Rosh Hashana 2:5 — Beis Yaazek, and Who Counts as a Resident
The Lived Mishnah·A Zeman Nakat Project
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Rosh HashanaMesechtaמסכתראש השנה
2Perekפרקב׳
5Mishnahמשנהה׳
Mishnah ראש השנה ב׳:ה׳ · Rosh Hashana 2:5
חָצֵר גְּדוֹלָה הָיְתָה בִירוּשָׁלַיִם,
וּבֵית יַעְזֵק הָיְתָה נִקְרֵאת,
וּלְשָׁם כָּל הָעֵדִים מִתְכַּנְּסִים,
וּבֵית דִּין בּוֹדְקִין אוֹתָם שָׁם.
וּסְעוּדוֹת גְּדוֹלוֹת עוֹשִׂין לָהֶם
בִּשְׁבִיל שֶׁיְּהוּ רְגִילִין לָבֹא.
בָּרִאשׁוֹנָה
לֹא הָיוּ זָזִין מִשָּׁם כָּל הַיּוֹם,
הִתְקִין רַבָּן גַּמְלִיאֵל הַזָּקֵן
שֶׁיְּהוּ מְהַלְּכִין אַלְפַּיִם אַמָּה לְכָל רוּחַ.
וְלֹא אֵלּוּ בִלְבַד,
אֶלָּא אַף הַחֲכָמָה הַבָּאָה לְיַלֵּד,
וְהַבָּא לְהַצִּיל מִן הַדְּלֵקָה
וּמִן הַגַּיִס
וּמִן הַנָּהָר
וּמִן הַמַּפֹּלֶת,
הֲרֵי אֵלּוּ כְאַנְשֵׁי הָעִיר,
וְיֵשׁ לָהֶם אַלְפַּיִם אַמָּה לְכָל רוּחַ:
There was a large courtyard in Yerushalayim,
and it was called Beis Yaazek,
and it was there that all the witnesses would gather,
and beis din would examine them there.
And large seudos — feast meals — they would make for them,
so that they should be in the habit of coming.
Originally
they would not move from there the whole day.
There was enacted by Rabban Gamliel HaZaken:
that they may walk two thousand amos — the Shabbos boundary — in every direction.
And not these alone,
but this applies also to the midwife who comes to deliver a child,
and one who comes to rescue from a fire,
or from a marauding band,
or from a river,
or from a collapsed building —
these are like the residents of the city,
and they are given two thousand amos in every direction.
A reading aid, not an exact translation.
This English is a clause-by-clause rendering to help you follow the Hebrew. It is not word-for-word literal, and it is not a transcript of the recorded shiur — the audio carries explanation and context the translation deliberately leaves out.
case/objectrestrictive rulingpermissive rulingTannareason
Structure
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Summary Chart
Beis Yaazek, and Who Counts as a Resident▾
| Case | Ruling | Reason |
|---|---|---|
| The witnesses reach Yerushalayim on Shabbos — where do they wait? | In a large courtyard called Beis Yaazek, where beis din examines them | — |
| Why did beis din lay on a full seudah for them? | So they would want to come again | the mishnah states the inducement itself |
| They walked in from beyond the techum — how far could they go once they arrived? | Originally, not a step, all day | — |
| And after Rabban Gamliel HaZaken? | Rabban Gamliel HaZaken: Two thousand amos in every direction | — |
| A midwife runs to a birth on Shabbos, a man runs to a fire — does this reach them too? | Yes — they are reckoned residents of the city | — |
Transcript
A machine transcript of the recorded shiur.
This is the shiur as spoken, transcribed automatically and left unedited — the wording is Ephraim's, and occasional transcription errors remain. It follows the audio word by word.
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