What if a husband tells his wife that her vow is ratified now but will be nullified tomorrow? What if he were to say the opposite: her vow is nullified now but might be ratified later? The rabbis discuss these situations. They wonder about whether one hour of time might a difference the nullification of her vow; whether ratifying is different from nullifying. If a man responds to his wife's assertion that she will be a nazirite with "me too", is that automatically considered to be ratification? And when are rabbis allowed to change their minds?
A new Mishna tells us that the father of a betrothed woman carries more authority regarding her vows than the husband and that the husband carries less weight that the father. The rabbis provide verses to prove this assertion.
The move on to discuss the notion of a betrothed woman, a na'ara. A minor girl is a girl at least twelve years of age who has shown the beginning signs of puberty. This has been interpreted to mean that she has town at least two pubic hairs. For the six months following that time, she is called a na'ara and she is responsible for the observance of the mitzvot while her father is responsible for her marriage, vows, and the money involved in a divorce. Following those six months, the na'ara is actually a full-fledged woman with the right to payment for marriage and divorce and the right to set her own vows.
The rabbis discuss the differences between a na'ara and a grown woman regarding nullification of vows. How are these laws affected if the husband or if the father dies and the na'ara/woman is waiting to be married at the time? Is the Mishna referring to a na'ara or to a woman who is waiting to be married? The Gemara wonders whether or not much of the rabbi's conversation are simply clarifications or Rabbi Eliezer's and the Rabbis' divergent opinions in these matters.
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