Ki Seitzei 21:14 · unit 6

TT #29 · Parashas Ki Seitzei · First aliya · Passuk 21:14

The Complete Passuk

וְהָיָ֞ה אִם־לֹ֧א חָפַ֣צְתָּ בָּ֗הּ וְשִׁלַּחְתָּהּ֙ לְנַפְשָׁ֔הּ וּמָכֹ֥ר לֹא־תִמְכְּרֶ֖נָּה בַּכָּ֑סֶף לֹא־תִתְעַמֵּ֣ר בָּ֔הּ תַּ֖חַת אֲשֶׁ֥ר עִנִּיתָֽהּ׃

And it shall be, if you do not desire her, then you shall send her away for herself; you shall not sell her for money; you shall not treat her as a slave, because you have afflicted her.

Chabad.org — 21:14

Source Citation

Torah Temimah points to Sifrei Devarim.

Sefaria — Sifrei Devarim

Core Text of Chazal

Core Text
לֹא תִתְעַמֵּר בָּהּ – לֹא תִּשְׁתַּמֵּשׁ בָּהּ.

English: “You shall not treat her as a slave” — you shall not make use of her (as a servant).

On the daf / in context: Once the soldier decides he no longer wants her as a wife he may not keep her in the household as a maidservant. The reason is “because you have afflicted her”: having already taken her under the concession of desire, he may not continue to exploit her.

Type of Learning

Derash on the verse (Sifrei) — the force of “lo sis’amer bah.”

What Is Learned

If the soldier no longer desires the former captive as a wife he may not retain her as a servant; he must release her completely free.