## Sanhedrin Daf 78a

###### Sanhedrin 78a:1
[Sanhedrin 78a:1](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:1)

וְאִי לָאו כֹּחוֹ הוּא – תֵּיזִיל לְתַחַת. אֶלָּא, כֹּחַ כָּחוּשׁ הוּא.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
Rav Pappa answered: **And were it not** for **the force of his** action, the stone **would go down** and not to the side. **Rather,** although **it is a weak force,** the force of his action is a partial cause of the damage caused by the stone going to the side; therefore, he is liable.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:2
[Sanhedrin 78a:2](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:2)

תָּנוּ רַבָּנַן: הִכּוּהוּ עֲשָׂרָה בְּנֵי אָדָם בַּעֲשָׂרָה מַקְלוֹת וָמֵת, בֵּין בְּבַת אַחַת, בֵּין בְּזֶה אַחַר זֶה – פְּטוּרִין. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה בֶּן בְּתִירָא אוֹמֵר: בְּזֶה אַחַר זֶה, הָאַחֲרוֹן חַיָּיב, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁקֵּירַב אֶת מִיתָתוֹ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**The Sages taught:** If **ten people struck** an individual **with ten sticks and** as a result of the beating **he died, whether** they beat him **simultaneously,** or **whether** they beat him **one after the other, they are exempt** from liability for killing him, as two people are not liable for an action that they performed together. **Rabbi Yehuda ben Beteira says:** If they struck him **one after the other, the** one who struck him **last** is **liable, because he hastened his death.**


###### Sanhedrin 78a:3
[Sanhedrin 78a:3](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:3)

אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן: וּשְׁנֵיהֶם מִקְרָא אֶחָד דָּרְשׁוּ, ״וְאִישׁ כִּי יַכֶּה כׇּל נֶפֶשׁ אָדָם״. רַבָּנַן סָבְרִי: ״כָּל נֶפֶשׁ״ – עַד דְּאִיכָּא כׇּל נֶפֶשׁ, וְרַבִּי יְהוּדָה בֶּן בְּתִירָא סָבַר: ״כׇּל נֶפֶשׁ״ – כׇּל דְּהוּא נֶפֶשׁ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rabbi Yoḥanan says: And both** Rabbis, i.e., the first *tanna* and Rabbi Yehuda ben Beteira, **interpreted the same verse** in drawing their halakhic conclusion. The verse states: **“And a man who strikes any soul mortally,** he shall be put to death” (Leviticus 24:17). **The Rabbis hold** that **“any soul”** means that one is liable for murder **only when there is an entire soul,** i.e., when the murderer alone is responsible for taking the entire life of the victim. **And Rabbi Yehuda ben Beteira holds** that **“any soul”** means that one is liable for murder for taking **any soul,** even if the victim had already been beaten and was close to death.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:4
[Sanhedrin 78a:4](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:4)

אָמַר רָבָא: הַכֹּל מוֹדִים בְּהוֹרֵג אֶת הַטְּרֵיפָה שֶׁהוּא פָּטוּר, בְּגוֹסֵס בִּידֵי שָׁמַיִם שֶׁהוּא חַיָּיב. לֹא נֶחְלְקוּ אֶלָּא בְּגוֹסֵס בִּידֵי אָדָם. מָר מְדַמֵּי לֵיהּ לִטְרֵיפָה, וּמָר מְדַמֵּי לֵיהּ לְגוֹסֵס בִּידֵי שָׁמַיִם.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
§ **Rava says: All concede** that **in** the case of one who **kills one who has a wound that will cause him to die within twelve months [*tereifa*]** he is **exempt** from liability, as in a certain sense the legal status of the victim is that of a dead person. All concede **in** a case where one kills an individual **dying** from an illness caused **at the hand of Heaven that he is liable,** as no other individual took action contributing to his death, and the murderer alone took his remaining soul. **They disagree only in** a case where one kills an individual **dying** from injury caused **at the hand of a person.** One **Sage,** the Rabbis, **likens** this case **to** the case of **a *tereifa*,** and therefore rules that the one who kills him is exempt. **And** one **Sage,** Rabbi Yehuda, **likens** this case **to** the case of an individual **dying** from an illness caused **at the hand of Heaven,** and therefore rules that the one who kills him is liable.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:5
[Sanhedrin 78a:5](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:5)

מַאן דִּמְדַמֵּי לֵיהּ לִטְרֵיפָה, מַאי טַעְמָא לָא מְדַמֵּי לֵיהּ לְגוֹסֵס בִּידֵי שָׁמַיִם? גּוֹסֵס בִּידֵי שָׁמַיִם לָא אִיתְעֲבִיד בֵּיהּ מַעֲשֶׂה, הַאי אִיתְעֲבִיד בֵּיהּ מַעֲשֶׂה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara asks: As for **the one who likens** this case **to** the case of **a *tereifa*, what is the reason** that **he does not liken it to** the case of an individual **dying** from an illness caused **at the hand of Heaven?** The Gemara answers: In the case of an individual **dying** from an illness caused **at the hand of Heaven, no action was performed** by a person **to** kill **him,** whereas in **this** case of an individual dying from injury caused at the hand of a person, **an action was performed** by an individual **to** kill **him.** Therefore, it is a case of two people who performed an action together, and they are not liable.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:6
[Sanhedrin 78a:6](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:6)

וּמַאן דִּמְדַמֵּי לֵיהּ לְגוֹסֵס בִּידֵי שָׁמַיִם, מַאי טַעְמָא לָא מְדַמֵּי לֵיהּ לִטְרֵיפָה? טְרֵיפָה – מְחַתְּכִי סִימָנִים, הָא לָא מְחַתְּכִי סִימָנִים.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara asks: **And** as for **the one who likens** this case **to** the case of an individual **dying** from an illness caused **at the hand of Heaven, what is the reason** that **he does not liken it to a *tereifa*?** The Gemara answers: In the case of **a *tereifa*,** his status is like that of one whose **organs,** the trachea and the esophagus, **are cut,** who is considered to be slaughtered. The status of **this** individual dying from injury caused at the hand of a person is **not** like that of one whose **organs,** the trachea and the esophagus, **are cut,** as there is no particular defect; rather, he is like one suffering from general frailty, like any frail or elderly individual.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:7
[Sanhedrin 78a:7](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:7)

תָּנֵי תַּנָּא קַמֵּיהּ דְּרַב שֵׁשֶׁת: ״וְאִישׁ כִּי יַכֶּה כׇּל נֶפֶשׁ אָדָם״ – לְהָבִיא הַמַּכֶּה אֶת חֲבֵירוֹ וְאֵין בּוֹ כְּדֵי לְהָמִית, וּבָא אַחֵר וֶהֱמִיתוֹ, שֶׁהוּא חַיָּיב.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**A *tanna* taught** a *baraita* **before Rav Sheshet:** The verse that states: **“And a man who strikes any soul mortally,** he shall be put to death” (Leviticus 24:17), serves **to include** the case of **one who strikes another and** it is a blow **in which there is not sufficient** force **to kill, and** then **another** individual **comes and kills him;** the verse teaches **that** the second individual **is liable.**


###### Sanhedrin 78a:8
[Sanhedrin 78a:8](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:8)

אֵין בּוֹ כְּדֵי לְהָמִית? פְּשִׁיטָא! אֶלָּא, יֵשׁ בּוֹ כְּדֵי לְהָמִית וּבָא אַחֵר וֶהֱמִיתוֹ, שֶׁהוּא חַיָּיב. וּסְתָמָא כְּרַבִּי יְהוּדָה בֶּן בְּתִירָא.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara challenges: If the first individual struck him with a blow in which **there is not sufficient** force **to kill,** this *halakha* is **obvious,** as the first did not perform an act of killing at all, and it is only the second who killed him. **Rather,** emend the *baraita* to teach: The verse serves to include the case of one who strikes another and it is a blow **in** which **there is sufficient** force **to kill, and** then **another** individual **comes and kills him;** the verse teaches **that** the second individual **is liable. And** this **unattributed** *baraita* is **in accordance with** the opinion of **Rabbi Yehuda ben Beteira,** who holds that one who completes the killing of an individual is liable to be executed as a murderer.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:9
[Sanhedrin 78a:9](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:9)

אָמַר רָבָא: הַהוֹרֵג אֶת הַטְּרֵיפָה – פָּטוּר. וּטְרֵיפָה שֶׁהָרַג בִּפְנֵי בֵּית דִּין – חַיָּיב, שֶׁלֹּא בִּפְנֵי בֵּית דִּין – פָּטוּר.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rava says: One who kills a *tereifa* is exempt** as it is as though he killed a dead person. **And** as for **a *tereifa* who kills** another individual, if he killed him **before** the judges in **court,** he is **liable** to be executed. If the killing was **not before** the judges in **court,** he is **exempt.**


###### Sanhedrin 78a:10
[Sanhedrin 78a:10](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:10)

בִּפְנֵי בֵּית דִּין, מַאי טַעְמָא חַיָּיב? דִּכְתִיב: ״וּבִעַרְתָּ הָרָע מִקִּרְבֶּךָ״. שֶׁלֹּא בִּפְנֵי בֵּית דִּין – פָּטוּר, דְּהָוְיָא לַהּ עֵדוּת שֶׁאִי אַתָּה יָכוֹל לַהֲזִימָּהּ, וְכׇל עֵדוּת שֶׁאִי אַתָּה יָכוֹל לַהֲזִימָּהּ – לֹא שְׁמָהּ עֵדוּת.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara explains: In the case of a *tereifa* who killed **before** the **court, what is the reason** that he is **liable?** He is liable, **as it is written: “And you shall eradicate the evil from your midst”** (Deuteronomy 13:6), from which it is derived that there is a mitzva for the court to eradicate evil that it witnesses firsthand. In the case where the killing was **not before** the judges in **court,** he is **exempt, as** any testimony against the *tereifa* **is testimony that you cannot render conspiratory** testimony. Even if the witnesses testifying that the *tereifa* committed murder are found to be conspiring witnesses, they cannot be executed, as they conspired to kill a *tereifa*. **And any testimony that you cannot render conspiratory** testimony **is not characterized as testimony,** and is not accepted in court.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:11
[Sanhedrin 78a:11](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:11)

וְאָמַר רָבָא: הָרוֹבֵעַ אֶת הַטְּרֵיפָה – חַיָּיב. טְרֵיפָה שֶׁרָבַע, בִּפְנֵי בֵּית דִּין – חַיָּיב, שֶׁלֹּא בִּפְנֵי בֵּית דִּין – פָּטוּר. בִּפְנֵי בֵּית דִּין חַיָּיב, דִּכְתִיב: ״וּבִעַרְתָּ הָרַע מִקִּרְבֶּךָ״. שֶׁלֹּא בִּפְנֵי בֵּית דִּין פָּטוּר, דְּהָוְיָא לַהּ עֵדוּת שֶׁאִי אַתָּה יָכוֹל לַהֲזִימָּהּ.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**And Rava says: One who sodomizes** a male who is **a *tereifa*** is **liable** to be executed for committing an act of sodomy. **And** as for **a *tereifa* who sodomizes** a male, if he does so **before** the judges in **court,** he is **liable** to be executed. If the act of sodomy was **not before a court,** he is **exempt.** The Gemara explains: If he committed an act of sodomy **before** the **court,** he is **liable, as it is written: “And you shall eradicate the evil from your midst.”** If the act of sodomy was **not before a court,** he is **exempt, as** any testimony against a *tereifa* **is testimony that you cannot render conspiratory** testimony.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:12
[Sanhedrin 78a:12](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:12)

הָא תּוּ לְמָה לִי? הַיְינוּ הָךְ! הָרוֹבֵעַ אֶת הַטְּרֵיפָה אִיצְטְרִיכָא לֵיהּ. מַהוּ דְּתֵימָא: לֶיהֱוֵי כְּמַאן דִּמְשַׁמֵּשׁ מֵת, וְלִיפְּטַר? קָא מַשְׁמַע לַן, דְּמִשּׁוּם הֲנָאָה הוּא, וְהָא אִית לֵיהּ הֲנָאָה.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
The Gemara asks: **Why do I also** need **this** ruling? **This** case of sodomy is identical to **that** case of murder; why then does Rava cite two cases with regard to capital transgressions involving a *tereifa*? The Gemara answers: **It was necessary for him** to mention the case of **one who sodomizes a *tereifa*,** as there is a novel element introduced in that *halakha*. **Lest you say: Let** the status of one who sodomizes a male who is a *tereifa* **be like one who engages in necrophilia, and let him be exempt** from execution. To counter this, Rava **teaches us that** his liability **is due to the pleasure** that he experiences, **and this** man who sodomizes a *tereifa* **has pleasure,** as, although the legal status of a *tereifa* is that of a dead person in certain senses, he is, in fact, alive.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:13
[Sanhedrin 78a:13](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:13)

וְאָמַר רָבָא: עֵדִים שֶׁהֵעִידוּ בִּטְרֵיפָה וְהוּזַּמּוּ, אֵין נֶהֱרָגִין. עֵדֵי טְרֵיפָה שֶׁהוּזַּמּוּ, נֶהֱרָגִין. רַב אָשֵׁי אָמַר: אֲפִילּוּ עֵדֵי טְרֵיפָה שֶׁהוּזַּמּוּ אֵין נֶהֱרָגִין, לְפִי שֶׁאֵינָן בְּזוֹמְמֵי זוֹמְמִין.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**And Rava says: Witnesses who testified with regard to a *tereifa*** that he committed a capital transgression, **and** then **they were rendered conspiring witnesses are not executed,** as they conspired to kill one whose status is that of a dead person. **Witnesses** who are themselves ***tereifa* who were rendered conspiring witnesses are executed. Rav Ashi says: Even witnesses** who are themselves ***tereifa* who were rendered conspiring witnesses are not executed, due to** the fact **that they are not** susceptible to a situation **where witnesses who rendered them conspiring witnesses** can themselves be **rendered conspiring witnesses.** Witnesses who render the witnesses who are themselves *tereifa* conspiring witnesses who then are rendered conspiring witnesses are not executed, because they sought to kill a *tereifa*, whose status is that of a dead person. Therefore, their testimony is testimony that you cannot render conspiratory testimony and is disregarded.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:14
[Sanhedrin 78a:14](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:14)

וְאָמַר רָבָא: שׁוֹר טְרֵיפָה שֶׁהָרַג – חַיָּיב, וְשׁוֹר שֶׁל אָדָם טְרֵיפָה שֶׁהָרַג – פָּטוּר. מַאי טַעְמָא? אָמַר קְרָא: ״הַשּׁוֹר יִסָּקֵל וְגַם בְּעָלָיו יוּמָת״. כֹּל הֵיכָא דְּקָרֵינָא בֵּיהּ ״וְגַם בְּעָלָיו יוּמָת״, קָרֵינַן בֵּיהּ ״הַשּׁוֹר יִסָּקֵל״, וְכֹל הֵיכָא דְּלָא קָרֵינַן בֵּיהּ ״וְגַם בְּעָלָיו יוּמָת״, לָא קָרֵינַן בֵּיהּ ״הַשּׁוֹר יִסָּקֵל״.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**And Rava says: An ox** that is **a *tereifa* that killed** an individual is **liable** to be executed, like any animal that kills a person. **And an ox** belonging to **a person** who is **a *tereifa* that killed** an individual is **exempt. What is the reason** for this *halakha*? It is as **the verse states: “The ox shall be stoned and its owner shall also be put to death”** (Exodus 21:29). Based on the juxtaposition between the owner and his ox it is derived: **Anywhere that we** can **read concerning** the situation: **“And its owner shall also be put to death,” we read,** i.e., apply, **concerning it: “The ox shall be stoned.” And anywhere that we cannot read concerning it: “And its owner shall also be put to death,” we do not read concerning it: “The ox shall be stoned.”** Since the owner of the ox cannot be executed, as he is a *tereifa*, his ox is also not liable to be stoned.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:15
[Sanhedrin 78a:15](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:15)

רַב אָשֵׁי אָמַר: אֲפִילּוּ שׁוֹר טְרֵיפָה נָמֵי שֶׁהָרַג – פָּטוּר. מַאי טַעְמָא? כֵּיוָן דְּאִילּוּ בְּעָלִים הֲווֹ פְּטִירִי, שׁוֹר נָמֵי פָּטוּר.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**Rav Ashi says: Even an ox** that is **a *tereifa* that killed** an individual is **exempt. What is the reason** for this *halakha*? Based on the juxtaposition between the ox and the owner, **since if the owner** were a *tereifa* **he would be exempt, an ox** that is a *tereifa* that killed an individual **is also exempt.**


###### Sanhedrin 78a:16
[Sanhedrin 78a:16](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:16)

שִׁיסָּה בּוֹ אֶת הַכֶּלֶב וְכוּ׳. אָמַר רַב אַחָא בַּר יַעֲקֹב: כְּשֶׁתִּמְצָא לוֹמַר, לְדִבְרֵי רַבִּי יְהוּדָה – אֶרֶס נָחָשׁ בֵּין שִׁינָּיו הוּא עוֹמֵד. לְפִיכָךְ: מַכִּישׁ בְּסַיִיף, וְנָחָשׁ פָּטוּר.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
§ The mishna teaches: If **one set a dog against** an individual and the dog killed him, or if one set a snake against an individual and the snake killed him, the one who set the dog or the snake is exempt from punishment. If he imbedded the snake’s fangs into another person and caused the snake to bite him and kill him, Rabbi Yehuda deems him liable to be executed, and the Rabbis exempt him. **Rav Aḥa bar Ya’akov says: When** you analyze the matter **you will find that according to the statement of Rabbi Yehuda, venom of a snake stands within its fangs,** and in this case the entire action is performed by the individual who imbeds the fang in the other person’s skin. The snake is passive. **Therefore,** the **one who causes** the snake to **bite** is liable to be executed by beheading **with a sword** as a murderer, **and** the **snake** is **exempt.**


###### Sanhedrin 78a:17
[Sanhedrin 78a:17](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:17)

לְדִבְרֵי חֲכָמִים, אֶרֶס נָחָשׁ מֵעַצְמוֹ הוּא מֵקִיא. לְפִיכָךְ: נָחָשׁ בִּסְקִילָה, וְהַמַּכִּישׁ פָּטוּר.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**According to the statement of the Rabbis, venom of a snake is discharged by** the snake **itself.** The snake directly causes the death, while the individual who imbeds the fang is merely an indirect cause. **Consequently, the snake** is executed **by stoning, and the one who caused** the snake to **bite** is **exempt** from execution.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:18
[Sanhedrin 78a:18](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:18)

**מַתְנִי׳** הַמַּכֶּה אֶת חֲבֵירוֹ, בֵּין בְּאֶבֶן בֵּין בְּאֶגְרוֹף, וַאֲמָדוּהוּ לְמִיתָה, וְהֵיקֵל מִמַּה שֶּׁהָיָה, וּלְאַחַר מִכָּאן הִכְבִּיד וָמֵת – חַיָּיב. רַבִּי נְחֶמְיָה אוֹמֵר: פָּטוּר, שֶׁרַגְלַיִם לַדָּבָר.

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**MISHNA:** In the case of **one who strikes another, whether** he does so **with a stone or with** his **fist, and** the doctors **assessed** his condition, estimating that it would lead **to death, and** then his condition **eased from what it was,** and the doctors revised their prognosis and predicted that he would live, **and thereafter** his condition **worsened and he died,** the assailant is **liable** to be executed as a murderer. **Rabbi Neḥemya says:** He is **exempt, as there is a basis for the matter** of assuming that he is not liable. Since the victim’s condition eased in the interim, a cause other than the blow struck by the assailant ultimately caused his death.


###### Sanhedrin 78a:19
[Sanhedrin 78a:19](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Sanhedrin/r/78a:19)

**גְּמָ׳** תָּנוּ רַבָּנַן: אֶת זוֹ דָּרַשׁ רַבִּי נְחֶמְיָה, ״אִם יָקוּם וְהִתְהַלֵּךְ בַּחוּץ

**William Davidson Edition - English:**
**GEMARA:** **The Sages taught: Rabbi Neḥemya interpreted this** verse in arriving at his ruling. It is written: **“If he rises and walks outside**