Chelek 27, Behar 2
The Torah tells us about the laws of Shemitah.
Afterwards, it presents the laws of Yovel,
Followed by the laws of being honest when making a sale.
After concluding all these laws, the Torah does state,
“You shall perform My decrees and the land will yield its fruit,” at top rate.
And if you should ask, “What will we eat in the seventh year?” Don't worry!
In the 6th year, Hashem will give you produce for 3 years so you'll have plenty.
This requires explanation,
Why does the Torah wait to ask this question?
If the Torah wants to tell us that more Brachos Hashem will send,
Then it is fitting to have it here at the end.
But since “What will we eat?” is written in the form of a question,
Why wasn't it brought right after the Shemitah discussion?
Because the question arises as soon as the Yidden hear,
That they can't work the land in the seventh year.
Some commentaries say that the blessing so great,
Only comes for not working the land on
Shemitah and Yovel for two years straight,
Therefore the question of what will we eat the Torah does relate,
Only after discussing the Yovel year which is on year number eight.
However Rashi doesn't agree,
He says that the Passuk is talking about a Shemitah cycle that is ordinary,
So why doesn't Rashi say anything about this question’s placement,
When his goal is to give the Pshat explanation for the seasoned student?
Another question that isn't addressed by Rashi,
Is the wording - the verse doesn't use Veim but rather Vechi,
Veim means if and Vechi means when it will happen,
Which does imply that you will definitely ask the question.
How can we say, that it isn't a question of if but rather a question of when,
When we are seemingly talking about a lack of faith in Hashem?
Especially since Rashi just explained that about a drought we don't need to worry,
And that even a blessing in our stomachs there will be.
“And if you should ask, what will we eat?” Rashi doesn't ignore.
When the seasoned student remembers what Rashi said before,
In a similar case,
All the questions we will be able to erase.
In Parshas Bo there is a case that does compare,
Because there is a question about a Mitzvah both here and there,
In both cases the questions have a similar introduction,
In Parshas Bo, “And it will be when your son will ask you…” is the expression.
The Mitzvah is about redeeming the first born animal and son,
“What is this?” Is the question of the simple son, called the תם.
The question “What is this?” is the focus of Rashi,
“The foolish child doesn't know how to ask in depth, and therefore he asks vaguely.”
Rashi continues: “But elsewhere it says, What are the חוקים, עדות & משפטים?
This is the wise son's question.
The Torah spoke regarding 4 sons: the simple son, the wicked son,
The one who doesn’t know how to ask and the one who asks in a way of wisdom.”
Why is it important to mention here,
That there is also the wise son's question elsewhere?
And why is it important to know here that there are sons four,
Why not mention it when the first sons were introduced before?
There are two sections that are found previously,
The first is about the Rasha who excludes himself from the community,
It is our job to draw him into the Seder too,
So that he can fulfill the laws of Pesach like every Jew.
In the second section,
“You shall perform this service” is a repetition,
It refers to the service of Pesach that we do,
Rashi says that it is repeated to teach us something new.
The novelty is that there is a second son to draw in,
He doesn't even know how to ask a question.
“And you shall tell your son,” is our role,
Seemingly this is the place to tell us about the 4 sons if this is Rashi's goal.
But since Rashi's focus in his commentary,
Is to explain the simple meaning of the text only,
He doesn't mention the questions of the simple child and the wise son previously,
Because they are discussing different topics entirely.
To the night of Pesach, the questions of the first two sons have a connection,
While the third son's question is about the first born's redemption,
The fourth son's question shows his goal,
He desires to know about all the Mitzvos of the Torah as a whole.
If the third and fourth son aren't mentioned earlier,
Then why are they mentioned together,
Their subjects aren't the same,
A tremendous lesson we can now gain.
Before learning about the third son we might come to the assumption,
That we are only obligated to answer questions about our Pesach redemption,
To the wicked son and the son who to ask doesn't know,
Because they are at risk and if we don't draw them in, to the Seder they won't go.
But when to the third son's question we come,
We learn that we are obligated to answer every question from every son,
When speaking about the third son the fourth son, Rashi must mention,
To teach us that even the wise son needs attention.
“The Torah spoke regarding four sons” is the conclusion of Rashi,
The Torah as a whole belongs to you and me.
We must always keep in mind,
To answer Jewish children of every kind.
Based on the above it is clear,
That when we see a question about the Shemitah year,
We must first determine,
Which son is asking the question.
By placing the “What will we eat?” question after the blessings it is clear,
That the question isn't being asked by the wicked son who has weak faith and fear.
It is asked by the wise son to understand how the blessing will come practically,
The Torah responds that in the sixth year the land will produce enough for three.
Since the Torah is eternal, the question is eternal,
Even after experiencing the miracle,
In the previous Shemitah cycle,
Because the spiritual Avodah of Shemitah is Bittul.
Although the person has Kabbalas Ol Malchus Shamayim,
And accepts the yoke of Heaven,
He still remains an independent entity,
And needs to be reassured that he will have plenty of food for his family.
On a deeper level, the wise son's question does stem,
From his awe before the greatness of Hashem.
It is as illogical as can be that a land that is as depleted as can be,
Can give enough produce for years three!
It is well known that the six years of labor and the seventh year of Shemitah,
Correspond to the 6,000 years of existence and the 7th millennium of Geulah.
We find ourselves in the 6th millennium but due to the decline of the generation,
How can we be the ones to bring about redemption?
We are spiritually weaker than those who came before us it is true,
But when we perform our work with self sacrifice and self nullification too,
That transcend intellect and reason,
We will draw down revelation after revelation after revelation.
Because when a depleted field spiritually,
Is blessed by the Almighty,
It yields spiritual produce for three years to come,
The Messianic Era, the Resurrection of the Dead and the seventh millennium!
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