005 - הִלְכוֹת גֵּרוּשִׁין פֵּרֶק ה

Laws of Divorce, Chapter 5

1. The phrase in the Torah, "and he shall place it in her hand" (Devarim 24:1; Devarim 24:3), means only that the get must reach her. Whether it is her hand, her lap, her courtyard, or her agent whose hand is like her own—all are the same. Whether it is her courtyard that belongs to her, or one that is rented or borrowed by her—all are considered her domain; and once the get reaches her domain, she is divorced.

2. If one throws a get to his wife into her courtyard—if she is standing there beside her domain, she is divorced; but if not, she is not divorced, until she stands beside her courtyard, even if it is a courtyard where the get would be guarded inside it. For divorce is a liability for her, and one cannot impose a liability on a person except in their presence.

3. If she was standing on the roof of her house, and he was below in his courtyard, and he threw it up to her—once it reaches the airspace within the boundaries of the parapet, or within three handbreadths of the roof, she is divorced, provided it is descending to come to rest. But if it was erased or burned before it reached her—even if it was erased after it entered the airspace of the parapet or after it came within three handbreadths of the roof, such as if the wind blew it up and it was erased or burned—since it is not coming to rest, it is not a get and she is not divorced.

4. If the roof was his, and he was above on it, and she was below in her courtyard, and he threw her get—once the get leaves the boundaries of the roof and enters the boundaries of the place where she is standing, she is divorced.

5. If he threw it into her domain into fire and it was burned, or into water and it was lost—it is not a get. But if it reached her domain, and afterwards fire came and burned it—this is a get.

6. If he threw it onto a reed or spear that is stuck in her domain, it is not a get until it comes to rest in a place where it is guarded. If there are two courtyards, one inside the other, the inner one hers and the outer one his, and the walls of the outer are higher than those of the inner—once he throws the get into the airspace of the outer, she is divorced, for the inner is guarded by the walls of the outer, which is not the case with baskets.

7. How so? If there are two baskets, one inside the other, the inner one hers and the outer one his, and he threw her get into them—even if it reached the airspace of the inner, she is not divorced until it comes to rest on the side of the inner basket. In what case is this said? When it was lying on its side and has no rim. But if it has a rim—even if it comes to rest on its bottom, she is not divorced, for a vessel belonging to the wife in the husband's domain does not acquire the get for her, unless he is not particular about its place.

8. If he threw her get, and she was inside his house or his courtyard—she is not divorced until the get reaches her hand or her lap, or a vessel of hers among her vessels whose place the husband is not particular about, such as a glass or a small basket and the like. Similarly, if it reached her bed upon which she is sitting, and it is ten handbreadths high—she is divorced, for she has a portion of the domain for herself, and the husband is not particular about the place of the bed legs.

9. If the husband lent her a place in his courtyard but did not designate it, and he threw her the get and it reached four cubits where she is standing—she is divorced. If it rolled and fell onto a beam or a rock distant from her—if the place where it fell does not have four cubits by four cubits, and is not ten handbreadths high, and does not have a distinct name—then he has not given her a separate domain, and it is as if she and he are in the same place. But if there is there one of these three things, he has given himself a separate domain, and he lent her one place, not two places, and she is not divorced until the get reaches her.

Laws of Divorce, Chapter 5

10. If he threw her get into her domain, and it passed through her domain where she is standing, but it fell outside her domain—even if it passed within three handbreadths of the ground—she is not divorced, until it comes to rest in her domain. For she is not divorced when the get enters the airspace of her domain, unless it will ultimately come to rest in her domain.

11. If she was standing on her roof, and he threw it to her, and it fell on another roof adjacent to hers—if she can stretch out her hand and take it, she is divorced. Even though the dwellers above are distinct just as those below are distinct, people are not particular about such a place.

12. If her hand was outstretched, and he threw the get onto her hand, and it fell to the ground—if it fell within her four cubits and came to rest, she is divorced. If it fell into the sea or into fire, she is not divorced—this is when she was standing over the water or near the fire, so that from the beginning of its fall it was destined to be lost.

13. If he threw it to her in a public domain, or in a domain that belongs to neither of them—if it is closer to him, she is not divorced; if it is closer to her, she is divorced. If the get is exactly halfway between them, and from halfway to halfway until it is closer to her, she is in doubt whether she is divorced. If it is close enough to her that she would only need to bend down and take it, this is invalid, until the get reaches her hand, and only then may she remarry with it from the outset.

14. What is considered "closer to him"? If he is able to guard it and she is not able to guard it, this is "closer to him." If both of them can guard it, or neither can guard it, this is considered halfway between them.

15. If he came first and stood, and afterwards she stood opposite him, and he threw it to her—if the get is within his four cubits, she is not divorced, even if she could bend down and take it. If she stood first, and he came and stood opposite her, and he threw it to her—even if it is halfway between them, since it is within her four cubits, it is invalid, until the get reaches her hand.

16. If he threw the get to her hand, and it was tied with a string and part of the string was in his hand—if he is able to pull it back to himself, she is not divorced until the string is severed. But if he is not able to pull it back, she is divorced.

17. If he gave the get into the hand of her slave, and the slave is awake and she is guarding him—if the slave is bound, this is a valid get, and it is as if it reached her courtyard while she is standing beside it. But if he is not bound, it is not a get. If he gave it into the hand of the slave and the slave is asleep and she is guarding him, it is invalid; but if the slave is bound, she is divorced.

18. If he wrote a get and gave it to his own slave, and wrote her a deed of gift for the slave—once she acquires the slave, she acquires the get and is divorced, if the slave is bound. But if the slave is not bound and is awake, the slave is acquired, but she is not divorced until the get reaches her hand. Similarly, if he placed the get in his courtyard and sold or gave her the courtyard—once she acquires the courtyard by deed, money, or possession, she is divorced.