1) (Vayikra 20:18) ("And a man who lies with a woman in her flow and reveals her nakedness — he has bared her fountain and she has revealed the fountain of her blood; and both of them shall be cut off from the midst of their people.") "And a man": to exclude a minor. "who lies with a woman in her flow" (davah): "davah" is "niddah," as it is written (Vayikra 15:33) "And she who flows (davah) with her niddah flow, and he who flows with his discharge." 2) He has bared (he'erah) her fountain, and she has revealed the fountain of her blood" — whence it is derived that peripheral (non-consummated) intercourse ("he'arah") is reckoned as consummated intercourse. This tells me only of niddah. Whence do I derive the same for all of the arayoth? — Just as with niddah, where willful transgression is liable to kareth and unwitting transgression, to a sin-offering, he'arah is reckoned as consummated intercourse — so, with every ervah, where willful transgression is liable to kareth and unwitting transgression, to a sin-offering, he'arah is reckoned as consummated intercourse. — No, this may be so with niddah, where tumah obtains, wherefore he'arah is reckoned as consummated intercourse, but not with all the other arayoth, where tumah does not obtain, wherefore he'arah is not reckoned as consummated intercourse! It is, therefore, written (in relation to the sister of his father or of his mother) "For he has bared (he'erah) his kin." You derive it from both, viz.: Niddah (where tumah obtains) is not like the sister of his father, and the sister of his father, (who is kin), is not like niddah. What is common to both is that they are ervah, where willful transgression is liable to kareth, and unwitting transgression to a sin-offering, and he'arah is reckoned as consummated intercourse. Likewise, I derive that with every ervah, where willful transgression is liable to kareth and unwitting transgression to a sin-offering, he'arah is reckoned as consummated intercourse. 3) "and both of them shall be cut off from the midst of their people": We have heard the punishment but not the exhortation. It is, therefore, written (Vayikra 18:19): "And to a woman in the niddah state of her uncleanliness, (you shall not come near to reveal her nakedness.") 4) (Vayikra 20:19) ("And the nakedness of the sister of your mother and the sister of your father you shall not reveal. For he has bared his kin; they shall bear their sin.") "And the nakedness of the sister of your mother and the sister of your father you shall not reveal.": "the sister of your mother": whether from her father or from her mother. "and the sister of your father": whether from her father or from her mother. — But perhaps the meaning is from her father, but not from her mother. And this would follow, viz.: Since he is forbidden to the wife of his father's brother, and he is forbidden to the sister of his mother and to the sister of his father, then just as he is forbidden (only) to the wife of his brother from his father, and not from his mother, so, he should be forbidden (only) to the sister of his mother and the sister of his mother from her father and not from her mother! It is, therefore, written (a second time, [after 18:12 and Vayikra 18:13]) "And the nakedness of the sister of your mother and the sister of your father you shall not reveal" — "the sister of your mother," whether from her father or from her mother, "and the sister of your father," whether from her father or from her mother. "For he has bared his kin": as we have stated (above, halachah 2). 5) "they shall bear their sin": We have heard the punishment but not the exhortation. It is, therefore, written (Vayikra 18:12-13): "The nakedness of the sister of your father you shall not reveal; she is the kin of your father. The nakedness of the kin of your mother you shall not reveal; for she is the kin of your mother." 6) (Vayikra 20:20) ("And a man who lies with his uncle's wife, the nakedness of his uncle he has revealed. They shall bear their sin; they shall die childless.") "And a man": to exclude a minor. "who lies with his uncle's wife": The verse speaks of the wife of his father's brother. — But perhaps it speaks of the wife of his mother's brother! It is, therefore, written (Vayikra 18:14): "The nakedness of the brother of your father you shall not reveal. To his wife do not come near"; (she is your uncle []i.e., the wife of your uncle]") It is written here (our verse) "dodathecha" (lit., "dodatho") and there "dodathecha". Just as there the verse refers to the wife of his father's brother; here, too, it refers to the wife of his father's brother. — But perhaps it refers to the wife of his father's brother by his mother, and this would follow, viz.: Just as he is forbidden to the sister of his mother and to the sister of his father, and he is forbidden to the wife of his father's brother, then just as with the sister of his mother and the sister of his father, (he is forbidden) whether (she is his sister) either by her father or by her mother, so, with the wife of his father's brother (i.e., he should be forbidden to her) whether (he is his brother) either by his father or by his mother! And, furthermore, it follows a fortiori (that he should be forbidden to the wife of his father's brother by his mother), viz.: If in an instance (levirate marriage [yibum]), he is permitted to the wife of his brother by his father by his father, he is forbidden to the wife of his brother by his mother, then in an instance where he is not permitted to the wife of his brother by his father, should it not follow that he should not be permitted to the wife of his brother by his mother! It is, therefore, written "his uncle." It is written "his uncle" here, ("the nakedness of his uncle he has revealed"), and it is written "his uncle" elsewhere ([Vayikra 25:49]) "Or his uncle or his uncle's son shall redeem him). Just as there, the family of the father (is being referred to); here, too, the family of the father (is intended). 7) "They shall bear their sin; they shall die childless (aririm)": If they have children, they bury their children; if they have no children, they die without children. And even though there is no proof for this, there is an "intimation" (i.e., Biblical support) for it, viz. (Jeremiah 29:30): "Write this man down as 'ariri,' a man that shall not prosper in his days, (for no man of his seed shall prosper"). We have heard the punishment, but not he exhortation. It is, therefore, written (Jeremiah 18:14): "The nakedness of the brother of your father you shall not reveal.' 8) (Vayikra 20:21) ("And a man who takes the wife of his brother, she is niddah. He has revealed the nakedness of his brother; they shall be childless.") "And a man": to exclude a minor. "who takes the wife of his brother": either by his father or by his mother. You say: either by his father or by his mother. But perhaps only by his father and not by his mother! And this would follow, viz.: He is liable here, and he is liable with his aunt. Just as his aunt by his father and not by his other, here, too, by his father and not by his mother! Let us see to what he may be compared. Do we derive his own kin from his own kin (i.e., from his sister, to whom he is forbidden — both to his sister by his father or to his sister by his mother), and this is not to be refuted by (the instance of) his aunt, who is the kin of his father — or go in this direction: We derive something (forbidden) through marriage from something (forbidden) through marriage, and this is not to be refuted by (the instance of) his sister, which is something forbidden of itself. It is, therefore, written "he has revealed the nakedness of his brother" — either by his father or by his mother. 9) "He has revealed the nakedness of his brother; they shall be childless (aririm)": If they have children, they bury their children; if they have no children, they die without children. And even though there is no proof for this, there is an "intimation" (i.e., Biblical support) for it, viz. (Jeremiah 29:30): "Write down this man as "ariri," etc." We have heard the punishment, but not the exhortation. It is, therefore, written (Jeremiah 18:16): "The nakedness of the wife of your brother you shall not reveal; she is the nakedness of your brother." 10) (Vayikra 18:18) ("And a woman together with her sister you shall not take, to be rivals, to reveal her nakedness upon her in her lifetime") What is the intent of "upon her"? Because it is written (Devarim 25:5) "Her yavam (her husband's brother) shall come upon her," I might think that this applied even to one of the Scriptural forbidden relations; it is, therefore, written here "upon her," and there "upon her." Just as there, Scripture speaks of a yevamah; here, too, Scripture speaks of a yevamah, (notwithstanding which Scripture states "You shall not take.") This tells me only of (the prohibition against taking) his wife's sister (in yibum). Whence do I derive the same for the other arayoth (i.e., for his daughter married to his brother)? — Just as it is forbidden to take in yibum his wife's sister, who is an ervah, deliberate transgression with which is liable to kareth, and unwitting transgression, to a sin-offering, so, every ervah which is thus liable. 11) This tells me only of (the prohibition against taking in yibum) her. Whence do we derive the same for her rival (i.e., his brother's other wife)? From "to be rivals." Whence do we derive the same for the rivals of all the arayoth? — Just as it is forbidden (to take in yibum) the rival of his wife's sister, deliberate transgression with whom is liable to kareth, and unwitting transgression, to a sin-offering, sop every ervah which is thus liable — whence we derive: "Fifteen women exempt their rivals and the rivals of their rivals (from yibum) all the way down the line." 12) I might think) that (also) forbidden are even the rival wives of the six "severe" arayoth (who are married to other men, [not his brothers]) [the six "severe" arayoth: his mother, his father's wife, his father's sister, his sister by his father, his father's brother's wife, and the wife of his brother by his father] — you would say (to counter this, that this is not so, for) just as in the instance (as in our verse) of his wife's sister, an ervah with which deliberate transgression is liable to kareth and unwitting transgression to a sin-offering and she is permitted to marry his brother, her rival is forbidden — so, every ervah with which deliberate transgression is liable to kareth and unwitting transgression to a sin-offering and she is permitted to marry his brother, her rival is forbidden — a (forbidden) "rival" obtaining only with (a woman married to) his brother (and not with these six, who are married to strangers) — whence they ruled: "The six more 'severe' arayoth, because they are married to others, their rivals are permitted. 13) We have heard the exhortation (against taking a woman together with her sister in yibum), but we have not heard the punishment. It is, therefore, written (Vayikra 18:29) "For all who do any of these abominations (shall be cut off [kareth]) from the midst of their people.") 14) (Vayikra 18:28) "so that the land not vomit you out by your making it unclean, (as it committed out the nation that was before you"): Eretz Yisrael, unlike other lands, does not maintain transgressors (within it). To what may this be compared? To a prince, who being fed something which, (being "princely") he cannot "digest," he vomits it up. So, Eretz Yisrael cannot maintain transgressors (within it) — wherefore it is written "so that the land not vomit you out by your making it unclean, as it vomited out the nation that was before you."
Sifra Kedoshim Chapter 12
Tap any verse to see what it echoes — and start a chain or echo from it.