This verse sets off a vigourous debate between the obvious meaning of the text, its rabbinic interpretation and our practical knowledge of what happened. Basing his comments on the Sages of the Talmud (b. Bava Metzia 87b) who link this verse to "You shall give him his wages before the sun sets" (D'varim 24:15, NASB)) because of the verb which is used both there - the sun setting - and here - coming into the vineyard,

Rashi: Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (1040-1105CE), French rabbi who wrote commentaries on the Torah, the Prophets and the Talmud, lived in Troyes where he founded a yeshiva in 1067; focuses on the plain meaning (p'shat) of the text, although sometimes quite cryptic in his brevity

Abravanel: Don Isaac Abravanel (1437-1508CE), Statesman and biblical commentator; born in Lisbon, died in Venice; wrote commentaries on the whole of the Hebrew Scriptures

On the other hand, Josephus holds that the text did apply to any passer-by (Ant. 4.234-237) and cites the occasion of Yeshua's disciples husking a little grain to eat as they passed through a corn-field on Shabbat (Matthew 12:1, Luke 6:1) as an example from his own time. Tigay comments that, "Apparently, fields and vineyards were laid out in such a way that people often had to pass through those belonging to others. This was not considered trespass; only damaging the field is trespass. According to nineteenth century travellers, this right was still recognised as a charitable obligation on the Middle East in recent times."

Taking a completely different tack, the

Ba'al HaTurim: Rabbi Yaakov ben Asher (1269-1343), born in Cologne, Germany; lived for 40 years in and around Toledo, Spain; died en route to Israel; his commentary to the Chumash is based upon an abridgement of the Ramban, including Rashi, Rashbam and Ibn Ezra; it includes many references to gematria and textual novelties

Rav Sha'ul brings this concept up in the context of food: "'Everything is permitted,' you say? Maybe, but not everything is helpful. 'Everything is permitted?' Maybe, but not everything is edifying" (1 Corinthians 10:23, CJB). Just because we can, Sha'ul is saying, doesn't mean that we should - everything has its consequences and our words and actions may be misread by others or develop into destructive habits for ourselves. He goes on, "No-one should be looking out for his own interests, but for those of his fellow" (v. 24, CJB). We don't live in isolation in the Body of Messiah or in the larger world; our words and actions always have a knock-on effect to those around us. It is necessary to take care, Sha'ul is saying, that our freedom doesn't become a stumbling block for others. As Sha'ul wrote on the same subject in another letter, "Do not, by your eating habits, destroy someone for whom the Messiah died" (Romans 14:15, CJB). The same applies in all the other areas of our lives; we must always think about the effect or repercussions of what we do or say upon others who see and hear us. They may be tempted to do something that for them would be foolish or even sin, which for us may simply be unwise but not harmful.

Further Study: 1 Corinthians 6:12-14; 1 Thessalonians 5:16-22

Application: How could you moderate your behaviour and speech so as to protect those around you? Do you have any habits that although not directly harmful to you are a bad witness to others? Why not ask G-d to help you see yourself as others see you and ask Him if there is anything you need to change.

© Jonathan Allen, 2008