The Weekly Daf #30 Bava Metzia 72-78 25 Elul 5754 - 2 Tishrei 5755/1-7 September 1994 By Rabbi Mendel Weinbach, Dean, Ohr Somayach Institutions ========================================================================= This issue is dedicated in the memory of Mr. Seymour Pomerance O.B.M. ========================================================================= When Even ONE Zuz Makes a Difference The Sage Rava stated the three following rulings: 1. If someone sells an item and then presses the buyer for full payment he may cancel the sale if such payment is not immediately forthcoming. 2. If someone sells a donkey to another and receives the entire payment except for one zuz, which he is pressing the buyer to immediately pay him, he may cancel the sale even because of this small amount. 3. If someone sells an item and receives the entire payment except for one zuz, which he is pressing the buyer to immediately pay him, he may not cancel the sale because of the small amount. The Problem: The basis for Rava's first ruling is the assumption that a man who presses for payment made the sale out of a desperate need for cash and the sale was conditional on receiving this cash upon demand. (Whereas the failure to pay immediately does not affect the finality of a sale when the seller does not press for immediate payment since it is assumed that he consented to the buyer's incurring a debt to him.) But how do we resolve the apparent conflict between the last two rulings of Rava regarding the failure to pay the remaining zuz upon demand? The Solution: Ruling Two relates to a regular sale when the seller's insistence on immediate payment is interpreted as an expression of the desperate need for cash which forced him to make the sale. It matters not that only a zuz is involved because "one zuz means as much to him as many zuzim". Ruling Three, however, applies to the sale of a field in poor condition which the seller is anxious to get rid of. Here the pressing for payment is not seen as a reflection on his desperate need for cash which could invalidate the sale but only as a precaution on the part of the seller to collect his money before the buyer realizes the poor purchase he made and tries to back out of the deal. Bava Metzia 77b ========================================================================= The Prophet on Profit Those who lend money to other Jews on interest end up losing more than they profit. (As the Talmud states on 71a that the usurer's holdings eventually crumble with no hope for recovery -- Rashi.) Furthermore, they cast aspersions on the wisdom of Moshe Rabbeinu and the truth of the Torah for their behavior seems to say "Had Moshe Rabbeinu realized how much profit there is in usury he would not have written a prohibition against it". -- Rabbi Shimon. Bava Metzia 75b ========================================================================= -> Get Ready for the Ohr Somayach Winter JLE <- 3 weeks of study and touring (Departure December 22) Minimum scholarship price: $599 Covers round trip ticket, room, board, tuition and tours Contact Rabbi Zalman Corlin for details ========================================================================= Ohr Somayach Institutions is proud to present: ROSH HASHANAH 5755 Two essays by Ohr Somayach Rabbis: The Concept of Teshuva, by Rabbi Michoel Schoen Beginnings..., by Rabbi Dr. Akiva Tatz This file is available from the following sources: o The Jerusalem1 Gopher under the heading "Religious Institutions" and the sub-heading "Ohr Somayach" o CompuServe Religion Forum, Judaism Library (2), filename OSROSH.TXT Note that subcribers to Ohr Somayach's new list "os-special" received this file AUTOMATICALLY. If you would like to read files such as this one without hunting in gophers to find them, then subscribe now! Send the message "sub os-special {your name}" to listserv@jerusalem1.datasrv.co.il ========================================================================= Dedication opportunities are available for The Weekly Daf Please contact us for details. ========================================================================= Jewish L EEEEEEEE Prepared by Ohr Somayach Institutions J L E 22 Shimon Hatzadik Street, POB 18103 J L Exchange Jerusalem 91180, Israel J J L E Tel: 02-810315 Fax: 02-812890 JJJJ Learning EEEEEEEE Internet: newman@jerusalem1.datasrv.co.il ========================================================================= (C) 1994 Ohr Somayach International - All rights reserved. This publication may be distributed to another person intact without prior permission. We also encourage you to include this material in other publications, such as synagogue newsletters. However, we ask that you contact us beforehand for permission.