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Text Excerpt
קפסיק ותני: מבין הגוים, ואפילו מן תרמוד. ואמר רבי יוחנן: זאת אומרת מקבלין גרים מתרמוד.
The tanna concluded and taught: All stains from among the non-Jews are pure, from which it may be inferred: And even from Tarmod. This indicates that in all places inhabited by non-Jews there is no need to be concerned about stains. And R' Yoḥanan said: That is to say, one accepts converts from Tarmod without concern that they might be Jewish, albeit mamzerim. This contradicts the previous opinion attributed to R' Yoḥanan that converts from the Tarmodim are not accepted.
וכי תימא ״זאת״, ולא סבירא ליה — והא אמר רבי יוחנן: הלכה כסתם משנה! אמוראי נינהו, ואליבא דרבי יוחנן.
And if you would say that R' Yoḥanan specifically emphasized: That is to say, i.e., he meant that this conclusion may be logically inferred from the Mishnah, and yet he himself does not hold by this opinion, but didn’t R' Yoḥanan state a principle that the halakha is in accordance with the ruling of an unattributed Mishnah, as is the case here? The Talmud answers: They are amora’im, and they disagree in accordance with the opinion of R' Yoḥanan. Some rabbis said in R' Yoḥanan’s name that the Tarmodim are unfit, while others maintain that they are fit.
מתרמוד מאי טעמא לא? פליגי בה רבי יוחנן וסביא, חד אמר: משום עבדי שלמה, וחד אמר: משום בנות ירושלים.
§ The Talmud asks: And what is the reason that the rabbis do not accept converts from Tarmod? R' Yoḥanan and the Elders disagree about this matter. Although they concur that converts from Tarmod are not accepted, they disagree with regard to the reason. One of them said that it is due to the servants of King Solomon. Solomon built a city in Tarmod (see I Kings 9:18), and his non-Jew servants, taking advantage of their status and power, married Jewish women unlawfully. Therefore, it is possible that the inhabitants of Tarmod and their descendants are mamzerim. And the other one said that it is due to the daughters of Jerusalem, who were taken captive and raped and gave birth to children among the non-Jews.