The articles in this column are transcriptions and adaptations of shiurim by Rav Joseph Ber Soloveitchik, zt”l. The Rav’s unique perspective on Chumash permeated many of the shiurim and lectures he presented at various venues over a 40-plus-year period. His words add an important perspective that makes the Chumash in particular, and our tradition in general, vibrant and relevant to our generation.
The haftarah for Parshas Behar is read relatively infrequently, usually in leap years. The haftarah is from the Book of Jeremiah, detailing the command to Jeremiah to purchase the land of his uncle, Chanamel. What is the connection between the parsha and the haftarah? While Behar deals with the laws of Sabbatical Year and Jubilee, it also discusses the laws of family homestead, and the opportunity and requirement for the rest of the tribe to redeem ancestral land that is sold by a tribesman out of destitution to a non-tribe member. The land reverts to the original owner at the Jubilee year. If an individual does not have the financial means to redeem his land, a relative may step in to assist. Jeremiah was commanded by Hashem to purchase his uncle’s land in order to return it to his tribe and to prepare documents attesting to the ownership of the land. These documents were to be put away in earthen vessels for safekeeping. The obligation to redeem ancestral lands is a biblical obligation that Jeremiah was well aware of. Why did he wait for a command, indeed a prophecy from Hashem, before acting to assist his uncle? Why didn’t he act on his own?
To answer this question, we must understand the context in which the episode unfolds. The destruction of the Temple and the resulting exile of Bnei Yisrael from their land were fast approaching. Jeremiah was faced with a difficult quandary. He protested that the city and land are on the verge of being conquered by the Kasdim (Babylonians). As Rambam notes (Hilchos Beis HaBechira 6:16), the sanctity of the land during the first commonwealth was based on the physical conquest of the land by Joshua. Jeremiah realized that the pending conquest of Eretz Yisrael by Nebuchadnezzar will nullify the kedushas ha’aretz, the original sanctity of the land (with the exception of Jerusalem and the Temple area, see Rambam noted above). Jeremiah thought that Eretz Yisrael would cease to exist. The notion of ancestral lands was about to become moot with the impending exile. What utility is there to redeem land that was about to be lost in the impending destruction? He therefore did not act on his own, but rather waited for a command from Hashem.
The command he received was cryptic. Hashem said, “Is anything hidden form Me?” (Jeremiah 32:27). Hashem told Jeremiah to write two documents. One was a plain document and the second was get mekushar hachasum, a bound document that requires many folds to cover the text and whose writing must conform to specific laws and requirements. Jeremiah was given the message that Hashem interacts with Bnei Yisrael in ways hinted at by these two different documents he was told to prepare.
Sometimes Hashem’s approach is obvious. There are no enemies confronting us, there are no terrorists to threaten us, and we can clearly see Hashem’s direction and guardianship of the land. At such times when a future can be envisioned, it makes sense to apply the rules of assisting a destitute relative in redeeming his land. Hashem’s interacts with us through a shtar galuy, an open and accessible document.
However, many times Hashem interacts with Bnei Yisrael from a hidden approach, in ways that we don’t understand or cannot perceive His hashgacha. It is an approach characterized as shtar chasum, wrapped up in a sealed and impenetrable document. At such times, the mitzvah of redeeming ancestral lands becomes encased in a chok, a law that is beyond our comprehension. The Kasdim are coming; it seems irrational to purchase the field. However, the shtar chasum is not to be understood in the context of the present, its intended impact will be applicable many years in the future. After 70 years the shtar chasum will end, Hashem’s hashgacha will once again take the form of shtar galuy, an open document, and the land will return back to his uncle’s heirs. He commanded Baruch Ben Nariah to place the documents in an earthen vessel that will protect them for a long time. At that future time, the people will once again purchase property. A descendant of Chanamel will come along clutching the document that validates his claim to the land and the land will be returned to him. The shtar chasum will become clear, just as a chok will become clear in the future. Jeremiah, what you are buying now is not worthless at all as it will have purpose in the future, 70 years from now.