[159a - 40 lines; 159b - 42 lines]
1)[line 2]בנוBENO- his son (i.e. the son of the son who sold his father's property)
2)[line 3]אבוך מזבין, ואת מפיק?!AVUCH MAZBIN, V'AT MAPIK?!- [The buyers can say to him,] "Your father sold [the property] and you are repossessing [it from us]?!"
3)[line 4]מכח אבוה דאבא קאתינאMI'KO'ACH AVUHA D'ABA KA'ASINA- I am inheriting (lit. coming) by virtue of my father's father (and not my father, who sold property that was never rightfully his)
4)[line 5]"תַּחַת אֲבוֹתֶיךָ יִהְיוּ בָנֶיךָ; תְּשִׁיתֵמוֹ לְשָׂרִים בְּכָל הָאָרֶץ""TACHAS AVOSECHA YIHEYU VANECHA; TESHISEMO L'SARIM B'CHOL HA'ARETZ"- "Instead of your fathers shall be your children, whom you shall appoint as leaders throughout the land." (Tehilim 45:17)
5)[line 10]אבוה מזבין, איהו מפיק?!AVUHA MAZBIN, IHU MAPIK?!- [The buyers can say to him,] "The father (i.e. your father) sold [the property] and he is (i.e. you are) repossessing [it from us]?!"
6)[line 13]בחלק בכורה מאי עבידתיה?B'CHELEK BECHORAH MAI AVIDTEI?- What is he doing with the portion of the firstborn (since he is not his grandfather's firstborn son)?
7)[line 15]ובמקום אב קאימנאU'VIMKOM AV KA'IMNA- and I am inheriting (lit. standing) instead of my father
8)[line 16]עַד שלא נעשה גזלן, ונעשה גזלןAD SHE'LO NA'ASAH GAZLAN, V'NA'ASAH GAZLAN - [Reuven was a witness to a document for Shimon] before he became a notorious robber and he became a notorious robber (EDUS: PESUL GAZLAN)
The Gemara (see Rosh Hashanah 22a) lists the people who are Pesulei Edus, those people who are disqualified to judge or to give testimony. A Gazlan (robber) is disqualified from giving testimony, as the verse states, "אַל תָּשֶׁת יָדְךָ עִם רָשָׁע לִהְיֹת עֵד חָמָס" "Al Tashes Yadecha Im Rasha Liheyos Ed Chamas" - "do not place your hand with the wicked to be a thieving witness" (Shemos 23:1).
9)[line 17]הוא אינו מעיד על כתב ידוHU EINO ME'ID AL KESAV YADO - he may not testify to verify his signature (KIYUM SHETAROS)
(a)Mid'Oraisa, a Shtar (contract) or Get which was written legally and signed by witnesses is considered absolute proof. The Chachamim, out of fear of forgeries, required that every Shtar be validated ("Kiyum") in one of the following manners:
1.The witnesses themselves attest to the validity of their signatures.
2.Two other witnesses who recognize the signatures attest to their validity.
3.The signatures are matched to those on a previously validated Shtar or Get.
(b)At this stage in our Sugya, the Gemara states that the witness who became a Gazlan is disqualified from testifying to verify his signature, but others who recognize his signature may testify to validate the Shtar. This is thought to be the difficult topic of Dinei Mamonos.
10)[line 18]איהו לא מהימן; אחריני מהימני?IHU LO MEHEIMAN; ACHARINI MEHEIMNEI?- He is not believed [to verify his signature since he is a Gazlan]; others are believed [to validate a Shtar to which he is a witness]? (Perhaps he signed falsely, e.g. today, and the Shtar is not actually valid!)
11)[line 20]שהוחזק כתב ידו בבית דיןSHE'HUCHZAK KESAV YADO B'VEIS DIN- (a) his signature has previously been validated in Beis Din on a different Shtar (and even other witnesses are not believed to validate his signature, yet their testimony is unnecessary, since Beis Din already has a record of his signature) (RASHBAM, RABEINU GERSHOM); (b) this Shtar has been at hand until now in Beis Din; however, it had not yet been validated (RITVA); (c) his signature on this Shtar has previously been seen by Beis Din, and we have no reason to suspect that he signed falsely after he became a Gazlan (TOSFOS)
12)[line 22]עד שלא תפול לו בירושהAD SHE'LO TIPOL LO BI'YERUSHAH- [in a case where the Shtar is a bill of sale for a plot of land, one of the witnesses signed] before it (the same plot of land recorded in the Shtar) fell to him as an inheritance
13)[line 26]עד שלא נעשה חתנוAD SHE'LO NA'ASAH CHASNO- before he became his son-in-law
14)[line 33]גזירת מלך היאGEZEIRAS MELECH HI- it is the decree of the King (HaSh-m) [that a relative not be believed for any testimony, and not because we suspect that a person will sign falsely in favor of his relatives] (and even if Lo Huchzak Kesav Yado b'Veis Din previously, others are believed to verify his signature and validate the Shtar, while he is not believed) (RITVA)
15a)[line 35]משה ואהרן לחותנםMOSHE V'AHARON L'CHOSNAM- Moshe Rabeinu and Aharon ha'Kohen with regard to their fathers-in-law (had they signed Shetaros for them)
b)[line 35]משום דלא מהימני הוא?!MISHUM D'LO MEHEIMNEI HU?!- [are not accepted as valid witnesses] because they are not reliable?!
16)[line 39]ההוא בברכה כתיבHA'HU BI'VERACHAH KESIV- that [verse] is written merely to express a blessing (and the inheritance actually passes to the grandson from his grandfather through his father, and this is the difficult topic in Dinei Mamonos, since the father sold the property and the grandson is repossessing it from the buyers)
159b----------------------------------------159b
17)[line 6]"יורשי האב" בני; "מורישיו" אחיYORSHEI HA'AV: BENEI; MORISHAV: ACHEI- [the phrase] "Yorshei ha'Av" [mentioned in the Mishnah (Daf 157a)] refers to the sons [of the person who was killed along with his father or along with his "Morishav"]; [the phrase] "Morishav" [mentioned in that Mishnah] refers to the brothers [of the person who was killed along with his father or along with his "Morishav."] (For example, the house fell upon Chanoch and his father Reuven or upon Chanoch and his brother Karmi. Chanoch is obligated either to pay his wife the value of her Kesuvah or to repay a loan to his creditor. The sons of Chanoch claim that Chanoch died first and never inherited Reuven's or Karmi's money, rather, they inherit directly from Reuven ("mi'Ko'ach Avuha d'Aba ka'Asina") or from Karmi. The creditor claims that Reuven or Karmi died first and he therefore has the right to collect his loan from the money that Chanoch inherited.)
18)[line 10]ירושת אבוהון קא שקילנאYERUSHAS AVUHON KA SHAKILNA- I am taking the inheritance of your father (Chanoch, who actually inherited Reuven's or Karmi's money, even if he (Chanoch) died first)
19)[line 11]"יורשי האב" אחיו; "מורישיו" אחי דאבוהYORSHEI HA'AV: ECHAV; MORISHAV: ACHEI D'AVUHA- [the phrase] "Yorshei ha'Av" [mentioned in the Mishnah (Daf 157a)] refers to the brothers [of the person who was killed along with his father or along with his "Morishav"]; [the phrase] "Morishav" [mentioned in that Mishnah] refers to the uncles [of the person who was killed along with his father or along with his "Morishav."] (For example, the house fell upon Chanoch and his father Reuven or upon Chanoch and his uncle Shimon. Chanoch is obligated either to pay his wife the value of her Kesuvah or to repay a loan to his creditor. The brothers of Chanoch claim that Chanoch died first and never inherited Reuven's or Shimon's money, rather, they inherit directly from Reuven or Shimon. The creditor cannot refute their claim, since their inheritance is not dependent upon Chanoch, who died without children, and as such, has no inheritance whatsoever.
20a)[line 14]האב שנשבהHA'AV SHE'NISHBAH- a father who was captured [and died in captivity in a foreign country]
b)[line 14]ומת בנו במדינהU'MES BENO BI'MEDINAH- whose son also died in their homeland [and it is not known who died first]
21)[line 17]הי נינהוHAI NINHU...?- Which ones are...? (i.e. they have the same heirs)
22)[line 20]ואם איתאV'IM ISA- and if it is so [that a deceased son inherits his mother posthumously]
23)[line 21]לירתיהLIRSEI- he should inherit [his mother's father, whose estate falls to his mother]
24)[line 21]ולירתינהוV'LIRSINHU- and he should cause them to inherit [that which he inherited from his mother]
25a)[line 27]נאמרה סיבה בבןNE'EMRAH SIBAH B'VEN- the word [related to] "Sibah," transfer, is stated with regard to a son [in the verse, "וְלֹא תִסֹּב נַחֲלָה לִבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל מִמַּטֶּה אֶל מַטֶּה, כִּי אִישׁ בְּנַחֲלַת מַטֵּה אֲבֹתָיו יִדְבְּקוּ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל" "V'LO SISOV NACHALAH LI'VNEI YISRAEL MI'MATEH EL MATEH, KI ISH B'NACHALAS MATEH AVOSAV YIDBEKU BNEI YISRAEL" - " An inheritance belonging to Bnei Yisrael shall not be transferred from on tribe to another , but rather each man in Bnei Yisrael shall stick with the inheritance of the tribe of his father" (Bamidbar 36:7).]
b)[line 27]ונאמרה סיבה בבעלNE'EMRAH SIBAH B'VA'AL- the word [related to] "Sibah," transfer, is stated with regard to a husband [in the verse, "וְלֹא תִסֹּב נַחֲלָה מִמַּטֶּה לְמַטֶּה אַחֵר, כִּי אִישׁ בְּנַחֲלָתוֹ יִדְבְּקוּ מַטּוֹת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל" "V'LO SISOV NACHALAH MI'MATEH L'MATEH ACHER, KI ISH B'NACHALASO YIDBEKU MATOS BNEI YISRAEL" - " And an inheritance shall not be transferred from one tribe to a different tribe, but rather each man of the tribes of Bnei Yisrael shall stick with his inheritance" (Bamidbar 36:9).]
26)[line 29]נכסי דבר סיסין מזבנינא לךNICHSEI D'VAR SISIN MEZABENINA LACH- I am selling you the properties of Bar Sisin
27)[line 31]ואיקרויי הוא דמיקריאV'IKRUYEI HU D'MIKRAYA- and it happened to be called [by the name "Nichsei d'Var Sisin"]
28)[line 32]אוקמה בידא דלוקחUKMAH BI'YDA D'LOKE'ACH- he [ruled in favor of and] put the property in the hands of the buyer
29)[line 35]בשכוני גואי הואיBI'SHECHUNEI GAVA'EI HAVAI- I was in the inner rooms [for the entire time that you claim to have made a Chazakah, and I passed by you each time I went out]
30)[line 36]ברור אכילתךBEROR ACHILASECH- prove your Chazakah (lit. your eating [the "produce" of the house]) [by bringing witnesses that you lived in the house alone for three years]
31)[line 36]המוציא מחבירו עליו הראיהHA'MOTZI ME'CHAVEIRO ALAV HA'RE'AYAH
The general rule in monetary claims is that the burden of proof rests upon the one who wishes to extract payment or other items of value from the other person. Hence, when ownership is in doubt, all money or real estate remains with the one who has possession.
32)[last line]קיים שטרך וקום בנכסיKAYEIM SHTARACH V'KUM B'NICHSEI- validate your Shtar and take (lit. establish yourself on) your property