The
first verse of Parashat B’har (meaning, "In Mount…")
serves to remind us that YHVH’s words to the Children of Yisrael, via Moshe,
were spoken in Mount Sinai.
The
opening of the Parasha focuses on the seventh year suspension of all soil
cultivation (known as “Shmita,” whose root sh.m.t is mentioned in Parashat
Mishpatim Ex. 23:11. See Heb. Insights into Parashat Mishpatim Ex. 21-24). In spite of this edict regarding work
cessation, it is stated, "the Sabbath of the land shall be to you for
food" (25:6). This declaration contains the familiar and principal
thought, similar to the one that accompanies the weekly Shabbat, that YHVH is
the Provider and thus the members of the community are afforded an opportunity
to exercise faith throughout that year. In fact, contrary to human logic, this
very rest will result in abundance
Secondly,
every member of the community, as well as the livestock, is equally promised
provision for that time period (25: 6, 7). Again, not unlike the weekly
Shabbat, the benefits of YHVH's year of land-rest apply to one and all without
regard to status and origin. However, this “Shabbat of Shabbats” (v. 4) year,
together with the 50th year Jubilee, the "yovel" to which the rest of this Parasha is
dedicated - apply only in the Land
of Yisrael
In
25:3 we read: "You shall sow your field six years, and you shall prune your vineyard six years, and shall gather
its produce." "Produce" or "provender"
is “t'vua,” of the root b.o. (vet/bet, vav, alef), meaning “to come,
come in or go in"; but also, in another
conjugation, to “bring.” Thus, the term "produce" conveys the
idea of that which does not result merely from man's productivity or
effort, but rather of that which "comes" or is "brought" to him from an outside source.
As
already mentioned, following YHVH's instructions guarantees that “…you shall
live on the land securely. And the land shall give its fruit, and you shall eat
to satisfaction; and you shall dwell securely on it" (25:18, 19). To this
promise there will be an extra and supernatural blessing added: "I have
commanded My blessing on you in the sixth year. And it shall produce the
increase for three years; and you shall sow the eighth year, and shall eat of
the old crop until the ninth year, until the coming [bo] in of
its produce [t'vua]; you shall eat of the old" (21-22,
italics added). Here again we see the connection between “produce” and the verb
"to come" (remember, both originate in the same root).
The
un-gathered harvest (or “after growth”) is called “that which grows of
itself” – “safee’ach,” of the root s.f.ch (samech, pey/fey, chet),
literally “adding, attaching, joining” (25:5, 11). In light of verse 25:23, where the addressees
(the Yisraelites) are called “strangers [gerim] and sojourners,” it is
interesting to note how the verb s.p/f.ch is used in Yishayahu (Isaiah) 14:1: “For
YHVH will have mercy on Jacob, and will still choose Israel
"Your
unkempt grapes" (25: 5, 11) are termed here “ee'nvey
(“grapes of”) nezir'cha.” This expression is rooted in the word “nazir”
(Nazarite), whose restrictive vows include abstention from wine drinking or
grape eating. Why are these grapes qualified by the term “nazir”? The
connection is thought to be the Nazarite's hair, which was to be left uncut and
unkempt, much like these grape vines. This is reinforced by the first part of
verse 5 ("that which grows of itself," alluding to unkemptness).
As mentioned, the
second part of the Parasha deals with the Year of the “Yovel”
("jubilee," which is a direct derivative of “yovel”). The primary
meaning of yovel is thought to be the word for “horned animal” or for the
"horn" itself, which was used for multiple purposes in the ancient
Israelite community. Quite possibly the role of the “horned animal” (such as
the bull or ox), in leading solemn processions has branched off into nouns and
verbs that share the root y.v/b.l (yod, bet/vet, lamed) and are therefore
connected to “leading.” The verb “hovel”
is to "lead," thus forming the noun for "stream" which is
“yuval,” and for the "produce of the soil" – “y'vul” (‘issuing or
proceeding out of the ground’). Another
interesting derivative of this root is “tevel,” meaning "world." This renders the world and its elements (e.g.
streams and produce) as mere ‘issues,’ or results that proceed (or ‘are led’)
from that which has originally formed or produced them, but which exists
outside of them. Notice the conceptual (and etymological) similarity to our
former observation of the term "provender" - t'vua. “The earth is YHVH’s, and the
fullness of it; the world (“tevel”), and those who dwell in it” (Ps. 24:1),
affirms this point.
Aside
from letting the land lie fallow during the year of the “yovel,” that year was
also to be “sanctified” (“vekidashtem”) for the purpose of "proclaiming
liberty in the land to all its inhabitants…" (25:10). "Liberty
But
above all the human benefits attached to the yovel, there is a greater
significance to its proclamation; a significance that at the same time also
forms a ‘Divine paradox’ so typical of Hebraic logic. In 25:23 we read: “And the land shall not be
sold in perpetuity; for the land is Mine; for you are aliens and tenants with
Me." "Perpetuity" here is “tzmi'toot,” stemming
from the root tz.m.t (tzadi, mem, tav) which is “to end, put an end
to something" or “to freeze assets.” Thus, reverting property to its original
owner demonstrates the fact that it actually belongs to… YHVH, as we just
learned from the above Psalm. And as
much as the Torah stresses ownership rights, it also reminds us, almost in the
same breath, who the real owner is and that “we have no permanent city here,
but we seek the one to come" (Hebrews 13:14).
Another
aspect of the yovel is redemption, “geula,” whose primary meaning is
"kin" (denoted by “go’el”). It
is the next-of-kin's duty to buy back that which a member of the family has
lost - or perhaps even the family member himself, if he had been conscripted to
slavery. In the case of a Hebrew slave, he is to be released on the yovel, “because
they are My servants, whom I have brought out from the land of Egypt
Proper
treatment of one's fellow citizen, defined as "brother," prohibits
charging usury or interest (ref. vs. 36, 37). The two words used are “neshech”
and “marbit.” The root of neshech (n.a.ch, noon, alef, chaf) is also the
root for the verb “to bite." "Those who bite" (e.g.
Habbakuk 2:7) are therefore the oppressors and debtors. “Marbit” is from
the root r.v/b.a (resh, vet/bet, hey) which literally means "much, many,
to add, to make greater, to increase." Hence
“marbit” is a "monetary increment."
As
part of taking care of one’s “brother,” if one’s relative has lost his assets
and was sold to “a stranger who sojourns with you, or to a member of the
stranger’s family who has become sufficient” ( 25:47 literal translation), the
first party is obliged to redeem him. As to the “member of the
stranger’s family,” here he is called “eker,” which is a most unusual
term. The root a.k.r (ayin, kof, resh) basically means “to uproot,” and thus a
“barren woman” is “akara” (ponder the connection…). However, since some shoots
are plucked out from the parent plant and replanted, it also means “a shoot.”
Its usage here, in relationship to the stranger’s family member could also
point out to the fact that the stranger is “plucked out” from his natural
environment and has been transplanted into a different soil. Further, should
the misfortune of being sold as a slave becomes the lot of a native Israelite,
he too would feel “plucked out” and “uprooted,” and hence the term could also
be applied to the latter.
Aside
from instructions on to how to calculate the redemption payment (25:50-53),
specifics are also given as to the possible next of kin who is to eligible to redeem
(vs. 48, 49) the one who has “become poor” (“mooch”, root of m.oo.ch
– mem, vav, kaf – impoverish,
become low). Having once been
others’ servants/slaves, the sons of Yisrael are now the servants/slaves of the
One who redeemed them from their lowly state (ref. 25:55), hence YHVH requires
that redemption be continually operative in accordance with the measures that
He is providing for His people.
Some of the word meanings were gleaned from:
The New Brown, Driver, Briggs, Gesenius Lexicon, Francis
Brown Hendrickson. Publishers, Peabody , Mass.
Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, ed. R. Laird
Harris, Moody Press, Chicago, 1980.
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