Deuteronomy 15

Hook

Is Shmita an ending or a beginning? The Torah’s timing for debt release hinges on the word miketz—a term that linguists and sages have spent millennia arguing over.

Context

The Shmita (Sabbatical year) is defined in Leviticus 25 as a rest for the land, but Deuteronomy 15 introduces a social dimension: Shmitat Kesafim, the release of debts. This passage bridges the gap between agricultural cycles and the ethical responsibility to one's neighbor.

Text Snapshot

"Every seventh year you shall practice remission of debts. This shall be the nature of the remission: all creditors shall remit the due that they claim from their fellow Israelites... Beware lest you harbor the base thought, 'The seventh year, the year of remission, is approaching,' so that you are mean and give nothing..." (Deuteronomy 15:1–2, 9)

Close Reading

• Structure: The text frames the "remission" as a test of character. It pairs a legal requirement (releasing debts) with a psychological warning (do not harden your heart).
• Key Term: Miketz (at the end/extremity). As the Tur HaAroch notes, the debate is whether this marks the close of the seventh year or the transition into the eighth.
• Tension: The tension lies between the legal deadline and the human impulse toward scarcity—the fear that "giving" during a year of release will lead to personal loss.

Two Angles

• Rashi: Argues that miketz must mean the "end" of the cycle. He uses the phrase "the seventh year... is approaching" (v. 9) to prove that the release is a culmination, not an immediate start-point.
• Ibn Ezra: Contends that miketz can mean the "beginning," citing that every line has two extremities. He interprets the release as a structural reset for the poor from the very start of the seventh year.

Practice Implication

The Prozbul (a legal mechanism where debts are transferred to a court to avoid cancellation) acknowledges the tension between the Torah’s ideal of absolute debt forgiveness and the practical need to maintain a functioning economy where people are willing to lend. It teaches us to find halakhic pathways that honor the spirit of the commandment without collapsing under the pressure of the deadline.

Chevruta Mini

1. If the law of Shmita creates a "base thought" of stinginess, does the law succeed or fail in its moral objective?
2. Does the Prozbul solve the problem of poverty, or does it merely bypass the Torah’s radical attempt to reset the wealth gap?

Takeaway

Shmita forces us to treat our assets not as private hoardings, but as temporary resources that must be surrendered to the community’s well-being at the end of every cycle.