Bava Metzia - Tosefta and Gemara

Tosefta and Gemara

The Tosefta in Bava Metzia is divided into eleven chapters, which correspond to the ten chapters of the Mishnah in the following way: Chaps. i.-ii. correspond to chaps. i.-ii. of the Mishnah; chap. iii. to chaps. iii.-iv. of the Mishnah; chaps. iv.-vi. to chap. v. of the Mishnah; chap. vii.—which begins "he who hires workmen" ("po'alin") instead of "he who hires artisans" ("umanin") to Mishnah vi. 1; and chap. viii. correspond to chaps. vi.-viii. of the Mishnah; chaps. ix.-x. to chap. xi.; chap. xi. to chap. x. of the Mishnah.

The Gemara, in explaining the laws of the Mishnah, discusses a variety of kindred problems, especially the Babylonian Gemara; the Jerusalem being very meager in this respect. Rabbi Zeira, coming from Babylonia to Jerusalem, is said to have fasted a hundred times within a certain period of time, praying that he might forget the Babylonian Gemara, and fully grasp the teachings of Rabbi Johanan, the Jerusalem master (B. M. 85a). According to Rashi, the rabbis of Jerusalem were not of a contentious disposition, and settled difficulties without much discussion (compare p. 38b: "Are you from Pumbedita, where they make an elephant pass through the eye of a needle?").