💼 Mishnah Bava Metzia 9

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ, מְקוֹם שֶׁנָּהֲגוּ לִקְצֹר, יִקְצֹר, לַעֲקֹר, יַעֲקֹר, לַחֲרשׁ אַחֲרָיו, יַחֲרשׁ. הַכֹּל כְּמִנְהַג הַמְּדִינָה. כְּשֵׁם שֶׁחוֹלְקִין בַּתְּבוּאָה, כָּךְ חוֹלְקִין בַּתֶּבֶן וּבַקַּשׁ. כְּשֵׁם שֶׁחוֹלְקִין בַּיַּיִן, כָּךְ חוֹלְקִין בַּזְּמוֹרוֹת וּבַקָּנִים. וּשְׁנֵיהֶם מְסַפְּקִין אֶת הַקָּנִים:

With regard to one who receives a field from another to cultivate, either as a tenant farmer, who, in exchange for the right to farm the land, gives a set amount of the produce to the owner, or as a sharecropper, who cultivates the land and receives a set proportion of the produce, the halakha is as follows: In a location where those cultivating the land were accustomed to cut the produce, this one must cut it as well. In a location where they were accustomed to uproot the produce, not to cut it with a sickle or a scythe, this one must uproot it as well. If they were accustomed to plow the land after harvesting the produce, this one must plow as well. All farming of the land shall be conducted in accordance with regional custom. Just as the halakha is that the owner of the field and the one cultivating it divide the produce, so too the halakha is that they divide the stubble and the straw. Just as the halakha is that the owner of the field and the one cultivating it divide the wine, so too the halakha is that they divide the branches pruned from the vines and the poles. And the two of them, i.e., the landowner and the one cultivating the field, both supply the poles.

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ, וְהִיא בֵית הַשְּׁלָחִין אוֹ בֵית הָאִילָן, יָבַשׁ הַמַּעְיָן וְנִקְצַץ הָאִילָן, אֵינוֹ מְנַכֶּה לוֹ מִן חֲכוֹרוֹ. אִם אָמַר לוֹ חֲכֹר לִי שְׂדֵה בֵית הַשְּׁלָחִין זֶה אוֹ שְׂדֵה בֵית הָאִילָן זֶה, יָבַשׁ הַמַּעְיָן וְנִקְצַץ הָאִילָן, מְנַכֶּה לוֹ מִן חֲכוֹרוֹ:

In the case of one who receives a field from another to cultivate and it is an irrigated field or a field with trees, if the spring that irrigated the field dried up or the trees were cut down, he does not subtract from the produce he owes the owner as part of his tenancy, despite the fact that he presumably considered these factors when agreeing to cultivate the field. But if the cultivator said to the landowner explicitly: Lease me this irrigated field, or he said: Lease me this field with trees, and the spring dried up or the trees were cut down, he may subtract from the produce he owes as part of his tenancy.

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ וְהוֹבִירָהּ, שָׁמִין אוֹתָהּ כַּמָּה רְאוּיָה לַעֲשׂוֹת וְנוֹתֵן לוֹ, שֶׁכָּךְ כּוֹתֵב לוֹ, אִם אוֹבִיר וְלֹא אַעֲבֵיד, אֲשַׁלֵּם בְּמֵיטְבָא:

With regard to one who receives a field from another as a contractor and then lets it lie fallow and does not work the land at all, the court appraises it by evaluating how much it was able to produce if cultivated, and he gives his share of this amount to the owner. The reason is that this is what a cultivator writes to the owner in a standard contract: If I let the field lie fallow and do not cultivate it, I will pay with best-quality produce.

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ וְלֹא רָצָה לְנַכֵּשׁ, וְאָמַר לוֹ מָה אִכְפַּת לְךָ, הוֹאִיל וַאֲנִי נוֹתֵן לְךָ חֲכוֹרָהּ, אֵין שׁוֹמְעִין לוֹ, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁיָּכוֹל לוֹמַר לוֹ, לְמָחָר אַתָּה יוֹצֵא מִמֶּנָּה, וּמַעֲלָה לְפָנַי עֲשָׂבִים:

With regard to one who received a field from another to cultivate and did not want to weed it, and he then said to the owner: What do you care if I neglect the land? You will not suffer a loss since I will give you the amount of produce I owe you for your granting me tenancy, regardless of the state of the field. Nevertheless, they do not listen to him. The reason is because the owner of the land can say to him: Tomorrow you will depart from the field, and it will grow weeds for me, which will remain there and disrupt the yield of the field for years to come.

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ וְלֹא עָשְׂתָה, אִם יֶשׁ בָּהּ כְּדֵי לְהַעֲמִיד כְּרִי, חַיָּב לְטַפֵּל בָּהּ. אָמַר רַבִּי יְהוּדָה, מַה קִּצְבָּה בַכְּרִי. אֶלָּא אִם יֶשׁ בָּהּ כְּדֵי נְפִילָה:

With regard to one who receives a field from another to cultivate and it did not produce a sufficient crop to cover the expenses of its upkeep, if it has enough produce to form a pile he is obligated to take care of it and give the owner his share. Rabbi Yehuda says: What fixed measure is a pile? There is no inherent measure of produce that is considered significant, as it all depends on the size of the plot of land in question. Rather, the relevant issue is whether it has a crop equivalent to the measure of seeds for dropping in a field in order to sow it.

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ וַאֲכָלָהּ חָגָב אוֹ נִשְׁדְּפָה, אִם מַכַּת מְדִינָה הִיא, מְנַכֶּה לוֹ מִן חֲכוֹרוֹ, אִם אֵינוֹ מַכַּת מְדִינָה, אֵינוֹ מְנַכֶּה לוֹ מִן חֲכוֹרוֹ. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אוֹמֵר, אִם קִבְּלָהּ הֵימֶנּוּ בְמָעוֹת, בֵּין כָּךְ וּבֵין כָּךְ אֵינוֹ מְנַכֶּה לוֹ מֵחֲכוֹרוֹ:

In the case of one who receives a field from another to cultivate and grasshoppers consumed it or it was wind blasted, if it is a regional disaster which affected all the fields in the area, the cultivator subtracts from the produce he owes as part of his tenancy. If it is not a regional disaster, the cultivator does not subtract from the produce he owes as part of his tenancy. Rabbi Yehuda says: If the cultivator received it from the owner for a fixed sum of money, whether this way, i.e., there is a regional disaster, or whether that way, i.e., there was no regional disaster, he does not subtract the produce he owes as part of his tenancy.

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ בַּעֲשָׂרָה כּוֹר חִטִּים לְשָׁנָה, לָקְתָה, נוֹתֵן לוֹ מִתּוֹכָהּ. הָיוּ חִטֶּיהָ יָפוֹת, לֹא יֹאמַר לוֹ הֲרֵינִי לוֹקֵחַ מִן הַשּׁוּק, אֶלָּא נוֹתֵן לוֹ מִתּוֹכָהּ:

In the case of one who receives a field from another to cultivate in return for the payment of ten kor of wheat per year, and its produce was blighted by a crop disease or the like, the cultivator gives the owner the ten kor of wheat from it but does not have to provide him with high quality wheat. If the wheat stalks produced by the field were particularly good stalks of wheat, the cultivator may not say to the owner: I will buy regular wheat from the market; rather, he gives him from inside the field itself.

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ לְזָרְעָהּ שְׂעֹרִים, לֹא יִזְרָעֶנָּה חִטִּים, חִטִּים, יִזְרָעֶנָּה שְׂעֹרִים. רַבָּן שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹסֵר. תְּבוּאָה, לֹא יִזְרָעֶנָּה קִטְנִית, קִטְנִית, יִזְרָעֶנָּה תְבוּאָה. רַבָּן שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹסֵר:

With regard to one who receives a field from another in order to plant it with barley, he may not plant it with wheat, as wheat weakens the field more than barley does. But if he receives it in order to plant wheat, he may plant it with barley if he wishes, but Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel forbids it. Similarly, if he receives it to plant it with grain he may not plant it with legumes, as they weaken the field more than grains do, but if he receives it in order to plant legumes he may plant it with grain, but Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel forbids it.

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ לְשָׁנִים מֻעָטוֹת, לֹא יִזְרָעֶנָּה פִשְׁתָּן, וְאֵין לוֹ בְקוֹרַת שִׁקְמָה. קִבְּלָהּ הֵימֶנּוּ לְשֶׁבַע שָׁנִים, שָׁנָה רִאשׁוֹנָה יִזְרָעֶנָּה פִשְׁתָּן, וְיֶשׁ לוֹ בְקוֹרַת שִׁקְמָה:

One who receives a field from another to cultivate for a few years, i.e., fewer than seven, may not plant flax in it, as flax greatly weakens the soil, and if a sycamore tree was growing in the field, he does not have rights to the beams fashioned from the branches of the sycamore tree. Therefore, he may not cut down its branches for his own use, as it takes many years for new ones to grow. If he received the field from him for seven years, in the first year he may plant flax in it, and he does have rights to the beams fashioned from the branches of the sycamore tree.

הַמְקַבֵּל שָׂדֶה מֵחֲבֵרוֹ לְשָׁבוּעַ אַחַת בִּשְׁבַע מֵאוֹת זוּז, הַשְּׁבִיעִית מִן הַמִּנְיָן. קִבְּלָהּ הֵימֶנּוּ שֶׁבַע שָׁנִים בִּשְׁבַע מֵאוֹת זוּז, אֵין הַשְּׁבִיעִית מִן הַמִּנְיָן:

In the case of one who receives a field from another to cultivate for one Sabbatical cycle of seven years culminating with the Sabbatical Year for seven hundred dinars, the Sabbatical Year is included in the tally, despite the fact that he is unable to work the land during that year. If he received it from him to cultivate for seven years for seven hundred dinars, the Sabbatical Year is not included in the number, and he may keep the field for an additional year to take the place of the Sabbatical Year, during which he could not work the land.

שְׂכִיר יוֹם גּוֹבֶה כָל הַלַּיְלָה, שְׂכִיר לַיְלָה גּוֹבֶה כָל הַיּוֹם, שְׂכִיר שָׁעוֹת גּוֹבֶה כָל הַלַּיְלָה וְכָל הַיּוֹם. שְׂכִיר שַׁבָּת, שְׂכִיר חֹדֶשׁ, שְׂכִיר שָׁנָה, שְׂכִיר שָׁבוּעַ, יָצָא בַיּוֹם, גּוֹבֶה כָל הַיּוֹם, יָצָא בַלַּיְלָה, גּוֹבֶה כָל הַלַּיְלָה וְכָל הַיּוֹם:

The tanna addresses a different issue, the halakha of the payment of workers. A day laborer collects his wages from his employer all night following his work shift. A night laborer collects his wages all the following day, while an hourly laborer collects his wages all night and all day. With regard to a weekly laborer, a monthly laborer, a yearly laborer, or a laborer for a Sabbatical cycle of seven years, if he left upon the completion of his work in the day, he collects his wages all day; if he left at night, he collects his wages all night and all day.

אֶחָד שְׂכַר אָדָם וְאֶחָד שְׂכַר בְּהֵמָה וְאֶחָד שְׂכַר כֵּלִים, יֶשׁ בּוֹ מִשּׁוּם (דברים כד) בְּיוֹמוֹ תִתֵּן שְׂכָרוֹ, וְיֶשׁ בּוֹ מִשּׁוּם (ויקרא יט) לֹא תָלִין פְּעֻלַּת שָׂכִיר אִתְּךָ עַד בֹּקֶר. אֵימָתַי, בִּזְמַן שֶׁתְּבָעוֹ, לֹא תְבָעוֹ, אֵינוֹ עוֹבֵר עָלָיו. הִמְחָהוּ אֵצֶל חֶנְוָנִי אוֹ אֵצֶל שֻׁלְחָנִי, אֵינוֹ עוֹבֵר עָלָיו. שָׂכִיר, בִּזְמַנּוֹ נִשְׁבָּע וְנוֹטֵל, עָבַר זְמַנּוֹ אֵינוֹ נִשְׁבָּע וְנוֹטֵל. אִם יֵשׁ עֵדִים שֶׁתְּבָעוֹ, הֲרֵי זֶה נִשְׁבָּע וְנוֹטֵל. גֵּר תּוֹשָׁב יֶשׁ בּוֹ מִשּׁוּם בְּיוֹמוֹ תִתֵּן שְׂכָרוֹ, וְאֵין בּוֹ מִשּׁוּם לֹא תָלִין פְּעֻלַּת שָׂכִיר אִתְּךָ עַד בֹּקֶר:

Whether referring to a person’s wages that he receives or the renting of an animal or the renting of utensils, are all subject to the prohibition of: “On the same day you shall give him his wages” (Deuteronomy 24:15), and are subject to the prohibition of: “The wages of a hired laborer shall not remain with you all night until the morning” (Leviticus 19:13). When does he transgress these prohibitions? He transgresses them when the one owed the money claimed the payment from him. If he did not claim his payment from him the other does not transgress the prohibitions. If the one who owes the money transferred his payment by leaving instructions with a storekeeper or with a money changer to pay him, he does not transgress the prohibitions. The mishna discusses other related halakhot: If a hired laborer requests payment at the proper time and the employer claims he already paid him, the laborer takes an oath that he did not receive his wages and then takes the wages from the employer. If the time had passed, he does not take an oath and take the wages. If there are witnesses who testify that he claimed the money from him at the proper time, he takes an oath and takes the money. One who hires a gentile who resides in Eretz Yisrael and observes the seven Noahide mitzvot [ger toshav] is subject to the prohibition of: “On the same day you shall give him his wages,” but is not subject to the negative mitzva of: “The wages of a hired laborer shall not remain with you all night until the morning.”

הַמַּלְוֶה אֶת חֲבֵרוֹ, לֹא יְמַשְׁכְּנֶנּוּ אֶלָּא בְּבֵית דִּין, וְלֹא יִכָּנֵס לְבֵיתוֹ לִטֹּל מַשְׁכּוֹנוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (דברים כד) בַּחוּץ תַּעֲמֹד. הָיוּ לוֹ שְׁנֵי כֵלִים, נוֹטֵל אֶחָד וּמַנִּיחַ אֶחָד, וּמַחֲזִיר אֶת הַכַּר בַּלַּיְלָה וְאֶת הַמַּחֲרֵשָׁה בַיּוֹם. וְאִם מֵת, אֵינוֹ מַחֲזִיר לְיוֹרְשָׁיו. רַבָּן שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹמֵר, אַף לְעַצְמוֹ אֵינוֹ מַחֲזִיר אֶלָּא עַד שְׁלשִׁים יוֹם, וּמִשְּׁלשִׁים יוֹם וּלְהַלָּן מוֹכְרָן בְּבֵית דִּין. אַלְמָנָה, בֵּין שֶׁהִיא עֲנִיָּה בֵּין שֶׁהִיא עֲשִׁירָה, אֵין מְמַשְׁכְּנִין אוֹתָהּ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (דברים כד) וְלֹא תַחֲבֹל בֶּגֶד אַלְמָנָה. הַחוֹבֵל אֶת הָרֵחַיִם, עוֹבֵר בְּלֹא תַעֲשֶׂה, וְחַיָּב מִשּׁוּם שְׁנֵי כֵלִים, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (שם) לֹא יַחֲבֹל רֵחַיִם וָרָכֶב. וְלֹא רֵחַיִם וָרֶכֶב בִּלְבַד אָמְרוּ, אֶלָּא כָל דָּבָר שֶׁעוֹשִׂין בּוֹ אֹכֶל נֶפֶשׁ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (דברים כד) כִּי נֶפֶשׁ הוּא חֹבֵל:

With regard to one who lends money to another and the debtor fails to repay it at the end of the term of the loan, the creditor may take collateral from him to ensure payment only by means of an agent of the court, not of his own accord. And he may not enter the debtor’s house to take his collateral, as it is stated: “When you lend your neighbor any manner of loan, you shall not go into his house to take his collateral. You shall stand outside, and the man to whom you lend shall bring forth the collateral to you outside” (Deuteronomy 24:10–11). If the debtor had two utensils of the same kind, the creditor takes one and leaves the other one in the debtor’s possession. And in addition, the creditor must return a pillow at night, as the debtor requires it for sleeping, and a plow, which is needed for his daytime work, by day. If the debtor died, he is not required to return it to the debtor’s heirs. Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: Even to the debtor himself he needs to return the collateral each day only until thirty days have passed, and from thirty days onward, the creditor can sell them in court, with the proceeds going toward payment of the debt. With regard to a widow, whether she is poor or whether she is wealthy, one may not take collateral from her, as it is stated: “And you may not take the garment of a widow as collateral” (Deuteronomy 24:17). One who takes a millstone as collateral violates a prohibition, and he is liable for taking two vessels, i.e., both millstones in the pair, as it is stated: “He shall not take the lower or upper millstone as collateral” (Deuteronomy 24:6). The tanna adds: Not only did the Sages say that it is prohibited to take the lower or upper millstone as collateral, but they also said that one may not take anything that people use in the preparation of food [okhel nefesh], as it is stated: “For he takes a man’s life [nefesh] as collateral” (Deuteronomy 24:6).