Study Bava Batra folio 123A with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
חלקו עם אחד, וחלקו עם חמשה; מה חלקו עם אחד – פי שנים כאחד, אף חלקו עם חמשה – פי שנים כאחד!
There may be times when a firstborn takes his portion of the inheritance, dividing the estate with one other brother, and there may be times when a firstborn takes his portion of the inheritance, dividing the estate with 5 brothers, and there is no indication that the Torah differentiates between the manner in which the respective firstborns collect in each scenario. Therefore, just as when a firstborn takes his portion, dividing the estate with one other brother, he receives double the property received by one inheritor, so too, when a firstborn takes his portion of the inheritance, dividing the estate with 5 brothers, he receives double the property received by one inheritor.
או כלך לדרך זו – חלקו עם אחד, וחלקו עם חמשה; מה חלקו עם אחד – פי שנים בכל הנכסים, אף חלקו עם חמשה – פי שנים בכל הנכסים!
The baraita suggests the opposite logical derivation: Or perhaps go this way: There may be times when a firstborn takes his portion of the inheritance, dividing the estate with one other brother, and there may be times when a firstborn takes his portion of the inheritance, dividing the estate with 5 brothers. Therefore, just as when a firstborn takes his portion, dividing the estate with one other brother, he receives a double portion of all the property, so too when a firstborn takes his portion of the inheritance, dividing the estate with 5 brothers, he receives a double portion of all the property.
תלמוד לומר: ״והיה ביום הנחילו את בניו״ – התורה ריבתה נחלה אצל אחין; הא אין עליך לדון כלשון האחרון, אלא כלשון הראשון.
As the logical inference can lead to either conclusion, the halakha is determined by a derivation from a verse. The verse states: “Then it should be, in the day that he causes his sons to inherit” (Deuteronomy 21:16). As the next verse spells out: “But he should acknowledge the firstborn, the son of the hated, by giving him a double portion of all that he has” (Deuteronomy 21:17), the former verse is ostensibly redundant. The additional verse is therefore understood as an inclusion: The Torah increased inheritance with regard to the brothers, indicating that the more brothers there are, the greater the portion they collect from the entire estate. Therefore, you should not reason in accordance with the final formulation, in which the baraita suggests that the firstborn inherits twice as much as all the other brothers combined, but in accordance with the first formulation, according to which the firstborn inherits twice as much as each other brother.