Parashat Behar-Behukotai: Quality vs quantity

This piece from The Jerusalem Post delves into the profound spiritual and practical dimensions of the Shmita, or sabbatical year, a cornerstone of Jewish agricultural and spiritual law. Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz unpacks the commandment to let the land rest, framing it not just as an agricultural practice but as a fundamental expression of the Jewish worldview, revolving around the sacred number seven.

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All sevenths are beloved

The article thoughtfully engages with a question that has likely troubled observant Jews for centuries: how can one survive if the land is not sown or harvested for an entire year? The Torah itself anticipates this concern, promising divine blessing and abundance. However, the Rabbi highlights a subtle yet crucial distinction in faith and reliance. Those who trust implicitly in the Divine Provider require little, finding sufficiency and blessing in a small amount of sustenance.

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The land will give its fruit, and you will eat your fill and dwell securely upon it. And if you say, ‘What will we eat in the seventh year? We will not sow, nor gather our crops,’ I will command My blessing for you in the sixth year, and it will produce enough for three years.

Conversely, those who voice their anxieties about provision, asking "What will we eat?", are met with a different kind of promise—one of increased yield, but implicitly, also increased labor. This nuanced perspective, drawing on Rashi's commentaries, offers a powerful lesson in faith, trust, and the nature of divine blessing. It suggests that true spiritual security transcends material abundance, a message particularly relevant in today's world, where anxieties about resources and sustenance are ever-present.

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He eats a little, and it is blessed within his intestines.

From an Israeli perspective, the Shmita cycle is not an abstract concept but a tangible reality that has historically shaped agricultural practices and communal life. While modern technology and economic realities present challenges to its full observance, the underlying principles of rest, trust, and a balanced relationship with the land continue to resonate deeply within the national consciousness. The Jerusalem Post, in publishing such an analysis, connects contemporary readers to these ancient teachings, reinforcing their enduring relevance.

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Your threshing will last until the vintage, and the vintage will last until the sowing; you will eat your bread to satisfaction and dwell securely in your land.