Commentary for Sanhedrin 3:6
כֵּיצַד בּוֹדְקִים אֶת הָעֵדִים, הָיוּ מַכְנִיסִין אוֹתָן וּמְאַיְּמִין עֲלֵיהֶן וּמוֹצִיאִין אֶת כָּל הָאָדָם לַחוּץ, וּמְשַׁיְּרִין אֶת הַגָּדוֹל שֶׁבָּהֶן, וְאוֹמְרִים לוֹ אֱמֹר הֵיאַךְ אַתָּה יוֹדֵעַ שֶׁזֶּה חַיָּב לָזֶה. אִם אָמַר, הוּא אָמַר לִי שֶׁאֲנִי חַיָּב לוֹ, אִישׁ פְּלוֹנִי אָמַר לִי שֶׁהוּא חַיָּב לוֹ, לֹא אָמַר כְּלוּם, עַד שֶׁיֹּאמַר, בְּפָנֵינוּ הוֹדָה לוֹ שֶׁהוּא חַיָּב לוֹ מָאתַיִם זוּז. וְאַחַר כָּךְ מַכְנִיסִין אֶת הַשֵּׁנִי וּבוֹדְקִים אוֹתוֹ. אִם נִמְצְאוּ דִבְרֵיהֶם מְכֻוָּנִים, נוֹשְׂאִין וְנוֹתְנִין בַּדָּבָר. שְׁנַיִם אוֹמְרִים זַכַּאי, וְאֶחָד אוֹמֵר חַיָּב, זַכַּאי. שְׁנַיִם אוֹמְרִים חַיָּב, וְאֶחָד אוֹמֵר זַכַּאי, חַיָּב. אֶחָד אוֹמֵר זַכַּאי, וְאֶחָד אוֹמֵר חַיָּב, וַאֲפִלּוּ שְׁנַיִם מְזַכִּין אוֹ שְׁנַיִם מְחַיְּבִין וְאֶחָד אוֹמֵר אֵינִי יוֹדֵעַ, יוֹסִיפוּ הַדַּיָּנִין:
How are the witnesses examined (to ascertain that they are telling the truth)? They would bring them in and intimidate them. [They would apprise them that the hirers of false witnesses themselves scorn them and call them wicked, viz., in respect to Navoth (I Kings 21:10): "And seat two worthless people opposite him, and let them testify (falsely)," the king's counselors themselves, who counseled hiring them, calling them "worthless."] And they would take everyone out and leave the senior (witness) there, and they would say to him: "How do you know that this one owed that one?" If he said: "He (the borrower) told me that he owes him," "That man told me that he owes him," he has said nothing. [for people are wont to say that they owe in order not to be thought rich.] (He is not accepted as a witness) until he says: "Before us he admitted to him that he owes him two hundred zuz." [i.e., Both of them were before us and his intent was to acknowledge the debt and have them witness the acknowledgement.] Then the second one is brought in and he is examined. If their stories jibe, they (beth-din) deliberate. If two say "Not liable," and one says "Liable," he (the borrower) is not liable. If two say "Liable," and one "Not liable," he is liable. If one says "Not liable," and one says "Liable" — and even if two say "Not liable" or two say "Liable," and one says "I do not know" — they add judges. [And even though if he had differed with the others, he, being in the minority, would be overruled, when he says "I do not know," it is as if he had not sat in judgment, so it is as if the judgment were with two, and we require three.]
Bartenura on Mishnah Sanhedrin
English Explanation of Mishnah Sanhedrin
They bring them in and warn them, and then they take them out and leave behind the most important of [the witnesses].
And they would say to him: “State [for us], how do you know that this one is in debt to this one?” If he said, “He said to me, ‘I am in debt to him’, or ‘So-and-so said to me that he was in debt to him’”, he has said nothing. He must be able to say, “In our presence he acknowledged to the other one that he owed him 200 zuz.”
Afterward they bring in the second witness and check him.
If their words were found to agree, the judges discuss the matter.
If two say, “He is not guilty” and one says, “He is guilty”, he is not guilty. If two say, “He is guilty” and one says, “He is not guilty”, he is guilty. If one says, “He is not guilty”, and one says, “He is guilty”, and even if two declared him not guilty or declared him guilty while one said, “I do not know”, they must add more judges.
Mishnah six begins to describe the process of the interrogation of the witnesses.
This mishnah describes the process by which the judges would examine the testimony of the witnesses. Keep in mind that the mishnaic court system did not include lawyers. Rather the discussion was conducted directly between the litigants and the judges.
(1) The first step is to warn the witnesses of the seriousness of testifying in a court. (2) The second step was to remove all but one of the witnesses, so that they would not merely mimic each other’s testimony. Jewish law is strict in requiring two independent witnesses, and one may not therefore learn of his testimony from another. (3) They could now begin interrogating the most important of the witnesses. The witness is asked how he received that information that so-and-so owes someone money. The only answer that is accepted as valid testimony is for the witness to say that he saw the defendant actually admit to the plaintiff that he is in debt to him. If a third party told the witness that the defendant was obligated, or even if the defendant himself admitted such, the testimony is not accepted. (4) Afterwards they repeat the process with the second witness. (5) If the testimony of all of the witnesses is found to be in agreement, the judges discuss the matter. (6) A majority decision is always accepted as binding, as long as all of the judges have made a conclusive decision. If one of the judges said that he did not know they must add more judges until there are three judges who have actually rendered decisions. In other words, one who cannot render a decision is not counted as one of the necessary three judges to make up a court of three.