Naquele dia, o rabino Akiva expôs [o versículo], (Números 35: 5) "Medirás fora da cidade, nos arredores do leste, dois mil côvados ..." (Números 35: 5), e outro versículo diz (Números 35: 4) "... dos muros da cidade e para fora, 1000 côvados ao redor." É impossível dizer mil côvados, pois já dizia dois mil côvados, e é impossível dizer dois mil côvados, pois já dizia 1000 côvados. Como funciona? Mil côvados é para a terra aberta, e dois mil côvados é a fronteira do sábado [a distância que se pode percorrer da cidade no sábado]. "Rabino Eliezer, filho do rabino Yosi, o galileu, diz que mil côvados é aberto terra e dois mil côvados é para campos e pomares.
Bartenura on Mishnah Sotah
מגרש – an open place free from sowing and from trees for the beauty of the city. But two-thousand [cubits] is not mentioned there for the Levites and is not mentioned other than [for leaving from the limits of] Shabbat.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Sotah
Introduction
Numbers 35:1-10 discuss the apportioning of cities to the Levites, who did not inherit large sections of the land as did the other tribes. Besides the cities themselves, the verses mandate a section outside the walls of the city which also shall belong to the Levites. Seemingly, verses 4 and 5 contain a blatant discrepancy, for verse 4 states 1000 cubits and verse 5 states 2000 cubits. Our mishnah contains several solutions for these problematic verses.
In my commentary on this mishnah I shall not delve into other non-rabbinic or modern critical ways of reading these verses. There is a fair amount of literature on the subject, literature which is summarized well in Jacob Milgrom’s commentary on Numbers, published by JPS.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Sotah
שדות וכרמים – and two-thousand [cubits] surrounding they gave to the Levites, and from them they left one-thousand [cubits] surrounding the city for the fields and the rest of the fields and vineyards. And the Halakha is according to Rabbi Eliezer the son of Rabbi Yosi HaGlili that the Sabbath limit is two-thousand [cubits] according to the Rabbis.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Sotah
On that day Rabbi Akiva expounded, “You shall measure off two thousand cubits outside the town on the east side” (Numbers 35:5). But another verse states, “from the wall of the city outward a thousand cubits around” (vs. 4) It is impossible to say that it was a thousand cubits since it has been already stated two thousand cubits; and it is impossible to say that it was two thousand cubits since it has been already stated a thousand cubits! How then is this so? A thousand cubits for the field [surrounding the city] and two thousand cubits for the Sabbath-limits. Rabbi Akiva points out that the two verses seem to contradict each other. To solve the problem he says that verse 4 1000 cubits refers to the size of the field which is to be left for the Levites. The second verse does not refer to the Levitical cities but rather to the Sabbath limits. This refers to the limits one is allowed to travel outside of the city on the Sabbath. We shall discuss this issue in greater depth when we learn Mishnah Shabbat. We should note that Rabbi Akiva’s midrash has a goal similar to his midrash found yesterday’s mishnah. Rabbi Akiva takes a halakhah which others thought could not be derived from the Torah and creatively derives it from the Torah. Indeed, this is one aspect of Rabbi Akiva’s achievements that contributed to his fame; his ability to creatively tie the oral tradition into the written Torah.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Sotah
Rabbi Eliezer the son of Rabbi Yose the Galilean says: a thousand cubits for the field [surrounding the city] and two thousand cubits for fields and vineyards. Rabbi Eliezer the son of Rabbi Yose the Galilean rejects Rabbi Akiva’s deriving the Sabbath limits from this verse. Rather he wishes to retain the context of the verse as much as possible. Therefore he says that the two thousand cubits also refers to the Levites land. One thousand cubits surrounding the city is to be kept as an empty field, and two thousand cubits (i.e. the next 1000 cubits) can be used for planting.
