Behar means “on the Mountain”, and since that is the name of our parshah, we will focus on it’s significance. “Hashem spoke to Moses on Mount Sinai, saying; ‘Speak to the Children of Israel and say to them, When you come into the land that I give you, the land shall observe a Shabbat [rest] for Hashem. For six years you may sow your field and for six years you may prune your vineyard and you may gather in its crops. On the seventh year a Shabbat Shabbaton [complete rest] there shall be for the land, a Shabbat for Hashem, your field you shall not sow and your vineyard you shall not prune.’”
Rashi’s comment on the words “Mount Sinai” is the following; “What is the topic of Shmitah [the seventh year rest for the land] doing next to [the words] Mount Sinai? Where not all of the Mitzvot [commandments] stated at Sinai?” Since the Torah does not casually state things, and it does not waste words, there must be a reason as to why it places the Shmitah laws next to Mount Sinai, otherwise, the Torah should have simply stated “Hashem spoke to Moses, saying; ‘Speak to the Children of Israel…’ “For we already know the place where the mitzvot were given, this has been stated before. “[it is written To teach us that] just as its fine points were stated at Sinai, so, too, all of the mitzvot, their rules and their fine points were stated at Sinai. Thus it was taught in Torat Kohanim. It seems to me that this is its explanation; since we do not find a verse on shmitah of lands, which was repeated at the Plains of Moab in the second Torah [the Book of Deuteronomy (Devarim)], we have learned that its general rules and its details were all stated at Sinai. Scripture comes and teaches here about every statement that was communicated to Moses, that they were all from Sinai, their rules and their fine points, and they were repeated and reiterated at the Plains of Moab.” We can learn, using these laws of Shmitah as a proof text, that all the laws, in there fullness, were transmitted to Moses at Sinai.
On the next part of the verse, A Shabbat for Hashem”, Rashi simply comments, “For the ‘sake’ of Hashem” and, “in the same sense as it is said of Shabbat of Creation.” He says so in a way that allows one to enter into the drash or even sod (secrets) of Torah. One could say that Rashi has a superb way of exercising the mind, and preparing it for deeper waters, in order to prevent one from drowning. Why did the Torah chose the laws of Shmitah as a proof text, in order to teach that all the laws actually came from Sinai, why not another law?
Most of the other mitzvot do not fall into such specific, and restricted categories. Also, the verse continues to inform us; “Six years you may sow your field, and six years you may prune your vineyard…” These activities are not obligatory, they are optional activities, and it is obviously forbidden to engage in them during the seventh year rest. Why is it needed for the Torah to focus on these activities in particular? They are not even obligations, they are optional labors?
We can start understanding this by assuming that the latter part of the verse most definitely belongs to the complete verse. It is part of the Shmitah itself. In other words, the “six years you may sow”, belongs to “the seventh year shall be a shabbat shabbaton (complete rest) for the land.” This can be seen in two ways:
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It is a preparation to the shmitah. By working for six years, one will gain the rest of the seventh year.
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It is the very purpose of Shmitah. One sows for six years in order to obtain the coronation, the culmination of the seventh. An un-worked piece of land has no shmitah to observe.
The simple understanding of the Shmitah is that the land must rest after six years. Thus, in the seventh. As the verse says “You may neither sow your land nor prune your vineyard.” In the seventh year one must stop working ones field. No crops may be worked.
This whole issue is baffling, and the Torah, who knows the limitations of man’s understanding, confirms this oddity, it therefore states in 25:20; “And if you will say, what shall we eat…?” It answers; “I shall command My blessing…. And the land will yield produce for three years.” In other words, since this thing is so odd to man, Hashem will show man that it will sustain due to His blessing alone, and not for one year, but rather, for three years. Hence, the seventh year, and the following two years [which is the time needed to raise a new crop].
This indicates to us that Hashem, every seven years, wants those who work the land to rely only on His Divine sustenance in a supra-natural way. This demand from Hashem is not the normal way of Torah. Because the way of Torah is to elevate the world and the mundane. Hence, one must interact with the mundane in order to do this, not abstain from it and await only blessing. Do we not learn that blessing can only rest on the proper vessel, one that prepares himself, in a mundane way, to receive it. Blessings do not rest on one who sits in a chair and prays all day, this is not the proper vessel, and it is a grave sin to rely on only miracles. One must act [in the prescribed way by Torah] in order to receive. This world is also called the world of “Asiyah”, Action. So, this demand from Hashem, that, i.e., “If you leave the land alone after working it for six years, sit back, I will provide you with three years produce,” seems to be a bit beyond this world.
However, these two levels, within this world, and, beyond this world, are actually very inter-connected. To stand beyond the world, is alluded to in our verse, “the land shall keep a Shabbat ‘to Hashem (YHVH).’” This Divine name of God, which we refer to simply as Hashem (the Name), represents God above the creation and nature, it represents, He was, He is, He will be. This Name (attribute) resides higher than His lower Name (attribute) Elokim [which has the same gamatria as the word “hateva”, Nature]. However, one can only touch this Higher Name, YHVH, by way of this lower world, the mundane. By involving oneself with the actions of this world in the prescribed fashion [as dictated by Torah].
When our verse states: “You may sow your field…” it is obviously alluding to us that when working within the mundane [field] one should be careful to abide by all the codes of law, such as the mixture of seeds, and animals for plowing, etc., and in this way, the “six years you may sow…” is actually a preparation for the Higher order to come, Shmitah. This is accord with our above-mentioned #1.
