Commento su Deuteronomio 14:27

והלוי … לא תעזבנו AND THE LEVITE [THAT IS WITHIN THY GATES;] THOU SHALT NOT FORSAKE HIM by not giving him the “First Tithe” (מעשר ראשון).

והלוי אשר בשעריך לא תעזבנו, but let him share in your joy so that G’d in turn will have reason to be good to you.

By neglecting to give him the first tithe. This [verse, “You must not abandon,”] does not mean to invite the Levite to your table if he neither has first tithes nor tithes to the poor, as Rashi explained above regarding (12:18), “Before Adonoy, your God, are you to eat it ... you and your son ... [and the Levite], etc.” For the verse above refers to eating, as it is written, “Before Adonoy, your God, are you to eat it, etc.” But here the Levite is not included in eating with him. For it is written, “You will eat it there in the presence of Adonoy ... and you will rejoice, you and your household, etc.,” and the matter is concluded and another verse begins, “And the Levite who is in your city, you must not abandon” — by neglecting to give him his portion which is the first tithe.

V. 27. והלוי וגו׳ (siehe zu Kap. 12, 12 u. 19). Wir haben bereits bemerkt, wie die durchaus bedingte und beschränkte Weise, in welcher das Gesetz die מעשר-Pflicht statuiert, erkennen lassen dürfte, wie die Zwecke, welchen der Zehnte zugewendet wird, also auch die Levitenverforgung durch מעשר ראשון, keineswegs durch diese Zehnten ihre ganze Pflege finden sollen, diese vielmehr nur als Mahnung an die Verpflichtung für diese Zwecke im Momente der Selbsterhaltungstätigkeit zu begreifen wären. Die מעשר ראשון-Spende an den Lewi ist bereits in dem עשר תעשר, welches das מעשר שני eben als zweiten, wiederholten Zehnten bezeichnet, angedeutet und dürfte auch hier das והלוי אשר בשעריך לא תעזבנו, über die מעשר ראשון-Spende hinausgehen. So auch ספרי z. St. בכל מקום שאתה מוצא חלוי הזה תן לו מחלקו אין לו חלקו תן לו מעשר עני — (כן הוא גירסת חילקוט ,בספרי איתא מעשר שני ,ונראה דלפי דקימא לו [קידושין נ׳׳ד ב׳] ברבי מאיר דממון גבוה הוא ולא מצי יהיב ליה במתנה גרסת הילקוט עקר) — אין לו מעשר עני לו שלמים ,אין לו שלמים פרנסהו מן הצדקה.

והלוי אשר בשעריך, “and the Levite who is within your gates;” you are not to seek out Levites that do not live within your cities to give these tithes to. (Ibn Ezra)

כי אין לו חלק ונחלה עמך OR HE HATH NO PORTION NOR INHERITANCE WITH THEE — This excludes “Gleanings” (לקט), “the forgotten sheaf” (שכחה), the “corner of the field” (פאה), and ownerless things (הפקר) from the things that must be tithed — for he (the Levite) has a portion in them (is entitled to take of them) with you, just the same as you, and they are therefore exempt from tithes (Mishnah Challah 1:3; Bava Kamma 94a).

This excludes the gleaning, forgotten sheaves and edge of the field... Hence, they are exempt from tithing. I.e., why does the Levite have a portion in them? Because they — the gleaning, forgotten sheaves, edge of the field, and abandoned produce — are exempt from tithing. You might ask: Do we not find regarding the Levite in Parshas Korach (Bamidbar 18:29), “From all your gifts you must set aside all the terumah-gifts of Adonoy”? The answer is: Everything that it given to the Levites as a gift, tithes must be given from it. But these [the gleaning, forgotten sheaves, etc.] are not given to them as a gift. Rather, they are abandoned to all.

Das בכל מקום שאתה מוצא הלוי הזה des ספרי scheint eine Erläuterung des אשר בשעריך zu sein und unsere Auffassung (Kap. 12, 12) zu bestätigen, dass ungeachtet ihnen besondere Städte überwiesen waren, die Leviten doch im Lande zerstreut wohnten.

לא תעזבנו, “do not abandon him.” The Torah had already stated the same instruction in a positive formulation, i.e. to look after the Levites. (Deut. 12,12) Now it adds the negative aspect, forbidding us to abandon the Levite. The new angle here is that in the event that the tithes that the Levite in your town receives are not adequate, you must dig into your pocket to offer him additional support.