1The Gemara responds: Moshe bar Atzrei was a guarantor who accepted unconditional responsibility [ kablan ] for the payment of the marriage contract. The Gemara objects: This works out well according to the one who says that with regard to a kablan , even though the debtor has no property at the time of the loan, nevertheless the kablan is responsible for payment. But according to the one who says that if the debtor has property then the kablan is responsible, but if he does not have property then the kablan does not agree to become responsible for the payment, what can be said? Since Rav Huna owned no property, how could payment of the marriage contract be collected from Moshe bar Atzrei?
2The Gemara responds: If you wish, say that Rav Huna had property at the time that his father accepted upon himself to be a guarantor, and it became blighted. And if you wish, say instead that a father, with regard to his son, accepts responsibility upon himself even if his son owns no property.
3The Gemara cites the aforementioned dispute in detail. As it was stated: Everyone agrees that an ordinary guarantor of a marriage contract does not resolve to become responsible for paying the marriage contract. Everyone also agrees that a kablan for a creditor is responsible for paying the debtor’s debt. By contrast, with regard to an ordinary guarantor of a debt owed to a creditor and a kablan for the payment of a marriage contract, the Sages disagree. There is one Sage who says: If the debtor or the husband has property then the guarantor becomes responsible, but if he does not have property then he does not become responsible. And there is another Sage who says: Even though the debtor or the husband does not have property, the guarantor becomes responsible for payment of the obligation.
4And the halakha in all of these cases is: Even though the principal does not have property of his own, the guarantor still becomes responsible for paying the obligation, except for the case of an ordinary guarantor of a marriage contract, with regard to which, even though the husband has property of his own when he draws up the marriage contract, the guarantor does not resolve to become responsible. What is the reason? He performs a mitzva, i.e., he agrees to be a guarantor only so that the woman will consent to the marriage but he does not actually resolve to become responsible. And furthermore, the woman did not lose anything in exchange for which the guarantor would have accepted responsibility, as the husband did not borrow money from her.
5§ The Gemara relates that there was a certain man who sold his property and later when he divorced his wife he had no property with which to pay the marriage contract. The wife therefore sought to collect payment from the buyers. Rav Yosef, son of Rava, sent the case before Rav Pappa: When a wife’s marriage contract is paid by a guarantor, we learned in the mishna that the husband vows that benefit from her is forbidden to him. Similarly, when she collects her marriage contract from consecrated property, we learned in the mishna that the husband takes such a vow. What is the halakha when she collects payment from a buyer? Rav Pappa said to him: Should the tanna have continued reckoning cases like a peddler, who announces all his wares? Obviously, the halakha is the same in the case of a buyer, as the identical reasoning applies despite the fact that the tanna neglected to mention this case.
6The Sages of Neharde’a say: That which we learned in the mishna we learned, and that which we did not learn in the mishna we did not learn, i.e., the husband does not need to make the vow when the payment of the marriage contract is collected from buyers. Rav Mesharshiyya said: What is the reasoning of the Sages of Neharde’a? Granted, when the payment of the marriage contract is collected from consecrated property the husband must make the vow due to the importance of maintaining the profit of the Temple treasury. In the case of a guarantor as well, the husband must make the vow, as the guarantor performed a mitzva and the woman did not lose anything, i.e., the guarantor received nothing from the wife, and he nevertheless accepted responsibility for the payment of the marriage contract. The husband therefore vows in order that others should not be discouraged from performing this mitzva.
7But in the case of a buyer, since he knows that each and every married man has upon him the potential obligation to pay a marriage contract, why should he go and purchase a field from the husband when there is a lien on it due to the marriage contract? Since it is he who caused himself to lose out, it is unreasonable to prevent the husband from remarrying his wife merely for the benefit of the buyer.
8MISHNA: In the case of one who consecrates his property and there was an outstanding debt of the marriage contract of his wife and of a creditor, the woman may not collect the payment of her marriage contract from the Temple treasury, nor may the creditor collect his debt. Rather, the one who redeems the property redeems it for a cheap price in order to give the woman her marriage contract payment and the creditor his debt. For example, if one consecrated property worth nine thousand dinars and his debt was ten thousand dinars, leaving no property for redemption, the creditor lends an additional dinar to the debtor and the debtor redeems the property with that dinar, in order to give the woman her marriage contract payment and the creditor his debt.
9GEMARA: The Gemara asks: Why do I need the mishna to state that the one who redeems, redeems, i.e., why isn’t the property given directly to the creditor without redemption? The Gemara answers: This is due to the explanation of Rabbi Abbahu, as Rabbi Abbahu says: The property is redeemed so that people will not say that consecrated property exits to non-sacred status without redemption.
10The mishna teaches that if one consecrated property worth nine thousand dinars and his debt was ten thousand dinars, the creditor lends an additional dinar to the debtor for him to redeem the property. The Gemara notes: The mishna is not in accordance with the opinion of Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel, as it is taught in a baraita that Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: If his debt corresponded to the value of his consecrated property, then the debtor redeems the property in the manner prescribed in the mishna.
11But if the value of the consecrated property is not enough to cover the debt, he does not redeem the property in this manner. Instead, it must be redeemed in accordance with its value. The Gemara asks: And according to the Rabbis, up to what amount may the property be redeemed in the manner described in the mishna? Rav Huna bar Yehuda says that Rav Sheshet says: The consecrated property must be worth at least half of the debt. If the property is worth less, it may be redeemed only in accordance with its monetary value.
12MISHNA: Although the Sages said (21a): With regard to those obligated to pay valuations, the court repossesses their property to pay their debt to the Temple treasury; nevertheless, the treasurer gives him permission to keep food sufficient for thirty days, and garments sufficient for twelve months, and a bed made with linens, and his sandals, and his phylacteries. The treasurer leaves these items for him, but he does not leave items for his wife or for his children.
13If the one obligated to pay was a craftsman, the treasurer gives him permission to keep two tools of his craft of each and every type, e.g., for a carpenter, the treasurer gives him permission to keep two adzes [ matzadin ] and two saws. Rabbi Eliezer says: If he was a farmer, the treasurer gives him permission to keep his pair of oxen with which he plows the field. If he was a donkey driver, the treasurer gives him permission to keep his donkey.
14If one had many tools of one type and few tools of one other type, e.g., three adzes and one saw, he may not say to the treasurer to sell one tool of the type of which he has many and to purchase for him one tool of the type of which he has few. Rather, the treasurer gives him two tools of the type of which he has many and he retains whatever he has of the type of which he has few. In contrast to one whose property is repossessed to pay valuations, from one who consecrates all his property, the treasurer takes his phylacteries, as they are included in the category of all his property.
15GEMARA: The Gemara asks: What is the reason that the treasurer leaves him with all of the tools mentioned in the mishna? The Gemara explains that the reason is that the verse states: