The Jew shuts his shop on his workman, steps off the boat, hurries to the synagogue — and the wine is left alone. Twenty seifim for one measure: does the non-Jew still believe the owner may walk back in at any moment? The winding path, the four sentences that break the fear, the time it takes to lift a stopper and put it back, the crack that counts as an open door, and what remains when nobody saw anything
Structured review, ruling tables, rapid memorisation
The engine of the entire siman lies in eight words of seif 1: « מפני שהוא ירא בכל שעה עתה יבא ויראני » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א).
The mechanism is given exactly by the Shach (ש״ך יו״ד קכ״ט ס״ק א), and it is worth holding onto word for word: « כיון שהעובד כוכבים ידע שהישראל יודע שהוא שם אצל היין מירתת וסבור השתא יזכור הישראל יינו ויבא ויראנו ».
| The lever | What it establishes | Where it operates |
|---|---|---|
| מירתת — the fear of being caught | A non-Jew who thinks he may be seen does not touch, even after many hours | Seifim 1, 5, 8, 9, 10, 15 |
| דרך עקלתון — the winding path | A sudden return must be materially possible | Seifim 1, 2, 6, 7 |
| The time threshold of the מגופה | A sealed barrel is lost only once the delay allows the seal to be undone and remade | Seifim 1, 7 |
| רוב — the majority | Where nobody saw anything, we no longer weigh fear but provenance | Seifim 11, 17, 18, 19 |
| The leniency of זמן הזה | In our day non-Jews do not make nesekh, which softens the last stringency of the siman | Seif 20, at the close |
On the second question the Mechaber states the condition outright: « בד״א שיש דרך עקלתון שיכול לבא עליו פתאום שלא יראנו » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א).
And the ש״ך cites the ר״ן, who limits that demand to the carrier alone: « אבל בהניח וישראל יוצא ונכנס לא בעינן דרך עקלתון דכל שעה מתירא ממנו דילמא השתא אתי ישראל ויראהו מתקרב לחבית » (ש״ך יו״ד קכ״ט ס״ק ח).
The basis is seif 1, with the ש״ך and the ט״ז. The Mechaber opens with three scenes he treats as one, then lists what breaks them.
| The scene | What the Jew does | Ruling at the outset | Why |
|---|---|---|---|
| The shop | He leaves the non-Jew in his shop and goes out | Permitted, even at length | The non-Jew does not know when he will be back |
| The boat or wagon | He goes off to the synagogue or the bathhouse | Permitted, even at length | The same — provided he was not seen entering the bathhouse |
| The carrier | A non-Jew carries a barrel for him from place to place | Permitted | He is afraid of being overtaken on the way |
| The breach | The fact | Effect |
|---|---|---|
| The place closes | The non-Jew shut the shop, or moved the wagon and boat off until he could not be seen | The fear falls — unless a crack or hole remains |
| No winding path | The owner cannot return without being spotted from afar | The fear falls |
| He was seen entering the bathhouse | « אבל אם ראה שהלך ליכנס לבית המרחץ יודע שלא ימהר לבא » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א) | The fear falls |
| He said שמור לי | « וכן אם אמר לעובד כוכבים שהניח בחנות שמור לי יודע שנסתלק משמירתו » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א) | The owner has withdrawn from his own watch |
| He gave notice of leaving | To the carrier: לך ואני אבא אחריך — or word that he is off | Open: forbidden once out of sight. Sealed: by the delay |
The Rama finally separates the permitted from the advisable: « לכתחלה לא יניח אדם בביתו יין או חומץ אצל עובד כוכבים לבד כלל אבל בדיעבד מותר » (רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:א).
The דרך עקלתון is the roundabout way by which the owner can reappear without having been seen coming. Without it the non-Jew watches the straight road, sees the owner from afar, and has all the time he needs.
| The case | The rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| One non-Jew, a winding path available | Permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| Two non-Jews or more | Forbidden — one watches, the other touches | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ב |
| He went to the bathhouse by a detour, unnoticed | Permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| He was seen entering the bathhouse | Forbidden — he knows he will not be back soon | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| He left the boat at the shofar blast, one non-Jew aboard | Permitted, even beyond two thousand cubits | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ו |
| He went off to pray, each drinking his own wine | Permitted, where a winding path exists | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ז |
The rule of number is stated plainly: « הא דשרי כשיש דרך עקלתון דוקא כשהעובד כוכבים לבדו אבל אם הם שנים או יותר אסור שאפשר לאחד מהם לשמור הדרך עקלתון והאחר יגע » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ב).
And seif 6 adds a reason that surprises at first and then illuminates everything — the wine is permitted even far off: « אם יש דרך עקלתון שיוכל לבא עליו פתאום ואין שם אלא עובד כוכבים א׳ מותר היין אפילו אם יש בינו ליין יותר מאלפים אמה שאין אנו בעיניהם בחזקת שומרי שבת כראוי » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ו).
Four formulas recur in this siman. Each, spoken by the owner, tells the non-Jew the same thing: you will not be disturbed. These are the real grounds of prohibition here, far more than the length of the absence.
| The sentence | What it signals | Effect | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| שמור לי — guard this for me | The owner has discharged himself of his own watch | Forbidden | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| לך ואני אבא אחריך — go on, I shall follow | The carrier knows he will not be overtaken at once | Open forbidden; sealed by the delay | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| הודיעו שהוא מפליג — he gave notice of leaving | The owner can no longer walk in | Open forbidden; sealed by the delay | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| הוי מוזג ושותה — pour and drink | The non-Jew has been given title to approach the wine | Every open barrel in the house forbidden | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ז |
The fourth deserves to be read in full, since it reaches far beyond the table they were drinking at: « ואם אמר לו הוי מוזג ושותה כל החביות הפתוחות שבבית אסורות והסתומות מותרות » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ז).
Once the fear is gone the siman does not say forbidden: it measures. An open barrel is lost with no delay; a sealed one only after the time materially needed to undo the seal and remake it unnoticed.
What that leniency costs and what it buys, the Shach spells out exactly (ש״ך יו״ד קכ״ט ס״ק י״א): « היינו משום דיש פוסקים דסתימת מגופה לא הוי כחותם אבל בחותם אחד ממש סגי בדיעבד אפילו בלא הפסד מרובה ».
| State of the barrel | No notice given | Notice given |
|---|---|---|
| Open, no stopper | Permitted, even at length | Forbidden once out of sight |
| Plugged with a plain stopper פקוק | Permitted | Permitted in the season of passers-by; otherwise forbidden |
| Sealed with a מגופה of clay or lime | Permitted | Forbidden only once the full delay has passed |
| Sealed, where the loss is great | Permitted | Permitted per ר״ת, on whom the Rama allows reliance |
After time, place. The siman keeps returning to one material question: from where he stands, can he be seen? A closed door does not by itself answer no.
| The setting | Ruling | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Shop left open | Permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| Shop shut, but a crack or hole lets one see | Permitted — counted as open | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| Door bolted from within, no crack | There alone does the Rama forbid | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:ה |
| The key handed over, not the place | Permitted, even with no Jew in the city | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ה |
| Door bolted but not locked, the owner gone | Permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ח |
| Upper floor and house joined by a skylight | Permitted, where they went out and back in haste | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ט |
| Courtyard divided by the heads of stakes | Permitted, even within his reach | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ט״ז |
Seif 5 lays down the distinction the rest presupposes: « המוסר מפתח חנותו לעובד כוכבים היין שבו מותר אפילו לא נשאר שום יהודי בעיר » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ה).
From it the Rama draws the rule of the thief: « ואם עבר העובד כוכבים ונכנס שם אם נתפס כגנב שרי ואם אינו נתפס כגנב ויש לו התנצלות על מה שנכנס אסור » (רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:ה).
And he confines the prohibition to the truly closed place: « ודוקא אם סגר הדלת במנעול מבפנים ואין סדק בחדר שיכולים לראות משם » (רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:ה).
Seifim 6 to 15 are not a list of curiosities: they are ten readings of the same instrument, taken in steadily less favourable conditions. Read them in a column and the principle emerges.
| Seif | The scene | Ruling | What decides it |
|---|---|---|---|
| 6 | The Friday shofar; the Jew goes into the city and leaves the wine in the boat | Permitted | They do not credit us with staying put |
| 7 | The call to prayer; each was drinking his own wine | Permitted | The winding path still stands |
| 7 | They drank from one wine, cups on the table | The table forbidden, arm's reach forbidden | The non-Jew has title to touch |
| 8 | The bolt slid home, the key forgotten, the owner already far off | Permitted | The non-Jew did not know of the departure |
| 9 | Out in haste to see a bridegroom; the non-Jew shuts up behind him | Permitted | He assumed the Jew had got in first |
| 9 | The same scene, but without haste | Forbidden | Unhurried, he would have checked |
| 10 | The lion roars; the non-Jew hides among the barrels | Permitted, even open | He tells himself another man may be hiding there |
| 12 | Troops enter the city in peacetime | Open forbidden, sealed permitted | In peace a soldier fears being called to account |
| 12 | The same troops, in wartime | All permitted | They are busy with something other than wine |
| 14 | A non-Jewish courtesan at a Jewish gathering | Permitted | The company will not let her |
| 14 | A Jewish courtesan among non-Jews | Even her own wine is forbidden | Nobody is watching anything |
| 15 | The window open, the non-Jew inside with a courtesan | Permitted | He had other things on his mind |
Seif 9 says exactly why a door shut on the wine does not forbid it: « שלא סגר העובד כוכבים אלא על דעת שכבר נכנס הישראל לביתו ולא נשאר אדם בחוץ וכמדומה לו שהוא קדמו » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ט).
The Rama at once sets the limit: « ודוקא שיצאו בבהלה וחזרו דאפשר לומר שמתוך בהלתו חזר ולא דקדק יפה בכניסת ישראל אבל שלא בבהלה היין אסור » (רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:ט).
Seif 10 pushes the reasoning to its limit: « עובד כוכבים ששמע קול שאגת אריה ומפחדו נחבא בין החביות יין וסגר הדלת אחריו מותר אפי׳ הן פתוחות מפני שהוא אומר שמא ישראל אחר נחבא כאן ויראה אותי כשאגע » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י).
On seif 14 the ט״ז brings the reason of the gemara, and it is worth holding onto: « נהי דתקיף להו יצרא דעבירה יצרא דיין נסך לא תקיף להו » (ט״ז יו״ד קכ״ט ס״ק כ״ד).
And on seif 15 the ש״ך sums up in five words why the wine came through untouched: « דבעבידתיה טרוד ואין לו פנאי לנסך » (ש״ך יו״ד קכ״ט ס״ק ל״ו).
In seifim 11 and 17 to 19 the whole setting changes. There is no keeper, no owner stepping out, no fear to measure: there is an open barrel in a cellar, a barrel adrift on a river, a skin by the roadside. The question is no longer what did he believe? but where did this come from?
| The case | The rule | Source |
|---|---|---|
| Thieves in the cellar, most thieves non-Jews | Forbidden | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״א |
| Most thieves Jews | Permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״א |
| Most of them Ishmaelites | Forbidden to drink, permitted for benefit | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״א |
| A Jewish quarter no non-Jewish thoroughfare cuts through | We follow the majority of the quarter | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״א |
| A place where money is hidden in barrels | Permitted — they came for the money | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״א |
| Sealed found sealed, or nothing amiss at all | All permitted | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:י״א |
| A floating barrel, a dam upstream, a Jewish city opposite | Permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ז |
| A floating barrel with no dam | Forbidden — we follow the surrounding majority | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ז |
| A barrel in a Jewish vineyard, non-Jewish vineyards mostly around | Forbidden, even against telling proximity | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ח |
| Large skins, most wine-pourers Jews | Permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ט |
| Small skins alone | Forbidden — that is the travellers' size | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ט |
| Large and small together | All permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ט |
The opening rule is stated without qualification: « גנבים שנכנסו למרתף ופתחו חביות יין אם רוב גנבי העיר עובדי כוכבים אסור ואם רובן ישראל מותר ואם רובן ישמעאלים אסור בשתיה ומותר בהנאה » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״א).
The Rama at once narrows its reach to what was actually observed: « אבל אם היו סתומות ונמצאו סתומות או שהיו כולם פתוחות ולא נמצא בהם ריעותא הכל שרי » (רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:י״א).
And seif 18 lays down the principle the last three seifim apply: « החבית אסורה דאזלינן בתר רובא אף ע״ג דאיכא קורבא דמוכח דשל ישראל היתה » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ח).
Three seifim put on stage a non-Jew who speaks: the one who reports that a door was not locked, the one who admits to entering to draw water, and the maid who says where the wine came from. This is not testimony — the siman never believes them on their word — but one more fact to weigh.
| Who speaks | What he says | Effect | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| The non-Jewish neighbour | The door had not been locked for days | Permitted — he did not know of the departure, so he was afraid | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ח |
| The man who opened the storeroom | He went in to draw water to build his house | Permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:כ |
| The maid, about the wine on the table | She took it from the cellar | The wine on the table is forbidden | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:כ |
| The maid, about the wine in the cellar | She took it from the cellar | The cellar stays permitted — she is not believed | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:כ |
| The maid, about the taps found shut | She is the one who shut them | Forbidden — except in our own day | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:כ |
| The non-Jew by the winepress | He says nothing; the moisture is measured | Rinsing, and wiping where there is enough to wet | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ג |
The tale of the bolt instructs because the owner was at fault and still comes through: « ישראל ששכר בית בחצר העובד כוכבים והניח בו יין וסגר הדלת והכניס הבריח בטבעת ושכח ולא סגרו במפתח והפליג » (שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ח) — and the Rama gives the reason: « הואיל ולא ידע העובד כוכבים שמפליג הישראל מירתת ולא נגע » (רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:ח).
On the maidservant the Rama is blunt: « דאין העובדת כוכבי׳ נאמנת ואימר במקום אחר לקחה » (רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:כ).
And he closes the siman on the leniency that governs the whole subject today: « מיהו בזמן הזה דאין העובדי כוכבים מנסכים שרי » (רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:כ).
The letters of מירתת — the fear that guards the wine — serve as a prompt for the questions of the siman.
And bear in mind that if all five answers are favourable, one question remains, the Rama's closing one: are we בזמן הזה?
One last and quieter trap: seif 11 deals with a Jewish quarter, and seif 18 with telling proximity. They look like the same idea. They are opposites: in seif 11 the separateness of the quarter makes it the whole body of the calculation; in seif 18 nearness weighs nothing against the majority. The first is a boundary, the second a mere distance.
| Seif | Subject | The essentials |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | The three scenes, and what breaks them | One who leaves a non-Jew in his shop and goes out; one who has wine in a boat or a wagon and leaves it with the non-Jew while he goes to the synagogue or the bathhouse; and one whose barrel a non-Jew is carrying from place to place, left alone with the wine: permitted, even if he tarried a long while, because the non-Jew fears at every moment that the owner will walk in and see him. The Rama adds that at the outset one never leaves wine or vinegar alone with a non-Jew at all, though after the fact it is permitted. The permission falls away if it is known that the non-Jew shut the shop or moved the wagon or boat far enough that he cannot be seen — and the Rama stresses that a crack or a hole through which one can see inside counts as open. There must further be a winding path by which the owner can appear unseen; and if the non-Jew saw him go into the bathhouse, he knows he will not be back soon. So too if he said “ guard this for me ”, or told the carrier “ go on, I shall follow ”, or informed him that he was going away: open barrels are forbidden the moment they leave his sight; sealed barrels only if the absence lasted long enough to remove the whole stopper, replace it and let it dry. Rama: some hold a sealed barrel is permitted in every case, one seal sufficing for wine, and one may rely on this where the loss is great. |
| 2 | The winding path works only against one man | The permission that rests on the דרך עקלתון holds only where the non-Jew is alone. Where they are two or more it is forbidden: one can watch the winding path while the other touches. |
| 3 | The carrier is not the keeper | That fully open barrels, with no stopper at all, remain permitted holds only in a boat or a shop, where the non-Jew has no title to touch the barrel itself. But with one carrying a barrel from place to place, no: even a barrel already broached is forbidden, since we fear he touched it with no fear whatever, being able to slip away and say he only meant to steady it so it would not fall. |
| 4 | Passers-by do the guarding | Even where he informed him he was going away: if the barrel is plugged and it is a season of heavy traffic — such as between the winepresses — it is permitted, for he fears the passers-by even where they are non-Jews. |
| 5 | The key is not the house | One who hands the key of his shop to a non-Jew: the wine inside is permitted, even if no Jew is left in the city, and even if he informed him he was going away — for he entrusted him only with the guarding of the key, and he is afraid to go in. One view limits the permission to where he does not know that he is going away. Rama: we are lenient like the first view. If the non-Jew went in nonetheless: held as a thief, permitted; not held as a thief, with an excuse to offer, forbidden. And all this only where the door was bolted from within with no crack; but an open door, or even a crack alone, leaves the wine permitted, since the non-Jew is מירתת. Where he fears nothing — the governor's men who have seized the Jew — everything is forbidden unless there is a sign that they did not touch. |
| 6 | The Friday shofar | A Jew and a non-Jew in a boat carrying wine; the Jew hears the shofar blast that announces the cessation of work and goes into the city, leaving the wine with the non-Jew: if there is a winding path and only one non-Jew is there, the wine is permitted even beyond two thousand cubits — for in their eyes we are not held to be scrupulous keepers of Shabbat. |
| 7 | The table, arm's reach, and “ pour and drink ” | They were sitting, each drinking his own wine, and the Jew went off to pray at the call to the synagogue: the wine stays permitted where there is a winding path. But if they were drinking together from one wine, with wine before them on the table and other wine off the table: what is on the table is forbidden; of what is off the table, whatever lies within arm's reach is forbidden and what lies beyond is permitted. And if he told him “ pour and drink ”, every open barrel in the house is forbidden and the sealed ones permitted — unless he tarried long enough to remove the stopper, replace it and let it dry. |
| 8 | The bolt without the key | A Jew who rented a house in a non-Jew's courtyard, left wine there, shut the door and slid the bolt into the ring, but forgot to turn the key, and went away; days later the non-Jew notices it was not locked and tells the Jew: permitted. Rama: since the non-Jew did not know the Jew was going away, he is מירתת and did not touch. |
| 9 | Out in haste, back in haste | A house where a Jew keeps wine, the non-Jew living below and the Jew upstairs, with a skylight from the upper floor into the house; both rush out in haste to see a bridegroom or a eulogy, the non-Jew returns and shuts the door, and the Jew comes in after him: although the Jew has no way through except the house, and cannot pass unseen, the open wine stays permitted — the non-Jew shut the door only supposing that the Jew had already gone in and had got there first. Rama: and only where they went out and came back in haste; without that haste the wine is forbidden. |
| 10 | The roar of the lion | A non-Jew who, hearing a lion roar, hid in fear among the wine barrels and shut the door behind him: permitted, even where the barrels are open — for he says to himself that another Jew may be hiding there and will see him if he touches. |
| 11 | Thieves, and the ריעותא | Thieves who broke into a cellar and opened barrels of wine: if most of the city's thieves are non-Jews, forbidden; if most are Jews, permitted; if most are Ishmaelites, forbidden to drink and permitted for benefit. A Jewish quarter that no non-Jewish thoroughfare cuts through is judged by its own majority. And where money is customarily hidden in barrels set among the wine barrels, it is permitted even where most thieves are non-Jews — they may have come only for the money. Rama: all this only where some ריעותא was observed; sealed barrels found sealed, or all of them open with nothing amiss, are entirely permitted, an ordinary thief not taking wine. Where only some show the irregularity, all remain permitted. And some hold this speaks only of known non-Jewish thieves: where one Jewish thief is known and no non-Jew is, we attribute it to the known Jew. |
| 12 | Troops: peace and war | Troops that entered the city and a Jew's house in peacetime: open barrels, even plugged with a wooden stopper, are forbidden; those sealed with a clay stopper are permitted. In wartime both are permitted. And this speaks of barrels open from the outset; those that were sealed and were opened, we suspect. |
| 13 | Standing by the winepress | A non-Jew found standing by the winepress: if enough moisture is left there that a wet hand will wet another — טופח על מנת להטפיח — it needs rinsing and wiping; if not, rinsing suffices. |
| 14 | The courtesan | A non-Jewish courtesan at a Jewish gathering: the wine is permitted, for they will not let her touch it. But a Jewish courtesan at a gathering of non-Jews: even the courtesan's own wine is forbidden. |
| 15 | The window left open | He left wine at home with the window open; a non-Jew came, brought a courtesan in and shut the door behind him; the Jew came back afterwards and found his wine as he had left it: permitted. |
| 16 | The courtyard divided by stakes | A courtyard divided by the heads of stakes between a Jew and a non-Jew: although open barrels stand close to the non-Jew's portion and within his reach, they are permitted. So too if the Jew's roof is above the non-Jew's and they are divided by stakes, he may leave his wine there although the other's hand reaches it. |
| 17 | The floating barrel | A barrel of wine floating down the river and found opposite a city that is mostly Jewish: if the river holds obstacles and a dam that would have stopped it had it come from elsewhere, it is permitted, since it can be traced only to the city facing it; with no dam it is forbidden, since we trace it to the surrounding majority, which is non-Jewish. Found opposite a mostly non-Jewish city, if the surroundings are mostly Jewish and it could come by a straight course, it is permitted even very close to the non-Jewish city: we set proximity aside and follow the majority. Otherwise the wine is forbidden for benefit and the jug belongs to the finder; and if a Jew comes and identifies it by a mark, the wine too is permitted. Rama: and only where it is plugged; wide open, the wine is forbidden. |
| 18 | The barrel in the vineyard | A barrel of wine found in a Jew's vineyard, with other Jewish vineyards nearby and many non-Jewish vineyards around, however distant: the barrel is forbidden, for we follow the majority even against telling proximity. And likewise to be lenient: found in a non-Jew's vineyard, where Jewish vineyards are more numerous even at a distance, we go leniently — provided the place lies among the hills where no travellers pass; otherwise it is forbidden, most travellers being non-Jews. And all this for a flask, not for a barrel that travellers do not carry. |
| 19 | Wineskins on the road | Wineskins found thrown down on the road: if most of those who pour wine are Jews, they are permitted where they are large; small ones are forbidden, since travellers carry such, and most travellers are non-Jews. But where large and small are found together, all are permitted: the large ones testify about the small, which came only to balance the load. |
| 20 | The non-Jew's admission, and the maidservant | A Jew who keeps wine in his storeroom locked with a key, finds the door open, and one non-Jew admits that he opened it to draw water from the pit inside so as to build his house: permitted. Rama: a householder who told his maidservant to set the table, finds wine on it, and is told by her that she took it from the cellar: the wine in the cellar is permitted — she is not believed — and the wine on the table is forbidden. So too with the hidden key and the jug found buried in straw. But where thieves drew wine and left the taps open, and the taps were later found shut, and the maidservant says she shut them: since she was alone with the wine, is not held as a thief, and the circumstances bear her out, the wine is forbidden — except in our own day, when non-Jews do not make nesekh. |
| Question | Reflex answer | Source |
|---|---|---|
| The Jew left his shop and stayed away a long while? | Permitted — the non-Jew does not know when he returns | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| The non-Jew shut the shop? | Forbidden — unless a crack or hole remains | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א ; רמ״א שם |
| No winding path at all? | Forbidden — he will see the owner coming from afar | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| There are two non-Jews? | Forbidden, even with a winding path | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ב |
| The Jew said “ guard this for me ”? | Forbidden — he withdrew from his own watch | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| He gave notice of leaving, barrels open? | Forbidden once they leave his sight | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| The same, barrels sealed? | Forbidden only once the delay of the מגופה has passed | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| A great loss on a sealed barrel? | One may rely on ר״ת: a single seal suffices | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:א |
| Notice given, but plugged in the season of passers-by? | Permitted — he fears the passers-by, non-Jews included | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ד |
| He was handed the key of the shop? | Permitted, even with no Jew left in the city | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ה |
| He went in anyway? | Permitted if held as a thief, forbidden if he has an excuse | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:ה |
| These are the governor's men? | All forbidden, absent a sign that nothing was touched | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:ה |
| He said “ pour and drink ”? | Every open barrel in the house is forbidden | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ז |
| The wine stood off the table? | Forbidden within arm's reach, permitted beyond | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ז |
| Out in haste, and the non-Jew shut the door? | Permitted — he assumed the Jew had got in first | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ט |
| Troops came in during wartime? | All permitted — open as well as sealed | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ב |
| A non-Jew by a damp winepress? | Rinsing and wiping where there is טופח על מנת להטפיח | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ג |
| A courtyard divided by stakes? | Permitted, even within his reach | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:ט״ז |
| Thieves, but nothing amiss observed? | All permitted — a thief does not carry off wine | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:י״א |
| A barrel found in a Jewish vineyard, non-Jewish vineyards around? | Forbidden — majority outweighs proximity | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ח |
| Large and small wineskins together? | All permitted | שו״ע יו״ד קכ״ט:י״ט |
| The maid says she shut the taps? | Forbidden by the letter — permitted in our own day | רמ״א יו״ד קכ״ט:כ |
| Level | Content | Outcome |
|---|---|---|
| 🌱 Level 1 — Base | The text of all 20 seifim, translation, step-by-step explanation | Overall understanding |
| ⚡ Level 2 — Lamdan | The definition of מירתת, the reach of דרך עקלתון per the ר״ן and the ב״ח, the single seal of ר״ת, and how רוב stands against קורבא דמוכח | In-depth study |
| ✨ Level 3 — Synthesis | Two master tables, the four sentences, the time threshold, golden rules, mnemonic, traps, and a recap of all 20 seifim | Practical mastery and review |
| 📜 Level 4 — Halacha le-ma'aseh | The practical ruling according to the ש״ך, the ט״ז, the פתחי תשובה and the poskim | Contemporary application |
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