Living in Refuge

Mattot-Masei 5779 | Rabbi Hillary Chorny, Cantor | Temple Beth Am

וְהִקְרִיתֶ֤ם לָכֶם֙ עָרִ֔ים עָרֵ֥י מִקְלָ֖ט תִּהְיֶ֣ינָה לָכֶ֑ם וְנָ֥ס שָׁ֙מָּה֙ רֹצֵ֔חַ מַכֵּה־נֶ֖פֶשׁ בִּשְׁגָגָֽה׃

you shall provide yourselves with places to serve you as cities of refuge to which a manslayer who has killed a person unintentionally may flee.

We have an echo of these arei miklat, cities of refuge, in D'varim (Deut.).

דברים ד׳:מ״ב

לָנֻ֨ס שָׁ֜מָּה רוֹצֵ֗חַ אֲשֶׁ֨ר יִרְצַ֤ח אֶת־רֵעֵ֙הוּ֙ בִּבְלִי־דַ֔עַת וְה֛וּא לֹא־שֹׂנֵ֥א ל֖וֹ מִתְּמ֣וֹל שִׁלְשׁ֑וֹם וְנָ֗ס אֶל־אַחַ֛ת מִן־הֶעָרִ֥ים הָאֵ֖ל וָחָֽי׃

Deuteronomy 4:42

to which a manslayer could escape, one who unwittingly slew a fellow man without having been hostile to him in the past; he could flee to one of these cities and live:

How does the plain meaning of the verse in D'varim differ from the one in our parsha?

מכות י׳ א:ט׳

א"ר יצחק מאי קרא (דברים ד, מב) ונס אל אחת מן הערים האל וחי עביד ליה מידי דתהוי ליה חיותא

Makkot 10a:9

Rabbi Yitzḥak says: What is the verse from which these matters are derived? It is written: “And he shall flee to one of these cities and live” (Deuteronomy 4:42), meaning: Perform some actions for the unintentional murderer so that life in the city of refuge will be conducive to living for him. All these steps are taken to facilitate that objective.

מכות י׳ א:י׳

תנא תלמיד שגלה מגלין רבו עמו שנאמר וחי עביד ליה מידי דתהוי ליה חיותא אמר ר' זעירא מכאן שלא ישנה אדם לתלמיד שאינו הגון

Makkot 10a:10

The Sages taught: In the case of a student who was exiled, his teacher is exiled to the city of refuge with him, so that the student can continue studying Torah with him there, as it is stated: “And he shall flee to one of these cities and live,” from which it is derived: Perform some actions for the unintentional murderer so that life in the city will be conducive to living for him. Since Torah study is an integral component of his life, arrangements must be made to ensure continuity in that facet of his existence. Rabbi Zeira says: From here one learns that a person should not teach a student who is not fit, as that may result in the teacher following the student into exile.

When someone is impoverished and lacking the sufficient resources to get through life, to what degree are we responsible for their wellbeing? Enter the concept of dei machsoro, providing what is "sufficient for their needs."

דברים ט״ו:ז׳

כִּֽי־יִהְיֶה֩ בְךָ֨ אֶבְי֜וֹן מֵאַחַ֤ד אַחֶ֙יךָ֙ בְּאַחַ֣ד שְׁעָרֶ֔יךָ בְּאַ֨רְצְךָ֔ אֲשֶׁר־יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ נֹתֵ֣ן לָ֑ךְ לֹ֧א תְאַמֵּ֣ץ אֶת־לְבָבְךָ֗ וְלֹ֤א תִקְפֹּץ֙ אֶת־יָ֣דְךָ֔ מֵאָחִ֖יךָ הָאֶבְיֽוֹן׃

Deuteronomy 15:7

If, however, there is a needy person among you, one of your kinsmen in any of your settlements in the land that the LORD your God is giving you, do not harden your heart and shut your hand against your needy kinsman.

דברים ט״ו:ח׳

כִּֽי־פָתֹ֧חַ תִּפְתַּ֛ח אֶת־יָדְךָ֖ ל֑וֹ וְהַעֲבֵט֙ תַּעֲבִיטֶ֔נּוּ דֵּ֚י מַחְסֹר֔וֹ אֲשֶׁ֥ר יֶחְסַ֖ר לֽוֹ׃

Deuteronomy 15:8

Rather, you must open your hand and lend him sufficient for whatever he needs.

By the time the concept of dei machsoro appears in the Shulchan Arukh, we have codified in our laws the idea that we are responsible for returning people to a certain level of comfort.

יורה דעה ר״נ:א׳

כמה ראוי ליתן לכל אחד ואחד. ובו ה' סעיפים:
כמה נותנין לעני די מחסורו אשר יחסר לו כיצד אם היה רעב יאכילוהו היה צריך לכסות יכסוהו אין לו כלי בית קונה לו כלי בית ואפי' אם היה דרכו לרכוב על סוס ועבד לרוץ לפניו כשהיה עשיר והעני קונה לו סוס ועבד וכן לכל אחד ואחד לפי מה שצריך. הראוי לתת לו פת נותנים לו פת. עיסה נותנים לו עיסה. מטה נותנים לו מטה. הראוי ליתן לו פת חמה חמה. צונן צונן. להאכילו לתוך פיו מאכילין. אין לו אשה ובא לישא משיאין לו ושוכרים לו בית ומציעים לו מטה וכלי תשמישו ואחר כך משיאין לו אשה: הגה ונראה דכל זה בגבאי צדקה או רבים ביחד אבל אין היחיד מחוייב ליתן לעני די מחסורו אלא מודיע צערו לרבים ואם אין רבים אצלו יתן לו היחיד אם ידו משגת (ב"י ודלא כמשמעות הטור) וכמו שנתבאר סימן רמ"ט:

Shulchan Arukh, Yoreh De'ah 250:1

How much is to be given to a poor man? Sufficient for his need in that which he wanteth.²Deut. 15:8. Thus, if he is hungry, he should be fed; if he needs clothing, he should be clothed; if he lacks household utensils, they should be purchased for him; and even if he had been accustomed before he was impoverished to ride on horseback with a slave running before him, he should be furnished with a horse and a slave. And so each and every one should be supplied with what he needs.³Deut. 15: 8 “… sufficient for his need in that which he wanteth,” with emphasis on his and he. But see Ketub. 67b (a treatise of the Talmud), story of Rabbi Nehemiah. If it is fit to give him [merely] a slice of bread, give him a slice; if it is proper to give him dough, give him dough; if he ought to be provided with lodging, too, provide a bed for him. If it is fit to give him a warm meal, give him warm food; if cold lunch, then cold lunch. If he has to be fed [like an infant] then he must be fed. If he is unmarried and he comes to take a wife, the community should find him a mate; but first they should rent him a home, prepare him a bed and furnish him with necessary household utensils, and then marry him off.
RMI.—It appears that all this applies to Gabbaïm over public funds or to many doing charitable work together, but every individual is not bound to satisfy all the needs of a poor man who may chance to come his way. What he ought to do is to arouse public interest in a worthy case; but if he lives far from men, he should give what he can afford.

כתובות ס״ז ב:ג׳

תנו רבנן די מחסורו אתה מצווה עליו לפרנסו ואי אתה מצווה עליו לעשרו אשר יחסר לו אפילו סוס לרכוב עליו ועבד לרוץ לפניו אמרו עליו על הלל הזקן שלקח לעני בן טובים אחד סוס לרכוב עליו ועבד לרוץ לפניו פעם אחת לא מצא עבד לרוץ לפניו ורץ לפניו שלשה מילין:

Ketubot 67b:3

Concerning this issue, the Sages taught: “Sufficient for his deficiency”; this teaches that you are commanded with respect to the pauper to support him, but you are not commanded with respect to him to make him wealthy, as the obligation encompasses only that which he lacks, as indicated by the word deficient. However, the verse also states: “Which is deficient for him”; this includes even a horse upon which to ride and a servant to run in front of him for the sake of his stature, if necessary. For someone accustomed to these advantages, their absences constitute a true deficiency, not an extravagant indulgence. The Gemara relates: They said about Hillel the Elder that he obtained for a poor person of noble descent a horse upon which to ride and a servant to run in front of him. One time he did not find a servant to run in front of him, and Hillel himself ran in front of him for three mil, to fulfill the dictate “which is deficient for him.”