Study Gittin folio 38B with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
and the court forced her master to emancipate her, and he made her a free woman. And Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said in explanation of why they forced him to do this: They took liberties with her, i.e., people had sex with her freely. This demonstrates that it is permitted to free a slave to prevent pe
The Talmud rejects this proof: How can these cases be compared? There, in the case of a half-female slave half-free woman, she is not fit for marrying a slave and she is not fit for marrying a freeman. This is why she is available to all, and the only way to solve this problem is to emancipate her
§ The Talmud returns to discussing the matter itself cited above. Rav Yehuda says that Shmuel says: Anyone who emancipates his slave violates a positive mitzva, as it is stated: “Of them may you take your bondmen forever” (Leviticus 25:46). This is a positive mitzva requiring that one subjugate slav
The Talmud raises an objection from a baraita: There was an incident involving R' Eliezer, who entered a synagogue to pray, and he did not find a quorum of 10 men, and he emancipated his slave and had him complete a quorum of 10. This demonstrates that one is permitted to emancipate his slave. The
The Talmud raises an objection from a baraita to the proof citing the incident involving R' Eliezer: A baraita states: “Of them may you take your bondmen forever,” is optional; this is the statement of R' Yishmael. R' Akiva says: It is an obligation. The Talmud now explains the Talmud’s objectio