Parashat Behar-Bechukotai: Jewish Business Ethics

Topics

• Shemitah and Sinai
• Why Shemitah?
• Shmita and Sinai
• Beginning with Parashas Shmita
• Possible Reasons for Shmita
• The Core Point: Focus
• Why Does the Torah Repeat Itself?
• Shemitah Begins Immediately in the Proper Sense
• Parnassah Must Be L’shem Shamayim
• Shemitah and Har Sinai
• Parnassah L’shem Hashem
• Shemitah and the Reminder of Hashem
• The Chida’s Explanation of Shmita
• A Different Pshat: What Real Kollel Means
• Shmita as a Tikkun for Lost Learning
• Parnasa Is Only for Necessity
• Returning a Sold House
• The Severity of Ribis
• Ribbis Is Not “Just Business”
• Ribbis and Bitachon
• Trusting People Instead of Hashem
• Hashgachah Pratis and Yetzias Mitzrayim
• The Maharal and the Nachash
• Ribbis as a Denial of Hashgacha Pratis
• Maharal: Removing Hashem from Business
• The Connection to the Nachash
• Shulchan, Shlichus, and Parnassah
• Why Ribbis from a Goy Is Different
• Achdus of Klal Yisrael
• Sinai, Arvus, and Parnassah
• Ribbis and the Oneness of Klal Yisroel
• A Business Opportunity and a Lesson in Parnassah
• Arvus in Parnassah
• Business, Values, and What Children Absorb
• Giving, Taking, and the Government
• Money as a Lesson in Emunah
• Avraham and Bilam: Ayin Tovah and Kinah
• Ayin Tovah, Hashem’s Goodness, and Giving
• Ahavas Hashem and the Power of Recognizing Good
• The Akedah on Ayin Tovah
• How a Person Develops an Ayin Tovah
• Ahavas Hashem Through Recognizing Goodness
• The Mishnah’s Teaching About Avraham Avinu
• Money, Giving, and Parshas Behar
• Ayin Tov and the Meaning of Oichlin and Noichlin
• Noichlin la’olam haba and Nehenin mi’ziv haShechinah
• Money, Giving, and the Business World
• Behar and the Business World

Transcript

# Shemitah and Sinai

This Torah class is brought to you by TorahAnytime.com.

If you look through the parshiyos, the theme and connection among them seems to be parnassah: work of the land, sales of houses, lending, business, and ribbis. In other words, this parashah is basically about the laws and hashkafos of business.

The Torah tells us that these halachos, especially the first parashah of shvisah, of Shemitah, were said "behar Sinai leimor." It was said at Har Sinai. The whole Torah was given at Sinai, so why does the Torah stress that this parashah of Shemitah was "ne'emar b'Sinai"? Rashi explains that, indeed, the entire Torah is from Sinai, but just as the details of Shemitah were said at Sinai, so too the entire Torah was said at Sinai.

The parashah asks: if you want to teach us that, why choose Shemitah? If the point is to teach that the whole Torah is from Sinai, why not choose another mitzvah? Different parshanim give different reasons and explanations for why דווקא Shemitah was chosen as the example of a mitzvah said at Sinai, and each has its own mahalach, its own terutzim.

## Why Shemitah?

I would like to offer a pshat of what I think may be the reason Shemitah, from all other mitzvos, was chosen as the example of "nitnah b'Sinai." In light of what we just spoke about—that this parashah of Shemitah is about a person's parnassah, that he works for six years and in the seventh year he leaves his karka desolate, and that from this parashah continue all the other details and dinim of business, loans, ribbis, sales of houses, the real estate market, and so on—the Torah wants us to know that this is all b'Sinai.

The Torah wants us to remember תמיד that even in the marketplace, even in the laws of business and the ethics of business, it is all b'Sinai. Just like oneg Shabbos is b'Sinai, just like Shabbos is b'Sinai, and tefillin is b'Sinai, so too Shemitah is b'Sinai. This is almost in the spirit of what Rashi explains by "Eileh hamishpatim asher tasim lifneihem," where Rashi says that these too were said at Sinai. There too we ask: what is the chiddush? Why would I think mishpatim were not said at Sinai? The answer is because they deal with business, with monetary issues. So the Torah comes to teach us: kamash malan, they too were said at Sinai.

So perhaps here as well, the Torah stresses Sinai to show that the halachos of money, the halachos of commerce, and the dealings in business are all from Sinai.

### Shmita and Sinai

The Satmar Rav already noted a precise point: the verse does not say, *ma mitzvah Shmita, ne’emrah miSinai*; rather, it says *ma inyan Shmita eitzel Har Sinai*. The focus is not merely on the technical details of Shmita, but on the very idea of Shmita in relation to Har Sinai.

That is the question I want to discuss: what does it practically mean to bring Sinai into the business world? How does one take Sinai and carry it into commerce, into parnassah, into the marketplace? This is a conversation that could take far longer than a two-hour shiur on a Sunday. In truth, it may be a lifelong discussion.

### Beginning with Parashas Shmita

I would like to begin with the parashah of Shmita and then continue, בעזרת ה׳, with the parshiyos that follow it. The Torah says: *Ki savo’u el ha’aretz asher Ani nosein lachem, v’shavsa ha’aretz Shabbos laHashem.*

The first question is: why does the Torah add *asher Ani nosein lachem*? We already know that Hashem is giving the land to Klal Yisrael. That seems obvious. Why does the Torah repeat and emphasize it?

Another question is the phrase *Shabbos laHashem*. Rashi explains *laHashem*—but what is it excluding? What is the chiddush? A mitzvah is generally done *l’shem Shamayim*; perhaps here there is some special requirement of intention. This is good material for pilpul: why is *l’shem Hashem* emphasized specifically by Shmita?

### Possible Reasons for Shmita

Or perhaps we can say something else. Maybe the reason for Shmita is that a person should not work his land. Some mefarshim discuss that leaving the land fallow allows it to rest and may even improve its growth. One might think that if so, a person could observe Shmita with that practical benefit in mind. But the Torah says *l’Hashem*—it must be done for Hashem, not merely for the land’s benefit.

I believe the Rambam in Moreh Nevuchim says that one of the reasons for Shmita is indeed to give the land a rest. The point, however, is that even if there is a natural benefit, the mitzvah must still be done *l’shem Hashem*.

Or perhaps *l’shem Hashem* means something broader. It may not refer only to the mitzvah itself, but to the person’s entire orientation toward parnassah. It may be about the focus a person has in his six years of labor.

## The Core Point: Focus

The point is focus. That, I believe, is already the answer: all of these pesukim are pointing to one idea. The Torah wants a person, when he goes into business, to have focus. He has to understand what business is, what parnassah is, and perhaps even more importantly, who gives the parnassah.

## Why Does the Torah Repeat Itself?

Let us continue with a few more questions, and then this point will become clearer. The Torah could have simply said that in the seventh year you should not work the land. Why does it need to say that for six years you should work it? It is interesting that by Shabbos, too, the Torah says something similar. Rashi says that Shemitah is like Shabbos Bereishis. There, too, one could ask: why mention six days of work? It could have just said to keep Shabbos.

Perhaps the Torah is teaching that a person is supposed to work. There is a whole discussion here: maybe the Torah is telling us that one must work for six years, because otherwise a person becomes a batlan. Don’t think that sitting at home and doing nothing will bring bracha. Maybe that is the message. But I would rather leave that discussion for another time, because it is a topic of its own: whether work itself is required, whether one must work, and what the Torah’s view is on that question.

So let us assume that the Torah is not simply teaching us to work for six years. Then what is the chiddush? Another question: notice that in the first part it does not say “aretz,” it says “sodecha.” So why does the Torah later return to “sodecha”? Why the repetition? What is the Torah trying to emphasize?

Also, the pasuk is broken up in a strange way. It says, “Shabbos laShem,” then “shesh shanim tizra,” and then it returns again to “shabbos.” It already said Shabbos; why repeat it? First it says Shabbos, then six years of work, and then it goes back again. These are the complications of the diyukim. It is not my fault; the mefarshim already discuss all of this. The rishonim and mefarshim each ask why the wording is redundant, extra, or out of order. Clearly there is a message here. There is a lesson. Why is the Torah writing it this way?

And it is interesting: it says, “V’shavsa ha’aretz.”

## Shemitah Begins Immediately in the Proper Sense

The *Meshech Chochmah* is not saying that when you come to the Land you do not keep Shemitah until seven years later. That cannot be the simple reading of the pesukim. The Torah says, *“V’shavsa ha’aretz Shabbos laHashem”*—it sounds immediate. The various mefarshim offer different terutzim, but from them one can draw a central point: Shemitah begins the moment a person enters Eretz Yisroel.

How is that possible? After all, practically speaking, Eretz Yisroel is received before Shemitah is actually observed. One could say that it is a tenai, and that if a person accepts Shemitah with a good thought, the Ribbono Shel Olam considers it as though he has already fulfilled it. In that sense, the moment he enters the Land, he is already living with Shemitah.

But the deeper explanation is that Shemitah is not only a technical halachah. It is a way of life, a hashkafah, a focus. The Torah is teaching how a person must look at his work and his land. Every day, when he goes out to work the land, he must keep in mind: who gave this to me? Who gives me parnassah? Who is the true Baal Habayis?

That is the meaning of *“ki li ha’aretz”*—the land belongs to the Ribbono Shel Olam. If a person understands *“Ani nosen”*, that Hashem is the One who gives, then from the very moment he enters the Land he is already living with Shemitah. He is already keeping it in the proper sense, because his whole outlook is different.

For six years, the Torah wants a person to work the land as if it is his. But at the same time, he must keep before him a picture, a constant reminder, that it is really Hashem’s. That is what *“Shabbos laHashem”* means. It means a person must have focus and understand that everything is about the Ribbono Shel Olam.

## Parnassah Must Be L’shem Shamayim

When a person goes to work and it becomes about himself—about how he can make money, how he can prosper, how he can improve his own life—that is the danger. The Torah wants a person to go to work in order to make parnassah *l’shem Shamayim*, so that he can serve Hashem. Parnassah must have a greater purpose than money, a greater purpose than a nice house or a vacation. A person should make parnassah so that he can use the money for the Ribbono Shel Olam’s Torah and mitzvos.

This is also the meaning of *Bereishis*. Rashi says that Shemitah is like *Shabbos Bereishis*—a reminder of who created the world. In every act of parnassah, there must be clarity about who is Baal Ha’olam. When a person loses that focus, it becomes *kochi v’otzem yadi*—he starts thinking, “I made the money, I made the deal, I built this.” But the truth is that the Eibishter makes the deals.

Business is a place where, without the proper preparation and awareness, a person can easily become swallowed up by the illusion that he is the one in control. The Torah therefore emphasizes *Shabbos laHashem* and Shemitah as a constant reminder: the world was created by Hashem, and parnassah comes from Him.

## Shemitah and Har Sinai

With this understanding, we can explain something very interesting about the connection between Shemitah and Har Sinai. The Ribbono Shel Olam came down at Sinai, and there was a tremendous giluy Shechinah. Shemitah is also a giluy Shechinah. How can a land not be worked and yet still produce? Only because of the hand of Hashem.

So just as at Sinai it was clear that the Ribbono Shel Olam was present, so too Shemitah reveals that the Ribbono Shel Olam is the true source of everything. That is why *Shemitah etzel Har Sinai* is so fitting: Shemitah screams Sinai. It is a revelation of the Ribbono Shel Olam in parnassah and in the world.

## Parnassah L’shem Hashem

The point is that a person has to focus and understand that everything is about the Ribbono Shel Olam. When a person goes to work and it becomes about himself—about how he can make money, have a better life, prosper, and build his own success—that is the problem. The Torah wants that when you go to work, you go in order to make parnassah so that you can be oved Hashem. The whole purpose of parnassah has to be l’shem Hashem.

It has to be for a greater cause than money, greater than a nice house or a vacation. A person has to make parnassah l’shem Hashem, so that he can use the money for the Ribbono Shel Olam’s kovod, for the Ribbono Shel Olam’s Torah, and for the Ribbono Shel Olam’s mitzvos. That is what the Torah means in Bereishis. Rashi says, like Shabbos Bereishis: you have to remember who created the world. In every parnassah there has to be an understanding, a clarity, of who is Ba’al Ha’olam.

When a person loses that focus, parnassah turns into kochi v’otzem yadi. That is how a person becomes wrapped up in himself—“I’m building, I’m making, I’m making money.” How many times does a person say during the day, “I made money, I made this deal, I make deals”? The Eibishter makes deals. That is the nogeia. Business is a place where, without the proper focus and preparation, a person can quickly lose sight and think that he is the one making the money. The Torah therefore goes out of its way to teach us, through Shabbos Bereishis and through shemitah, to constantly remember who created the world.

## Shemitah and the Reminder of Hashem

Shemitah is a reminder for six years, and the seventh year is supposed to remind you: Shabbos laHashem, like Shabbos Bereishis—remember who created the world. Yes, the land is yours to work, but you have to remember that it was given to you for the sake of making parnassah and living. It still belongs to the Ba’al Habayis.

This is what shemitah is. With this, we can explain something very interesting. The inyan of Sinai was that the Ribbono Shel Olam came down to Har Sinai, and there was a tremendous giluy Shechinah. Shemitah is also a giluy Shechinah. How can a land not be worked and yet still grow? Only through the hand of Hashem.

So just like by Sinai, where the Ribbono Shel Olam descended and it was clear that the Ribbono Shel Olam was there, so too shemitah screams Sinai—the Ribbono Shel Olam. I think that after explaining the point of shemitah, we can now say there is a deeper meaning to the connection of shemitah and Har Sinai. It is like Sinai, where the Ribbono Shel Olam comes down. The skies opened up, and the Ribbono Shel Olam was revealed in parnassah.

## The Chida’s Explanation of Shmita

The Chida explains that one of the reasons for Shmita is that during the six working years, people would take two months off each year to work the fields, and over six years that adds up to twelve months. Shmita, he says, serves as a kind of compensation for that lost time.

The Heilige Sakmahov, however, raises a difficulty: how do we know that the entire twelfth month of Shmita is meant to make up for those earlier years? Perhaps the year of Shmita itself also requires full-time learning, aside from two months, and the ten remaining months are for that year alone. He takes the Chida apart and says he does not understand how the Chida knew that the purpose was to pay back the earlier years.

## A Different Pshat: What Real Kollel Means

I was thinking of a different pshat. In many communities there is something called a retirement Kollel. People who worked all their lives stop working and then join a Kollel. I have relatives like that: they worked day and night, and now they go to Kollel and walk around saying, “I’m a Kollel guy; I learn all day.” That is a good thing, and I am not putting down retirement Kollel.

But to sit in Kollel simply because you have nothing better to do is not the real idea. Real Kollel is when a person is busy, his mind is occupied with work, he is under pressure and worried about parnasa, and still he cuts away to learn. That is the real chashivus of learning.

## Shmita as a Tikkun for Lost Learning

So I understand the Chida differently. The whole point of Shmita is not just, “What will you do if you are not working? You have to learn.” That is not such a chiddush. If you are not working, what else are you going to do—go to the movies, go on trips, go golfing?

The chiddush is that the year of Shmita comes to be mesaken the years when you should have learned but were occupied with poverty, pressure, and parnasa. I am not saying you did not have to make parnasa. Of course you had to. But maybe there were extra hours here and there that were taken away from learning. Shmita comes to fix that.

That is the pshat in Shmita: it is meant to refocus a person. As the pasuk says, “Shei shanim tizra sadecha,” six years you sow your field, but the seventh year is different. It is a year of Shmita, a year that reminds you that the land and your time are not simply yours to use for endless accumulation. The purpose is to bring a person back to clarity about what life is for.

## Parnasa Is Only for Necessity

But you always have to remember that this is only for the sake of necessity. It is not meant to make a person rich and prosperous beyond what he needs. The way to approach it is to remember, even while doing all of this, that it is still: **"Shabbos LaShem, ha'aretz asher Ani noisen lachem."**

## Returning a Sold House

With that in mind, I want to move to the next parashiyos: the laws of houses that must be returned. Rav P. Six says that whenever something is sold, it can always be sold back. Why? We might think that when a person buys another house, he is prospering and becoming richer and richer. But that is not the meaning here.

The person is selling because he needs money. He has to sell whatever he has, according to the cheshbon of his situation. So you are only helping him get money for the moment. Once he is able to get it back, you have to give it back to him. It is not about business wealth; it is about parnasa, survival.

Therefore, there is no point in having ten houses. Today, people buy entire blocks of apartments so they can make more and more money. But that is not called parnasa. That is called greed—wanting to make money for the sake of money.

A person has to know that if he has money and the other person needs it, he has to somehow give that person the money. And therefore, if he can always buy back his house, you have to give him that opportunity.

## The Severity of Ribis

After this parasha, we have the parasha of lending money and ribis. What is ribis? Chazal treat it as one of the worst aveiros a person can do. Interest is considered among the most severe prohibitions.

The Gemara says that whoever takes ribis will not wake up at techiyas hameisim. For what? He took a dollar? Ribis can be two or three dollars; it does not have to be much. And still, the Gemara says he will not have techiyas hameisim.

The Gemara also says, in a Medrash Rabbah on Shemos, that it is as if he violated the entire Torah. No melitz, no malach, will want to defend a person who takes ribis.

The Baal HaTurim says that ribis is called neshech, from the word nachash. It is connected to the nachash, to the nachash hakadmoni. So what is the big deal? It is just a few dollars. In America we call that business. What is so terrible about it? A little business, a little profit, that is all.

So let us get to the bottom of the issur of ribis: what is the real problem with it?

## Ribbis Is Not “Just Business”

Rivka Yarka, and many learn it this way: a person may think, “I’m just trying to make money.” But the Torah is teaching something much deeper.

There was a story about the sale of burial plots. Two people in the city passed away, and the Chevra Kadisha came to the Rav and asked how much to charge for each space. The Rav asked who the deceased were. When he heard the names, he said, “Forget about the spaces. For that one, charge an unbelievable amount. For the other, give a discount, half price.”

They asked him why. He answered: “That man lends with ribbis. He is not getting up at techiyas hameisim. This is long-term real estate. For him, charge double or triple.” The point was not the joke itself, but the message: a person who takes ribbis is acting as though he is building permanent wealth, when in truth he is only dealing with temporary money.

## Ribbis and Bitachon

The Kli Yakar explains that the real issue behind ribbis is a lack of bitachon. If the Ribono Shel Olam wants a person to have money, he will have money. A person has to figure out a kosher way to make parnassah, but not by violating an issur.

At first glance, one might ask: maybe this is how he makes money. Maybe the Eibishter wants him to have money through business. But that is not the point. When a person takes ribbis, he is not showing trust in Hashem. He is trusting the borrower to pay him back, and that trust is misplaced.

The deeper point is that ribbis reflects a lack of trust in the Ribono Shel Olam. Instead of relying on Hashem, who guarantees parnassah, the person relies on another human being. That is why the pasuk says, “Or hagever asher yivtach ba’adam.” In this context, the trust is in man rather than in Hashem.

## Trusting People Instead of Hashem

The speaker explains that this is the real depth of the issur. A person may think, “I’m trusting the borrower.” But in truth, he is trusting people more than he trusts the Eibishter. And people do not always pay back. Credit and repayment are unreliable.

So the issue is not only financial. It is a spiritual distortion: instead of turning to Hashem for parnassah, the person turns to a human being and depends on him. That is why the pasuk contrasts “Baruch hagever asher yivtach baShem” with “or hagever asher yivtach ba’adam.”

The speaker notes that the wording itself is striking: “Tov livto’ach baShem, mivto’ach ba’adam.” The idea is that after one has placed trust in people and seen how unreliable that can be, he should realize that he must return to Hashem. The experience of trusting man teaches him to trust the Eibishter instead.

## Hashgachah Pratis and Yetzias Mitzrayim

This also explains why ribbis is connected to Yetzias Mitzrayim. The Chinuch explains that Shabbos teaches emunah in Borei Olam, while Pesach and Yetzias Mitzrayim teach emunah in hashgachah pratis.

When a person takes ribbis, he is denying hashgachah pratis. He is acting as though every penny is not carefully calculated by the Ribono Shel Olam. In that sense, he is a kofer in Yetzias Mitzrayim, because Yetzias Mitzrayim teaches that Hashem is exact and precise in His supervision.

The Torah therefore places ribbis together with the reminder of Yetzias Mitzrayim. The message is that Hashem is exact to the penny, and nothing is random.

## The Maharal and the Nachash

The speaker then connects this to the Nachash. The Maharal explains that the Nachash “bites” and takes away life-force. Likewise, when a person takes ribbis, he is biting into another person’s livelihood. He is taking from him what he needs to live.

The punishment of the Nachash also fits this theme. Hashem told the Nachash that he would eat earth wherever he goes. On the surface, that sounds like a benefit: food is always available. But the deeper meaning is that the Nachash can live without turning to Hashem. He can sustain himself in a way that disconnects him from the Ribono Shel Olam.

So the punishment is not only that he eats dust. It is that he is cut off from dependence on Hashem. That is the spiritual root of the connection between ribbis and the Nachash.

## Ribbis as a Denial of Hashgacha Pratis

The point is that when a person trusts people, he is really trusting that they will pay him the ribbis. So we say: you are a **kaifer**, because you are trusting men over the **Ribono Shel Olam**, who guarantees that He will give you parnassah.

What does this have to do with **Yetzias Mitzrayim**? I understand it as follows. The **Chinuch** explains that **Shabbos** teaches emunah in **Borei Olam**, while **Pesach** and Yetzias Mitzrayim teach emunah in **Hashgacha Pratis**. Where is a person denying the **Eibershter** when he takes ribbis? In Hashgacha Pratis. He does not understand that every penny that comes in is calculated by a tremendous bookkeeper. So it is really a **chisaron**, a **kefirah**, in Hashgacha Pratis. To the point that the person is a kaifer in Yetzias Mitzrayim. That is why the Torah connects it with Yetzias Mitzrayim.

The Torah says, **“Asher hotzeisi eschem me’eretz Mitzrayim,”** because the whole point is that Hashem is exact. Everything is with **cheshbon**. The Ribono Shel Olam is **pratti**; nothing is random. Therefore, when a person takes ribbis, he proves that he does not believe in **cheshbon HaRachmana** to the exact penny.

## Maharal: Removing Hashem from Business

With this, we can understand the **Maharal** in the **Haggadah Shel Pesach** and the drush on **Shabbos Hagadol**. He says that one who lends with ribbis is **meisir mimenu Hashgacha Pratis**. He removes from himself the special guidance of Hashem over his parnassah.

That makes a lot of sense. As I am explaining it, by denying Hashgacha Pratis and wanting to take ribbis, Hashem says: fine, I will leave you to the business world. That world is **“dog yidog,”** a world where fish swallow each other. In English, if I may use the expression, corporate takeovers are basically swallowing up the other company, and that is considered normal business. So if a person denies the Ribono Shel Olam’s Hashgacha Pratis—that Hashem gives each person exactly what he deserves—then Hashem is meisir His special guidance from that business.

## The Connection to the Nachash

I think with this we can also understand the connection to the **nachash**. The Maharal explains that the nachash bites and takes away the **chiyus**. He takes away life. So when a person takes away another person’s money, which he needs for his livelihood, he is biting him—**neishech**—and taking away his parnassah.

There is also a very simple way to understand the punishment of the nachash. Because of what he did, Hashem told him that he would eat earth wherever he goes. The mefarshim ask: that sounds like a good thing. His meals are prepared for him wherever he turns. But the answer is that he does not have to turn to the Eibershter. He can live a whole day and make himself three meals a day without looking up to Hashem.

The pshat is that the Ribono Shel Olam is telling the nachash: I have nothing to do with you. I would rather feed you, but stay away. Don’t come to Me.

## Shulchan, Shlichus, and Parnassah

If a person takes the Eibershter out of the equation of parnassah, that is the nachash. It is the life and punishment of the nachash. Ribbis is denying the equation that the Ribono Shel Olam gave you money so that you can give it to him. That is why a person is given money in the first place—to help the other person.

I have told you many times from the Shlomo that a **shulchan** is a table, but why is it called shulchan? Because you invite **aniim**, and then you become the **shaliach** to support the aniim. That is what the Eibershter gave you money for. Many bring this out: the reason it is called shulchan is **shlichus**.

The nachash is the same thing. You wake up in the morning and deal with parnassah and business, trying to make more and more money, but you forget to look up and realize that the Ribono Shel Olam is feeding you. Then the money becomes like dirt. You do not even enjoy it. Maybe that is why we do not appreciate our money: because once it becomes like dirt, like the nachash, if we take the Eibershter out of the equation, it has very little value. It becomes as tasty and as enjoyable as earth. There is more earth and more earth, and so on. It is just earth.

## Why Ribbis from a Goy Is Different

With this, I believe we have pretty much understood the concept of the Ribono Shel Olam in the workplace. But there is another angle that still has to be learned from the **issur of ribbis**. If the whole problem of ribbis is that you lack **bitachon**, then why is there no issur to take ribbis from a **goy**? If the whole pshat is that you are supposed to say the Ribono Shel Olam will give me parnassah, then why is there no issur with a goy? According to one side in the Gemara, it might even be a mitzvah to take ribbis from a goy. The Maharal asks this as a kasha.

I would say the pshat is that this is not such a big kasha. Why? Because you are not taking from the Yid. If you take from a Yid, you are showing that you do not listen to the mitzvah of Hashem. That is denying the Eibershter in parnassah. But if this is how you make parnassah—by taking from a goy—then maybe that is not a problem in Hashgacha either. I had asked before: maybe that is just good business. You take ribbis, you make money. And if the Torah says that with a goy it is **mutar**, then it is not a problem in Hashgacha either.

Where does the problem of denying Hashgacha Pratis begin? When there is an issur and you ignore the issur, thinking that you are smarter than the mitzvah and that you will make money through the issur. Then you are cutting yourself off from the Hashgacha Pratis of the Eibershter. But if there is no issur, then there is no problem in making business. I do not make an extra dollar, but you have to sit there and say: I only need one dollar, so I cannot make two dollars. That is how I would answer it.

So the point is that when a person takes the Eibishter out of the equation of parnassah, he is acting like the nachash. That is the life and punishment of the nachash: to be cut off, as it were, from any awareness of the Ribbono Shel Olam. Ribbis is a denial of the fact that the Ribbono Shel Olam gave you money in order that you should give it to someone else. That is why a person is given money in the first place — to help another person.

I have told you many times from the Shlom that a shulchan is a table, and the word shulchan is connected to shlichus. You invite an ani, you support the poor, and you become the shaliach of the Ribbono Shel Olam to sustain them. That is what Hashem gave you money for. Many bring this out: the reason it is called shulchan is because of shlichus.

The nachash, in a sense, is the model for this. A person wakes up in the morning and goes about business, trying to make more and more money, but he forgets to look up and realize that the Ribbono Shel Olam is feeding him. Then the money becomes like dirt. You do not even enjoy it. Maybe that is why we do not appreciate our money: once the Eibishter is taken out of the equation, it has very little value. It becomes as tasteless and as unfulfilling as earth. There is more and more of it, but it is still just earth.

With this, I believe we have pretty much understood the concept of the Ribbono Shel Olam in the workplace. But there is another angle that still needs to be learned from the issur of ribbis. If the problem of ribbis is that it reflects a lack of bitachon, then why is there no issur to take ribbis from a goy? If the whole point is that a person should say, “The Ribbono Shel Olam will give me,” then why is it permitted with a non-Jew? The Maharal asks this as a kasha.

I would say that this is not such a great kasha. Why not? Because when you take ribbis from a Yid, you are showing that you are not listening to the mitzvah of Hashem. You are denying the Eibishter in parnassah. But with a goy, that is simply how business works. You are not taking from a fellow Yid. If the Torah permits it with a goy, then it is not a problem in hashgachah either. The problem of denying hashgachah pratis begins when there is an issur and you ignore it, thinking you are smarter than the mitzvah and can make money through the issur. Then you are cutting yourself off from the hashgachah pratis of the Eibishter. But if there is no issur, then it is simply business. I do not make an extra dollar because I need only one dollar; I am not trying to make two dollars.

That is how I would answer. But the deeper kasha remains: if there is a chisaron in bitachon in trying to make an extra buck through ribbis, why is there no issur by a goy? In fact, it might even be a mitzvah to take ribbis from a goy. You are doing extra, making more money through a business deal. Ribbis is not gneivah; it is a business arrangement. If it were gneivah, then it would also be assur to steal from a goy. So perhaps that is the peshat: the kefirah only begins after there is an issur. To do what is assur in order to make an extra buck means that you do not trust the Eibishter.

The Maharal, however, gives different terutzim. In Nesiv HaTzedakah, perek zayin, he wants to say that the real chisaron of ribbis is not only bitachon. In many places he speaks that way, but here he says the issue is that a person is meant to unite Klal Yisrael as one nation, am echad. We are connected. If your brother comes to you and needs help, you are supposed to lend to him without ribbis.

## Achdus of Klal Yisrael

Every Yid is your brother. We are meant to help. We are meant to lend money to our brothers. Taking ribbis means that we are not connected. It is a pirtz in the achdus, the oneness of Klal Yisrael. That is why, he says, it is only assur by a Yid. The question was: why is there no issur by a goy? The answer is that it is not about bitachon as much as it is about achdus and Klal Yisrael, and therefore it does not apply there.

Why is it such a severe aveirah by Yisrael? Because it may be one of the greatest aveiros a person can do: separating and disconnecting from the oneness of Klal Yisrael, from am echad. And that is also the connection to Yetzias Mitzrayim. We left Mitzrayim in order to become am echad, to become a Klal Yisrael. Ribbis undermines the Klal Yisrael, the am echad that we left Mitzrayim to become. That is why the one who is kofer in the mitzvah of ribbis is considered a kofer b’Yetzias Mitzrayim.

I think this is meduyak in the pesukim. It says, “Vechi yachichcha imach,” and then later, “Al tikach mei’ito neshech v’tarbit, v’chei achicha imach.” The first pasuk does not say this. Ribbis specifically says, in the next pasuk, “v’chei achicha imach,” because according to the Maharal, the whole matter is about a chach, about achdus, about Klal Yisrael. Ribbis goes to the heart of it: if it were your brother, you would never take ribbis. You would feel responsible to lend to him and help him get started in business.

The fact that a person is able to take ribbis from his neighbor means that he does not look at him as a chach. And perhaps, if a person separates from Klal Yisrael, he is no longer a chach. Klal Yisrael stands as a Klal Yisrael. I did not see this clearly in the Maharal, but from the direction of his words, where he explains the severity of the aveirah, it is because “ki lo av rak kol haTorah kula.”

## Sinai, Arvus, and Parnassah

Now I begin to understand Sinai again. More Sinai. You know, by Sinai, as they say in the background, we have these halachos. Sinai was “ki ish echad b’lev echad.” There is arvus, and there is arvus in business also, rabosai. Just as it is important for the other person to keep mitzvos, because then it becomes as if I keep mitzvos, so too in business there is arvus.

We spoke many times from the Or HaChaim that a person cannot keep kol haTorah kula by himself. So how does he have taryag mitzvos? The answer is that between all of us, we keep the mitzvos. That is arvus. Business is also arvus, rabosai. How does Klal Yisrael have parnassah? The answer is that everybody cares that the other person should have parnassah. Parnassah in Klal Yisrael is not just parnassah for me. Parnassah for Klal Yisrael is “hei achicha.” It is about Klal Yisrael having parnassah.

Am Yisrael need parnassah. They came to Dovid HaMelech every day with brachos, and they would say, “Am Yisrael, Am Yisrael,” because as a Klal Yisrael they need parnassah.

I will tell you a beautiful story from my zayde, HaChaim livrachah, Mordechai Browdy. In our house we used to call him Max. Max Browdy was an old chashuv person from the shachai. He came to America, and like everybody else, he tried to make whatever business he could. So he came to discuss with my zayde, HaChaim livrachah, in the Bongo College.

### Ribbis and the Oneness of Klal Yisroel

Every Yid is your brother. We are meant to help one another, to lend money to our brothers. Taking ribbis means that we are not connected; it is a breach in the achdus, the oneness of Klal Yisroel.

The Maharal says that this is why ribbis is only asur by a Yid. The question was: why is there no issur by a goy? The answer is that the issue is not only bitachon. It is achdus and Klal Yisroel. Therefore, by a goy there is no such issur. Why is it an aveirah by Yisroel? Because it may be one of the greatest aveiros a person can do: separating and disconnecting Klal Yisroel, the am echad.

This also connects to Yetzias Mitzrayim. We left Mitzrayim to become an am echad, to become a Klal Yisroel. Ribbis undermines that Klal Yisroel, the am echad that we left Mitzrayim to become. So this is called a kofer b’mitzvas ribbis; he is, in a sense, kofer b’Mitzrayim.

I think this is meduyak in the pesukim. It says, “V’chei achicha imach.” The first pasuk does not say this. Ribbis specifically says, “Al tikach mei’ito neshech v’tarbis, v’chei achicha imach,” because, according to the Maharal, it is about a chach, about achdus, about Klal Yisroel. Ribbis goes to the heart of the matter: if he were your brother, you would never take ribbis. You would feel responsible to lend to him, help him, and get him started in business.

The fact that a person is able to take ribbis from his neighbor means that he does not look at him as a chach. This explains why he is not a chach. Possibly, when a person separates from Klal Yisroel, he is no longer a chach. Klal Yisroel stands as a Klal Yisroel.

I did not see this clearly in the Maharal, but from the way he explains the severity of the aveirah, it is “ki lo avar rak al kol haTorah kula.” Now I begin to understand Sinai again, more Sinai. By Sinai, as they say, in the backdrop of Sinai we have these halachos. Sinai was “ki ish echad b’lev echad.” There is arvus in business too, rabosai.

Just as it matters that the other person keep mitzvos, because then it becomes as if I keep mitzvos, so too with parnassah. We spoke many times from the Or HaChaim that a person cannot keep kol haTorah kula. So how does he have taryag mitzvos? The answer is that between all of us we keep the mitzvos. That is arvus.

Business is also arvus, rabosai. How does Klal Yisroel have parnassah? The answer is that everyone cares that the other person should have parnassah. Parnassah in Klal Yisroel is not just parnassah for me. Parnassah for Klal Yisroel is “hei achicha.” It is about Klal Yisroel having parnassah. “Am chayei Yisrael tzrichin parnassah.” They would come to Dovid HaMelech every day with a brachah, and they would tell him that Am Chayei Yisrael, the nation of Yisrael, needs parnassah.

I will tell you a beautiful story from my zayde, HaChayim livrachah, Mordechai Browdy. In our house we used to call him Max. Max Browdy was an old chashuv person from Shachai. He came to America like everyone else and tried to make whatever business he could. He came to discuss with my zayde, HaChayim livrachah, in the bungalow colony.

## A Business Opportunity and a Lesson in Parnassah

He told a story about a business opportunity: there was a small, distressed business for sale, and because the seller needed to sell quickly, the price was very low. It was a good deal, but the buyer did not have enough money to purchase it. The question was whether he should stretch himself financially to buy it, or whether he should rely on bitachon and wait for a more affordable opportunity later.

He went to the Zeda and asked the question. The Zeda listened and said it was a good opportunity, but the man did not have the money. The man left, returned to his bungalow, and within less than half an hour, his uncle, Rabbi Chaim, came knocking with an envelope from the Zeda containing the full amount needed to buy the business. The message from the Zeda was that this was a good opportunity for parnassah and they should not let it pass.

The man later said that when he heard the words, “we should not pass up the opportunity,” he thought, “We? I didn’t ask for a partner.” He felt as though the Zeda was speaking about a partnership. When he returned to clarify, he explained that he had not meant to suggest that the Zeda would become a shutaf or receive a share. The Zeda responded that his parnassah was his concern: “It’s we.”

## Arvus in Parnassah

From this, the speaker drew a broader point about arvus in parnassah, just as there is arvus in mitzvos. He connected this to the Gemara about Dovid HaMelech, who would tell people seeking parnassah, “L’chu parnassah u’mi-zoo,” meaning they should do business with one another. The Gemara says they responded that they could not, because there was not enough to go around.

The speaker understood this as meaning that when Klal Yisrael is not on the level of achdus, there is not enough for “u’mi-zoo.” Parnassah is meant to be shared and supported within Klal Yisrael; money is given to one person to help another. That is the ideal, and when it does not work, it reflects a lack in that level of achdus.

### Business, Values, and What Children Absorb

There is something wrong with the attitude that says, “I’ve got to work, I’ve got to work, I’ve got to work.” This is the way business is often understood: as an opportunity to get ahead at the other person’s expense. I feel very strongly that if a father comes home and all he talks about is how to swallow the other guy in business, how to get the better angle in a deal, how to outmaneuver his neighbor or friend, the child will absorb that message. The child will understand that it is first me, and then the other guy. That is the culture being taught: cutthroat, not honest.

These subliminal messages in the home begin with the way people speak. You may not even connect the dots, because when people talk about business, they say, “Business is business.” But business does not have to be dirty, vicious, or conniving. The underlying tone of such talk can create a deep-down sense of pressure and claustrophobia, and those who are around it do not develop the proper appreciation or optimism.

We do not realize how much we influence others with the words we use, the way we look at things, and the way we speak about them. It has a deep impact, not only on the conversation itself, but on the entire outlook of the child and the people around us. Conniving in business leads to a lack of achdus, thievery in behavior, and a hanhaga of sheker. Business has to be honest. That is what it means: business must be yashar.

### Giving, Taking, and the Government

I believe this attitude also explains why we often try to make a buck instead of give a buck. We try to accumulate more money instead of using it to help others. When we see government auditing and trying to take as much as it can from us, a lot of that may be because we are misplacing our own money. Instead of taking extra money and putting it to good use—into good investments by helping others—we put it into our own bank accounts, and because of that the government takes it away.

Now you may ask: who gave me the right to say this, and where did I get it from? It is from the Gemara and from the pasuk in Mishlei, “Marbeh nechosim b’neshech v’tarbis, l’choin dalim yikabtzenhu.” The pasuk seems to say that when a person adds business and money through ribbis, the money will end up with the poor. That sounds like a good thing. But the Gemara in Bava Metzia explains that it does not mean it goes to the Jewish poor. Rather, the non-Jews come and take it and give it to their poor.

The Gemara says that this happened under a king named Shvarmalka. Because there was so much ribbis, Shvarmalka came and took away our money and gave it to the “choin dalim.” The Gemara says, “Melech parah sakdashi, v’neitl v’neis l’goyim”—he gave it over to the non-Jews.

All our tax money, Raboisai, goes to government programs to support you-know-who, by the trillions. All the government handouts are Yiddishe gelt. Maybe Shvarmalka is taking it away because we are not investing it the way we should be investing it. I would like to continue explaining how money is actually meant to clearly teach a person that everything comes from the hand of Hashem.

## Money as a Lesson in Emunah

Money is meant to teach a person clearly that everything comes from the hand of Hashem. As Rav Chatzkel Levenstein would point out, the American dollar is so strong and powerful because it says, “In G-d we trust.” Money is כוח, and it is important to connect money with the idea of “כי לה’ המלוכה” and with “ואתן עושר וכבוד.”

## Avraham and Bilam: Ayin Tovah and Kinah

I would like to point to a Mishnah in Pirkei Avos. The Mishnah contrasts two paths: the talmidim of Avraham and the talmidim of Bilam. The talmidim of Avraham have an ayin tovah, while Bilam has an ayin ra’ah. Rashi explains that ayin tovah means a lack of kinah. The Rambam explains that it means shtapkus, being content with what one has and not constantly seeking more. The Rav explains that kinah and shtapkus are closely related; they are, so to speak, cousins in middos.

The Meiri says that this is called “samei’ach b’chelko.” The mefarshim point out that Avraham’s ayin tovah is a result of his being the yesod of emunah. Emunah and ayin tovah go together. The next part of the Mishnah—nefesh shefeilah, ruach nemuchah, and anavah—also relates to yiras Shamayim and emunah. Kinah and shtapkus are also tied to emunah. As the Nefesh HaChaim says, a person is only jealous because he does not believe that everything comes from Hashem. If one truly believes that everything is from Hashem, what is there to be jealous of? Hashem gave it to him; He did not give it to you.

There is a famous mashal of the bas melech: you would not be jealous that you are not marrying the queen, because you are not a king. It has nothing to do with you. So too, emunah is connected to ayin tovah. Even the Meiri’s phrase “samei’ach b’chelko” can be understood this way. I once heard from the Chofetz Chaim that it does not say “samei’ach b’ma sheyesh lo,” because perhaps a person has nothing. Yet he is still happy, because it is his chelek—the portion that the Eibishter gave him. When a person realizes that what he has is from Hashem, he is happy.

## Ayin Tovah, Hashem’s Goodness, and Giving

There is also a view in Rabbeinu Yonah that ayin tovah means nedivus, generosity. Avraham was a great giver. How is that connected to emunah? Avraham is the yesod of emunah, so how does generosity flow from that? Some explain that the Ribbono Shel Olam Himself is ayin tovah, and “v’halachta b’drachav” means that a person becomes an ayin tovah by following Hashem’s ways.

I once saw a beautiful idea in the Akedah. We know that an ayin ra’ah can cause harm. But there is also an ayin tovah, and a good look can bring brachah. The Akedah explains the pasuk “Ashkifah mime’on kodshecha min hashamayim u’vareich” in this way: we ask Hashem to look, because the very looking itself brings brachah. That is the power of ayin tovah. He calls it a midas Elokus—a godly, spiritual middah.

How does a person acquire this ayin tovah? By understanding that the Ribbono Shel Olam Himself is ayin tovah. When a person is moved by Hashem’s ayin tovah, he too develops an ayin tovah. The Sfas Emes says that the Mishnah’s ayin tovah means that a person should have an ayin tovah in order to recognize Hashem’s ayin tovah. One must walk around and see the good in the world, and then one will עצמו become an ayin tovah.

## Ahavas Hashem and the Power of Recognizing Good

There is also an interesting difference between the Rambam and the Smag regarding how a person comes to ahavas Hashem. The Rambam says that one should look at the briyos hanifla’os, the wondrous creations of Hashem. The Smag says that one should look at Hashem’s hatovah, His kindness. When a person sees Hashem’s kindness, he comes to love Hashem, just as a person naturally loves someone from whom he receives kindness. The Sefer HaChinuch explains similarly that recognizing Hashem’s goodness moves a person to want to be like Him and to act with kindness himself.

This can also help us understand the mitzvah of tzedakah. The Meshach Chochmah explains that in the third and sixth years of the shemitah cycle there is a special mitzvah of ma’aser ani. Why? Because in the creation of the world, on the second and fifth days it says “ki tov.” That divine goodness in creation creates a tendency in the world toward giving. When a person recognizes the “ki tov” of Hashem, the next step is that he wants to be metiv—to do good for others and give tzedakah. This is ayin tovah. This is emunah.

### The Akedah on *Ayin Tovah*

The Akedah explains this idea in a striking way. He points to the pasuk, *Ashkifah mime'on kodshecha min ha-shamayim u'vareich*, and says that wherever the Ribbono Shel Olam looks, blessing is drawn down. Just as Bilaam had an *ayin ra'ah*, there is also such a thing as an *ayin tovah*: a good eye that brings good. When we say to Hashem, *Ashkifah*, we are asking Him to look, because the very looking itself brings *berachah*. The Akedah calls this a *middas Elokus*—a divine, holy quality called *ayin tovah*.

### How a Person Develops an *Ayin Tovah*

So how does a person acquire an *ayin tovah*? The answer is that once a person understands that the Ribbono Shel Olam Himself is *ayin tovah*, he is moved by that and begins to develop the same trait. The Sfas Emes says that this is what the Mishnah means: *ayin tovah* means being able to see Hashem’s *ayin tovah* in the world, to walk around and recognize the good. And when a person does that, he himself becomes an *ayin tovah*.

### *Ahavas Hashem* Through Recognizing Goodness

There is also an interesting difference between the Rambam and the Smag regarding how a person comes to *ahavas Hashem*. The Rambam says that one should look at *briyosav hanifla'os*—Hashem’s wondrous creations. The Smag says that one should look at Hashem’s *hatovah*, His kindness. In either case, the point is that by recognizing Hashem’s greatness or His goodness, a person comes to love Him. The Sefer HaMitzvos Lechaim explains that through recognizing Hashem’s kindness, a person is moved to love Him and, as the Rambam says, to want to imitate His ways.

This helps explain another point. The Meshach Chochmah notes that in Shemitah, the third and sixth years have the mitzvah of *ma'aser ani*. Why specifically those years? He connects it to the *ki tov* that appears in the account of creation. When a person sees the *ki tov* of Hashem’s creation, that goodness influences him to be *metiv* to others. Recognizing Hashem’s goodness naturally leads a person to give *tzedakah* and to act with kindness. That is *ayin tovah*—and that is *emunah*.

### The Mishnah’s Teaching About Avraham Avinu

The Mishnah concludes that the *talmidim shel Avraham Avinu* “eat in this world and inherit the World to Come.” The point is not merely that they receive physical enjoyment, but that they know how to appreciate this world properly. With an *ayin tovah*, a person sees the world as something given by Hashem to be used well. He receives, and then he gives. He does not remain only a taker; he becomes a conduit.

That is also why the Gemara says that the righteous in the World to Come sit with their crowns on their heads and enjoy the radiance of the Shechinah. The Rambam explains that this means they attain a level of knowledge of Hashem that cannot be fully achieved in this world because of the limitations of the body. In this world, a person labors for seventy or eighty years to connect to the Ribbono Shel Olam, to see His greatness and His kindness, but he cannot reach the full clarity. In the World to Come, that recognition becomes complete.

### Money, Giving, and Parshas Behar

So when we go into the business world and Hashem gives us money, what are we supposed to see? We are supposed to see the *ayin tovah* of the Eibishter. We are supposed to recognize that He is giving, and that our response must be to take that money and reinvest it in *chesed*, to be *metiv* to others. That is what the Mishnah is teaching: *ayin tovah* means seeing Hashem’s goodness, and that recognition should lead a person to *nedivus*—to give and to give and to give.

In business, it is not only about taking. It is about receiving and then giving. You cannot be only a taker. You have to be a receiver who becomes a giver, a middleman who flips what he receives and passes it on. That is the business ethic of the Torah. And that is why Parshas Behar is so much about business life: it reminds us of Sinai, of *Shema Yisrael*, of the fact that the Eibishter is behind everything, and of the *achdus* and *kiyum* of *ki ish echad b'lev echad* that we accepted at Har Sinai. That is the message of Parshas Behar.

## Ayin Tov and the Meaning of *Oichlin* and *Noichlin*

Understanding Hashem’s kindness leads a person to want to be *matev* to others. That is the point of the Mishnah: *mitamidav shel Avraham Avinu, oichlin ba’olam hazeh v’noichlin la’olam haba*. What does *oichlin* mean here? It cannot simply mean that they “eat” in the ordinary sense. Rather, the idea is that they partake of this world in a way that reflects Avraham Avinu’s middah of giving.

The *B’sha Rabbi* suggested that if a person has an *ayin toiv*, he appreciates this world properly. Then *oichlin ba’olam hazeh* means that he enjoys the world as something Hashem gave for good. But that enjoyment is not for taking alone. It leads to a reciprocal response: to be *matev*, to give to others. The world is a beautiful world, and one who sees it with an *ayin toiv* understands that it is meant to be used in a way that reflects Hashem’s goodness.

## *Noichlin la’olam haba* and *Nehenin mi’ziv haShechinah*

The Rambam in *Hilchos Teshuvah* says that the tzaddikim sit with their crowns on their heads and are *nehenin mi’ziv haShechinah*. The Rambam explains that this means they attain a level of knowledge of Hashem that cannot be fully reached in this world, because a person is limited by the body. In this world, a person can spend seventy or eighty years trying to connect to the Eibishter, to see His greatness and His *chesed*, but he cannot grasp it completely.

When a person leaves this world, he becomes *noichlin ba’olam haba* and can attain the *hanah* and recognition of Hashem’s goodness in a fuller way. That is the continuation of what he began here. The *ayin toiv* of this world becomes complete in the next world.

## Money, Giving, and the Business World

When we go into the business world and Hashem gives us money, what are we supposed to see? We are supposed to recognize the *ayin toiv* of the Eibishter. Hashem is giving, and the proper response is to take that money and reinvest it in order to be *matev* to others. That is what the Mishnah is teaching: *ayin toiv* means not only seeing Hashem’s good, but becoming a giver in return.

In business, it is not about taking. It is about receiving and then giving. A person cannot be only a taker. He can be a receiver, a middleman, someone who flips it and passes it on. Like the idea of “flipping houses,” one must flip one’s money as well: receive it and be ready to give it to someone else.

If not, then one is missing the business ethics of the Torah. *Parshas Behar* is a life of business, but it is a business life shaped by *Har Sinai*—by remembering that the Eibishter is behind everything. He comes down into this world and gives *parnassah*, as well as *achdus* and *ki ishecha b’lev echad*, the unity with which we accepted *arvus* at Har Sinai. That is why the entire parsha is called *Behar*.

## Behar and the Business World

The actual parsha is called **Behar**. It is a striking name, because if you were naming business law, you might think to call it **Beis HaKnesses** or something similar. But the Torah does not do that. It calls it **Behar**, **Har Sinai**.

The point is that what was taught at Har Sinai has to be carried out into the business world. When a person leaves the **Beis Medrash** and goes into the outside world, the Torah is still there. That is what makes business kosher, that is what makes it Yiddish business, and that is what gives us the strength to uphold proper conduct among ourselves.

This is a chizuk for us to understand the Jewish ethic of business. And that is why the whole parsha is called **Behar**.