The Redemption of Captives: Talmud, Rambam and R.Shlomo Luria

that redeeming captives is a great mitzva. Rava said to Rabba bar Mari: Concerning this matter that the Sages stated, that redeeming captives is a great mitzva, from where is it derived?

Rabba bar Mari said to him: As it is written: “And it shall come to pass, when they say to you: To where shall we depart? Then you shall tell them: So says the Lord: Such as are for death, to death; and such as are for the sword, to the sword; and such as are for famine, to famine; and such as are for captivity, to captivity” (Jeremiah 15:2).

And Rabbi Yoḥanan says: Whichever punishment is written later in this verse is more severe than the one before it.....

And captivity is worse than all of them, as it includes all of them, i.e., famine, the sword, and death.

As Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Meir: A Torah scroll may be sold only if the seller needs the money in order to study Torah or to marry a woman.

R. Yehiel Michel Epstein, d. 1908, Lithuania.

On all four sections of the Shulhan Arukh; authoritative throughout the world.

(8) A woman is redeemed before a man; but where pederasty is common, the man is given precedence.

(10) The redemption of captives receives priority over sustaining the poor and providing them with clothing. [Indeed,] there is no greater mitzvah than the redemption of captives.30For as the Rambam continues to explain, all of the different aspects of charitable gifts are included in the redemption of captives (Bava Batra 8b). For a captive is among those who are hungry, thirsty, and unclothed and he is in mortal peril.31For at any time, his captors may take his life. If someone pays no attention to his redemption, he violates the negative commandments: "Do not harden your heart or close your hand" (Deuteronomy 15:7 , "Do not stand by when the blood of your neighbor is in danger" (Leviticus 19:16 , and "He shall not oppress him with exhausting work in your presence" (ibid. 25:53). And he has negated the observance of the positive commandments: "You shall certainly open up your hand to him" (Deuteronomy 15:8 , "And your brother shall live with you" (ibid. 19:18), "Love your neighbor as yourself" (Leviticus 19:18 , "Save those who are taken for death" (Proverbs 24:11 , and many other decrees of this nature. There is no mitzvah as great as the redemption of captives.

(11) When the inhabitants of a city collected money for building a synagogue and a purpose associated with a mitzvah arose, they may use the money for that purpose. If they purchased stones and beams, they should not sell them [and use the proceeds] for a purpose associated with a mitzvah other than the redemption of captives.32An exception is made in this instance, because the captives' lives are at risk. Even though they brought the stones [to the building site], cut the beams and shaped them to size, and prepared everything for building, it should all be sold, [but] only for the sake of redeeming captives. If they built [the synagogue] and completed it,33From the Rambam's wording, the Turei Zahav 252:21 infers that if the building is not complete, it may be sold. it should not be sold. Instead, the funds necessary to redeem the captives should be raised from the community.34The Siftei Cohen 252:1 states that if the community has no way of raising the funds through other means, it may sell the synagogue.

(12) We do not redeem captives for more than their worth35I.e., they are evaluated like servants sold at a slave market (Meiri, Gittin 45a). for the benefit of the world at large, i.e., so that enemies will not pursue people to hold them captive.36Gittin, loc. cit. gives two reasons:
a) Were lawless men to know that they could receive exorbitant prices for the redemption of captives, they would be encouraged to kidnap them frequently.
b) this would be very taxing for the community.
The Rambam follows the latter view. Hence, even family members who would be willing to pay the extra expense are forbidden to do so (Radbaz). When quoting this law, the Shulchan Aruch (Yoreh De'ah 252:4) states that if the captive is a Torah scholar, an exception can be made and he may be redeemed for more than his worth. We do not assist captives in escaping, for the benefit of the world at large, i.e., so that enemies will not oppress captives seriously and be very strict when guarding them.37I.e., if captives were wont to be helped to escape, kidnappers would become very strict and harsh when guarding other captives in the future.

(9) If he and his father and his teacher are captives, he himself comes before his teacher; and his teacher before his father; but his mother comes before all.

(6).... The captives are not redeemed for more than their actual monetary value, for the betterment of the world;

and one may not aid the captives in their attempt to escape from their captors for the betterment of the world, so that kidnappers will not be more restrictive with their captives to prevent them from escaping.

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: For the betterment of the captives, so that kidnappers will not avenge the escape of the captives by treating other captives with cruelty.