Verse structure: 6 words, 25 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "in·mountain·of" (בְּהַ֥ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·spoke" (וַיְדַבֵּ֤ר, 5 letters). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "saying" (root אמר, 79x in Leviticus); "and·spoke" (root דבר, 76x in Leviticus). Full calculation: וַיְדַבֵּ֤ר [and·spoke] (222) + יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (26) + אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה [to·Moses] (376) + בְּהַ֥ר [in·mountain·of] (207) + סִינַ֖י [Sinai] (130) + לֵאמֹֽר [saying] (271) = 1232.
Onkelos
And Hashem spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai, saying:
Rashi
בהר סיני [AND THE LORD SPOKE UNTO MOSES] ON THE MOUNT SINAI — What has the matter of the Sabbatical year to do with Mount Sinai that Scripture felt compelled to expressly state where it was commanded? Were not all commandments given on Sinai? But this statement is intended to suggest the following comparison: How is it in the case of the law of Shemittah? Its general rules, [its specific prescriptions] and minute details were ordained on Mount Sinai! So, also, were all commandments with their general rules and their minute details ordained on Mount Sinai. Thus is taught in Torath Cohanim (Sifra, Behar, Section 1 1). It seems to me that the following is the explanation of this: Since we do not find in Deuteronomy that the law concerning “the rest of the soil in the Sabbatical year” was repeated in “the fields of Moab” (cf. Deuteronomy 34:1; the place where Moses repeated many of the commandments contained in the other books of the Pentateuch), we may infer that all its general rules and specific prescriptions must have been promulgated on Sinai. The express mention of בהר סיני here appears therefore to be unnecessary but Scripture by mentioning it intends to teach regarding every Divine command (lit., Divine utterance) that was spoken to Moses that in every case they, their general rules and minute details originated at Sinai and that they were only repeated again in “the fields of Moab”.
Ramban
AND THE ETERNAL SPOKE UNTO MOSES IN MOUNT SINAI. “What has the subject of the Sabbatical year [stated here in this section] to do with that of Mount Sinai? Were not all the commandments declared on Sinai? [It is to teach us that] just as [this law of] the Sabbatical year was ordained on Sinai with its general rules, its specific prescripts and its minute details, so also were all [the commandments] ordained on Sinai with their general rules, and their specific prescripts and their minute details. Thus it is taught [here] in the Torath Kohanin. It appears to me that the following is the interpretation thereof: Since we do not find the law of the resting of the soil [in the Sabbatical year] repeated in the plains of Moab [when Moses restated the law, as contained in the Book of Deuteronomy], we must deduce that all the general rules and specific prescripts [of the Sabbatical year, including those of the resting of the soil] were declared on Sinai. [Why then was it necessary for Scripture to state here in Mount Sinai, since it is self-understood that this entire law was promulgated on Sinai, since the law of the resting of the soil is not mentioned in the Book of Deuteronomy? We must say that the reason] Scripture mentioned [the phrase in Mount Sinai] here is in order to teach that every communication [i.e., commandment] that was spoken to Moses on Sinai, was given at Sinai together with its general rules and minute details, and they were [merely] repeated and taught again in the plains of Moab.” Thus far is the language of Rashi. But this does not appear to me to be correct at all. For there are many commandments like the Sabbatical year which were not repeated in the plains of Moab, and [all] we know about their general rules and specific prescripts is that they were promulgated either on Sinai or in the Tent of Meeting [but not specifically on Sinai, as Rashi said]! Moreover, how do we know that the other commandments which were repeated in the plains of Moab are to be likened to the Sabbatical year [which was not repeated? Perhaps this analogy applies only to those commandments which were not repeated in the plains of Moab, like the Sabbatical year; but how do we know that the analogy applies also to those that were repeated by Moses in the plains of Moab, as contained in the Book of Deuteronomy? And how do we know that in the case of those commandments that were repeated by Moses], that only the general rules were declared on Sinai but the specific prescripts were given in the plains of Moab! And indeed it would be more logical to say so, that those commandments which were repeated by Moses, were restated for the sake of explaining their specific prescripts, since on Sinai only their general rules had been declared!But the interpretation of the above Beraitha is clear: The general rules of the Sabbatical year were declared on Sinai, as it is written in the section of ‘V’eileh Hamishpatim’ (And these are the ordinances): And on the seventh ye...
Ibn Ezra
"At Mount Sinai." There is no strict chronological order in the Torah, and this passage precedes [the section of] "Vayikra" and all the parashot that follow it, for that speech took place at Mount Sinai. But [the Torah] has now recorded here the covenant that was written in the parasha of "These are the Ordinances" (Mishpatim). It mentions it in this place in order to connect the conditions relating to the Land. Just as it said regarding the forbidden sexual relations that on their account the Land will vomit them out, so here in the parasha of "If you follow My statutes" (Bechukotai) it speaks of the Sabbaticals of the Land — and it begins first by explaining the Sabbaticals.
Sforno
וידבר ה' אל משה בהר סיני, it is noteworthy that nowhere else when the Torah announces new legislation does it also mention where this legislation was originally issued. The only time such locations are mentioned is when a new element of that commandment is added. We have heard about the principle of the sh’mittah legislation in Exodus 23,11 where the general outline was presented, the Torah writing that the produce of the land during the seventh year should be left untouched by the farmer and is intended for the poor of the nation.Now the Torah reverts to present this legislation in greater detail. This is the reason why we are told where these details were first spelled out. What we read here is only a prototype. The principle does not apply only to the sh’mittah legislation, but wherever some legislation had been mentioned in a general manner only, when the details were filled in this took place at Mount Sinai, just as it did in the case of the sh’mittah legislation. (Torat Kohanim 1,1)The reason that Moses mentioned this particular legislation at this point is because at this time he was still under the impression that the Israelites would proceed in short order to the land of Canaan, the sin of the spies which set them back by forty years not having occurred yet. Even as late as Numbers 10,29 Moses still spoke to the people of the impending journey to the Holy Land. Speaking about the soil of the holy Land “resting,” is the subject in Leviticus 26,34 as well as in Chronicles II 36,21. This shows that the main focus of the sh’mittah legislation concerns the “Sabbatical” experienced by the farmland of the nation.
Or HaChaim
בהר סיני, at Mount Sinai. We need to know why the Torah found it necessary to mention that this legislation was revealed at Mount Sinai. While it is true that our sages in Torat Kohanim explain that this is merely a reminder of the fact that all the commandments were given to Moses at Mount Sinai, both in general terms as well as in all their details, this does not answer the question why the Torah selected this commandment to remind us of that fact. It would have made much better sense to state this fact either when relating the first or the last of the Torah's commandments. Perhaps the fact that here G'd describes His gift to the Jewish people, the land of Israel, prompted Him to remind the people that the gift of the land was conditional on the people observing the commandments they had accepted at the time they stood at Mount Sinai and received the Ten Commandments. The present tense, i.e. אשר אני נותן ties the gift to Mount Sinai where the Israelites undertook to keep the Torah. Another reason may be related to a statement we find in Avodah Zarah 20 and considered as binding by Maimonides in chapter 3 of his treatise called Zechiyah. Here is what Maimonides writes: "It is forbidden to give a gift to a pagan (unless it is in return for services rendered)." We must remember that prior to acceptance of the Torah by the Jewish people they themselves were legally in the category of pagans, i.e. G'd could not legally make a gift of the land of Israel to the Jewish people until they offered some value in return. He could only give the land of Israel to them after the revelation at Mount Sinai. G'd alluded to this when the Torah mentioned Mount Sinai as the reason for "the land which I am about to give to you." This also answers the question why G'd had to say: "which I am giving to you." There was never any doubt that it was G'd from whom we would receive this gift so that we could have erred if the Torah did not repeat it. You will note that in Leviticus 19,23 where the Torah legislates about the ערלה restrictions the subject is introduced as follows: "when you come to the land and plant fruit-bearing trees, etc." In that instance the Torah did not mention who gives the land to the Israelites, etc. This supports our theory about why G'd selected the example of our verse to teach us that the gift of the land of Israel is tied to the experience at Mount Sinai.
Chizkuni
בהר סיני, “at Mount Sinai.” Whenever the expression: “at Mount Sinai,” is used in the Torah, it refers to a point in time before Moses descended after his third lengthy stay on it in the month of Tishrey. In other words, the legislation described here had been revealed to Moses before the Tabernacle had been built. If these laws were recorded in the Book of Leviticus, and not in the Book of Exodus, seeing that Moses had descended the third time before events described at the end of the Book of Exodus, this is because the laws applied only after the Israelites had settled in their homeland, especially the laws governing Sh’mittah and Yovel, that are prominent in this portion; they are all laws applying also to the priests (although they were not real landowners) about whom most of the legislation in the Book of Leviticus revolves. When we consider that numerous laws were recorded in the second third and fourth Book of the Torah and repeated in the fifth Book by Moses, it is clear that laws that were not repeated by Moses in the fifth Book, must have been given to him already at Mount Sinai. The laws concerning the Sabbaths of the land in the seventh year, and the Sabbath of the land, and the freedom to be granted to the slaves, and the restoration of lands that had been sold under financial duress by their owner during a particular 50 year cycle known as yovel, belong to such categories. The laws about inheritance of the land and those that could be applied only after the Israelites had taken possession of the lands on the east Bank of the Jordan as well as a number of laws pertaining to land ownership were repeated once more. It appears therefore that if the Torah had to make a point here to emphasize that the laws had been given to Moses at Mount Sinai, we must assume that the general outline was given at Sinai to the people and the details were not revealed to them until realization of keeping them would draw near.
Rabbeinu Bahya
צדיק יהגה לענות ופי רשעים יביע רעות, “The heart of the righteous plans his answers carefully; the mouth of the wicked pours forth evil.” (Prov. 15,28) Solomon contrasts the opposite natures of the righteous and the wicked. He reveals to us that the wicked are proud and arrogant by nature, whereas the righteous is modest and self-effacing. He does so in order to encourage us to practice the positive virtues of the righteous and to avoid practicing the negative virtues of the wicked. The word לענות used by Solomon when describing the righteous is the same word applied by Moses to Pharaoh in Exodus 10,3 when he asked Pharaoh how long he would still refuse to humble himself, לענות, before the Lord? Moses challenged Pharaoh saying that since he had not yet humbled himself before the Lord his answer to the requests made of him by G’d through Moses would reflect his arrogance. Man’s speech is a mirror of how or what he thinks. The חכמי המוסר (Chovot HaLevavot section HaBechinah chapter 5) describe language as the writing quill of the heart. Seeing the righteous person has a clean conscience the words he speaks truly reflect what he thinks and what is in his heart. The reverse is true of the wicked person. It is not enough that he has arrogant thoughts in his heart, but he has enough effrontery to verbalize his arrogance, showing one and all that he is a foolish person. It is a well known fact that self-effacement is one of the finest positive virtues as our sages have taught us (Chulin 89) the universe endures only due the people who perceive themselves as if they were of no consequence; this is what is meant by Deut. 33,27: ומתחת זרועות עולם, “and he who perceives of himself as beneath (everybody else) is what results in the world being planted successfully.” Examples of how the righteous down- graded their own selves are found in Genesis 18,27 when Avraham described himself as עפר ואפר, “dust and ashes.” Moses and Aaron when challenged by the people in Exodus 16,8 exclaimed ונחנו מה “who are we?” They meant that since they themselves derived all their spiritual input only from G’d why would the people complain against them! We find that in Psalms 22,7 David describes himself as “a worm, not a man.” Furthermore, we have a tradition that the presence of G’d manifests itself only to the humble, the self-effacing (compare Mechilta on Exodus 12, item 9). This is also what is meant in Isaiah 57,15: “I dwell on high, in holiness; yet with the contrite and the lowly in spirit - reviving the spirits of the lowly.” Similarly, Torah knowledge becomes the permanent property only of the lowly in spirit (compare Derech Eretz Zuta 8). Our sages in Taanit 7 ask: “why is the Torah compared to water so that the prophet Isaiah 55,1 when inviting people to learn Torah, called out: “come all you who are thirsty for water and get water!” Just as waters leave the elevated place they originate in and flow downwards, so the Torah cannot be at home for long in someone whose heart feels proud and superior to others. In the Aggadah of Eiruvin 55 we also have a statement that the words of Moses in Deut. 30,12 that the Torah is not found in heaven refers to arrogant people and that Torah does no make its home in the brain of such people. People who raise their own importance as if it reached heaven, are not liable to retain their Torah knowledge. True Torah knowledge is attained by those who “kill” themselves (i.e. kill their ego) in order to attain it. The Torah speaks of אדם כי ימות באוהל “when someone dies in the tent” (of Torah), compare Numbers 19,14. Our sages (Bereshit Rabbah 19,7) have formulated the principle that עיקר שכינה בתחתונים, that the principal manifestation of G’d’s attribute of כבוד is found among the terrestrial beings, as we know from Genesis 3,8 “they heard the voice of G’d walking by Himself in the garden following the prevailing wind of the day.” David alluded to the mystical element in all this in Psalms 104,17 when he said: “the stork has her home in the junipers.” [The word חסידה here translated as “stork,” was also the name of a daughter of Avraham who excelled in deeds of loving kindness for mankind which is why her name became known as חסידה, (as opposed to חסיד, masculine). Compare Zohar Pinchas 217. Rabbi Chavell. Ed.] Seeing that Adam sinned, the Shechinah began its gradual retreat from the terrestrial universe, a retreat which was reversed only with the advent of Avraham and which was reversed totally with the inauguration of the Tabernacle. The Torah was revealed on Sinai, a low mountain instead of on a high mountain such as Mount Hermon. This was intended to further make the point that what appears to dwarf all else physically is not necessarily what Torah and its message is all about. In Psalms 68,17 David refers to the hostility of the mountains of Bashan toward the mountain on which the Torah was given, Mount Sinai. Those mountains thought that they had a far better claim to serve as G’d’s residence on earth. [I have translated the author’s words according to the text in my and other editions, although, personally, I feel that the jealousy of the mountains in Bashan described in the verse quoted was directed against Mount Zion, the site of the Temple, much lower than the mountains of Bashan. After all, the psalm speaks about לשבתו “serving as His residence.” Mount Sinai never served as the site of G’d’s residence on earth. Ed.] וידבר ה' אל משה בהר סיני לאמור, “The Lord spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai, to say:” Most of the ancient commentators were perplexed why the Torah suddenly inserted a reminder of Mount Sinai into this verse when other similar verses introducing different kinds of legislation simply begin with the words: וידבר ה' אל משה לאמור. The insertion of the words בהר סיני prompted Sifra Behar 1,1 to comment that the Torah wanted to inform us that just as in the case of the Shemittah legislation the Torah revealed all the minute details of that legislation already at Mount Sinai, so the details of all the other commandments (what we know as the oral Torah) was revealed at the time G’d gave the Torah to Moses at Mount Sinai. Nachmanides adds that the words כללותיהן ופרטותיהן ודקדוקיהן, mentioned in Sifra, i.e. their general rules, their specific rules and their minutiae, were well chosen. The “general rules” referred to are mentioned already in Exodus 23,11 where the Torah writes: והשביעית תשמטנה ונטשתה “and in the seventh year you shall let it alone and abandon it (the field).” This is followed by the words: “and the destitute of your people shall eat of it, and the wildlife shall eat what is left.” In other words, we already knew that the general rules of the Shemittah legislation had been told the people at Mount Sinai. In our portion the Torah adds further detail to those general rules. Seeing the legislation is not all written in one part of the Torah, the words “at Mount Sinai” remind us that what is written here was not added at a later stage though the people may have been told it somewhat later. Nachmanides concludes by describing this explanation as כפתור ופרח, “excellent.” According to the opinion of Nachmanides the details we are told here were revealed after Moses had received the second set of Tablets, seeing that the principle of the legislation had been revealed at the time of the first covenant. After the second covenant the details and the respective penalties for non-observance were revealed. It is possible to argue that seeing the people had heard the Sabbath legislation at Mount Sinai during the recital of the Ten Commandments, and seeing that the Shemittah and Yovel legislation appears to reflect similar motivations to the Sabbath legislation, the Torah reminded the people of that conceptual linkage of the two sets of commandments by introducing the details here with the words “at Mount Sinai.” According to the wording in the Torat Kohanim the words בהר סיני in our verse may be read as part of what follows and as part of what preceded this verse. Just as the legislation of what to do with a blasphemer is Sinaitic in origin so is what follows, i.e. the laws of how to observe the legislation regulating use of the land in Eretz Yisrael.
Kli Yakar
And the Lord spoke to Moses at Mount Sinai, saying. What is the connection between the sabbatical year and Mount Sinai, etc.? It seems reasonable to suggest that when Moses ascended Mount Sinai after the seven weeks during which Israel counted forty-nine days from Passover to Shavuot, that mountain was sanctified and prohibited for sowing and plowing on the fiftieth day when the Torah was given. This was the time for extending the Jubilee to proclaim freedom and liberty for all of Israel — freedom upon the tablets through the sound of the shofar at the giving of the Torah. At that time, the Holy One, blessed be He, told Moses about the sabbatical and Jubilee years, indicating that through the number seven and the number forty-nine, I am bestowing this holiness upon all the Land of Israel, which has a similarity and relationship with Mount Sinai because it has an atmosphere that makes one wise, and there is no Torah like the Torah of the Land of Israel and Mount Sinai. Therefore, it is fitting to give that land the sanctity of Mount Sinai after the count of forty-nine years, and likewise with the count of seven years. Alternatively, it is to create a commemoration of the Mount Sinai event through the proclamation of freedom and the sounding of the shofar, along with the other reasons for this commandment. Therefore, it is stated at Mount Sinai. And this explanation is correct and reasonable to hear.
Tur HaArokh
בהר סיני, “at Mount Sinai.” Rashi explains that the reason for the Torah adding the words “at Mount Sinai,” is to inform us that just as the details of the laws of the Sh’mittah year were revealed to Moses at Mount Sinai, so the details of all the other laws were also revealed to Moses at Mount Sinai. Nachmanides queries this although Rashi only copied the words of Torat Kohanim. He explains the meaning of Rashi as based on the fact that some laws were repeated in the Book of Deuteronomy, whereas others were not. In connection with Sh’mittah, for instance, the need for the land to remain fallow during that year was not repeated in Deuteronomy, although the need to relinquish overdue debts to the impecunious debtor was. We might have concluded that anything that was repeated in Deuteronomy was something that was revealed to Moses later than at Mount Sinai. Rashi therefore sets the record straight by informing us that all the details of all the 613 commandments had been revealed to Moses on Mount Sinai down to the last detail. Whereas already in Exodus chapter 23,10-12 the subject of the Sh’mittah year had been discussed in general terms, now it is being discussed in greater detail. The Torah reveals that the details had already been given to Moses at Mount Sinai, even though the Torah had seen fit to write these details only now. This, Rashi says, is typical of all the laws of the Torah. If Moses saw fit, shortly before his death, to repeat some of these laws, this does not mean that he had not known about them all long before, ever since his first stay on Mount Sinai. [Numerous commentators understand Nachmanides as explaining that contrary to some laws which were revealed to Moses whenever G’d called him to a meeting in the Tabernacle, the laws of sh’mittah were revealed to him in all their details already long before there was a Tabernacle, in Exodus 23, immediately following the revelation and the giving of the Ten Commandments. The same applies to all the 613 commandments, according to Rashi, [whereas any laws revealed in the Tabernacle may not have been the kind which conform to Maimonides’ 14 criteria for inclusion in the 613 commandments. Ed.] Whatever Moses mentioned shortly before his death in Deuteronomy, were not new laws, as no prophet is entitled to formulate new laws, but were explanations of laws that had been revealed at Mount Sinai, and since the time had not come for them to be practiced, Moses thought it appropriate to publicly discuss them again. According to our author, Nachmanides considers that the laws of sh’mittah appeared here in their appropriate place, i.e. up until the words שבת לה' in verse 2 which concludes the headline of the legislation. The conclusive proof that all the laws were revealed in detail at Mount Sinai is from Leviticus 26,56, where the matter is spelled out most clearly.
Rashbam
בהר סיני, before the Tabernacle had been erected.
Daat Zkenim
בהר סיני, “at Mount Sinai;” all the portions preceding this one from the beginning of the Book of Leviticus had been revealed to Moses from the Tabernacle, (G–d’s voice emanating from the top of the Hoy Ark) and they all concerned laws of importance for the service in the Tabernacle in one way or another. The two portions commencing here had been revealed to Moses at Mount Sinai, as they neither concerned the Tabernacle nor the priests. This is the reason why the Torah here added the words: “at Mount Sinai.” Nonetheless, they were included in the Book of Leviticus, seeing that they deal with the laws of sh’mittah and Yovel as well as the laws of Erchin and Charamim which are administered by the priests. In verse 9 of our chapter the Torah decrees the blowing of the shofar on the tenth of Tishrey when the Jubilee year officially begins. This blowing of the shofar was performed by one of the priests. The fact that this blowing of the shofar when required was performed by the priests is documented in Numbers chapter 10, verse 8. In order that we should not think that these laws were issued from the Tabernacle, the Torah added the words: בהר סיני, “at Mount Sinai.”
Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When you come into the land which I give you, then shall the land keep a sabbath to Hashem.
verse value 5248
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 63 letters. The shortest word is "when" (כִּ֤י, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·the·land" (אֶל־הָאָ֔רֶץ, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·it·shall·rest" (וְשָׁבְתָ֣ה). The root ארץ appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "that" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "to·sons·of" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 12 and 4 words.
Onkelos
Speak with the children of Israel and say to them: When you enter the land that I am giving to you, the land shall observe a rest before Hashem.
Rashi
שבת לה׳ [THEN SHALL THE LAND KEEP) A REST 'לה — This means a rest in honor of the Lord (not a rest for the Lord, as in v. 4: שבת שבתון יהיה לארץ, “there shall be a strict Sabbath for the land”, i. e. for the land to rest) in the same sense as these words are used in the case of the weekly Sabbath (lit., the Sabbath of Creation) (Exodus 20:10) where 'שבת לה cannot mean “a day for God to rest” (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 1 2).
Ramban
A SABBATH UNTO THE ETERNAL, “[This means] in honor of the Eternal [and that it is not primarily intended for man’s benefit], in the same sense as this expression is used in the case of the Sabbath of Creation” [i.e., the weekly Sabbath, of which it is also said, a Sabbath unto the Eternal]. This is the language of Rashi. But this was not the intention of the Rabbis in their interpretation, for all [weekly] Sabbaths, and also the festivals, are in honor of the Eternal, and yet in not one of them [i.e., the festivals] does Scripture say that they are “unto the Eternal.” Instead, it says it shall be a solemn rest unto you, and in the case of the Day of Atonement it states, It shall be unto you a Sabbath of solemn rest. The text of the Beraitha in the Torah Kohanim [quoted by Rashi] is as follows: “A Sabbath unto the Eternal. Just as it says with reference to the Sabbath of Creation, so is it said regarding the Sabbatical year, a Sabbath unto the Eternal.” But the meaning of a Sabbath unto the Eternal thy G-d stated in connection with the Sabbath of Creation, is that on it He ceased from work and rested and therefore thou shalt not do any manner of work. It was with reference to that idea that the Sages, of blessed memory, said that the same expression is also stated in the case of the Sabbatical year, since it is the seventh in [the cycle of] the years [just as the weekly Sabbath is the seventh day in the cycle of days; and the meaning thereof here is that since the seventh year is a Sabbath to the Eternal, as will be explained, we are to desist from working the land].Now here [in the Torath Kohanim mentioned above, the Rabbis] have roused our attention to one of the great secrets of the Torah. Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra has already given us a hint of it when he wrote: “The meaning of a Sabbath unto the Eternal is like that of the Sabbath-day. The secret of the years of the world is alluded to in this place.” [Thus far is Ibn Ezra’s comment.]Bend now your ear to understand that which I am permitted to inform you about it in the words that I will cause you to hear, and if you will be worthy, you will contemplate them [and understand them]. I have already written in Seder Bereshith that the six days of creation represent [all] the days of the world, and the seventh day is a Sabbath unto the Eternal thy G-d, for on it will be the Sabbath to the Great Name, just as we have been taught [in a Mishnah]: “On the seventh day what psalm did the Levites sing [in the Sanctuary? They sang] A Psalm, a Song. For the Sabbath-day — [a song] for the World to Come, which will be wholly a Sabbath, and rest for life everlasting.” Thus the [seven] days [of the week] allude to that which He created in the process of creation, and the [seven] years [of the Sabbatical cycle] refer to that which will occur during the creation of all “the days” of the world. It is for this reason that Scripture was more stringent regarding [the transgression of the laws of] the Sabbatical year...
Ibn Ezra
"And the Land shall rest, a Sabbath to Hashem." This is a commandment upon the Israelite not to allow a resident alien to sow during the Sabbatical year, just as he may not permit him to perform labor on the [weekly] Sabbath, for [the alien] is under our authority. The meaning of "a Sabbath to Hashem" is: like the [weekly] Sabbath day — and the mystery of the world's days is alluded to in this passage.
Sforno
כי תבואו אל הארץ, a reference to the land west of the river Jordan (Torat Kohanim 2) ושבתה הארץ, .a reference to the soil intended for farming. 'שבת לה, so that during this whole year the farmer instead of “serving” the soil which requires cultivation, will turn his efforts to serving G’d directly instead. Just as the weekly Sabbath is a day set aside for intensive service of the Lord, so the sh’mittah year is to serve the same purpose. (compare Exodus 20,9)
Or HaChaim
דנר אל בני ישראל, "speak to the children of Israel, etc." The reason the Torah repeats דבר ואמרת is that this legislation involves both a prohibition to work the land (for a limited period) as well as denying oneself ownership of what one's field or orchard produces during that year (especially the fruit of the trees which grow without planting). The Torah uses the relatively harsh expression דבר to introduce the prohibition to work the land seeing it is difficult for a farmer to reconcile himself to such a commandment. The expresssion ואמרת applies to the requirement to declare one's produce הפקר, i.e. accessible to anyone who finds it, something which does not involve too much hardship as the farmer becomes the beneficiary of his neighbour's parallel declaration. Moreover, G'd's promise that the land would produce an extra generous harvest during the sixth year of the cycle (compare verse 21) will gladden the heart of the farmer and reconcile him to loss of ownership of what his own field or orchard produces during the seventh year. Another reason why the apparent duplication of דבר ואמרת is justified is the dual nature of the "Sabbath" i.e. rest, of the land. One aspect of this legislation is that the King commanded us to let the land lie fallow, ergo we carry out this command. 2) Although the practical performance of this commandment involves the relationship between man and man rather than the relationship between man and G'd, our obligation to comply is anchored in our relationship with G'd, i.e. the fact that the gift of the land to the Jewish people had been made conditional on our observing the Torah. When G'd did not say: "I have given you the land," but "I am giving you the land," He made it plain that the condition which is attached to that gift is an ongoing one, i.e. the land never became ours irrevocably. The word דבר therefore alludes to G'd's right to legislate; the word ואמרת on the other hand, refers to the social element of this legislation which also is the prerogative of the King to legislate. The Torah is under no obligation to furnish us with the reasons which motivated G'd the legislator, when He commanded us to perform these statutes. ושבתה הארץ שבח לשם, "and the land shall keep a Sabbath for G'd." What precisely does the Torah have in mind here? If the Torah refers to the seventh year, this is already stated in verse 4, "in the seventh year shall be a Sabbath of solemn rest for the land." We must therefore understand this verse as belonging to the previous verse in which G'd proclaimed that He was giving us the land. Our verse is a codicil, i.e. that G'd has made a reservation concerning that gift. The reservation is that we, the new "owners," agree to to let the land rest from time to time; "to G'd," i.e. to the G'd who still has title to the land. In verse 4 the Torah defines the nature of this "rest," i.e. when and for how long it is to occur. First we are to work the land for six consecutive years and only the se...
Chizkuni
כי תבואו, “when you will come;” what follows will be applied after the land has been conquered, and distributed to the tribes who have settled there. If this were not so, what would be the meaning of such words as: “your vineyards, your fields,” unless the ownership of these fields and vineyards had already been established and each one of the people addressed knew the boundaries of their land? ושבתה הארץ, “the land is to observe a rest, ‘Sabbatical;’” seeing that we might understand this term as referring only to a prohibition not to dig in the land for treasure, not to dig irrigation canals, etc., the Torah spells out that we must not plough, put seed in the ground, nor dig for wells, either. Neither must we perform work for the betterment of orchards or vineyards, which do not need to be ploughed every year. שבת לה, “a Sabbath for the Lord;” the legislation is not because the land is tired after producing crops six years in a row, but the Sabbath of the land is to remind you that the land belongs to Me, though you are its tenants. שבת לה; Rashi understands these words as meaning: “a Sabbath in honour of My name;” what he means is that you are not to understand this law as designed to teach you how to farm efficiently by giving the land a breather every seven years, but you are to demonstrate that you observe the Lord’s commandments.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ושבתה הארץ לה, “and the land will observe a rest for the Lord.” G’d sanctified both the seventh day, (Sabbath), the seventh year, (Shemittah) and the seven times seventh year (Yovel). Each of these periods is referred to as “Sabbath” at one time or another. In our verse the Shemittah year is called a “Sabbath.” Sanctifying the conclusion of the seventh Shemittah year in a 50 year cycle, the Yovel is also called “holy,” as we know from verse 12 in our chapter. According to the plain meaning of the text the meaning of this “sanctity” is that the land lie fallow, untouched by human hands for the entire seventh year. Man should not plough it, sow it, reap it, etc. This is the meaning of verses 3-4: “you shall sow the land for six years, and for six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather in its crop; but the seventh year shall be a complete rest for the land, a Sabbath for the Lord. Your field you shall not sow and your vineyard you shall not prune.” You are not even to harvest (in the regular way) what grows by itself during that year. This is the meaning of verse 5: “the aftergrowth (that which grows without ploughing and sowing) of your harvest you shall not reap and the untrimmed grapes of your vineyard you shall not pick.” The word ספיח in verse 5 is similar to the word ונספחו in Isaiah 14,1 “and they will join the house of Yaakov” (the proselytes). Similarly, the vineyard which has not been worked or hoed and not pruned is called נזיר, (like the Nazirite who does not trim his hair) as one abstains from working it a if it did not belong to you. The general principle governing the rules of conduct during the Shemittah year is that all the activities which suggest ownership of the field or vineyard in question have to be avoided. Any fruit of produce which grows on the field or vineyard during that year is ownerless, available on a “first come first served” basis. The legislation is meant to remind us that even during the years when we treat the land as ours, protected by all kinds of laws against infringement by people who do not own it, the land is really only on loan to us from G’d. A kabbalistic approach: The words 'ושבתה הארץ שבת לה' do not refer to individual parcels of land belonging to individual farmers but refer to the earth as a whole and are an allusion to the seventh millennium following the six thousand years when our terrestrial universe functions normally. They are a reference to the 1000-year transitional period when the earth will be desolate, unfit as a habitat for living creatures (compare Rosh Hashanah 31). That millennium is one described as “eternal rest” (Tamid 7,4), a reference to the world to come after physical resurrection has occurred. According to this concept the Shemittah discussed in our verse would be a cessation of agricultural activity which is not voluntary but imposed by the conditions prevailing in the universe at that time. [This does not replace the normal meaning of the verses 3-8 which speak about what happens every seven years. It only explains the halachically unnecessary words that “the land shall observe rest for Hashem” (verse 2) — Ed.] The observance of a bird’s eye view of what will be in the future, i.e. what we may term a “miniature” shemittah is intended for us to focus on the eventual meaning of the concept. All the severe penalties connected with failure to observe the legislation of Shemittah and Yovel, especially the fact that non-observance is the cause of our losing our homeland and going into exile, is all due to the fact that this legislation is to give us an inkling of a much grander concept G’d has in mind for the existence of the physical universe and the message that an imperfect terrestrial universe is eventually to metamorphose into a perfect terrestrial universe. (Compare 26,34 on the collective penalties for non-observance and Avot 5,9 spelling out the worldwide ramifications of failure to observe the laws of sanctifying the seventh year.)
Kli Yakar
And the land shall rest a sabbath unto the Lord. Regarding the reason for this commandment, there are divided opinions. Many say that the reason is for the land to rest so that it will increase its strength for sowing, and to this opinion the Guide [Maimonides] inclined. Many disagree with Him and say that if the Torah was concerned about the land becoming weakened, why would exile be the punishment for neglecting the land’s sabbatical? Their punishment should be that the land would no longer give its strength to them. Furthermore, this wouldn’t be a sabbath unto the Lord but rather for the benefit of the land. And what is meant by then shall the land be pleased with its sabbaths? What benefit is there in Israel being exiled from it while gentiles settle on it, who would always work it? How would the land rest when it is desolate from them?In the Akeidah [by Rabbi Isaac Arama], a different reason is given, stating that the purpose of this commandment is to remember the creation of the world and to recall the days of old and the end of one’s life. Similarly wrote Abarbanel, who added His own insights. But this too is far from my understanding, as it resembles “Judah and more” [adding unnecessary explanations], because the weekly Sabbath already serves as a reminder of the world’s creation. If that is not effective, how would this one that comes at distant intervals help? In order to resolve several exact inferences in the section’s language, I say that the reason for this commandment is to root Israel in the trait of faith and trust in God. For the Holy One, blessed be He, was concerned that when they would come to the land, they would engage in working the land according to natural custom, and when they would become very successful, they would forget God and remove their trust from Him. They would think that their own strength and might had brought them this wealth, and that the world follows its natural course, and they would think that the land is theirs and they are the owners with no one else above them. Therefore, God removed them entirely from the natural custom. For in six years, it is the way of nations to sow for two years and let the land lie fallow for one year so as not to weaken its strength. But the Holy One, blessed be He, said Six years you shall sow your field — every single year — and I promise you to increase its strength so it will not be weakened. And there is a miracle within a miracle, that after sowing for six years, if in the sixth year the land’s strength is not weakened, at the very least it should not gain additional strength. Yet God said, on the contrary, in the sixth year He would add so much strength to it that it is said, I will command My blessing for you in the sixth year, and it will produce a crop sufficient for three years. And if the miracle was that the crop would provide for three years, this is already miraculous, but it goes three times beyond that. The crop produced in the sixth year, even if it would only be enough to feed for one year, nevertheless God will send His blessing to their storehouses so that they eat a little and it becomes blessed in their stomachs until the crop is sufficient for three years. This is indicated by the phrase and it will produce the crop with the definite article the, when it could have said “and it will produce crop for three years.” But the definite article hints that the same crop that is normally produced year by year will be produced in the sixth year as well, and God will add strength to the land so that the same crop will be sufficient for three years. This is certainly an obvious and greatest miracle of all. And through all these wonders which I have placed in your hand, you will know that the earth is Mine. And through this, your eyes will be lifted to God, just as we found with the daily descent of the manna so that their eyes would always be lifted to God and they would trust in Him constantly. So too is the matter of the sabbatical year, that they would not work the land for the entire seventh year — no sowing and no harvesting — and they would rely on the miracle. This is a correct reason, clearer than anything the commentators have said about it. And according to this, it is proper that they should be exiled for the sin of [not observing] the sabbatical year, due to their lack of faith, for they did not believe in God and did not trust in His salvation (Psalms 78:22) that He would perform such a miracle for them in making the produce last for three years. And as it is written, Roam through the streets of Jerusalem, and see now and know, and seek in its open places, if you can find a man, if there is one who executes judgment, who seeks faith, and I will pardon her (Jeremiah 5:1). The land itself is also very particular about this, because it desires that this merit should be brought about through it, to strengthen faith in God through it. Furthermore, through this they will believe that they are all merely sharecroppers on the land, and the Holy One, blessed be He, is the owner of the field. And in this matter, the land desires that the Holy One, blessed be He, Himself be its owner and master, for the land belongs to Him. And by annulling the sabbatical years, they act as if they are the owners of the land, so it is fitting that the land should be particular about this. Therefore it says, Then the land will be appeased regarding its sabbaths. But the land will not be particular if the gentiles treat it according to the natural way, because in any case, all their conduct is according to nature, and they have no faith. And after this introduction, we will come to explain the verses, for they are consistent with this true intention, about which there is no doubt.
Tur HaArokh
שבת לה', “as a kind of Sabbath in honour of Hashem.” Nachmanides observes that in connection with all the festivals the Torah mentions such expressions as שבת or שבתון, describing various degrees of abstention from work, whereas nowhere else do we encounter the expression שבת לה', “a Sabbath for Hashem,” as we find it concerning the weekly Sabbath which is testimony that Hashem has created the universe in six days. (Compare Exodus 20,10 as well as the second version of the Ten Commandments in Deuteronomy.) It is fairly clear then that the sh’mittah legislation too is meant to pay homage to the fact that G’d created the universe in six stages. Our sages consider the duration of that universe as meant to endure for 6000 years, paralleling the “days” it took to create. The seventh millennium, by contrast, would be of a different order altogether, work in the manner in which we know it not being performed during that millennium. As a result of such considerations, anyone who denies the validity of the sh’mittah in thought or deed is equivalent to someone who denies that G’d created the universe in six days and that there is a world to come beyond the world in which we find ourselves on this planet. This is the reason why the Torah has been so strict with warnings about the dire consequences to the nation if this legislation were to be disregarded, and why there are so many apparently stringent regulations connected to the observance of the sh’mittah legislation. Non-observance of this positive commandment [usually carrying a relatively minor penalty Ed.] is followed by the exile of the nation, a punishment equal to the violation of non-observance of the negative commandments of incestuous or immoral sexual relationships! (Compare Leviticus 27,34)
Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard, and gather in the produce of it.
verse value 5696
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 41 letters. The shortest word is "six" (שֵׁ֤שׁ, 2 letters) and the longest is "its·yield" (אֶת־תְּבוּאָתָֽהּ, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 400: years, years. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·six" (וְשֵׁ֥שׁ), "and·you·shall·gather" (וְאָסַפְתָּ֖). The root שש appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "years" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus); "you·shall·sow" (root זרע, 27x in Leviticus); "your·open·field" (root שדה, 25x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·vineyard', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 2 words. Full calculation: שֵׁ֤שׁ [six] (600) + שָׁנִים֙ [years] (400) + תִּזְרַ֣ע [you·shall·sow] (677) + שָׂדֶ֔ךָ [your·open·field] (324) + וְשֵׁ֥שׁ [and·six] (606) + שָׁנִ֖ים [years] (400) + תִּזְמֹ֣ר [you·shall·prune] (647) + כַּרְמֶ֑ךָ [your·vineyard] (280) + וְאָסַפְתָּ֖ [and·you·shall·gather] (547) + אֶת־תְּבוּאָתָֽהּ [its·yield] (1215) = 5696.
Onkelos
Six years you shall sow your field, and six years you shall prune your vineyard and gather its produce.
Ramban
SIX YEARS THOU SHALT SOW THY FIELD. Such is the way of Scripture to state [i.e., it is not a command that is expressed here, but it is merely the style of Scripture], just as it says, Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work; Six days thou shalt do thy work, but on the seventh day thou shalt rest. According to the way of our Rabbis [the verse is to be interpreted as follows: “Six years thou shalt sow thy field — but not in the seventh year — this being a negative commandment which is derived from a positive commandment, and carries the force of a positive commandment.” Thus he who sows [his field] in the seventh year violates this positive commandment, and also the negative commandment [expressed in the verse, thou shalt not sow thy field]. A homiletic exposition of the Rabbis is as follows: “Rabbi Yishmael says: When Israel does the will of G-d, it has to observe only one year of rest [of the soil] in a seven-year cycle, as it is said, Six years thou shalt sow thy field. But if the people do not do the will of G-d, they have to make four ‘years of rest’ of the soil in one seven-year cycle. How so? He plows for one year and cannot sow until the next year, again he plows for one year and cannot sow until the next year. Thus there are four ‘years of rest’ in one seven-year cycle.”
Ibn Ezra
"Its produce." This refers back to the Land mentioned in the first verse.
Sforno
שש שנים תזרע שדך, the new revelation in this verse is that the land of Israel is so fertile that the same piece of land can remain under cultivation for six consecutive years, although in other countries the land generally is allowed to lie fallow every other year. (compare Baba Batra 36 on this subject.) ואספת את תבואתה, as opposed to the soil in the countries adjacent to the land of Israel.
Or HaChaim
שש שנים תזרע, "You shall plant seed for six years, etc." The Torah wanted to phrase the procedure of the farmer seeding his land as a positive commandment, and the pruning of the vines in the seventh year as a negative commandment so that the negative commandment which is a derivative of a positive commandment is also considered as a positive commandment (compare Pessachim 41). Although Maimonides wrote in the first chapter of his treatise Hilchot Shemittah that the positive commandment is based on the words ושבתה הארץ שבת at the end of verse 2, this would certainly not be enough to make the act of seeding and the act of pruning positive commandments. Perhaps what Maimonides had in mind was to make a person who ignores the laws of seeding and pruning guilty of violating two positive commandments instead of merely one. ושש שנים תזמר, "and for 6 years you shall prune your vineyard." Why did the Torah repeat the words ושש שנים when it could have written: שש שנים תזרע שדך ותזמר כרמך? Our sages explain this in chapter 5 of Massechet Shvi-it by reference to בנות שוח שביעית שלהם שניה, certain kinds of white figs which ripen only once in three years. The shemittah legislation applies starting only with the second year of the cycle. The Talmud explains that in the case of the fruits of that tree the cut-off date is the date they blossom which occurs in the seventh year so that these fruit are harvested in the second year after the shemittah year. In other words, when it comes to the trees, the time the fruit blossoms determines the calculation for when the shemittah year applies. In the case of grains and vegetables however, the time they are harvested determines the application of the shemittah prohibition as we know from Rosh Hashanah 13. There is a good reason then why the Torah had to write the words שש שנים twice, seeing that trees and fields have different six-year cycles respectively, the former determined by the time of the harvest the latter by the time the fruit blossoms. ואספת את תבואתה, "and you shall gather in its harvest." What need was there for the Torah to write the word ואספת? Perhaps the Torah's use of the expression ואספת את תבואתה is meant to contrast with the ספיחים, the wild growing crop of the seventh year which was not planted which must not be gathered in. The intention of the Torah then would be to add a positive commandment, i.e. the type of positive commandment which is actually a derivative of the negative commandment not to harvest the wild growing crop. This would make the negative commandment not to harvest this kind of crop into a positive commandment with the appropriate halachic consequences for people transgressing it. Possibly the Torah hints that although a piece of land which has been farmed for six years consecutively does not have the strength left to produce a crop in the seventh year, especially seeing it has not even been ploughed or seeded, in this case this is precisely what will happen. The normal procedu...
Chizkuni
שש שנים וגו, for six consecutive years you are to sow, etc;” this verse proves once again that the Torah is not bound to relate matters in a chronological order, else it would have written this verse before the verse about abstaining from agricultural activity during the seventh year. Actually, this paragraph has already appeared in Exodus 23,10, in the chronological order that we would expect. It is only being repeated here on account of the addition of the olive groves that were omitted here.
Kli Yakar
Six years you shall sow your field, etc. We have already said that this is a promise that the land will not lose its fertility even if it is sown for six consecutive years without leaving it fallow every third year. As a reward, the verse states When you come into the land which I give you, because truly I am giving you the land, and not by your own power did you inherit it: There is concern that you might mistakenly think the land is yours; therefore I command you, and the land shall observe a Sabbath to the Lord. Not for the purpose of adding strength to the land, but rather for the Lord’s sake, to reveal that He, blessed be He, is the owner of the field. And by virtue of your allowing it to rest for the Lord’s sake, you will merit what is said: Six years you shall sow your field, etc., and gather in its produce. This excludes the case where you do not allow it to rest for the Lord’s sake, in which case you will be liable to exile and will not sow even during the six years. And even if you do sow regardless, strangers will plunder your labor and you will not gather its produce, as it is written And so it was, when Israel had sown, that the Midianites and Amalekites came up and destroyed (Judges 6:3), and it is written You shall carry much seed out to the field but gather little in (Deuteronomy 28:38). And the verse says your field to exclude the fields of others, suggesting that if you do not observe the Sabbatical year, you will go into exile and become a slave to the nations, sowing their fields and not your own. But by virtue of observing the Sabbatical year, you will sow your field and your vineyard. Furthermore, it mentions your field to exclude the Sabbatical year, during which the field is not yours but rather ownerless, available to all. Since in this year you acknowledge that the land belongs to the Lord, it is fitting that the poor of His people should be sustained from it in this year, and you should have no advantage over them. And the verse says that by virtue of the land shall observe a Sabbath to the Lord, you will merit that six years you shall sow your field. But if you wish to claim the fruits of the seventh year as an owner, then you will be brought to poverty, having to sell your field, and it will no longer be your field but will belong to others. This is like the opinion of the Midrash (Tanchuma, Behar 1), which interprets the juxtaposition of the passages if your brother becomes poor as referring to one who conducts business with the fruits of the seventh year, who will ultimately come to poverty and sell his house and field. This is similar to what our Sages said (Taanit 6b): When the wild animal has no more to eat from the field, your cattle will have no more to eat at home. For as long as the wild animal eats, then by virtue of charity there will also be food for your cattle, but if you claim ownership and do not allow the wild animal in the field to eat, then the money will vanish from your pocket and you will have nothing for yourself either. And for this reason it says adjacently, “And in the seventh year… your field you shall not sow, etc.” The text places “field” before “sowing” to teach that you should not mistakenly think that the field is yours and not God’s. Therefore, I command you not to sow, so that you will know that it belongs to God and not to you. And the grapes of your separation which you set aside for yourself and did not want to give to others, with this intention that you thought the vineyard was your vineyard — therefore I command you you shall not harvest. For by this you will know that it is not proper for you to separate and withhold [the produce] from people; rather, everyone’s hand should be equal in it, so that you will know that the earth is the Lord’s, and it is in His power to decide to give it to whomever He wishes. And the poor of your people shall eat from the High Table [i.e., God’s table]. And this is the reason for the Jubilee year, as it says (25:23): And the land shall not be sold in perpetuity. For a person cannot sell something that is not his, as the world and its fullness belong to God. And He gave it to man for a period of 50 years, which is the allocated lifespan for an average person from the day he is 20 years old to pursue temporal acquisitions until he is 70 years old. Therefore, he cannot sell an inheritance except for up to 50 years, no more.
Tur HaArokh
שש שנים תזרע שדך, “you are to sow your field for six consecutive years.” According to Nachmanides the wording is not to be viewed as an absolute commandment, but is similar to the one in the fourth of the Ten commandments ששת ימים תעשה מלאכתך “you shall perform your work on six days, etc.,” meaning that any work which you have to do, you shall do during the six days of the week allocated to the performance of such tasks, whereas on the seventh day you are to rest. (Compare Exodus 20,9) According to our sages the law to abstain from work in the field during the seventh year is in the nature of a negative commandment derived from the restrictive statement that you may only “sow your field for six consecutive years.” [Something known in halachah as לאו הבא מכלל עשה, a negative commandment that is a derivative of a positive commandment. In practice, this means that although the Torah phrased the abstention from such work in the seventh year as a positive instruction, he who fails to observe it transgresses a negative commandment. Ed.]
But in the seventh year shall be a sabbath of solemn rest for the land, a sabbath to Hashem; you shall neither sow your field, nor prune your vineyard.
verse value 5715
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 55 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·seventh" (הַשְּׁבִיעִ֗ת, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 702: sabbath·of, sabbath. The root שבת appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·Hashem', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 6 words. Full calculation: וּבַשָּׁנָ֣ה [and·in·the·year] (363) + הַשְּׁבִיעִ֗ת [the·seventh] (787) + שַׁבַּ֤ת [sabbath·of] (702) + שַׁבָּתוֹן֙ [complete·rest] (758) + יִהְיֶ֣ה [it·shall·be] (30) + לָאָ֔רֶץ [to·the·land] (321) + שַׁבָּ֖ת [sabbath] (702) + לַיהֹוָ֑ה [to·Hashem] (56) + שָֽׂדְךָ֙ [your·open·field] (324) + לֹ֣א [not] (31) + תִזְרָ֔ע [sow] (677) + וְכַרְמְךָ֖ [and·your·vineyard] (286) + לֹ֥א [not] (31) + תִזְמֹֽר [prune] (647) = 5715.
Onkelos
But in the seventh year there shall be a year of complete rest for the land, a rest before Hashem — your field you shall not sow, and your vineyard you shall not prune.
Rashi
יהיה לארץ [A SABBATH OF STRICT REST] SHALL BE UNTO THE LAND [or SOIL] — unto the fields and vineyards. לא תזמר — The word is a denominative verb from זמורה, a branch, and denotes: to do something to the branches: it is used here because one lops off its (the vineyard’s) branches. Its translation in the Targum is thus: לא תכסח, “thou shall not cut off”, and this root has a similar meaning in the Hebrew (Isaiah 33:12) “as thorns cut off (כסוחים)”; (Psalms 80:17) “it is burnt with fire, it is cut down (כסוחה).
Ibn Ezra
"A Sabbath of complete rest." I have already explained this [expression].
Sforno
שבת שבתון יהיה לארץ. You have to refrain totally from working the land, including preparatory work mentioned in detail by our sages in Avodah Zarah 50. 'שבת לה, to seek out the Lord in some manner. [not to use the year to play golf, etc. Ed.]
That which grows of itself of your harvest you shall not reap, and the grapes of your undressed vine you shall not gather; it shall be a year of solemn rest for the land.
verse value 5214
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 52 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·grapes·of" (וְאֶת־עִנְּבֵ֥י, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 31: not, not. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "aftergrowth·of" (אֵ֣ת סְפִ֤יחַ), "harvest" (תִקְצ֔וֹר), "and·grapes·of" (וְאֶת־עִנְּבֵ֥י). The root לא appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "to·the·land" (root ארץ, 77x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'gather·grapes', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words. Full calculation: אֵ֣ת סְפִ֤יחַ [aftergrowth·of] (559) + קְצִֽירְךָ֙ [your·harvest] (420) + לֹ֣א [not] (31) + תִקְצ֔וֹר [harvest] (796) + וְאֶת־עִנְּבֵ֥י [and·grapes·of] (539) + נְזִירֶ֖ךָ [your·unpruned·vine] (287) + לֹ֣א [not] (31) + תִבְצֹ֑ר [gather·grapes] (692) + שְׁנַ֥ת [year·of] (750) + שַׁבָּת֖וֹן [complete·rest] (758) + יִהְיֶ֥ה [it·shall·be] (30) + לָאָֽרֶץ [to·the·land] (321) = 5214.
Onkelos
The aftergrowth of your harvest you shall not reap, and the grapes of your untended vines you shall not pick; it shall be a year of rest for the land.
Rashi
את ספיח קצירך THAT WHICH GROW OF ITS OWN ACCORD OF THY HARVEST — i. e. even if you have not sown it but it grew from the seed which fell into it (into the ground) at the time of the last harvest — and that is what the term ספיח denotes. לא תקצור THOU SHALT NOT REAP [IT] — to take it as your exclusive property as you do with other harvests (with the harvest in another year) but it shall be free (הפקר) to all and then thou also may reap of it. נזירך [AND THE GRAPES OF THY VINE] WHICH ARE נזירים — i. e. those from which you barred people (שהנזרת) and from which you have kept them away, not having declared them free to everybody. לא תבצר THOU SHALT NOT GATHER — them thou must not gather, but you may gather from that which has been declared free to everybody (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 1 3).
Ramban
ETH S’FIACH K’TZIRCHA’ (THAT WHICH GROWETH OF ITSELF OF THY HARVEST) THOU SHALT NOT REAP. “Even if you did not sow it, but it grew from the seed that had fallen [into the ground] at the time of the harvest [of the sixth year], and it is that which is called ‘s’fiach’ (aftergrowth) — thou shalt not reap, to take possession of it like other harvests, but is to be free for everyone. AND THE GRAPES OF ‘N’ZIRECHA’ — which you have barred and separated from people, and not declared ownerless — THOU SHALT NOT GATHER them. You may only gather them after they have been declared free for all.” Thus the language of Rashi. The Rabbi’s [i.e., Rashi’s] meaning by [writing] this is because he is of the opinion that if a person guards his field and his fruits in the Sabbatical year [at the time of growth, and afterwards he declares them free for all], the produce does not become prohibited [as food]. So also did he [Rashi] write in his commentaries to Tractate Yebamoth and to Tractate Succah. This is indeed so according to the law of the Torah, as is established by clear proofs. And that which is taught in the Torath Kohanim: “And the grapes of ‘n’zirecha’ thou shalt not gather. From that which was guarded when in the soil [i.e., when it is in the process of growth] you shall not gather, but you may gather from that which was made free for all” — the Rabbi [Rashi] will explain it in the following way: “Grapes which have been kept away from people you may not gather as long as they are so barred; you must rather declare them all ownerless, and then you may gather them together with the poor.”The correct interpretation of the verse is that the expression the grapes of ‘n’zirecha’ is like ‘s’fiach’ of thy harvest, and thou shalt not gather is like thou shalt not reap, for the purport of the whole section is to state a twofold law to the Israelites — warning with respect to fields and warning again with reference to vineyards. Thus: thou shalt sow thy field … thou shalt prune thy vineyard; thou shalt neither sow thy field, nor prune thy vineyard. Similarly, And six years thou shalt sow thy Land … but the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie fallow … In like manner thou shalt deal with thy vineyard. And the meaning of the verse [here] is that that which grows by itself in a field without intentional plowing and sowing is called “s’fiach of the harvest,” because it is “attached” to the harvest of the past year, this term being of the root, ‘v’nispechu’ (and they shall cleave) to the house of Jacob. Likewise the vine which has not been cultivated, nor hoed or pruned, is called nazir, because [the owner] “held himself aloof and put it away from him” as if it were not his, of the root, because ‘nazoru’ from Me through their idols, [which means] “they separated themselves from Me.” Similarly, ‘v’yinazru’ (and they separate themselves) from the holy things of the children of Israel. And Onkelos [also] translates here [and the grapes of ‘n’zirecha’] as shivkach, w...
Ibn Ezra
"Aftergrowth" (sefiaḥ). It is known that this comes from the root of "attach me, please" (sefiḥeni na) [1 Sam. 2:36]. Likewise "untended vines" (nezirecha) is known to derive from the root of nazir [one who is separated or set apart]. "A year of rest" — the meaning is that it is a year of rest for the Land, and the point is that the Land is not in your possession during that year.
Chizkuni
ואת ענבי נזזירן, “and the grapes of your undressed vine;” these are grapes which grew without any physical input by you. They correspond to what the Torah called ספיח קצירך, grain growing by itself during the seventh year of the sh’mittah cycle when you did not sow any seeds. Proof that this interpretation is correct, can be found in verse 11 in our chapter where ססיחיה and נזיריה, are mentioned side by side. Onkelos also understands לא תבצרו את נזיריה, as a prohibition to pluck those grapes. שבת שבתון יהיה לארץ, “it shall be a year of solemn (complete) rest for the land.” The reason for this is that the land is not in your possession during that year.” (Ibn Ezra)
Tur HaArokh
את ספיח קצירך לא תלקט, “You are not to gather in the aftergrowth of your harvest, etc.” This verse precludes you from harvesting even produce that grew on your field during that year without your having seeded that field. [The word “harvest” in this context means produce to be stored for future consumption. Ed.] Nachmanides adds that the expression ענבי נזירך in the line immediately following refers to similar spontaneously grown grapes in your vineyard that the owner of the vineyard had not in any way encouraged to grow during that year. The expression לא תבצור in connection with such grapes also means that although the owner may eat such grapes, he must not “harvest” them in the sense that he must not make wine out of them for consumption at a later time. It is the nature of this and similar paragraphs to repeat legislation applicable to the field when speaking about similar activities applicable to the orchard. What grows in the field without the field having been ploughed or seeded is called ספיח, whereas what grows in the vineyard without the latter having been primed in preparation cutting such grapes for storage, etc. is called זמירה, i.e. לא תזמור. The vineyard is called by the Torah here נזיר, akin to the person who vows to abstain from the consumption of wine or grapes, as by contrast to the grain of the field the vines are durable and do not have to be reseeded or replanted year after year. The owner of such field or vineyard or orchard does not enjoy any special privileges vis a vis a person visiting that field and may not partake of such spontaneously grown grapes or grain except for immediate consumption. The Torah requires him to give up any claim of ownership of the land on which these fruit grow. The land enjoys freedom from its owners during that year, i.e. it enjoys a שבת שבתון. Man and beast enjoy what there is to enjoy alike.
And the sabbath-produce of the land shall be for food for you: for you, and for your servant and for your maid, and for your hired servant and for the settler by your side that sojourn with you;
verse value 4017 — לְאׇכְלָ֔ה = 86 (Elohim)
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 56 letters. Notable word values: "for·food" (לְאׇכְלָ֔ה) = 86, equal to Elohim. Verse gematria: 4017 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "to·you" (לְךָ֖, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·to·your·hired·worker" (וְלִשְׂכִֽירְךָ֙, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·to·your·servant" (וּלְעַבְדְּךָ֣), "and·to·your·handmaid" (וְלַאֲמָתֶ֑ךָ), "and·to·your·hired·worker" (וְלִשְׂכִֽירְךָ֙). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "the·land" (root ארץ, 77x in Leviticus); "with·you" (root עם, 65x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root עבד ("and·to·your·servant") in Leviticus. First appearance of the root אמה ("and·to·your·handmaid") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·to·your·handmaid', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְ֠הָיְתָ֠ה [and·it·shall·be] (426) + שַׁבַּ֨ת [sabbath·of] (702) + הָאָ֤רֶץ [the·land] (296) + לָכֶם֙ [to·you] (90) + לְאׇכְלָ֔ה [for·food] (86) + לְךָ֖ [to·you] (50) + וּלְעַבְדְּךָ֣ [and·to·your·servant] (132) + וְלַאֲמָתֶ֑ךָ [and·to·your·handmaid] (497) + וְלִשְׂכִֽירְךָ֙ [and·to·your·hired·worker] (586) + וּלְתוֹשָׁ֣בְךָ֔ [and·to·your·resident] (764) + הַגָּרִ֖ים [who·live] (258) + עִמָּֽךְ [with·you] (130) = 4017.
Onkelos
And the rest-produce of the land shall be yours to eat — for you, and for your manservant, and for your maidservant, and for your hired worker, and for the resident who dwells with you.
Rashi
'והיתה שבת הארץ וגו AND THE SABBATH OF THE LAND SHALL BE [FOOD FOR YOU] — Although I have forbidden them (the fruits of the sabbatical year) to you by stating “thou shalt not harvest etc.”, I do not mean to forbid them to you as food or to be used for any other beneficial purpose but what I meant was that you should not comport yourself in respect of them as the exclusive owner but all must be equal as regards it (the Sabbatical year’s produce) — you and your hired servant and your sojourner. שבת הארץ לכם לאכלה THE שבת OF THE LAND [SHALL BE] FOR FOOD FOR YOU — Since Scripture does not state והיתה תבואת הארץ לכם לאכלה but והיתה שבת הארץ לכם לאכלה it intimates: Only that which has been treated according to the Sabbatical law (שבות) and been declared free to all may you eat, but not that which has been kept by you (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 1 5). לך ולעבדך ולאמתך [AND THE SABBATH OF THE LAND SHALL BE FOOD FOR YOU]; FOR THEE, FOR THY SERVANT, AND FOR THY MAID SERVANT — Because it states (Exodus 23:11) “[but in the seventh year thou shalt let it rest and lie still]; that the needy of thy people may eat”, one might think that they (the fruits of the Sabbatical year) are forbidden as food for the rich (and thus also for the owner of the field and his household), Scripture therefore states here: “[it shall be for food for thee,] for thy servant, and for thy maid servant” — thus you have the mention of the owners (the rich) here as well as of the servants and the maid servants — the poor (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 1 6). ולשכירך ולתושבך AND FOR THY HIRED SERVANT, AND FOR THY SOJOURNER — Even non-Jews (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 1 7).
Ramban
AND ‘SHABBATH HA’ARETZ’ (THE SABBATH-PRODUCE OF THE LAND) SHALL BE FOR FOOD FOR YOU. Because He said it shall be a Sabbath of solemn rest for the Land, He states [here] that the rest mentioned shall be for food for you to maintain all of you — you and your servant, and the cattle and the beast — so that you should all support yourselves from that which the land will bring forth by itself whilst it is resting. Or [it may be that] the year itself is called shabbath ha’aretz, just as the [seventh] day is called “the Sabbath of the Eternal,” or just “Sabbath;” and the reference thereof is to the produce of the Sabbath [year], for the Sabbath [year] itself is not something to be eaten.
Ibn Ezra
"And the Sabbath produce of the Land" — the meaning is: everything it brings forth on its own. The meaning of "for you" (lachem) [the plural] is: for everyone in the world. The meaning of "for you" (lecha) [the singular] is: that the owner of the land has the right to eat the aftergrowth.
Or HaChaim
והיתה שנת הארץ לכם לאכלה, "And the Sabbath-produce of the land shall be for you as food;" The principal reason for this verse is to inform us that contrary to other sacred matters which are restricted to the altar or to the priests, in this instance everybody is entitled to consume what has grown during the seventh year. The Torah then details who are all the people who are included in that permission. You may well ask that in view of this, why did the Torah have to write the word לכם, "to you," which is normally a restrictive word, i.e. "you and no one else?" All the Torah had to write was הארץ לך לאכלה! I suppose the best approach to this is as follows. Normally, I would have expected that whosoever is mentioned in the verse first is first in line for the permission to eat. We have a parallel to this when the Torah legislated the order of priorities when giving charity. In that instance (Deut. 15,7) The Torah lists: "your poor (family members)," followed by "the poor of your town," followed by the people in "your land" (based on Sifri on that verse). To ensure that we do not understand the last half of our verse in the same way as Deut. 15,7 the Torah here first wrote the word לכם to tell us that all people have an equal claim on what grows in the fields during that year.
Chizkuni
והיתה שבת הארץ לכם לאכלה, “what the earth produces during that year is for all of you to serve as food.” You are not obligated to tithe any part of it, nor to set it aside for the poor, as it is not yours to distribute. Neither is what it produces to be converted into libations to be offered in the Temple. (Sifra)
Tur HaArokh
והיתה שבת הארץ לכם לאכלה, “the Sabbath produce shall be for you to eat, etc.” Seeing that the objective is for the earth to enjoy rest, it is in order for you or your servants or the beasts to consume on an ad hoc basis what grows on it during that year
and for your cattle, and for the beasts that are in your land, shall all the increase of it be for food.
verse value 2741
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 36 letters. The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·its·yield" (כׇל־תְּבוּאָתָ֖הּ, 8 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·to·your·cattle" (וְלִ֨בְהֶמְתְּךָ֔), "and·to·the·wild·beasts" (וְלַֽחַיָּ֖ה), "in·your·land" (בְּאַרְצֶ֑ךָ). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "to·eat" (root אכל, 106x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·your·land', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְלִ֨בְהֶמְתְּךָ֔ [and·to·your·cattle] (503) + וְלַֽחַיָּ֖ה [and·to·the·wild·beasts] (59) + אֲשֶׁ֣ר [which] (501) + בְּאַרְצֶ֑ךָ [in·your·land] (313) + תִּהְיֶ֥ה [it·shall·be] (420) + כׇל־תְּבוּאָתָ֖הּ [all·its·yield] (864) + לֶאֱכֹֽל [to·eat] (81) = 2741.
Onkelos
And for your livestock and for the wild animals that are in your land — all its produce shall be available to eat.
Rashi
ולבהמתך ולחיה AND FOR THY BEAST, AND FOR THY CATTLE [… SHALL ALL THE INCREASE THEREOF BE FOOD] — If the wild beast may eat thereof how much the more is this the case with cattle to supply which with food is your duty! What, then, is intended by Scripture specially stating “and for thy cattle”? But by mentioning it, it intends to put on a level (to suggest equal treatment of) the cattle with the wild beast: so long as the wild beast has the opportunity of eating from the produce in the field, feed your cattle with what is stored in the house; as soon, however, as food has disappeared for the wild beast from out of the field, make it disappear for thy cattle from out of thy house [i. e. clear it out of thy house into the field and make it thus available to all animals alike] (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 1 8; Taanit 6b).
Ramban
AND FOR THY CATTLE, AND FOR THE BEASTS THAT ARE IN THY LAND, SHALL ALL THE INCREASE THEREOF BE FOR FOOD. “If wild beasts may eat thereof, how much more so is this the case with cattle which it is your duty to feed! Why then does it say and for thy cattle? [Scripture mentioned it] in order to liken cattle to the beast. As long as the wild beast is able to eat of [the produce of] the field, you may feed your cattle with that [which is stored] in the house; when food has disappeared for the wild beast in the field, remove it [what is stored] for your cattle from the house [and make it available to all animals alike].” This is Rashi’s language, taken from the Torath Kohanim. The Rabbi [Rashi] did not, however, explain [the meaning of] this Removal. Its purport is that after a certain time the owner must remove all produce from his house and declare it ownerless [i.e., after food has disappeared for the wild beast from the field], this being “the Removal of the Seventh-year [produce]” which the Sages mention everywhere. Now the intention thereof is not that after the time of Removal it is forbidden for him to derive benefit from the produce or to eat, and that the owner must destroy it, for the Sages have not listed the fruits of the Seventh year in the Mishnah among those things that must be burnt, nor among those that must be buried. Rather, [the meaning of the Removal] is only that he must remove them from his control, and declare them free for the poor and for all people, similar to that which it says, I have put away the hallowed things out of my house [in which case it obviously does not mean that he destroys the hallowed things, but rather that he gives them to whomever they belong, e.g. the heave-offering to the priest, etc.]. And so we have been taught in a Mishnah: “The poor may eat [of the produce] after the Removal, but not the rich. These are the words of Rabbi Yehudah. Rabbi Yosei says: Both the poor and the rich may eat of the produce after the Removal.” The meaning of the term “the poor” is all people who gather the produce of fields of other people which have been declared ownerless, and “the rich” means the owners of the fields themselves, who gathered the produce of their own fields after they declared them free for all. Now Rabbi Yehudah declared that they [these “rich” former owners] are forbidden by law of the Rabbis to gather in from their own fields, on account of suspicion [that they did not really intend to make their fields free for all], but Rabbi Yosei permitted them [to gather in from their own fields], and the final decision of the law is according to his words. This Mishnah is also found in the Torah Kohanim. And in the Tosephta it is stated: “Originally messengers of the court would go around the entrances of the cities; if anyone had brought the produce [of the Seventh year] into his possession, they would take it from him and give him enough food for three meals, and the rest they would put into a store-house in t...
Ibn Ezra
"And for your domesticated animal" — which is under your authority. "And for the wild animal" — which is not under your authority.
And you shall number seven sabbaths of years to you, seven times seven years; and there shall be to you the days of seven sabbaths of years, even forty and nine years.
verse value 7524
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 67 letters. Verse gematria: 7524 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "to·you" (לְךָ֗, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·forty" (וְאַרְבָּעִ֖ים, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 1102: sabbaths·of, sabbaths·of. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·you·shall·count" (וְסָפַרְתָּ֣), "nine" (תֵּ֥שַׁע), "and·forty" (וְאַרְבָּעִ֖ים). The root שבע appears 4 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "days·of" (root יום, 112x in Leviticus); "years" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'times', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 9 words.
Onkelos
And you shall count for yourself seven sabbatical cycles of years — seven years, seven times — and the days of the seven sabbatical cycles shall be for you forty-nine years.
Rashi
שבתות שנים [AND THOU SHALT NUMBER] SEVEN SABBATHS OF YEARS [UNTO THEE] — seven Shemittah-periods of years (cf. Onkelos). One might think that one may keep seven successive years as “Shemittah” and keep the year immediately following them as the “Jubilee”, Scripture therefore states “seven years, seven times”, consequently you are bound to say that each of these seven years of release has to be kept in its proper time (i, e. at the end of six years of work) (Sifra, Behar, Section 1 1). 'והיו לך ימי שבע וגו AND THE PERIOD OF SEVEN [SABBATHS OF YEARS] SHALL BE UNTO THEE [FORTY AND NINE YEARS] — This mention of the sum total tells you that even if you have not kept the years of “Shemittah” keep the “Jubilee” at the end of forty-nine years (Sifra, Behar, Section 1 2). (The translation according to this Midrashic explanation therefore is: When seven Sabbaths of years (i. e. the seven seven-year periods) will be unto thee forty-nine years, thou shalt cause the horn to be blown etc. — no matter whether you have kept the intervening שמיטות or not.) The plain sense of the verse, however, is: The sum total of the periods of which each ends in a “Shemittah” (or, the sum total of these Shemittah-periods) will give thee forty-nine years.
Sforno
'והיו לך ימי שבע שבתות השנים וגו, the count of these years is not to be based on 12 lunar months per year only, but you will count hem as if regular years, the thirteenth month occurring at the same intervals as in your normal calendar considerations. The result will be that at the end of a Jubilee cycle, 49 solar years will have been completed. The same rules which apply to the sh’mittah calculation apply to the Yovel calculation. [since the farmer bases his activities on the seasons, and the seasons are controlled by the solar calendar, any other way of counting the 49 year cycle would throw the farmer’s schedule completely out of gear. Ed.]
Chizkuni
וספרת לך שבע שבתות שנים, ”you are to count for yourself 7 seven year cycles, seven times;” seeing that the Torah speaks of counting in the singular mode, i.e. by a single person, it addresses the High Court which will proclaim the start of the Jubilee year. There is no need to recite a benediction as is the case in Leviticus 23,15 when counting the omer; there two separate counts had been mentioned, days and weeks. This had been repeated also in Deuteronomy 16,9. One was meant for the individuals and one for the High Court.
Rabbeinu Bahya
שבע שנים שבע פעמים והיו לך ימי שבע שבתות השנים, “seven years seven times; and the seven Sabbaths shall be for you, etc.” Why did the Torah have to add the words והיו לך, “they shall be for you?” Did we not know without these words that seven times seven years equal 49 years? It is possible to explain that the mystical dimension of what is written here is to give us a glimpse into the present as well as into the future. The first number, i.e. 7 times 7 plus the fact that the fiftieth year is holy refers to the commandment of observing the Yovel year. Seeing it is something which we have to perform the Torah asked us to count the years preceding the conclusion of that cycle. The word ספירה implies that something is not constant, not enduring. The word Yovel, on the other hand, implies something complete, permanent, enduring. The number 49 both in terms of the 49 gates of understanding granted to Moses, and wherever the number 49 appears, is an allusion to a domain beyond the merely physical, speaks of something permanent as Solomon said in Kohelet 1,4 והארץ לעולם עומדת, “earth will endure forever” (in spite of the recycling that we observe in nature). The mystical dimension is this: We are told in Rosh Hashanah 21 that the world was created with 50 gates (levels) of insight, בינה; Moses was granted 49 of them as David said in Psalms 8,6 ותחסרהו אחד מאלוהים, “You have made him a little less than divine.” The meaning of these words is [I am using my own words here to make the author’s words intelligible, Ed.] that ordinarily every 1000 years is equal to one “level of insight,” so that at the conclusion of 50 periods of 1000 years perfection of the universe is attained. G’d telescoped the 49,000 years to come and taught Moses one level of insight corresponding to each unit of 1000 years. The word לך in the verse וספרת לך “count for yourself,” equals 50 in numerical value, implying that every 50 years, i.e. every Yovel year, a new insight may be attained. The words והיו לך at the end of that period of counting imply that the period of progressing toward perfection then comes to an end and something permanent in terms of levels of insight will have been reached. The reason the Torah speaks of ימי, i.e. “days” or “years of,” is that that word has a numerical value of 50 just as the word לך. The Torah hints that the total number of years designated for the existence of the terrestrial universe is 50 (000). This is what David alluded to in Psalms 145,13 מלכותך מלכות כל עולמים, “Your Kingdom will span the duration of all “worlds.” We have clear evidence of the fact that G’d considers 1000 years as the duration of an עולם from Psalms 105,8 where the psalmist speaks of דבר צוה לאלף דור, “He commanded a “word,” i.e. a directive, to be valid for 1000 generations.” According to this concept the universe has a life span of 50,000 years. The word כל in the verse in Psalms 145 that מלכותך מלכות כל עלמיםn hints at the number 50.000 years seeing that the numerical value of the word כל is 50. [In order to avoid a contradiction between the common conception that the world will continue for 6000 years and the seventh millennium will be the time required to make the world over into a perfect place, we would have to consider each 1000 year period after each cycle of 6000 years as a transition to a better world to come until a final conclusion after 49,000 years with the last Yovel. This concept in turn could incorporate the concept discussed at length in the דרוש אור החיים by the author of the famous commentary on the Mishnah Tiferet Yisrael by Rabbi Yisrael Lifshitz of Danzig in which the author is at pains to prove that our universe is not the first of these seven cycles but is already the fifth such cycle, previous cycles having contained lower forms of life only, including pre-historic man. Ed.]
Kli Yakar
And you shall count for yourself seven sabbaths of years. The reason for the jubilee is like the reason for the sabbatical year, and additionally, there are other underlying matters, as it says and you shall count for yourself, which implies that there is a similarity and relationship between these years and the number of days in a person’s life, which typically reach about fifty, as the days of our years are seventy years. The first twenty years are not included in this count because a person is not yet liable for punishment in the heavenly court; therefore, all their actions during that time are considered insignificant, as man is born a wild donkey’s colt (Job 11:12), and their intellectual light is not yet complete to understand concepts that would prevent them from straying from the straight path. From that point onward, they begin to count so that they know how many years remain in which they can acquire wise strategies and the elixir of life will be for them alone, with no strangers beside them. Therefore it says, and you shall count for yourself, etc.. If you count for yourself, for your benefit and pleasure, in order to spend all your days in spiritual matters, then the days of the seven sabbaths of years shall be for you, meaning they will be for you alone and not for strangers with you. But if you waste your days in vanity, gathering and hoarding, then the produce will not be yours, for you will leave your wealth and the walls you built and what you planted to others. For typically, a person can only hold onto their possessions for this number of years, but the fiftieth year from the twentieth year, which is the seventieth year from their birth, then everyone is equal regarding their wealth and possessions, and they will no longer reap their harvest or the grapes of their separation which they isolated and hid during their active days, and their hands refused to touch, and their eye was miserly about giving to one of their brothers, and even to themselves they did not give — all the more so they did not benefit others at that time. Behold, at that time, the increase of his house will depart, flowing away in the day of His anger (Job 20:28). Everything becomes ownerless, and everyone is equal in it, like the rich man who has departed, and it is a time of proclaiming freedom, and the servant is free from his master. And in order that this matter should be a remembrance between the eyes of man, whose desire for wealth is never satisfied, God commanded to sanctify the fiftieth year, where one should neither sow nor work the land. Just as He commanded to sanctify the seventh year to know and make known that the land belongs to God, so too He commanded to sanctify the fiftieth year to make known that there is a limit and boundary to all his [man’s] actions, and that he is not the absolute owner of the field, but rather he is like a stranger in the land, and he has power over it for only 50 years. Therefore, the land shall not be sold in perpetuity (Leviticus 25:23). For God did not give him authority to sell something that is not his, and this is the reason given, as it says: For the land is Mine; for strangers and residents you are with Me (Leviticus 25:23). From the juxtaposition of you are with Me to residents, it can be inferred that this is specifically in the World to Come, because then you are with Me — there you are residents, but in this world you are strangers. And the Holy One, Blessed be He, gave you the land in the manner of sharecropping or as a loan, so how can you sell something that is not yours? And the matter of the sounding of the shofar and the proclamation of freedom, specifically on Yom Kippur, is similar to the day of the giving of the Torah, when Israel became free from the evil inclination and suffering. Similarly, Yom Kippur is a time of freedom from the old and foolish king, the enemy and avenger who is Satan, who is the evil inclination. All this is to remind a person of the day of freedom when [one is] free, among the dead and that the time of freedom and liberty should always be before his eyes. And so wrote the Abarbanel, see there. All this is by way of allusion, which is the approach of most commentators of our Torah [on this section]. But according to its simple meaning, the Sabbatical and Jubilee years share one reason, which is so that we place our trust in God and know that the earth is the Lord’s. Therefore it says, In this Jubilee year… you shall eat the produce from the field. Do not hold onto the field as your own field, but rather as a field that does not belong to you.
Daat Zkenim
וספרת לך, “you shall count for yourself;” at first glance we might think that this instruction to count concerns days and weeks just like during the days between Passover and the festival of Shavuot;” if you were to say that we have Leviticus 15,28 where a similar construction is found in connection with a woman experiencing a vaginal discharge at times which do not coincide with her menses, we would have to say that the reason there is to teach us that the Torah warns her not to interrupt her counting during the days before she can regain ritual purity. If she would miss counting a single day, the blessings would have been futile.
Then you shall make proclamation with the blast of the horn on the tenth day of the seventh month; on the Day of Atonement you shall make proclamation with the horn throughout all your land.
verse value 5661
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 61 letters. The shortest word is "horn·of" (שׁוֹפַ֤ר, 4 letters) and the longest is "throughout·your·land" (בְּכׇל־אַרְצְכֶֽם, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 586: horn·of, horn. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·you·shall·sound" (וְהַֽעֲבַרְתָּ֞), "the·seventh" (הַשְּׁבִעִ֔י), "you·shall·sound" (תַּעֲבִ֥ירוּ). The root עבר appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·day·of" (root יום, 112x in Leviticus); "throughout·your·land" (root ארץ, 77x in Leviticus); "the·atonements" (root כפר, 52x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·the·month', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְהַֽעֲבַרְתָּ֞ [and·you·shall·sound] (683) + שׁוֹפַ֤ר [horn·of] (586) + תְּרוּעָה֙ [blasts] (681) + בַּחֹ֣דֶשׁ [in·the·month] (314) + הַשְּׁבִעִ֔י [the·seventh] (387) + בֶּעָשׂ֖וֹר [on·the·tenth] (578) + לַחֹ֑דֶשׁ [to·the·month] (342) + בְּיוֹם֙ [in·day·of] (58) + הַכִּפֻּרִ֔ים [the·atonements] (355) + תַּעֲבִ֥ירוּ [you·shall·sound] (688) + שׁוֹפָ֖ר [horn] (586) + בְּכׇל־אַרְצְכֶֽם [throughout·your·land] (403) = 5661.
Onkelos
Then you shall sound a blasting shofar in the seventh month, on the tenth of the month; on the Day of Atonement you shall sound the shofar throughout all your land.
Rashi
והעברת has the same meaning as the verb in (Exodus 36:6) “and they caused it to be proclaimed (ויעבירו קול) in the camp” — it is a term for proclamation (i. e. והעברת has not the literal meaning of causing a cornet to pass, i. e. to carry it about in the land as a symbol of freedom) (Rosh Hashanah 34a). ביום הכפורים [ON THE TENTH DAY OF THE SEVENTH MONTH] ON THE DAY OF EXPIATION [SHALL YE CAUSE THE CORNET TO SOUND] — Since Scripture states “on the day of expiation” do I not know that it is “on the tenth day of the seventh month”? Why, then, does Scripture add “on the tenth day of the month”? But it adds these words in order to tell you: the blowing Of the שופר on the tenth day of the month sets aside the Sabbath (supersedes the Sabbath Law) throughout all your land (בכל ארצכם); whilst the blowing of the Shofar on the New Year, the first day of that month, does not supersede the Sabbath Law “throughout all your land”, but only at the law-court (בי"ד) alone (Sifra, Behar, Section 1 5; Rosh Hashanah 29b).
Ramban
THEN SHALT THOU MAKE PROCLAMATION WITH THE BLAST OF THE HORN ON THE TENTH DAY OF THE SEVENTH MONTH; IN THE DAY OF ATONEMENT SHALL YE MAKE PROCLAMATION WITH THE HORN THROUGHOUT ALL YOUR LAND. “Since Scripture states in the Day of Atonement do I not know that it is on the tenth day of the seventh month? Why then does Scripture state on the tenth day? [It is to teach us that] the blowing [of the Shofar] on the tenth day of the seventh month overrides the Sabbath throughout all your Land, but the blowing [of the Shofar] on the New Year does not override the Sabbath throughout all your Land, but only at the court alone.” This is Rashi’s language. Now the Rabbi [Rashi], with his expert knowledge of the Talmud, and because it is all for him like a ready-laid table, was not concerned when he quoted Beraithoth without qualification, but they are misleading for the rest of the people [who are not as expert in the Talmud as he was]. For it is known and clear in the Gemara that all blowings of the Shofar, whether on the New Year, or the Day of Atonement [in the Jubilee year], or even [blowing] out of one’s own desire [without any intention to fulfill a commandment], are permitted on the Sabbath [by law of the Torah], since blowing [of the Shofar] is merely an art and not “work.” They used [in fact] to blow the Shofar everywhere by law of the Torah on the Sabbath of the New Year and on the Day of Atonement; and the matter of blowing the Shofar [only] at the court, was ordained by Rabban Yochanan ben Zaccai after the Temple was destroyed. This was decreed [by Rabban Yochanan ben Zaccai], because they [the Sages] prohibited the blowing of the Shofar [if the New Year fell on a Sabbath]. Since everyone is obliged to blow the Shofar [or to hear it blown, but not everyone is expert in it, thus we fear that] perhaps he will take the Shofar in his hand and go to an expert to learn, and thus he will carry it the distance of four cubits in a public thoroughfare [which is forbidden by law of the Torah on the Sabbath]; and Rabban Yochanan ben Zaccai therefore only permitted us to do it at the court [where the fear of the judges ensures that nobody will violate the Sabbath on account of the blowing of the Shofar]. There is thus no basis whatsoever for this prohibition in Scripture [and so how could Rashi interpret the verse before us on the basis of this Rabbinic enactment]? And the Rabbis, in mentioning that “the blowing of the Shofar on the tenth day [of the seventh month] overrides the Sabbath,” intended to say that it is done on every Day of Atonement [in the Jubilee year, whether it falls on a weekday or on the Sabbath]; for there is no difference between overriding the Day of Atonement when it falls on the Sabbath or when it falls on a weekday, since the Day of Atonement itself is like the Sabbath in respect of [the prohibition of] all work, whether that of carrying [an object four cubits in a public thoroughfare, or transferring it from “public” to “private” gro...
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall sound a blasting shofar." There is a dispute as to whether the world was created in Nisan or in Tishrei, and there is no need to elaborate on this, for the transmitters of our religion have established for us in the Rosh Hashanah prayers: "This day is the beginning of Your works, a memorial of the first day." And indeed we see the sounding of the shofar for the Jubilee year in Tishrei, at the start of the year. Furthermore, in the parasha of Hakhel — the assembling of the people to read the Torah at the festival of Sukkot — it is written: "so that they may hear and so that they may learn" (Deut. 31:12), and it is not possible for this to occur after the middle of the year. Also, "the Festival of Ingathering at the going out of the year" (Exod. 23:16) — and likewise the tekufah [turning point] of the year [is at Tishrei]. The reliable proof is the Sabbatical year, concerning which it is written "you shall not sow" (v. 4): in the Land of Israel they begin to sow in Marcheshvan, and if the beginning of the year were from Nisan, they would not harvest what they sowed in the sixth year — nor would they sow [in the eighth year] — since the seventh is the Sabbatical; and once they did not harvest the sixth year's sowing, they would go without planting twice over. Yet Scripture says only "you shall not sow" in the seventh year alone. Yehudah the Persian claimed that Israel reckoned by the solar year; but if this were so, Moses would not have specified the length of a complete solar year, for the astronomers have until now been unable to bring it to light precisely: the scholars of India add to the quarter-day a fifth of an hour; Ptolemy and his colleagues say there is a deficiency of one part in three hundred of a day — which is close to the intercalated year's calculation — while those who came after him said one part in one hundred and six, and others one in one hundred and ten, and others one in one hundred and thirty, and even one hundred and eighty — for some measure the year by the completion of the [zodiac] signs from a visible point, and others from the point of the inclined sphere's deviation to right and left. We must therefore rely on received tradition. Furthermore, the meaning of the word chodesh [month] refutes the Persian [i.e., Yehudah the Persian]. The Sadducees say the religion is governed by the lunar year. Know, however, that the moon has no year at all; only the astronomers sought a number of months close to the solar year and found them to be twelve — just as the sun has no [natural] month. The astronomers sought a number of days for the month that would divide closely into the lunar month, because our months follow the moon while our years ultimately correspond to the solar years. Therefore the Sages transmitted that the court always established seven intercalations in every cycle — a law given to Moses at Sinai — even though they would fix each month by the sighting of the moon. The mystery of the cycle is known from astronomical science. The meaning of "you shall sound" (ta'aviru) is that they shall blow the shofar throughout all the zodiac signs.
Sforno
שופר תרועה, as an expression of joy over the liberation of the slaves and the restoration of lands whose sale had been forced by economic necessity to its original owners or their heirs.
Chizkuni
תעבירו שופר בכל ארצכם, “sound the shofar throughout your land,” at all major highway junctions.
And you shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land to all the inhabitants of it; it shall be a jubilee to you; and you shall return every man to his possession, and you shall return every man to his family.
verse value 8588
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 87 letters. The shortest word is "year" (שָׁנָ֔ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·all·its·inhabitants" (לְכׇל־יֹשְׁבֶ֑יהָ, 8 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·you·shall·consecrate" (וְקִדַּשְׁתֶּ֗ם), "year·of" (אֵ֣ת שְׁנַ֤ת), "release" (דְּר֛וֹר). The root שנה appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "and·you·shall·consecrate" (root קדש, 101x in Leviticus); "each" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·all·its·inhabitants', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 10 words.
Onkelos
And you shall sanctify the fiftieth year, and you shall proclaim freedom in the land for all its inhabitants; it shall be a Jubilee for you, and each man shall return to his ancestral portion, and each man shall return to his family.
Rashi
וקדשתם AND YE SHALL SANCTIFY [THE FIFTIETH YEAR] — when it begins they declare it holy in the court by saying: “The year is holy!” (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 2 1; Rosh Hashanah 8b and Rosh Hashanah 24a). וקראתם דרור AND YE SHALL PROCLAIM LIBERTY unto slaves, both to him whose ear has been pierced (and whose period of servitude has thus been prolonged until the Jubilee; cf. Exodus 21:6) and to him whose six years of servitude (the period prescribed for an ordinary Hebrew servant; Exodus 21:6 Exodus 21:2), reckoning from the time when he was sold, have not yet ended. R. Jehuda said, “What is the etymology of the term דרור, freedom? A free man is like a person who may dwell (דור) at an inn — meaning that he may reside in any place he pleases, and is not under the control of others. (דרור therefore implies liberty of residence) (Rosh Hashanah 9b). יובל הוא IT SHALL BE A JUBILEE [UNTO YOU] — This year shall be distinguished from all other years by it alone being given a special name for itself. And what is its name? “Jobel” is its name — with reference to the “sounding of the Shofar” (the ram’s horn which is called יובל; cf. Exodus 19:13). ושבתם איש אל אחזתו AND YE SHALL RETURN EVERY MAN UNTO HIS POSSESSION — This means that the fields return to their owners. (Not that each man actually goes back to his land — just as it goes on to state that the slave actually returns to his family). ואיש אל משפחתו תשבו AND YE SHALL RETURN EVERY MAN UNTO HIS FAMILY — This verse is intended to include in the law of setting the slaves free also the slave whose ear has been pierced (cf. Sifra, Behar, Chapter 2 5; Kiddushin 15a).
Ramban
YOVEIL HI’ (IT IS A JUBILEE). “This [the fiftieth] year is distinguished from all other years by being given a special name. And what is that name? Its name is yoveil [literally: ‘the ram’s horn’] on account of the blowing of the Shofar.” This is Rashi’s language, and such also is the opinion of the commentators that [the word yoveil here] is of the roots: ‘b’keren hayoveil’ (with the ram’s horn); ‘shofroth ha’yovlim’ (the rams’ horns). But I do not find this acceptable, because of [the expression here] shall be unto you [it shall be a Jubilee unto you]; for what sense is there in saying of a year that “it shall be ‘a blowing’ unto you” and you shall return [every man unto his possession etc.]? Perhaps Scripture is stating: “It is a Jubilee distinguishable by that name which I have called it, and it shall be unto all of you known by the blowing of the Shofar which you will do thereon, reminding you of the purport [of the Jubilee year], that in it every man shall return unto his possession, and every man unto his family.” Similarly, A Jubilee shall that fiftieth year be unto you means that it shall be a Jubilee unto you, that ye shall not sow, neither reap, that is to say, it is known by its name that it is to be so. But all this appears to me to be incorrect. For the meaning of shofroth ha’yovlim is “the horns of the rams,” and Yonathan [ben Uziel] also translated there: “shofroth [made] of rams’ horns.” It is also so stated in the Gemara: “What intimation is there that the term yoveil is an expression for a ram? In Arabic they call a ram yovlo.” Now the Shofar used on the Day of Atonement [in the Jubilee year] does not necessarily need to be a ram’s horn, for all shofroth (horns) are valid on it, and in the opinion of our Mishnah and all the Tannaim (Sages of the Mishnah), the commandment is [preferably to be performed in the year of the Jubilee] with the horn of wild goats. If so, why then would the [Jubilee] year be called “the year of the ram?”Now Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra said that the meaning of yoveil is like “sending forth.” In my opinion, Scripture does not call the year yoveil with reference to the blowing [of the Shofar], but with reference to “the liberty” [that it brings to the inhabitants of the Land]; for this term is not mentioned in the first verse which states, Then shalt thou make proclamation with the blast of the horn. But when He stated [in the verse before us] and ye shall proclaim liberty throughout the Land unto all the inhabitants thereof, meaning that they shall all be free to reside wherever they please, He continued by saying ‘yoveil hi,’ that it is a year in which every man is “carried away” to his possession, and his feet “transport him” to his family afar off to sojourn. This term [yoveil] is used in connection with many subjects. Thus: ‘yuval’ (there shall be brought) a present unto the Eternal of hosts, and it is further stated: and on ‘yuval’ it spreadeth out its roots; streams and ‘yivlei mayim’, which mean “ch...
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall sanctify the fiftieth year" — regarding agricultural work and all its inhabitants. "Dror" — it is well known that it means freedom (like chofshi), and [is compared to] the dror bird (cf. Prov. 26:2) — a small bird that sings while it is in its own domain, but if it is in a person's possession, it will not eat until it dies. "Yovel" — [means] something sent forth, and the Sages said the meaning of yovel is a ram, citing the proof "shofrot ha-yovalim" (Josh. 6:4); thus the year is named after the shofar. The meaning of "it shall be for you" — for Israel alone. "And each man shall return to his ancestral holding" — as [the Torah] will explain: in the Jubilee year the sold land returns to its owner. "And each man to his family" — the servant who was sold to a fellow Israelite.
Sforno
יובל היא תהיה לכם. All of you will also be free of subservience to other nations. This is the opposite of Jeremiah 34,17 “because you have failed to proclaim freedom for your kinsmen and countrymen as I have commanded, I proclaim your release -declares the Lord- to the sword, to pestilence, and to famine; and I will make you a horror to all the kingdoms of the earth.”
Chizkuni
שנת החמישים שנה וקראתם דרור, “the fiftieth year, when you will proclaim freedom.” We find something similar with the Levites who retired from active service at the age of fifty, and they could not perform physical service anymore. (Numbers 8,25) לכל יושביה, “for all its inhabitants;” seeing that the Torah wrote: ושבתם איש אל אחוזתו, “each man of you is to return to his ancestral heritage,” it would have sounded as if women did not possess ancestral land in Israel. Therefore the Torah also had to write: לכל יושביה, to all of its inhabitants no matter which sex. According to Sifra, this meaning has been derived from the word: תשובו, [which is a repetition. Ed.] לכל יושביה, “for all its inhabitants.” This is why as soon as even when only parts of the tribes had been exiled, this law could no longer be observed.
Rabbeinu Bahya
וקראתם דרור בארץ לכל יושביה, “you will proclaim freedom throughout the land for all its inhabitants.” According to Rashi from the date on which the shofar will be blown to announce this freedom, it will be called Yovel. Rashi bases this on the words במשוך בקרן היובל, “when a long blast will be blown on the Jubilee horn” (Joshua 6,5). This is also the view of other commentators such as Kimchi. However, Nachmanides refutes this, writing that the קרן היובל as well as the שופרות היובל are expressions applicable only to a ram’s horn, and that the use of such a horn is mandatory only on New Year’s Day in order to remind G’d of the readiness of Yitzchak to die as a martyr for His great Name. Such a restriction does not apply on Yom Kippur, the date this horn is being blown when it is preferable to blow the horn of a יעל, a mountain goat, as indicated in Rosh Hashanah 26. This is why he interprets the word יובל as not referring to the blast blown on the instrument but as referring to the “freedom.” He claims that if it had been referring to the sound of the blast blown on the horn the Torah should have written והעברת שופר תרועה בחדש השביעי בעשור לחודש יובל היא; however, instead the Torah wrote: וקראתם דרור בארץ לכל יושביה, meaning that “you will proclaim freedom to dwell wherever you feel free to live.” The words יובל היא mean that during that year each person will be brought back to the ancestral tract of land which some member of his family might have had to sell during the preceding 49 years. He will be able to rejoin his family. This is the reason why the word יבול is also used to describe both grain and orchard harvests. Low lying areas in which water collects are also known as פלגי יבלי מים, “brooks and watercourses” (Isaiah 30,25). Thus far Nachmanides. The meaning of the commandment called יובל, according to the plain meaning of the text is that fields return to their original owners, (seeing only a number of harvests had been sold, verse 15). Even those Jewish servants who had volunteered to stay with their masters beyond the original six years and who had their ear pierced, have to leave their employer during that year. The word Yovel implies that everything and everybody has to return to their original state, i.e. ownership and family. A kabbalistic approach to the words יובל היא: The word יובל is derived from the expression ועל יבל ישלח שרשיו, “sending forth its roots by a stream” (Jeremiah 17,8), a hint that all the succeeding generations are traced back to their original roots, to the prime cause which determined their development. This is the reason why the Yovel is called דרור, “freedom,” a reminder of when man was free from sin. All of mankind originated with the pool of souls at G’d’s disposal and eventually this is where the souls will return to. Each one of the seven times periods of a cycle of 7000 years will perform the tasks assigned to the respective day of creation making a total of 49,000 years. When they have completed these 49,000 years the universe will revert to the Tohu Vavohu which preceded the words בראשית ברא (Genesis 1,1). The meaning of the words בשנת היובל הזאת תשובו איש אל אחוזתו, then is literal, i.e. that each person will return to his origin in the year described as Yovel. Philosophers have understood the paragraph as meaning that just as all phenomena in the universe date back to a single original cause, they will again revert to that original cause. If you are fortunate enough to understand the mystical dimension of the legislation of the Shemittah and the Yovel concepts you will not fail to notice the significance of such words in the text as שדך כרמך, ספיח קצירך, ענבי נזירך all of which are in direct speech, i.e. ‘your field, your vineyard, etc.” Prior to the occurrence of the year called שבת לה', “the Sabbath of the Lord,” the Torah had mentioned the suffix “your” only as an afterthought, i.e. תזרע שדך, whereas after that Sabbath the Torah emphasises the fact that it is your field, etc. by writing: שדך לא תזרע, as if to emphasise that you have acquired an inalienable right to that field through the observance of that Sabbath. The Torah emphasises that just as these fields, etc., were yours prior to the “Sabbath,” they are even more so yours after you have observed this “Sabbath.” In Psalm 92,1 the hymn dedicated to the Sabbath, the psalmist reiterates that after the Sabbath has been observed the righteous will flourish like the palm tree (verse 13). In another Psalm (72,7) the author describes the righteous as “flourishing in his time, at which time there will be an abundance of peace until there is no more moon.” Such a vision is already forecast in the opening paragraph of the second chapter of Genesis where the Torah writes that G’d blessed the seventh day (verse 3). The verse which we understood as the conclusion of the act of G’d’s creative activity, concludes (quite unexpectedly) with the word לעשות, “to do, or to keep on doing;” In other words, G’d’s active role in shaping the universe did not conclude at the end of the sixth day of creation. With this verse G’d gave notice that He is planning what is going to happen to the various generations even at that stage. You will therefore observe that whereas for the periods prior to this “great” Yovel at the end of 49,000 years no more mention is made of any parts of the terrestrial earth being “yours,” i.e. man’s, up until that time it is described as “man’s” in varying degrees. In connection with what happens after the Yovel the Torah speaks of ספיחיה, נזריה, “its aftergrowth”, “its set aside residual grapes.” This is a clear hint that due to the arrival of the Yovel (the great and ultimate Yovel) everything had reverted to the original cause, i.e. to G’d. I have already drawn attention to this in my commentary on Parshat Mishpatim on Exodus 21,6 in connection with the words ועבדו לעולם. This may be the reason why the Torah writes in Leviticus 27,24 לאשר לו אחזת הארץ, “to the one who had possession of the land,” instead of writing: “who had inherited the land, i.e. נחלת הארץ. The term נחלה is applicable only if the property in question came into one’s possession from someone who owned it previously, whereas the word אחוזה refers to the “original” owner. Solomon alluded to this when he wrote in Kohelet 5,7 כי גבוה מעל גבוה שומר, וגבוהים עליהם, “for high above the high ones is someone who keeps watch, and above them are those who tower above them.” [The thrust of Solomon’s words which are addressed to the oppressors who feel all-powerful, as well as the thrust of the hidden message in our text, is that there are forces at work beyond those that meet the eye when we merely look at the text of the written Torah superficially. Ed.]
Tur HaArokh
יובל היא, “it shall be a Jubilee;” Rashi explains the term as “something apart,” so that even the year itself is called by a name different from ordinary years. As to the significance of the different name, it is called thus on account of the blowing of the shofar which introduces that year. The term occurs elsewhere for the shofar when the Torah writes: במשוך היובל “when a long blast is blown with the shofar,” (compare Exodus 19,13) This view is shared by other commentators. Nonetheless, Nachmanides does not agree, citing that the Torah writes the words תהיה לכם, “it will be for you,” and it would not be appropriate to refer to the “shofar” as a year, i.e. שנת החמשים שנה, “the fiftieth year.” A year (verse 12) can hardly be described as a תקיעה, the blast on the shofar. Furthermore the meaning of the expression שופרות היובלים is a reference to the horns of rams and this is the way Targum Yonatahan renders that expression. It is a fact that the horn used to blow out of on the Yom Kippur of the Jubilee year does not need to be a ram’s horn. The Talmud is quite specific on this. (Rosh Hashanah 26) Why should that year then bear a name that is equivalent to שנת האיל, “the year of the ram?” Ibn Ezra explains the word יובל as related to שילוח, as in יבל, [compare the modern Hebrew הובלה, describing transportation of goods, especially moving furniture. Ed.] It would describe the release and dispatch to his home of servants whose period of service was brought to an abrupt halt with the onset of this year. Nachmanides adds that the mystical connotation of the word suggests a return to one’s origin, to original freedom in the widest sense, דרור, being related to דור generation, as Solomon describes the return of man to his roots, i.e. after death as דור הולך ודור בא, (Kohelet 1,4) seeing that at the beginning of the paragraph the Torah speaks only about והעברת שופר תרועה , “you shall sound a broken blast on the shofar,” etc.” Families are to be reunited during that year, something that involves travel, mobility, i.e. יובל. It is noteworthy that the expression יובל for this year appears only after the Torah stated that during that year דרור, freedom is to be proclaimed for all, and those who had been enslaved will return to their original homes and families. Nachmanides quotes additional verses from Scripture showing that יובל does not always mean physical motion, transportation of goods or people, so that a “return” to one’s roots, one’s family, need not be understood only in physical terms, bodily return, but as something more profound.
Rashbam
ושבתם איש אל אחוזתו, to his ancestral heritage as has been spelled out in verse 28 and 31 respectively. Sellers of ancestral fields may repossess them in the Jubilee year without having to compensate the buyer. (2) AND EACH OF YOU SHALL RETURN TO HIS FAMILY. A Hebrew slave goes frree in the Jubilee (see vv. 40-41).
A jubilee shall that fiftieth year be to you; you shall not sow, neither reap that which grows of itself in it, nor gather the grapes in it of the undressed vines.
verse value 5607
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 64 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "its·growths" (אֶת־סְפִיחֶ֔יהָ, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 37: and·not, and·not. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "you·shall·sow" (תִזְרָ֔עוּ), "you·shall·reap" (תִקְצְרוּ֙), "its·growths" (אֶת־סְפִיחֶ֔יהָ). The root לא appears 3 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "year·of" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 8 words.
Onkelos
A Jubilee it shall be — the fiftieth year shall be for you; you shall not sow, and you shall not reap its aftergrowth, and you shall not pick its untended vines.
Rashi
יובל הוא שנת החמשים שנה IT IS A JUBILEE; THE FIFTIETH YEAR [SHALL BE UNTO YOU A PERIOD etc.] — Why is this statement made at all? Is it not identical with that made in v. 10? But because it is stated (v. 10) “and ye shall sanctify [the fiftieth year]” which implies that the year has to be sanctified at the beginning although the law of setting the slaves free applies only as from Yom Kippur, and consequently one might think that the holy character of the year is to be extended till the tenth of Tishri of the next year. Scripture therefore states here “a Jubilee is the fiftieth year” — but not any part of the fifty-first — just as is explained in Rosh Hashanah 8b and in Torat Cohanim (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 3 1). את נזריה [YE SHALL NOT GATHER THE GRAPES] THAT ARE נזירים — i. e. the grapes which have been kept by you (cf. Rashi on v. 6: לכם לאכלה שבת הארץ), but you may gather from those that had been declared free to all (cf. Rashi on v. 5: לא תבצר). Just as this is stated with reference to the Sabbatical year so, too, is it stated with regard to the Jubilee (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 3 2). Thus there are two holy years one after the other: the forty-ninth year שמיטה, and the fiftieth,יובל.
Ibn Ezra
"It is a Jubilee." Since it is a Jubilee year, you shall not sow.
Sforno
יובל היא שנת החמישים שנה תהיה לכם, just as the soil will become free from those who have purchased it, it will not be enslaved to the owners that are returning to it; during that year they must not yet use it as if it were their own.
Chizkuni
יובל היא, “it is a Jubilee year,” the expression יובל from the root יבל “to bring home,” reflects the extraordinary function of this year, namely to release slaves and to enable them to return to their original homes. Compare the use of this root in the transitive mode in Isaiah 23,7: יובילוה רגליה, “her own feet shall carry her far off”, or Psalms 60,11: מי יובילני עיר מצור?, ”would that I be brought to the fortified city!” Compare also Isaiah 18,7: ביום ההוא יובל שי, “on that day a gift will be brought from a people far removed.”[What follows really belongs to verse 10, the author may have had his reasons why he decided to place this here. Ed.] לכם, “for to you Israel, exclusively.” (Ibn Ezra). יובל היא שנת החמישים שנה, “it, i.e. the fiftieth year is a Jubilee;” on the face of it the meaning of this line is not clear, nor why it is needed, seeing that the Torah had written the same words already in verse 10. We therefore need to understand this as follows: seeing that the Torah had written in verse 10 that we are to sanctify this year, that the meaning was that we should do so from the beginning of the year already, and that at the end of that year its special sanctity would continue for ten days until the Day of Atonement, as it is a custom to always add to, and thereby include, something secular, so that it also becomes something holy, the Torah, by repeating this line, teaches that the sanctity of that year does not extend beyond the end of its calendar year, i.e. Rosh hashanah. (Talmud, tractate Rosh Hashanah folio 8)
Rashbam
נזיריה, freely growing grapes that have fallen off the vines must not be harvested. The same applies to grain that grew without having been planted during that year.
For it is a jubilee; it shall be holy to you; you shall eat the increase of it out of the field.
verse value 3080
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 38 letters. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֚י, 2 letters) and the longest is "its·yield" (אֶת־תְּבוּאָתָֽהּ, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 404: holiness, from·the·open·field. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "from·the·open·field" (מִ֨ן־הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "you·shall·eat" (root אכל, 106x in Leviticus); "holiness" (root קדש, 101x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: כִּ֚י [for] (30) + יוֹבֵ֣ל [jubilee] (48) + הִ֔וא [it] (12) + קֹ֖דֶשׁ [holiness] (404) + תִּהְיֶ֣ה [it·shall·be] (420) + לָכֶ֑ם [to·you] (90) + מִ֨ן־הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה [from·the·open·field] (404) + תֹּאכְל֖וּ [you·shall·eat] (457) + אֶת־תְּבוּאָתָֽהּ [its·yield] (1215) = 3080.
Onkelos
For it is a Jubilee, a holy thing it shall be for you; from the field you shall eat its produce.
Rashi
קדש תהיה לכם IT SHALL BE HOLY UNTO YOU — The sacred character of the produce of that year attaches itself to its equivalent (i. e. to the articles given in exchange for it), just as is the case with Temple property (הקדש). One might think that after having been exchanged it (the fruit) leaves (loses) its sacred character and becomes חולין (ordinary produce), as is the case with many “holy” objects when they have thus been exchanged! Scripture, however, states תהיה “[holy] shall it be”, it shall always be in its original (holy) status (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 3 3; cf. Sukkah 40b). מן השדה תאכלו את תבואתה YE SHALL EAT THE INCREASE THEREOF מן השדה — only by virtue of what is to be found in the field mayest thou eat of what is stored in the house; because if it (a particular fruit) has disappeared for food for the wild beasts in the field, you must clear it out of the house. Just as this is stated in reference to the produce of the Sabbatical year so is it slated also in reference to that of the Jubilee (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 3 4).
Ramban
OUT OF THE FIELD YE SHALL EAT THE INCREASE THEREOF. “By virtue of the produce to be found in the field, you may eat of what is in the house, but if it is no longer to be found by the beast in the field, you must remove it from the house, just as it is said in the case of the Sabbatical year.” This is Rashi’s language. But if so, the verse is not well-connected [to the preceding part]. Instead, Scripture is stating: Ye shall not sow, neither reap that which groweth of itself in it … For it is a Jubilee; it shall be holy unto you, and out of the field ye shall eat the increase thereof, and not out of the house. And Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra interpreted: “out of the field ye shall eat, out of what the field brings forth of its own accord you shall all eat, as is written in the case of the Sabbatical year.”In my opinion Scripture is stating: “You shall not reap nor gather in this year, for it is a Jubilee and it shall be holy unto you; out of the field you shall bring the produce and eat, meaning: that you are to go forth into the field to glean and eat together with the poor and destitute, the beast and cattle, and it is not to be for you a time of reaping and gathering in the produce, and bringing it into your house and store-houses like the produce of all other years.” Now we are taught in the Torath Kohanim: “From this the Sages have inferred that if one preserves three kinds of vegetables in a single barrel, Rabbi Elazar says: ‘They may be eaten only as long as the first [to ripen of the three kinds] remains in the field’ [but as soon as one vegetable is no longer found in the field, all three are forbidden to be eaten, since by preserving them together he makes all three as one]. Rabbi Yehoshua says: ‘Even as long as the last [to ripen of the three kinds] remains in the field’ [they may all be eaten, although the first two vegetables are no longer to be found in the field]. Rabban Gamaliel says: ‘When any one of the species comes to an end in the field, he is to remove that kind from the house’. And the final decision of the law is according to him. Rabbi Shimon says: ‘All vegetables are considered one with regard to the law of Removal.’” All this interpretation is because Scripture does not say “out of the field you shall bring and eat,” but instead [said, out of the field ye shall eat, thus] placing “the eating” next to “the field,” meaning that one may eat [what is stored in the house] only because of it [that which is still to be found in the field]. It is possible that this matter is only a Scriptural support for a law of Rabbinic origin, and that is why Rabbi Yehoshua was lenient [even] about it [the actual vegetable], and Rabban Gamaliel [who was more stringent about it than Rabbi Yehoshua, also] was lenient about the taste [of the vegetable which remains in the other vegetables after it is taken out of the barrel]. I have already written on this subject above. It is possible that according to Rabban Gamaliel the commandment of Removal i...
Ibn Ezra
"It shall be holy to you" — because it is set apart among the years. "From the field you shall eat" — what the field brings forth on its own, all of you shall eat, as it is written [similarly] regarding the Sabbatical year.
Sforno
קדש תהיה לכם מן השדה תאכלו, even though I forbade the owners to use this land for sowing and harvesting, and not to gather the fruit of the field as in other years, as in verse 11 where all manner of harvesting is enjoined, I did not forbid the owners to eat of its produce. They are not at a disadvantage compared to the general population who do not have a claim on their fields. The legislation parallels that of the sh’mittah legislation.
Chizkuni
מן השדה תאכלו, “you will eat from whatever the field yields on its own.” Nothing had been planted during that year, of course. The Torah promises that there will nonetheless be a harvest. However, we are not to bring that “harvest’’ home to our barns for storage., exclusively.” (Ibn Ezra).
Tur HaArokh
מן השדה תאכלו את תבואתה, “you may eat whatever crop the field yields.” Rashi explains the wording to mean that as long as some food is found in the fields, food suitable for the beasts, any food of that year’s spontaneous crop taken indoors by man, may be eaten. When that period has come to an end, the householder has to burn whatever food of that field from that year has not been consumed. Nachmanides comments that if we accept Rashi’s interpretation the words מן השדה, “from the field” in our verse, are not connected to the beginning of the verse. The meaning of the words מן השדה would therefore be that only something grown at the initiative of the field itself, as distinct from the result of the farmer’s efforts are you allowed to eat. Ibn Ezra explains the verse simply as meaning that you may eat only what the field produces spontaneously without a farmer’s input. [He puts no time limit on the consumption of such produce. Ed.] It is like the rules of the sh’mittah year.(compare verses 6 and 7) Personally, (Tur speaking), the meaning of the verse is that you must not work the field during that year, neither plant nor harvest seeing that it is Jubilee year, and the year is to be holy for you; however you may bring in from the field whatever it has produced unaided by man. You are to share such produce in equal measure with the poor who may also help themselves to it. The usual seasons are not to be treated as such, i.e. there is no specific time frame during which the above applies, as opposed to normal years.
Rashbam
מן השדה תאכלו, and not anything which had been gathered into the houses by the owners of the fields which had been forbidden to have been gathered in the first place.
In this year of jubilee you shall return every man to his possession.
verse value 2690
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 27 letters. The shortest word is "each" (אִ֖ישׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·his·holding" (אֶל־אֲחֻזָּתֽוֹ, 7 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "the·this" (הַזֹּ֑את). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "each" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus); "in·year·of" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus); "the·this" (root זאת, 21x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root יובל ("the·jubilee") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·this', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: בִּשְׁנַ֥ת [in·year·of] (752) + הַיּוֹבֵ֖ל [the·jubilee] (53) + הַזֹּ֑את [the·this] (413) + תָּשֻׁ֕בוּ [you·shall·return] (708) + אִ֖ישׁ [each] (311) + אֶל־אֲחֻזָּתֽוֹ [to·his·holding] (453) = 2690.
Onkelos
In this year of Jubilee each man shall return to his ancestral portion.
Rashi
תשבו איש אל אחזתו YE SHALL RETURN EVERY MAN UNTO HIS POSSESSION — But has it not already been stated: (v. 10) “and ye shall return every man unto his possession”? But this is repeated in order to include in this law also the case of one who sold his field and his son came forward and redeemed it, — that it also is to be returned to the father in the Jubilee (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 3 6).
Ibn Ezra
"In this Jubilee year." Its meaning is: at the beginning of the year.
Sforno
תשובו איש אל אחוזתו; it is permitted for the owners to take possession of it as their ancestral heritage, and to use it to build houses thereon, construct pens for the flocks, etc., as proof that it is again theirs.
And if you sell anything to your neighbor, or buy of your neighbor's hand, you shall not defraud one another.
verse value 3558
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "or" (א֥וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·when·you·shall·sell" (וְכִֽי־תִמְכְּר֤וּ, 8 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·when·you·shall·sell" (וְכִֽי־תִמְכְּר֤וּ), "sale" (מִמְכָּר֙), "to·your·fellow" (לַעֲמִיתֶ֔ךָ). The root עמית appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "or" (root או, 101x in Leviticus); "man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus); "from·hand·of" (root יד, 45x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root מכר ("and·when·you·shall·sell") in Leviticus. First appearance of the root ממכר ("sale") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·fellow', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְכִֽי־תִמְכְּר֤וּ [and·when·you·shall·sell] (702) + מִמְכָּר֙ [sale] (300) + לַעֲמִיתֶ֔ךָ [to·your·fellow] (570) + א֥וֹ [or] (7) + קָנֹ֖ה [buy] (155) + מִיַּ֣ד [from·hand·of] (54) + עֲמִיתֶ֑ךָ [your·fellow] (540) + אַל־תּוֹנ֖וּ [you·shall·not·oppress] (493) + אִ֥ישׁ [man] (311) + אֶת־אָחִֽיו [his·brother] (426) = 3558.
Onkelos
And when you make a sale to your fellow, or when you buy from your fellow's hand, you shall not wrong a man his brother.
Rashi
'וכי תמכרו וגו AND IF THOU SELL [OUGHT TO THY FELLOW… YE SHALL NOT OVERREACH ONE ANOTHER] — According to its plain sense the verse intimates what it literally means: (i. e. as translated above). But there is also a Midrashic interpretation: Whence can it be derived that if you sell anything you should sell it to your Israelite fellowman? From what Scripture states: “And if you sell — ,לעמיתך sell it to one associated with you by nationality”. And whence can it be derived that if you intend to buy anything that you should buy it of your Israelite fellow? From what Scripture states “or if thou buy ought — מיד עמיתך, at the hand of one associated with thee, buy it” (Sifra, Behar, Section 3 1). אל תונו YE SHALL NOT WRONG [ONE ANOTHER] — This refers to wronging in money matters (Sifra, Behar, Section 3 4).
Ramban
YE SHALL NOT WRONG ONE ANOTHER. “This refers to overcharging in money matters.” 15. ACCORDING TO THE NUMBER OF YEARS AFTER THE JUBILEE THOU SHALT BUY OF THY NEIGHBOR. “The plain meaning of the verse as indicated by its context is that Scripture is admonishing here against overcharging [as mentioned in the preceding verse, and explains here in detail]: When you sell or buy land, ascertain how many years there are left till the Jubilee, and according to these years the vendor is to sell and the purchaser to buy, for in the end the purchaser must return him [the land] in the year of the Jubilee. Thus if there are but a few years [till the Jubilee] and he sells it at a high price, the purchaser has been wronged, and if there are many years so that the purchaser can eat many crops from it, he must buy it according to the [greater] time [remaining till the Jubilee]. It is referring to this that it is said, according to the number of years of the crops he shall sell unto thee, [meaning]: according to the number of years of crops which the land will remain in the hand of the purchaser, you shall sell it to him. Now our Rabbis have derived from here [the law] that one who sells his field has no right to redeem it before two years [after the date of the sale, for the verse states, according to the number of ‘years’ of the crops he shall sell, and the minimum number of the term ‘years’ is two], even if there were three crops in those two years. [However, although this interpretation of the Rabbis indicates that the verse in speaking of shnei means ‘two years’], it does not lose its literal meaning [i.e., ‘years of’], that is to say, he is to sell by the number of ‘years of’ crops, and not by years when the produce is smitten by blast, and the minimum number implied in ‘years’ is two.” Thus far is Rashi’s language. Now this is indeed the correct interpretation of the verse; however, our Rabbis have said that overcharge does not apply in [the sale of] land, for it is said: “Or buy of thy neighbor’s ‘hand’, and this refers to something which is transferred from ‘hand’ to ‘hand’” [i.e., movable goods or chattels]. But this verse according to the Rabbi [Rashi], both in its plain meaning and in its [Rabbinical] interpretation, speaks of [overcharging in the sale of] land! We must then perforce turn the verses away from their simple meaning, and say that each one stands independently [of the others]. Thus Scripture is stating: And if thou sell aught unto thy neighbor, or buy of thy neighbor’s hand, that is, something which is transferred from hand to hand, ye shall not wrong one another. Then He states further: “According to the number of years after the Jubilee thou shalt buy of him the crops, and according unto the number of years of the crops he shall sell them unto thee. According to the years you shall increase and reduce the price, for you will have to return it [i.e., the land] to him in the Jubilee.” All this is an admonition regarding the Jubilee, that...
Ibn Ezra
"Or purchase" (o kaneh) — this is a verbal noun (infinitive), and the phrase "where you purchase" is implied. It is the same as "Remember the Sabbath day" (zakhor) [Exod. 20:8], and there are many like it. The meaning of "you sell" is in the plural form, [implying that the transaction takes place] by means of witnesses. Likewise the meaning of "do not wrong" — except [the price shall reflect] the number of years [remaining].
Sforno
וכי תמכרו, in any sale it is forbidden to disadvantage the seller or the purchaser. For instance, the seller must not skim off any dust particles from the top of the drawer to create the impression that the purchaser receives completely refined merchandise none of which turns out to be substandard or useless. (Baba Metzia 60) או קנה, when the purchaser is unaware of the true worth of the merchandise, even if by then it had already come into his possession and he had an opportunity to show it to a friend who is more knowledgeable. אל תונו, even though the sages said that there is no overcharging when land is involved. (Baba Metzia 56), this applies to the price charged for the land itself. When it comes to calculating the remaining number of years before the next Jubilee year one must not mislead the purchaser [such as saying that there are 18 years left before the next Jubilee year, withholding the information that for at least 2 of those years the land may not be worked so that the purchaser should pay only for 16 anticipated harvests instead of 18. Ed.]
Or HaChaim
וכי תמכרו ממכר לעמיתך, "And if you sell anything to your neighbour, etc." Torat Kohanim on this verse asks: "whence do we know that the legislation concerning overcharging does not apply to transactions involving real estate?" Answer: "this is why the Torah wrote או קנה מיד עמיתך, "or if you will buy from the hand of your neighbour." This means that the commandment not to charge too much applies only to מטלטלין, mobile goods, chattels. The Talmud Baba Metzia 56 queries this ruling pointing to Numbers 21,26 where the word יד is used in connection with land, i.e. "he took his whole land from his hand, as far as the river Arnon." The Talmud concludes by saying that in every other instance the word ידו is to be understood literally, whereas only in this instance (Numbers 21,26) the word means "in his possession." Thus far the Talmud. The question arises why we do not use the verse in Numbers to deduce that the word ידו never needs to be understood literally as "his hand?" We must answer that the meaning of the word ידו is certainly "his hand" in the literal sense of the word. It is not disputed that the meaning of the word ידו may also be "something under one's control," however the literal meaning is the more likely in our context. When I have the choice of how to understand the word I naturally choose the meaning which fits the context in which the word appears. Moreover, if the Torah had not intended that we understand the word ידו literally it should have used a different word to prevent us from misunderstanding its purpose. We need to explore therefore why the sages inisted that the legislation against overcharging in our verse speaks only of the sale of chattels and that the verse does not speak at all of sales involving real estate. It appears that although the exegesis employed by our sages is based on their prior knowledge of these הלכות which had been handed down orally from Mount Sinai, they were interested in linking all these הלכות to the written text of the Torah. The plain meaning of our verse is perfectly compatible with the known הלכות on this subject. We must remember that the Torah had already prohibited the irrevocable sale of real estate in the land of Israel through the institution known as יובל, Jubilee year legislation. That legislation precluded overcharging for the land as the Torah expressly stipulated that the sale price be based on the number of harvests the land in question would produce before the next Jubilee year (verses 16-17). Verse 17 speaks specifically about not overcharging an unsuspecting purchaser who thought that he bought title to that land outright. The seller meanwhile intended to invoke Torah law in the Jubilee year and claim back the land in question without compensating the buyer. In such a situation, i.e. that the seller purports to sell property against which there is no potential lien, the principle of overcharging does apply so that the original sale is invalidated due to the seller having misrep...
Chizkuni
,וכי תמכרו ממכר, “and if you sell something to your neighbour, etc.” this includes the selling of chattels. How do we know that the law concerning overcharging does not apply to real estate transactions?The Torah continues with או קנה מיד עמיתך, אל תונו, “or you buy something from your neighbour’s hand, do not overcharge;” things that are passed from hand to hand are subject to the laws governing overcharging. Real estate which stays put, does not fall into that category. אל תונו איש את אחיו ,“do not cheat one another.” How does one “cheat? By selling a piece of land for more than its worth, seeing that it is going to have to be returned to the seller in the Yovel year. If it is a property that is not subject to return to its original owner in the Jubilee year, then the term “overcharging” cannot be applied, as what he had sold was not a fixed amount of harvests expected. This is the meaning of the Rabbis having said that the law of overcharging does not apply to real estate.
Rabbeinu Bahya
וכי תמכרו ממכר ...אל תונו, “If you will sell property to your neighbor...do not wrong one another.” According to Rashi the verse speaks about monetary wrongdoing, i.e. not to overcharge; when you sell land you are aware how many years there are left until the Yovel year when the land reverts to its original owner. You must make the price of the land commensurate with the number of years the purchaser will be able to enjoy the use of the land he is purchasing. אונאה, “wrongdoing,” in this instance can occur in both directions. Either the price is too high which makes the seller guilty, or the buyer exploited the seller’s need and paid for less than the number of harvests he can expect until the Yovel year in which case the buyer is guilty of wrongdoing. Our sages in Sifra Behar 6,1 understand the wording in our verse, i.e. the Torah’s adding that the sale or purchase is to or from a Jew, (לעמיתך or מיד עמיתך) to mean that land deals should be concluded only between Jews and not between Jews and Gentiles so as not to enable Gentiles to own land in Eretz Yisrael. The reason that this subject of selling land is written adjacent to the legislation dealing with the laws of Shemittah and Yovel is to warn us that he who fails to observe the former because he begrudges the loss of income during the Shemittah year will find that instead of losing only one year’s income he will become impoverished and have to sell his land so that it will not provide him with any income at all (compare Tanchuma Behar 1). The sages go as far as to say that failure to observe the Shemittah and Yovel laws will eventually reduce the guilty party to having to dispose even of his chattels. They base this on the extraneous words מיד עמיתך, “from the hand of your fellow Jew” (verse 14). Chattels are sold from hand to hand. They view our verses as describing a certain sequence of events. 1) You observe the Shemittah legislation. 2) If you do not, you may have to sell your real estate, i.e. ממכר; 3) if you did not get the message that your economic decline was due to your not observing the Shemittah legislation, you will eventually be in a position where fellow Jews have to buy your chattels so that you will have what to live on. Similar commentaries are offered in connection with the need to sell one’s house. In verse 25 the Torah paints a scenario of someone selling part of his inherited land due to having become impoverished; in verse 29 the Torah already speaks about this someone having to sell his home; if he learned his lesson through having been forced to go begging all well and good. If he did not he may be so reduced (verse 39) that he has to sell his service (take a job he is not free to leave for a given number of years.) If this did not teach him why he is in such reduced circumstances, he may find that a Gentile buys him (his body) compare verse 47-to the end of the portion). Thus far the scenarios painted by the Midrash. Unfortunately, a review of Jewish history shows that what is described here as a warning actually became the fate of large sections of the Jewish people prior to the destruction of the first Temple. Jeremiah 34,11 is quite explicit on the matter when he chided his countrymen for making a mockery of the temporary freeing of their Jewish slaves, indirectly forcing them into slavery again as they did not help them to establish themselves. Subsequent to that travesty, he told them in the name of the Lord that their punishment would include loss of their land, marching into captivity by those who had not been killed by the Babylonians first, etc. (Compare Chronicles II 36, 17-18).
Kli Yakar
Or buy from the hand of your fellow; do not defraud. The Sages interpreted (Bava Metzia 47b) that something which is acquired from hand to hand [movable property] is subject to laws of fraud, but land is not subject to these laws. The reason for this is that everything that is sold does not maintain the same value across all times, as according to the changes of the times, sometimes prices rise or fall. Therefore, there is never a fixed value for any item being sold. Consequently, regarding land, even though at the place where it is being sold it might be sold cheaply or expensively, nevertheless, inevitably a time will come when it will be sold at the same value for which one is buying it now. But with movable goods, there is concern that by that time they may no longer exist in the world, while the earth stands forever. The Torah only excluded land from the nullification of the sale, but there is still a prohibition involved, as it says regarding land according to the number of years after the Jubilee, and regarding this it repeats and says do not defraud.
According to the number of years after the jubilee you shall buy of your neighbor, and according to the number of years of the crops he shall sell to you.
verse value 4451
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 48 letters. The shortest word is "after" (אַחַ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "years·of·crops" (שְׁנֵֽי־תְבוּאֹ֖ת, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 382: in·number·of, in·number·of. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "you·shall·buy" (תִּקְנֶ֖ה), "years·of·crops" (שְׁנֵֽי־תְבוּאֹ֖ת), "he·shall·sell·to·you" (יִמְכׇּר־לָֽךְ). The root מספר appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "years" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus); "from" (root מן, 41x in Leviticus); "after" (root אחר, 27x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root מספר ("in·number·of") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·fellow', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 3 words. Full calculation: בְּמִסְפַּ֤ר [in·number·of] (382) + שָׁנִים֙ [years] (400) + אַחַ֣ר [after] (209) + הַיּוֹבֵ֔ל [the·jubilee] (53) + תִּקְנֶ֖ה [you·shall·buy] (555) + מֵאֵ֣ת [from] (441) + עֲמִיתֶ֑ךָ [your·fellow] (540) + בְּמִסְפַּ֥ר [in·number·of] (382) + שְׁנֵֽי־תְבוּאֹ֖ת [years·of·crops] (1169) + יִמְכׇּר־לָֽךְ [he·shall·sell·to·you] (320) = 4451.
Onkelos
According to the number of years after the Jubilee you shall buy from your fellow; according to the number of years of produce shall he sell to you.
Rashi
במספר שנים אחר היובל תקנה ACCORDING TO THE NUMBER OF YEARS AFTER THE JUBILEE THOU SHALT BUY [OF THY COMPANION] — This (the following) is the literal sense fitting in the clauses of the verse as required by the context: Scripture intends here to warn against wronging prohibited in the preceding verse: When you sell or buy landed property take into account how many years there are until the Jubilee, and according to the years and the crops of the field which it can be expected to yield shall the vendor sell and the purchaser buy, for in the end he (the purchaser) will have to return it to him (to the vendor) in the Jubilee-year. Consequently if there are only a few years until the Jubilee and this man sells it at a high price it follows that the purchaser has been overreached. If, on the other hand, there are still many years until the Jubilee so that he eats from it many crops the seller is overreached if you give him only a low price. It must therefore be purchased according to the period remaining until the Jubilee. That is what Scripture means when it states: “According to the number of the years of the fruits he shall sell unto ,"thee," i. e. according to the number of years of crops that it (the field) will remain in the hand of the purchaser you shall sell it to him. Our Rabbis, however, derived from here the law that one who sells his field has no right to repurchase it before the elapse of at least two years, — that it must remain in the possession of the purchaser two full years reckoning from date to date, and even though there may be three crops in these two years, as, for instance, if he sold it when it had its corn standing. And in this interpretation the word שני does not lose its literal meaning, viz., that of years, (the words שני תבואות are not taken in this interpretation to mean “two crops” as you might at first think) — the phrase means מספר שנים של תבואות the number of years of crops (i. e. שני is the construct of שנים) and not of years when the corn is smitten by blast, and you know that the minimum number implied in the plural שנים is two (this is how the Rabbis derived the law that the vendor must leave the field at least two years in possession of the purchaser) (Arakhin 29b).
Sforno
במספר שנים תקנה, you are to pay a price corresponding to the number of years that you will own the land. Our sages state that when it comes to matters which are subject to verification by weight, by measure, or number, even if the overcharge amounted to less than 1/6th, the usual leeway when buying things in “bundles,” etc, is refundable. (Baba Metzia 56) אחר היובל תקנה, there is no point in purchasing a field during the actual Jubilee year, as a situation might arise in which the returning owners cannot retain possession of it for any meaningful amount of time at all, depriving them of the feeling that they had benefited from the Yovel institution. שני תבואות, years during which a harvest is produced, not years of drought, etc. The conditions are parallel to a farmer who enters into a tenancy agreement working the field for the owner and giving him a portion of the harvest.
Or HaChaim
במספר שנים אחר היובל, "according to the number of years after the Jubilee year, etc," We must establish first of all why the Torah speaks of the years "after the Jubilee," rather than "the number of years until the Jubilee year," seeing that the years the purchase is in effect are part of those years? Secondly, why did the Torah change its wording in the middle of a verse? The Torah describes the transaction as a purchase,מקנתו, when speaking of the number of years which determines the purchase price, i.e. making the purchaser the principal figure. When the Torah speaks of the number of harvests, however, it switches and describes the transaction as a sale, i.e. הוא מוכר לך, "he sells to you?" We have the following Mishnah in Massechet Arachin folio 29: "When someone sells a field in the Jubilee year he is not allowed to redeem it until at least 2 years have elapsed seeing that the Torah stipulates that the sale has to be in effect for "a number of harvests," i.e. not less than two harvests. If one of those two years happens to be a year of drought so that no harvest is brought in, or it was the shemittah year (when the harvest is public property), such a year does not form part of the two years we have just mentioned. Rabbi Eliezer says that if the seller sold the field immediately before New Year's day while it had not yet been harvested the buyer may enjoy 3 harvests before the seller can redeem the field." Thus far the Mishnah. When the Talmud elaborates on this, it is pointed out that the Mishnah did not say that redemption of the field in less than two years would be legally ineffective, but said only that the "seller is not allowed to redeem it." This means that there is both a negative and a positive commandment, the positive commandment being that one must allow the purchaser to enjoy the field for at least two harvests. The wording of the Torah applies the positive commandment also to the purchaser, not merely to the seller having to allow the purchaser to enjoy possession for a minimum of two harvests ; this is based on the word תקנה "you shall purchase." We also find a Baraitha in that connection which states as follows: "if the purchaser enjoyed only one harvest prior to the Jubilee year one allows him to enjoy the harvest of an additional year after the Jubilee year." As a result of the foregoing we have four separate הלכות, rulings, on the subject which are based on our verse. 1) It is a commandment applicable to both seller and buyer that the sale be valid for no less than two years as stated in the Torah. 2) If there were three harvests within the space of two years they all belong to the purchaser. 3) If there was a year of drought so that there was no harvest, the purchaser is entitled to another year. 4) If the Jubilee year occurs during one of the two years the purchaser contracted for, this year is considered as null and void and the purchaser continues in possession for another year. Maimonides rules in accordance with w...
Tur HaArokh
במספר שנים אחר היובל תקנה מאת עמיתך, “you will buy from your fellow on the basis of how many years have elapsed since the last Jubilee year.” According to Rashi the plain meaning of the verse is to warn the seller not to overcharge the buyer. Nachmanides agrees that this is the plain meaning of the text, but adds that if this were so halachically, it would contradict the principle that the term אונאה, an illegal overcharge, does not apply when the object in question is real estate. We are therefore bound to look for a different interpretation of the meaning of our verse(s) here.(compare Ketuvot 99) We therefore need to view each of the verses in this paragraph as unrelated to the verse prior to it or subsequent to it. Verse fourteen speaks of chattels changing hands, something where the laws of אונאה, overcharges, do apply. Afterwards the Torah warns not to become guilty of unfair dealing in the sale of real estate. In verse 17 the Torah repeats the general principle of dealing fairly with one’s fellowman rather than applying the principle of “buyer beware!” which is so prevalent in our society. Verse 17 even includes אונאת דברים, causing damage by the spoken word, though nothing substantive had been denied the purchaser or seller, as the case may be. The Talmudבבא מציעא folio 58 even considers the latter kind of unfair practice as more serious than the former, either because it is not subject to being retracted or because it insults the victim’s body rather than cause harm only to his financial assets. Alternately, it is quite possible that if one deliberately cheats one’s customer by misrepresenting the object one tries to sell, one is guilty of violating a negative commandment regardless of whether the object involved is a chattel or real estate, seeing that the Torah here quotes both examples separately as forbidden. The words אל תונו איש את אחיו, followed by the example of the number of years that have elapsed since the Jubilee year, clearly refer to transactions involving real estate. The difference in the law of אונאה when practiced with chattels as opposed to when involving real estate, would only be that in the case of chattels when the overcharge is less than 1/6th of the fair price the transaction is not voided and the vendor does not have to return the excess he has charged. Should the overcharge have exceeded that amount, the transaction is automatically reversed when the buyer becomes aware of having been deceived. When the Talmud stated that the law of אונאה does not apply to transactions involving real estate, the meaning was that even if the overcharge was more than one 6th, the sale is not cancelled, but the vendor must make the appropriate refund. When viewed in this light, Rashi’s explanation does not raise any problems. In any event, it is forbidden to overcharge deliberately, hoping that the purchaser in his desire to acquire said land will forgive the vendor for overcharging him. Our sages arrived at this interpretation because the Torah employed the plural mode in verse 14 when writing וכי תמכרו ממכר לעמיתך...אל תונו, “when you make a sale to your fellow….do not cheat one another” (literally :”cause each other grief.”) The use of the plural here suggests that both real estate transactions and chattels are the subject of this ordinance. Although the Torah spoke first specifically of chattels, i.e. או קנה מיד, “or when he purchased something from the “hand, etc.,” it reverts to the all embracing אל תונו without limiting such transactions to chattels, mobile objects. Seeing that the chattels did warrant special mention, the reason must be that the regulations as to under what conditions such “cheating” results in a reversal of the transaction is bound to be somewhat different from the conditions invalidating a real estate transaction in which one or the other party was not honest. It is also possible that the thrust of the whole verse is to warn people to be aware at all times of how many years have elapsed since the last Jubilee year, that knowing the date of the month is not sufficient. Once this is common knowledge, there will not be miscalculations as to the value of the piece of property that is being sold until the advent of the next Jubilee year. This also will preclude the buyer from believing that what he is about to buy will remain in his possession for an unlimited number of years. At any rate, the principle of אונאה, legal consequences that result from misrepre-sentations of objects being sold, applies also to real estate transactions, though the details are different from when someone sells produce in the market at an inflated price. If it applies there, it is obvious that it also applies when chattels or produce is being bought or sold. Ibn Ezra writes that the reason why the Torah formulated this paragraph by beginning with the words וכי תמכרו in the plural, is that it describes transactions that take place publicly, in front of eyewitnesses. This is why the Torah also employs the plural mode when writing לא תונו, do not take unfair advantage, addressing the seller, is that usually the seller is more likely to take unfair advantage of the buyer rather than vice versa. After all, it is he who initiates the transaction.
According to the multitude of the years you shall increase the price of it, and according to the fewness of the years you shall diminish the price of it; for the number of crops does he sell to you.
verse value 5246
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 60 letters. Verse gematria: 5246 is divisible by 86, the value of Elohim. The shortest word is "multitude·of" (רֹ֣ב, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·years" (הַשָּׁנִ֗ים, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 596: its·price, its·price. 8 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "multitude·of" (רֹ֣ב), "you·shall·increase" (תַּרְבֶּה֙), "and·in·proportion·to" (וּלְפִי֙). The root פה appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "it" (root הוא, 102x in Leviticus); "for" (root כי, 81x in Leviticus); "the·years" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root מקנה ("its·price") in Leviticus. First appearance of the root מעט ("fewness·of") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'its·price', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 6 words.
Onkelos
According to the abundance of the years you shall increase its price, and according to the fewness of the years you shall decrease its price, for it is the number of harvests that he is selling to you.
Rashi
תרבה מקנתו THOU SHALT INCREASE THE PRICE THEREOF — i. e. you may sell it at a high price תמעיט מקנתו — You shall offer a lower price.
Ibn Ezra
"He shall increase the price of it" — the opposite of "he shall reduce the price."
Sforno
תרבה מקנתו, you will buy it at a higher price than would have been the case if you had only rented it. The reason why the seller is entitled to a proportionately better price is that over a period of years any investment the owner makes in building on such property will be worth his while, and will be amortized over many years, whereas a rental agreement does not permit the renter to make such changes. תמעיט מקנתו, that you do not have to pay a price as if you had only rented it. Naturally, if the sale is for a few years only, such considerations are taken into account. כי מספר תבואות הוא מוכר לך, for when you buy the land for a few years only, the only use you can make of it is the harvests which it will yield. Shortness of tenure does not permit the owner to invest in superstructure on the field and to amortize his investment. The purchaser also cannot grow the kind of crop which weakens the soil such as flax, as by the time he has to return the field to the original owner it must be returned in a condition similar to the one when he had bought it. Baba Metzia 109 states specifically that if someone purchased a piece of land for a few years only, he is not permitted to grow flax on it.
Rashbam
כי מספר תבואות until the Jubilee year is what he is selling you, as opposed to the actual soil.
And you shall not wrong one another; but you shall fear your God; for I am Hashem your God.
verse value 2683 — יְהֹוָ֖ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 43 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֖ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֛י, 2 letters) and the longest is "his·fellow" (אֶת־עֲמִית֔וֹ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 106: from·your·God, your·God. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "and·not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·your·God', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְלֹ֤א [and·not] (37) + תוֹנוּ֙ [you·shall·oppress] (462) + אִ֣ישׁ [man] (311) + אֶת־עֲמִית֔וֹ [his·fellow] (927) + וְיָרֵ֖אתָ [and·you·shall·fear] (617) + מֵֽאֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ [from·your·God] (106) + כִּ֛י [for] (30) + אֲנִ֥י [I] (61) + יְהֹוָ֖ה [Hashem] (26) + אֱלֹהֵיכֶֽם [your·God] (106) = 2683.
Onkelos
And you shall not wrong a man his fellow, and you shall fear your God; for I am Hashem your God.
Rashi
ולא תונו איש את עמיתו YE SHALL NOT THEREFORE BE EXTORTIONATE TO ONE ANOTHER — Here Scripture warns against vexing by words (wounding a person’s feelings) — that one should not annoy his fellow-man, nor give him an advice which is unfitted for him, but is in accordance with the plan and the advantage of the adviser. But lest you should say, “Who knows whether I had any intention to do him evil?” Scripture therefore states: “but thou shalt fear thy God”! — He Who knows men’s thoughts, He knows it! In all cases where it is a matter of conscience (more lit., a matter handed over to the heart), when no one knows the truth except the one who has the thought in his heart, Scripture always states: “but be afraid of thy God”! (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 4 1-2; Bava Metzia 58b; cf. also Rashi on Leviticus 19:14.)
Ibn Ezra
The meaning of "do not wrong one another" — this is a warning to the seller, whereas the first [warning, in v. 14] was to the buyer. "For I am Hashem your God" — and since I am your God, I will exact retribution from both of them — from whoever wrongs his neighbor. And if you follow My statutes, the Land will give its fruit; the reason for mentioning this is on account of the [upcoming] reckoning of harvests.
Sforno
ולא תונו, the reason this is repeated so many times is to warn you that you must not even misrepresent by words and thereby treat your customer unfairly. Even if the damage caused is not measurable in terms of money, all manner of misrepresentation is forbidden. כי אני ה' אלוקיכם, I, G’d am both buyer and seller. This is why I am meticulous and adamant that neither practice be tolerated.
Or HaChaim
ולא תונו איש את עמיתו, "And you shall not take advantage of one another." Baba Metzia 58 explains that our verse discusses אונאת דברים, "verbal wrongs." The plain meaning of the verse is that seeing the Torah had already issued a similarly phrased commandment in verse 14, and we had explained that commandment as applicable when overcharging for chattels, we could have thought that overcharging for land was permitted. The Torah therefore had to repeat this commandment in connection with land sales so that the reader would not err and assume it is permitted to overcharge on land. The verse therefore concludes with the exhortation: "you shall fear your G'd," telling us that although the normal legislation against overcharging does not have a legal effect when the sale of real estate is involved, this is so only in connection with land sales in the rest of the world and to members of society at large (Gentiles). The prohibition to overcharge is in effect, however. The reason there are no legal repercussions when someone overcharges for the land he sells is that G'd personally will exact the appropriate penalty from the guilty party; this is why after the words: "you shall fear your G'd" the Torah adds the words: "for I am the Lord your G'd." G'd reminds us that He Himself will judge us in this respect and that we must not assume that it is permissible to overcharge when selling real estate. There are many instances of the Torah forbidding something without making such prohibitions a matter punishable by our legal system. You may do well to read what I have written on Exodus 21,12 in this connection. In our specific case, a court might find it difficult to determine precisely when the seller has violated the rule that he must not overcharge, seeing a purchaser may have been willing to pay more than the market price. (the same applies if the buyer bought the property for less than the market price, exploiting the economic weakness of the seller). G'd alone knows where to draw the line between what a buyer is truly willing to pay and what he feels he is forced to pay. This is why G'd Himself will administer any penalty due to either of the parties involved. I have already stated earlier that the principle of a sale being declared an "erroneous transaction" and the court reversing it applies also to land sales. Maimonides also writes in that vein in chapter 15 of his treatise Hilchot Mechirah. The principle is based on the transaction having a blemish of which the buyer was unaware at the time he concluded the purchase. In such cases the buyer is at liberty to return the land even if a number of years have passed since the purchase was concluded. Our explanation is based on the wording of אל תונו the Torah uses here. The expression אונאת דברים covers every deception caused by words which misrepresent true facts. Lying to a person is a form of "wronging" him and includes overcharging for land, i.e. misrepresenting its true value.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ולא תונו איש את עמיתו ויראת מאלוקיך, “Do not wrong one another, but fear your G’d, etc.” The אונאה referred to in this verse is called אונאת דברים, hurting people with words. Examples are: not to offer deliberately poor advice; irritating one’s fellow and provoking him to become angry (Rashi). We have a statement in Baba Metzia 59 that “all the gates are closed (subject to being closed from time to time) except the gate of אונאה, i.e. the supervision by the watchful eye of G’d if someone is guilty of that sin. The sages based this on Amos 7,7 הנה ה' נצב על חומת אנך וידו אנך, “here the Lord was standing on a wall checked with a plumb line, and in His hand a plumb line.” [The word אנך in that verse is related to אונאה, and the prophet describes the constant alertness of G’d for deviations from the ‘straight and narrow’ symbolized by the plumb line. Ed.] The reason for this is that the victim of such provocations is ever upset and prays to G’d to deliver him from such verbal persecution. This results in G’d’s being involved in matters such as these around the clock. In the event the guilty party who employed language subject to different interpretations consoles himself by saying that his intention to cause his victim anguish could not be proven, the Torah reminds him: “and fear your G’d,” i.e. He knows.
Therefore you shall do My statutes, and keep My ordinances and do them; and you shall dwell in the land in safety.
verse value 6007
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 50 letters. The shortest word is "them" (אֹתָ֑ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·my·rules" (וְאֶת־מִשְׁפָּטַ֥י, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 826: and·you·shall·observe, and·you·shall·observe. The root עשה appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·observe" (root עשה, 94x in Leviticus); "upon·the·land" (root ארץ, 77x in Leviticus); "my·regulations" (root חקה, 26x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root בטח ("in·security") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'them', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: וַעֲשִׂיתֶם֙ [and·you·shall·observe] (826) + אֶת־חֻקֹּתַ֔י [my·regulations] (919) + וְאֶת־מִשְׁפָּטַ֥י [and·my·rules] (846) + תִּשְׁמְר֖וּ [you·shall·keep] (946) + וַעֲשִׂיתֶ֣ם [and·you·shall·observe] (826) + אֹתָ֑ם [them] (441) + וִֽישַׁבְתֶּ֥ם [and·you·shall·live] (758) + עַל־הָאָ֖רֶץ [upon·the·land] (396) + לָבֶֽטַח [in·security] (49) = 6007.
Onkelos
And you shall perform My statutes, and My ordinances you shall observe and perform, and you shall dwell on the land in security.
Rashi
וישבתם על הארץ לבטח [WHEREFORE YE SHALL DO MY ORDINANCES] AND YE SHALL ABIDE IN THE LAND IN SAFETY — It states this because as a punishment for the sin of neglecting the laws of ”Shemittah” Israel becomes exiled, as it is said (Leviticus 26:33, 34) “(And I will disperse you among the nations…] Then shall the land makeup for the Sabbatical years… even then make up for her Sabbatical years that she has not observed” (Shabbat 33a). The seventy years of the Babylonian exile were indeed a punishment corresponding to the seventy Sabbatical years which they had neglected (cf. Rashi on Leviticus 26:35).
Ramban
AND YE SHALL DO MY STATUTES, AND KEEP MINE ORDINANCES. He warned [here] concerning [all] the statutes on account of the Sabbatical year and the Jubilee mentioned [above], because these [commandments] are in the category of “statutes” [for which no explicit reason is given], and [He warned concerning all] the ordinances on account of the law of the return of sales and servants in the Jubilee, and [the law of] overcharging [which are “ordinances” for which the reasons are obvious]. He said, and ye shall dwell in the Land in safety, because it is for the sin of [transgressing the laws of] the Sabbatical year and the Jubilee that Israel goes into exile. He then said again, And the Land shall yield her fruit, and ye shall eat until ye have enough, and dwell therein in safety, meaning that you will not have to go out of the Land in the Sabbatical year in order to live in another land on account of lack of food [because the Land shall yield enough fruit].
Sforno
ועשיתם את חקותי, the sh’mittah and Yovel legislation. ואת משפטי תשמרו, the social laws governing the sale and purchase of property in relation to the Yovel so that no cheating of any kind takes place. .וישבתם על הארץ לבטח. To ensure that you will not be exiled from your land. This is the opposite of the prospect discussed in 26,43, and Isaiah 56,17, both of which threaten exile for abuse of the above laws.
Chizkuni
ועשיתם את חקותי, “You will keep My laws;” this is a reference to all laws pertaining to land in the Holy Land and any laws subject to being performed only in the Holy Land as much as they apply during the sh’mittah and Yovel years. ואת משפטי, “and My ordinances;” for instance the prohibition to overcharge.(verse 14) וישבתם על הארץ לבטח, “if you do this you will live in this and securely.” Your security will be bound up with your loyalty to G-d’s Torah.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ועשיתם את חוקותי, “You shall perform My decrees, etc.” The Shemittah and Yovel legislation belongs to the commandments categorized as “decrees.” The words ואת משפטי תשמרו, “and My social laws you shall observe,” which follow immediately refer to the rules about reversing the sales into service, or the sale of property due to duress which when the party making the sale became more affluent can be reversed, as well as to all the laws involving wrongdoing under the heading of אונאה. Both categories of laws are mentioned in our paragraph. וישבתם על הארץ לבטח, “you will dwell securely in the land.” This assurance is important as through non-observance of the Shemittah legislation the Jewish people were exiled from the land in fulfillment of the warning by the Torah in 27,34 that the land would recoup the years of Shemittah which the people did not allow it when the people would be in exile. The seventy years of the Babylonian exile were in direct retaliation for the neglect of that commandment (70 times) as we know from Rashi on that verse in 27,34.
Tur HaArokh
ועשיתם את חקותי, “you shall carry out My decrees, etc.” According to Nachmanides these words refer back to the sh’mittah and Jubilee legislation, seeing that these two sets of laws belong to the category of חקים, whereas cheating belongs to the category of משפטים. ואת משפטי תשמרו, “and you are to observe My social laws;” Here the Torah refers back to the sale of land, freeing of slaves, etc, which are part of the legislation discussed in the context of sh’mittah and Jubilee year legislation. וישבתם על הארץ לבטח, “as a result of such observance you will dwell in the land securely.” Israel went into exile as a result of its failure to heed these warnings. The Torah repeats once more:
Cross-references: Leviticus 26:34; II Chronicles 36:21
And the land shall yield her fruit, and you shall eat until you have enough, and dwell in it in safety.
verse value 2923
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 37 letters. The shortest word is "the·land" (הָאָ֙רֶץ֙, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·you·shall·eat" (וַאֲכַלְתֶּ֖ם, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "its·fruit" (פִּרְיָ֔הּ). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "upon·it" (root על, 127x in Leviticus); "and·you·shall·eat" (root אכל, 106x in Leviticus); "and·it·shall·yield" (root נתן, 86x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·satiety', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְנָתְנָ֤ה [and·it·shall·yield] (511) + הָאָ֙רֶץ֙ [the·land] (296) + פִּרְיָ֔הּ [its·fruit] (295) + וַאֲכַלְתֶּ֖ם [and·you·shall·eat] (497) + לָשֹׂ֑בַע [to·satiety] (402) + וִֽישַׁבְתֶּ֥ם [and·you·shall·live] (758) + לָבֶ֖טַח [in·security] (49) + עָלֶֽיהָ [upon·it] (115) = 2923.
Onkelos
And the land shall give its fruit, and you shall eat to satisfaction, and you shall dwell in security upon it.
Rashi
ונתנה הארץ וגו' וישבתם לבטח עליה AND THE LAND SHALL YIELD [HER PRODUCE AND YE SHALL EAT YOUR FILL], AND ABIDE THEREIN IN SAFETY — The latter words imply that ye shall not have to worry about years (lit., a year) of drought. ואכלתם לשבע AND YE SHALL EAT YOUR FILL — [even if you eat only a little — cf. Rashi on Leviticus 26:5] it will be blessed in your stomach.
Sforno
ואכלתם לשובע, the produce of the land will prove nutritious. An example of this is the manna when the same quantity, an omer per head, whether for a baby or a fully grown person proved adequate, showing that G’d had imbued it with the nutrients needed by the person eating it. [It was the most individualised diet ever. Ed.] Our sages describe this as an example of food adjusting to the body’s needs after it had come into a person’s entrails. (Torat Kohanim, Bechukotai 1,7) This is also how we can understand that the crops grown in the sixth year of the sh’mittah cycle were able to be sufficient for the people’s needs during the seventh year. וישבתם לבטח עליה, you will not need to be embarrassed by having to import food because your land did not provide you with sufficient means of nutrition.
Or HaChaim
ונתנה הארץ פריה, "And the earth shall yield her fruit, etc." The meaning of "her fruit" is that which corresponds to the potential it has been endowed with. When we observe the earth producing fruit this does not prove that the amount of fruit we observe the earth produce is equivalent to the amount the earth is capable of producing. We find in Ketuvot 112 that a certain sage was angry at the earth and decreed that it be prevented from yielding its fruit. As a result of this curse the earth produced far less than previously. If someone had not seen the amount of fruit that piece of earth produced before the sage cursed it, he would have thought that the amount it produced subsequently was the maximum it was capable of producing. ואכלתם לשבע, "and you will eat to your satisfaction, etc." Perhaps the Torah had to emphasise this as we could have thought that if the earth were to produce fruit according to its full potential the excess fat of the produce would be so filling that one could not eat one's fill, i.e. לשבע. The Torah therefore reassures us that we will be able to enjoy such fruit to the full. וישבתם לבטח עליה. "and you will dwell on it in safety." Although the Torah had already written in verse 18 that we would dwell in the land in safety as a result of performing G'd's comandments, the Torah repeats this promise to assure us that the excellence of the land's produce will not attract raiders bent on stealing our harvests. This verse contains G'd's promise that neighbouring countries would not attack us out of greed for our excellent land.
Chizkuni
וישבתם לבטח עליה, “you will dwell safely in it.” The land itself will provide you with its strength so that your enemies cannot consume you. \compare Judges 6,3: ועלה מדין ועמלק, “and the Midianites and the Amalekites would come up (and raid them.) During serious times of hardship, they would not only raid you but would exile some of you and not leave any food for you to be able to subsist on.
Tur HaArokh
ונתנה הארץ פריה...וישבתם לבטח עליה, “and the earth will yield its fruit and you will dwell on it in safety.” This is a promise that you will not have to leave the land of Israel on account of a scarcity of food during the sh’mittah year, or as a result of the observance of these regulations.
And if you shall say: "What shall we eat the seventh year? behold, we may not sow, nor gather in our increase";
verse value 3880 — וְכִ֣י = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 48 letters. Notable word values: "and·if" (וְכִ֣י) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "behold" (הֵ֚ן, 2 letters) and the longest is "our·yield" (אֶת־תְּבוּאָתֵֽנוּ, 9 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "you·shall·say" (תֹאמְר֔וּ), "what·we·will·eat" (מַה־נֹּאכַ֖ל), "we·shall·sow" (נִזְרָ֔ע). The root לא appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "what·we·will·eat" (root אכל, 106x in Leviticus); "and·if" (root כי, 81x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·seventh', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְכִ֣י [and·if] (36) + תֹאמְר֔וּ [you·shall·say] (647) + מַה־נֹּאכַ֖ל [what·we·will·eat] (146) + בַּשָּׁנָ֣ה [in·the·year] (357) + הַשְּׁבִיעִ֑ת [the·seventh] (787) + הֵ֚ן [behold] (55) + לֹ֣א [not] (31) + נִזְרָ֔ע [we·shall·sow] (327) + וְלֹ֥א [and·not] (37) + נֶאֱסֹ֖ף [we·shall·gather] (191) + אֶת־תְּבוּאָתֵֽנוּ [our·yield] (1266) = 3880.
Onkelos
And if you should say: What shall we eat in the seventh year, since we do not sow and do not gather our produce?
Rashi
ולא נאסף [AND IF YE SHALL SAY,… BEHOLD WE SHALL NOT SOW] NOR GATHER IN — into the house. את תבואתנו OUR INCREASE — as, e. g., the wine and the fruits of trees and the aftergrowth of the fields, which grow of their own accord (Pesachim 51b).
Ramban
AND IF YE SHALL SAY: ‘WHAT SHALL WE EAT THE SEVENTH YEAR?’ The verse is, as it were, inverted, meaning: “and if you shall say in the seventh year, ‘What shall we eat [in the eighth year]?’ for their worry would be about the eighth year. For since the beginning of the Sabbatical year and the Jubilee is in Tishri, then they would eat of the produce of the sixth year during the seventh year, as is the normal way in all other years to eat [of the old produce] until after the reaping [of the new], which is at the time of the Festival of Weeks, and even afterwards until the work of fanning and sifting the produce is finished. Therefore the correct interpretation of the verse, and it shall bring forth produce for the three years is that on account of the year of Jubilee [which always follows a Sabbatical year, G-d will command His blessing in the sixth year, meaning] that the sixth year will bring forth [sufficient produce] for the whole of the Sabbatical year, the Jubilee and the year after the Jubilee, and during all these [three years] they will eat of the old crop. Thus Scripture is assuring them that should they fear in the seventh year saying, “What shall we eat?” then I will command My blessing in the sixth year that it shall bring forth produce for the three years following after [the sixth year], this being an additional blessing [to that of every Sabbatical year, when the sixth year brings forth sufficient produce for the seventh and eighth years; and when in addition there is a Jubilee year, it will bring forth enough for three years] so that it should suffice also for the Sabbatical year and the Jubilee. He states, And ye shall sow the eighth year, meaning to say that you should sow in the eighth year in the customary manner of every year, and you should not hurry to plow and sow, or to reap, for until her produce come in into the house at the time that the harvest [usually] takes place every year, at the Festival of Tabernacles, ye shall eat the old crop. And in the Torath Kohanim [it is stated]: “For the three years — for the sixth, the seventh, and the year after the seventh. Another interpretation: For the three years — for the Seventh year, the Jubilee, and the year after the Jubilee.”
Ibn Ezra
The Sadducees have said that our produce [of the sixth year sustaining through three years] is proof that the year begins in Nisan — but this is no proof, for it is possible that the meaning of "our produce" (tevuatenu) is what the Land brings forth on its own. And if they say that aftergrowth cannot be called tevuah [produce], against them stands: "from the field you shall eat its produce (tevuatah)" (v. 12). Furthermore, let them inform us what is to be done in a Jubilee year, for [in their reckoning] they would not sow in the sixth or seventh or eighth years, only sowing in the ninth and harvesting in the tenth — yet why does Scripture not mention this? For it speaks of the three years alone [sufficing]. The correct explanation in my view is that the meaning of "and it shall produce the crop" (ve-aseta et ha-tevuah) is: I shall grant a blessing in the sixth year so that it will be sufficient — and will yield even an additional year [beyond two] — and in the Jubilee year there will be three years without additional sowing.
Sforno
וכי תאמרו מה נאכל, when you raise doubts about this promise which I have made you, asking that you would not have enough to eat because you cannot believe that the quality of such food would compensate for its lack of quantity.
Or HaChaim
וכי תאמרו מה נאכל בשנה השביעית, "When you will say: 'what shall we eat in the seventh year?'" The plain meaning of the verse is as follows: "When you will say (in the seventh year) 'what shall we eat?'" The question posed by the Torah as being asked by the Israelites in this verse could be read in one of two different ways 1) the Torah reveals a motive for the Israelites' reluctance to observe the commandment not to seed the land during the seventh year, i.e. "if we do not seed what shall we eat?" 2) The question centers on the result of observing the commandment not to seed in the seventh year. The Israelites will ask that seeing they have observed G'd's directives "what shall we eat?" In order to make sure we understand the question as the second alternative we mentioned, the Torah adds הן לא נזרע, "behold we may not seed?" The question is one posed by the son to the father who wants to know where his sustenance is to come from seeing it is not available by natural means. The Torah answers that in that case, i.e. that you have fulfilled G'd's command, He will command the earth to provide a more than usually bountiful harvest in the sixth year so that you will not experience any shortfall. This blessing will occur only if your question was not intended to excuse your failure to observe My command. If you were asking to excuse your non-observance, the promise of a bountiful harvest in the sixth year will not materialise.
Rabbeinu Bahya
מה נאכל בשנה השביעית, “what are we to eat in the seventh year?” The question seems unfounded as the people would naturally eat the harvest of the sixth year of the cycle in the following year, i.e. the seventh year! We must therefore understand the words בשנה השביעית as linked to the words “here we have not sown and we will not gather in,” at the end of our verse. The question is voiced in the seventh year and refers to the eighth year.
Kli Yakar
And if you shall say: What shall we eat[,] in the seventh year? Some explain that in the seventh year is not attached to And if you shall say, but rather [it means] “and if you shall say in the sixth year, ‘What shall we eat in the seventh year? Behold, in the seventh year we will not sow.’” But certainly in the seventh year they will not say, “What shall we eat in the eighth year?” For it is already stated, It shall yield produce for three years. If so, they have already seen in the sixth year an abundance of produce, and this is a question on Ramban and Abarbanel, who explain that they will say in the seventh year, “What shall we eat in the eighth year?” But according to what we have written above, that this blessing is that one eats a little and it is blessed in one’s stomach, this is not a question, because ultimately they will not see an abundance of produce. And some say that whoever has [only] a little bread in one’s hand immediately economizes out of fear lest one lack in the future. Similarly, they will economize in the seventh year out of fear of a shortage of produce in the eighth year. And it seems to me that this is its explanation, that this entire complaint revolves around what was said in the previous verse, And you shall eat your bread to satisfaction, and our Rabbis of blessed memory said (see Yoma 74a) it is written (Deuteronomy 8:16), Who fed you manna in the wilderness, and it is written (ibid 8:3), And He afflicted you and made you hunger. Rather, one who has bread in his basket cannot be compared to one who does not have it. You can see that even though the manna fell daily, nevertheless they were eating and still hungry because they did not have bread in their baskets for the next day. Therefore, here they will certainly say, What will we eat in the seventh year? before they see the abundance of produce in the sixth year. And they will say, “If we were to sow in the seventh year for the needs of the eighth, we would have bread in our baskets and we would eat and be satisfied. But since we will not sow for the needs of the eighth, then we will not have bread in our baskets, and consequently, we will not be satisfied in the seventh year, and all the more so in the eighth year. Where then is the promise that states, And you shall eat your bread to satisfaction?” And what will we eat that will be satisfying, since we will not sow and we will not gather our produce for the needs of the eighth year? To this, He answered, I will command My blessing, etc. So that you will have bread in your baskets also for the needs of the eighth year, and then they will eat their bread to satisfaction in the seventh year because they will have bread in their baskets for three years. And some say that three years is because of the Jubilee year, when they would not sow for two consecutive years. And it is possible to interpret three years as applying to every Sabbatical year, and they would say this because of the lack of aftergrowths in [the beginning of] the eighth year, even if they have old produce on hand. And in place of the aftergrowths, He promised them that the produce would yield for an additional year to fill the lack of aftergrowths, so that they would eat and be satisfied when they have produce in great abundance and not in limitation.
Tur HaArokh
וכי תאמרו מה נאכל בשנה השביעית?, “and if you were to ask: ‘what are we going to it during the seventh year?” According to Nachmanides this is a verse that has been truncated, and the correct wording should have been וכי תאמרו בשנה השביעית מה נאכל, “if you were to ask during the seventh year: ‘what are we going to eat?’” The question refers to where the people’s food supply during the eight’s year will come from. The people were not concerned about their food supply during the seventh year as they had the harvest of the sixth year to depend on which would last them until the harvest time of that year. It was accepted that the basic food supply consisted of the previous year’s harvest. Their concern was centred on the year after the sh’mittah, or the Jubilee year. The Torah therefore lays such concerns to rest by writing:
Daat Zkenim
וכי תאמרו, “if you were to say, etc.;” this sounds peculiar as to why would people worry in the sixth year about what they would have to eat in the seventh year, seeing that they ploughed, seeded and harvested in that year so that they would have food for a year? We must understand this verse as having been abbreviated; the Torah meant to quote them as saying in the seventh year: “what will we have to eat in the eighth year?”
then I will command My blessing upon you in the sixth year, and it shall bring forth produce for the three years.
verse value 5678
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "to·you" (לָכֶ֔ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·yield" (אֶת־הַתְּבוּאָ֔ה, 8 letters). 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·I·will·command" (וְצִוִּ֤יתִי), "my·blessing" (אֶת־בִּרְכָתִי֙), "the·sixth" (הַשִּׁשִּׁ֑ית). The root שנה appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·yield" (root עשה, 94x in Leviticus); "in·the·year" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus); "to·you" (root לכם, 62x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·sixth', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְצִוִּ֤יתִי [and·I·will·command] (522) + אֶת־בִּרְכָתִי֙ [my·blessing] (1033) + לָכֶ֔ם [to·you] (90) + בַּשָּׁנָ֖ה [in·the·year] (357) + הַשִּׁשִּׁ֑ית [the·sixth] (1015) + וְעָשָׂת֙ [and·it·shall·yield] (776) + אֶת־הַתְּבוּאָ֔ה [the·yield] (820) + לִשְׁלֹ֖שׁ [to·three] (660) + הַשָּׁנִֽים [the·years] (405) = 5678.
Onkelos
I will appoint My blessing for you in the sixth year, and it shall produce the harvest for three years.
Rashi
לשלש השנים [IT SHALL BRING FORTH INCREASE] FOR THE THREE YEARS — i. e. for a part of the sixth year — from Nisan till the New Year of the seventh — for the whole seventh year and for part of the eighth year, for in the eighth year they will sow in Marcheshvan but will harvest only in Nisan (so that they will have to depend on the harvest of the sixth year in the eighth too).
Ibn Ezra
The word ve-aseta is strange in form, like mesharot et ha-melech; because two tav letters were adjacent, one was dropped to ease pronunciation.
Sforno
ועשת את התבואה, in a manner which will satisfy the eyes of those who see it so that the people seeing it will realise that the quantity will be sufficient.
Or HaChaim
וצויתי את ברכתי, "And I shall command My blessing, etc." The blessing referred to in this verse does not pertain to the growth of the crop; that blessing has already been mentioned when the Torah spoke of the earth giving its full yield. The blessing the Torah speaks of here is in the nature of what we read in Kings I 17 and Kings II chapter 4 where the prophet made the little bit of oil of the respective petitioners stretch miraculously. This is alluded to in the words of our verse that ועשת את התבואה, i.e. that the existing crop will be made to last for three years. My comments on Genesis 33,9-11 are relevant to this verse. לשלש השנים, for the three years. The meaning of the verse is that the blessing will be in effect during the sixth, the seventh and eighth year. Statistically speaking the period of three years the Torah speaks of commences in the month of Sivan during the sixth year, i.e. the month most of the grain is harvested, and continues till the month of Sivan in the ninth year. The Torah had to write the word לשלש השנים so we would not think that part of a year is considered a whole year [as when we count the years a king reigned. Ed.]
Chizkuni
לשלש שנים, “ the three years. The three years are the sh’mittah year, the yovel year, and the year following it.
Tur HaArokh
ועשת את התבואה לשלוש השנים, “the land will produce (during the sixth year) enough harvest to last for the three years.” This promise was necessary to cover the sh’mittah year of the 49th year which was followed by the Jubilee year during which no work in the fields was performed either.
Rashbam
לשלוש שנים, according to the plain meaning of the text the seed which has been planted in the sixth year of the cycle will provide sufficient food for the sixth, seventh and eighth year. They would eat until the onset of the ninth year from that harvest. During the balance of that year they will eat from planting which took place in the eighth year.
And you shall sow the eighth year, and eat of the produce, the old store; until the ninth year, until her produce come in, you shall eat the old store.
verse value 6988
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 66 letters. The shortest word is "until" (עַ֣ד, 2 letters) and the longest is "from·the·yield" (מִן־הַתְּבוּאָ֣ה, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 360: old, the·year, old. 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "the·year" (אֵ֚ת הַשָּׁנָ֣ה), "the·eighth" (הַשְּׁמִינִ֔ת), "from·the·yield" (מִן־הַתְּבוּאָ֣ה). The root שנה appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·eat" (root אכל, 106x in Leviticus); "until·the·coming·of" (root בוא, 81x in Leviticus); "the·year" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'old', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 7 words. Full calculation: וּזְרַעְתֶּ֗ם [and·you·shall·sow] (723) + אֵ֚ת הַשָּׁנָ֣ה [the·year] (761) + הַשְּׁמִינִ֔ת [the·eighth] (805) + וַאֲכַלְתֶּ֖ם [and·you·shall·eat] (497) + מִן־הַתְּבוּאָ֣ה [from·the·yield] (509) + יָשָׁ֑ן [old] (360) + עַ֣ד [until] (74) + הַשָּׁנָ֣ה [the·year] (360) + הַתְּשִׁיעִ֗ת [the·ninth] (1185) + עַד־בּוֹא֙ [until·the·coming·of] (83) + תְּב֣וּאָתָ֔הּ [its·yield] (814) + תֹּאכְל֖וּ [you·shall·eat] (457) + יָשָֽׁן [old] (360) = 6988.
Onkelos
And you shall sow in the eighth year and eat from the old produce until the ninth year; until its new produce comes in you shall eat of the old.
Rashi
עד השנה התשיעית UNTIL THE NINTH YEAR — i. e. until the Feast of Tabernacles of the ninth year which is the time when the crop of the eighth year comes (בא תבואתה) into the house (the granaries). For during the whole summer-time (the fruits) remained in the fields inthe barns, and in Tishri was the time for gathering them into the house. Sometimes indeed it th)e soil) had to bring forth fruits for four years, viz., during the sixth year preceding the seventh “Shemittah” (i. e. in the forty-eighth year of the Jubilee-period) when they had to refrain from agricultural work two successive years, viz., the Sabbatical year and the Jubilee immediately following it. This verse, however, (which mentions only an increase sufficient for three years) is said (written) with reference to all other (i. e. ordinary) Sabbatical years.
Ibn Ezra
"Old [produce]." This refers back to min ["from"], and its meaning is like etzem [the substance itself]; similarly [with regard to] "from the cover you shall make the cherubim" (Exod. 25:19).
Or HaChaim
וזרעתם את השנה השמינית, "And you will seed the eighth year, etc." The Torah had to spell this out on account of having written that the harvest of the sixth year would last for three years. We might have thought that if the harvest of the sixth year lasts into the ninth year why sow in the eighth year? Surely G'd would not perform an unnecessary miracle! The Torah provides the reason by writing that the people were to enjoy the harvest brought in during the sixth year until the harvest of what was planted in the eighth year was at hand. The lesson of the verse is that a harvest which is three years old is superior to grain from the new harvest. (Baba Batra 91 confirms this).
Rabbeinu Bahya
עד בא תבואתה, “until its harvest will arrive.” The suffix ה at the end of the word תבואת-ה, refers to the eighth year, not the ninth year mentioned in our verse. The meaning of the whole verse is as follows: “you will sow in the eighth year and you will eat from the old harvest until its harvest (the one which you planted) comes in; this will be sufficient for you until the ninth year.” When the Torah adds the words לשלוש השנים, “for these three years,” the reference is not to three whole calendar years but the words: ‘the sixth year’ in verse 21 refer to the second half of that year, the year which G’d blessed with a bumper harvest; the entire seventh year when you did not plough, seed, etc., you will eat of that harvest, plus the first half of the eighth year until the harvest of that year’s planting comes in. This is the commentary by Rabbi Avraham Ibn Ezra.
Tur HaArokh
וזרעתם את השנה השמינית, ”you will seed in the eighth year, etc.” Here the Torah reverts to the natural state of affairs, planting a crop that will develop without miraculous input by G’d, as did the one in the sixth year. You will not have to extend yourselves especially, as what the land had provided in the sixth year is sufficient until the crop planted in the eighth year had matured in the normal way. Rashi does not explain our verse in this manner.
And the land shall not be sold in perpetuity; for the land is Mine; for you are strangers and settlers before Me.
verse value 3931
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 44 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֤א, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·residents" (וְתוֹשָׁבִ֛ים, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "be·sold" (תִמָּכֵר֙), "beyond·reclaim" (לִצְמִתֻ֔ת), "and·residents" (וְתוֹשָׁבִ֛ים). The root ארץ appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "and·the·land" (root ארץ, 77x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·land', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְהָאָ֗רֶץ [and·the·land] (302) + לֹ֤א [not] (31) + תִמָּכֵר֙ [be·sold] (660) + לִצְמִתֻ֔ת [beyond·reclaim] (960) + כִּי־לִ֖י [for·to·me] (70) + הָאָ֑רֶץ [the·land] (296) + כִּֽי־גֵרִ֧ים [for·strangers] (283) + וְתוֹשָׁבִ֛ים [and·residents] (764) + אַתֶּ֖ם [you] (441) + עִמָּדִֽי [with·Me] (124) = 3931.
Onkelos
And the land shall not be sold in perpetuity, for Mine is the land; for you are sojourners and residents before Me.
Rashi
לא תמכר והארץ THE LAND SHALL NOT BE SOLD [ABSOLUTELY] — This is intended to charge with the transgression of a negative command (לאו) the neglect of returning the fields to their owners in the Jubilee — it commands that the purchaser must not detain it (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 5 8). לצמתת means for severance; the meaning is: it shall not be sold as a sale that severs in perpetuity. כי לי הארץ FOR THE LAND IS MINE — Your eye shall not be evil towards it (you shall not begrudge this) for it is not yours.
Ramban
AND THE LAND SHALL NOT BE SOLD IN PERPETUITY. “This is to declare a negative commandment affecting [one who refuses] to return fields to their [original] owners in the Jubilee, so that the purchaser should not retain it.” This is Rashi’s language. But if so, why does He warn about “selling” [saying, the Land shall not be ‘sold’ in perpetuity], when it should rather have said: “Thou shalt not buy in perpetuity”? Perhaps [the meaning of the verse is as if] it said, “and the Land shall not be sold to you in perpetuity” [and thus the prohibition refers to the buyer]. Similarly, they shall not be sold as bondmen is an admonition to the purchaser, that he must send forth to freedom [a Hebrew servant] in the Jubilee year, according to the plain meaning of the verse. It is, [however], possible that the Land shall not be sold in perpetuity is a negative commandment referring to the seller, that he is not to sell it permanently by saying: “I am selling it to you forever, even for after the Jubilee.” For although the Jubilee [in fact] takes it out of his possession [despite his intention of buying it permanently], Scripture nonetheless admonishes the seller or both of them that they should not [attempt to] make their transaction in perpetuity, and if they did so stipulate, they transgress this negative commandment, and [additionally] it will be of no avail to them, for the land will return in the Jubilee. And so did Rabbi Moshe [ben Maimon] explain it. And the reason for this prohibition [of stipulating a permanent sale, although such a stipulation is completely ineffective], is because it is well-known in human thought that if people take into account from the beginning of the transaction the number of years until the Jubilee, it will [in the end] be easier for them [i.e., for the purchasers, to return it in the Jubilee], but if one [intends to] buy it in perpetuity, one will find it very difficult to return. This prohibition, then, is similar to what the Sages have said: “That which the Merciful One said one may not do, if one does do, has no legal effect, but the transgressor is liable to the punishment of whipping because he violated the Royal decree.”The correct opinion appears to me to be that this is not a negative commandment [for the transgression of which] one is liable to whipping. Rather, [the verse merely states] a reason [for the Jubilee], saying: “Observe between you [the law of] the Jubilee, and be not resentful about it, for the Land is Mine, and I do not want that it should be sold in perpetuity as [in the case of] other transactions.” This is the meaning [of the Rabbis’ interpretation] in the Torath Kohanim: “And the Land shall not be sold ‘litzmithuth’ — permanently. For the Land is Mine — [therefore] be not resentful about it. For ye are strangers and settlers — do not consider yourselves the main [proprietors]. Ye are with Me — it is enough for the servant to be as his Master. When it is Mine it is yours.”By way of the Truth, [the m...
Ibn Ezra
"In perpetuity" (li-tzemiтut). [This means] like a permanent cutting off, and the tav is part of the root, from the root of "may Hashem our God cut them off" (yatzmiтem) [Ps. 94:23]. "For the Land is Mine" — this is a profound rationale. So too Moses said in his prayer: "Hashem, You have been a dwelling place for us" (Ps. 90:1) — You are like a dwelling place [ma'on]: a generation passes and a generation comes [but You endure].
Sforno
והארץ לא תמכר לצמיתות. The legislation applies to land intended for cultivation.. כי לי הארץ, a reference that the region known as גליל, the earth is G’d’s. [specifically excluding the east bank of the Jordan, based on the letter ה in front of the word הארץ. Compare Torat Kohanim there. Ed.] כי גרים ותושבים אתם עמדי, in this very same גליל, which is not part of “He has given earth to man” (Psalms 115,16).
Chizkuni
לא תמכר לצמיתות, “do not sell with a clause to override the yovel year, i.e. for always. The expression צמיתות, means something absolute, complete separation. Compare Psalms 94,23: 'יצמיתם ה, “the Lord will destroy them utterly, (beyond chance of recovery) לצמיתות, the vowel under the prefix ל sometime is a chirik, not a patach as in verse 30, to show that the vowel in that verse refers to the purchaser, whereas here it refers to the seller.
Rabbeinu Bahya
והארץ לא תמכר לצמיתות, “and the land shall not be sold in perpetuity.” this teaches that if the purchaser of the field fails to hand it back to the seller or his heirs at the appropriate time, it will automatically revert to ownership of the original owner in the Yovel year. The expression צמיתות means something absolute, final. This is why Onkelos translates it as לחלוטין. כי לי הארץ, “for the earth belongs to Me.” The message is addressed to the person who has to give back the land he has purchased. He is reminded that seeing the whole universe belongs to G’d he has no reason to feel aggrieved. G’d is at liberty to make dispositions over what is His (compare Sifra Behar 4,8). A kabbalistic approach: the words “for the earth belongs to Me,” are a reminder that in the “great” Yovel which we have discussed earlier the entire earth will revert directly to G’d. This is what David had in mind when he said in Psalms 24,1: “the earth and all that is thereon belongs to the Lord, the world and its inhabitants.” Do not ignore the letter ל the largest of the letters in the aleph bet at the beginning of that hymn, i.e. ל-י-ה-ו-ה. The experts of the Kabbalah have called this letter ל “a tower sprouting forth into space” (compare Sanhedrin 106). This is an allusion to all that we wrote earlier about the terrestrial earth reverting to Tohu Vavohu at the end of seven Yovel cycles each of seven thousand years. Another way of approaching the subject mentioned by David in that Psalm [I suppose that the author’s difficulty is another hymn (Psalms 115,16) in which the earth is described as man’s whereas heaven is described as G’d’s. We need to reconcile the different versions. Ed.] The words לי הארץ, “the earth is Mine,” refers to the “earth’s” equivalent in the celestial spheres, a phenomenon which is inactive in the terrestrial spheres during the seventh year, the Shemittah year. This cessation of celestial “earth’s” input into terrestrial earth during that year is as if G’d had renounced ownership of it during that period. Seeing that it is no longer G’d’s, how could it be man’s i.e. “yours,” seeing that all you have you have received from Me. This may also be the meaning of the words of the Midrash (Sifra Behar 4,5) “for strangers and settlers are you to Me.” G’d is warning the Israelites not to consider themselves as the centre of the earth, its most important phenomenon. The words אתם עמדי, “you are with Me,” in that Midrash mean that a servant should never aspire to be more than his master. It is enough if he attains parity with his master. Translated into our situation it is as if G’d said to the Jewish people: “as long as the earth is Mine, i.e. when I treat it as Mine, it is also yours. When I do not relate to it as Mine, it is not yours either.” G’d said that during the Shemittah year He considers earth as if it were not His. The meaning of our verse then is simply this: “when the earth is Mine, as evident by celestial input from Me in the years other than the Shemittah year, it is also yours. When it is not Mine, seeing that I do not provide any celestial input into it, i.e. in the Shemittah year, it is also not yours. The reason that it cannot be yours during such a time is that you could not possibly have a greater claim to it than I have.”
Tur HaArokh
והארץ לא תמכר לצמיתות, “and the land (family inheritance) must never be sold in perpetuity.“ Rashi understands the verse as a negative commandment, in addition to the positive commandment for the purchaser to restore the land to the party from whom he had bought it. (Verse13). Failure to restore it is not only violation of a positive commandment, but transgression of a negative commandment also. Nachmanides feels that if this were so the Torah should have made the purchaser the culprit, i.e. forbidding him to write a contract by the terms of which he acquired the land in perpetuity, and should not have worded the instruction as a restriction imposed on the seller. This would be parallel to selling a servant in perpetuity, ignoring the law that servants go free in the sh’mittah year. It is possible that the verse may be understood as a warning to the seller not to try and bypass the legislation of the Torah, and to secure a better price for himself by promising the buyer that he may retain the land in question in perpetuity, his foregoing the right given him by the Torah to reclaim his ancestral property in the Jubilee year. This warning may be addressed by the Torah to both the seller and the buyer to advise them that by making individual arrangements bypassing Torah law, they both make themselves guilty of a serious violation of the Torah. This is the interpretation of our verse by Maimonides. This would be considered violation of a negative commandment, although such a contract would be invalid to start with, no one being able to legally override laws of the Torah. The reason for the legislation as it is written is that if, at the time of the sale, the number of years during which the sale will be effective is part of the document, it is much easier, psychologically, that when the next Jubilee occurs, either during the lifetime of the purchaser or his heir, to effect the transfer of that property back to its original owner. I believe that the kind of negative commandment that we are dealing with here is not the type that carries the penalty of 39 lashes, as do most other negative commandments. Rather, it is in the nature of an explanation by the Torah of its motivation, designed to facilitate the smooth observance of the unusual law, which basically is a reminder that all land in the land of Israel ultimately is the Lord’s and we only administer it on His behalf.
And in all the land of your possession you shall grant a redemption for the land.
verse value 2041
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 25 letters. Verse gematria: 2041 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "land·of" (אֶ֣רֶץ, 3 letters) and the longest is "your·holding" (אֲחֻזַּתְכֶ֑ם, 6 letters). The root ארץ appears 2 times in this verse. 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·in·all" (root כל, 88x in Leviticus); "you·shall·give" (root נתן, 86x in Leviticus); "land·of" (root ארץ, 77x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root גאלה ("redemption") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'your·holding', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: וּבְכֹ֖ל [and·in·all] (58) + אֶ֣רֶץ [land·of] (291) + אֲחֻזַּתְכֶ֑ם [your·holding] (476) + גְּאֻלָּ֖ה [redemption] (39) + תִּתְּנ֥וּ [you·shall·give] (856) + לָאָֽרֶץ [to·the·land] (321) = 2041.
Onkelos
And in all the land of your ancestral portion you shall provide a right of redemption for the land.
Rashi
ובכל ארץ אחזתכם AND IN ALL THE LAND OF YOUR POSSESSION [YOU SHALL GRANT A REDEMPTION FOR THE LAND] — (The translation may be: And as regards everything etc.) thus including in this law houses and Hebrew servants (i. e. that to these also the right of redemption must be granted). And this matter is explained in Treatise Kiddushin 21a in the first section (cf. also Sifra, Behar, Chapter 4 9). According to the literal sense, however, it is to be connected with the section immediately following: to point out that one who sells his landed property has the right of redeeming it after two years either by himself or his relative, and that the purchaser has no right to prevent it (גאולה תתנו לארץ, you must grant redemption).
Ramban
AND IN ALL THE LAND OF YOUR POSSESSION [YE SHALL GRANT A REDEMPTION FOR THE LAND]. “This [expression of ‘in all the land’] includes houses and Hebrew servants [that they too be granted the right of redemption]. This matter is explained in the first chapter of Tractate Kiddushin. And according to the plain meaning thereof, it is to be connected with the section [immediately] following, [thus teaching] that he who sells [his land] has the right of redeeming it after two years, either personally or through his relative, and the purchaser cannot prevent it.” This is Rashi’s language. But it does not appear to me to be correct that Scripture should state in general terms in the section dealing with the Jubilee, [mentioned above], And in all the land of your possession ye shall grant a redemption [which according to Rashi speaks of the right of the seller to redeem the land of his possession], and then explain in the second section how this law applies: If thy brother be waxen poor etc. The correct interpretation appears to me to be that Scripture is stating: “And in all the land of your possession, that is, the land which I give you for a possession, ye shall grant this redemption of the Jubilee.” The term “redemption” is like the Eternal hath redeemed His servant Jacob, which means that He brought out His servant from the hand of those who held him [captive]. Similarly, and I will redeem you with an outstretched arm [means “I will take Israel out of Egypt”]. So also [the expression before us] ye shall grant a redemption for the Land means that I wish to redeem My Land from the hand of those who hold it, as I have not given it to them as a part of their possession. It was necessary that this be stated because He had said [as a reason for this law], for ‘ha’aretz’ (the earth) is Mine, and since the whole earth is His, therefore He stated additionally that the Jubilee only applies in the Land of our possession, not outside the Land [of Israel]. He stated and in all [‘and in all’ the land of your possession …] meaning that it is to apply to all our possessions, including the other side of the Jordan and all places of [our] possession, and not only in “the Land of the Eternal” wherein the Sanctuary is located [i.e., westward of the Jordan, but the law of the Jubilee is to apply also in the land east of the Jordan where the Sanctuary of G-d may not be built — see Ramban Numbers 21:21].
Ibn Ezra
"The Land of your holding" — that which you inherited in the Land of Canaan, as well as in the land of the Amorite.
Sforno
ובכל ארץ אחוזתכם גאולה תתנו לארץ, but outside of the boundaries of the land of Israel proper this legislation does not apply at all.
Chizkuni
גאולה תתנו לארץ, “you shall grant redemption to the land,” so that it is clear that it had not been sold but only mortgaged as a loan. (Rash’bam)
Tur HaArokh
ובכל ארץ אחוזתכם גאולה תתנו לארץ, “In the entire land of your ancestral heritage you shall make provision for the redemption of such lands (when appropriate).” Rashi, in addressing the plain meaning of our verse, assuming that the verses immediately following deal with people that need this redemption of their ancestral land, explains that whereas the seller enjoys the right to redeem his land after two years, either himself or through the good offices of a relative, sees the principal meaning of our verse in denying the purchaser the right to interfere with such a process of redemption. Nachmanides writes that he does not agree with Rashi on this, as he sees no reason why the Torah should have written this verse as part of the Jubilee legislation. Rashi, in effect, interprets our verse which deals with a legislation in effect only when the Israelites are predominantly all living on their ancestral land, as discussing legislation applicable also under far less favourable situations, at any time when part of the people live on their land. [An impoverished Jew is to be helped to regain economic independence regardless of the political environment in which the Jewish people find themselves. Ed.] According to Nachmanides, the reason why the Torah in our verse speaks of בכל ארץ אחוזתכם, “throughout your ancestral lands,” is to drive home the point that what we consider “our” land, is really still G’d’s land, something that the Jubilee legislation comes to remind us of. The very term גאולה for the transaction restoring land to its original owner or his heir, is parallel to such expressions as גאל ה' את יעקב, “the Lord redeemed Yaakov,” i.e. when G’d took the Israelites out of Egypt, He in effect redeemed their ancestor who had entered exile when he brought his family down to Egypt where they would become enslaved. The land had originally been given (promised) by G’d to Yaakov, so that all his descendants are entitled to a share of it. The difference between the land of Israel and the Diaspora, is that the laws about redeeming land holdings does not and never did apply anywhere except in the land of Israel after the distribution of it by Joshua. The reason the Torah adds the word ובכל, is to make sure we understand that the rules of the Jubilee and the reversal of land sales in that year also applies to the lands conquered by the Israelites under Moses on the East bank of the Jordan river. Seeing that G’d had repeated כי לי כל הארץ, “for the entire globe belongs to Me,” some confusion might have arisen as to within which parameters the Jubilee laws would apply.
Rashbam
גאולה תתנו לארץ, if the seller wishes to redeem it prior to the Jubilee year.
If your brother grew poor, and sell some of his possession, then shall his kinsman that is next to him come, and shall redeem that which his brother has sold.
verse value 2042
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 49 letters. The shortest word is "and·he·shall·come" (וּבָ֤א, 3 letters) and the longest is "if·he·shall·grow·poor" (כִּֽי־יָמ֣וּךְ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 40: his·redeemer, and·he·shall·redeem. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "if·he·shall·grow·poor" (כִּֽי־יָמ֣וּךְ), "and·he·shall·sell" (וּמָכַ֖ר), "from·his·holding" (מֵאֲחֻזָּת֑וֹ). The root אח appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·he·shall·come" (root בוא, 81x in Leviticus); "to·him" (root איל, 43x in Leviticus); "his·redeemer" (root גאל, 23x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root מוך ("if·he·shall·grow·poor") in Leviticus. First appearance of the root גאל ("his·redeemer") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·his·holding', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 7 words. Full calculation: כִּֽי־יָמ֣וּךְ [if·he·shall·grow·poor] (106) + אָחִ֔יךָ [your·brother] (39) + וּמָכַ֖ר [and·he·shall·sell] (266) + מֵאֲחֻזָּת֑וֹ [from·his·holding] (462) + וּבָ֤א [and·he·shall·come] (9) + גֹֽאֲלוֹ֙ [his·redeemer] (40) + הַקָּרֹ֣ב [the·near] (307) + אֵלָ֔יו [to·him] (47) + וְגָאַ֕ל [and·he·shall·redeem] (40) + אֵ֖ת מִמְכַּ֥ר [the·sold·property·of] (701) + אָחִֽיו [his·brother] (25) = 2042.
Onkelos
If your brother becomes poor and sells from his ancestral portion, then his redeemer who is near to him shall come and redeem what his brother sold.
Rashi
כי ימוך אחיך ומכר AND IF THY BROTHER BE WAXEN POOR AND HAS SOLD AWAY [SOME OF HIS POSSESSION] — The introductory words teach us that one is not permitted to sell his real estate except under the pressure of poverty (cf. Sifra, Behar, Chapter 5 1). מאחזתו SOME OF HIS POSSESSION — but not the entire property. Scripture thereby teaches you a practical rule that, however needy a man is, he should always leave some immovables (lit., a field) for himself (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 5 1). וגאל את ממכר אחיו HE SHALL REDEEM THAT WHICH HIS BROTHER SOLD — and the purchaser has no right to prevent it.
Ibn Ezra
"He becomes impoverished" (yamuch) — this is from the class of doubly-identical [biconsonantal] verbs whose middle letter appears [geminated] while the quiescent [letter] is hidden between them; its meaning is like "poor and destitute." "The one nearest to him" — from his family.
Or HaChaim
כי ימוך אחיך ומכר מאחוזתו, "If your brother becomes poor and has to sell part of his heritage, etc." This paragraph contains cardinal moral-ethical lessons to mankind. Kohelet 10,18 alludes to this when he says: "through slothfulness the ceiling sags." Our sages in Taanit 7 comment on this "you have made "poor" the One of Whom it is said (Psalms 104,3) "המקרה במים עליותיו" "Who sets the rafters of His lofts in the waters;" When people who dwell in the lower parts of the universe stray from the correct path they cause the beneficial outpourigs from the upper part of the universe to cease. They thereby endanger the continuous presence of sanctity on earth. In the final analysis the fate of the universe is determined by the conduct of the creatures who inhabit earth, i.e. "the lower world." When the Torah says: ומכר מאחוזתו "and he sells part of his heritage," this is a reference to the משכן, the Holy Tabernacle, which is G'd's heritage. The Torah warns us that our sins may result in G'd "selling off" His heritage, i.e. our enemies appropriating our (G'd's) Sanctuary. We find an allusion to this concept in Psalms 79,1 where Assaph describes the Gentiles as having entered G'd's domain. Midrash Tehillim comments on this verse that the redemption of G'd's Sanctuary is in the hands of the righteous who endeavour to be close to G'd. G'd has already told us this in Leviticus 10,3 when He said בקרובי אקדש, "I will be sanctified by those near Me." "They, the righteous, have to redeem what I had to sell." G'd is perceived as calling on the righteous in their capacity as אחי ורעי, "My brothers and My friends" (compare Psalms 122,8). Redemption will occur when the righteous succeed in awakening the hearts of their contemporaries by convincing them that it is really not in their best interest to spend their time exiled from the table of their Father in Heaven. The righteous have to convince the average Jew that what he considers success in his world is illusory if bought at the expense of forfeiting his respective eternity in a better world. In the future all Torah scholars who have failed in their efforts to convince their peers to adopt a Torah-true lifetsyle, etc. will have to render an account before the highest tribunal. G'd will hold those Torah scholars responsible for the continued disgrace suffered by the Holy Temple.
Chizkuni
וגאל את ממכר אחיו, “he shall redeem what his brother had been forced to “sell,” i.e. his body, immediately. When referring to the seller, who had “sold his land,” because of financial distress, however, according to the (Sifra), the Torah adds a proviso, (verse 32) that the law of redemption applies only after a number of years had elapsed, as the interests of the purchaser had to be considered, seeing that he had acted in good faith.
Rabbeinu Bahya
כי ימוך אחיך ומכר מאחוזתו, “When your brother becomes impoverished and sells you a part of his inherited land, etc.” The introduction to this legislation teaches that one does not have the right to sell the land one has inherited in Eretz Yisrael from one’s forefathers except when in economic distress. In addition the Torah teaches that even if one is forced to sell, one should retain at least part of one’s holding. ובא גואלו הקרוב אליו וגאל את ממכר אחיו, “and his redeemer who is closest to his brother shall come and redeem his sale;” this law which the Torah promulgates here is based on the compassion one is to display for the person, in particular a relative, who was forced to sell part or all of his ancestral property. The Torah sets aside a certain period of time during which such land is subject to “buy-back.” He can either buy it back himself or the redeemer can buy it back for him. Failing an improvement in the seller’s circumstances or in the absence of a redeemer willing or able to buy it back, it reverts to the seller in the Yovel year. The minimum time period the new owner is allowed to retain what he has purchased regardless of a redeemer offering the “buy-back” is two years. This is the reverse of the rules pertaining to the sale of a house we shall read about presently. When selling a field the right to “buy-back” does not begin until after two years, whereas the right to buy back a house in a walled city which was sold due to economic distress expires at the end of a year. Houses in open areas are considered like fields, i.e. they revert in the Yovel or are bought back after a minimum of two years in the new owner’s possession. A Midrashic approach (based on Tanchuma). The choice of the word וכי ימוך suggest that the economic eclipse suffered by the person mentioned in our verse is due to his being “soft” מכין in his מצוה-performance. The words “and he sells part of his possessions,” imply that they are sold to Gentiles who may have demanded payment of debts. The redeemer mentioned refers to G’d who is described in Jeremiah 50,34 as “their Redeemer is mighty, His name is the Lord of Hosts.” The words הקרוב אליו also refer to G’d seeing that in Psalms 145,18 G’d is described as “near” all those who “call upon Him.” The words אלך אשובה אל מקומי, in Hoseah 5,15 meaning: “I will go and return to My abode,” instead of אלך ואשובה, are the difference between something final and something temporary. The wording without the letter ו in front of the word אשובה means that G’d’s turning away from Israel is not final and absolute but that due to the troubles which will afflict the people once G’d turns His back on them they will repent and G’d will once again embrace them as is written in Deut. 4,30: בצר לך ומצאוך, “when you are in trouble and they have found you (the afflictions) you will return to the Lord your G’d.” When that happens, says G’d through the prophet, “I too will restore My Presence, Shechinah.”
Kli Yakar
When your brother becomes impoverished and sells part of his holding. The Sages (Sukkah 40b) interpreted all these adjacent passages as referring to one who does business with fruits of the sabbatical year, whose end is to come to poverty. There is something like evidence for this from what is written When you sell a sale — the doubled language of selling is to tell you that one sale leads to another; when you sell sabbatical year produce, then this sale leads to the sale of movable property to your fellow, and afterward his field, and afterward himself, and afterward to a non-Jew. For each one is harder than the one before it, see in Yalkut (Behar 25:661). It appears that the change of language in all these passages indicates this, because regarding the sale of movable property, it does not mention “when he becomes impoverished,” since it is possible that sometimes a person sells his movable property even though he is not so reduced in value, but rather he needs money. However, regarding his holding [land], even a part of it, he does not sell until he becomes impoverished, though his hand has not yet declined so much. Therefore, it adds regarding one who takes with interest, When your brother becomes impoverished and his hand declines with you — it uses the language with you regarding the declining and not regarding when he becomes impoverished, because this matter is revealed with you, that his hand has failed, and his strength is not now as it was before. But the fact that he is impoverished is not yet with you, because his shame has not yet been revealed in the community that he is impoverished. But regarding one who sells himself, which is harder than all the others, it says When your brother becomes impoverished with you, because his poverty, his destitution, and his distress have already been revealed with you since he is forced to sell himself. And regarding one who is sold to a non-Jew, his poverty is also revealed to the non-Jew, therefore it says and your brother becomes impoverished with him. According to this we need to say that becoming impoverished is worse than having one’s hand decline, and both of them together are worse than just one of them, and with you of becoming impoverished is worse than with you of having one’s hand decline, and with him of the non-Jew is worse than all of them.
Daat Zkenim
כי ימוך אחיך ומכר מאחוזתו, “if your brother has become impoverished, and as a result had been forced to sell part of his ancestral land holdings;” the Torah implies that this misfortune befell him because he sold the crop that grew in his field during the seventh year. (Compare Rashi) We do indeed find a similar verse that during the period of the prophet Jeremiah, as recorded in Chronicles II 36,20, that the Israelites were forced to sell themselves as slaves to the gentiles in fulfillment of the prophecy of Jeremiah, who had stated that this situation would last until the soil of the land of Israel would once more find favour in G–d’s eyes, having paid back the sh’mittah years it had been worked during the seventy years of the first exile. ובא גואלו, “and his redeemer arrives;” this is a reference to Hashem Who is the Redeemer. We know this from Deuteronomy 4,7: אשר לו אלהים קרובים אליו, “who has the Lord near to him.” (Moses refers to Hashem being constantly close to His people) וגאל את ממכר אחיו, “who will redeem what his brother had been forced to sell.” The following dialogue is reported as having occurred between the prophet Jeremiah and G–d: “Lord of the universe! You who fulfil the promise of redeeming the Jewish people whom You have referred to as Your brothers, as we know from Psalms 122,8: למען אחי ורעי אדברה-נא שלום בך, “for the sake of My brothers and friends, I pray for your well being;” we also have a similar line in Isaiah 43,14:, “for your sake I have sent to Babylon, etc.” למענכם שלחתי בבלה. [The prophet quotes G–d as reminding the Jewish people that He had sent the Babylonians into exile on account of what they had done to His people. Ed.]
And if a man have no one to redeem it, and he grew rich and find sufficient means to redeem it;
verse value 1438
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 38 letters. The shortest word is "when" (כִּ֛י, 2 letters) and the longest is "shall·be·to·him" (יִֽהְיֶה־לּ֖וֹ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 34: redeemer, as·enough·for. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "shall·be·to·him" (יִֽהְיֶה־לּ֖וֹ), "redeemer" (גֹּאֵ֑ל), "and·it·attains" (וְהִשִּׂ֣יגָה). 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "shall·be·to·him" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "and·man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'redeemer', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְאִ֕ישׁ [and·man] (317) + כִּ֛י [when] (30) + לֹ֥א [not] (31) + יִֽהְיֶה־לּ֖וֹ [shall·be·to·him] (66) + גֹּאֵ֑ל [redeemer] (34) + וְהִשִּׂ֣יגָה [and·it·attains] (329) + יָד֔וֹ [his·hand] (20) + וּמָצָ֖א [and·he·shall·find] (137) + כְּדֵ֥י [as·enough·for] (34) + גְאֻלָּתֽוֹ [his·redemption] (440) = 1438.
Onkelos
And a man who has no redeemer, but whose hand reaches sufficiency and he finds enough for its redemption —
Rashi
ואיש כי לא יהיה לו גואל [AND] IF [A MAN] HAVE NONE TO REDEEM IT — But does there exist anyone in Israel who has none to redeem his property (who has no relative at all)? But the meaning is: a relative who is able (possesses the means) to redeem that which he has sold (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 5 2; cf. Kiddushin 21a).
Or HaChaim
ואיש כי לא יהיה לו גואל, "And if a man has no redeemer, etc." According to Sanhedrin 93 the Torah occasionally uses the word איש as a simile for G'd, such as in Exodus 15,3 ה׳ איש מלחמה. The Torah's message in this verse is that in the event no Jewish leader is at hand to arouse the people to return to G'd as penitents, this is no reason to abandon hope altogether. Rather, והשיגה ידו ומצא כדי גאולתו, the Jewish people will achieve their redemption by alternative means. Sanhedrin 98 describes both afflictions and national exile as means to bring about redemption. The expression והשיגה ידו may be understood as similar to Deut. 2,15: יד ה׳ היתה בם, "the hand of G'd was against them," a reference to G'd exacting retribution through exiling a nation under harsh conditions. Such an exile will eventually lead to redemption of the Holy Temple.
Chizkuni
והשיגה ידו, “and he had again become wealthy;” either because he inherited wealth, or because he found a treasure, for instance. He is not however, permitted to secure a loan in order to buy back his property with some else’s money. (Sifra) כדי גאולתו, “sufficient in order to redeem it.” This teaches that the redemption process cannot be exercised piecemeal.(Sifra) This would have implied that he resents the person who at the time when the seller had been in need, had bought the property from him.
then let him count the years of the sale of it, and restore the overplus to the man to whom he sold it; and he shall return to his possession.
verse value 4164
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·difference" (אֶת־הָ֣עֹדֵ֔ף, 6 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "the·difference" (אֶת־הָ֣עֹדֵ֔ף), "sold·to·him" (מָֽכַר־ל֑וֹ). The root שוב appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "to·the·man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus); "years·of" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'sold·to·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 2 words. Full calculation: וְחִשַּׁב֙ [and·he·shall·account] (316) + אֶת־שְׁנֵ֣י [years·of] (761) + מִמְכָּר֔וֹ [its·sale] (306) + וְהֵשִׁיב֙ [and·he·shall·bring·back] (323) + אֶת־הָ֣עֹדֵ֔ף [the·difference] (560) + לָאִ֖ישׁ [to·the·man] (341) + אֲשֶׁ֣ר [that] (501) + מָֽכַר־ל֑וֹ [sold·to·him] (296) + וְשָׁ֖ב [and·he·shall·return] (308) + לַאֲחֻזָּתֽוֹ [to·his·holding] (452) = 4164.
Onkelos
he shall reckon the years of its sale and return the remainder to the man to whom he sold it, and he shall return to his ancestral portion.
Rashi
וחשב את שני ממכרו THEN LET HIM RECKON THE YEARS OF THE SALE THEREOF — [let him reckon thus:] How many years were there until the Jubilee? So-and-so many! At what price did I sell it to you? At such-and-such a price! Now in the Jubilee year you would have to restore it to me; it follows therefore that you have actually bought a number of crops only (and not the land itself) at a certain sum for every year. You have eaten it (used it) three or four years; deduct therefore their value from the sum total of the purchase money and you take the remainder. And this is the meaning of: “he shall restore the overplus” — viz., the excess of the purchase-money over the value of the crops which he (the purchaser) has enjoyed, and he shall restore it to the purchaser. לאיש אשר מכר לו [AND HE SHALL RESTORE THE OVERPLUS] TO THE MAN TO WHOM HE HAD SOLD IT — i. e. to whom he — this seller who now comes to redeem it — had sold it (but not to any other person who is now in the possession of the field, having in his turn bought it from that man to whom he — the seller — had originally sold it) (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 5 3; Arakhin 30a).
Ibn Ezra
"He shall calculate" (ve-ḥishev) — this is in the heavy (Pi'el) conjugation with the dagesh.
Or HaChaim
וחשב את שני ממכרו, "let him count the number of years of his sale," etc." The sale occurred due to our sins as mentioned by Isaiah 50,1: "here you have been sold due to your sins," and the sin is equivalent to a debt to be paid off. When the time comes to tear up the I.O.U. a careful accounting is made of any remaining indebtedness before the promissory note is torn up. The Torah speaks about the remaining years the Temple has been in foreign hands. The time it is redeemed depends on the quantity and severity of the collective sins of the people of Israel. We are told in Yuma 86 that if a person actually enjoyed the sins he committed, he has to flagellate himself in a measure which corresponds to the amount of pleasure he had when committing the sins he is guilty of. This is part of the rehabilitation of the sinner. In this manner he will repay his debt. G'd will deal with us in this manner at the time the redemption will be close at hand. This is also what the sages had in mind in Sanhedrin 98 when they refer to the חבלי משיח the birth-pangs to be endured as part of the coming of the Messiah. After that, ושב לאחוזתו, G'd will return to His heritage. The word ושב also refers to Israel. We have a parallel in Deut. 30,3 ושב ה׳ את שבותך "and G'd will return with your captive ones;" we would have expected the Torah to speak about והשיב i.e. "He will bring back" instead of "He will come back" (compare Megillah 29).
Rashbam
והשיב את העודף, from the years prior to the Jubilee which he had not consumed yet. העודף, which is in excess of the years he had already possessed that land.
But if he have not sufficient means to get it back for himself, then that which he has sold shall remain in the hand of him that has bought it until the year of jubilee; and in the jubilee it shall go out, and he shall return to his possession.
verse value 3304 — לוֹ֒ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 66 letters. Notable word values: "for·him" (לוֹ֒) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "enough·for" (דֵּי֮, 2 letters) and the longest is "did·not·find" (לֹֽא־מָצְאָ֜ה, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "did·not·find" (לֹֽא־מָצְאָ֜ה), "bringing·back" (הָשִׁ֣יב), "in·hand·of" (בְּיַד֙). The root יד appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "year·of" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus); "his·hand" (root יד, 45x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·jubilee', dividing the verse into phrases of 14 and 4 words.
Onkelos
But if his hand does not find sufficient to return to him, then what he sold shall remain in the hand of the one who bought it until the year of Jubilee; and it shall go free in the Jubilee and he shall return to his ancestral portion.
Rashi
די השיב לו [BUT IF HE IS NOT ABLE] TO RESTORE IT (lit., if his hand find not sufficient means to restore to him) — Therefore it follows that he (the vendor) has no right to redeem his property in parts (lit., by halves) (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 5 5, Arachin 30a). עד שנת היובל UNTIL THE YEAR OF JUBILEE — “until” but not “including” the year of the Jubilee; it means that nothing of time shall have entered into that year (that not one moment of that year shall have passed), because the Jubilee effects the release of such property at its very beginning (in contrast to the cancelling of debts in the “Shemittah” which takes place only at the end of the year; cf. Deuteronomy 15:1 ff.) (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 5 6; Arakhin 28b).
Ibn Ezra
"And it shall go out" — [i.e., the sold property] shall go out [at the Jubilee]. This [the participial form] stands in place of a noun [lit.: a name under the form of an attributive], and there are many like it. And since it [already] mentioned "a dwelling house," we understand that "if a man sells from his holding" (v. 25) refers to a field or a vineyard.
Or HaChaim
ואם לא מצאו ידו די השיב, "But if he does not have sufficient means to restore it to himself, etc." If G'd observes that the people do not possess the strength to endure all the suffering that is their lot, and the debt they owe is still great, והיה ממכרו עד שנת היובל, "then its sale will extend (only) to the Jubilee year, etc." Here the Torah refers to G'd's timetable, i.e. the ultimate date for the eventual redemption. At that time, ויצא ביובל ושב לאחוזתו, He will come out in the Jubilee year and return to His heritage (rebuild the Temple). Exile will come to an end even if the Israelites will be (G'd forbid) absolute sinners.
And if a man sell a dwelling-house in a walled city, then he may redeem it within a whole year after it is sold; for a full year shall he have the right of redemption.
verse value 5112
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 59 letters. Verse gematria: 5112 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "city" (עִ֣יר, 3 letters) and the longest is "a·dwelling·house·in" (בֵּית־מוֹשַׁב֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 440: its·redemption, its·redemption. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "that·he·shall·sell" (כִּֽי־יִמְכֹּ֤ר), "a·dwelling·house·in" (בֵּית־מוֹשַׁב֙), "city" (עִ֣יר). The root היה appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "days" (root יום, 112x in Leviticus); "and·man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root חומה ("wall") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'its·sale', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְאִ֗ישׁ [and·man] (317) + כִּֽי־יִמְכֹּ֤ר [that·he·shall·sell] (300) + בֵּית־מוֹשַׁב֙ [a·dwelling·house·in] (760) + עִ֣יר [city] (280) + חוֹמָ֔ה [wall] (59) + וְהָיְתָה֙ [and·it·shall·be] (426) + גְּאֻלָּת֔וֹ [its·redemption] (440) + עַד־תֹּ֖ם [until·the·completion·of] (514) + שְׁנַ֣ת [year·of] (750) + מִמְכָּר֑וֹ [its·sale] (306) + יָמִ֖ים [days] (100) + תִּהְיֶ֥ה [it·shall·be] (420) + גְאֻלָּתֽוֹ [its·redemption] (440) = 5112.
Onkelos
And a man who sells a dwelling house in a walled city — its right of redemption shall extend until the completion of the year of its sale; for a full term its redemption shall hold.
Rashi
בית מושב עיר חומה A DWELLING PLACE IN A CITY WHICH HATH A WALL — i. e. a house situated in a city which has been surrounded by a wall since the days of Joshua the son of Nun (Sifra, Behar, Section 4 1). והיתה גאלתו THEN IT SHALL HAVE THE RIGHT TO BE REDEEMED [UNTIL THE COMPLETION OF THE YEAR OF ITS SALE] — Because it is stated about a field that one may redeem it after two years from the date of the sale and onwards at any time he pleases, but one may not redeem it during the first two years, Scripture was compelled to state specially with reference to this (the house) that just the opposite is the case — that if one wishes to redeem it in the first year he may do so, but after that he cannot redeem it. והיתה גאלתו THEN THE REDEMPTION OF IT — of the house — SHALL BE [TILL THE COMPLETION OF THE YEAR]. ימים YEAR (lit., days) — the days of a full year are, briefly, termed “days”. Similar is: (Genesis 24:55) “Let the damsel remain with us a year (."(ימים
Ramban
AND IF A MAN SELL A DWELLING-HOUSE IN A WALLED CITY. Since a man finds it very difficult to sell his house, and be disconcerted at the time of the sale, therefore the Torah wanted that he [have the right to] redeem it within the first year [after the sale]. And because man is servant to the field, and the bread of his sustenance comes from it, the Torah wanted [that if the seller did not redeem it before the Jubilee], it should go back [to him] in the Jubilee. But with regard to a house [in a walled city], after [the seller] has given up hope [of regaining it], by changing his residence and staying for a year in another house, it can no longer cause him harm [if he cannot redeem it after a year], since his [source of] livelihood will not be diminished if it will be forfeited [to the purchaser]. And the houses of the villages [which have no wall round about them] are made for the purpose of protecting the fields, and to serve as dwelling-places for those who cultivate the earth; therefore their law [of redemption] is similar to that of the fields of the country [i.e., they may be redeemed at any time until the Jubilee, and in the Jubilee they go back without compensation].
Ibn Ezra
"A walled city" (ir ḥomah) — a city that is surrounded [by a wall]. "Days" [means] a year — until the days return: cold and heat and summer and winter, as they were, for their cycle [depends on] the sun's return to its [starting] point. And we must rely on received tradition as to what constitutes a full year — whether it is a solar year, a lunar year, or an intercalated year.
Or HaChaim
ואיש כי ימכר בית מושב, "And if a man sells a house which is (his) residence, etc." After the Torah has described how G'd "sold" the Temple, the Torah now explains how it could happen that G'd would "sell" His heritage, the Holy Temple. This is why the paragraph starts with the word ואיש, so that we understand that the word refers to G'd, just as it had in the previous paragraph. The extraneous word מושב refers to the house in which G'd has His residence, the Holy Temple; the expression עיר חומה refers to Jerusalem, the "walled city" which is described by David in Psalms 125 ,2 as "the city ringed by mountains, (i.e. like wall)." The Torah continues by explaining that these very "walls" are why the city may be be redeemed after as little as a year already. The reason is similar to what has been revealed to us by Midrash Tehillim on Psalms 79,1. We were told there that when G'd vented His anger on the stones and timber of the city allowing it to be destroyed, this was in lieu of venting all His anger on the people inside the city. Had G'd not vented His anger on stone and wood, not a single Jew would have survived that experience. If Israel had been wiped out, there would never again have been either a Holy Temple or a city of Jerusalem.
Chizkuni
בית מושב עיר חומה, “a dwelling house in a fortified (walled) city;” seeing that the city is walled, the land inside it clearly was not meant ever to be used for agricultural purposes. This being so, G-d did not decree that if sold it had to revert to its original owner in the Jubilee year. The Jubilee legislation refers only to land that serves as its owner’s basic source of making a livelihood. An alternate interpretation: when someone buys himself a house in a walled city, he may be presumed to have done so with the intent of keeping it permanently. Most people do not feel comfortable when living in rented homes as they are always worried that the owner would not renew their rental contract at a price they could afford. This is why the Torah adds: לא יצא ביבל, “it will not revert in the Jubilee year.” However, fields and houses bordering on fields, not walled in, are all subject to the rules of the Yovel legislation, being given back to the original owner free of any charge to be paid by that owner. Both of these kinds of property are more often leased than purchased. שנת ממכרו, “not the calendar year, but the year relevant to the 50 year cycle of the Yovel, which repeats itself as if moving in a circle.” (Sifra). ימים, “years.” In other words, a year is not complete until the sun reverts to its original position in the following year.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ואיש כי ימכור בית מושב עיר חומה, “and a man who will sell a house which is his residence in a walled city, etc.” After the Torah had earlier described someone who, through having fallen on hard times, was forced to sell part of his ancestral land-holdings and had legislated that he will get his land back no later than the Yovel year, that legislation was in recognition of the crucial importance of such a field for a person’s economic independence. He needs it to earn his living. Now the Torah speaks about someone who had to sell his residence, a source of profound embarrassment to him. In order for such an embarrassment and related social fallout to be minimised, the Torah allows such a person to buy back his house immediately, within a year of the sale. The purchaser cannot object. A Midrashic insight into this legislation (compare Tanchuma Behar 1): The word איש here is a simile for G’d. G’d’s “house,” i.e. the Temple, was sold to the Chaldaens (Babylonians). The term בית מושב here is appropriate seeing that the Temple has been described by Psalms 132,13 as כי בחר ה' בציון אוה למושב לו, “for the Lord chose Zion, He desired it as a residence for Himself.” What happened to this residence? Look at Kings II 25,9 where we are told that “Nebuzaradan burned the House of the Lord, the king’s palace and all the houses in Jerusalem as well as every great house he burned by fire.” The expression עיר חומה, is also reflected in that verse in the Book of Kings where the prophet reported about the wall around Jerusalem being put ablaze and burned by the combined army of the Chaldaens (Kings II 25,10). ימים תהיה גאולתו, “the period during which it may be redeemed extends for one year.” The wording means that the 12 month period during which this house may be redeemed may be combined between so many months in one calendar year and the balance in the next calendar year. This is also what the sages meant when they described the age of the Messiah’s coming as extending over 2000 years, i.e. part in one millennium and part in another (Avodah Zarah 9).
Tur HaArokh
ואיש כי ימכור בית מושב עיר חומה, “If a man shall sell a house of residence in a walled city,” Nachmanides writes that seeing that if someone is forced to sell his residence for reasons of economic distress, and this is something which the seller feels as very degrading, the Torah permitted him to exercise the right to redeem such a house even during the very first year after he has sold it. Seeing that his house is not the source of his livelihood, the rules pertaining to the reversion of a field to its original owner in the Jubilee year do not apply to the sale of a residence. Loss of one’s house is something one comes to terms with much sooner than loss of one’s primary source of livelihood, i.e. one’s ancestral field. Houses in open areas, as distinct from residential houses in walled cities, serve the owner in supervising his field and as temporary residence for his harvest workers, and therefore the legislation governing the sale of such a house is much more similar to that governing the sale of one’s ancestral field. (verse 31)
Daat Zkenim
ואיש כי ימכור בית מושב עיר חומה, “and if a man had to sell a house (his) in a walled city, etc.” the “man” described here as a “man,” is none other than the Lord. He had been described as such in Exodus 15,3: ה' איש מלחמה, “The Lord is a man of war.” The expression is a euphemism for “Master, overlord.” We find the expression also used in Ruth 1,3, where the husband of Naomi, Elimelech, is described as איש נעמי, as opposed to בעל נעמי, to show the reader that if Naomi agreed to leave the land of Israel it was because her husband was her overlord, and she had no other choice. In our verse the expression בית-מושב, the house of his residence, is the same as if the Torah had written: מושב ביתו, his residence, i.e. his house. He sold it to gentiles. The addition of the word מושב is to alert the reader to Psalms 132,13: כי בחר ה' בציון אוה למושב לו, “for the Lord has chosen Zion; He has desired it as His residence.” [His people being exiled, is equivalent to His being exiled from Earth. Ed.] The previous owner of such a house has only one year during which he can redeem it and it becomes the permanent property of the person who had bought it. [Houses are not considered ancestral properties, which revert back to the original owner or his heirs in the Jubilee year. Ed.] G–d had promised to redeem His land after 70 years, (compare Jeremiah 29,10, [at which time the Babylonian Empire was replaced by the Persian Empire. Ed.]
And if it be not redeemed within the space of a full year, then the house that is in the walled city shall be made sure in perpetuity to him that bought it, throughout his generations; it shall not go out in the jubilee.
verse value 5877 — לוֹ֮ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 75 letters. Notable word values: "to·it" (לוֹ֮) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·it" (לוֹ֮, 2 letters) and the longest is "which·in·the·city" (אֲשֶׁר־בָּעִ֜יר, 7 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "shall·not·be·redeemed" (לֹֽא־יִגָּאֵ֗ל), "which·in·the·city" (אֲשֶׁר־בָּעִ֜יר), "beyond·reclaim" (לַצְּמִיתֻ֛ת). 16 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which·has" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "year" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·his·generations', dividing the verse into phrases of 15 and 3 words.
Onkelos
But if it is not redeemed by the completion of a full year for him, then the house that is in the walled city shall be confirmed in perpetuity to the one who bought it, throughout his generations; it shall not go free in the Jubilee.
Rashi
וקם הבית...לצמתת (THEN THE HOUSE… SHALL BE ESTABLISHED ABSOLUTELY [TO HIM THAT OBTAINED IT] — i. e. it leaves the control of the vendor for ever and stands under the exclusive control of the purchaser. אשר לא חמה — We read the text as though it were written לו (i. e. tradition tells us to do so). Our Rabbis, of blessed memory, said (Arakhin 32a): We do so to intimate that the law applies to a city even if at the present it has not a rampart (אשר לא חמה) since previous to now it had one (אשר לו חמה). It is true that עיר is a feminine noun and the preposition referring to it should have been written לה (not לו), yet because Scripture was bound to write לא in the text for the reason given, the Massora (the traditional Scriptural text without vowels) replaced it by לו (instead of לה), because the sound of the one applies also to the other (they sound similar). לא יצא ביובל IT SHALL NOT GO OUT IN THE JUBILEE — Rabbi Saphra said, “if the Jubilee happened to fall during that year (the first year of its sale), it shall nevertheless not go out” (Arakhin 31b).
Chizkuni
שנה תמימה, “a full year.” In the event that this particular year was declared a leap year, this works to the advantage of the person wishing to redeem it. (Sifra) בעיר אשר לא חומה, the word לא here is read as if it had been spelled לו, “his.” The reason for this is that it refers to the word ואיש at the beginning of the paragraph. At the beginning of that year that house had a wall around it. The word שדה is masculine, as we know from Leviticus 27,21 והיה השדה בצאתו, “and the field will be when it (he) goes out etc.” לו חומה לצמיתות, “which (city) has a wall will be his (the purchaser’s) in perpetuity.” The vowel under the letter ל in לצמיתות is a patach, just as the vowel under the letter ל under the word לקונה אותו, at the end of the verse.
But the houses of the villages which have no wall round about them shall be reckoned with the fields of the country; they may be redeemed, and they shall go out in the jubilee.
verse value 3206
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 57 letters. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֨ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·villages" (הַחֲצֵרִ֗ים, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·houses·of" (וּבָתֵּ֣י), "the·villages" (הַחֲצֵרִ֗ים), "have·no" (אֵין־לָהֶ֤ם). 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "it·shall·be·theirs" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "the·land" (root ארץ, 77x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'shall·be·accounted', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 4 words. Full calculation: וּבָתֵּ֣י [and·houses·of] (418) + הַחֲצֵרִ֗ים [the·villages] (353) + אֲשֶׁ֨ר [that] (501) + אֵין־לָהֶ֤ם [have·no] (136) + חֹמָה֙ [wall] (53) + סָבִ֔יב [surrounding] (74) + עַל־שְׂדֵ֥ה [upon·open·field·of] (409) + הָאָ֖רֶץ [the·land] (296) + יֵחָשֵׁ֑ב [shall·be·accounted] (320) + גְּאֻלָּה֙ [redemption] (39) + תִּהְיֶה־לּ֔וֹ [it·shall·be·theirs] (456) + וּבַיֹּבֵ֖ל [and·in·the·jubilee] (50) + יֵצֵֽא [it·shall·go·out] (101) = 3206.
Onkelos
But houses of open settlements that have no encircling wall around them shall be reckoned as open country fields — redemption shall apply to them, and in the Jubilee they shall go free.
Rashi
ובתי החצרים BUT THE HOUSES OF THE VILLAGES — Understand this as the Targum does: פצחין i. e. “houses of open cities” such as have no rampart. The term חצר occurs many times in this sense in the Book of Joshua, e.g., (Joshua 13:29) “the cities and the unwalled places thereof (וחצריהם)”; so also (Genesis 25:16) "by their unwalled places (בחצריהם) and by their strongholds” (see Rashi on that verse). על שדה הארץ יחשב [BUT THE HOUSES OF THE VILLAGES]… SHALL BE ACCOUNTED AS THE FIELDS OF THE COUNTRY — i. e. they shall be like the fields which may be redeemed until the Jubilee(not only in the first year) and go out in the Jubilee into the possession of their owners if they have not been redeemed in the meantime (Arakhin 33a). גאלה תהיה לו THEY MAY BE REDEEMED — at once if he (the vendor) so desires. In this respect it (the house in an unwalled city) has even a greater advantage than the fields, for the fields cannot be redeemed until two years have elapsed from the date of the sale (Arakhin 33a; cf. Rashi on v. 24). וביבל יצא AND THEY SHALL GO OUT IN THE JUBILEE — for nothing.
Ibn Ezra
"It shall be reckoned as the open field of the land" — like "and the men came al ha-nashim" (Exod. 35:22), where "al" means "with" (im). "Redemption shall apply to it" — to each individual house, like "daughters who stride over the wall" (Gen. 49:22), and like "over her children because they are no more" (Jer. 31:15).
Chizkuni
ובתי החצרים, “but the houses of the villages;” seeing that such houses are frequently transformed into fields, they are considered as an integral part of the legislation as it applies to fields, which means that they revert to the original owner in the Jubilee year. (Compare Ibn Ezra in his abbreviated commentary).
But as for the cities of the Levites, the houses of the cities of their possession, the Levites shall have a perpetual right of redemption.
verse value 2641
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 37 letters. The shortest word is "houses·of" (בָּתֵּ֖י, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·Levites" (הַלְוִיִּ֔ם, 5 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·cities·of" (וְעָרֵי֙), "redemption·of" (גְּאֻלַּ֥ת), "to·the·Levites" (לַלְוִיִּֽם). The root עיר appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "houses·of" (root בית, 51x in Leviticus); "redemption·of" (root גאל, 23x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root לוי ("the·Levites") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'their·holding', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְעָרֵי֙ [and·cities·of] (286) + הַלְוִיִּ֔ם [the·Levites] (91) + בָּתֵּ֖י [houses·of] (412) + עָרֵ֣י [cities·of] (280) + אֲחֻזָּתָ֑ם [their·holding] (456) + גְּאֻלַּ֥ת [redemption·of] (434) + עוֹלָ֖ם [eternity] (146) + תִּהְיֶ֥ה [it·shall·be] (420) + לַלְוִיִּֽם [to·the·Levites] (116) = 2641.
Onkelos
As for the cities of the Levites — the houses of their hereditary cities — there shall be a perpetual right of redemption for the Levites.
Rashi
וערי הלוים THE CITIES OF THE LEVITES… [MAY BE REDEEMED AT ANY TIME] — This refers only to the forty-eight cities which had been given to them (cf. Numbers 35:6. 7). (But if the Levites built another city for themselves, or if a Levite possesses a house in a city inhabited by Israelites these do not come under this law). גאלת עולם [THE LEVITES SHALL HAVE] THE RIGHT OF REDEMPTION AT ANY TIME — This means that they (Levites) may redeem at once — even before the end of two years — if they sold a field of those fields which had been given to them within the two thousand cubits round about the cities (cf. Numbers 25:5) (whilst an ordinary Israelite’s field must remain at least two years in the hand of the purchaser), or if they sold “a house in a city which has a wall” they may redeem it at any time and it does not become irredeemable at the end of one year (as is the case with such houses belonging to Israelites; cf. v. 30) (Arakhin 33b).
גאולת עולם תהיה ללוים, “the Levites will have an unlimited period during which to redeem their houses.” It does not matter if these houses are part of a walled city or of open villages, they are never sold in perpetuity, seeing that they are the only ancestral property the Levites own in the Holy Land as spelled out clearly in Numbers 35,3: והיו הערים להם לשבת ומגרשיהם יהיו לבהמתם ולרכושם ולכל חיתם,” and they shall have these cities to dwell in, and their open land shall be for their cattle and for their substance and for all their beasts.”
And if a man purchase of the Levites, then the house that was sold in the city of his possession, shall go out in the jubilee; for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their possession among the children of Israel.
verse value 4615
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 72 letters. Verse gematria: 4615 is divisible by 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "for" (כִּ֣י, 2 letters) and the longest is "from·the·Levites" (מִן־הַלְוִיִּ֔ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 44: he·shall·redeem, in·the·jubilee. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "from·the·Levites" (מִן־הַלְוִיִּ֔ם), "the·sale·of·a·house" (מִמְכַּר־בַּ֛יִת), "and·city·of" (וְעִ֥יר). The root לוי appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·which" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "sons·of" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus); "for" (root כי, 81x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·jubilee', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 9 words.
Onkelos
And whoever redeems from the Levites — when the sale of a house and the city of his ancestral portion goes out, it shall revert in the Jubilee; for the houses of the cities of the Levites are their ancestral portion among the children of Israel.
Rashi
הלוים מןואשר יגאל — This means, and if any one buys a house or a city from them, then that house that has been sold or the city that was sold shall go out in the Jubilee and shall return unto the Levite who has sold it, and not be irredeemable as are other houses in “cities that have a wall” viz., those of Israelites. According to this explanation, יגאל has here the meaning of a “sale”. Another explanation is (taking יגאל here in its usual meaning of “redeeming”): Because it is stated in the previous verse: “the Levites shall have the right of redemption at any time”, I might think that Scripture is speaking only of an ordinary Israelite purchaser who bought a house in a city of the Levites, but when a Levite bought a house from another Levite it shall be irredeemable! Scripture therefore states “[the Levites shall have the right redemption at any time]”, ואשר יגאל מן הלוים, “also if one who redeems does so from the Levites — i. e. that also one (a Levite) who redeems a house from the possession of another Levite shall have the right to do so at any time (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 6 6). ויצא ממכר בית THEN THE HOUSE THAT WAS SOLD… SHALL GO OUT [IN THE JUBILEE] — According to the second explanation of 'ואשר יגאל וכו given above, this contains another command and is not a continuation of the words that precede. They mean: “but if he (the vendor) did not redeem it” then it shall go out in the Jubilee and shall not become irredeemable at the end of the first year as is the case with the house of an Israelite. כי בתי ערי הלוים הוא אחזתם FOR THE HOUSES OF THE CITIES OF THE LEVITES ARE THEIR POSSESSION —They had no separate property of fields and vineyards, only cities to dwell therein together with the open land surrounding them; these, therefore, in their case took the place of the fields possessed by the Israelites and should thus be redeemable just like fields, in order that their inheritance should not be alienated from them.
Ramban
AND IF ONE OF THE LEVITES REDEEM. The plain meaning of this verse appears to be as follows: He had stated [in the previous verse], the Levites have a perpetual right of redemption, to redeem immediately [even before the period of two years after the sale of the fields, which an Israelite must wait before he is allowed to redeem], and to redeem at any time [a house in a walled city, even after the expiration of a year since the sale, after which time an Israelite cannot redeem]. But He did not explain with reference to them [the Levites] whether their relatives [also] have the right of redemption, nor whether the Jubilee applies to them. Therefore He stated again, And if one of the Levites redeem, be the redeemer the seller himself or his relative a Levite, then the house that was sold, and the city of his possession, shall go out in the Jubilee from the hand of the purchaser. He should redeem it on this understanding, that he shall reckon the years of the sale thereof and restore the overplus, meaning to say that the Jubilee does apply to them [the Levites], and the manner of their redemption shall be as He said of the Israelites, and he shall reckon the years of the sale thereof etc. And our Rabbis have said that the verse speaks of a Levite who buys from a Levite. According to their word, the interpretation of the verse appears to me to be as follows: It was the custom in former times in Israel that when a man had to sell his field, the person who had precedence in his inheritance [i.e., who was the nearest relative who could inherit] would come and buy it, and it was this that was called “redemption,” as it is said, Buy thee my field that is in Anathoth, for the right of redemption is thine to buy it, and so also is it explained there in the matter of Boaz. And it appears to me that they administered a law of precedence for him, just as our Rabbis enacted for us the law of [the prerogative of] the neighbor, and [if other people wanted to buy it], they would acquire [the right of possession] from the “first redeemer” by the [symbolic act of] acquisition of a scarf, as did Boaz. Thus Scripture is stating here that when a Levite redeems the inheritance of a Levite, that is to say, when he buys it from him as is the law of redemption, then that [land] acquired shall go out in the Jubilee. It thus teaches that the Jubilee applies to them [the Levites] in the case of “redemption” just as in the case of any other sale [among Israelites]. Scripture did not have to mention this law in the case of a plain sale [i.e., to say that if a Levite sold his field to a non-Levite, who is not his near relative, that it goes back to its original owner, the Levite, in the Jubilee], for they [Levites] are part of all Israel [and it is self-understood that the same laws apply to them]; except that He strengthened their legal right [by giving them, as explained above], a perpetual [privilege of] redemption. This law of “redemption” applies also to Israelites [i.e.,...
Ibn Ezra
Because it said "permanent redemption," it then says "and if one redeems" — the meaning is like "[if one] purchases." And some say [this applies] even if the redeemer was a Levite. The vav of ve-yatza is [pronounced] like a soft peh (rafe) in Arabic. "House" or "city" — the legal ruling is the same.
Chizkuni
ואשר יגאל מן הלוים, “and if he redeems (buys) it from the Levites;” there is a special reason why purchase is called “redemption” by the Torah. The reason is that whatever the Levites sell originated with the ordinary Israelites from whose tithes, etc., they made their living. After all, they never had an ancestral share of land in the land of Israel. This means that whatever they sell had originally been owned by Israelites. The Levite therefore feels as if he had “redeemed” it from an Israelite. ויצא ממכר בית, Rashi had to choose between two different interpretations of these words, and it is clear that he chose the second alternative according to which: “then the house which has been sold will revert in the Jubilee year;” הוא אחוזתם, a masculine mode for possession, with the vowel shuruk. We find the same construction in verse 34 אחוזת עולם הוא להם, “it is a possession in perpetuity for them.”
Tur HaArokh
ואשר יגאל מן הלווים, “and if someone buys a property from a Levite, etc.” Nachmanides writes that from the plain meaning of the text it appears that seeing that the Torah had already stated that the Levites have an unlimited period of time during which they can redeem property they had been forced to sell, (compare verse 32) the right to redeem his property commences immediately, i.e. as soon as he has the necessary means, and nothing is said about his relatives having the right to do this on his behalf. Neither does the Torah indicate if the laws of the Jubilee apply to the Levites, i.e. a return of their property in that year without their having to compensate the buyer of it. This is why the Torah phrases this legislation as אשר יגאל מן הלווים, “if one of his fellow Levites redeems it,” to show that since in the case of the Levites who do not own ancestral land, a Levite has fallen on hard times, it is clear that his house has to be viewed as just as basic to his needs as the field is to the ordinary Israelite. Another Levite, who is his relative, may redeem it on behalf of the one who sold it. ויצא ממכר בית וגו', “and the house shall go out in the Jubilee year, etc.;” the sale of that house will be reversed, meaning that the sale price was calculated originally on the number of years remaining till the Jubilee so that the price of the redemption will take into account the number of years the purchaser has not been able to live in that house. In other words, the redemption procedures applied to the Levites closely parallels that of the Israelites. Our sages interpret this verse as dealing with a situation where a Levite had purchased the house under discussion from a fellow Levite and the Torah would tell us that redemption involving both buyer and seller who are Levites follow the same pattern as that involving ordinary Israelites. According to their words it was assumed that whenever the need for such redemptions arose in ancient Israel, the closest family member of the impoverished person was the first one in line to act as the redeemer. This is where the meaning of the term “redemption” fulfills its truest meaning. We find this documented in Jeremiah I believe that the pattern which determined the respective rank of the redeemer was similar to the manner in which the sages determined the rights of prospective purchasers when someone’s neighbour claimed first right of refusal when his neighbour put up a property for sale which adjoined his own. The subject is called דינא דמצרא in the Talmud. If a third party not in line wished to secure the property in question, he would have had to buy it from the original redeemer. The case of Boaz not being able to marry Ruth until the more closely related redeemer had declined, illustrates this kind of procedure. (Compare Ruth 4,1-9) This is what our verse meant when speaking of someone who “redeems from a Levite, etc.” The Levite in question had redeemed the field of his fellow Levite by paying out the purchaser who had bought that house. Now, someone wishes to buy that house from that “redeemer.” [Possibly, the proceeds of such a sale must be given by the “redeemer” to the original Levite, who might have moved to another town in the meantime. Ed.] At any rate, the Torah did not find it necessary to spell out the mechanics of how the Jubilee law works to restore the original property to the one who had owned it ancestrally, and does not then have to compensate the present holder of it in order to ensure that it is legally given back to him. The Levites have a claim on using this legislation in perpetuity. While it is true that basically this legislation applies also to the Israelites, the reason that the Levite was used by the Torah as the classical example of such a situation is in order that we should not think that such property would be distributed amongst all the Levites collectively, instead of the individual original Levite who had felt himself forced to sell it. Consequently such property is redeemed from ownership by an ordinary Israelite, but not from the ownership of a fellow Levite. It will certainly not be removed through automatic redemption from the possession of the redeemer who had been commanded by the Torah to redeem it, i.e. to “rescue” it from the original purchaser. This is why the Torah had to make the point that such redemption must occur through another Levite. Only such a Levite has the right to perform such redemption for an unlimited period of time after the original sale even if the original purchaser had been a Levite, and even more so if an ordinary Israelite had purchased that property from the Levite.
Rashbam
ואשר יגאל מן הלוים, as we said in verse 32 that the Levites have a right to redeem such property for an unlimited period of time, לעולם, in the event he did not have the funds at the time of the Jubilee year or any other so-called deadline. 'ויצא ממכר בית וגו, whereas houses do not fall under the Jubilee rule, houses of the Levites do, seeing they have no other ancestral heritage. They get it back without having to pay compensation to the buyer.
But the fields of the open land about their cities may not be sold; for that is their perpetual possession.
verse value 2163
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 35 letters. The shortest word is "not" (לֹ֣א, 2 letters) and the longest is "for·holding·of" (כִּֽי־אֲחֻזַּ֥ת, 6 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·open·field·of" (וּֽשְׂדֵ֛ה), "open·pasture·of" (מִגְרַ֥שׁ), "their·cities" (עָרֵיהֶ֖ם). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "it" (root הוא, 102x in Leviticus); "and·open·field·of" (root שדה, 25x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root אחז ("for·holding·of") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'be·sold', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וּֽשְׂדֵ֛ה [and·open·field·of] (315) + מִגְרַ֥שׁ [open·pasture·of] (543) + עָרֵיהֶ֖ם [their·cities] (325) + לֹ֣א [not] (31) + יִמָּכֵ֑ר [be·sold] (270) + כִּֽי־אֲחֻזַּ֥ת [for·holding·of] (446) + עוֹלָ֛ם [eternity] (146) + ה֖וּא [it] (12) + לָהֶֽם [to·them] (75) = 2163.
Onkelos
But the open field of their cities may not be sold, for it is a perpetual ancestral portion for them.
Rashi
ושדה מגרש עריהם לא ימכר AND THE FIELDS OF THE SUBURBS OF THEIR CITIES MAY NOT BE SOLD — This means: they may not be sold as an absolute sale by the treasurer of the Temple property — that if a Levite dedicated his field to the Temple and has not redeemed it, and the treasurer then sold it to someone it does not pass into the possession of the priests in the Jubilee as is the case with the property of an Israelite of whom it is stated (Leviticus 27:16—20) “[and if a man shall sanctify unto the Lord some part of a field… and if he will not redeem the field,] and he (the treasurer; see Rashi on that verse) has sold it to another man, it shall not be redeemed any more, [but the field when it goes out in the Jubilee, shall be… the priests]” — the Levite, however, may redeem it at any time (even after the Jubilee and also when the treasurer has sold it to another man) (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 6 9).
And if your brother grew poor, and his means fail with you; then you shall strengthen him: as a stranger and a settler shall he live with you.
verse value 1966
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 42 letters. The shortest word is "in·him" (בּ֔וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·if·he·shall·grow·poor" (וְכִֽי־יָמ֣וּךְ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 130: with·you, with·you. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·falters" (וּמָ֥טָה), "and·you·shall·support" (וְהֶֽחֱזַ֣קְתָּ). The root עם appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "with·you" (root עם, 65x in Leviticus); "his·means" (root יד, 45x in Leviticus); "in·him" (root בו, 23x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְכִֽי־יָמ֣וּךְ [and·if·he·shall·grow·poor] (112) + אָחִ֔יךָ [your·brother] (39) + וּמָ֥טָה [and·falters] (60) + יָד֖וֹ [his·means] (20) + עִמָּ֑ךְ [with·you] (130) + וְהֶֽחֱזַ֣קְתָּ [and·you·shall·support] (526) + בּ֔וֹ [in·him] (8) + גֵּ֧ר [stranger] (203) + וְתוֹשָׁ֛ב [and·resident] (714) + וָחַ֖י [and·he·shall·live] (24) + עִמָּֽךְ [with·you] (130) = 1966.
Onkelos
And if your brother becomes poor and his hand falters beside you, you shall strengthen him — whether sojourner or resident — so that he may live with you.
Rashi
והחזקת בו THOU SHALT RELIEVE HIM — Do not leave him by himself so that he comes down in the world until he finally falls altogether when it will be difficult to give him a lift, but uphold him from the very moment of the failure of his means. To what may this (the differences between whether you assist him at once or whether you wait with your help till he has come down in the world) be compared? To an excessive load on the back of an ass. So long as it is still on the ass’s back, one person is enough to take hold of it (the load) and to keep it (the ass) up, as soon as it has fallen to the ground not even five persons are able to set it on its legs (Sifra, Behar, Section 5 1). גר ותושב means, even though he be a stranger or a sojourner. And what is a תושב? One who has undertaken not to worship idols (i. e. one who has been converted to the fundamental tenet of Judaism) but eats carrion (does not care for the other commandments of the Torah) (Sifra, Behar, Section 5 1).
Ramban
THAT HE MAY LIVE WITH THEE. The meaning thereof is that he [i.e., the stranger or settler] shall [be enabled to] live with you, it being a positive commandment to support him, and it is from here [that we deduce] that we are commanded by means of a positive commandment to save life. It is from here too, that the Sages have said: “That thy brother may live with thee. This was explained by Ben Peturi: If two people were going on a journey [in the desert], and one of them has a pitcher of water which [contains such an amount that] if he [alone] drinks it, [it would suffice to enable him to] reach an inhabited place, but if both drink from it, both would die. Ben Peturi stated: ‘It is better that both should drink and die, rather than that one should witness the death of his colleague,’ until Rabbi Akiba came and taught: that thy brother may live with thee — thy life takes precedence over the life of thy colleague.”He repeated [the phrase] that thy brother may live with thee, in order to emphasize and stress [that we are not to take from him any interest or increase, as is stated in the first part of that verse]. And the Rabbinical interpretation is as follows: “Return to him the interest, so that he may live with you.” Thus He commanded the return of [previously] stipulated interest, similar to that which He said in the case of robbery, and he shall restore that which he took by robbery. Now Onkelos rendered ‘geir v’thoshav vachai imach’ [generally translated: a stranger and a settler that he may live with thee] as part of the positive commandments [enumerated here, thus meaning:] “he shall sojourn and settle and live with you.” But according to the opinion of our Rabbis in the Gemara, the sense of the verse is as follows: [“And if thy brother be waxen poor …] then thou shalt uphold him, and [thou shalt also uphold] a stranger and a settler, so that each one of them shall live with thee.”
Ibn Ezra
"And his hand falters" (u-matah yado) — from the root of "he shall not totter" (lo yamot), and the mem is the root [letter]; similarly "if I say, my foot is slipping" (matah ragli) [Ps. 94:18]. "Your brother" — an Israelite. "With you" (immecha) — [means] one whom you are obligated to find with you, whom you see. "And you shall strengthen him" — the opposite of "and his hand falters," so that he does not fall. "Stranger and resident" — whether he is from your land or a stranger and resident. "And he shall live" (ve-ḥai) — means: he shall live.
Sforno
והחזקת בו, in order to keep it in good condition.
Or HaChaim
וכי ימוך אחיך ומטה ידו, "If your brother becomes poor and his means fail while he is with you, etc." This paragraph tries to awaken us to the reason why the spirit of G'd "our Brother" who used to dwell in our midst has become so infirm. When the Torah describes "our Brother becoming poor," it refers to the "spirit of life within us; the reason it seems to weaken is that it observed that we failed to study Torah and practice the commandments. There is no greater kind of poverty than the dearth of merits due to Torah study and the performance of kind deeds towards one's fellow man. As a result, the individual Israelite's light fails. The word עמך emphasises that the failure is due to its having concentrated on you. Had it not been for G'd channelling His light through you (the Jewish people), His light would have permeated the whole universe from one end to the other. Under the changed conditions, G'd wants to return the רוח light, to His celestial domains as described in Kohelet 12,7: "and the spirit returns to the Lord who had provided it." Shabbat 152 comments on this that G'd demands that the spirit be returned to Him in mint condition, i.e. שנתנה לך "in the condition He gave it to you." The Torah goes on והחזקת בו "you are to uphold him;" this means that you are to assist such a Jew who has strayed from the true path to do תשובה to help him rehabilitate himself. There is no other means which can ensure that the vital רוח be sustained within us which is comparable to the power of repentance. גר ותושב וחי עמך, "a stranger or a resident he shall live with you." According to a mystical text קב הישר chapter 32 there are souls G'd places in a body (person) in accordance with the principle we call סוד העבור, so that they can participate in the performance of a specific commandment and that person will acquire the merit which results from performance of that commandment. Other souls are provided for man for no specific task but as an opportunity afforded to the body (person) within whom the soul dwells to rehabilitate that personality. The words גר ותושב refer to these two kinds of souls. The former is called גר, the latter is called תושב. The Torah says: וחי עמך "it shall live within you" concerning either kind of soul, seeing a person does not know which kind of soul he has been endowed with he is well advised to assume that it is his task to rehabilitate himself by doing תשובה so that he would not lose the light G'd has granted him and as a result of which He resides within him. אל תקח מאתו נשך ותרבית, "Do not take an advance from him or accrued Interest;" I will explain presently what is meant by these words. When the verse goes on ויראת מאלוקך, "you shall fear your G'd," this refers to the light which G'd has endowed you with by granting you a pure soul which you are under an obligation to return in mint condition. The Torah demands further וחי אחיך עמך, that when the time comes to return your soul to G'd it should return equipped with additi...
Chizkuni
והחזקתי בו,”you shall uphold him;” in case anyone thought that he should be supported even if he had turned to criminal activities, the Torah cautions: עמך, “only as long as he conducts himself legally correct.”
Tur HaArokh
וחי עמך, “so that he may live alongside you.” This is a positive commandment addressed to you the Israelite with means, to enable fellow Israelites to have secure means of subsistence. The commandment to physically save fellow Israelites’ lives (when they appear to be in danger) flows directly from this verse. The Torah repeats and says:
Take no interest of him or increase; but fear your God; that your brother may live with you.
verse value 3290
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 39 letters. The shortest word is "interest" (נֶ֣שֶׁךְ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·accrued·interest" (וְתַרְבִּ֔ית, 6 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "you·shall·not·take" (אַל־תִּקַּ֤ח), "interest" (נֶ֣שֶׁךְ), "and·accrued·interest" (וְתַרְבִּ֔ית). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "with·you" (root עם, 65x in Leviticus); "you·shall·not·take" (root איל, 43x in Leviticus); "your·brother" (root אח, 21x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·your·God', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 3 words. Full calculation: אַל־תִּקַּ֤ח [you·shall·not·take] (539) + מֵֽאִתּוֹ֙ [from·him] (447) + נֶ֣שֶׁךְ [interest] (370) + וְתַרְבִּ֔ית [and·accrued·interest] (1018) + וְיָרֵ֖אתָ [and·you·shall·fear] (617) + מֵֽאֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ [from·your·God] (106) + וְחֵ֥י [and·he·shall·live] (24) + אָחִ֖יךָ [your·brother] (39) + עִמָּֽךְ [with·you] (130) = 3290.
Onkelos
You shall not take from him interest or increase; you shall fear your God, and your brother shall live with you.
Rashi
נשך ותרבית [TAKE THOU NOT] INTEREST [OF HIM] OR INCREASE — The Rabbis regard them (these two things) as one, but Scripture uses two different words for the same offence in order to prescribe that he who infringes the law, is thereby transgressing two negative commands (Bava Metzia 60b). ויראת מאלהיך BUT BE AFRAID OF THY GOD — Because man’s thoughts are greatly attracted by the idea of taking interest and it comes difficult to him to keep aloof from it, so that he tries to persuade himself that it is a legitimate act (lit., he decides for himself that it is a permissible matter) on account of the fact that his money will otherwise remain unemployed, Scripture was compelled to state: “But be afraid of thy God!" Or take another case: If one pretends that his money belongs to a non-Jew in order to be able to lend it to an Israelite in an ostensibly legitimate way. This is given only to his heart and thoughts to know the real circumstances of the case; Scripture therefore was compelled to state “But be afraid of thy God!” (Bava Metzia 61b).
Ramban
TAKE THOU NO ‘NESHECH’ (INTEREST) OF HIM OR ‘RIBITH’ (INCREASE). “The Rabbis explained [these two terms — ‘interest’ and ‘increase’] as one, and [the reason why Scripture mentioned two different words is to teach us that he who transgresses this law] violates two negative commandments.” This is Rashi’s language. The plain meaning of the verse appears to me to be that neshech (interest) is where, [for example], he lends him a hundred [shekels] and [the borrower is] to give him five shekels each year [for the use of the money, without deducting it from the capital sum of the loan]. It is so called [neshech, literally “biting”] because at the last ‘yishach’ (it biteth) like a snake, [the effect of whose bite is not noticed immediately, but which] spurts and increases. Tarbith [or ribith — “increase”], however, is if he lends him [a sum of money] until a certain time, and then [the borrower is to] repay him and give him an increase of five shekels, but [even if the repayment should be delayed], there is no [additional] increase after that time [i.e., there is one fixed sum and not an annual percentage]; this [form of interest] does not “bite”, since it will not go up more than that [fixed] sum, but it is [nonetheless] “an increase.” Therefore He stated, Thou shalt not give him thy money ‘b’neshech’ (upon interest), nor give him thy food ‘b’marbith’ (for increase), for it is customary to lend money for neshech (interest), [the borrower being obliged] to give every year [a certain amount of money for the use of the capital borrowed], but food is [usually] lent until the time of reaping, and then he pays him back out of his granary with a stipulated addition.
Ibn Ezra
"Neshech and tarbit." This is explained in the words of received tradition. The tav of tarbit is an added letter, as in tarmit [deceit], and it is from the root of rav [much], belonging to the class of verbs whose final letter (lamed ha-po'al) is a quiescent [letter] hidden [at the end] — like tachlit sin'ah ["the utmost of hatred," Ps. 139:22]. Then Scripture explains the neshech and the tarbit — and also the mem of marbit is added, like the mem of va-even mashkit [Lev. 26:1].
Sforno
אל תקח מאתו, because this is the ethically good way to extend a loan to your financially embarrassed brother without charging him interest or something in lieu of interest. וחי אחיך עמך, you are required to do this if the Lord has endowed you so that you are financially able to extend such loans. The word עמך, alongside you, teaches what our sages termed “your own life takes precedence over that of your fellow.” (Baba Metzia 62)
Chizkuni
אל תקח מאתו נשך ותרבית, “do not accept from him any kind of interest or increase.” This paragraph has been repeated in the Torah when the Torah worded it in the inverted form as: “do not pay the lender interest or increase.” (verse 42, speaking of food.)
Kli Yakar
Do not take from him usury and interest. The phrase do not take from him implies that it is prohibited to take interest from a poor person, but it is permissible to take it from a wealthy person. Similarly, in Parashat Mishpatim (Exodus 22:24), it states: If you lend money to My people, to the poor among you… you shall not impose interest upon him. Therefore, the Torah wrote in Deuteronomy (23:21): You may charge interest to a foreigner, but to your brother you shall not charge interest. Anyone who is your brother — you shall not charge him interest, even if the borrower profits from the loan. Consider the reasoning: the primary reason for prohibiting interest is that it removes one’s sense of trust in God. Every businessman normally looks up to God because they are uncertain whether they will profit or not. But one who lends with interest has a known and fixed profit, and relies on the collateral in their possession, thereby turning their heart away from God. The reason why even the borrower transgresses a negative commandment is because they cause the lender to sin and remove them from the attribute of trust in God. It is well known that most lenders who charge interest are people of little faith and hard-hearted, far from charity, because they do not place their trust in God. The reason it is permitted to charge interest to non-Jews is because non-Jews are presumed to be violent and likely to steal, even if they are under your authority. Nevertheless, their way is to use a ruse. Even if you hold their collateral, you are never secure in either the principal or the interest. Therefore, one must always look to God to be saved from them. This is the reason for prohibiting interest in all cases. And the mention of the poor in Scripture refers to the common situation, as typically it is the poor who must take loans. Additionally, one might have thought that if the borrower is poor, he does not transgress because necessity forced him into this situation — therefore the Torah teaches us that even the poor borrower transgresses the prohibition of you shall not impose. This commandment was placed next to the laws of the Sabbatical year because the reason for the Sabbatical year is also to place our trust in God. And it mentions the language of neshech [biting/usury] and marbit [increase/interest], because from the borrower’s perspective it is called neshech since interest is similar to a snake, in the way that it bites at one’s heel, making a small scratch that then oozes and swells up to the head. At first, it is not noticeable until its venom rises to the point of no remedy. From the lender’s perspective, it is called tarbit [increase] because he increases his wealth and possessions according to his imagination, but in truth, eventually his assets will collapse. It seems that for this reason, the phrase “and his hand falters” is not mentioned throughout this section except in this passage, because it comes to warn the lender not to falter in the way that the borrower’s hand has faltered, lest you also equal him in collapse. For specifically one who does not give his money with interest will not falter, but if you do give [with interest], then you too will equal him because your assets will collapse and not rise if you think to increase your wealth through interest. For this reason it is said, Do not give him your money with interest, and do not give your food with increase. It does not mention the word “him” regarding the increase as it does regarding the interest, because the interest alone is for “him,” the borrower, but the increase is not for the borrower but for the lender. Therefore, it mentions “your food” regarding the increase but not regarding the interest, because the lender thinks to increase his wealth and his food, as the term “your food” only applies to the lender who thinks to eat from the interest. The term neshech is more applicable to money, because it is not the way of the world to give a se’ah [measure] of wheat on the condition that one adds a kav [smaller measure] each week, but rather at once he stipulates to give five se’ah for four. If so, [the borrower] immediately feels his loss, and it is not like a snake that bites with a small scratch. But with money, the custom is to add a small coin each week, which is something one does not notice. And it says, that your brother may live with you. Because you too shall surely live, as it is stated in Ezekiel (18:13), He has lent with interest… he shall not live. Because he has cut off the other’s livelihood, it is as if he killed him, therefore he too shall not live. But one who assists in the other’s livelihood, it is right that he too shall surely live. Therefore it is said, that your brother may live with you.
Tur HaArokh
וחי אחיך עמך, “and let your brother live with you.” The line is repeated primarily in order to show the reader how important that consideration is in the eyes of the Torah. Onkelos demonstrates in his translation that he includes the resident stranger as included in the admonition of the Torah to fear the Lord and “let your brother live with you.” Our sages apply the obligation of והחזקת בו, “you shall strengthen him (economically),” to fellow Jews, whereas they understand the commandment “and let him live with you,” as also including the resident stranger. [Anyone checking Onkelos will note that there is another version of the text in Onkelos in which the word דיר, “resident stranger,” does not appear. Ed.]
You shall not give him your money upon interest, nor give him your victuals for increase.
verse value 3482 — ל֖וֹ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 33 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (ל֖וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·him" (ל֖וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·at·accrued·interest" (וּבְמַרְבִּ֖ית, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 881: you·shall·not·give, you·shall·not·give. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "your·money" (אֶ֨ת־כַּסְפְּךָ֔), "in·interest" (בְּנֶ֑שֶׁךְ), "and·at·accrued·interest" (וּבְמַרְבִּ֖ית). The root נתן appears 2 times in this verse. 4 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "your·food" (root אכל, 106x in Leviticus); "you·shall·not·give" (root נתן, 86x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·interest', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: אֶ֨ת־כַּסְפְּךָ֔ [your·money] (581) + לֹֽא־תִתֵּ֥ן [you·shall·not·give] (881) + ל֖וֹ [to·him] (36) + בְּנֶ֑שֶׁךְ [in·interest] (372) + וּבְמַרְבִּ֖ית [and·at·accrued·interest] (660) + לֹא־תִתֵּ֥ן [you·shall·not·give] (881) + אׇכְלֶֽךָ [your·food] (71) = 3482.
Onkelos
Your money you shall not give to him with interest, and your food you shall not give for increase.
Or HaChaim
את כספך לא תתן לו בנשך, "You shall not give him your money upon interest;" Here the Torah explains what the words נשך ומרבית are all about; they darken the divine light G'd provides. The word את כספך refers to the material things man yearns for in this world believing them to be of real value though their value is totally illusory. לא תתן לו בנשך When man fulfils his animalistic instincts and thereby tries to gratify his spiritual needs his spirit is actually "bitten," נשוך and the poison of sin is absorbed by that person's רוח. The Torah continues: ובמרבית לא תתן אכלך, "and you must not give him your food in return for increase." The Torah means that even your food, i.e. something that it is certainly permissible for you to eat you must not consume to excess, i.e. מרבית. When a person follows the needs of his palate he gradually increases his appetite for more food than is needed to sustain him. This is turn also leads to the divine light G'd has granted us by means of our pure soul being gradually more and more "blacked out." The stronger the physical in man the weaker his spiritual capacity. Encouraging the body to grow stronger through gratifying its appetites therefore is sinful. This is why Proverbs 13,25 teaches us that "the righteous eats onIy to satisfy the needs of his life-force, נפש." Solomon says this to remind us that it is not our palate which should dictate the quantity or quality of our food-intake. When the Torah continues אני השם (verse 38), this means that although G'd has taken us out of Egypt in order to give us the land of Canaan, the purpose was not in order for the Jewish people to stuff themselves on the good fruit of the land but in order for Him to be our G'd, something that requires the land of Israel. Our sages in Torat Kohanim say that anyone who merely lives in the land of Israel is as if he had accepted for himself G'd's sovereignty.
Chizkuni
את כספך, “your money;” the emphasis is on the pronoun “your; it is perfectly legal to lend money at interest when it is a gentile’s money. (A Jewish bank administering funds deposited by a gentile, may charge a Jew interest for such loans.)
Tur HaArokh
נשך ותרבית, “outright interest, or food against repayment by a greater amount, etc.” Nachmanides writes that according to the plain meaning of he text it appears that נשך refers to a loan to be repaid with a fixed amount of interest which runs and is payable concurrently. It is called נשך, “bite,” as the borrower feels as if he is being bitten every time he makes an interest payment. The word תרבית refers to a loan of money for a fixed period at the end of which both principal and interest is due. Seeing that the “interest” does not accumulate even when the principal is repaid after the agreed upon time, the Torah does not describe such a transaction as נשך. מרבית, on the other hand, refers to loans of food or other chattels, not loans of money. Here too the Torah forbids the lender to charge any extra when the harvest time rolls around and the borrower repays him from the new harvest.
I am Hashem your God, who brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan, to be your God.
verse value 4837 — יְהֹוָה֙ = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 64 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָה֙) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "I" (אֲנִ֗י, 3 letters) and the longest is "who·brought·out" (אֲשֶׁר־הוֹצֵ֥אתִי, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 90: to·you, to·you. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "land·of" (אֶת־אֶ֣רֶץ). The root ארץ appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "to·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "to·give" (root נתן, 86x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Egypt', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 7 words. Full calculation: אֲנִ֗י [I] (61) + יְהֹוָה֙ [Hashem] (26) + אֱלֹ֣הֵיכֶ֔ם [your·God] (106) + אֲשֶׁר־הוֹצֵ֥אתִי [who·brought·out] (1013) + אֶתְכֶ֖ם [you] (461) + מֵאֶ֣רֶץ [from·land·of] (331) + מִצְרָ֑יִם [Egypt] (380) + לָתֵ֤ת [to·give] (830) + לָכֶם֙ [to·you] (90) + אֶת־אֶ֣רֶץ [land·of] (692) + כְּנַ֔עַן [Canaan] (190) + לִהְי֥וֹת [to·be] (451) + לָכֶ֖ם [to·you] (90) + לֵאלֹהִֽים [to·God] (116) = 4837.
Onkelos
I am Hashem your God, who brought you out from the land of Egypt, to give you the land of Canaan, to be your God.
Rashi
'אשר הוצאתי וגו [I AM THE LORD YOUR GOD] WHO BROUGHT YOU FORTH [FROM THE LAND OF EGYPT] and distinguished between those who were firstborn and those who were not firstborn (a matter which is hidden from human cognizance), I also know the true facts of this matter and I will exact punishment from him who lends money to an Israelite saying that it belongs to a non-Jew (Bava Metzia 61b; cf. Rashi on Leviticus 19:36). Another explanation is: I am the Lord your God Who brought you forth from the land of Egypt on condition that you take upon yourselves the fulfillment of My commands although they be hard for you (cf. Sifra, Behar, Section 5 3) לתת לכם את ארץ כנען TO GIVE YOU THE LAND OF CANAAN as a reward for your taking upon yourselves to fulfill My commandments. להיות לכם לאלהים TO BE YOUR GOD —Because to him who dwells in the land of Israel I am God; while he who leaves it may be regarded as though he were an idolator (Sifra, Behar, Section 5 4; Ketubot 110b).
Ibn Ezra
The meaning of "I am Hashem your God who brought you out of the Land of Egypt" — [i.e.,] you were strangers, and behold I gave you an ancestral holding — this clause connects back to "a stranger and a resident shall live with you" (v. 35), and also to the entire preceding passage regarding the redemption of the land. And Scripture mentions the passage of "and his hand falters with you" in order to recall that the Israelite who falls into such need that he must sell himself will go free at the Jubilee. Thus the entire section of this parasha is connected.
Sforno
להיות לכם לאלוקים. In order for G’d’s purpose to be the G’d of all of you to be accomplished, it is necessary that you enable your fellow to live on an economically comfortable level. It is your duty to help bring this about. [this is not a recipe for a welfare state but for a state in which the dignity of recipients of economic assistance is preserved. Ed.]
Chizkuni
אשר הוצאתי אתכם מארץ מצרים, “Who has taken you out from the land of Egypt, while you had remained strangers there.” (Compare Ibn Ezra)
Rabbeinu Bahya
אני ה' אלוקיכם אשר הוצאתי אתכם, “I am the Lord your G’d Who has taken you out, etc.” According to Baba Metzia 61 in this verse G’d refers to how He distinguished between each drop of sperm in order to know which was a firstborn and which was not, as a result of which the former were killed and the latter were redeemed. Similarly, G’d warns that when the time comes He will apply similar careful distinction between who has lent money to a fellow Jew charging interest and who has not. The former will be punished, and it will not help them to claim that they thought the recipient was a Gentile to whom it is permissible to charge interest. This is behind our verse (36) “do not accept from him or charge him interest, but fear your G’d.” The Torah invokes the fear of G’d also in connection with the warning not to impose undignified labour on a Jewish servant (verse 43). Telling such a servant to heat the cup of his master when there is no need for this to be done is considered as demeaning the servant. Whenever there are no objective yardsticks for determining if certain chores are necessary or if the master merely demands them as a form of caprice, the Torah reminds the person demanding such chores to be performed: “fear your G’d,” i.e. He knows what is in your heart even if the servant does not.
Daat Zkenim
לתת לכם את ארץ כנען, “to give you the land of Canaan;” the Talmud, tractate Ketuvot folio 110, uses this verse to make the following statement: “basically a Jew is to make his home in the land of Israel even if at that time most of the inhabitants in that land are gentiles. He should not choose to live in the Diaspora, as a Jew who voluntarily lives outside the Holy Land, is considered as if he did not have a G–d.” The Talmud bases this statement on the conclusion of our verse: להיות לכם לאלהים, “to be for you as G–d.” David also made a statement of a similar nature when he said in Samuel I 26,19: כי גרשוני היום מהסתפח בנחלת ה' לאמור לך עבוד אלוהים אחרים, “for they have driven me out today so that I cannot have a share in the Lord’s ancestral property, but they told me: ”go and worship other gods!”
And if your brother grew poor with you, and sell himself to you, you shall not make him to serve as a bondservant.
verse value 1714
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 36 letters. The shortest word is "in·him" (בּ֖וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·if·he·shall·grow·poor" (וְכִֽי־יָמ֥וּךְ, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·shall·be·sold·to·you" (וְנִמְכַּר־לָ֑ךְ), "you·shall·not·make·him·serve" (לֹא־תַעֲבֹ֥ד), "work·of" (עֲבֹ֥דַת). The root עבד appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "with·you" (root עם, 65x in Leviticus); "in·him" (root בו, 23x in Leviticus); "your·brother" (root אח, 21x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·shall·be·sold·to·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְכִֽי־יָמ֥וּךְ [and·if·he·shall·grow·poor] (112) + אָחִ֛יךָ [your·brother] (39) + עִמָּ֖ךְ [with·you] (130) + וְנִמְכַּר־לָ֑ךְ [and·shall·be·sold·to·you] (366) + לֹא־תַעֲבֹ֥ד [you·shall·not·make·him·serve] (507) + בּ֖וֹ [in·him] (8) + עֲבֹ֥דַת [work·of] (476) + עָֽבֶד [slave] (76) = 1714.
Onkelos
And if your brother becomes poor beside you and sells himself to you, you shall not make him serve with the service of a slave.
Rashi
עבדת עבד [THOU SHALT NOT COMPEL HIM] TO SERVE AS A BOND-SERVANT — i. e. thou shalt not make him do degrading work by which he is recognised as a slave — this might come out that he shall not, for instance, carry his (the master’s) clothes after him to the public baths nor help him on with his boots (cf. Sifra, Behar, Chapter 7 2).
Ibn Ezra
"And he is sold to you" — either voluntarily, or [because] he stole from you and the court sold him.
Or HaChaim
וכי ימוך אחיך, "And if your brother becomes poor, etc." This paragraph is an allusion to something we find in the Tikkuney HaZohar chapter 10 that G'd ordered the spiritual representative of Edom (Samael) in the celestial spheres not do deal cruelly with Israel. When the Torah speaks of the Jewish people becoming poor this is a reference to the exile under the Romans. The reason the Torah speaks of "your brother" is the same as the prophet Maleachi reminding the Jewish people in G'd's name (Maleachi 1,2) that Esau was Jacob's brother but that nonetheless G'd loved Jacob. The word עמך, "with you," is a reminder that the impoverishment of Israel is due to its proximity to Esau/Edom and the fact that it started to copy the evil ways of Edom. The words ונמכר לך, "and he sold himself to you," may be understood as similar to Isaiah 52,3 in which the Jewish people are described as having sold themselves in return for חנם, "nought". According to the Zohar volume 2 page 128, Samael is equated with the domain of חנם, nought, seeing the prophet speaks of the exile under Roman (Edom) domination. (compare Psalms 137,7 where the Jewish people ask G'd to repay Edom for the cruel treatment they dished out to the people of Israel) לא תעבוד בו עבודת עבד is G'd's command to Edom the host country not to make the Jewish people perform slave labour. (compare Jeremiah 2,14 who asks plaintively: "is Israel then a slave?") but to treat them as one treats a hired hand, כשכיר כתושב יהיה לך, "it shall be like a hired hand or a resident for you." The reason the Torah uses two alternatives here is that Israel may be divided into two categories. 1) The multitude; 2) the elite, as per Samuel II 23,8 where this elite is described as "sitting in the council of the wise." You find on occasion that Israelites rose to the rank of tax collectors even while in exile; these tax collectors may have been the elite in terms of secular rank but they do not represent Israel's spiritual elite. Israel's spiritual elite are characterised by Moses in Deut. 33,3, as והם תכו לרגליך ישא מדברותיך, "but they followed in Your footsteps, accepted Your pronouncements." Concerning this verse our sages in Baba Batra 8 quote Ezra 7,24 that it was forbidden by royal decree to impose any kind of taxes on the Torah scholars (literally the priests and the Levites) even in exile (under Artaxerxes). When the Torah speaks of the Edomites who have exiled us treating us like hired hands, שכיר, this refers to the common people; the term תושב, however, refers to the spiritual elite of the Jewish people in exile. They are not to be burdened with taxes and other governmental demands. The Torah continues עד שנת היובל יעבוד עמך, "until the Jubilee year he will serve with you;" in this instance the Jubilee year is a reference to the most remote date possible for the redemption. G'd advises Edom that in the end the Jewish people will go free from its exile, i.e. ויצא מעמך. The reference to ובניו is to the "sparks" whic...
Rashbam
עבודת עבד, to let him perform menial labour, as is the lot of the Canaanite slaves.
As a hired servant, and as a settler, he shall be with you; he shall serve with you to the year of jubilee.
verse value 2525 — יַעֲבֹ֥ד = 86 (Elohim)
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 33 letters. Notable word values: "he·shall·serve" (יַעֲבֹ֥ד) = 86, equal to Elohim. The shortest word is "with·you" (עִמָּ֑ךְ, 3 letters) and the longest is "as·hired·worker" (כְּשָׂכִ֥יר, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 130: with·you, with·you. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "as·resident" (כְּתוֹשָׁ֖ב), "he·shall·serve" (יַעֲבֹ֥ד). The root עם appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "he·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "with·you" (root עם, 65x in Leviticus); "until·the·year·of" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: כְּשָׂכִ֥יר [as·hired·worker] (550) + כְּתוֹשָׁ֖ב [as·resident] (728) + יִהְיֶ֣ה [he·shall·be] (30) + עִמָּ֑ךְ [with·you] (130) + עַד־שְׁנַ֥ת [until·the·year·of] (824) + הַיֹּבֵ֖ל [the·jubilee] (47) + יַעֲבֹ֥ד [he·shall·serve] (86) + עִמָּֽךְ [with·you] (130) = 2525.
Onkelos
Like a hired worker, like a resident, he shall be with you; until the year of Jubilee he shall serve with you.
Rashi
כשכיר כתושב BUT AS A HIRED SERVANT AND AS A SOJOURNER HE SHALL BE UNTO THEE] —Employ him on field-labour or on a handicraft; Treat him as you do any hired servant. עד שנת היבל [HE SHALL SERVE THEE] UNTIL THE YEAR OF THE JUBILEE — This implies that if the Jubilee happens to come (lit., happens to meet him) before the six years of his servitude are at an end, it frees him.
Ramban
AS A HIRED SERVANT, AND AS A SETTLER, HE SHALL BE WITH THEE. The meaning of this is that he [your brother who sold himself to you] shall not be with you in your house as a bondservant, but as a laborer hired year by year who hires himself out to do work as a freeman, and who is not subjected to heavy work; or [he is to be in your house] as a settler, for it is customary that settlers who come to sojourn in [another] land work for the head of the household with whom they reside to their satisfaction, similar to the case of Jacob with Laban, where [Laban] said [to Jacob], Because thou art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what shall thy wages be? And in the Torath Kohanim it is written: “As a hired servant — just as [in the case of] a hired servant in the same day thou shalt give him his hire, so too, this one must be given his hire in the same day. As a settler — just as [in the case of] a settler he shall dwell with thee … where it liketh him best; thou shalt not wrong him, this one also where it liketh him best; thou shalt not wrong him. — He shall be with thee, with thee concerning [the same kind of] food, with thee concerning [the same kind of] drink, with thee concerning [the same kind of] clean garment, etc.”
Sforno
כשכיר כתושב יהיה עמך. A Jewish servant whose labour has been acquired and paid for 6 years in advance by the person hiring him shall be treated as if he had been hired by the year. If someone’s labour has been contracted for by you until the advent of the next Jubilee year he is to be treated as if he had been hired with a long-term contract.
Chizkuni
כשכיר כתושב יהיה עמך, “as a hired servant and as a settler he shall be amongst you.” Both of these categories of people are hired hands; the difference between the first and the second category is that the first category consists of people hired on a day to day basis, while “settlers” have been hired for a year at a time. You are clearly not able to demand overly taxing work from a worker hired only for a day, as he would simply not come back on the next day if he felt taken advantage of; the Torah warns you not to take advantage of the fact that the “settler” does not have that legal option. (B’chor shor) עד שנת היובל יעבוד עמך, “he must serve you until the Jubilee year.” When the Torah had written earlier that you must proclaim liberty for all slaves in the Jubilee year, (verse 10), that had referred to a slave sold into slavery by the court. Here the Torah speaks of people who had sold themselves into slavery because of financial stress not because they had stolen and could not repay their victim.
Then shall he go out from you, he and his children with him, and shall return to his own family, and to the possession of his fathers shall he return.
verse value 2842
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 46 letters. The shortest word is "he" (ה֖וּא, 3 letters) and the longest is "to·his·clan" (אֶל־מִשְׁפַּחְתּ֔וֹ, 8 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "from·with·you" (מֵֽעִמָּ֔ךְ), "and·to·holding·of" (וְאֶל־אֲחֻזַּ֥ת), "his·fathers" (אֲבֹתָ֖יו). The root עם appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·his·sons" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus); "he" (root הוא, 102x in Leviticus); "from·with·you" (root עם, 65x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְיָצָא֙ [and·he·shall·go·out] (107) + מֵֽעִמָּ֔ךְ [from·with·you] (170) + ה֖וּא [he] (12) + וּבָנָ֣יו [and·his·sons] (74) + עִמּ֑וֹ [with·him] (116) + וְשָׁב֙ [and·he·shall·return] (308) + אֶל־מִשְׁפַּחְתּ֔וֹ [to·his·clan] (865) + וְאֶל־אֲחֻזַּ֥ת [and·to·holding·of] (453) + אֲבֹתָ֖יו [his·fathers] (419) + יָשֽׁוּב [he·shall·return] (318) = 2842.
Onkelos
Then he shall go free from you — he and his children with him — and shall return to his family, and he shall return to the ancestral portion of his fathers.
Rashi
הוא ובניו עמו [AND HE SHALL GO AWAY FROM THEE] BOTH HE AND HIS CHILDREN WITH HIM — Rabbi Simeon asked: If he sold himself who sold his children that Scripture has to state they shall leave the master together with him? But we may learn from this that the master is bound to provide his (the servant’s) children with food (Kiddushin 22a; cf. Rashi on Exodus 21:3) although they are not his slaves. ואל אחזת אבתיו AND UNTO THE POSSESSION OF HIS FATHERS [SHALL HE RETURN] — This means, he shall return to the dignity held by his ancestors and people shall not hold him in low esteem because of this (because he had previously been a slave); אחזת thus means as much as חזקת “the status of” (Makkot 13a).
Ibn Ezra
"He and his children with him" — this is what the Sages transmitted: "and they shall serve forever."
Chizkuni
הוא ובניו עמו, “he and his sons with him.” Generally speaking, people who sell themselves are destitute. This being so, it may be assumed that when the father sold himself he included his children in the sale and they had agreed to this as where would they find sustenance if not with the father’s master? ושב אל משפחתו, “and he will return to his family;” the first part of the paragraph dealt with people sold by the court, the latter half with people who sold themselves due to financial stress.
For they are My servants, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold as bondmen.
verse value 3409
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 44 letters. The shortest word is "they" (הֵ֔ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "who·brought·out" (אֲשֶׁר־הוֹצֵ֥אתִי, 9 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "for·my·servants" (כִּֽי־עֲבָדַ֣י), "they·shall·be·sold" (יִמָּכְר֖וּ), "the·sale·of" (מִמְכֶּ֥רֶת). The root עבד appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "from·land·of" (root ארץ, 77x in Leviticus); "they" (root הם, 38x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Egypt', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: כִּֽי־עֲבָדַ֣י [for·my·servants] (116) + הֵ֔ם [they] (45) + אֲשֶׁר־הוֹצֵ֥אתִי [who·brought·out] (1013) + אֹתָ֖ם [them] (441) + מֵאֶ֣רֶץ [from·land·of] (331) + מִצְרָ֑יִם [Egypt] (380) + לֹ֥א [not] (31) + יִמָּכְר֖וּ [they·shall·be·sold] (276) + מִמְכֶּ֥רֶת [the·sale·of] (700) + עָֽבֶד [servant] (76) = 3409.
Onkelos
For they are My servants, whom I brought out from the land of Egypt; they shall not be sold in the sale of slaves.
Rashi
כי עבדי הם FOR THEY ARE MY SERVANTS — My document (deed of purchase) is of an earlier date ( Sifra, Behar, Section 6 1). לא ימכרו ממכרת עבד THEY SHALL NOT BE SOLD AS THOUGH BY THE SALE OF A BONDSMAN — by public announcement: “Here is a slave to be sold!” Nor shall one make him stand on the auction-stone (Sifra, Behar, Section 6 1).
Ibn Ezra
The meaning of "for they are My servants" — because I acquired them from the house of slaves [i.e., Egypt].
Sforno
כי עבדי הם, even though this labourer had “sold” himself to you, thus meaning to acquire a new master, it might have been assumed that you might treat him like a servant instead of like a hired labourer, the fact remains that seeing he was and remains “MY” servant; this is not the way you can treat him. No Jew is legally able to sell his body, seeing that he already “belongs” to G’d.
Targum Yonatan
For they are My servants whom I brought forth redeemed from the land of Mizraim; they shall not be sold according to the laws of the sale of bondmen.
You shall not rule over him with rigor; but shall fear your God.
verse value 1673
Insights
Verse structure: 5 words, 23 letters. The shortest word is "in·him" (ב֖וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "you·shall·not·rule" (לֹא־תִרְדֶּ֥ה, 6 letters). 4 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·him" (root בו, 23x in Leviticus). First appearance of the root רדה ("you·shall·not·rule") in Leviticus. First appearance of the root פרך ("with·harshness") in Leviticus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·harshness', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 2 words. Full calculation: לֹא־תִרְדֶּ֥ה [you·shall·not·rule] (640) + ב֖וֹ [in·him] (8) + בְּפָ֑רֶךְ [with·harshness] (302) + וְיָרֵ֖אתָ [and·you·shall·fear] (617) + מֵאֱלֹהֶֽיךָ [from·your·God] (106) = 1673.
Onkelos
You shall not work him with harshness, and you shall fear your God.
Rashi
לא תרדה בו בפרך THOU SHALT NOT RULE OVER HIM WITH RIGOUR — i. e. do not force him to do some useless work with the sole purpose of vexing him. Do not e.g. say to him, “Warm me this cup of drink" when this is unnecessary; nor: “Hoe beneath this vine tree until I come" whilst he does not know when you may be expected to come back. Perhaps you will say, “No one knows the fact — whether it is necessary or not, so I will tell him that it is necessary”! — the thing is thus entrusted to his (the master’s) heart only, therefore Scripture states, “but be afraid of thy God!” (Sifra, Behar, Section 6 2; see Rashi on Leviticus 19:32).
Ibn Ezra
"You shall rule over him" (tirdeh bo) — with the sense of dominion. "Ruthlessly" (be-farekh) — as the Aramaic Targum explains.
Chizkuni
לא תרדה בו, “do not force him to perform unnecessary tasks just to keep him busy.” The reason why the Torah repeats this warning is because, sadly, exploitation of slaves has become a common practice.
And as for your bondmen, and your bondmaids, whom you may have: of the nations that are round about you, of them shall you buy bondmen and bondmaids.
verse value 3470
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 52 letters. The shortest word is "that" (אֲשֶׁ֣ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "around·you" (סְבִיבֹ֣תֵיכֶ֔ם, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 501: that, that. 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·your·servant" (וְעַבְדְּךָ֥), "and·your·handmaid" (וַאֲמָתְךָ֖), "they·shall·be·to·you" (יִהְיוּ־לָ֑ךְ). The root עבד appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "they·shall·be·to·you" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "from" (root מן, 41x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'they·shall·be·to·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 8 words. Full calculation: וְעַבְדְּךָ֥ [and·your·servant] (102) + וַאֲמָתְךָ֖ [and·your·handmaid] (467) + אֲשֶׁ֣ר [that] (501) + יִהְיוּ־לָ֑ךְ [they·shall·be·to·you] (81) + מֵאֵ֣ת [from] (441) + הַגּוֹיִ֗ם [the·nations] (64) + אֲשֶׁר֙ [that] (501) + סְבִיבֹ֣תֵיכֶ֔ם [around·you] (544) + מֵהֶ֥ם [from·them] (85) + תִּקְנ֖וּ [you·shall·acquire] (556) + עֶ֥בֶד [servant] (76) + וְאָמָֽה [and·handmaid] (52) = 3470.
Onkelos
Your manservant and your maidservant who shall be yours — from the nations that are around you, from them you may acquire male and female slaves.
Rashi
ועבדך ואמתך אשר יהיו לך BUT THY MAN-SERVANT AND THY MAID-SERVANT WHO MAY BE THINE [SHALL BE OF THE NATIONS THAT ARE ROUND ABOUT YOU] — If you should say, “But if this be so (that I must treat my Jewish servant with so much regard), by whom shall I be served? Over my Jewish servants I have no power; of the Canaanite people I cannot possess any for You have warned me, (Deuteronomy XX 16) “Thou shalt keep alive any soul"! Who then shall serve me?” Then I reply — מאת הגוים OF THE OTHER NATIONS — they may be servants to you. אשר סביבתיכם [THE NATIONS] WHO ARE ROUND ABOUT YOU — not, however, those who live within the boundaries of your land; for with regard to them I have indeed told you, “Thou shalt keep alive no soul” (Sifra, Behar, Section 6 3).
Ibn Ezra
"From among the nations that surround you" — such as Ammon, Moab, Edom, and Aram.
Moreover of the children of the strangers that do sojourn among you, of them may you buy, and of their families that are with you, which they have fathered in your land; and they may be your possession.
verse value 4651
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 72 letters. The shortest word is "and·even" (וְ֠גַ֠ם, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·from·their·clan" (וּמִמִּשְׁפַּחְתָּם֙, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 501: that, that. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·even" (וְ֠גַ֠ם), "the·residents" (הַתּוֹשָׁבִ֜ים), "and·from·their·clan" (וּמִמִּשְׁפַּחְתָּם֙). The root עם appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "that" (root אשר, 240x in Leviticus); "and·they·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "from·sons·of" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·your·land', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 3 words.
Onkelos
And also from the children of uncircumcised residents who dwell among you, from them you may acquire, and from their offspring who are with you, who were born in your land; and they shall be your property.
Rashi
וגם מבני התושבים MORE-OVER FROM AMONGST THE TOLERATED STRANGERS who came from the lands round about you in order to marry Canaanite women in your land and these bear them children; then the child follows the father in respect of nationality, and thus, not being regarded as a Canaanite, is not included in this command, “Thou shalt not keep alive any soul”, but you may purchase him as a servant (cf. Sifra, Behar, Section 6 4; Kiddushin 67b). מהם תקנו means THEM MAY YE BUY.
Ibn Ezra
"And also from among the children of the residents" — those dwelling in the Land of Canaan, which is your land, and who are from the nations mentioned [earlier] or from Egypt or any other people — except for the seven nations, for Scripture warned regarding them: "you shall let no soul live" (Deut. 20:16), so that it is forbidden even to feed them. It is possible that when the Sages said "a Canaanite slave," they meant one who dwells in the land of Canaan yet is not Canaanite by lineage, or [alternatively] they possessed the tradition to derive the true meaning of this matter — for our understanding is slight compared to theirs.
Targum Yonatan
Moreover, of the children of the uncircumcised strangers who sojourn among you, of them you may buy, and of their families that are with you, which they have begotten in your land; but not from the Kenaanaee; and they shall be yours for possession.
And you may make them an inheritance for your children after you, to hold for a possession: of them may you take your bondmen for ever; but over your brothers the children of Israel you shall not rule, one over another, with rigor.
verse value 5439
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 78 letters. The shortest word is "in·him" (ב֖וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·you·shall·take·possession" (וְהִתְנַחַלְתֶּ֨ם, 8 letters). 7 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·you·shall·take·possession" (וְהִתְנַחַלְתֶּ֨ם), "to·your·sons" (לִבְנֵיכֶ֤ם), "property" (אֲחֻזָּ֔ה). The root בן appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "to·your·sons" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus); "man" (root איש, 93x in Leviticus); "after·you" (root אחר, 27x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'you·shall·work', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 7 words.
Onkelos
And you shall bequeath them to your children after you as an inherited possession forever; you may work them. But among your brothers, the children of Israel — a man over his brother — you shall not work him with harshness.
Rashi
והתנחלתם אתם לבניכם means, you may hold them as your possession, לבניכם אחריכם, for the benefit of your children after you. It would not, however, be correct to give the word והתנחלתם the meaning: “leave them as an inheritance to your children”, for if this were intended it should have written: והנחלתם אותם לבניכם (the Hiphil), but והתנחלתם (which is the Hithpael form) is equivalent to והתחזקתם “you may hold them as your possession”. איש באחיו ONE OVER ANOTHER — These apparently redundant words (for the text might have run: ובאחיכם בני ישראל לא תרדו בפרך) are intended to include in the prohibition that the prince must not rule with rigour over his people nor the king over his subjects.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall inherit them" (ve-hitnaḥaltem) — this is in the Hitpa'el conjugation, as in ve-hit'avitem lachem. "You shall serve yourselves of them forever" — this is permitted, and thus we find that the Sages said it is a commandment [to acquire Canaanite slaves, and] we have received it [as such]. The meaning of "but as for your brothers, the children of Israel" — that you are to make a distinction between your brother and the foreigner.
And if a stranger who is a settler with you grew rich, and your brother grew poor beside him, and sell himself to the stranger who is a settler with you, or to the offshoot of a stranger's family,
verse value 4856 — וְכִ֣י = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 57 letters. Notable word values: "and·if" (וְכִ֣י) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "hand·of" (יַ֣ד, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·resident" (וְתוֹשָׁב֙, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 203: stranger, stranger. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·he·shall·grow·poor" (וּמָ֥ךְ), "to·stranger" (לְגֵ֤ר), "to·an·offshoot·of" (לְעֵ֖קֶר). The root גר appears 3 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "or" (root או, 101x in Leviticus); "and·if" (root כי, 81x in Leviticus); "with·you" (root עם, 65x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 8 words.
Onkelos
And if the hand of an uncircumcised resident who is with you prospers, and your brother becomes poor beside him and sells himself to an uncircumcised resident who is dwelling with you, or to a gentile who is of the family of a proselyte —
Rashi
יד גר ותושב [AND IF] A גר ותושב WAX RICH — This means a stranger, he being at the same time a sojourner with thee, as the Targum renders it: ערל תותב an uncircumcised sojourner (the phrase is hendiadys). The end of the verse proves this, for it states: “and he sells himself unto a strange sojourner” (גר תושב, without the copulative ו before the second word). וכי תשיג יד גר ותושב עמך AND IF A STRANGE SOJOURNER WAX RICH BY THEE — The last word suggests: What was the cause that he has waxen rich? His close connection with thee (עמך) (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 8 1). ומך אחיך עמו AND THY BROTHER WAX POOR BY HIM — Here again the last word suggests: What was the cause that he has waxen poor? His intimacy with him (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 8 1), — because of the fact that he learned evil from his (the stranger’s) evil doings. משפחת גר — itself denotes a heathen; since, however, Scripture adds the word לעקר “to the stock of the heathen’s family” it thereby refers to one who sells himself to the idol itself — to be its servant; not to worship it as a deity, but e. g., to chop wood or to draw water which are to be used in connection with this idol worship (cf. Sifra, Behar, Chapter 8 1; Bava Kamma 113b; Arakhin 30b; Kiddushin 20a).
Ramban
AND IF A STRANGER WHO IS A SETTLER WITH THEE BE WAXEN RICH, AND THY BROTHER BE WAXEN POOR BESIDE HIM, AND SELL HIMSELF UNTO THE STRANGER WHO IS A SETTLER WITH THEE, OR ‘L’EIKER’ (TO THE STOCK OF) THE FAMILY OF ‘GEIR’ (A STRANGER). “The family of ‘geir’ — this means an idolater. Since Scripture [also] stated l’eiker (‘to the stock of’ the idolater), it refers to one who sold himself to the idol itself — to be its servant; not to worship it as a deity, but to hew wood and draw water for its service.” This is Rashi’s language derived from the Torath Kohanim. And if so, the verse is saying: l’eiker ‘u’mishpachath geir [“to the stock of ‘and’ to the family of the stranger,” — since according to Rashi the verse speaks of two different people — and omits the conjunctive “and” and merely says, l’eiker mishpachath geir — literally “to the stock of the family of a stranger”]. Scripture calls the idol eiker [“plucking” or “uprooting”] because a person is dutybound to uproot thoroughly an object of idol-worship and to extirpate it. But Onkelos translated l’eiker — l’armai (“to a gentile”), and this is the correct interpretation. Scripture is thus mentioning [the case of a Hebrew who] sold himself to a stranger who dwells with us, or who sold himself ‘l’eiker mishpachath geir’ (to the stock of the stranger’s family), who is himself a gentile, the word eiker thus being related to the expression ‘ikar sharshohi’ (the stump of its roots). Scripture states ‘mishpachath geir’ (the family of the stranger) [in order to indicate that] the stranger or the settler who became rich with us brought it about that the brother [i.e., the Israelite] become poor beside him [because he had emulated his ways] and thus be sold to the stock of the family of the stranger. Scripture commanded that he must be redeemed, this being a positive commandment upon all Israel that we are to redeem him, and then it commanded his kinsmen that they are the first [in this duty]. The purpose of the commandment is clear, that he should not become assimilated and learn from the ways [of his purchasers]. For in the case of [all] other sales, the redemption by kinsmen is a matter of choice [but here it is an obligation]. Therefore He said here, For unto Me the children of Israel are servants; they are My servants, meaning to say that “although the stranger who settled [with us] and the stock of his family do not have to observe the commandment of the Jubilee, they cannot buy My servants to be their [permanent] servants.”
Ibn Ezra
"Or to the root of a stranger's family" (o le-eqer) — [eqer means] like a root (shoresh), and the meaning is one who has returned to the Israelite faith and is from the family of a resident alien, with no companion — he is like the word ve-shorshecha ["your root," Isa. 14:29], the opposite [of flourishing]. Similarly [compare]: "you shall hamstring their horses" (ve-et suseihem ta'aqod) [Josh. 11:6].
Chizkuni
או לעקר, this term is the reverse of a תושב, settler. The literal meaning is “someone uprooted;” such people have been uprooted from their land, their people, and they are literally “rootless.”
Rabbeinu Bahya
לעקר משפחת גר, “or to an offshoot of an alien’s family.” According to the plain meaning of the text the Torah speaks about an alien who never converted but who is descended from a family which converted (i.e. he was alive at the time his parents converted). The verse wants to inform us that regardless of whether the Israelite in question was sold or had sold himself to the convert or to a descendent of this convert who had himself remained a Gentile, such an Israelite is entitled to the rules of redemption, i.e. fellow Jews are obligated to buy his freedom. Onkelos also translates the word as ארמאי, i.e. as “a Gentile.” At any rate, although such a Jew had no right to sell himself to a Gentile, the Torah writes: גאולה תהיה , “he is subject to the normal rules of redemption” (by his fellow Jews). This is spelled out in greater detail by the words: “one of his brethren shall redeem him” in verse 48. If he has relatives able to redeem him, the relatives’ obligation precedes that of other Jews, and if he is able to redeem himself, having come into some money, obviously he is to use the money to buy his freedom. The Torah spells out these various scenarios in verse 49. A Midrashic approach to the word לעקר: The word is an alternative for “Roman.” The reason the Torah uses the term עקר for a Roman is that in the future G’d will uproot (עקר) all the Romans. There is a scriptural allusion to this in Daniel 7,11: והובד גשמה ויהבית ליקדת אשא, “its body destroyed and consigned to fire for burning.” This is also what is meant in another Midrash (Tanchuma Behar 1) i.e. that the words in our verse that “if a stranger attains sufficient clout so that the poor amongst you are sold to him,” refer to Nevuchadnezzar King of Babylon. The word תושב, resident, in that verse is taken to refer to the king of the Medes (Ahasverus) whereas the words ונמכר לגר are understood to refer to the kings of the Greeks, whereas the last alternative או לעקר משפחת גר are a reference to the Romans. According to that Midrash our verse alludes to the four exiles the Jewish people will have to endure at one time or another in their history. I believe the sages of the Midrash looked for this allusion as they understood previous parts of our portion already as dealing (allegorically, not halachically) with allusions to both the four exiles and the redemptions to follow. I believe there is also a hint that redemption depends on repentance, although even if repentance is not forthcoming G’d’s timetable for the final redemption will not be delayed on account of this. (compare what the author wrote on Genesis 2,2). The difference between the words אחרי and אחר respectively is that the former refers to something in the distant future whereas the latter refers to something in the immediate future. Seeing that in connection with the עקר משפחת גר the Torah speaks of redemption occurring אחרי, there is every reason to believe that when the Torah uses this paragraph as a metaphor it refers to the ultimate redemption i.e. the one following the Jewish people’s having been sold into exile to the Romans. We may be entitled to extrapolate as a continuation of that thought that the words: “one of his brethren will redeem him,” is a reference to the Messiah, descendant of David, from the tribe of Yehudah. The use of the word אחד in that verse is justified seeing that the tribe of Yehudah is unique, ‘one of a kind.’ Another meaning of the words אחד מאחיו “one of his brethren,” is that the redeemer will be of flesh and blood, a real relative born of a father and mother just as Moses had been a redeemer born of a father and a mother. This may be a polemic by the Midrash against the Christian concept of Jesus not being the son of a biological father and the Romans having adopted the Christian religion as their official religion in the fourth century. The view of the sages in the Midrash is that the wording of our paragraph clearly undermines the theological theories of the Christians The words in verse 49 speaking of the Jew who has sold himself to a Gentile, “or he attains sufficient means,” refer to his having come into some money, [not that he overpowered his master by physical force. Ed.] The word בכסף in the Midrash does not refer to actual money but to repentance, seeing repentance is described as כסף, silver being a metaphor for something white and pure. Repentance has the same effect on the soul, purifying it, removing its stains. [I believe that the author found it difficult to believe that the Jew in question who was now a physical property of the Gentile who had bought him would be able to legally buy his freedom with any money he had inherited or otherwise come by as all his money (under Jewish law) belongs automatically to his master, and he has no property of his own. Ed.] The words וחשב עם קונהו, “he must make a reckoning with the one who purchased him” (verse 50), refer to G’d the true קונה, “Owner,” of heaven and earth who prepares for a reckoning with the people who have enslaved His people. The words משנת המכרו לו, “from the year he has been sold to him,” mean from the beginning of the original exile until that of his final redemption. The final redemption is called here by the Torah שנת היובל, “the year of the Yovel,” as that word symbolizes freedom as we know from verse 10: “you shall proclaim freedom for all the inhabitants on earth.” The word יובל is also used in Psalms 76,12 יובילו שי למורא, “”they bring a tribute to the Awesome One.” We also find a verse in Isaiah 66,20 telling us that at that time of the final redemption the nations will all offer gifts to the Lord, just as the Israelites used to do.” When the Torah speaks of אם עוד רבות בשנים, or ואם מעט נשאר בשנים (verses 51 and 52 respectively), the meaning is that if at the time the slave (Jew in exile) is to be redeemed there are “still many years left before the Yovel year,” or “there are only a few years left until the Yovel year,“ the Torah uses the euphemistic expression to describe the relative degree of repentance by the Jews in exile. Inadequate repentance is described as “many years until the Yovel year,” whereas intensive repentance is described as “only a few years until the Yovel year,” i.e. redemption from exile. When the Torah continues in verse 55: ואם לא יגאל באלה, this means “if the redemption cannot occur due to the (inadequate) repentance,” then when the Yovel year arrives, i.e. the final date in G’d’s timetable for the redemption, ויצא בשנת היבל הוא ובניו עמו “then he together with his sons will go out (into redemption) in the Yovel year.” in other words, the final date G’d has foreseen already at the beginning of creation will not be adjusted due to absence of sufficient merits accumulated by the Jewish people in the interval. All of the foregoing corresponds to the opinion of Rabbi Joshua in Sanhedrin 93 who said that the meaning of the words in Isaiah 60,22 בעתו אחישנה, “at its time I will hasten it,” mean that if there is repentance the final redemption will occur prior to the original date set for it by G’d, whereas if there is no repentance the original date for the redemption will stand. The words הוא ובניו עמו in verse 54 mean that there will be two groups of people who will be redeemed; they are the ones who were outcast and the ones who were scattered amongst the nations (born in exile) with them [or a reference to initial exile to one country from which the children of the original exiles scattered throughout the globe. Ed.] The words “for the Children of Israel are My slaves, the ones I have taken out of Egypt,” [words which cannot apply literally to returning exiles after thousands of years, Ed] are understood by the Midrash as G’d saying that just as the Exodus from Egypt at the time was a redemption which occurred suddenly, comprehensively, not in stages, so the redemption in the future will parallel those aspects of the Exodus from Egypt. The concluding words of the paragraph אני ה' אלוקיכם, are the promise of the redemption in the future.
Tur HaArokh
משפחת גר, “the family of a total stranger.” According to Rashi the Torah refers to a real idolator (non Jew), the word עקר meaning the idolatrous cult itself. The reason why the Torah uses the term עקר, “something to be uprooted, eradicated,” is that the Torah had charged us with eradicating all kinds of symbols and cults in our land. (Nachmanides) Onkelos translates the word עקר as an Aramaic word, a correct interpretation, the word literally meaning “root.” The Torah in using this term here criticizes a community in which such cults had been tolerated and had taken root. The reason why the word משפחת, “family of,” had been added is to remind is that tolerating such aliens and allowing them to prosper in our land is the reason why some of our own people have fallen on hard times and are now facing the ultimate degradation of being sold into slavery to families of strangers in their own land. The Torah is adamant that such Jews must be redeemed, and that the cost of their redemption must be paid for by Jewish family members, who had allowed their own flesh and blood to be so demeaned. Although this duty falls upon the immediate family of the person so sold first, the entire Jewish community is called upon being the “redeemer” when the family of the party concerned is either unable or unwilling to perform its duty. In order to make this point crystal clear, the duty of the Jewish community at large is mentioned before the next of kin of the victim of such a sale. The principal reason of the legislation is to prevent a situation from arising in which the victim will prefer the religion of his new masters who may by then have shown him more compassion than his own people. When a Jew has been sold into service to a fellow Jew, the redemption by members of his family prior to the sh’mittah year is something of a voluntary nature, as there is no fear that he will become estranged to his people and to his religion. In the situation discussed here it is an absolute duty. Jews are to be servants (in a contractual relationship) only of their Creator, not servants of servants.
Rashbam
או לעקר, who was uprooted from that kingdom, far from your homeland. He is neither a resident stranger (someone committed to keep the Noachide laws) nor a convert to Judaism, nor a resident pagan.
Daat Zkenim
וכי תשיג יד גר, “if an alien settler has grown wealthy, etc.” the word גר here is a veiled reference to the Persian-Medes Empire. או לעקר משפחת גר, “or to the offshoot of a stranger’s family.” This is a euphemism for the Roman Empire, which in due course, will be uprooted,” אחרי נמכר גאולה תהיה לו, “after it has been sold, it is subject to redemption.” This is based on Isaiah 63,4: כי יום נקם בלבי ושנת גאולי תהיה לי, “for I had planned a day of vengeance, and my year of redemption has arrived.”
after that he is sold he may be redeemed; one of his brothers may redeem him;
verse value 1202 — אֶחָ֥ד = 13 (echad/ahavah)
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 32 letters. Notable word values: "one" (אֶחָ֥ד) = 13, the value of echad ('one') and ahavah ('love'). The shortest word is "one" (אֶחָ֥ד, 3 letters) and the longest is "it·shall·be·his" (תִּהְיֶה־לּ֑וֹ, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "was·sold" (נִמְכַּ֔ר). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "it·shall·be·his" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "one" (root אחד, 49x in Leviticus); "after" (root אחר, 27x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'it·shall·be·his', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: אַחֲרֵ֣י [after] (219) + נִמְכַּ֔ר [was·sold] (310) + גְּאֻלָּ֖ה [redemption] (39) + תִּהְיֶה־לּ֑וֹ [it·shall·be·his] (456) + אֶחָ֥ד [one] (13) + מֵאֶחָ֖יו [from·his·brothers] (65) + יִגְאָלֶֽנּוּ [he·shall·redeem·him] (100) = 1202.
Onkelos
after he has been sold, redemption shall apply to him; one of his brothers may redeem him.
Rashi
גאלה תהיה לו means HE SHALL BE REDEEMED at once — do not allow him totally to sink his identity among the heathens (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 8 1; Kiddushin 20b).
Sforno
אחרי נמכר גאולה תהיה לו; our sages (Kidushin 20) have already explained that you are not to say that seeing that this Jew has sold himself and has even become a priest to a pagan cult “I will kick away this stone which has already fallen,“ i.e. not make an effort to buy his freedom. This is why the Torah had to write: “even after he has sold himself in a most undignified manner, he is entitled to be redeemed.”
Kli Yakar
After [achrei] he is sold, redemption shall be his. Could it enter your mind that one would redeem him before he is sold? What is the Scripture teaching us by saying after he is sold? One can say that since it states he shall not rule over him with rigor before your eyes, one might think that this is the main reason for his redemption, and if so, I should wait until I see how he is treated — whether he is ruled over with rigor or not. Therefore, the verse teaches us that immediately after he is sold, even though he has not yet worked for him, you are obligated to redeem him so that he does not learn from his [the non-Jewish master’s] deeds and say: “Since my master engages in forbidden relationships, worships idols, and desecrates the Sabbath, I too will do like him.” And if we say that every [mention of] “achrei” indicates a significant time lapse, the verse specifically uses achrei to emphasize that even if he has already been with him for many years and you have seen that he is not ruling over him with rigor, nevertheless you are obligated to redeem him so that he does not learn from his deeds.
Daat Zkenim
אחד מאחיו יגאלנו, “one of his brethren is to redeem him.” Our author assumes that the “brother” referred to is Hashem. He is both “one,” i.e. “unique,” and a brother to the Jews in exile. We know this from Psalms 122,8: למען אחי רעי, “for the sake of My brethren and friends.”
or his uncle, or his uncle's son, may redeem him, or any that is nigh of kin to him of his family may redeem him; or if he grew rich, he may redeem himself.
verse value 2664
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 56 letters. Verse gematria: 2664 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "or" (א֤וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "from·his·clan" (מִמִּשְׁפַּחְתּ֖וֹ, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 100: he·shall·redeem·him, he·shall·redeem·him. 6 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "or·his·uncle" (אוֹ־דֹד֞וֹ), "son·of·his·uncle" (בֶן־דֹּדוֹ֙), "or·any·of·his·flesh" (אֽוֹ־מִשְּׁאֵ֧ר). The root גאל appears 3 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "son·of·his·uncle" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus); "or" (root או, 101x in Leviticus); "his·flesh" (root בשר, 56x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'he·shall·redeem·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 3 words. Full calculation: אוֹ־דֹד֞וֹ [or·his·uncle] (21) + א֤וֹ [or] (7) + בֶן־דֹּדוֹ֙ [son·of·his·uncle] (66) + יִגְאָלֶ֔נּוּ [he·shall·redeem·him] (100) + אֽוֹ־מִשְּׁאֵ֧ר [or·any·of·his·flesh] (548) + בְּשָׂר֛וֹ [his·flesh] (508) + מִמִּשְׁפַּחְתּ֖וֹ [from·his·clan] (874) + יִגְאָלֶ֑נּוּ [he·shall·redeem·him] (100) + אֽוֹ־הִשִּׂ֥יגָה [or·if·he·prospers] (330) + יָד֖וֹ [his·hand] (20) + וְנִגְאָֽל [and·shall·be·redeemed] (90) = 2664.
Onkelos
Or his father's brother, or his father's brother's son may redeem him, or any close relative of his flesh from his family may redeem him; or if his hand reaches sufficiency, he may be redeemed.
Ibn Ezra
"Or if his means become sufficient" — [meaning] he found lost property, or he inherited money from a deceased relative. Scripture mentioned first the brother and the family, because that is the common situation.
Daat Zkenim
או דודו, “or his uncle;” this is also a reference to another attribute of Hashem, as we know from Song of Songs 5,16: זה דודי ורעי, “this is my uncle and good friend.” או בן דודו, “or the son of his uncle, his cousin;” this is a reference to the Messiah, of whom it is said in Psalms 2,7: בני אתה, “you are My son.” [The subject being Hashem. (Compare comment in Talmud tractate Sukkah folio 52. או השיגה ידו, “or he has become wealthy;” as a result of performing the commandments of the Torah; so that he was able to redeem himself.
And he shall reckon with him that bought him from the year that he sold himself to him to the year of jubilee; and the price of his sale shall be according to the number of years; according to the time of a hired servant shall he be with him.
verse value 4585 — ל֔וֹ = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 66 letters. Notable word values: "to·him" (ל֔וֹ) = 36, double chai. The shortest word is "to·him" (ל֔וֹ, 2 letters) and the longest is "with·his·purchaser" (עִם־קֹנֵ֔הוּ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 271: with·his·purchaser, his·sale. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "with·his·purchaser" (עִם־קֹנֵ֔הוּ), "from·year·of" (מִשְּׁנַת֙), "his·sale" (הִמָּ֣כְרוֹ). The root שנה appears 3 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "as·days·of" (root יום, 112x in Leviticus); "with·him" (root עם, 65x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·jubilee', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 9 words.
Onkelos
And he shall reckon with the one who bought him from the year that he sold himself to him until the year of Jubilee; and the money of his sale shall be according to the number of years — like the days of a hired worker he shall be with him.
Rashi
עד שנת היובל [AND HE SHALL RECKON WITH HIM…] UNTO THE YEAR OF THE JUBILEE — for after all, essentially he has bought him only to work for him till the Jubilee, for surely you must admit in the Jubilee he is to go free, as Scripture states later ,on (v. 54) “[and if he be not redeemed in these ways], then he shall go out in the year of the Jubilee”. And, of course, Scripture is speaking here of a heathen who is under your control (i. e. who has to submit to your jurisdiction, for otherwise Scripture could not dictate to him) (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 9 3; Kiddushin 16a). But nevertheless you must not practise crooked ways against him because this would result in a desecration of the Name of the Lord (Bava Kamma 113a), but when he wishes to be redeemed he must be exact in his calculation — only just as much as is due each year shall the heathen allow him as a deduction from the purchase-money: (i. e. the Jew cannot demand a larger deduction); if e. g., there were twenty years from the date when he was sold till the Jubilee and he has bought him for twenty manehs — and consequently the heathen has purchased the labour of each year for one maneh — if he (the Jewish servant) stayed with him five years and then wishes to be redeemed, he (the master) has to allow him only a deduction of five manehs from the purchase-money, so that the servant must repay him fifteen manehs. This is the meaning of: והיה כסף ממכרו במספר שנים; AND THE PRICE OF HIS SALE SHALL BE CALCULATED AS HAVING BEEN ACCORDING TO THE NUMBER OF YEARS; כימי שכיר יהיה עמו AS AT THE RATE OF THE DAYS OF AN HIRED SERVANT SHALL HE HAVE BEEN WITH HIM — i. e. he shall calculate the amount due for each year as though he had hired himself out with him e. g., at one maneh per year and that amount only he (the master) has to allow him.
Ibn Ezra
"His purchase price" (qanahu) — whether written with a heh or without a heh, the meaning is the same. "The price at which he was sold" (ha-michro) — this is a verbal noun in the Nif'al conjugation, and the years he shall serve with him shall be like those of a hired laborer.
Sforno
וחשב עם קונהו, even though the pagan who purchased him is legally under your authority so that you could force him to release this Jew for less than he was worth, and moreover the sale was not legal in terms of our halachah, you must compensate him fairly.
Chizkuni
משנת המכרו לו עד שנת היובל, “from the year he had sold himself to him until the Jubilee year.” This is to remind you that this slave does not leave his master’s employ after six years. (Sifra)
Rabbeinu Bahya
וחשב עם קונהו, “he will make a reckoning with the one who purchased him.” The verse warns that one must make a meticulous accounting and not try and trick the Gentile in one’s calculations. The reason is that stealing from pagans is prohibited as a form of desecrating the holy name of the Lord. The Torah demands such careful accounting when the Gentile in question is under Jewish authority. I might have thought that seeing the Torah permits charging interest to Gentiles, something which the Torah elsewhere appears to view as a form of unethical conduct, that stealing, at least indirectly, from a pagan is permitted; therefore the Torah makes a point of telling us that this is not so. We know already from Joseph’s brothers whose money had been returned to them by the Egyptians (at least they thought so) that they took it back to Egypt with them (Genesis 43,13) in response to their father Yaakov’s instructions. If Yaakov thought (as he said) that even if the pagans had made an error we must not take advantage of it to their detriment, how much more so must we not disadvantage them deliberately. All of this occurred before the Torah was given, when we did not have these limitations imposed upon us. How much more meticulous must one deal with a Gentile now that the laws of the Torah apply to us! The prohibition is derived from Deut.7,16 that “during the time G’d gives us the land of the seven Canaanite tribes we are commanded to destroy them.” The words אשר אני נותן לכם, “which I am about to give to you,” make this commandment an exception. Only the pagan nations G’d gives to us may be treated in such a fashion as described in that verse. We are to relate to other Gentile nations in accordance with the moral and ethical imperatives which are part of the Jewish code of ethics. Another law derived from the words in this verse that one is to make a careful calculation is that the redeemer must calculate the number of years remaining in the contract of the Jewish slave to the Gentile before the Yovel year, and he must pay him for the years of service that the Jew will not serve him. The basis of the law is to prevent the desecration of the Lord’s name, i.e. not to give the pagan an opportunity to claim that our G’d deals unfairly with him who had paid good money for the services of this slave. To allow such a thought to take hold in the mind of a Gentile is a more serious crime than doing the same thing to a Jew. The Tosephta Baba Kama 113 states expressly that if one has robbed a pagan one must return the stolen goods. It adds that such robbery is a graver crime than robbing a Jew because the crime includes the sin of desecrating the Lord’s name. When one robs a fellow Jew the victim does not use this as an excuse to question the rules of the Torah and the fairness of G’d. You will find an interesting illustration of this principle in the inaugural prayer of Solomon when the Temple was dedicated. Solomon prayed that when a Gentile comes all the way from across the ocean or from countries closer by in order to offer his prayers to the Jewish G’d in the Temple, that G’d should respond positively to such prayer. Regarding similar prayers offered up by Jews, Solomon asked that if the Jews in question were worthy then G’d should respond positively to such prayers. Clearly, the reason that Solomon asked for a blanket acceptance of prayers offered by the Gentiles was in order not to give them an opportunity to denigrate the Jewish G’d which would have been a form of desecrating the Lord’s name (compare Kings I 8,39-43 respectively). Solomon was not afraid that if a Jew’s prayer would not be answered positively, that such a Jew would question the existence or fairness of the Lord as a result.
Daat Zkenim
וחשב עם קונהו, “and he makes an accounting with his master” (the one who had purchased his labour). The unusual word used by the Torah here for “his master,” suggests that the Torah speaks of his master Esau, here on earth (while Israel is in exile). כימי שכיר יהיה עמו, “in whose debt he remains seeing that he had not yet rendered all the labour that he undertaken to perform.” We find a simile for this in Psalms 72,10, where the Kings of Tarshish and the various islands in the sea are described by King Solomon as paying tribute to him, first and foremost the Queen of Sheba.
If there be yet many years, according to them he shall give back the price of his redemption out of the money that he was bought for.
verse value 2864
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 37 letters. The shortest word is "many" (רַבּ֖וֹת, 4 letters) and the longest is "if·still" (אִם־ע֥וֹד, 5 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "if·still" (אִם־ע֥וֹד), "many" (רַבּ֖וֹת), "in·proportion·to·them" (לְפִיהֶן֙). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·the·years" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·years', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 5 words. Full calculation: אִם־ע֥וֹד [if·still] (121) + רַבּ֖וֹת [many] (608) + בַּשָּׁנִ֑ים [in·the·years] (402) + לְפִיהֶן֙ [in·proportion·to·them] (175) + יָשִׁ֣יב [he·shall·bring·back] (322) + גְּאֻלָּת֔וֹ [his·redemption] (440) + מִכֶּ֖סֶף [from·silver·of] (200) + מִקְנָתֽוֹ [its·price] (596) = 2864.
Onkelos
If there are still many years remaining, according to them he shall return his redemption-payment from the money of his sale.
Rashi
אם עוד רבות בשנים IF THERE BE YET MANY YEARS until the Jubilee. לפיהן ACCORDING TO THEM [HE SHALL RESTORE THE PRICE OF HIS REDEMPTION] — all exactly as I have explained above.
Ibn Ezra
The vav of ve-im me'at nishar ba-shanim ["and if few years remain"] is [pronounced] like a soft peh (rafe) in Arabic, meaning: whether the remaining years are many or few. "In accordance with them he shall return his redemption payment" — corresponding to the silver of his purchase price, so shall it be calculated for him.
Sforno
אם עוד רבות בשנים, there is no doubt that once the Jew has been in the service of his pagan master his services have become more and more valuable due to his knowing exactly what is expected of him, the compensation due to his master is based on a division of the purchase price into equal parts for every year he has not served out in his contract. The matter is described in detail in Kidushin 20
And if there remain but few years to the year of jubilee, then he shall reckon with him; according to his years shall he give back the price of his redemption.
verse value 3981
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 48 letters. The shortest word is "according·to" (כְּפִ֣י, 3 letters) and the longest is "his·redemption" (אֶת־גְּאֻלָּתֽוֹ, 7 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "and·if·little" (וְאִם־מְעַ֞ט), "remain" (נִשְׁאַ֧ר), "his·years" (שָׁנָ֔יו). The root שנה appears 3 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "in·the·years" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'and·he·shall·account·to·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְאִם־מְעַ֞ט [and·if·little] (166) + נִשְׁאַ֧ר [remain] (551) + בַּשָּׁנִ֛ים [in·the·years] (402) + עַד־שְׁנַ֥ת [until·the·year·of] (824) + הַיֹּבֵ֖ל [the·jubilee] (47) + וְחִשַּׁב־ל֑וֹ [and·he·shall·account·to·him] (352) + כְּפִ֣י [according·to] (110) + שָׁנָ֔יו [his·years] (366) + יָשִׁ֖יב [he·shall·bring·back] (322) + אֶת־גְּאֻלָּתֽוֹ [his·redemption] (841) = 3981.
Onkelos
And if few remain of the years until the year of Jubilee, he shall reckon with him accordingly; according to his years he shall return his redemption-payment.
Sforno
ואם מעט נשאר, so that the years of “good” labour rendered have already given the employer value for the money he had originally paid, allowance is made for the number of actual years which were not completed in the original contract. This is what our sages call: נתמעט כספו, כפי שניו, (Kidushin 20)
As a servant hired year by year shall he be with him; he shall not rule with rigor over him in your sight.
verse value 2201
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 36 letters. The shortest word is "year" (שָׁנָ֛ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "he·shall·not·rule·him" (לֹֽא־יִרְדֶּ֥נּֽוּ, 7 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "he·shall·not·rule·him" (לֹֽא־יִרְדֶּ֥נּֽוּ), "in·your·sight" (לְעֵינֶֽיךָ). The root שנה appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "he·shall·be" (root היה, 147x in Leviticus); "with·him" (root עם, 65x in Leviticus); "year" (root שנה, 63x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'with·him', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 3 words. Full calculation: כִּשְׂכִ֥יר [as·hired·worker] (550) + שָׁנָ֛ה [year] (355) + בְּשָׁנָ֖ה [in·year] (357) + יִהְיֶ֣ה [he·shall·be] (30) + עִמּ֑וֹ [with·him] (116) + לֹֽא־יִרְדֶּ֥נּֽוּ [he·shall·not·rule·him] (301) + בְּפֶ֖רֶךְ [ruthlessly] (302) + לְעֵינֶֽיךָ [in·your·sight] (190) = 2201.
Onkelos
Like a worker hired year by year he shall be with him; he shall not work him with harshness before your eyes.
Rashi
לא ירדנו בפרך לעיניך HE SHALL NOT RULE WITH RIGOUR OVER HIM IN THY EYES — that is to say, you looking on unconcernedly (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 8 9; cf. Targum Jonathan on).
Ibn Ezra
"As a hired laborer year by year" — [this] adds: "he shall not rule over him ruthlessly before your eyes" — we shall not permit the stranger to oppress him ruthlessly.
Daat Zkenim
לא ירדנו בפרך, “he shall not rule over him with rigour.” The gentile nations hosting the Israelites in exile are commanded not to take unfair advantage of the Israelites who have become their slaves. (Compare Talmud, tractate Ketuvot, folio 111.)
And if he be not redeemed by any of these means, then he shall go out in the year of jubilee, he, and his children with him.
verse value 1268
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 36 letters. The shortest word is "he" (ה֖וּא, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·if·not" (וְאִם־לֹ֥א, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "in·these" (בְּאֵ֑לֶּה). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·if·not" (root לא, 188x in Leviticus); "and·his·sons" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus); "he" (root הוא, 102x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·these', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְאִם־לֹ֥א [and·if·not] (78) + יִגָּאֵ֖ל [be·redeemed] (44) + בְּאֵ֑לֶּה [in·these] (38) + וְיָצָא֙ [and·he·shall·go·out] (107) + בִּשְׁנַ֣ת [in·year·of] (752) + הַיֹּבֵ֔ל [the·jubilee] (47) + ה֖וּא [he] (12) + וּבָנָ֥יו [and·his·sons] (74) + עִמּֽוֹ [with·him] (116) = 1268.
Onkelos
And if he is not redeemed through these means, he shall go free in the year of Jubilee — he and his children with him.
Rashi
ואם לא יגאל באלה AND IF HE BE NOT REDEEMED BY THESE — by these (his relatives) he may be redeemed, but he cannot be redeemed through the termination of the six-years-period of servitude as in the case of a Hebrew servant of a Hebrew master (Kiddushin 15b). הוא ובניו עמו [HE SHALL GO OUT…] BOTH HE, AND HIS CHILDREN WITH HIM — the hèathen who acquires a Hebrew servant is bound to provide his children also with food just as is the Israelite master (cf. Rashi v. 41).
Ibn Ezra
"And if he is not redeemed by these means" — in the years remaining until the Jubilee. And some say: [redeemed] through those persons mentioned [earlier].
Chizkuni
ואם לא יגאל באלה, “and if he is not redeemed by any of these means;” this is a reference to either the years remaining until the next Jubilee year, or to relatives of his; ויצא בשנת היובל, “he will go free in the Jubilee year,” but not after six years. הוא ובניו עמו, “he and his sons with him.” Release of the father automatically includes release of his children. This is a moral lesson to teach us not to act like the gentiles act with their slaves. (B’chor shor)
Rabbeinu Bahya
ואם לא יגאל באלה, “And if he will not be redeemed by means of these methods, etc.” Our sages in Kidushin 15 explain the words או דודו in verse 49 (normally translated as “his uncle,”) as including all kinds of relatives. The words או השיגה ידו they interpret as referring to the slave succeeding in redeeming himself by his own efforts. The word ונגאל at the end of that verse, they explain as redemption by people not related to the slave. This is why the Torah writes here that if the slave לא יגאל had not been redeemed by other Jews not related to him he will leave in the Yovel year, i.e. against the will of his master the Gentile, seeing that the Torah speaks of a Gentile who lives in the land of Israel under a Jewish government. The Talmud in Kidushin 16 already points out that if the Jew of whom the Torah speaks here had been bought by a Gentile in the Gentile’s domain it would be futile for the Torah to write such a sentence as: “he will go free in the Yovel year,” as there is no one to enforce such legislation. As to the meaning of the word גאולה, the Talmud in Kidushin 16 already points out that just as redeeming himself (גאולה) makes sense only if the one-time slave now becomes free, so being “redeemed” by either his relatives or other Jews makes sense only if as a result he becomes totally free, not if he changes status from being owned by a Gentile to being owned by a Jew. The word גאל means a transition to absolute independence. [The author cites the conclusion in the Talmud of an argument whether if a non-relative buys the contract from the Gentile, the Jew has to serve out his time as a servant of the Jew who bought him from the Gentile.].
Tur HaArokh
ואם לא יגאל באלה, and if he has not been redeemed by these means,” according to Ibn Ezra the reference is to the elapse of the years which have been mentioned here. According to other opinions, the reference is to the people mentioned whose duty it would have been to redeem him.
Daat Zkenim
ואם לא יגאל באלה, “and if he will not be redeemed by any of the aforementioned means;” the “means” referred to are the laws concerning how to deal with a servant, (Exodus 21,1) i.e. the Jew in exile still has not learned to observe the laws of the Torah; G–d promises that at a time of His choosing there will be an end to the exile, regardless. ויצא בשנת היובל, “he will go free in the Jubilee year;” G–d has set aside such a time as we know from Isaiah 27,13: והיה ביום ההוא יתקע בשופר גדול ובאו האובדים מארץ אשור והנדחים בארץ מצרים, “it will be on that day a great ram’s horn shall be sounded; and the stranded who are in the land of Assyria, and the expelled in the Land of Egypt shall come, etc.” הוא ובניו עמו, “He and his sons with Him;” G–d together with His people will return from exile, as we know from Deuteronomy 30,3: ושב וקבצך, He will return and gather you in;” note that Moses does not say that G–d will bring the Israelites back but that “He together with the Israelites will return from exile.” (Compare Talmud M’gillah folio 29)
For to Me the children of Israel are slaves — they are My slaves, whom I brought forth out of the land of Egypt: I am Hashem your God.
verse value 3294 — עֲבָדַ֣י = 86 (Elohim)
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 58 letters. Notable word values: "my·servants" (עֲבָדַ֣י) = 86, equal to Elohim. Verse gematria: 3294 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "they" (הֵ֔ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "who·I·brought·out" (אֲשֶׁר־הוֹצֵ֥אתִי, 9 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Leviticus. Unique to this verse in Leviticus (hapax): "my·servants" (עֲבָדַ֣י). The root עבד appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 308x in Leviticus); "sons·of·Israel" (root בן, 143x in Leviticus); "from·land·of" (root ארץ, 77x in Leviticus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Egypt', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 3 words. Full calculation: כִּֽי־לִ֤י [for·to·me] (70) + בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ [sons·of·Israel] (603) + עֲבָדִ֔ים [servants] (126) + עֲבָדַ֣י [my·servants] (86) + הֵ֔ם [they] (45) + אֲשֶׁר־הוֹצֵ֥אתִי [who·I·brought·out] (1013) + אוֹתָ֖ם [them] (447) + מֵאֶ֣רֶץ [from·land·of] (331) + מִצְרָ֑יִם [Egypt] (380) + אֲנִ֖י [I] (61) + יְהֹוָ֥ה [Hashem] (26) + אֱלֹהֵיכֶֽם [your·God] (106) = 3294.
Onkelos
For Mine are the children of Israel as servants; they are My servants, whom I brought out from the land of Egypt — I am Hashem your God.
Rashi
כי לי מי ישראל עבדים FOR UNTO ME THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL ARE SERVANTS — My document (deed of purchase) is of an earlier date (cf. Rashi on v. 42). אני ה׳ אלהיכם I AM THE LORD YOUR GOD — Whosoever enslaves thee (the Israelites) on earth enslaves, as it were, Him in Heaven (Sifra, Behar, Chapter 9 4).
Ibn Ezra
"For to Me the children of Israel are servants" — the purpose is that you shall make this known to the stranger who acquires the Israelite slave.
Or HaChaim
כי לי בני ישראל עבדים, "For the children of Israel are My servants, etc." Why did the Torah write once more עבדי הם, "they are My servants?" Perhaps the point G'd makes here is that "they are My servants" as they are of sacred origin, their souls and their bodies are intrinsically holy independent of the Exodus from Egypt. The factor which obligates the Israelites to conduct themselves in a manner befitting holy creatures is "that I took them out of the land of Egypt." Ever since, G'd says, they themselves realise that they are My servants. אני ה׳ אלוקיכם, "I am the Lord your G'd." Why did the verse commence in the third person, i.e. G'd speaking about the Israelites, whereas it concludes with direct speech, i.e. "I am the Lord your G'd?" Perhaps we have to look for the reason in the laws governing the sale and purchase of a slave. We have the law that if someone acquires a Jewish servant he has to free him in the Jubilee year. G'd therefore had to state that the Jew remains His servant also in the Jubilee year and beyond, i.e. עבדי הם. The purchaser of the Jewish servant may argue that this fact is justification for a Jew not being allowed to sell himself into permanent servitude, but this fact does not impose an obligation on the purchaser. If the Jew had sold himself to a resident stranger, גר תושב, that resident stranger would argue that he had no oligation to release the servant merely because of the Jubilee year. G'd therefore states categorically: "I am the Lord your G'd," i.e. I address you the purchaser the very person whom the Torah addressed at the beginning of this paragraph in verse 39 and subsequently in verse 44 when it spoke about ונמכר לך, "and he was sold to you." The Torah wanted to be sure the owner understood that he was expected to comply with the entire legislation recorded here.
Chizkuni
כי לי בני ישראל עבדים, “for the Children of Israel are My servants;” previously the Torah wrote: כי עבדי הם, “for My servants are they;” (verse 42) on that occasion G-d had added that they were His servants already in Egypt and He contrasted this to show that someone who is His servant could not possibly be sold legally to anyone else, i.e. one Jew to another as they are both G-d’s servants (slaves) [Jews cannot opt out of their people or religion which are tied up one with other. Ed.] If such a Jew had been sold to a gentile, a member of another nation, I might have thought that this is not objectionable. The Torah therefore makes the point that it is equally objectionable.
Daat Zkenim
כי לי בני ישראל עבדים, “for the Children of Israel are My servants.” They are not the slaves of Esau. אני ה' אלוקיכם, “I am the Lord your G–d.” We also have the corresponding negative commandment: לא תעשו לכם אלילם, “do not make idols for yourselves!” Why is the repetition of this commandment appropriate at this juncture? Seeing that G–d has just promised us that He will redeem us from exile, He provides the reason why, in spite of everything, He feels compelled to do so. After all, at least we have been loyal in observing the law not to make idols for ourselves. (Exodus 20,3)
Onkelos
Rashi
Ramban
Ibn Ezra
Sforno
Or HaChaim
Chizkuni
Rabbeinu Bahya
Kli Yakar
Tur HaArokh
Rashbam
Daat Zkenim