Commentary for Sanhedrin 7:5

הַמְגַדֵּף אֵינוֹ חַיָּב עַד שֶׁיְּפָרֵשׁ הַשֵּׁם. אָמַר רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן קָרְחָה, בְּכָל יוֹם דָּנִין אֶת הָעֵדִים בְּכִנּוּי יַכֶּה יוֹסֵי אֶת יוֹסֵי. נִגְמַר הַדִּין, לֹא הוֹרְגִים בְּכִנּוּי, אֶלָּא מוֹצִיאִים כָּל אָדָם לַחוּץ וְשׁוֹאֲלִים אֶת הַגָּדוֹל שֶׁבָּהֶן וְאוֹמְרִים לוֹ אֱמֹר מַה שֶּׁשָּׁמַעְתָּ בְּפֵרוּשׁ, וְהוּא אוֹמֵר, וְהַדַּיָּנִים עוֹמְדִין עַל רַגְלֵיהֶן וְקוֹרְעִין וְלֹא מְאַחִין. וְהַשֵּׁנִי אוֹמֵר אַף אֲנִי כָּמוֹהוּ, וְהַשְּׁלִישִׁי אוֹמֵר אַף אֲנִי כָּמוֹהוּ:

One who blasphemes is not liable until he mentions the Name [and "blesses" the Name by the Name (i.e., "May X curse X"), it being written (Leviticus 24:16): "And he who blasphemes the Name … if he blasphemes the Name" — blaspheming the Name by the Name.] R. Yehoshua b. Karchah said: The entire day [of deliberation] they would examine the witnesses (to blaspheming) with an epithet (kinui) [A "substitute object" of a curse is called "kinui" by the sages; and, in Scripture (Job 32:22): "Ki loyadati achaneh" ("For I know now how to mince words.")] — "May Yossi smite Yossi." [I have heard that the Tetragrammaton is alluded to by "Yossi" for it (Yossi) has four letters, the gematria of which (86) is "Elokim."] When the judgment was concluded [and beth-din came to pronounce him liableb], they could not execute him [on the basis of the testimony that they heard, for they had heard from their mouths only a curse] by epithet.] But everyone is sent out, [it being demeaning to utter a "blessing of the Name" in public], and they ask the senior witness (what he heard) and say to him: "Repeat what you heard explicitly," and he does so. And the judges stand upon their feet, and they rend (their garments) and do not resew them [in a "finished" manner, with Alexandrine stitching, where the rent is not noticeable; but other stitching is permitted.], and the second witness says: "I, too, heard as he did." [and he need not repeat it explicitly], and the third says: "I, too, heard as he did." [This is in accordance with the view that just as two (witnesses) constitute one testimony, so do three.]

Explore commentary for Sanhedrin 7:5. In-depth commentary and analysis from classical Jewish sources.