“For six years you may sow your field… prune your vineyards… gather in its crop. But the seventh year shall be a complete rest for the land… your harvest you shall not reap and the grapes you shall not pick….” (Vayikra 25:3-6)
Hashem commands the Jewish people concerning the mitzvah of Shemittah. In addition to the prohibition of doing any agricultural work in the fields during the Shemittah year, all the crops are abandoned, and everyone, including the animals, can partake of that which has grown.
This commandment was given at Har Sinai, and it would be another forty years before they would enter Eretz Yisrael. Why was Hashem giving them this commandment now, when they were in the Midbar?
Our Sages tell us that this mitzvah is especially significant and fundamental in the concept of emunah.
For six years the farmer has toiled in his field, working under the hot sun, looking forward to the harvest that he will reap. It is his livelihood; it is the family’s sustenance. Then Shemittah year comes. He must declare his field hefker – its yield is available to everyone – and he cannot cultivate the land at all. How will the family support themselves?
The mitzvah of Shemittah is not an easy mitzvah to fulfill. In truth, the observance of this mitzvah demands great kochos hanefesh (soul power). The Talmud (Shabbos 88a) tells us that when the Jewish people called out na’aseh v’nishma (we will do and we will hear), as the angels do – as it says (Tehillim 103:20), “… His angels; the strong warriors who do His bidding, to obey the voice of His word…. ” a Divine voice emerged and said: Who revealed the secret of the angels to My children? This exalted level of a desire to fulfill Hashem’s bidding without hearing His words first is customarily attributed to the angels.
When the Jewish people received the Torah, they had risen to a very elevated level of emunah in Hashem. Hashem revealed Himself and opened the Seven Heavens, and everyone saw that “Hashem is G-d and there is no one but Him.” At that point we had reached the level of the angels – no secret had been revealed – and we were empowered to call out, “We will do and we will hear.”
R’ Yitzchak Nafcha says that those who observe the Shemittah are likewise considered “strong warriors.” Our Sages teach us (Avos 4:1), “Who is strong? He who subdues his personal inclination.” The observance of Shemittah requires superhuman strength, as does subjugating one’s evil inclination, hence the designation “strong warriors.”
Also, the mitzvah of Shemittah – a time when man abandons his fields and makes them hefker – reminds us (Shemos 19:5), “For the entire world is Mine.” The entire universe, and all that is contained therein, belongs to Hashem. We merely live in this world; Hashem is the master of the universe.
It is pointed out that some mitzvos in the Torah are not applicable to everyone, for example, a person living outside of Eretz Yisrael, or a person who does not own land. These would include mitzvos such as mitzvos hatluyos ba’aretz (agricultural laws that are specific to Eretz Yisrael), e.g. Shemittah or maaseros and terumos. We learn that Hashem stipulated already at Har Sinai that such mitzvos can be fulfilled by studying the Torah. We learn in the Talmud (Menachos 110a) that Hashem says: Anyone who engages in Torah study is considered as though he sacrificed a burnt offering, a meal offering, a sin offering, and a guilt offering. The same holds true for the mitzvah of Shemittah.
A farmer who lived in the Jordan Valley became a ba’al teshuvah right before the year of Shemittah. He had been unaware of the laws with regard to Shemittah – that the land cannot be farmed for an entire year – and he asked his rebbi, “Why didn’t you tell me that it was prohibited to work during Shemittah?”
The rebbi told him he had been uncertain whether the new ba’al teshuvah would be able to undertake this challenge. The farmer protested that he was ready to observe all the laws and take on this hardship.
When the Shemittah year was over, and the farmer went to buy seeds from the agricultural center, he was informed that all the other farmers had already bought what they needed. The only seeds still available for sale were celery seeds, which wasn’t in great demand and was therefore still available. With no other choice, the farmer planted the seeds, even though he believed much of it would go to waste.
Keeping the mitzvah of Shemittah includes a special promise. The Torah says (Vayikra 25:21), “I will ordain My blessing for you….” If a person follows the laws of Shemittah, Hashem invokes blessing on him. Indeed, Hashem helped the farmer. The crop of celery grew extraordinarily tall and full. Everyone came to see this unusual sight.
That winter an unseasonal frost swept across Europe, and all the celery crops were ruined, creating an unprecedented demand for the vegetable. The agricultural center recalled the unusual sale of a large quantity of celery seeds before the season, and they checked their records to find the buyer’s identity. They then contacted him to find out whether his crop had grown successfully. “We’re calling because there is a large demand for celery throughout the European market.”
“No problem,” said the farmer, “The seeds yielded an outstanding and plentiful crop. I have as much as is needed.”
The orders came pouring in, and the farmer had to hire workers from Thailand to work day and night in order to fill the orders and ship them out. Of course, the celery sold at a high price due to the scarcity of the product in Europe. The farmer became wealthy, moved to a larger house, and he enjoyed a more comfortable life, in the merit of fulfilling the mitzvah of Shemittah.