Tanach · Rishonim on Tanach · Ramban · Torah

Ramban on Leviticus 25:35/רמב"ן על ויקרא כ״ה:ל״ה

אוְטַעַם וְחֵי אָחִיךָ עִמָּךְ שֶׁיִּחְיֶה עִמָּךְ, וְהִיא מִצְוַת עֲשֵׂה לְהַחֲיוֹתוֹ שֶׁמִּמֶּנָּה נִצְטַוֵּינוּ עַל פִּקּוּחַ נֶפֶשׁ בְּמִצְוַת עֲשֵׂה. וּמִכָּאן אָמְרוּ (תו"כ פרשה ה ג), "וְחֵי אָחִיךָ עִמָּךְ" זוֹ דָּרַשׁ בֶּן פּוֹטִירִי, שְׁנַיִם שֶׁהָיוּ מְהַלְּכִין בַּדֶּרֶךְ וּבְיַד אֶחָד מֵהֶם קִיתוֹן שֶׁל מַיִם, אִם שׁוֹתֶה הוּא מַגִּיעַ לַיִּשּׁוּב וְאִם שְׁנֵיהֶם שׁוֹתִים שְׁנֵיהֶם מֵתִים, דָּרַשׁ בֶּן פּוּטִירִי מוּטָב יִשְׁתּוּ שְׁנֵיהֶם וְיָמוּתוּ וְלֹא יִרְאֶה אֶחָד בְּמִיתָתוֹ שֶׁל חֲבֵרוֹ; עַד שֶׁבָּא רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא וְלִמֵּד, "וְחֵי אָחִיךָ עִמָּךְ" - חַיֶּיךָ קוֹדְמִים לְחַיֵּי חֲבֵרֶךָ. וְחָזַר וְאָמַר (ויקרא כ"ה:ל"ו), "וְחֵי אָחִיךָ עִמָּךְ" לְחַזֵּק וּלְהַזְהִיר. וּמִדְרָשׁוֹ (ב"מ סב), אַהְדַּר לֵיהּ רִבִּית דְּלֶחְיֵי עִמָּךְ; צִוָּה בְּהַחְזָרַת רִבִּית קְצוּצָה, כְּעִנְיָן שֶׁאָמַר בְּגֶזֶל (ויקרא ה':כ"ג) "וְהֵשִׁיב אֶת הַגְּזֵלָה אֲשֶׁר גָּזָל". וְאוּנְקְלוֹס (תרגום אונקלוס על ויקרא כ"ה:ל"ה) עָשָׂה "גֵּר וְתוֹשָׁב וָחַי עִמָּךְ" הַכֹּל מִן הַמִּצְוָה, "יְדוּר וְיִתּוֹתַב וְיֵחֵי עִמָּךְ". אֲבָל עַל דַּעַת רַבּוֹתֵינוּ בַּגְּמָרָא (ב"מ עא), וְהֶחֱזַקְתָּ בּוֹ וּבְגֵר וְתוֹשָׁב, וְחֵי כָּל אֶחָד מֵהֶם עִמָּךְ:

1THAT HE MAY LIVE WITH THEE. The meaning thereof is that he [i.e., the stranger or settler]²⁰⁴ that we derive the principle that the saving of life overrides the Sabbath etc., as Ramban continues. shall [be enabled to] live with you, it being a positive commandment to support him, and it is from here [that we deduce] that we are commanded by means of a positive commandment to save life. It is from here too, that the Sages have said:²⁰⁵ 5:3. Baba Metzia 62 a. “That thy brother may live with thee.²⁰⁶ This was explained by Ben Peturi: If two people were going on a journey [in the desert], and one of them has a pitcher of water which [contains such an amount that] if he [alone] drinks it, [it would suffice to enable him to] reach an inhabited place, but if both drink from it, both would die. Ben Peturi stated: ‘It is better that both should drink and die, rather than that one should witness the death of his colleague,’ until Rabbi Akiba came and taught: that thy brother may live with thee²⁰⁶ — thy life takes precedence over the life of thy colleague.”He repeated [the phrase] that thy brother may live with thee,²⁰⁶ in order to emphasize and stress [that we are not to take from him any interest or increase, as is stated in the first part of that verse]. And the Rabbinical interpretation is as follows:²⁰⁷ “Return to him the interest, so that he may live with you.” Thus He commanded the return of [previously] stipulated interest, similar to that which He said in the case of robbery, and he shall restore that which he took by robbery.²⁰⁸Now Onkelos rendered ‘geir v’thoshav vachai imach’ [generally translated: a stranger and a settler that he may live with thee] as part of the positive commandments [enumerated here, thus meaning:] “he shall sojourn and settle and live with you.”²⁰⁹. And the verse continues to explain how you are to uphold him: “he is to sojourn and settle and live with thee.” But according to the Rabbis, as Ramban continues, the sense of the verse is etc. But according to the opinion of our Rabbis in the Gemara,²¹⁰ the sense of the verse is as follows: [“And if thy brother be waxen poor …] then thou shalt uphold him, and [thou shalt also uphold] a stranger and a settler, so that each one of them shall live with thee.”