Leviticus 23:22

22 Forsooth after that ye have reaped the corn of your land, ye shall not cut it till to the ground, neither ye shall gather the ears of corn that abide, but ye shall leave those to poor men and pilgrims; I am the Lord your God. (And when ye harvest your land, ye shall not cut the corners of the land down to the ground, nor shall ye gather up all the ears of corn that be left, but ye shall leave them for the poor and for foreigners; I am the Lord your God.)

Leviticus 23:22 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 23:22

And when ye reap the harvest of your land
This law is repeated from ( Leviticus 19:9 Leviticus 19:10 ) ; and as Aben Ezra observes, the feast of weeks being the feast of the firstfruits of the wheat harvest, it is repeated, that they might not forget what God had commanded them to do at that time, namely, to leave somewhat for the poor; and the Jewish writers F1 observe, that this law, being put among the solemn feasts of the passover, pentecost, and tabernacles, and the beginning of the year, and the day of atonement, teaches, that he that observes it, and leaves the corner of the field and the gleanings to the poor, it is as if he built the sanctuary, and offered his sacrifices in the midst of it; but a much better reason may be given for it, which was, to teach them that when they expressed their thankfulness to God, they should exercise charity and liberality to the poor;

thou shalt not make clean riddance of the corners of thy field when
thou reapest, neither shalt thou gather any gleaning of thy harvest:
(See Gill on Leviticus 19:9);

thou shalt leave them unto the poor, and to the stranger: I [am] the
Lord your God; (See Gill on Leviticus 19:10).


FOOTNOTES:

F1 In Torat Cohenim, apud Yalkut in loc. & Jarchi.

Leviticus 23:22 In-Context

20 And when the priest hath raised those (up, or waved them), with the loaves of the first fruits, (as a special gift) before the Lord, those shall fall into the priest's use (they shall belong to the priest).
21 And ye shall call this day most solemn, and most holy; ye shall not do therein any servile work; it shall be a lawful thing everlasting in all your dwellings, and generations. (And on this day there shall be a holy gathering; ye shall not do any daily work on it; this shall be an everlasting law for all your generations, in all your dwelling places.
22 Forsooth after that ye have reaped the corn of your land, ye shall not cut it till to the ground, neither ye shall gather the ears of corn that abide, but ye shall leave those to poor men and pilgrims; I am the Lord your God. (And when ye harvest your land, ye shall not cut the corners of the land down to the ground, nor shall ye gather up all the ears of corn that be left, but ye shall leave them for the poor and for foreigners; I am the Lord your God.)
23 And the Lord spake to Moses, and said,
24 Speak thou to the sons of Israel, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall be [a] sabbath, (a) memorial to you, sounding with trumps, and it shall be called holy; (Say thou to the Israelites, In the seventh month, on the first day of the month, shall be a sabbath day of rest for you, and there shall be a holy gathering, with the sounding of trumpets;)
Copyright © 2001 by Terence P. Noble. For personal use only.