Ki Seitzei 21:13 · unit 3

TT #16 · Parashas Ki Seitzei · First aliya · Passuk 21:13

The Complete Passuk

וְהֵסִ֩ירָה֩ אֶת־שִׂמְלַ֨ת שִׁבְיָ֜הּ מֵעָלֶ֗יהָ וְיָֽשְׁבָה֙ בְּבֵיתֶ֔ךָ וּבָ֥כְתָ֛ה אֶת־אָבִ֥יהָ וְאֶת־אִמָּ֖הּ יֶ֣רַח יָמִ֑ים וְאַ֨חַר כֵּ֜ן תָּב֤וֹא אֵלֶ֙יהָ֙ וּבְעַלְתָּ֔הּ וְהָיְתָ֥ה לְךָ֖ לְאִשָּֽׁה׃

And she shall remove the garment of her captivity from upon her, and she shall remain in your house and weep for her father and her mother a full month; and afterward you may come to her and possess her, and she shall be your wife.

Chabad.org — 21:13

Source Citation

Torah Temimah points to Yevamos 48b.

Sefaria — Yevamos 48b

Core Text of Chazal

Core Text
אֶת אָבִיהָ וְאֶת אִמָּהּ – זוֹ עֲבוֹדַת כּוֹכָבִים, וְכֵן הוּא אוֹמֵר (ירמיה ב כז) אֹמְרִים לָעֵץ אָבִי אַתָּה.

English: “Her father and her mother” — this refers to idolatry, as it is said (Yirmeyahu 2:27), “They say to a tree, ‘You are my father.’” (Rabbi Akiva; we follow Rabbi Akiva.)

On the daf / in context: Rabbi Eliezer takes “father and mother” literally; Rabbi Akiva reads them as idols. The practical difference is whether a woman who has no living parents must still observe the full mourning period. Halacha follows Rabbi Akiva: the period is for abandoning idolatry.

Type of Learning

Derash equating “father and mother” with idolatry (R. Akiva).

What Is Learned

According to Rabbi Akiva the thirty-day weeping is for the idols she is abandoning, not necessarily for biological parents.