Parshas Behar begins with the mitzva of shemita, which forbids performing agricultural work during the seventh year. For an entire year, all farmers must leave their fields alone, refraining from plowing, planting, and large scale harvesting. The Torah anticipates the concern that people will have suspending all farming activity for the entire year: “And if you say: What will we eat during the seventh year, if we will not plant and not gather our grain?!” (25:20).
God responds that He will have the land produce extra food during the sixth year, to provide a surplus that will sustain the people 25:21
Rav Elimelech of Lizhensk, in Noam Elimelech, cites his brother, Rav Zusha of Anipoli, as raising the question of why the Torah presents this promise in the form of a response to the people’s question. Why did God not simply assure us that we will be cared for despite not planting during the shemita year? Why is this promise first prefaced with the question that the Torah anticipates people asking “what will we eat in the seventh year?”
From the Torah’s presentation, Rav Zusha noted, it appears as though this promise is made only in response to the people’s question. If the people would not ask this question, then God would not send a special blessing providing extra produce during the sixth year. How is this possible? Why would God grant His special blessing only because the people worriedly ask “what will we eat in the seventh year?”
Rav Zusha answered that Hashem created the world with “pipelines” through which His blessing descends into the world. Constantly, at all times, He is sending us our sustenance, providing us with what we need. However, Rav Zusha explained, a deficiency in our bitahon, our trust in Hashem, interferes with this system. When we start worrying, when we are afraid that maybe we won’t have what we need, it is as though we puncture holes in the pipes that bring us blessing, such that the blessing “leaks” from the pipes and thus cannot reach us.
When the people ask “what will we eat in the seventh year?” they damage the pipelines, so-to-speak. God, in His infinite mercy, announces “I will command my blessings in the sixth year;” He will repair the damage so that His beracha can descend despite our deficient faith. If we hadn’t asked this question, if our faith had been firm, and we hadn’t entertained any doubts about our financial security during and after shemita, the pipelines would have continued functioning normally, and so there would have been no need for a special beracha. It is only because of our deficient faith, our unnecessary anxiety, that this blessing is necessary.
We have to stop worrying about our parnasa, and about what the future will bring. Of course, we need to be responsible and put in the work, fulfilling our duty of hishtadlus, investing effort and taking the initiative to secure a livelihood. Concomitantly, however, we must place our trust in Hashem, remembering that He is caring for us and providing our needs at all times. We don’t ever need to ask “what will we eat on the seventh year”, worrying about how we will pay our bills. Instead, we should remain confident that Hashem is looking for out for us and ensure that we always have precisely what we are supposed to have.
