Yevamot 91A

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Text Excerpt

פשיטא! בת לוי מן המעשר איצטריכא ליה.

The Talmud asks: It is obvious that she is disqualified, as she is a zona, a woman who has had sex with a man forbidden to her by the Torah and with whom she cannot establish a marital bond. The Talmud answers: Since it was necessary for the tanna to mention the disqualification of a daughter of a Levite from partaking of the tithe, he added that an Israelite woman is likewise disqualified from marrying into the priesthood.

ובת לוי מן המעשר מי מיפסלא בזנות? והתניא: לויה שנשבית, או שנבעלה בעילת זנות ⁠— נותנין לה מעשר ואוכלת. אמר רב ששת: קנסא.

The Talmud asks: And a daughter of a Levite, is she disqualified from partaking of the tithe by licentiousness? But isn’t it taught in a baraita: In the case of a Levite woman who was captured, who may have had sex with one of her captors, or even in a case where a Levite woman definitely engaged in licentious sex, we nevertheless give her first tithe and she may eat it? This indicates that an act of fornication does not disqualify a woman from partaking of the tithe. Rav Sheshet said: The disqualification is a penalty imposed by the rabbis on this particular woman for not taking sufficient care, as she married without witness testimony as to her first husband’s death.

בת כהן מן התרומה. אפילו בתרומה דרבנן.

§ The Mishnah further taught that the daughter of a priest in this situation is disqualified from partaking of teruma. The Talmud explains: This statement does not refer to teruma by Torah law, as it is obvious that she is prohibited to eat this produce. Rather, she is barred even from teruma that applies by rabbinic law.

Text data via Sefaria: William Davidson Edition - English and William Davidson Edition - Vocalized Aramaic, CC-BY-NC; edition provenance: Koren. Display terminology has been modernized for readability.