Translation:Shulchan Aruch/Yoreh Deah/129

If a non-Jewish worker is working in his shop and he has wine on a ship or in a cart, and he leaves it with the non-Jewish worker and goes to the synagogue or to the bathhouse, or if a non-Jewish worker is transferring barrels of wine from place to place and he leaves him alone with the wine and goes out (initially, a person should not leave wine or vinegar in his house with a non-Jewish worker alone at all, but retroactively it is permitted) (Mordechai, chapter of Rabbi Yitzhak in the name of Rabbenu Avraham). Even if he stayed for a long time because he is afraid at any moment that he will come and see him, provided it is not known that the non-Jewish worker closed the shop or that the cart and the ship moved away in a way that they cannot see him (and even if the shop is closed, as long as there is a crack or hole through which they can see inside, it is considered open) (there in Mordechai and in the Sefer Mitzvot Gadol).

In what cases are these words applicable? When there is a winding path that he could come upon suddenly without being seen, and similarly when he went to the bathhouse he took a winding path in a way that the non-Jewish worker did not know he went to the bathhouse. But if he saw that he went to enter the bathhouse, he knows he will not hurry to come. And if he told the non-Jewish worker that he left in the shop, "Watch for me," he knows that he has removed himself from his watch. And if he told the non-Jewish worker who is transferring the barrels, "You go, and I will come after you," or he informed him that he is sailing if the barrels are open, since they have disappeared from his sight, they are forbidden. And if they are closed, if there is in his sailing a measure that he could remove the entire lid from the barrel, whether it is of mud or of lime, and return it and wipe it, it is forbidden.

Gloss: And some say that if they are closed, it is permitted in any case, as one seal is sufficient (the opinion of Rashi). And one can rely on this in cases of great loss; see below, section 130.

The allowance when there is a winding path is specifically when the non-Jewish worker is alone, but if there are two or more, it is forbidden, as it is possible for one of them to guard the winding path while the other touches.

The allowance for completely open barrels without a cork applies only in a ship or in a shop where he does not have permission to touch the barrel itself, but in transferring a barrel from place to place, it is not allowed, and even if it is lacking, it is forbidden, as we are concerned that perhaps he touched it and he will not be afraid at all that he could slip and say that his intention in holding it was so that it would not fall.

Even if he informed him that he is sailing, if the barrel is corked and it is a time when there are many passersby, such as between the wine presses, it is permitted, as he is afraid of the passersby, even if they are non-Jews.

If a person gives the key to his shop to a non-Jew, the wine in it is permitted even if no Jew remains in the city, even if he informed him that he is sailing, as he did not give him anything but the guarding of the key, and he is afraid to enter it. And there are those who say that they permitted it only when he does not know that he is sailing, and then it is permitted even if he finds that he entered. But if he informed that he is sailing, even if he is caught as a thief, it is forbidden.

Gloss: And one may be lenient according to the first opinion (this is the opinion of Rabbi Chaim, as stated in the Riva, section 164, and in the Tashbetz, section 217, and in the Rashba). And if the non-Jew passed and entered there, if he is caught as a thief, it is permitted; and if he is not caught as a thief and has an excuse for entering, it is forbidden, specifically if he closed the door with a lock from the inside and there is no crack in the room through which they can see from there. But if the door is open (the Beit Yosef in the name of the Rashba) or even just a crack through which they can see the wine, it is permitted (Mordechai, chapter of Rabbi Yitzhak). And even if he told him to enter there (there) if he did not tell him to sail and he could come, as the non-Jew is afraid. And if the non-Jew is not afraid, such as the servants of the governor who caught the Jew (and are searching in the Jewish house), everything is forbidden if he has no sign that they did not touch (Beit Yosef in the name of the Tosafot and the Mordechai, chapter of Rabbi Yitzhak).

If a Jew and a non-Jew were on a ship with wine, and the Jew heard the sound of the shofar being blown for the holiday and entered the city, leaving the wine on the ship with the non-Jew, if there is a winding path that he could come upon suddenly and there is only one non-Jew there, the wine is permitted even if there is more than two thousand amot between him and the wine, as we do not consider them in their eyes as proper Sabbath keepers.

If Jews and a non-Jew were sitting to drink, each from his wine, and the Jew heard that they were calling to the synagogue and went there to pray, the wine is permitted if there is a winding path that he could come upon suddenly. But if they were drinking together from one wine and there was wine before them on the table and another wine outside the table, and the non-Jew left him alone at the table, the wine on the table is forbidden, and the wine outside the table that is within his reach is forbidden, and the wine outside his reach is permitted. And if he told him, "Pour and drink," all the open barrels in the house are forbidden, and the closed ones are permitted unless he stayed long enough to remove the entire lid and return it and wipe it.

If a Jew rented a house in the courtyard of a non-Jew and left wine in it and closed the door and put the bolt in the ring and forgot and did not lock it with a key, and he sailed away, and after some time the non-Jew realized that it was not locked with a key and informed the Jew, it is permitted. (Since the non-Jew did not know that the Jew was sailing out of fear and did not touch) (Response of the Rosh, section 19, paragraph 13).

In a house where a Jew has wine and a non-Jew lives below and the Jew is above, and there is a chimney from the upper room to the house, and both went out in a hurry to see a wedding or a eulogy, and the non-Jew returned and closed the opening, and then the Jew came, even though the Jew has no passage except through the house and it is impossible to pass without being seen, the open wine in the Jewish house is permitted, as he did not close the non-Jew except on the assumption that the Jew had already entered his house and no one remained outside, and he thinks that he preceded him.

Gloss: Specifically, that they went out in a hurry and returned, as it is possible to say that out of his panic he returned and did not pay attention to the entry of the Jew. But if it was not in a hurry, the wine is forbidden (Beit Yosef in the name of the Rambam).

If a non-Jew heard the sound of a lion's roar and out of fear hid among the barrels of wine and closed the door behind him, it is permitted even if they are open, as he says, "Perhaps a Jew is hiding here and will see me when I touch."

"Thieves who entered a cellar and opened wine barrels: If most of the thieves in the city are idolaters, it is forbidden; if most of them are Israelites, it is permitted; if most of them are Ishmaelites, it is forbidden to drink and permitted to enjoy. If there are Jews in a neighborhood alone, and there is no way for the idolater to interrupt them, we follow the majority of the inhabitants of the neighborhood, even though most of the inhabitants of the city are idolaters. And in a place where it is customary to conceal money in barrels and they are placed among wine barrels, even if most of the thieves in the city are idolaters, it is permitted, for perhaps they only came for the money, and when they saw it was wine, they did not touch it.

Gloss: And all this is discussing a case where we saw a defect, such as that they were initially sealed and then opened. But if they were sealed and found sealed, or if they were all open and no defect was found in them, everything is permitted (in the Beit Yosef, Rosh, section 164, and Mordechai and Agudah and Rabban). For a common thief does not take wine, and if there was a defect in some of them and the others were opened, of which we do not see a defect, everything is permitted (in the Beit Yosef and Mordechai, end of R. Y. response of Maharam). And some say that all this is discussing known thieves among the idolaters (so it seems in Mordechai, chapter R. Y., and the Beit Yosef brought it). But if one known thief is from Israel and one from an idolater is not known, we attribute it to the known Israelite. And see above.

A military force that enters a city and enters the house of an Israelite during peacetime: open barrels, even if they are corked, are forbidden; and sealed with a mud seal are permitted. And during wartime, both are permitted, and specifically the open ones from the beginning, but sealed ones that were opened we are concerned about.

An idolater found standing by the winepress: if there is a hand that is wet from contact (meaning that the hand that becomes wet from contact will also make another hand wet), it requires washing and wiping, and if not, washing is sufficient.

A prostitute who is an idolater at a gathering of Israelites: the wine is permitted since they do not allow her to pour it. But a Jewish prostitute at a gathering of idolaters: her wine is also forbidden.

If one left wine in his house with an open window, and an idolater came and brought in a prostitute and closed the door behind him, and then an Israelite came and found his wine as he left it, it is permitted.

A courtyard divided at the heads of stakes between an Israelite and an idolater: even though open barrels are standing close to the part of the idolater, they are permitted, and likewise if the roof of the Israelite is above the roof of the idolater and they are divided by stakes, he can place his wine there even if his hand reaches there.

A barrel of wine that floats in a river and is found opposite a city where most are Israelites: if there are obstacles and a dam in the river (meaning a blockage), the pools of water that would have held it if it came from another place are permitted, for we do not attribute it except to the city that is opposite it. But if there are no obstacles or pools in the river, it is forbidden, for we attribute it to the majority of the surroundings who are idolaters. And if it is found opposite a city where most are idolaters, if the majority of the surroundings are Israelites and it can come there by a straight path without sinking, it is permitted, even if it is very close to a city of idolaters, as long as it proves its proximity that it belongs to idolaters, we leave the close one and follow the majority. But if not, the wine is forbidden to enjoy, and the jug is of its owner. And if an Israelite comes and puts a sign in it, even the wine is permitted, and it is considered to be of its owner, for since the majority are idolaters, the owners have given up hope.

(And specifically if it is sealed with a cork, but if it is completely open, the wine is forbidden, for we are concerned that perhaps they touched it) (so it seems from the Ran, P.A.M., and it is also in T.A.V. 17):

A barrel of wine that is found in the vineyard of Israel, and there are other vineyards of Israel nearby, and many of them are vineyards of idolaters, even though they are far from Israel, the barrel is forbidden. We follow the majority, even though there is a clear indication that it belonged to Israel, and it goes without saying when there is no indication of Israel except for that vineyard. The same applies to leniency, such as if it is found in the vineyard of an idolater, even though there are other vineyards of idolaters. If there are many vineyards of Israel, even if they are far from them, we go to be lenient, provided it is situated among the mountains and not along the paths of travelers. If not, it is forbidden, as most travelers are idolaters, and perhaps some of them fell in. These words apply to bottles, but a barrel that is not typically carried by travelers is not subject to this consideration.

Wine jugs that are found thrown along the way, if the majority of wine pourers are Israelites, they are permitted if they are large jugs. But if they are small, which travelers typically carry, they are forbidden, as we assume they are mostly idolaters. If there are both large and small jugs, all are permitted, as the large ones indicate that the small ones are from wine pourers, and indeed most of them are Israelites, and the small ones came to balance the load.

If an Israelite has wine in his storage and the storage door is locked with one key, and he finds the door open, and an idolater admits that he opened it to draw water from a well in the storage to build his house, it is permitted.

Note: If the homeowner told his servant to set the table and found wine on his table, and his servant, who is an idolater, says that she took the wine from the cellar where there is a lot of wine—the wine in the cellar is permitted, as the idolater is not trusted, and perhaps she took it from somewhere else (Response of the Mordechai, chapter of Rabbi Yitzhak), and the wine on the table is forbidden.

Likewise, if someone hid the key to her cellar and did not find it in its place and found a jug of wine hidden in straw, and the servant, who is an idolater, says that she took the wine from the wine in the cellar, it is permitted, and the servant is not trusted (there and in the Agudah and in the gloss of Ashiri).

But if thieves entered the cellar and pulled out wine and left the taps open, and later the taps were found closed, and the servant, who is an idolater, says that she closed them, since the idolater was alone with the wine and is not considered a thief, and there is reason to believe that she closed them, the wine is forbidden (Mordechai at the end of the chapter of Rabbi Yitzhak).

However, nowadays, since idolaters do not perform libations, it is permitted, as explained above in sections 123 and 124.