DOCSLIB.ORG

BIKKURIM the Tractate's First Unit Lists the Prerequisites for Separating First Fruits And

Total Page：16

File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb

Download full-text PDF Read full-text
BIKKURIM the Tractate's First Unit Lists the Prerequisites for Separating First Fruits And CHAPTER ELEVEN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTATES: BIKKURIM l. INTRODUCTION The tractate's first unit lists the prerequisites for separating first fruits and reciting the Scriptural confession. The third unit describes, in a narrative passage, the actual procedures through which this offering is designated, separated and carried to the Temple in Jerusalem, where it is presented to the priests. Constructed almost exclusively of Ushan materials, these two units supply all information an Israelite needs to know in order to designate and dispose of first fruits. Concerned pri­ marily with the mechanics of this operation, they provide few issues of legal interest or theoretical importance within the Division of Agriculture as a whole. As is the case for Tractate Orlah, while the Mishnah's authorities deemed it important to discuss this Scriptural offering, they did not produce an agendum of issues deeper than the surface ques­ tion of what the Israelite must do to fulfill the requirement described in Scripture. The tractate's middle unit contains a series of comparisons of rules that apply to each of the several agricultural offerings referred to in the Division of Agriculture. Irrelevant to the specific topic of first fruits, this material would, however, comprise a fitting conclusion and sum­ mary for this division as a whole. It is unclear why it has been redacted between the tractate's two units on laws of first fruits instead of in the more appropriate position at the end of the tractate. 1 Before turning to the substantive development of the tractate's law, let us review the Scriptural passages that provide the facts upon which the Mishnah's rules depend. The first of the fruits of your ground you shall bring into the house of the Lord your God. (Ex. 23: 19) 1 A final chapter, M. Bik. 4:1-5, is found in standard printed editions of the Mishnah but is not authentic to the document. Omitted as well by Albeck, I have not included it in this discussion of the tractate. Since its contents have nothing to do with the law of agriculture, regardless of its origins, it need not detain us here. THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTATES: BIKKURIM 325 Then the Lord said to Aaron, "And behold, I have given you whatever is kept of the offering made to me, all the consecrated things of the peo­ ple of Israel ... The first ripe fruits of all that is in their land, which they bring to the Lord, shall be yours: everyone who is clean in your house may eat of it." (Num. 18:8, 13) When you come into the land which the Lord your God gives you for an inheritance, and have taken possession of it, and live in it, you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from your land that the Lord your God gives you, and you shall put it in a basket, and you shall go to the place which the Lord your God will choose to make his name dwell there. And you shall go to the priest who is in office at that time, and say to him, "I declare this day to the Lord your God that I have come into the land which the Lord swore to our fathers to give us." Then the priest shall take the basket from your hand, and set it down before the altar of the Lord your God. And you shall make response before the Lord your God, "A wandering Aramean was my father; and he went down into Egypt and sojourned there, few in number; and there he became a nation, great, mighty, and populous. And the Egyptians treated us harshly, and afflicted us, and laid upon us hard bondage. Then we cried to the Lord the God of our fathers, and the Lord heard our voice and saw our affliction, our toil and our oppres­ sion; and the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm, with great terror, with signs and wonders; and he brought us into this place and gave us this land, a land flowing with milk and honey. And behold, now I bring the first of the fruit of the ground which you, 0 Lord, has given me." And you shall set it down before the Lord your God, and worship before the Lord your God; and you shall rejoice in all the good which the Lord your God has given to you and to your house, you, and the Levite, and the sojourner who is among you. (Num. 26:1-11) A. Bikkurim bifore 7 0 The tractate contains no materials assigned to authorities who lived before 70. Nor does the logic of the development of the law indicate that any of the ideas of the tractate, other than those taken from Scripture, derive from earlier than Yavnean times. B. Bikkurim in the Time qf Yavneh Yavneans refer to three diverse areas of concern, leaving it to Ushans to provide the larger framework within which the laws of first fruits will be systematically expounded. Basing their considerations upon Scripture, Y avneans establish when in the agricultural year the Israelite .
Load more

Recommended publications
  • 1 Parashat Ki Tavo Rabbi David Silverberg Parashat Ki-Tavo Begins
    Parashat Ki Tavo Rabbi David Silverberg Parashat Ki-Tavo begins by discussing the mitzva of bikkurim, which requires a farmer to bring his first fruits each year to Jerusalem as a gift to the officiating kohen. Among the unique features of this mitzva, as the Torah describes, is the mikra bikkurim declaration which the farmer must recite as part of the bikkurim ceremony. This declaration, which the Torah dictates in our parasha (26:5-10), briefly recounts the story of the Exodus, from the time of Yaakov until Benei Yisrael’s departure from Egypt, and then tells of the nation’s entry into the land. Maimonides introduces this obligation in Mishneh Torah (Hilkhot Bikkurim 3:10) by writing, “There is an affirmative command to confess in the Temple over the bikkurim” (“Mitzvat asei le-hitvadot be-Midkash al ha-bikkurim…”). Curiously, Maimonides defines this declaration as a viduy, a “confession.” This term is familiar to us from two other contexts, most obviously the mitzva of teshuva, which Maimonides, in the beginning of Hilkhot Teshuva, defines as essentially an obligation to verbally confess. Additionally, the Sages employed the term viduy also in reference to the second mitzva presented in Parashat Ki-Tavo, a halakha known as viduy ma’aser. This obligation requires a farmer to pronounce a declaration every three years affirming his compliance with the laws of terumot and ma’aserot (the required tithes and other gifts from his agricultural yield). Maimonides, interestingly enough, applies the term viduy also to mikra bikkurim. Many writers have addressed the question as to how the concept of “confession” relates to viduy ma’aser, in which a farmer announces that he has faithfully observed all the laws applying to his agricultural produce.
    [Show full text]
  • Pesachim 036.Pub
    י"ב טבת תשפא“ Sun, Dec 27 2020 OVERVIEW of the Daf Distinctive INSIGHT 1) Fulfilling the mitzvah of matzah with tevel (cont.) Matzah cannot be made from Bikkurim אוציא חיטין ושעורין שיש במין ביכורים Ravina offers an alternative explanation to the Baraisa but the Gemara demonstrates that the explanation offered by R’ Sheishes is clearer. T he Gemara brings a Baraisa which teaches that mat- 2) Matzah made from ma’aser sheni grain zah cannot be made from fruits which are brought to A Baraisa is cited that records different sources that do Yerushalayim as Bikkurim. Rabbi Yosi HaGalili learns this not permit the use of ma’aser sheni grain for the mitzvah of from the verse which describes matzah as something that is in all your communities,” which— בכל מושבותיכם “ matzah. eaten An apparent contradiction is noted regarding R’ Akiva’s excludes Bikkurim fruits which can only be eaten in position concerning matzah that was kneaded with liquids Yerushalayim. Rabbi Akiva also determines that the mitz- other than water. vah of matzah cannot be fulfilled from Bikkurim, and he The Gemara resolves the contradiction by distinguishing learns this from the association between matzah and mar- between the first day of Pesach and the remaining days of ror (in the verse Bemidbar 9:11). We know that a person Pesach. cannot fulfill his obligation to eat marror with Bikkurim. 3) Kneading dough in lukewarm water So too, claims Rabbi Akiva, matzah cannot be performed The Gemara questions why the previous Baraisa does not with Bikkurim. permit the use of lukewarm water to make matzah whereas The Gemara then clarifies the analysis of Rabbi Akiva.
    [Show full text]
  • The Decline of the Generations (Haazinu)
    21 Sep 2020 – 3 Tishri 5781 B”H Dr Maurice M. Mizrahi Congregation Adat Reyim Torah discussion on Haazinu The Decline of the Generations Introduction In this week’s Torah portion, Haazinu, Moses tells the Israelites to remember their people’s past: זְכֹר֙יְמֹ֣ות םעֹולָָ֔ ב ִּ֖ ינּו נ֣ שְ ֹותּדֹור־וָד֑ ֹור שְאַַ֤ ל אָב ֙יך֙ וְ יַגֵָ֔דְ ךזְקֵנ ִּ֖יך וְ יֹֹ֥אמְ רּו לְָָֽך Remember the days of old. Consider the years of generation after generation. Ask your father and he will inform you; your elders, and they will tell you. [Deut. 32:7] He then warns them that prosperity (growing “fat, thick and rotund”) and contact with idolaters will cause them to fall away from their faith, so they should keep alive their connection with their past. Yeridat HaDorot Strong rabbinic doctrine: Yeridat HaDorot – the decline of the generations. Successive generations are further and further away from the revelation at Sinai, and so their spirituality and ability to understand the Torah weakens steadily. Also, errors of transmission may have been introduced, especially considering a lot of the Law was oral: מש הק בֵלּתֹורָ ה מ סינַי, ּומְ סָרָ ּהל יהֹושֻׁעַ , ו יהֹושֻׁעַ ל זְקֵנים, ּוזְקֵנים ל נְב יאים, ּונְב יא ים מְ סָ רּוהָ ילְאַנְשֵ נכְ ס ת הַגְדֹולָה Moses received the Torah from Sinai and transmitted it to Joshua, Joshua to the elders, and the elders to the prophets, and the prophets to the Men of the Great Assembly. [Avot 1:1] The Mishnah mourns the Sages of ages past and the fact that they will never be replaced: When Rabbi Meir died, the composers of parables ceased.
    [Show full text]
  • Abbreviations and Bibliography
    ABBREVIATIONS AND BIBLIOGRAPHY Ah. 'Ahilot Albeck Chanoch Albeck, Si!ah Sidre Mi!nah, Seder Zera'im (Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, 1957) Alon Gedaliahu Alon, "Tefl_uman fel fl_ukkot tohorah," in Mefl_qarim betoldot yiira'el" (2 vols.; Tel Aviv, 1957) 1: 148-76 [="The Bounds of the Laws of Levitical Cleanness," in Alon, Jews, Judaism and the Classical World: Studies in Jewish History in the Times qf the Second Temple and the Talmud (Jerusalem, 1977) 190-234] Arak. 'Arakin ARNA 'Abot de Rabbi Natan, Recension A, ed. Solomon Schechter (Vienna, 1887; reprint: New York, 1945) Aruch Alexander Kohut, ed. Aruch Completum (8 vols.; Vienna, 1878-92; second edition, 1926), and Additamenta ad Librum Aruch Completum, ed., Samuel Krauss et al. (Vienna, 1937) Avery-Peck Alan J. Avery-Peck, Mishnah's Division qf Agriculture: A History and 7heology qf Seder Zeraim (Chico, 1985) Avi-Yonah, Michael Avi- Y onah, with the assistance of Shemuel Safrai, 'Atlas Atlas Karta' litequpat bayyit feni, hammi!nah, wehattalmud [Carta's Atlas qf the Period qf the Second Temple, the Mishnah, and the Talmudj (Jerusalem, 1966) Avi-Yonah, Michael Avi-Yonah, Geograpiah historit fel 'eresyiira'ellemin fibbat iyyon Geography we'ad rl fit hakkibbuf ha'arabi [Historical Geography qf the Land qf Israel from the Restoration to the Arab Conquest] (Jerusalem, 1962) Avi-Yonah, Michael Avi-Yonah, 7he Holy Land .from the Persian to the Arab Conquest, Holy Land 536 B.C.-A.D. 640: A Historical Geography (Grand Rapids, 1966) A.Z. 'Abodah Zarah b. Babli, Babylonian Talmud; ben, "son of," as in "Simeon b. Gamaliel" B Mishnah Zera'im, MS.
    [Show full text]
  • Bikkurim Source Sheet by Rachel Buckman
    Bikkurim Source Sheet by Rachel Buckman One of the names of Shavuot in the Torah is the Festival of the First Fruits. These first fruits are traditionally from the seven species that were special agricultural products of the Land of Israel: wheat, barley, grapes, figs, pomegranates, olives, and dates (Deuteronomy 8:8). According to Jewish tradition, the first fruits, bikkurim, were brought to the priests in the Temple in Jerusalem, as described in the verse below. Text #1 שמות כ״ג:י״ט Exodus 23:19 רֵאשָ֗ית ב כּורֵ יָּ֙אַדְמִָׁ֣תְך֔ תָבִ֕ יאבֵָ֖ית ה' אֱֹלק ֶּ֑ יך ... The choice first fruits of your soil you shall bring to the house of the LORD your God... Additional information about how to bring the bikkurim to Jerusalem is provided in the verse below. Text #2 דברים כ״ו:ב׳ Deuteronomy 26:2 )ב(וְ לָקַחְתָָּ֞ מֵרֵאשִׁ֣ ית ׀ כָל־פְר יִׁ֣ הָאֲדָמָָ֗ האֲש רֶׁ֨ תָב ִ֧ יא You shall take some of every first fruit of (2) מֵֵֽאַרְצְךָ֛ אֲשֶׁ֨ רה' אֱֹלקָ֛ יך נֹתֵֵ֥ ן לְָָ֖ך וְשַמְתִָׁ֣ בַט ֶּ֑נ א וְהֵָֽ לַכְתָָּ֙ אל־ the soil, which you harvest from the land הַמָקֹ֔ום אֲש ֶׁ֤ ר יבְ חַרָּ֙ה' אֱֹלק ֔ יך לְשַכֵֵ֥ןשְמָֹ֖ו שֵָֽ ם׃ that the Lord your God is giving you, put it in a basket and go to the place where the Lord your God will choose to establish His name. The procedure is further described in the Mishnah in Tractate Bikkurim. The text talks about the cities of the maamad. To facilitate a rotation of priests serving in the Temple, the country was divided into 24 districts (mishmarot or maamadot).
    [Show full text]
  • Why Was Maimonides Controversial?
    12 Nov 2014, 19 Cheshvan 5775 B”H Congregation Adat Reyim Dr Maurice M. Mizrahi Adult Education Why was Maimonides controversial? Introduction Always glad to talk about Maimonides: He was Sephardic (of Spanish origin), and so am I He lived and worked in Egypt, and that's where I was born and grew up His Hebrew name was Moshe (Moses), and so is mine He was a rationalist, and so am I He was a scientist of sorts, and so am I He had very strong opinions, and so do I And, oh yes: He was Jewish, and so am I. -Unfortunately, he probably wasn’t my ancestor. -Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, aka Maimonides, aka The Rambam: b. 1135 (Córdoba, Muslim Spain) – d. 1204 (Fostat, Egypt): Torah scholar, philosopher, physician: Maimonides was the most illustrious figure in Judaism in the post-talmudic era, and one of the greatest of all time… His influence on the future development of Judaism is incalculable. No spiritual leader of the Jewish people in the post- talmudic period has exercised such an influence both in his own and subsequent generations. [Encyclopedia Judaica] -Best-known for Mishneh Torah and Guide for the Perplexed: -Mishneh Torah (Sefer Yad ha-Chazaka) codifies Jewish law. Gathers all laws from Talmud and adds rulings of later Sages. Clear, concise, and logical. No personal opinions. -The Guide for the Perplexed (Dalalat al-Ha'erin; Moreh Nevukhim) is a non-legal philosophical work, for general public, that bridges Jewish and Greek thought. -Controversial in his lifetime and for many centuries afterwards. Controversies concerning Maimonides 1-No need to study Talmud -He appears to downplay study of Talmud.
    [Show full text]
  • Zera'im: Jewish Community
    ZERA’IM: JEWISH COMMUNITY GARDENING RESOURCE MANUAL Retreat • Farm • Learn • Celebrate! Made Possible By We dedicate this manual to Jonah Adels, 1984-2013 An inspirational fellow traveler on planet Earth, beautiful person, amazing Jewish garden educator, staff and community member at Eden Village Camp. We miss you brother and carry on your work together. CONTENTS WELCOME TO THE GARDEN ACKNOWLEDGMENTS OUR INVTATION FOR HOW TO USE THIS MANUAL GARDEN BLESSING PART V: GARDEN SPOTLIGHTS PART I: INTRO TO JEWISH COMMUNITY GARDENING Early Childhood Gardens Learning Ladder What is Jewish Community Gardening? Beth El Owings Mills JCC PART II: ENVISIONING YOUR GARDEN Synagogue Gardens Netivot Shalom Setting Goals and Planning Harford Jewish Center Themes for Jewish gardening Fundraising and Budgeting Senior Centers Weinberg Village PART III: PRE-GARDEN PREPARATION Hillels Soil Health and Preparation Johns Hopkins Hillel Compost Seeds Special Needs Plants Needs to Grow Tools for you Garden ADDITIONAL RESOURCES PART IV: GARDEN SET-UP & MAINTENANCE What type of Garden? Garden Beds Watering and Irrigation Harvest Schedule Trellising Pest and Weed Control What to do with food from the garden? Shalom Aleichem WELCOME TO THE GARDEN! With great thanks to the Covenant Foundation, we offer this resource in Jewish community gardening based on three years of Pearlstone’s experiences creating and collaborating with eight unique gardens throughout the Baltimore Jewish Community. A two-year Signature Covenant Grant enabled us to create the Jewish Community Gardening Collective (JCGC), an innovative and dynamic network establishing grassroots Jewish community gardens and making the most out of them with experiential education. d Thank You To Our Local Baltimore Jewish Partners! Beth-El Congregation; Harford Jewish Center; Johns Hopkins University Hillel; Learning Ladder at Oheb Shalom Congregation; Needs to Grow; Netivot Shalom Congregation; Owings Mills JCC Early Childhood Center; Weinberg Village.
    [Show full text]
  • Sabbath Law and Mishnah Shabbat in Origen De Principiis
    Sabbath Law and Mishnah Shabbat in Origen De Principiis The Harvard community has made this article openly available. Please share how this access benefits you. Your story matters Citation Cohen, Shaye J. D. 2010. Sabbath Law and Mishnah Shabbat in Origen De Principiis. Jewish Studies Quarterly 17 (2): 160–89. Published Version http://www.jstor.org/stable/40753511 Citable link http://nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:33077878 Terms of Use This article was downloaded from Harvard University’s DASH repository, and is made available under the terms and conditions applicable to Open Access Policy Articles, as set forth at http:// nrs.harvard.edu/urn-3:HUL.InstRepos:dash.current.terms-of- use#OAP Shaye J.D. Cohen 1 [email protected] Sabbath Law and Mishnah Shabbat in Origen De Principiis Origen (184/5 – 253/4 CE), the great theologian, scholar, and exegete, was primarily associated with two cities in the course of his life: Alexandria in Egypt and Caesarea in Roman Palaestina. He was educated in the former and began his career there; he moved to the latter in the early 230s, having visited it for a time in 215/6 CE.1 Throughout his writings Origen had a sustained interest in Judaism, in particular the Jewish exegesis of the Hebrew Scriptures. Origen sought out Jews who could help him establish the text or explain difficult words and phrases.2 Of course, as a pious Christian, Origen believed that the Jews do not understand their own Scriptures. For him the truth of the Bible is revealed solely through faith in Christ; the Bible is a Christian book, and the Jews, because they deny Christ, misapprehend the very text that they claim to interpret.
    [Show full text]
  • Download File
    Halevy, Halivni and The Oral Formation of the Babylonian Talmud Ari Bergmann Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY 2014 © 2014 Ari Bergmann All rights reserved ABSTRACT Halevy, Halivni and The Oral Formation of the Babylonian Talmud Ari Bergmann This dissertation is dedicated to a detailed analysis and comparison of the theories on the process of the formation of the Babylonian Talmud by Yitzhak Isaac Halevy and David Weiss Halivni. These two scholars exhibited a similar mastery of the talmudic corpus and were able to combine the roles of historian and literary critic to provide a full construct of the formation of the Bavli with supporting internal evidence to support their claims. However, their historical construct and findings are diametrically opposed. Yitzhak Isaac Halevy presented a comprehensive theory of the process of the formation of the Talmud in his magnum opus Dorot Harishonim. The scope of his work was unprecedented and his construct on the formation of the Talmud encompassed the entire process of the formation of the Bavli, from the Amoraim in the 4th century to the end of the saboraic era (which he argued closed in the end of the 6th century). Halevy was the ultimate guardian of tradition and argued that the process of the formation of the Bavli took place entirely within the amoraic academy by a highly structured and coordinated process and was sealed by an international rabbinical assembly. While Halevy was primarily a historian, David Weiss Halivni is primarily a talmudist and commentator on the Talmud itself.
    [Show full text]
  • Bikkurim from Nishmat
    Bikkurim From Nishmat In Honor of JEANIE AND JAY SCHOTTENSTEIN And in Celebration of Nishmat's 25th Anniversary Jerusalem 2015 In this volume, all Tanach translations are either from Machon Mamre or Soncino (D. Mandel); the Talmud translations are from Soncino (I. Epstein). Slight modifications have been made for style and nuance. Design and Pagination: Studio HaMaabada Table of Contents 1. Laws of Shavuot 5 Rabbi Da'vid Sperling Part I – Receiving the Torah 2. Women and Shavuot 9 Rabbanit Chana Henkin, Dean 3. Na'aseh v'Nishma, We Will Do and We Will Understand 11 Rabbi Yehuda Henkin 4. I Was There, Standing at Sinai 14 Rabbanit Noa Lau 5. Thoughts for Shavout 17 Rachelle Sprecher Fraenkel 6. Is There a Mitzvah to Remember Matan Torah? 20 Rabbanit Gilla Rosen 7. In the Beginning There was Prophecy 23 Rabbi Shay Nave 8. “Hear O Israel”: What Must We Hear? 26 Michal Efrati 9. Strengthening our Relationship with Hashemh 30 Dr. Karen Kirshenbaum 10. The Chosen People 33 Rabbi Re'em HaCohen 11. Ingesting Torah 36 Adi Bitter Part II – Megillat Ruth 12. The Megillah of Hesed 39 Rabbi Chaim Navon 13. Betrothal and Marriage in the Book of Ruth 42 Dr. Tova Ganzel 14. The Book of Ruth Needs Manoah: The Death of Arrogance, The Birth of Compassion 45 Ayala Friedman 15. Between the Festival of Shavuot and Megillat Ruth 51 Rabbi David Sabato 16. Acceptance of the Yoke of Heaven and Acceptance of the “Other” 56 Rabbanit Chana Henkin, Dean 17. Shavuot – An Agricultural Festival with Dual Significance and the Book of Ruth 62 Rabbi Yoel Bin-Nun 18.
    [Show full text]
  • Crown and Courts Materials
    David C. Flatto on The Crown and the Courts: Separation of Powers in the Early Jewish Im.agination Wednesday February 17, 2021 4 - 5 p.m. Online Register at law.fordham.edu/CrownAndCourts CLE COURSE MATERIALS Table of Contents 1. Speaker Biographies (view in document) 2. CLE Materials The Crown and the Courts: Separation of Powers in the Early Jewish Imagination Panel Discussion Cover, Robert M. THE FOLKTALES OF JUSTICE: TALES OF JURISDICTION (view in document) Cardozo Law Review. Levinson, Bernard M. THE FIRST CONSTITUTION: RETHINKING THE ORIGINS OF RULE OF LAW AND SEPARATION OF POWERS IN LIGHT OF DEUTERONOMY (view in document) Yale Journal of Law & the Humanities. Volume 20. Issue 1 Article 3. The King and I: The Separation of Powers in Early Hebraic Political Theory. (view in document) The Crown and the Courts: Separation of Powers in the Early Jewish Imagination Biographies Moderator: Ethan J. Leib is Professor of Law at Fordham Law School. He teaches in contracts, legislation, and regulation. His most recent book, Friend v. Friend: Friendships and What, If Anything, the Law Should Do About Them, explores the costs and benefits of the legal recognition of and sensitivity to friendship; it was published by Oxford University Press. Leib’s scholarly articles have recently appeared in the Yale Law Journal, Virginia Law Review, Georgetown Law Journal, University of Pennsylvania Law Review, University of Chicago Law Review, California Law Review, and elsewhere. He has also written for a broader audience in the New York Times, USA Today, Policy Review, Washington Post, New York Law Journal, The American Scholar, and The New Republic.
    [Show full text]
  • The Development of the Tractates: Maaserot
    CHAPTER SEVEN THE DEVELOPMENT OF THE TRACTATES: MAASEROT 1. INTRODUCTION Tractate Maaserot defines the class of produce that is subject to the separation of agricultural offerings and indicates when payment of those offerings must be made. It asks, that is to say, 1) when, in the course of a crop's growth and ripening, tithes may validly be separated from it and 2) when, in the subsequent harvesting and preparation of the produce, heave-offering and tithes must actually be paid?1 The Mishnah's answer to these questions depends upon the under­ standing-derived in part from Scripture-that Israelites owe agricul­ tural offerings to God in return for the use, granted them by God, of the land of Israel for the growing of crops. In light of this idea, the tractate points out that God is owed a share only once the produce actually has ripened and become useful as food. When the crop ripens, that is, God's role in its production is complete, such that he now may be paid the share he is owed. Even at this point, however, Israelites still may refrain from tithing. They may refrain until they physically appropriate the food for their own personal use, either to sell in the market or to prepare as a meal. In the tractate's view, God's absolute claim for a share of the crops of the land of Israel becomes due only at the point at which Israelites exercise their own final, personal claim to use the produce as their own. This notion, that the requirement to tithe is a reflex of the Israelites' desire for food, is found primarily in the tractate's Ushan stratum, which, indeed, comprises all but four of the rules before us.
    [Show full text]