וְכִֽי־יָמ֣וּךְ אָחִ֔יךָ
וּמָ֥טָה יָד֖וֹ עִמָּ֑ךְ
וְהֶֽחֱזַ֣קְתָּ בּ֔וֹ גֵּ֧ר וְתוֹשָׁ֛ב
וָחַ֖י עִמָּֽךְ׃
And should your brother come to ruin and his hand buckle under you, you shall hold him as a sojourning settler, and he shall live under you. (Robert Alter)
comes under your authority,
and you hold him as through a resident alien,
let him live by your side. (NJPS)
And if thy brother be waxen poor,
and his means fail with thee;
then thou shalt uphold him: as a stranger and a settler
shall he live with thee. (OJPS)
Now when your brother sinks down (in poverty)
and his hand falters beside you,
then shall you strengthen him as (though) a sojourner and resident-settler and he is to live beside you. (Everett Fox)
- Who are our "brothers/kinsmen"?
- When does our obligation begin? When does it end?
- How close to the problem do I have to be to have an obligation?
- How do we prioritize our capacity to help others?
- The second (bolded) phrase is translated various ways. What are the implications of each? Which one seems right to you?
- Who is "with us/under our authority/beside us"?
- Is it "strengthen" or "hold" or "hold someone as"? How do we or can we strengthen or hold people?
- What might it mean to treat someone as a "sojourning settler"?
- What are the implications from this for us as residents of Syracuse, the #1 city for racially based poverty in the country?
והחזקת בו — And you hold him. Rather "then you must hold him." Do not let him fall any further to a state where it will be difficult to set him back up on his feet. As soon as "his means fail," hold him right there. To what can this be compared? To a pack-animal carrying a load. As long as the load is still on top of the pack-animal, a single person can keep it in position. Once it falls to the ground, even five people may have difficulty raising it back to its place.
That you are obligated to the one who is with you, that you see. Whether he is from your land or a resident stranger.
You reverse "his hand gives way" so that he won't fall.
וטעם וחי אחיך עמך...אהדר ליה רבית דליחיי עמך צוה בהחזרת רבית קצוצה כענין שאמר בגזל (לעיל ה כג) והשיב את הגזילה אשר גזל ואונקלוס עשה "גר ותושב וחי עמך" הכל מן המצוה ידור ויתותב ויחי עמך אבל על דעת רבותינו בגמרא (ב"מ עא) והחזקת בו ובגר ותושב וחי כל אחד מהם עמך...
Rabbinic interpretation links the phrase "and he shall live with you" with the prohibition of interest at the beginning of the next verse, commanding that you return to him the interest you may have illegally taken - so that he may live. It is akin to one who decides to "restore that which he got through robbery or fraud." Note that NJPS implicit makes "let him live by your side" the beginning of the "then" clause; OJPS follows rabbinic tradition in understanding the verse to read, "If he falls...then you must uphold him." Onkelos takes an intermediate position, understanding as follows: "If he falls..and you hold him, then as a resident alien let him live with you."
מטה ידו. רוצה לומר שירד מטה מטה בשפלותו והיה עמך בעירך שאז עניי עירך קודמין. אל תטשהו ואל תעזבהו אבל החזק בו בין שיהיה ישראל או גר שנתגייר מאומה אחרת או תושב שקבל על עצמו שבע מצות בני נח עכ"פ כיון שהוא עמך אל תעזבהו אבל יחיה עמך ובעזרתך יחיה ולא ימות. ויהיה זה שתלוה לו משלך ותעשה לו צדקה מממונך.
His hand gives way. Meaning to say when his hand goes downward, lower and lower in his low condition. And live with you. In your city, for the poor of your city always come first. Do not forsake or abandon them, but strengthen them whether they are Jewish, a person who has chosen to become Jewish, or someone who has accepted upon themselves the Noahide Commandments, nevertheless, since they are with you, do not abandon them, but they shall live with you, and through your help they will live and not die. And you should loan them from what is yours and give them tzekadah from your own resources.