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 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 Dror ” for “liberty”
is also mentioned in Yishayahu 61:1-2a, where we read: “The Spirit of Adonai YHVH is
upon Me, because YHVH has anointed Me to preach good tidings to the poor;
He has sent Me to heal the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty [d’ror] to the
captives, and the opening of the prison to those who are bound; To proclaim the acceptable year of YHVH…”
This “acceptable” year, when “liberty” is proclaimed to the captives seems to also
be alluding to a (large scale and “grand”) Jubilee.
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 “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-cited 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. 25:36,37). The two words used are “neshech” and “marbit.” The
root of neshech (n.sh.ch, noon, sheen, chaf) is also the root for the
verb “to bite." "Those who bite" (e.g. Habbakuk 2:7) are
therefore the oppressors and creditors. “Marbit” is from the root
r.v/b.a (resh, vet/bet) 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” (25:47
literal translation), the addressee of this injunction is obliged to redeem the
one sold. 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.” But since this
word can also mean a “shoot,” then the one plucked out from the parent plant may
also be transplanted – albeit into 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 this term may also be
applied to, or at least infer 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 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
Hebrew
Tools for Everyday Use
The root bet, vav, alef (b.o), as we noted above,
is used in both the verb “to come” and “to bring”, while “lead” is of a similar
root (a cognate) yod, bet, lamed (y.b.l). “Usury” in biblical Hebrew is very
graphically connected to a dog’s (“kelev”) bite, but in Modern Hebrew this noun
is confined to the usage related to animals. For our purposes we will look at a
Hebrew saying which incorporates both “mountain” and “coming”:
If Muhammad will not come to the mountain, the
mountain will come to Muhammad
Eem Muchamad lo yavo el ha’har, ha’har yavo el
Muchamad
What will the day bring?
Ma ya’vee ha’yom? (literally, what will bring the
day?)
If
he leads the dog, the dog does not bite
eem hu movil et ha’ke’lev, ha’ke’lev lo noshech
These
dogs bite
k’lavim
elu nosh’chim (literally, dogs these bite)
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