Rosh Hashanah 9b — the Talmud in English

The beraita above [8b] expounds the verse in the passage concerning the Jubilee [Leviticus 25:11]: "

It is a Jubilee year; the fiftieth year shall be for you."

Now the Gemara, the Talmudic discussion of the Mishna, cites a beraita that expounds what is stated in verse 10: "

It is a Jubilee; it shall be for you."

To understand the discussion before us, we will first note that the Torah states four laws concerning the Jubilee: [

a] The sounding of the shofar on Yom Kippur, as it is stated [in verse 9]: "On Yom Kippur you shall sound the shofar." [

b] The sending of the Hebrew slaves to freedom, as it is stated [in verse 10]: "You shall proclaim freedom throughout the land." [

c] The return of land. One who purchased a field from another must return it to him in the Jubilee, as it is stated [later in verse 10]: "You shall return, each man, to his ancestral property." [

d] The cessation of the land from sowing, harvesting, and gathering grapes, as it is stated [in verse 11]: "You shall not sow, and you shall not harvest its growth, and you shall not gather its grapes."

The Sages taught:

It is stated concerning the Jubilee in verse 10:

"It is a Jubilee

it shall be for you."

The words "it is a Jubilee" appear superfluous, since verse 11 states: "

It is a Jubilee; the fiftieth year shall be for you."

The Sages expounded the additional mention of the word "Jubilee" to teach:

Even though the people did not return

the lands they had purchased to their sellers,

and

even though they did not sound the shofar,

the fiftieth year nevertheless bears the designation "Jubilee year," and it is prohibited for one to sow, harvest, or gather grapes during that year.

One might have thought that the Jubilee takes effect

even if they did not

send

their slaves to freedom.

The verse states: "

Jubilee

it is."

The word "it" teaches that only when the law of sending slaves to freedom is fulfilled in the Jubilee is it "the Jubilee year."

If not, it is not a Jubilee year, and sowing, harvesting, and gathering grapes are permitted. [

The Gemara will later explain how we know that the word "it" teaches that the Jubilee depends on the sending of slaves, rather than on any of the other laws stated in the passage.]

These are

the words of Rabbi Yehuda.

Rabbi Yosei says:

It is stated

"It is a Jubilee."

The word "Jubilee" teaches that

even though the people did not return

the lands they had purchased, and

even though they did not send

the slaves to freedom, the fiftieth year is nevertheless "the Jubilee year," and sowing, harvesting, and gathering grapes are prohibited during it.

One might have thought that the Jubilee takes effect

even if they did not

sound

the shofar.

The verse states [the verse says this for this purpose]:

it states for this purpose]

"It."

The word "it" indicates exclusion: it—and not another.

The verse therefore comes to exclude this possibility, teaching that only if the shofar was sounded in the Jubilee year is it a Jubilee year.

But now, this must be explained, since we find one verse that includes and a second verse that excludes:

And since one verse ["

Jubilee"]

includes,

teaching that the Jubilee takes effect even though not all its laws were fulfilled,

and

opposite it

one verse ["

it"]

excludes,

teaching that it takes effect only if the laws of the Jubilee were fulfilled,

why do I say that the word

that the word

"Jubilee"

includes, teaching that the Jubilee takes effect

even though they did not send

the slaves, whereas the word "it" excludes,

and the Jubilee

does not take effect

unless they sounded the shofar?

Why should we not say the opposite?

Because it is possible that there will never be

an opportunity to fulfill the commandment of

sending the slaves

to freedom—for example, if there are no Hebrew slaves at all.

But it is impossible that there will never be

an opportunity for

sounding the shofar,

since shofars are available at all times; and it is logical that the verse made the laws of the Jubilee dependent only on something that is always possible.

Alternatively,

there is another reason why it is logical that the Jubilee depends on sounding the shofar and not on sending slaves:

this,

the commandment to sound the shofar,

is entrusted to the court,

which is charged with sounding the shofar on Yom Kippur, and it is in their power to instruct their agent to do so.

But if

this

were

the commandment to send slaves,

it would not be entrusted to the court,

but to the slaves' owners. If we were to say that the Jubilee takes effect only if the commandment to send slaves was fulfilled, it would follow that if a master refused to send his slave, the Jubilee would be nullified. It is therefore logical that the verse made the Jubilee dependent only on something entrusted to the court.

The Gemara discusses Rabbi Yosei's statement.

The Gemara asks:

What is the meaning of "alternatively"—

why did Rabbi Yosei add

"alternatively",

another reason, namely, that sounding the shofar is entrusted to the court whereas sending slaves is not entrusted to it? Why is the first reason not sufficient—that it is possible that there will never be an opportunity to send slaves? And they answer: This is what Rabbi Yosei said:

And if you would say,

if you reject the first reason and say:

It is impossible that there is not one person at the end of the world who does not send

his slave, since it is impossible that nowhere in the entire world there should be a person who owns a Hebrew slave and is obligated to send him to freedom!

Therefore, I will tell you another reason:

This [the sounding of the shofar]

the sounding of the shofar]

is entrusted to the court, whereas this [sending slaves to freedom]

is not entrusted to the court.

Now the Gemara discusses Rabbi Yehuda's position, according to which the Jubilee depends on sending slaves to freedom and not on sounding the shofar.

The Gemara asks:

Granted, according to

the view of

Rabbi Yosei,

who derives from the word "Jubilee" that it takes effect even if the slaves were not sent to freedom, and excludes from the word "it" that the Jubilee does not take effect if the shofar was not sounded—

as he stated his reason,

as he himself explained his reasoning.

But according to

the view of

Rabbi Yehuda—

what is his reason?

Why does he derive from "Jubilee" that it takes effect even if the shofar was not sounded, and from "it" that it does not take effect when the slaves were not sent to freedom? And they answer:

The verse says: "

You shall sound a shofar blast,

and you shall proclaim freedom throughout the land—

—

And Rabbi Yehuda maintains

that

a verse is expounded

only with regard to what is written

before it,

immediately preceding it,

and not with regard to what is written

what is written

before that,

the verse preceding the immediately preceding verse.

Therefore Rabbi Yehuda expounded from the word "it" that the "freedom," meaning the sending of slaves to freedom, written in the preceding verse, is indispensable. But the sounding of the shofar, written two verses earlier, is not indispensable.

The Gemara further explains the meaning of "freedom" in the passage:

According to everyone,

according to all opinions,

"freedom"

stated in the passage

means "liberty".

Therefore they interpreted the word "freedom" as referring to sending slaves to freedom.

They explain:

What is the indication?

How do we know that the meaning of the word "freedom" is the sending of slaves to freedom?

As it was taught in a beraita: "Freedom" means nothing other than liberty.

Rabbi Yehuda said: What

is the

meaning of the word "freedom"?

Like one who may reside wherever he wishes,

like a free person who may live in any lodging he desires,

and transport merchandise to any country.

Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said:

This beraita

is

—

Rabbi Yehuda and Rabbi Yosei.

But the Sages

disagree with both of them and

say:

Whether it is the return of the fields, the sending of slaves to freedom, or the sounding of the shofar on Yom Kippur—

all three are indispensable to it,

to the Jubilee. If even one of these commandments was not fulfilled, the Jubilee does not take effect, and it is permitted to sow, harvest, and gather grapes during it, as in every other year.

And what is the reasoning of the Sages?

They maintain that the

that the

verse "

it"

is expounded both

both

with regard to what precedes it,

concerning freedom,

and also

both

with regard to what precedes that,

concerning the sounding of the shofar.

And it is likewise expounded

it is likewise expounded

with regard to what follows it,

concerning the return of the fields. As it is stated:

a. "You shall sound the shofar."

b. "You shall proclaim freedom."

c. "It is a Jubilee."

d. "You shall return, each man, to his ancestral property."

And they challenge this:

But is it not written, "Jubilee

is," and the word "Jubilee" is also superfluous? What do the Sages include from it?

And they answer: That

particular "Jubilee"

includes

even outside Eretz Yisrael,

where the slaves are sent to freedom.

They challenge this:

But it is written "

You shall proclaim freedom

throughout the land,"

which implies that the Jubilee applies only in Eretz Yisrael and not outside Eretz Yisrael!

And they answer: That verse

itself, "throughout the land," teaches that only

throughout the land," teaches that only

when freedom is practiced in the land,

when the majority of its inhabitants live there, does freedom

apply also

freedom also practiced

outside Eretz Yisrael.

But

when it is not practiced in the land —

it does not apply

also

outside Eretz Yisrael.

We learned in the Mishna: On the first of Tishrei is the New Year for years,

and for the planting,

with regard to counting the first three years during which the tree's produce is forbidden as orla, the prohibition on eating produce of a tree during its first three years. Even if a tree was planted in Av, its first year ends at the end of Elul, and the second year begins to be counted on the first of Tishrei.

The Gemara asks:

From where do we know

this matter, that the first of Tishrei is the New Year for planting?

As it is written [Leviticus 19:23]:

"For three years

"For three years

it shall be for you

uncircumcised

".

And it is written

in the following verse:

"And in the fourth year

all its fruit shall be sacred, for praise to the Lord."

From here, it follows that the three years of orla end in the fourth "year."

And he derives,

the tanna, a sage of the Mishnaic era, derived through a deduction based on the identical expression

"year"—

"year" from

a year that begins in

Tishrei:

As it is written [Deuteronomy 11]: "The eyes of the Lord your God are upon it [Eretz Yisrael, to judge

от начала года"

from the beginning of the year

[what will happen at its end]." The Gemara above [8a] proved that the first of Tishrei is the New Year for this matter.

And they challenge this: Why did the tanna derive "year"—"year" through this deduction from a year that begins in Tishrei?

Let him derive [

let him learn]

"year"—

"year" from

a year that begins in

Nisan.

As it is written [Exodus 12:2]:

"It is the first

"It is the first

[Nisan]

for you, among the months of the year!"

And they answer:

We derive,

we learn,

"year"

as stated with regard to planting,

which does not have

the word

"months" mentioned along with it, from "year"—

the year that begins in Tishrei,

which does not have

the word

"months" mentioned along with it.

But we do not derive

or learn

"year"

as stated with regard to planting,

which does not have

the word

"months" mentioned along with it, from "year"—

the year that begins in Nisan,

which does have "months" mentioned along with it, as it is stated: "For the months of the year."

as it says, "for the months of the year."

The discussion before us deals with the prohibition of orla for one who planted a tree before the New Year: when is one year counted for him, and when does the prohibition of orla end?

The Sages taught:

Whether one who plants

a sapling,

whether one who bends a branch into the ground,

bending the branches down to the ground, covering part of them with earth, and cutting the branch off from the tree,

or whether one who grafts

a branch of one tree onto the trunk of another tree —all these are considered new plantings.

And if he made them in

the eve of the seventh year, thirty days before Rosh Hashanah—

when Rosh Hashanah arrived,

a year was counted for him

as the first toward the count of the years of orla. And from now he need count only two more years for the prohibition of orla.

And

likewise

it is permitted to maintain them

these saplings that he planted up to thirty days before Rosh Hashanah,

in the seventh year,

for these saplings are not included among the produce of the seventh year.

But if he planted, layered, or grafted

less than thirty days before Rosh Hashanah [

which is something that is forbidden to do on the eve of the seventh year], then when Rosh Hashanah arrived—

a year was not counted for him

as the first toward the count of the years of orla, until the following Rosh Hashanah.

And

if that year was the eve of the seventh year,

it is forbidden to maintain them [

those saplings]

in the seventh year,

because it is forbidden by Torah law to plant thirty days before the seventh year, on account of the addition to the seventh year.