Mishnayos Yevamos Perek 3 Mishnah 9
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יבמות פרק ג׳ משנה ט׳
In the case of three brothers who were married to three unrelated women, and one of the brothers died, the following occurred: The second brother performed levirate betrothal with the wife of the deceased brother and before he was able to consummate the levirate marriage he died as well, leaving behind two women who happen before the third brother for levirate marriage. Then those two women must perform ḥalitza and may not enter into levirate marriage. As it is stated: “If brothers dwell together and one of them dies and he has no child, the wife of the dead man shall not be married outside of the family to one not of his kin; her brother-in-law will have intercourse with her” (Deuteronomy 25:5). This teaches that a woman eligible for levirate marriage is one who has one levirate relationship and not one who has a double levirate relationship. In this case, the wife of the first deceased brother requires levirate marriage due to both the marriage with her first husband as well as the levirate betrothal with the second brother. Rabbi Shimon says: He may consummate the levirate marriage with whichever woman he wishes and then perform ḥalitza with the second. In the case where two brothers were married to two sisters, and one of the brothers died, the widow at this point would be exempt from levirate marriage as the sister of his wife. And afterward the wife of the second brother died. Although the yevama is no longer the sister of his wife, this woman is nevertheless forbidden to him forever, since she had already been forbidden to him at one time.
שְׁלֹשָׁה אַחִין נְשׂוּאִין שָׁלֹשׁ נָכְרִיוֹת, וּמֵת אַחַד מֵהֶן, וְעָשָׂה בָהּ הַשֵּׁנִי מַאֲמָר, וָמֵת, הֲרֵי אֵלּוּ חוֹלְצוֹת וְלֹא מִתְיַבְּמוֹת, שֶׁנֶאֱמַר (דברים כה), וּמֵת אַחַד מֵהֶם יְבָמָהּ יָבֹא עָלֶיהָ, שֶׁעָלֶיהָ זִקַּת יָבָם אֶחָד, וְלֹא שֶׁעָלֶיהָ זִקַּת שְׁנֵי יְבָמִין. רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן אוֹמֵר, מְיַבֵּם לְאֵיזוֹ שֶׁיִּרְצֶה, וְחוֹלֵץ לַשְּׁנִיָּה. שְׁנֵי אַחִין נְשׂוּאִין לִשְׁתֵּי אֲחָיוֹת, וּמֵת אַחַד מֵהֶן, וְאַחַר כָּךְ מֵתָה אִשְׁתּוֹ שֶׁל שֵׁנִי, הֲרֵי זוֹ אֲסוּרָה עָלָיו עוֹלָמִית, הוֹאִיל וְנֶאֶסְרָה עָלָיו שָׁעָה אֶחָת:
Bartenura
זיקת שני יבמין. דכל זמן שלא כנסה זה עדיין זיקת ראשון עליו, ונתוספה עליו זיקת שני בשביל המאמר, וכשמת נותרו עליה זיקת שני יבמין:
ר״ש אומר וכו׳ דקסבר מספקא לן אי מאמר קונה לגמרי או לא קני כלל, לכך מיבם לאיזו שירצה, דאי מאמר קני לא הוי עלה אלא זיקת שני, ואי מאמר לא קני לא הוי עלה אלא זיקת הראשון:
וחולץ לשניה. דחדא לא מפטרה בביאת אידך, דדלמא מאמר לא קני והוו שתי יבמות הבאות מב׳ בתים. ויבומי תרווייהו לא, דדילמא מאמר קני והוו ב׳ יבמות הבאות מבית אחד. ואין הלכה כרבי שמעון. ואע״ג דאמרינן במתניתין דזיקת שני יבמין דאורייתא מקרא דיבמה יבא עליה, בגמרא מוכח דזיקת שני יבמין דרבנן היא, גזירה שמא יאמרו שתי יבמות הבאות מבית אחד מתיבמות:
זיקת שני יבמין – for as long as this living brother didn’t marry her, the levirate relation of first is upon him and the levirate relation of the second was added upon him because of the statement of intention he made [to perform a levirate marriage], and when he died, there remained upon her the levirate relation of two brothers-in-law.
רש"א וכו' – since he holds that it is doubtful to us if the statement of intention [of performing levirate marriage] acquires completely or does not acquire at all, therefore, he performs levirate marriage on whichever of them that he desires, for if the statement of intention [to perform levirate marriage] acquires, he does not have anything other than the levirate relation of the second but if the statement of intention [of levirate marriage] does not acquire, he has nothing upon him other than the levirate relation of the first woman.
וחולץ לשניה – for one does not free him from [sexual intercourse] with the other, for perhaps the statement of intention [of levirate marriage] does not acquire, and there was two sisters-in-law that come from two homes. But there is no levirate marriage with both for perhaps the statement of intention [of levirate marriage] acquires, and there would be two sisters-in-law coming from one house. But the Halakha is not according to Rabbi Shimon, and even though we state in our Mishnah that the levirate relation of the two brothers-in-law is from the Torah from a Biblical verse (Deuteronomy 25:5): “Her brother’s husband shall unite with her: [he shall take her as his wife and perform the levir’s duty],” in the Gemara (Tractate Yevamot 31b) it proves hat the levirate relation of two brothers-in-law is Rabbinic as a decree, lest the people state that two sisters-in-law coming from the same house (i.e., widows of the same brother) may both be taken in levirate marriage.