Commentary for Bekhorot 8:1
יֵשׁ בְּכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה וְאֵינוֹ בְכוֹר לַכֹּהֵן, בְּכוֹר לַכֹּהֵן וְאֵינוֹ בְכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה, בְּכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה וְלַכֹּהֵן, יֵשׁ שֶׁאֵינוֹ בְכוֹר לֹא לַנַּחֲלָה וְלֹא לַכֹּהֵן. אֵיזֶהוּ בְּכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה וְאֵינוֹ בְכוֹר לַכֹּהֵן, הַבָּא אַחַר הַנְּפָלִים שֶׁיָּצָא רֹאשׁוֹ חַי, וּבֶן תִּשְׁעָה שֶׁיָּצָא רֹאשׁוֹ מֵת, וְהַמַּפֶּלֶת כְּמִין בְּהֵמָה חַיָּה וָעוֹף, דִּבְרֵי רַבִּי מֵאִיר. וַחֲכָמִים אוֹמְרִים, עַד שֶׁיְּהֵא בוֹ מִצּוּרַת הָאָדָם. הַמַּפֶּלֶת סַנְדָּל, אוֹ שִׁלְיָא, וּשְׁפִיר מְרֻקָּם, וְהַיּוֹצֵא מְחֻתָּךְ, הַבָּא אַחֲרֵיהֶן, בְּכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה וְאֵינוֹ בְכוֹר לַכֹּהֵן. מִי שֶׁלֹּא הָיוּ לוֹ בָנִים וְנָשָׂא אִשָּׁה שֶׁכְּבָר יָלְדָה, עוֹדָהּ שִׁפְחָה וְנִשְׁתַּחְרְרָה, עוֹדָהּ נָכְרִית וְנִתְגַּיְּרָה, מִשֶּׁבָּאת לְיִשְׁרָאֵל יָלְדָה, בְּכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה וְאֵינוֹ בְכוֹר לַכֹּהֵן. רַבִּי יוֹסֵי הַגְּלִילִי אוֹמֵר, בְּכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה וְלַכֹּהֵן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שמות יג), פֶּטֶר כָּל רֶחֶם בִּבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, עַד שֶׁיִּפְטְרוּ רֶחֶם מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל. מִי שֶׁהָיוּ לוֹ בָנִים וְנָשָׂא אִשָּׁה שֶׁלֹא יָלְדָה, נִתְגַּיְּרָה מְעֻבֶּרֶת, נִשְׁתַּחְרְרָה מְעֻבֶּרֶת, יָלְדָה הִיא וְכֹהֶנֶת, הִיא וּלְוִיָּה, הִיא וְאִשָּׁה שֶׁכְּבָר יָלְדָה, וְכֵן מִי שֶׁלֹּא שָׁהֲתָה אַחַר בַּעְלָהּ שְׁלשָׁה חֳדָשִׁים וְנִשֵּׂאת וְיָלְדָה, וְאֵין יָדוּעַ אִם בֶּן תִּשְׁעָה לָרִאשׁוֹן, אוֹ בֶן שִׁבְעָה לָאַחֲרוֹן, בְּכוֹר לַכֹּהֵן וְאֵינוֹ בְכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה. אֵיזֶהוּ בְּכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה וְלַכֹּהֵן, הַמַּפֶּלֶת שְׁפִיר מָלֵא דָם, מָלֵא מַיִם, מָלֵא גְנִינִים, הַמַּפֶּלֶת כְּמִין דָּגִים וַחֲגָבִים שְׁקָצִים וּרְמָשִׂים, הַמַּפֶּלֶת יוֹם אַרְבָּעִים, הַבָּא אַחֲרֵיהֶן, בְּכוֹר לַנַּחֲלָה וְלַכֹּהֵן:
There is one who is a firstborn for [inheriting a double] portion but is not a firstborn for [paying his redemption price] to the priest, a firstborn for the priest but not for the portion, [a firstborn] for both the priest and the portion and [a firstborn] for neither the priest nor the portion. Who is the firstborn for the portion but not the priest? One who is born after an abortus whose head emerged [while still] alive [and was then withdrawn], or after a nine-month [stillbirth] whose head emerged [though already dead [and was then withdrawn], or after [woman] miscarries [something that] resembles an animal, beast or bird [these are] the words of Rabbi Meir. The Sages say: until it has the figure of a person. One who miscarries [something that resembles] a sandal or an afterbirth or fetal sac [containing] tissue or a dismembered [fetus], the one that comes after them is a firstborn for the portion but not for the priest. One who never had children and [then] married a woman who already had children - [even if] she was a slave [when she gave birth] and then freed, or she was a non-Jew [when she gave birth] and she converted, and once she became Jewish she gave birth [again], [the baby is] a firstborn for the portion but not for the priest. Rabbi Yossi Haglili says: it is a firstborn for the portion and the priest, as it says (Exodus 13) "Any opening of a womb in Yisrael" - until they open a womb of an Israelite. One who had children and married a woman who had not given birth, or [if a woman] converted pregnant or was freed [from slavery] pregnant, or if she and a woman married to a priest gave birth or she and a woman married to a Levite gave birth or she and a woman who already gave birth, gave birth [and it was not certain whose baby was whose in these cases], and one who did not wait three months after her husband [died] and got married and gave birth and they do not know if it was nine months from the first husband or seven months from the second, the child is a firstborn for the priest but not for the portion. Who is a firstborn for the portion and the priest? One who miscarries a fetal sac full of blood, water, or worm[like tissue], or if she miscarried [something that] resembles fish, locust, insects or reptiles, or one who miscarries on [or before] the fortieth day, the one that comes after them is a firstborn for the portion and the priest.
Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
יש בכור לנחלה – to take a double portion (see Deuteronomy 21:17).
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
Introduction
Our mishnah deals with the laws concerning the human firstborn. There are two special rules with regard to the human first born: 1) he gets a double portion of his father’s inheritance (see Deuteronomy 21:17); 2) he must be redeemed from the priest for five shekels (see Numbers 18:16). Determining who is a firstborn is, however, different for these two matters. Our mishnah defines what firstborn counts as a firstborn for which of these two laws.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
ואינו כבו לכהן – to give to a Kohen his redemption price of five Selas (see Numbers 18:16).
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
There is one who is [counted as] a firstborn [with respect to] inheritance but not with respect to redemption from a priest; a firstborn with respect to redemption from a priest but not a firstborn [with respect] to inheritance; a firstborn [with respect to both] inheritance and redemption from a priest; and a firstborn [in respect] to neither inheritance nor redemption from a priest. This is an introduction to the remainder of the chapter. When it comes to who is considered a firstborn for the two relevant matters, all possibilities are open.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
הבא אחר הנפלים – as for example, that they were twins. One of whom was premature that his months [of fetal development] were not finished for him, and [the other one], whose months [of fetal development] were completed for him, but the premature one whose months [of fetal development] were not finished for him, his head came out alive and he retracted himself, and his [twin] brother preceded him and went out. This latter [of the two] is the first-born for inheritance, for the first one [whose head came out alive] did not cause him to suffer loss, and even though the exodus of the first [fetus] is considered to be a valid birth. And the reason, because it is written (Deuteronomy 21:17): “since he is the first fruit of his vigor,” that [child over whose death] the heart of the father is grieved (see Tractate Niddah 23b) if he (i.e., the child) dies, this excludes the premature [child] whose head came out first, who is not a viable child, [he] is one whom the heart of the father is not grieved for. But in regard to the opening of the womb (i.e., being the first born/first birth), this [latter] child, for the All-Merciful assigned, but the first [child whose head had exited the womb], was the firstborn of the womb.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
Which is a firstborn [with respect] to inheritance but not to redemption from a priest? One which follows one which was not viable whose head came forth alive, or one born in the ninth month whose head came out dead, or when a woman aborts something that looks like an animal, beast or bird, the words of Rabbi Meir. But the sages say: [it is not considered an opening of the womb] until [the abortion] has the form of a human being. This section lists infants that count as being the firstborn for matters of inheritance but do not need to be redeemed from the priest. The first case seems to be that of twins. The first child is not viable, meaning that he is premature. This child’s head emerges from the womb and then it goes back into the womb, after which the other child is born. The child that is born counts as the first born for inheritance, but does not need to be redeemed. A firstborn male needs to be redeemed only if he “opened his mother’s womb” and since the other child opened his mother’s womb, the second child need not be redeemed. However, he does inherit because he is the first child actually born. There are some problems with this interpretation, namely that it is impossible for one of a set of twins to be premature whereas the other is ready to be born. Nevertheless, it seems possible, in my mind, that the rabbis believed that a pregnant woman could become pregnant again and therefore have “twins,” one of whom is more mature than the other. The second case is where a fully mature child (a nine months child) has his head emerge from the womb but is dead. Then his head goes back into the womb and the other twin is born. The live twin counts as the first born for inheritance but since he didn’t open the womb, he need not be redeemed. Finally, if a woman aborts a fetus that has the shape of an animal or bird, the first opinion counts this as “opening the womb” and therefore the next born male need not be redeemed. However, since the miscarriage did not have a human form, it does not count as the first born for matters of inheritance and the second child receives the double portion. This is Rabbi Meir’s opinion. The other sages hold that if the miscarriage does not have a human form it does not count as having opened the womb. The next child is a first-born for both matters.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
ובן תשעה מת שיצא ראשו – and went back inside [the womb], and his brother came out [fully first], is the first-born for inheritance. But he is not considered the first, for his father is not grieved for him, but regarding the Kohen [for the redemption of the first-born], he is not the first-born of the womb. Ut if his head came out first alive at the age of nine [months] and afterwards, he was restored [to the womb] and [subsequently] died, he that comes after him also is not the first-born for inheritance.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
If [a woman] aborts a sandal or a placenta or a fetus having an articulated shape, or if an embryo came out by pieces, [the infant] which follows after them is a first-born [with respect] to inheritance but not a first-born for redemption from a priest. In all of these cases the woman aborts something that is considered as having opened the womb, but does not count as a firstborn. Therefore, the next born child receives the double inheritance but does not need to be redeemed. The first case is a “sandal.” This seems to be a flat piece of flesh that resembles a sandal. It seems to either accompany a fetus or once was a fetus. The second case is a placenta that inevitably accompanies a fetus, so it is a sign that there was at some point a fetus. The third case is a fetus that has a human shape, and the fourth case is where the aborted fetus is recognizably human but is cut up into pieces. In all of these cases the fetus counts as having opened the womb, but does not count as being the first born for matters of inheritance.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
וכן המפלת בהמה כו' – it is not considered to be exempted from inheritance, for the heart of the father is not grieved for them. But it is the first-born of the womb.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
If one who never had children married a woman who had already given birth, even if she had given birth when she was a slave but is now free, or [had given birth] when she was a non-Jew but has since converted, if after coming to the Israelite she gave birth, [the infant] is considered a first-born [with respect] to inheritance but not a first-born for redemption from a priest. Rabbi Yose the Galilean says: [the infant] is a firstborn [with respect] to inheritance and for redemption from a priest, as it says: “Whatever opens the womb in Israel” (Exodus 13:2), meaning only if it opens the womb in Israel. In these cases a man who has never had children marries a woman who has had children. This is his firstborn but not hers. In general, this means that the child gets the double inheritance from the father, but does not need to be redeemed because he did not open the mother’s womb. This is true even if the first child was conceived and born while the woman was not Jewish (or not free). Since her first free, Jewish child did not open the womb, he is not the first born for redemption. Rabbi Yose the Galilean holds that the child does not count as having opened his mother’s womb unless he is born while she is Jewish and free. He interprets “opens the womb in Israel” to mean that the child opens the womb of a woman who is alread “in Israel,” of Jewish status.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
וחכמים אומרים עד שיהא בו מצורת אדם – it is not considered the firstborn after the womb, and the one who comes after him is a first born for a Kohen (i.e., requiring redemption by his parents). And the Halakha is according to the Sages.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
If one had children already and married a woman who had never given birth previously Sections five, six, seven and eight describe cases where the child counts as a firstborn with regard to being redeemed by a priest but not for the sake of inheritance. We will start with section five. In this case, the man has already had kids so the first-born with his next wife cannot be the first born for matters of inheritance.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
סנדל (a flat, fish-shaped abortion -see Tractate Niddah, Chapter 3, Mishnah 4) – a piece of flesh made in the image of a sandal/flat fish, and it lacks the form of limbs, and regularly comes together with the child. But the language of סנדל has explanations/commentaries that are hated and poor.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
Or if she converted when pregnant, or if she was freed when pregnant, and she gave birth; If a woman became pregnant for the first time while a non-Jew or a slave and was then converted or freed and then gave birth, since her child was born while she was already an Israelite, the child counts as a first-born for matters of redemption. However, it does not inherit from its father because the child was conceived while the woman was still not a Jew.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
או שליא – that there is no placenta without a child but that it is softened. But however, it is the opening of the womb.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
ושפיר מרוקם (fully-formed fetus)– a piece of flesh that is has the articulated shape of the form of a fetus. And because it is made like an egg-shell, it is called a sack of a fetus.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
If she and a priestess gave birth, she and a Levite’s daughter, she and a woman who had already given birth; This section deals with kids who get mixed up at birth. If a child of a woman who has never given birth is mixed up with a child of a woman who is exempt, such as the son of a priestess, woman of Levite descent or a woman who already gave birth, both children need to be redeemed, because either of them could be the true first born.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
And similarly [if a woman] who did not wait three months after her husband's death, married and gave birth and it is not known if the infant was born in the ninth month since the death of the first [husband] or in the seventh month since she married the second, it is a firstborn for redemption from a priest but not a first-born [with respect] to inheritance. A widow should wait three months to remarry after her first husband has died in order to determine whether her next child is the first husband’s or the second’s. If she does not wait, and she becomes pregnant immediately, the child does not inherit from either father, because the “certain” inheritors can claim that the child cannot prove who his father was. The child does need to be redeemed because he is a first-born to his mother. However, he will have to redeem himself when he gets older, because he has no “certain” father who is obligated to do so on his behalf.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
והיוצא מחותך – that it is severed limb by limb and in this manner it all came out. But if the head is severed, it was not the first of the womb if his brother preceded and came out before the coming out of most of the limbs of the severed one, and it would be also be a first born for the Kohen.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bekhorot
Which is a firstborn both [in respect] of inheritance and for redemption from a priest? If [a woman] miscarries a sac full of blood or full of water or full of pieces of flesh; or if [a woman] miscarries something with the shape of fish or locusts or reptiles, or creeping things, or if she discharges on the fortieth day [of conception], [the infant] which follows after [these discharges] is a firstborn both [in respect] of inheritance and for redemption from a priest. Finally the mishnah lists some cases where the child is a first-born for both matters, even though there might be reason to think otherwise. In all of these cases the woman has either a very early miscarriage or some sort of discharge that does not have the shape of a human fetus. These various types of discharges do not count as having opened her womb and therefore the child born afterwards is considered to be the first-born for both inheritance and redemption.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
שכבר ילדה - that in regard to inheritance of the father, it is written (Deuteronomy 21:17): “the first fruit of his vigor”, but regarding the Kohen, the All-Merciful depends upon the opening of the womb (see Exodus 13:2 and 12).
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
עודה שפחה – even if she is still a heathen maid-servant at her first birth and was freed now. Or [if] she was a heathen and converted but when she came into the hand of an Israelite, she gave birth, also [the child] is a first born for inheritance, for he had not [yet] had children.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
רבי יוסי הגלילי אומר בכור לנחלה ולכהן – for the sons that are born while she was a heathen do not open the womb. But the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Yossi HaGelili.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
נתגיירה מעוברת – and her husband is with her and she gave birth. Behold that child is a firstborn for a Kohen, for he is the firstborn of the womb for an Israelite, but not for inheritance, for since his conception is not in holiness (because she was not yet a Jewish woman at that time), he is not eligible for inheritance, for he is the seed of an idolater, the All-Merciful declared him free/ownerless, as it is written (Ezekiel 23:20): “[she lusted for concubinage with them, whose members were like those of asses] and whose organs like those of stallions.”
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וילדה היא וכהנת – a Jewish woman who had never given birth and daughter of a Kohen who had given birth, and it is not know which of them (i.e., the babies born) was the child of an Israelite woman.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
או היא ולויה – for a Levite woman, her son is also exempt from the five Selaim, as we stated in the first chapter (see actually, Tractate Bekhorot, Chapter 2, Mishnah 1).
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
או היא ואשה שכבר ילדה – and it is not known which is her son (as the babies had been mixed up).
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
כבור לכהן – and the husband of the woman giving birth for the first time is liable for the five Selaim to the Kohen [for redemption of their first-born son], for the male child has [responsibility] all that he has.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
ולא לנחלה – for he did not know the son of whom it is.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
וכן מי שלא שהתה כו' – he is the first-born for a Kohen. And he will redeem himself. But not for inheritance for he does not know who conceived him. And even like an heir entitled to a single share he was not conceived, for this one (i.e., one child) supersedes him regarding this (i.e., entitlement to being a first-born) and that one (i.e., a different child) supersedes him regarding that (i.e., level of inheritance). But our Mishnah which teaches that he is not [the first-born] for inheritance purposes, it states regarding who comes after him, for the one who comes after him is not the first born for inheritance, for perhaps there is doubt if he is the son after him (see Talmud Bekhorot 47b).
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
מלא גנינים ([an abortion consisting of] a bag full of a many-colored substance – see also Tractate Niddah, Chapter 3, Mishnah 3 and Niddah 24b) – many colors. Another explanation – worms. That the fetus is made completely of many small, thin pieces similar to worms.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bekhorot
דגים וחגבים – they are not offspring, for it was not stated about them a creation like a human.
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יום ארבעים – from when she became pregnant, it is merely water, and there isn’t an embryo until the day after the fortieth day, for on the fortieth day is the creation of the embryo.
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