Classics and Beyond: Ki Seitzei – The Pledge of a Lifetime

Classics and Beyond: Ki Seitzei – The Pledge of a Lifetime
לא יחבל רחים ורכב כי נפש הוא חבל
One shall not take a mill or a grindstone as a pledge, for he would be taking a life as a pledge (Devarim 24:6).
The first four pesukim in Perek 24 detail the laws of divorce and remarriage. The fifth pasuk describes the shanah rishonah, the first year of marriage, where the husband is exempt from various communal responsibilities, so he can “gladden his wife whom he has married.”
Then in pasuk 6, we are told that for collateral, the lender may not take an item that the borrower uses to earn his livelihood. Why does the pasuk go from laws of marriage to a law pertaining to collateral?
What compounds this question is that many other laws regarding pledges are mentioned at the end of this aliyah, but not directly after this pasuk. Why is this pasuk separate from those pesukim? And why put this law of collateral after the law of shanah rishonah? What connection is there?
The rules governing the taking and holding of collateral, both in this parashah and in Parashas Mishpatim (Shemos 22:25-26), all favor the borrower. The lender is the one who has to go the extra mile to accommodate his debtor.
Is the borrower truly entitled to such consideration, with his creditor receiving the short end? After all, the lender is essentially at the beck and call of the borrower, both in terms of what he may take as collateral and how long he can hold onto the item.
Why is this the case? Why cant I take and hold what I want as collateral? Ill lend the money, I`ll do the chesed, but why am I expected to settle for terms that are not in my favor? What force underlies and motivates these laws? 0
It says in Mishpatim that if the lender takes a garment as security, and doesn’t return it at sunset so the borrower can sleep with it, his only garment, then Hashem says (V. 26), “Ve’hayah ki yitzak eilai ve’shamati ki chanun Ani – So it will be that if he cries out to Me, I shall listen, for I am compassionate.” Rashbam explains that even if according to the law, the lender has no obligation to return the garment, Hashem will still hear the borrower’s cry when he is left without it. This is because Hashem is compassionate and merciful.
The Rashbam so beautifully informs us that by the letter of the law, the borrower is, in fact, in the weaker position and it is he who should be imposed upon. Nonetheless, the Torah expects the lender to act lifnim mi’shuras hadin and let the borrower hold onto his garment if he needs it.
This could be why the Torah extracted one of the several pesukim dealing with collateral, and inserted it just after the pasuk describing the beginning of a marriage relationship, the shanah rishonah. Everyone enters a relationship with various degrees of expectation and differing notions of entitlement. This mix can become explosive in a marriage. Many people walk into their new homes with some feelings of privilege, a sense of “ess kumt mir.” There will be times when one party wants to scream out loud and say, “Hey, that’s not fair. Why do I have to put up with this?” or “It`s not my job; you should be doing this.”
The Torah, with the out-of-place juxtaposition of a law predicated on lifnim mi’shuras hadin, is teaching us how to make the “honeymoon” last a lifetime. Yes, there will be times when you feel that you are being put upon, that you are being deprived of a legitimate entitlement. But rather than lashing out and claiming your due, you can learn from the example of the creditor and his collateral, to go above and beyond the letter of the law.
Being mevater, being willing to disregard what you feel you have coming to you, elicits the words of Hashem at the end of the section in Ki Seitzei that discusses the laws of collateral (Devarim 24:13): “ u’lecha tiheyeh tzedakah lifnei Hashem Elokecha – and for you it will be an act of righteousness before Hashem, your G-d.”

A Musmach of Yeshivas Ner Yisroel, Rabbi Avraham Bukspan has been a high-school and special education rebbe for over 30 years in South Florida. He is the author of Classics and Beyond – Parsha Pearls, volumes 1 & 2. Written in an innovative and modern style, it combines anthology and analysis, perfect for anyone who wants a substantive and creative thought on the Parsha.