Commentary for Shabbat 15:7

אלו קשרים. קשר גמלים – they perforate the nose of a camel and place in it a strap and tie it an eternal knot and like this, they make a perforation at the head of as ship and place in it a rope and tie a durable knot in it can never be undone, that is similar to knots of threads of curtains that have torn in the Tabernacle, but a durable knot that is not the act of an artisan, or it is the act of an artisan but is not durable knot is exempt, but prohibited and it is not liable until it is one of durability and the action of an artisan.

Introduction This mishnah and the following one deal with the prohibited labors of tying and untying. As we shall see in the mishnah, one is liable only if the knot is one that is intended to last.

וכשם שחייב על קשרן כך חייב על התירן – for just as those who hunt snail/conchiferous animal/purple-fish it would be necessary on occasion to undo/loosen the knots of the nets that exist in order to shorten them or widen them.

These are the knots for which a person is liable? Camel-drivers’ knots and sailors’ knots. And just as one is guilty for tying them, so one is guilty for untying them. Rabbi Meir says: any knot which one can untie with one hand they are not liable for it. Camel-drivers would tie ropes to their camels’ noses and the ropes would remain permanently attached to the camels. Similarly, sailors would permanently tie their ropes to their ships. Since these knots are intended to remain in their place for good, one who ties are unties such a knot is liable. Rabbi Meir states a different criterion for determining whether a given knot entails liability. If one can untie the knot with one hand it is not a knot which entails a liability, even if it is intended to remain permanently in its place. It is interesting to note that according to the first opinion, what determines liability is intent if it is intended that the knot remain forever then one is liable. In contrast, the physical nature of the knot is, according to Rabbi Meir, what determines liability. This is a debate we have often noted in the Mishnah is the halakhah determined by the physical nature of an act or by the intention with which the act was performed.

שיכול להתירו – without being squeezed/pricked.

אין חייבין עליו – and even if he did to make it durable, but the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Meir.

יש לך קשרים שאין חייבים עליהם – [there are knots for which they are not liable for] a sin-offering, like they are liable for the camel’s knot or the sailors’ knot but rather they are exempt but it is still prohibited, and these ties were not mentioned in the Mishnah. But the Gemara (Tractate Shabbat 112a) explains for example a long strap that they tie with a ring that is on the nose of a camel and similarly, long rope that they tie with a rope made like a ring that is suspended in hole at the head of the ship and sometimes they leave it there for a week or two and then untie it, and similarly, all knots that they tie to stand as such a specified time but will not endure forever - we are not liable for it.

Introduction This mishnah is a direct continuation of yesterday’s mishnah.

קושרת אשה מפתחי חלוק – kinds of strips/straps to one side and the other and they tie the right on the left shoulder and the left on the right shoulder for since every day it is permissible and it is not similar to an enduring knot and it is permissible ab initio.

You have some knots for which one is not liable like [one is] for camel-drivers’ knots and sailors’ knots. The mishnah explains that there are some knots for which one is not liable and yet it is still prohibited to tie or untie them. These knots are somewhat like camel drivers’ and sailors’ knots and yet they are different. The mishnah itself does not explain what these knots are. The Babylonian Talmud explains that these are semi-permanent knots, ones which remain in place for some time but are not meant to be permanent. Since these remain in place for a long time, it is forbidden to tie or untie them. However, since they are not truly permanent, one who does tie or untie them is not liable.

A woman may tie up the opening of her chemise, the strings of her hair-net and of her belt, the laces of her shoes or sandals, leather-bottles of wine and oil, and a meat dish. Now the mishnah lists knots which one is completely permitted to tie and untie on Shabbat. These are all impermanent knots and therefore they entail no liability.

פסיקיא – a wide girdle/belt with threads/straps suspended at its head to tie them.

Rabbi Elazar ben Ya’akov says: one may tie [a rope] in front of an animal, that it should not go out. According to Rabbi Elazar ben Ya’akov it is permitted to tie a rope across the pen of an animal so that the animal will not escape.

ונודות יין – of leather that their openings are bent and we tie them, and even though it has two bands/chains and we don’t say that one of them nullifies it that it is an enduring knot.

One may tie a bucket [over a well] with a belt but not with a rope; Rabbi Judah permits it. Rabbi Judah stated a general rule: any knot that is not permanent one is not liable for it. According to the sages, it is forbidden to tie a bucket over a well with a rope because sometimes these ropes are left there permanently. However, it is permitted with a belt because the belt won’t be left there for very long. Rabbi Judah however, permits one to tie a bucket over a well even with a rope because the bucket will not be left there permanently. In the last clause of the mishnah, Rabbi Judah explains that as long as the knot is not permanent, one cannot be liable for it. This is the same opinion as the sages in the previous mishnah, but it differs from Rabbi Meir in that mishnah.

וקדירה של בשר – sometimes they tie on it a piece of cloth around its opening, and even though it has spigots/spouts through which one can empty the soup from them, without loosening the knot, even so, this is not a [permanent] knot.

קושרין לפני הבהמה – a rope over the width of the opening to lock it in her face that she should not leave, and such is the Halakha.

קושרין דלי של פסיקיא – on the mouth of the well so that it would tied and suspended there, for the fascia does not nullify it, but not with a rope that does nullify it (see Talmud Shabbat 113a), for it is an enduring knot.

רבי יהודה מתיר – Rabbi Yehuda did not permit anything other than a rope of a common weaver that requires it for his work and does not nullify it there, but the Rabbis hold that if you were to permit to him the rope of a weaver, he would tie it with other also ropes for ropes are interchangeable, and the Halakha is according to the Sages.

מקפלין את הכלים – clothes that are spread out, one folds them even four and five times in order to return to wear them on that same day and they did not teach other than for one person, but not for two people, for it appears as if he is repairing/fixing them. But concerning one person, they did not speak other than for new clothes which are hard and don’t quickly crease/wrinkle, but old [clothing], which are folded and repaired more and it appears like we repair them. But on the new [clothing]also, we did not state this other than on white, but not on colored clothing, for the folding of colored clothing repairs them the most, but on white [clothing] also, we did not state other than if he lacks any other clothing to change into, but if he has other clothing to change into for the honor of the Sabbath, it is prohibited to fold them.

Introduction Since yesterday’s mishnah dealt briefly with clothing (a woman tying her clothing on Shabbat) today’s mishnah also deals with clothing.

מיום הכפורים לשבת – when Yom Kippur occurs on the Eve of Shabbat since Shabbat is more stringent than Yom Kippur and that of Yom Kippur is not sacrificed on the Sabbath for it is considered a burnt-offering of a weekday on the Sabbath.

One may fold clothing even four or five times, and spread the sheets on the beds on the Shabbat evening for [use on] Shabbat, but not on Shabbat for [use on] the day after Shabbat. This mishnah deals with preparing things on Shabbat for use either on Shabbat or after Shabbat. The first section teaches that one may fold clothing and spread sheets on a bed as long as the clothing or bed will be used on Shabbat itself. It is forbidden to fold clothes or spread sheets on a bed if they will not be used until after Shabbat. We may deduce from here that in general it is prohibited to prepare things on Shabbat that will not be used until after Shabbat.

Rabbi Yishmael says: one may fold clothing and spread the sheets on the beds on Yom Kippur for [use on] Shabbat, and the fat pieces of the Shabbat offering may be offered on Yom Kippur. Rabbi Yishmael allows preparing things on Yom Kippur which will not be used until Shabbat, since the sanctity of Yom Kippur is less than that of Shabbat. [Note, in today’s calendar which is fixed Yom Kippur cannot fall on Friday. In the time of the Mishnah the calendar was not fixed and hence this was possible.] Furthermore, if Yom Kippur falls on Sunday [this also can’t happen according to our fixed calendar] then Shabbat offerings that hadn’t been fully offered on Shabbat may be offered on Yom Kippur. However, if Yom Kippur were to fall on Friday, the Yom Kippur offerings could not be offered on Shabbat because Shabbat’s holiness is higher than that of Yom Kippur. On Shabbat only sacrifices that must be offered on Shabbat can be sacrificed.

רבי עקיבא אומר – they (i.e., Yom Kippur and Shabbat) are equivalent and the sacrifice of one of them is not offered on its fellow, and the Halakha is according to Rabbi Akiba.

Rabbi Akiva says: those of Shabbat may not be offered on Yom Kippur, nor may those of Yom Kippur be offered on Shabbat. Rabbi Akiva thinks that the sanctity of Shabbat and Yom Kippur is equivalent. Therefore the offerings of one day cannot be offered on the other. All the more so would it be forbidden to fold clothes or spread bed sheets on one of these days in preparation for the other.