ללמד את בנו אומנות בארץ ישראל מקורות

The mishna taught that Rabbi Nehorai says: I set aside all the trades and I teach my son only Torah. It is taught in the Tosefta (5:14): Rabbi Nehorai says: I set aside all the trades in the world, and I teach my son only Torah, as all other trades serve one only in the days of his youth, when he has enough strength to work, but in the days of his old age, behold, he is left to lie in hunger. But Torah is not like this: It serves a person in the time of his youth and provides him with a future and hope in the time of his old age. With regard to the time of his youth, what does it say about a Torah scholar? “But they that wait for the Lord shall renew their strength” (Isaiah 40:31). With regard to the time of his old age, what does it say? “They shall still bring forth fruit in old age, they shall be full of sap and richness” (Psalms 92:15).

(Our mishna) taught similar to a black (African) etrog - I heard from my teacher the Baal Hafla’ah (Rabbi Pinchas HaLevi Horowitz) about the argument between Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and Rabbi Yishmael at the beginning of the chapter “How do we bless” (Brachot 35b) in which it is concluded “many did like Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and did not succeed,” he said they did like Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and not exactly like him, that certainly one whose intention is for the sake of G-d Who discerns our deepest thoughts would certainly succeed, but they only were similar to Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, but not in their deepest parts, therefore they did not succeed. And he said that this is also what they are saying here about a black etrog, that is, the uniquely righteous person who is different in his deeds like an African is different in his skin, it is kosher, but if he is only similar to an African, in that he wants to appear like Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai, this is disqualified, for he has not succeeded. This are the words of the Baal Hafla’ah, from here onward are the words of his small student. In my humble opinion, Rabbi Yishmael also only applied the verse “you will gather your grain” to the Land of Israel, with the majority of Israel settled there, when working the ground itself is a mitzvah in the category of developing the Land of Israel (יישוב א”י) and harvesting its holy produce - about this the Torah commanded, “you will gather your grain.” Boaz “winnows barley tonight in the threshing floor” (ruth 3:2) because of the mitzvah. And it is like saying, I will not put on tefillin because I am occupied with Torah study, so too one should not say that he will not gather his grain because he is occupied with Torah study. And it is possible that even other professions that have an element of developing the world are all included in the mitzvah. But when, because of our sins, we are dispersed in exile amongst the nations of the world, anyone who adds on to worldly development adds to the destruction of divine service - in this case, Rabbi Yishmael would agree with Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai. And about this we rely on Rabbi Nehorai in the mishna at the end of Kiddushin, “I set aside all the trades in the world, and I teach my son only Torah” - that is, outside the Land of Israel, and so it seems to me. And this is Rava’s innovation about the African etrog “this is for us and this is for them” - even if it is not similar, rather it is actually an African etrog, that is, Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai and his true fellows, nonetheless, for those who live in Babylon it is kosher and for those who live in the Land of Israel it is disqualified (Rashi and the Rosh argue about the location where such an etrog is kosher; the Hatam Sofer is following the Rosh here) because we require the development of the Land of Israel by means of the people of Israel.