פירוש על ויקרא 19:23

וערלתם ערלתו את פריו meant lit., ye shall close its closing (regard it as enclosed): the meaning being that it shall be, as it were, closed up and barred so that no benefit may be derived from it.

VA’ARALTEM ORLATHO’ THE FRUIT THEREOF. “[This means literally]: ‘ye shall close its closing,’ meaning that it shall be closed up and hidden so as not to have any benefit from it.” This is Rashi’s language, and he has explained it well. And if so, ‘erel’ of heart¹⁵⁴Ezekiel 44:9. means “closed of heart,”¹⁵⁵It is generally translated: uncircumcised in heart. just as it is said, and I will rend the enclosure of their heart.¹⁵⁶Hosea 13:8. Similarly, ‘areila’ is their ear¹⁵⁷Jeremiah 6:10. means “their ear is closed and dulled so that no sound enters therein.” And ‘aral’ of the lips¹⁵⁸Exodus 6:12. means “closed of lips,” for defective speech is a result of an impediment and obstruction in the veins of the tongue, or sometimes in those of the lips, which have not been properly opened. Speech is referred to in Scripture by the term “opening,” thus: Open thy mouth for the dumb¹⁵⁹Proverbs 31:8. [which means, “speak up in the cause of the dumb”]; Job opened his mouth;¹⁶⁰Job 3:1. and the opening of my lips shall be right things;¹⁶¹Proverbs 8:6. keep the doors [literally: “openings”] of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom.¹⁶²Micah 7:5. Now Scripture uses the expression “closing up” with reference to the fruit of the first three years, so as to prohibit the deriving of any benefit from it, although it does not express it in this way with reference to other things from which we are also forbidden to derive any benefit [e.g., diverse kinds in a vineyard].¹⁶³Deuteronomy 22:9. This is because the appearance of the fruit in its earliest stage is called “opening,” just as it is said, the vine-blossom has opened.¹⁶⁴Song of Songs 7:13. Therefore He said, three years shall it be ‘areilim’ unto you, as if the fruits are closed up in the trees, and have not put forth buds nor opened blossoms.
The reason for this commandment is to honor the Eternal with the first of all our produce of the fruits of the tree and the increase of the vineyard, and that we are not to eat of them until we bring all the fruit of one year [i.e., the fourth year after the planting] for giving praise unto the Eternal.¹⁶⁵Verse 24. Now the fruit of the first three years is not fit to be brought before the Glorious Name¹⁶⁶Deuteronomy 28:58. because it is small; neither does the tree in its first three years impart good taste or flavor into its fruit. Besides, most trees do not bring forth fruit at all until the fourth year. Therefore we are to wait with all of them [an equal period of time], and are not to taste of their fruit until we have brought of the planting which we have done, all its first good fruit to be holy before G-d, and there [in Jerusalem] we are to eat it and praise the Name of the Eternal. Thus this commandment is like that of the first-fruits.¹⁶⁷Ibid., 26:1-11. It is furthermore true that the fruit which comes forth from the tree when it is first planted, contains an abundance of moisture which attaches to and is harmful to the body and it is not good to eat it, just like a fish which has no scales and all food, forbidden by the Torah, which are harmful also¹⁶⁸See Ramban above, 11:13, and 17:11, that the harm is chiefly to the soul of the person. This is the intention of Ramban’s expression here that the forbidden foods are “also” harmful to the body. to the body.
The Rabbi [Moshe ben Maimon] also gave in the Moreh Nebuchim the same type of reason for this commandment as he gave for most of these commandments, namely, that the magicians and sorcerers of those days used to practice certain deeds of witchcraft at the time of the planting of the trees, thinking that by so doing they would accelerate the coming out of the fruits before their natural time, and when the fruits appeared, they would offer them to the idol in the name of which that witchcraft was performed. Therefore the Torah commanded that the fruits which come out before three years [after the planting of the tree] should be forbidden [to derive any benefit from], in order that people should not come to practice these evil deeds, for most trees bring forth fruits in the fourth year, and that we are then to eat them before G-d [in Jerusalem], contrary to their eating of them before the idols.

וכי תבאו אל הארץ, "and when you arrive in the country, etc." This verse contains three commandments. 1) The arrival in the land of our ancestors. We understand this in accordance with Ketuvot 110 that הכל מעלין לארץ ישראל, a father may force all the members of his household to migrate to the land of Israel as opposed to leaving the land of Israel. 2) One must plant fruit-bearing trees in order to enhance the stature of the land. 3) One has to observe the years of ערלה before one is entitled to eat or use the fruit of these trees.

וערלתם, you will treat it as totally out of bounds, keeping your distance from it. The word occurs in a similar sense both in Jeremiah 6,10 ערלה אזנם, referring to the people’s ears, and in Ezekiel 44,9 ערל לב, describing the heart as totally unapproachable. We also find it in a similar sense in Chabakuk 2,16 שתה גם אתה והערל, where it also denotes someone utterly disgraced.

ונטעתם כל עץ מאכל, “you will plant every kind of fruit-bearing tree.” After the Torah had discussed halachic aspects of planting seeds in the field, we now hear about halachic aspects of planting orchards. Placing seed inside a woman or placing seed inside the earth are activities that have quite a bit in common with one another.

It should be permitted after three years. And the verse would mean as follows: Three years the fruit shall be closed off and from then onwards it will be permitted. (Nachalas Yaakov) It seems to me that if we counted the three years from the time it produces fruit, we would obviously know that whatever grew during the three years is forbidden forever. But now that we count from its planting even if it produced nothing, and that which grows after three years is permitted immediately, this implies that the matter does not depend on fruit but on years. So one may have thought that even that which grew within the three years is permitted after three years since the matter is dependent on years. Therefore, the verse says, “it shall be.”

וערלתם, the expression ערלה basically describes an infant, which during the first three years of its life is totally illiterate. After that it begins to learn to speak intelligently; in other words, it produces some “fruit,” during that year, and during the next year it learns how to read and write, i.e. to understand parts of the Torah. Subsequently such youngsters begin to make contributions to civilised society. (Compare Talmud, tractate Baba Batra folio 21, where a youngster is described as having to study Torah from the age of six as he is mature enough). Compare also Ethics of our Fathers chapter 5 Mishnah 21 where a youngster of five years is described as ready to study the written text of the Torah.

וכי תבואו אל הארץ, “when you will come into the land;” after the Torah had discussed “seed” in connection with both the woman and the earth, it now discusses seed of a tree that has been planted.

שלש שנים יהיה לכם ערלים THREE YEARS IT SHALL BE AS UNCIRCUMCISED UNTO YOU — From when does one count its three years? From the time of its (the tree's) being planted (Sifra, Kedoshim, Section 3 3). One might think that if one has laid it (the fruit) by during these three years it shall become permitted for use after the three years, Scripture therefore states, יהיה which implies it shall remain in its former state of being (forbidden as it was during the entire three years).

וערלתם ערלתו, “you shall treat its fruit as if uncircumcised. (forbidden)” Rashi views the choice of the term ערלה here as parallel to the meaning of the word when applied to the uncircumcised male, i.e closed off, אטום, not yet opened up. It is out of bounds, not yet to be enjoyed. Nachmanides also writes that there is something quite different in the prohibition of the fruit of newly planted trees during the first three years compared to other products the Torah has forbidden. The fact that it becomes permissible without our having to do anything to the fruit itself, once sufficient time has elapsed, lends support to the concept that ערלה is nothing else but a “closed door” which in due course will open. We find that the development of the fruit is referred to as פתיחה, compare Song of Songs 7,13 פתח הסמדר, “the blossoms opened up.” The Torah portrays the fruit of the first three years as if they had not yet “opened up.” The underlying reason for this commandment is parallel to the commandments governing agricultural products, such as the setting aside challah, the first part of dough when making bread, leaving a small section of one’s harvest uncut for the poor, donating terumah to the priest, G’d’s representative on earth, etc. In each of these instances the idea is that before we ourselves partake of G’d’s bounty, we indicate by performance of the respective commandments that we are aware of the origin of our wealth and that we are grateful to the Creator for this. If, in the case of orlah, these early fruit are not presented as a gift, the reason may be that such a gift of relatively underdeveloped fruit might be viewed as inappropriate, seeing that it is inferior. This is the reason why the fruit of the fourth year is treated as suitable for consumption in the holy city of Jerusalem, and only in the year following this is the tree’s bounty freely available to the owner of the orchard. (Verses 24-25) (The fruit of the fourth year is treated like the second tithe, מעשר שני, in that it is sacred to the extent that it either may be consumed only in Jerusalem, or redeemed so that the money of the proceeds is spent in Jerusalem. (Sifra) Nachmanides adds that it is true, (as scientists claim) that there is also a health hazard when the fruit of the first three years are consumed [raw, I presume, Ed.] as there is excessive acidity. Moreover, in the majority of cases the tree does not even produce fruit during the first tree years after having been planted, depending on climate and the quality of the soil, etc. Maimonides advances these considerations as the reason for the prohibition in his Moreh Nevuchim¸ section 3, chapter 37. He mentions that in earlier times the magicians, etc., in order to establish their reputation as quasi-deities, used to add some kind of poison to newly planted trees, which they knew would lose its power after a certain length of time. They would make you believe that it was they who had made these poisons harmless, the ordinary person not having any knowledge of the nature of such poisons, and thinking that whereas without the blessing of the magician they might have died, the magician possessed power over life and death, whereas in fact he only exploited the ignorance of natural science of the common man. [I gave just one example of how the ignorance and gullibility of the man in the street enabled the magicians to prosper from their superior knowledge. Ed.] When the appropriate time had arrived, these magicians would sacrifice some of this fruit to their particular deity, claiming that this sacrifice made the fruit safe for the multitude.

The verse says: “it shall be.” Meaning, in the forbidden state it had during the three years, so it shall be forever.

The introduction of the verse with the letter ו at the beginning of this paragraph indicates that one's migration to the land of Israel should not be motivated purely by self-gratification but it should be accompanied by a love for the land G'd has given us as an inheritance, the land G'd has chosen for His name to dwell in. Mount Zion bears His name. The Torah commands us to plant these trees so that we should not think all we have to do in the Holy Land is to simply it make it our home without civilising the country. You have appreciated that the words אל הארץ, to the land, etc., imply that the Torah speaks about spiritual values connected with this land.

ונטעתם, “when you will plant;” this expression teaches that the laws about orlah do not apply to branches only grafted onto a tree, nor do they apply to trees that grew as a result of someone having discarded a kernel or seed that had been dropped onto the earth unintentionally and had taken root. When this tree had grown in a region that is inhabited by people, it is considered as if it been planed intentionally, and is subject to the rules following. (Jerusalem Talmud, tractate Orlah 1,1)

Perhaps we may look at the verse homiletically and view in the expression עץ מאכל, "a fruit-bearing tree" an allusion to Torah students who are also referred to as נטעים, "saplings" on occasion. The Talmud Shabbat 118 quotes Rabbi Yossi as sayings: "I have had marital relations on five occasions and I have planted five saplings." [in my text of the Talmud the word is not saplings but ארזים mighty cedars. Ed.] He referred, of course, to the five Torah scholars whom he fathered as a result of these unions and who are all enumerated by name in the Talmud. We have a verse in Isaiah 65,22 which describes the lives of "My people are like the life of a tree." The Zohar writes something similar on the commandment in Deut. 20,19 where the Torah prohibits destroying fruit-bearing trees in order to conquer a town one has laid siege to sooner. The words not to "destroy its trees" are understood as referring to Torah students. The air in the Holy Land helps in the acquisition of wisdom and purifies one's soul as we know from Baba Batra 158. The reason Torah students are compared to fruit-bearing trees is that they provide spiritual food for their listeners. You may wish to read about a story about Rabbi Akiva in Massechet Kallah Rabbati chapter 2 which described the venerable Rabbi teaching an orphaned child how to read. The father of this child had encountered great difficulties in the hereafter until the day his son was able to read and recite prayers. This paved the way for his father's progress in the hereafter.

כל עץ מאכל, “every fruitbearing tree.” This excludes trees that bear no fruit, and trees planted as potential firewood or building material. (Sifra) The various shrubs that grow wild and provide us with their berries are also excluded from this legislation.

שלש שנים יהיה לכם ערלים, "for three years shall it be unto you as 'uncircumcised;'" the meaning of ערלים is אטומים, shut, impenetrable; during the first three years a Torah student studies he does not dare open his mouth to give forth of his newly acquired wisdom just as most babies do not speak intelligently during the first three years of their lives. (Tanchuma Kedoshim 14). One normally starts teaching the child Torah in his fourth year so that he can recite the most simple prayers. Prayers such as Keriat Shema, Modeh Ani are called here קדש הלולים. In the fifth year the fruit of the tree is permitted to be eaten, compare the Mishnah in Avot 5,24 that a five year old child is old enough to start learning the written Torah. He begins to qualify for the description "a fruit-bearing tree."

שלש שנים יהיו לכם ערלים, “for a period of three years they will be for you as if “uncircumcised;” (forbidden) anything that matured during these years from these trees after they had been planted may not be stored and eaten even after the three years have expired. It would be bad manners if they would be eaten before the firstling fruit had been offered as an offering to G-d in the Temple first. [It would be equally bad manners to bring such an offering only several years after that fruit had ripened, even if it could have been preserved in prime condition. The laws governing such firstling fruit limit their being offered in the Temple later than by Chanukah following their being harvested. Ed.] Seeing that the fruit grown during that period is not of prime quality, it would be insulting to offer it to G-d. לכם, “for you (plural mode);” this is to include fruit trees grown for the benefit of the community as opposed to fruit grown for the benefit of the individual owner (Sifra).

The Torah immediately follows with the prohibition לא תאכלו על הדם, "do not eat it with blood!" This is a hint that one should not make the consumption of physical food a totally secular experience as if one's life were bound up in the act of eating, much as the life of an animal is bound up in its blood. לא תנחשו, "do not practice divination." If one were to eat blood one identifies with the concept of the נחש, the original serpent, Satan the seducer. Isaiah describes the mystical dimension of this when he wrote (Isaiah 65,25) "and the bread of the serpent is dust." According to this it is the serpent's nature to try and consume man who is made of dust, or to reduce man to a totally materially oriented creature. לא תעוננו, "do not practice soothsaying." We find a reference to this in Job 7,9 כלה ענן וילך, "just as the cloud once it has disappeared is gone forever, so man, once he has died is gone forever." This verse describes people who spent their lives chasing only the physical, the tangible, ignoring life's spiritual aspects. The Torah exhorts us not to exhaust our existence in our physical needs and pleasures.