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ובקצרכם AND WHEN YE REAP [THE HARVEST OF YOUR LAND, THOU SHALT NOT MAKE CLEAR RIDDANCE OF THE CORNER OF THE FIELD] — Scripture repeats the prohibition here (although it has already been mentioned above, 19:9) in order to make one who transgresses this law infringe two negative commands. R. Abdima the son of R. Joseph said: What reason had Scripture to place it (the law concerning the corner of the field) amidst those regarding the festival-sacrifices — those of Passover and Pentecost on this side of it, and those of the New Year, Day of Atonement and “the Feast” (Tabernacles) following on that side of it? To teach you that he who leaves the gleanings, the forgotten sheaf and the corner of the field to the poor as it ought to be, is regarded as though he had built the Temple and offered his sacrifices therein (cf. Sifra, Emor, Chapter 13 11).

AND WHEN YE REAP THE HARVEST OF YOUR LAND, THOU SHALT NOT WHOLLY REAP THE CORNER OF THY FIELD, NEITHER SHALT THOU GATHER THY GLEANING OF THY HARVEST: THOU SHALT LEAVE THEM FOR THE POOR. Rashi comments: “He repeats once more these prohibitions [although they have been mentioned above, 19:9] in order to make one liable for transgressing two negative commandments [in each case].” And Rabbi Abraham ibn Ezra said that the reason [for the repetition] is because the Festival of Weeks is the day on which the first-fruits of wheat harvest³¹⁶Exodus 34:22. [are brought as a meal-offering, in the form of the two leavened loaves], therefore He warned that “you should not forget what I have commanded you to do in those days.” The correct interpretation appears to me to be that the expression, And when ye reap the harvest of your Land alludes to “the harvest” mentioned at the beginning of this section,³¹⁷Above, Verse 10. thus stating that when you will come into the Land and you reap the sheaf, the first-fruits of your harvest,³¹⁷Above, Verse 10. thou shalt not wholly r,eap the corner of that field for the sake of the sheaf, neither shall you gather the gleaning, meaning to say that this commandment [of bringing the omer²⁴³Literally: “a measure.” This refers to the meal-offering of the new barley brought on the second day of Passover, which is the sixteenth day of Nisan. From that day on we count the forty-nine “days of the omer,” and on the fiftieth day is the Festival of Weeks. Thus it is clear that the time of this festival is dependent upon the omer.] does not override these negative commandments.

ובקצרכם , after giving thanks for the harvest and its successful storing of it in the barns, the Torah warns of what has to be done to ensure that the financial success which this harvest represents not be ruined. This is why the farmer is commanded to set aside, or simply not harvest, such incidentals as are referred to as לקט, שכחה, פאה, which in the words of our sages in Ketuvot 66 are viewed as מלח ממון חסר, ואמרי לה חסד. “money cannot be salted away (for safekeeping.)” Some people, in a play on words, change the word חסר for חסד, loving kindness, a kind of charity,” suggesting that the only way to ensure that one does not lose one’s own money is by engaging liberally in handing out charity to the deserving. The legislation in our verse then is this insurance for the farmer not to lose his crop even after he has already brought it into the barn.

ובקצרכם, on the day following the Passover, (16th of Nissan) after the Omer and the sheep which is part of that offering, had been offered on the altar.

ובקצרכם את קציר ארצכם, “When you reap the harvest of your land, etc.” Ibn Ezra writes that the reason the Torah introduces the subject of the harvest here is that the festival of Shavuot occurs right in the middle of the harvesting season, and the Israelite needs to be reminded of his duties vis a vis that festival at a time when he is so engrossed in bringing in his harvest. Nachmanides writes: the true reason, in my opinion is, that the introductory letter ו in the word ובקצרכם is a reference to the first time when the Torah commanded a mitzvah related to the harvest, when it spoke about the omer the offering of a sheaf of the early barley harvest on the second day of the Passover festival. At that time, the Torah had introduced the subject with the words כי תבואו אל הארץ...וקצרתם את קצירה in verse 10 of our chapter, implying that we must not shortchange the poor in order to fulfill the commandment of bringing that omer, by harvesting also the last corner of the field. Normally, when a positive commandment conflicts with a negative commandment and is due simultaneously, the positive commandment can override the negative commandment. In the example mentioned this is not so. (Compare verse 22)

ובקצרכם, “when you harvest, etc.” The reason the word קצר occurs twice in this verse is to teach that failure to observe the statute laid down here makes one guilty of two separate violations. Rabbi Avdimi son of Rabbi Yossi, asked: “why did the Torah see fit to mention this legislation of leaving the corner of one’s field for the poor in the middle of the paragraphs detailing the festivals so that Passover and Shavuot are before this legislation and Rosh Hashanah, Yom Hakippurim and Sukkot after it?” It is to teach that anyone who observed this legislation properly is considered as if he personally had built the Temple and offered sacrificial offerings in it. This is why the paragraph concludes with the words אני ה' אלוקיכם, “I am the Lord your G’d” (and can be depended upon to reward you for your performance of these commandments).

Leave [it] before them. Nachalas Yaakov asks: Why did Rashi not explain this above in parshas Kedoshim (Vayikra 19:10) where it is also written [regarding left over grapes], “You shall leave them for the poor and the proselyte?” Also, how can Rashi [here] expound two lessons from one word? I think that one question answers the other. Since it is already written “you shall leave” in parshas Kedoshim to teach “Leave [it] before them, etc.,” if so, “you shall leave” over here is apparently superfluous and comes for us to expound another lesson, that [besides] “Leave [it] before them and they will gather [it],” also, “You must not help any one of them [in preference to anyone else].” Rashi wanted to write both these lessons at one time and therefore he waited until here.

ובקצרכם את קציר ארצכם, "And when you reap the harvest of your land, etc." Why does the Torah introduce this kind of legislation at this juncture when it is totally out of context with the subject matter being legislated in this chapter? Perhaps the Torah wanted to inform us that the owner of a field from which the barley for the Omer sacrifice has already been taken is still subject to the variety of tithes the farmer is commanded to leave for the poor when he harvests his field. Had the Torah not written this I might have thought that inasmuch as this field had already become a sacrifice to G'd in that the Omer of barley had been offered from it on the altar it would no longer be subject to the legislation of the various donations which have to be separated from the harvest. Perhaps this is why only two of those gifts to the poor are mentioned here, i.e. פאה ולקט, the corner and the gleanings, both of which are duties which devolve on the actual field itself. This is different from the legislation of שכחה, already harvested sheaves, which the owner has forgotten to pick up. Our sages in Torat Kohanim say that the Torah alludes to the moral-ethical message that anyone who gives פאה, לקט, and שכחה is considered as if he had assured the continued existence of the Holy Temple and had offered sacrifices therein; thus far Torat Kohanim. The reason they mention the word שכחה although it does not even appear in our verse is because it is also a commandment similar to לקט ופאה. In this way they have hinted at what we have written above.

ובקוצרכם את קציר ארצכם, “when you reap the harvests of your land, etc.;” seeing that the principal period of harvesting commences around the time of Shavuot, the Torah chose to speak of this season first, when discussing special laws of benefit to the poor connected with the act of collecting the harvest. Examples are: leaving a corner of the field uncut for the poor to help themselves, and not gleaning anything the reapers had dropped by mistake. (B’chor shor)

תעזב THOU SHALT LEAVE [THEM UNTO THE POOR] — leave these in front of them and they shall gather: you are not allowed to assist one of them to the injury of another poor man (Sifra, Kedoshim, Chapter 3 5; Mishnah Peah 5:6).

אני ה' אלוקיכם, the many faceted functions of G’d are alluded to here, i.e. that G’d’s supervision is needed at all stages of the growing of the crop,; He is the G’d of the reapers, the G’d of the collectors. G’d says that “My regulations are designed to be beneficial for you the grower, for the poor who collects the gleanings. I will deal beneficially with those who have already demonstrated their concern for others by complying with the legislation set forth here.”

אני ה' אלהיכם I AM THE LORD YOUR GOD, Who am faithful to pay you your reward.