Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah
Ramban on Leviticus 25:12/רמב"ן על ויקרא כ״ה:י״ב
אמִן הַשָּׂדֶה תֹּאכְלוּ עַל יְדֵי הַשָּׂדֶה תֹּאכְלוּ מִן הַבַּיִת, שֶׁאִם כָּלָה לַחַיָּה מִן הַשָּׂדֶה אַתָּה צָרִיךְ לְבַעֵר מִן הַבַּיִת כְּשֵׁם שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בַּשְּׁבִיעִית, לְשׁוֹן רַשִׁ"י (רש"י על ויקרא כ"ה:י"ב). וְאִם כֵּן לֹא יִהְיֶה הַפָּסוּק מְחֻבָּר, אֲבָל יֹאמַר לֹא תִזְרָעוּ וְלֹא תִקְצְרוּ כִּי יוֹבֵל הִיא קֹדֶשׁ תִּהְיֶה לָכֶם, וּמִן הַשָּׂדֶה תֹּאכְלוּ אֶת תְּבוּאָתָהּ לֹא מִן הַבַּיִת. וְר"א אָמַר (אבן עזרא על ויקרא כ"ה:י"ב) "מִן הַשָּׂדֶה תֹּאכְלוּ" מִמַּה שֶׁתּוֹצִיא הַשָּׂדֶה מֵעַצְמָהּ תֹּאכְלוּ כֻּלְּכֶם, כַּכָּתוּב בִּשְׁנַת הַשְּׁמִטָּה. וּלְדַעְתִּי יֹאמַר לֹא תִקְצְרוּ וְלֹא תִבְצְרוּ בַּשָּׁנָה הַזֹּאת כִּי יוֹבֵל הִיא וְקֹדֶשׁ תִּהְיֶה לָכֶם, מִן הַשָּׂדֶה תָּבִיאוּ הַתְּבוּאָה וְתֹאכְלוּ, שֶׁתֵּצְאוּ הַשָּׂדֶה לִלְקֹט וְלֶאֱכֹל עִם הָעֲנִיִּים וְהָאֶבְיוֹנִים הַחַיָּה וְהַבְּהֵמָה, לֹא שֶׁיִּהְיֶה לָכֶם עֵת קָצִיר וּבָצִיר וְתַאַסְפוּ לָכֶם אֶל הַבַּיִת וְאֶל הָאוֹצָרוֹת כִּתְבוּאַת שְׁאָר הַשָּׁנִים. וּמַה שֶׁשָּׁנוּ בְּתוֹרַת כֹּהֲנִים (פרק ג ה), מִכָּאן אָמְרוּ הַכּוֹבֵשׁ שְׁלֹשָׁה כְּבָשִׁים בְּחָבִית אַחַת, רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר אוֹמֵר אוֹכְלִין עַל הָרִאשׁוֹן, וְרַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ אוֹמֵר אַף עַל הָאַחֲרוֹן, רַבָּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹמֵר כָּל שֶׁכָּלָה מִינוֹ מִן הַשָּׂדֶה יְבַעֵר מִינוֹ מִן הַבַּיִת, וַהֲלָכָה כִּדְבָרָיו, רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן אוֹמֵר כָּל יָרָק אֶחָד לַבִּעוּר. וְכָל זֶה מִדְרָשׁ מִפְּנֵי שֶׁלֹּא אָמַר "מִן הַשָּׂדֶה תָּבִיאוּ וְתֹאכְלוּ", וְסָמַךְ הָאֲכִילָה בַּשָּׂדֶה שֶׁלֹּא יֹאכְלוּ אֶלָּא בּוֹ. וְיִתָּכֵן שֶׁהוּא סֶמֶךְ מִדִּבְרֵיהֶם, וּלְכָךְ הָיָה רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ מֵקֵל בּוֹ וְרַבָּן גַּמְלִיאֵל מֵקֵל בְּטַעְמוֹ. וּכְבָר כָּתַבְתִּי זֶה לְמַעְלָה (רמב"ן על ויקרא כ"ה:ז'). וְאֶפְשָׁר לְדִבְרֵי רַבָּן גַּמְלִיאֵל שֶׁמִּצְוַת הַבִּעוּר מִן הַתּוֹרָה, אֲבָל הַטַּעַם כֵּיוָן שֶׁנִּבְלַע מִתְּחִלָּה מְבֹעָר הוּא:
1OUT OF THE FIELD YE SHALL EAT THE INCREASE THEREOF. “By virtue of the produce to be found in the field, you may eat of what is in the house, but if it is no longer to be found by the beast in the field, you must remove it from the house, just as it is said in the case of the Sabbatical year.” This is Rashi’s language. But if so, the verse is not well-connected [to the preceding part].162. And then it continues: out of the field ye shall eat … Now according to Rashi’s interpretation there is no connection between these two parts of the verse. Instead, the verse is stating etc. Ramban, in other words, is explaining that the end of Verse 12 before us continues from the end of Verse 11 above, as stated in the text. Instead, Scripture is stating: Ye shall not sow, neither reap that which groweth of itself in it …147 For it is a Jubilee; it shall be holy unto you, and out of the field ye shall eat the increase thereof, and not out of the house. And Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra interpreted: “out of the field ye shall eat, out of what the field brings forth of its own accord you shall all eat, as is written in the case of the Sabbatical year.”In my opinion Scripture is stating: “You shall not reap nor gather in this year, for it is a Jubilee and it shall be holy unto you; out of the field you shall bring the produce and eat, meaning: that you are to go forth into the field to glean and eat together with the poor and destitute, the beast and cattle, and it is not to be for you a time of reaping and gathering in the produce, and bringing it into your house and store-houses like the produce of all other years.” Now we are taught in the Torath Kohanim:163 3:5. See above, Note 129. “From this the Sages have inferred that if one preserves three kinds of vegetables in a single barrel, Rabbi Elazar164 says: ‘They may be eaten only as long as the first [to ripen of the three kinds] remains in the field’ [but as soon as one vegetable is no longer found in the field, all three are forbidden to be eaten, since by preserving them together he makes all three as one]. Rabbi Yehoshua says: ‘Even as long as the last [to ripen of the three kinds] remains in the field’ [they may all be eaten, although the first two vegetables are no longer to be found in the field]. Rabban Gamaliel says: ‘When any one of the species comes to an end in the field, he is to remove that kind from the house’. And the final decision of the law is according to him. Rabbi Shimon says: ‘All vegetables are considered one with regard to the law of Removal.’”165 All this interpretation is because Scripture does not say “out of the field you shall bring and eat,” but instead [said, out of the field ye shall eat, thus] placing “the eating” next to “the field,” meaning that one may eat [what is stored in the house] only because of it [that which is still to be found in the field]. It is possible that this matter166 is only a Scriptural support for a law of Rabbinic origin, and that is why Rabbi Yehoshua was lenient [even] about it [the actual vegetable], and Rabban Gamaliel [who was more stringent about it than Rabbi Yehoshua, also] was lenient about the taste [of the vegetable which remains in the other vegetables after it is taken out of the barrel]. I have already written on this subject above.167 It is possible that according to Rabban Gamaliel the commandment of Removal is by law of the Torah, but the taste of a vegetable, once it is absorbed [by other food] at the beginning [i.e., before the time of the Removal], is considered as if it were “removed” [since it is absorbed and has no independent existence].