Sifrei Devarim Paragraph 219
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(דברים כא יט) וְתָפְשׂוּ בוֹ אָבִיו וְאִמּוֹ – מְלַמֵּד שֶׁאֵינוֹ חַיָּב עַד שֶׁיִּהְיוּ לוֹ אָב וָאֵם, דִּבְרֵי רַבִּי מֵאִיר. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אוֹמֵר: אִם לֹא הָיְתָה אִמּוֹ רְאוּיָה לְאָבִיו – אֵינוֹ נַעֲשֶׂה בֵּן סוֹרֵר וּמוֹרֶה.
Pisqa’ 219³⁹
- “Then his father and mother shall seize him” (Dt. 21:19). This teaches that he can only be liable for punishment while he has a [living] father and mother: words of R. Meir. R. Judah says: **If his mother was unsuited [by improper lineage]**⁴⁰ and the father was of unimpaired lineage. See Pisqa’ 196.1. to marry his father, the son cannot be held liable for punishment as a persistently incorrigible son. ⁴¹
footnotes: ³⁹ H:230-231; JN2:124-125. ⁴⁰ That is, his mother was disqualified from marrying into the priesthood, and his father was a priest, or if the mother was a mamzeret ⁴¹ //M. San.8:4.
וְהוֹצִיאוּ אֹתוֹ אֶל זִקְנֵי עִירוֹ וְאֶל שַׁעַר מְקֹמוֹ – מִצְוָה בְּזִקְנֵי עִירוֹ וּבְשַׁעַר מְקוֹמוֹ.
- “And they shall take him to the elders of his city, and to the gate of his place” (Dt. 21:19)— it is essential that the elders of his city [bear witness] at the gate of his home.
(דברים כא כ) וְאָמְרוּ אֶל זִקְנֵי עִירוֹ בְּנֵנוּ זֶה – זֶהוּ שֶׁלָּקָה בִּפְנֵיכֶם, מְלַמֵּד שֶׁאִם מֵת אֶחָד מֵהֶם אֵינוֹ נִסְקָל.
“And they shall say to the elders of his city: This son of ours” (Dt. 21:20)— “this one,” who has recently been beaten before you. The phrase*, ours*, teaches that if one parent has died, the son is not stoned.
הָיָה אֶחָד מֵהֶם גִּדֵּם אוֹ חִגֵּר אוֹ אִלֵּם אוֹ סוּמָה אוֹ חֵרֵשׁ – אֵינוֹ נַעֲשֶׂה בֵּן סוֹרֵר וּמוֹרֶה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר ״וְתָפְשׂוּ בוֹ״ – וְלֹא גִדְּמִים, ״וְהוֹצִיאוּ אוֹתוֹ״ – וְלֹא חִגְּרִים, וְאָמְרוּ – וְלֹא אִלְּמִים, בְּנֵנוּ זֶה – וְלֹא סוּמִים, אֵינֶנּוּ שֹׁמֵעַ בְּקֹלֵנוּ – וְלֹא חֵרְשִׁים. מַתְרִים בּוֹ בִּפְנֵי שְׁלֹשָׁה וּמַלְקִים אוֹתוֹ; חָזַר וְקִלְקֵל – נִדּוֹן בְּעֶשְׂרִים וְשָׁלֹשׁ, וְאֵינוֹ נִסְקָל עַד שֶׁיְּהוּ שָׁם שְׁלֹשָׁה הָרִאשׁוֹנִים, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: בְּנֵנוּ זֶה – זֶהוּ שֶׁלָּקָה בִּפְנֵיכֶם. זוֹלֵל וְסֹבֵא – זוֹלֵל בְּבָשָׂר וְסוֹבֵא בְּיַיִן, וְאַף עַל פִּי שֶׁאֵין רְאָיָה לַדָּבָר – זֵכֶר לַדָּבָר (משלי כג כ): ״אַל תְּהִי בְסֹבְאֵי יָיִן בְּזֹלְלֵי בָשָׂר לָמוֹ״, וְאוֹמֵר (משלי כג כא): ״כִּי זוֹלֵל וְסֹבֵא יִוָּרֵשׁ, וּקְרָעִים תַּלְבִּישׁ נוּמָה״.
If one of them is an amputee, or lame, or mute, or blind, or deaf, he cannot be held liable for punishment as a stubbornly incorrigible son,
“They shall seize him” (Dt. 21:19)— so they cannot be amputees. “Bring him out to the gate” (Dt. 21:19)— so they cannot be lame. “And they shall declare” (Dt. 21:19)— so they cannot be mute. “This son of ours” (Dt. 21:19)— [since this implies gesturing towards the son,] they cannot be blind. “Does not heed our voice” (Dt. 21:19)— [since they observe that he doesn’t heed,] they cannot be deaf! The elders then warn him, before three witnesses, [of the consequences of his acts,] and administer a beating. If he repeated his offenses, he is brought to a Court of Twenty-Three. But he is not stoned unless three of the original elders are in session,
“This son of ours” (Dt. 21:20)— this one who has recently been beaten before you. “Is a gluttonous drunkard” (Dt. 21:20)— stuffing himself with meat **and swilling wine.**⁴² 3. Now, even though [the Torah contains] no clear proscription against drunken gluttony,⁴³ the Prophets⁴⁴ suggest as much: “Don’t be among the wine-swillers or the meat-bingers!” (Prov. 23:20). And He says: “For the wine-swiller and meat-binger will know want, and their stupor will clothe them in tatters!” (Prov. 23:21)
footnotes: ⁴² //M. San. 8:4. ⁴³ Cf. T. San.11:6. ⁴⁴ This is not a reference to the scriptural canon of the Prophet in general, or to any book in that canon. Rather, the “prophet” in question is King Solomon, reputed compiler of Proverbs.