In this daf, we continue our deep dive into the halachos of a get that was not signed immediately after it was written. We begin by exploring the machlokes between Rabbi Yoḥanan and Rabbi Shimon regarding whether we are choshesh that the husband appeased his wife during a delay in signing, which would invalidate the get. The Gemara then transitions into a fascinating discussion regarding a husband who instructs a group of ten men to write and sign a get for his wife, analyzing the nature of their signatures.
We will learn the fundamental machlokes between Rabbi Yoḥanan and Reish Lakish on this matter. Rabbi Yoḥanan holds that only two act as actual witnesses while the rest sign merely to fulfill the husband's stipulation, whereas Reish Lakish holds that all of them are meant to function as witnesses. This distinction leads to major halachic ramifications, particularly when there is a delay in the signing or if one of the signees is found to be a relative or otherwise disqualified.
חָיְישִׁינַן שֶׁמָּא פִּיֵּיס.
The Rabbis of the Mishnah hold that we are concerned that perhaps he appeased his wife during the delay, and they had marital relations, which would invalidate the get.
וְרַבִּי יוֹחָנָן אָמַר: אֲפִילּוּ מִכָּאן וְעַד עֲשָׂרָה יָמִים;
And Rabbi Yochanan said: Even if the delay in signing was from now until ten days later, the get is valid according to Rabbi Shimon.
אִם אִיתָא דְּפַיֵּיס – קָלָא אִית לַיהּ לְמִילְּתָא.
For if it is so that he appeased her, the matter has a voice—it would become public knowledge, and we do not worry about a quiet reconciliation.
אִיתְּמַר: אָמַר לַעֲשָׂרָה ״כִּתְבוּ גֵּט לְאִשְׁתִּי״;
It was stated that Amoraim disputed a case where a husband said to ten men, "Write a get for my wife."
אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן: שְׁנַיִם מִשּׁוּם עֵדִים, וְכוּלָּם מִשּׁוּם תְּנַאי.
Rabbi Yochanan said: Two of them sign on account of being the actual witnesses, and all the rest of them sign only on account of fulfilling the husband's stipulation.
וְרֵישׁ לָקִישׁ אָמַר: כּוּלָּם מִשּׁוּם עֵדִים.
And Reish Lakish said: All of them sign on account of being witnesses.
הֵיכִי דָמֵי?
The Gemara asks: What are the circumstances of this case?
אִילֵּימָא דְּלָא אֲמַר לְהוּ: ״כּוּלְּכֶם״;
If we say that he did not say to them, "All of you" sign,
וְהָא תְּנַן, אָמַר לַעֲשָׂרָה: ״כִּתְבוּ גֵּט לְאִשְׁתִּי״ – אֶחָד כּוֹתֵב וּשְׁנַיִם חוֹתְמִין!
but behold we learned in a Mishnah: If he said to ten people, "Write a get for my wife," then one writes it and two sign it, and the rest do not need to sign at all!
אֶלָּא דַּאֲמַר לְהוּ ״כּוּלְּכֶם״.
Rather, we must say that he said to them, "All of you" sign, in which case the Mishnah says they must all sign.
מַאי בֵּינַיְיהוּ?
The Gemara asks: What is the practical halachic difference between them?
אִיכָּא בֵּינַיְיהוּ – דַּחֲתוּם בֵּי תְרֵי מִינַּיְיהוּ בְּיוֹמֵיהּ, וְאִינָךְ מִכָּאן וְעַד עֲשָׂרָה יָמִים.
The Gemara answers: There is a difference between them in a case where two of them signed on its day—the day the get was written—and the others signed only from now until ten days later.
מַאן דְּאָמַר מִשּׁוּם תְּנַאי – כָּשֵׁר;
According to the one who says that the extra signatures are on account of a stipulation, the get is valid, because two valid witnesses signed on the day of writing, and the stipulation was eventually fulfilled.
וּמַאן דְּאָמַר מִשּׁוּם עֵדִים – פָּסוּל.
And according to the one who says they are all on account of witnesses, the get is invalid, because all the witnesses did not sign on the day it was written.
אִי נָמֵי – כְּגוֹן שֶׁנִּמְצָא אֶחָד מֵהֶם קָרוֹב אוֹ פָּסוּל.
Or also, there is a difference in a case such as where one of them was found to be a relative or disqualified to serve as a witness.
לְמַאן דְּאָמַר מִשּׁוּם תְּנַאי – כָּשֵׁר;
According to the one who says the extra signatures are on account of a stipulation, the get is valid, because the disqualified person only signed to fulfill the stipulation, and there are still two valid witnesses.
לְמַאן דְּאָמַר מִשּׁוּם עֵדִים – פָּסוּל.
But according to the one who says they are all on account of witnesses, the get is invalid, because if one witness in a group is disqualified, the entire testimony is void.
אִי חֲתִים בִּתְחִילָּה קָרוֹב אוֹ פָּסוּל;
The Gemara notes: If the relative or disqualified person signed at the beginning, before the two valid witnesses signed,
אָמְרִי לָהּ כָּשֵׁר, וְאָמְרִי לַהּ פָּסוּל.
some say the get is valid, and some say it is invalid.
אָמְרִי לָהּ כָּשֵׁר – תְּנַאי הוּא;
Some say it is valid because the requirement for ten signatures is a stipulation, and it does not matter in what order they sign.
אָמְרִי לַהּ פָּסוּל – אָתֵי לְאִיחַלּוֹפֵי בִּשְׁטָרוֹת דְּעָלְמָא.
And some say it is invalid because people will come to confuse it with other documents where a disqualified witness signing first would invalidate the document.
הָהוּא דַּאֲמַר לְהוּ לַעֲשָׂרָה: ״כִּתְבוּ גֵּט לְאִשְׁתִּי״;
The Gemara relates: There was a certain man who said to ten people, "Write a get for my wife."
חֲתוּם בֵּי תְרֵי מִינַּיְיהוּ בְּיוֹמֵיהּ, וְאִינָךְ – מִכָּאן וְעַד עֲשָׂרָה יָמִים.
Two of them signed on its day, and the others signed only from now until ten days later.
אֲתָא לְקַמֵּיהּ דְּרַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן לֵוִי, אֲמַר לֵיהּ:
The case came before Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, and he said to him:
The Gemara on Daf 18b clarifies the practical differences between Rabbi Yoḥanan and Reish Lakish regarding a get where the husband demanded ten signatures. We learn that if there is a delay of several days before the remaining witnesses sign, Rabbi Yoḥanan rules the get valid because the primary witnesses signed on day one, while Reish Lakish rules it invalid because all witnesses must sign on the day of writing. Furthermore, if one of the signees is disqualified, Rabbi Yoḥanan validates the get since the disqualified individual merely fulfilled a stipulation, whereas Reish Lakish invalidates it under the rule that a single disqualified witness in a group invalidates the entire testimony. Finally, the Gemara presents a sub-dispute regarding whether a disqualified witness signing first invalidates the get due to a Rabbinic decree, and concludes with a real-life case brought before Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi.
In our sugya, we see a fascinating discussion about a husband who tells ten people to write and sign a get for his wife. According to Rabbi Yochanan, only two of them are actually acting as halachic witnesses; the other eight are signing merely to fulfill a personal condition, a stipulation, that the husband laid down. This teaches us a profound lesson about how we view the people around us and the tasks we perform in our daily avodah.
Sometimes, we look at our lives and feel that if we are not the main actors, the primary "witnesses" at the center of the stage, then our contribution does not matter. We might think that if we are just the extra signatures on the document, we are insignificant. But the Torah teaches us otherwise. Even those who sign only to fulfill the condition are absolutely essential to making the entire document valid. Without them, the get cannot take effect.
In the Aibershter's world, every single neshama has a unique role. You do not need to be the main speaker, the wealthiest donor, or the most prominent figure in the community to be precious. Sometimes, your entire purpose in a situation is to be the one who quietly fulfills a condition, who lends a helping hand, or who simply shows up to support another Yid. Your presence and your actions, no matter how secondary they may seem to you, are what allow the ratzon of Hashem to be realized in this world.
Today, when you are asked to help with something where you are not the leader or the main focus, embrace the opportunity with joy and yiras Shamayim. Do your part with a full heart, knowing that your quiet participation is exactly what makes the entire mitzvah complete.