Adapted by Channie Koplowitz Stein
Parshat Behar begins with the laws of shemittah and Yovel, of letting the earth rest every seventh year and additionally for the fiftieth, jubilee year. The commands are followed by the promise of blessings, of plentiful harvests in the sixth year that will sustain and satiate the people until the crops can be harvested after the fields can again be worked. Interestingly, after Hashem's promise, the people may nevertheless ask, "What will we eat in the seventh year?" In Omek Haparshah, Zecharyhu asks why would anyone asks that question which suggests a lack of faith? And yet, the very question implies that the one who asks gets a greater reward than one who doesn't ask. Is the question positive or negative?
In Shaarei Chaim, Rabbi Goldstein poses another question. Why is the question asked here after the Parsha has already moved to different topics including lending with interest, and not verbally oppressing a person. The basic answer is that we observe the mitzvoth when we hear them, and only after acting upon them, after na'aseh can we ask questions. Do you still have questions after you performed the mitzvah, or has the question, perhaps this weapon of the yetzer horo to prevent you from doing the mitzvah, disappeared?
As human beings, we all have frailties, acknowledges Rabbi Uziel Milevsky zt”l. We worry that without our working the fields, we may not have sufficient food, and we may question Hashem's promise. Hashem's blessing here is not a reward, but an acknowledgment of our frailties.
Our passage actually contains two blessings:-- You will eat your fill, and your sixth year crop will be sufficient for three years. Rabbi Frand, citing Sforno, explains that "eating your fill" is a blessing to those who have perfect faith in Hakodosh Boruch Hu. Knowing that Hashem provides all their needs, they are satisfied with less and their bellies feel full. For those whose faith is not as flawless, Hashem does not want them to worry, so He arranges for a bumper crop in the sixth year.
Rabbi Elya Lopian zt”l expounds on this idea. He explains that Hashem interacts with the world on three different levels. Certainly there is the path of nature, occasionally there are open miracles, and a third path combines the two, what we consider hashgachah pratis, Divine, individual supervision which is referred to as the arena of bracha. When a person is gifted with the people one needs at the perfect time, and or gifts that are tailored made for the person, this is Hashem’s way of bestowing bracha on a person An individual's level of faith determines how Hashem interacts with him. Those with a very high level of faith have all they need financially with little effort [or are satisfied with less], and can devote much of their time to studying Torah. Those with lesser faith must exert more effort to earn the same economic status. What you get doesn't change either way.
The Sforno derives this explanation from how the manna sustained Bnei Yisroel in the desert. Each person, adult or child, received the same ration, one omer of manna. That measure filled each one according to his specific needs. Once we entered Eretz Yisroel, this supernatural sustenance ceased, and we were required to work the land and earn our food through natural means. Rabbi Teitelbaum zt”l explains that we must understand that both methods are miraculous -- in the desert it was overt and in the land it was a hidden miracle. The message of shemittah is the message of the manna, Hashem is the One Who takes out bread to feed us, whether it is from heaven or from the earth. Whether we get our daily bread more easily or with great effort is up to us and the level of our faith. An individual's level of faith determines how Hashem interacts with him. Those with a very high level of faith have all they need financially with little effort [or are satisfied with less], and can devote much of their time to studying Torah. Those with lesser faith must exert more effort to earn the same economic status. What you get doesn't change either way. R. Lopian zt”l adds, that the one who has more faith will thereby have more time to learn Torah, as they will be expending less effort in the field.
The Gemorro states that providing the food each person needs is as difficult as the splitting of the Sea. The Ohr Doniel explains that we do not know how we will get our food, but we must rely on Hashem, just as we relied on Him to lead us out of the Sea. The more we recognize that Hashem is in control, the more I will understand that although I will put in my effort, I will rely on Hashem for my efforts to be successful.
The very first word of the Torah gives us the insight into accessing the blessings Hashem wants to flow down to us notes the Gra zt”l The letters of בראשית offer the interlocking keys to accessing Hashem's storehouse of blessings. We must begin with בטחון/trust, which will lead to submitting our רצון/ will to Hashem's will. From that, אהבה/ love of Hashem will naturally follow. Then, even if we suffer challenges, we will be able to maintain שתיקה /silence, יראה /awe of Hashem, and we will merit תורה /Torah with its ultimate blessings.
Besides strengthening our faith and security in Hashem, writes Rabbi Weiss in Ziv Hechochmah, citing Sefer Hachinuch, observing shemittah also trains us to let go, to give up our sense of personal ownership and entitlement. After all, for that full year, we allow anyone who so desires to come into our field and take home some fresh corn, or pick a fresh apple off our tree. Just as we train children to share and not hoard everything as "Mine!" so does shemittah train us to accept that nothing is not truly mine, adds the Sifsei Chaim. I must train myself to be a giver, for everything truly belongs to Hashem, not to me. This training helps a person with bitachon and emphasizes Hashem’s total control of the world.
Nature itself was created according to the Torah. R. Zusha of Anipoli zt”l explains that when one has complete faith it was automatic that the land would produce fruit for three years. The moment the Jews questioned this, the natural cycle was broken, and Hashem had to once again command the earth to produce enough food for three years.
Every time we recite a brachah, we are creating a mirror in heaven to reflect blessings down to earth, writes Rabbi Druck. However, when there is a lack of belief and trust, we damage the line and there is a break in the delivery system.. Both the giver and the receiver must believe in the efficacy of the blessing. That is why, explains the Dibrot Shelomo, that Yaakov Avinu had to give a second blessing to Menashe and Ephraim, for Yosef initially thought that Yaakov had mistakenly blessed the younger brother as if he were the older brother. Within the same reasoning, if you don't fully believe the first brachah of abundance in spite of not working the land, if you question, then Hashem validates the blessing with the second brachah after the question.
Rabbi Svei zt”l quoting the Saba of Navardok zt”l presents a different perspective on our question. He posits that the question is not asked in the sixth year, but rather in the first year of the cycle. Having a lack of faith in the original blessing, the farmer begins saving some of his crop every year so that he will have sufficient for the seventh year. Since he has personally provided for himself, he is not in need of a bumper crop in year six. With this second blessing Hashem is reassuring us that we will not need to save food in the years preceding shemittah; we should not fear and be prompted to save.
Citing the Chovos Halevovos, Rabbi Belsky zt”l explains the relationship between bitachon/trust and inner tranquility. If one's faith in Hashem is flawed and his trust is fractured, he can never arrive at the tranquility required to focus on Torah study and will never grow to his potential.
Just as we trust the sun will rise in the morning, so should we trust that Hashem always provides for us in all things, not just during shemittah, writes Omek Haparshah.
Let us not forget that Eretz Yisroel is under the direct and constant supervision of Hakodosh Boruch Hu. We never know what each day will bring, for existence in Eretz Yisroel is precarious. We can only live in Eretz Yisroel with with heightened faith and trust in Hakodosh Boruch Hu.
Rabbi Druck does not think this question strange at all. Rabbi Druck understands the questioners to be men of great faith. Their question is not "How shall we eat [if we did not sow and reap]?" The question is, "What shall we eat? What's on the menu?" As Rabbi Schlesinger explains, the question is one of curiosity, not of denial or disbelief.
This dialogue can have deeper mystical significance than the agricultural cycle itself. The Lubavitcher Rebbe zt”l interprets this entire sequence as a prophecy toward the era of Moshiach. According to our tradition, the world in its current state will exist for six millennia, with the seventh millennium ushering in the Messianic era. Each year of shemittah represents one millennium. The question being asked so cryptically is, "Since previous generations were on a much higher spiritual level, how can we expect to bring the Moshiach?" To this Hashem responds that through our trust and faith in Him, through keeping the Torah and mitzvoth and remaining true to our mission despite all natural logic and challenges, He will increase the yield of the merits in the sixth year and bring the Redemption."
May it be speedily, in our day.