the money forced her,** and **that I say** that she **is like one who is struck** with **a hundred strikes [*ukelei*] of a hammer [*ukela*],** i.e., she needed liquid assets at the time and therefore she sold her marriage contract unwillingly, even so, I am still willing to entertain the possibility that she has sold the marriage document concerning male children. Then, with regard to **one who forgoes** her marriage contract, **is** it **necessary** to raise the dilemma?


###### Ketubot 53a:7
[Ketubot 53a:7](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:7)

אָמַר רָבָא, פְּשִׁיטָא לִי: מוֹכֶרֶת כְּתוּבָּתָהּ לַאֲחֵרִים — יֵשׁ לָהּ כְּתוּבַּת בְּנִין דִּכְרִין. מַאי טַעְמָא — זוּזֵי אַנְסוּהָ. מוֹחֶלֶת כְּתוּבָּתָהּ לְבַעְלָהּ — אֵין לָהּ כְּתוּבַּת בְּנִין דִּכְרִין, מַאי טַעְמָא — אַחוֹלֵי אַחֵילְתַּהּ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rava said:** It **is obvious to me** that if a wife **sells her marriage contract to others,** not to her husband but to someone else who is willing to pay at the present time for the chance to collect the money stated in her marriage contract if she is later divorced or widowed, **she** still **has the marriage document concerning male children. What is the reason? The money forced her** to sell, and she did not mean to renounce all her rights. It is likewise clear to me that **one who forgoes** the right to collect **her marriage contract** from **her husband does not have the marriage document concerning male children. What is the reason? She has forgiven it** all and has no intention of claiming anything from her husband.


###### Ketubot 53a:8
[Ketubot 53a:8](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:8)

בָּעֵי רָבָא: מוֹכֶרֶת כְּתוּבָּתָהּ לְבַעְלָהּ, כְּמוֹכֶרֶת לַאֲחֵרִים דָּמֵי, אוֹ כְּמוֹחֶלֶת לְבַעְלָהּ דָּמֵי? בָּתַר דְּבַעְיַאּ הֲדַר פַּשְׁטַהּ: מוֹכֶרֶת כְּתוּבָּה לְבַעְלָהּ, כְּמוֹכֶרֶת לַאֲחֵרִים דָּמֵי.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
However, **Rava raised a dilemma** about the following case: With regard to **one who sells her marriage contract to her husband,** is she **considered like one who sells to others,** i.e., she has not relinquished the marriage document concerning male children, **or is she considered like one who forgoes** her right to collect her marriage contract from **her husband,** i.e., she has forfeited everything? **After he raised the dilemma he subsequently resolved it: One who sells her marriage contract to her husband is considered like one who sells to others,** as she is assumed to have done so due to financial constraints.


###### Ketubot 53a:9
[Ketubot 53a:9](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:9)

מֵתִיב רַב אִידִי בַּר אָבִין: מֵתָה — אֵין יוֹרְשִׁין שֶׁל זֶה וְאֵין יוֹרְשִׁין שֶׁל זֶה יוֹרְשִׁין כְּתוּבָּתָהּ. וְהָוֵינַן בַּהּ: כְּתוּבָּתָהּ מַאי עֲבִידְתַּהּ?!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rav Idi bar Avin raised an objection:** We learned in a mishna (*Yevamot* 87b) that if a woman’s husband went overseas, and after hearing the testimony of one witness that he was dead the woman married again, and then her first husband returned, both husbands must divorce her, and she does not receive payment of her marriage contract from either man. That mishna proceeds to state that if **she died, neither** the **heirs of this** one, the first husband, **nor** the **heirs of that** one, the second husband, **inherit** the sum stipulated in **her marriage contract. And we discussed** the following question: With regard to **a marriage contract, what is its purpose?** In other words, the mishna just said that she is not entitled to a marriage contract, so how can it even be suggested that the heirs might inherit it?


###### Ketubot 53a:10
[Ketubot 53a:10](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:10)

וְאָמַר רַב פָּפָּא: כְּתוּבַּת בְּנִין דִּכְרִין. וְאַמַּאי? הָכָא נָמֵי לֵימָא יֵצֶר אַנְסַהּ!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**And Rav Pappa said:** This is referring to **the marriage document concerning male children.** Not only does she forfeit her marriage contract, but she also loses the right to the marriage document concerning male children, as her sons do not inherit from her at all. Rav Idi bar Avin explains his objection. **But** if, according to the above statement, a wife who sells her marriage contract has not relinquished the marriage document concerning male children, **why** does the mishna in *Yevamot* state that none of the woman’s heirs inherit the proceeds of her marriage contract? **Here too,** in that mishna, **let us say** that her **desire** to marry another man **forced her** to marry her second husband. Why should she forfeit the marriage document concerning male children?


###### Ketubot 53a:11
[Ketubot 53a:11](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:11)

הָתָם, קְנָסָא הוּא דְּקַנְסוּהָ רַבָּנַן.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara answers: **There it is a penalty** with **which the Sages penalized her.** In other words, the reason is not that she automatically forfeits the marriage document concerning male children, along with the marriage contract itself. Rather, her loss of the marriage document concerning male children is one of several penalties the Sages imposed upon her for remarrying on the basis of the testimony of a single witness without conducting her own thorough investigation into her husband’s fate. Therefore, one cannot learn from that *halakha* with regard to the issue at hand.


###### Ketubot 53a:12
[Ketubot 53a:12](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:12)

יָתֵיב רָבִין בַּר חֲנִינָא קַמֵּיהּ דְּרַב חִסְדָּא, וְיָתֵיב וְקָאָמַר מִשְּׁמֵיהּ דְּרַבִּי אֶלְעָזָר: מוֹחֶלֶת כְּתוּבָּתָהּ לְבַעְלָהּ — אֵין לָהּ מְזוֹנוֹת. אֲמַר לֵיהּ: אִי לָאו דְּקָאָמְרַתְּ לִי מִשְּׁמֵיהּ דְּגַבְרָא רַבָּא, הֲוָה אָמֵינָא לָךְ: ״מֵשִׁיב רָעָה תַּחַת טוֹבָה לֹא תָמוּשׁ רָעָה מִבֵּיתוֹ״?!

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Ravin bar Ḥanina sat before Rav Ḥisda, and he sat and said** the following *halakha* **in the name of Rabbi Elazar: One who forgoes her** right to collect her **marriage contract** from **her husband does not** receive her **sustenance** from him. Rav Ḥisda **said to him: Had you not said** this *halakha* **to me in the name of a great man, I would have said to you** that this is an injustice, in accordance with the verse **“who rewards evil for good, evil shall not depart from his house”** (Proverbs 17:13). After she relinquishes to her husband her right to her marriage contract, which was a favor to her husband, she loses her sustenance as well.


###### Ketubot 53a:13
[Ketubot 53a:13](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:13)

יָתֵיב רַב נַחְמָן וְעוּלָּא וַאֲבִימִי בַּר רַב פַּפֵּי, וְיָתֵיב רַב חִיָּיא בַּר אַמֵּי גַּבַּיְיהוּ. אֲתָא הָהוּא גַּבְרָא דִּשְׁכִיבָא אֲרוּסָתוֹ, אָמְרִי לֵיהּ: זִיל קְבַר, אוֹ הַב לָהּ כְּתוּבְּתַהּ. אֲמַר לְהוּ רַב חִיָּיא, תְּנֵינָא: אִשְׁתּוֹ אֲרוּסָה — לֹא אוֹנֵן וְלֹא מִיטַּמֵּא לַהּ, וְכֵן הִיא — לֹא אוֹנֶנֶת וְלֹא מִיטַּמְּאָה לוֹ. מֵתָה — אֵינוֹ יוֹרְשָׁהּ, מֵת הוּא — גּוֹבָה כְּתוּבָּתָהּ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara relates: **Rav Naḥman was sitting, and Ulla and Avimei bar Rav Pappi** were sitting as well, **and Rav Ḥiyya bar Ami was sitting with them,** when **a certain man came** before them **whose betrothed** wife **had died. They said to him: Go** and **bury** her, **or give her** heirs the sum stipulated in **her marriage contract. Rav Ḥiyya said to them,** in surprise at their response: But **we learned** that with regard to **one’s betrothed wife** he **neither** assumes the status of **an acute mourner nor becomes ritually impure for her** if he is a priest, **and similarly, she neither** assumes the status of **an acute mourner nor becomes ritually impure for him.** If **she died he does not inherit** from **her,** and if **he died she collects** payment of **her marriage contract.**


###### Ketubot 53a:14
[Ketubot 53a:14](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:14)

טַעְמָא דְּמֵת הוּא, הָא מֵתָה הִיא — אֵין לָהּ כְּתוּבָּה. מַאי טַעְמָא? אָמַר רַב הוֹשַׁעְיָא: שֶׁאֵין אֲנִי קוֹרֵא בָּהּ ״לִכְשֶׁתִּנָּשְׂאִי לְאַחֵר תִּטְּלִי מַה שֶּׁכָּתוּב לִיכִי״.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
Rav Ḥiyya infers the following from this statement: The **reason** for this *halakha* is that **he died,** from which it may be inferred that if **she died she does not have a marriage contract,** nor any of the stipulations of a marriage contract. The Gemara asks: **What is the reason** that her marriage contract is canceled upon her death? **Rav Hoshaya said:** The reason is **that I do not read with regard to her** the condition stated in the marriage contract: **When you marry another he may take what is written for you,** as she cannot marry another.


###### Ketubot 53a:15
[Ketubot 53a:15](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Ketubot/r/53a:15)

כִּי אֲתָא רָבִין, אָמַר רֵישׁ לָקִישׁ: אֲרוּסָה שֶׁמֵּתָה — אֵין לָהּ כְּתוּבָּה. אֲמַר לְהוּ אַבָּיֵי, זִילוּ אִמְרוּ לֵיהּ:

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara relates another incident: **When Ravin came** from Eretz Yisrael to Babylonia he said that **Reish Lakish said: A betrothed woman who died does not have a marriage contract. Abaye said to** the scholars who recited this *halakha* in Ravin’s name: **Go,** and **say to** Ravin: