Do not wrong another

B’Har

Lev. 25:1 - 26:2

Précis: The parasha begins with a description of the Sabbatical Year and the Jubilee (Yovel) Year. In the 50^th (Jubilee) Year, we are to “proclaim liberty throughout the land” and property is restored to its ancestral owners. The parasha continues with the prohibition against unlimited slavery, as well as the rules for the treatment of those who are slaves.

Lev. 25:14 – “When you sell property to your neighbor or buy any from your neighbor,  you shall not wrong (AL TONU) one another.” 

Lev. 25:17 – “Do not wrong (V'LO TONU) one another; but fear your God, for I am the Lord, your God.” 

            As pointed out by Rabbi Daniel Goldfarb (Torah Sparks, 5/25/16), two important economic principles are set forth in the space of just three verses.

            In the course explaining property sales and other interpersonal actions, the text bars “wronging” others. Goldfarb suggests that this translation is too broad. Citing Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch, the first verse means taking advantage of the weakness of another in order to deprive him financially.  In the second verse, the prohibition refers to verbal wrongdoing.

            Jewish law deals extensively with the need for honest dealing in commercial matters, including a ban on deceptive sales practises and a bar against overcharging. The importance of fair dealing in a commercial sense is underscored by a Talmudic dictum (Shabbat 31a) which states that the first question one is asked upon one’s arrival in heaven is whether his business affairs have been conducted with integrity.

            We also know that verbal injuries are viewed very dimly by the tradition. The Sages complain constantly against exploiting another’s weakness or being insensitive to his feelings, noting that the proximity of the phrase “for I am the Lord, your God” accompanies the ban on verbal attacks, rendering them even more important than commercial misdeeds.

            There is much for us to learn from our ancient texts about the need to deal properly with our fellow humans in both commercial and interpersonal relations.