Study Ketubot folio 88A with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
אי פיקח הוא, מייתי לה לידי שבועה דאורייתא. יהיב לה כתובתה באפי חד סהדא, וסמיך סהדא קמא אסהדא בתרא, ומוקים להו להנך קמאי במלוה.
If the husband is perspicacious, he can induce her to become obligated to take an oath by Torah law even in a case where only one witness saw the payment of the marriage contract, as follows: He now gives her the payment of her entire marriage contract in the presence of one witness, and joins the first witness to the last witness, so that there are now two witnesses to the payment of the entire marriage contract. And then, he establishes this first payment, about which the first witness had testified, as a loan, and claims payment of that sum from her, supported by the testimony of the first witness. With regard to this claim, her oath would serve the purpose of exempting her from payment, and it is not connected with a lien on land. Therefore, the witness can obligate her in an oath by Torah law.
מתקיף לה רב שישא בריה דרב אידי: היאך סמיך סהדא קמא אסהדא בתרא? אלא אמר רב שישא בריה דרב אידי: יהיב לה כתובתה באפי סהדא קמא וסהדא בתרא ומוקים לה[ו] להנך קמאי בהלואה.
Rav Sheisha, son of Rav Idi, objects to this: How can he join the first witness to the last witness when their testimonies do not refer to the same action? Rather, Rav Sheisha, son of Rav Idi, said: He now gives her the payment of her entire marriage contract in the presence of both the first witness and the last witness. And then, he establishes this first payment, about which the first witness had testified, as a loan, and claims payment of that sum from her, supported by the testimony of the first witness.
מתקיף לה רב אשי, אכתי יכולה למימר: שתי כתובות הואי! אלא אמר רב אשי: הוא דמודע להו.
Rav Ashi objects to this: The woman can still say: I had two marriage contracts. She can claim that he wrote two marriage contracts and she collected the payments at two separate points in time, but there was never a loan. Rather, Rav Ashi said: It is possible for him to obligate her to take an oath if he informs the two witnesseses that on this occasion he is paying her for the one marriage contract that he wrote. She is then unable to claim that it was a different marriage contract, and he can compel her to take an oath by Torah law about the first payment, which is now established as a loan.