Study Sanhedrin folio 109B with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
Text Excerpt
דאית ליה תורא – נשקול חד משכא, דלית ליה תורא – נשקול תרי משכי. אמרו ליה: מאי האי? אמר להו: סוף דינא כתחילת דינא. מה תחילת דינא? דאית ליה תורא – מרעי חד יומא, דלית ליה תורי – מרעי תרי יומי. אף סוף דינא: דאית ליה חד תורא – לשקול חד, דלית ליה תורא – לשקול תרי.
Let anyone who has one ox take one hide and let anyone who does not have an ox take two hides. The people of Sodom said to the orphan: What is the reason for this? The orphan said to them: The ultimate rule is parallel to the initial rule; just as the initial rule is that anyone who has one ox should herd the city’s animals for one day and anyone who does not have any oxen should herd the city’s animals for two days, so too, the ultimate rule is: Let anyone who has one ox take one hide and let anyone who does not have an ox take two hides.
דעבר במברא – ניתיב חד זוזא, דלא עבר במברא – ניתיב תרי. דהוה ליה דרא דלבני, אתי כל חד וחד שקיל חדא, אמר ליה: אנא חדא דשקלי. דהוה שדי תומי או שמכי, אתו כל חד וחד שקיל חדא, אמר ליה: אנא חדא דשקלי.
Furthermore, they declared in Sodom: Let one who crosses on a ferry give one dinar as payment; let one who does not cross on a ferry, but walks in the river, give two dinars. In addition, when there was anyone who had a row of bricks, each and every one of the people of Sodom would come and take one brick and say to him: I am taking only one, and you are certainly not particular about so inconsequential an item, and they would do this until none remained. And when there was anyone who would cast garlic or onions to dry, each and every one of the people of Sodom would come and take one and say to him: I took only one garlic or onion, and they would do this until none remained.
There were 4 judges in Sodom and they were named for their actions: Shakrai, meaning liar, and Shakrurai, habitual liar, Zayfai, forger, and Matzlei Dina, perverter of justice. These were the judgments that they rendered: In a case of one who strikes the wife of another and causes her to miscarry, they would say to the woman’s husband: Give the woman to the one who struck her, so that she will be impregnated for you again. In a case of one who severed the ear of another’s donkey, they would say to the owner of the donkey: Give the donkey to the one who caused the damage, until the ear grows back. In a case of one who wounds another, they would say to the injured party: Give the one who wounded you a fee, as he let your blood.