There are those who think, or more accurately - mistakenly think, that the Mitzvot of the Torah are comprised of two domains: between man and his fellow man, and between man and HaMakom - G-d. This is true, only their mistake begins when they think that the Mitzvot defined as "between man and his fellow man" have the same purpose as secular civil law – to preserve proper order – but with only one difference: the Torah laws are Divine, whereas the laws of the gentiles are man-made (and of course this difference is very consequential), but the purpose of the laws is the same – to maintain orderly society.

It is true that with time, civil laws are improving and progressing toward the direction of the Torah. If in the past the governments and their laws (in normative countries) were predominately "sur mi-ra" (refrain from evil), only preventing its citizens from being killed or otherwise harmed, as time goes on the governments progress to deal with "aseh tov" (do good) – caring for the underprivileged, education, health, etc. The Torah commands us the Mitzvot of leket, shichechah and pe'ah (leaving produce in the fields for the poor), tzedaka (charity), acts of kindness and more. And in this spirit, the State of Israel established the Bituach Leumi (national insurance), the State supports chessed (philanthropic) organizations (approximately 60% of their budget is financed by the State), and it takes responsibility for education, employment, etc.

Nevertheless, the Torah includes many societal Mitzvot which differ substantially from western society's outlook, and the divide between Torah law and civil law is so great that it is difficult to say that the difference is incidental.
 

For instance, regarding the prohibition of ona'ah (deception): there is also a civil law against it, but it is completely different from the Torah prohibition. Everyone agrees that it is forbidden to deceive in transactions, however the Torah prohibits buying or selling an item at a higher price than the market price, even when the seller or buyer is not being deceitful. For example: If a vendor offers a tourist a bottle of Cola for 20 NIS, the vendor is not deceiving the tourist – the tourist knows what Cola is, only the vendor says that he is interested in selling the Cola for 20 NIS. If the sale takes place, the vendor has committed the Torah prohibition of ona'ah. By the same token, if the tourist buys the bottle for 3 NIS, then the tourist will be guilty of the same Torah prohibition. And this seems puzzling – what's wrong with this? The vendor didn't lie, and everyone can sell for whatever price he wants (with the exception of items whose prices are controlled by law) – this is the basis of a free economy.

Another example is the prohibition of ribit (interest). Ostensibly, it is perfectly logical to demand interest on a loan. It is well known that money earns money, and when the lender loans money, he is prevented from making a profit from that money, so why can't the lender demand compensation from the borrower for his lost profits?
 

Additionally: The Torah provides a seller the opportunity to redeem his land after he sold it. Why does the Torah allow the seller to change his mind?
 

In the same vein, regarding the Mitzvah of Shemittah, which includes a law "between a man and his fellow man" and a law "between man and HaMakom" – at first glance this is difficult to understand: why does the landowner lose his rights to his produce - in the end the field is his?
 

Clearly there is another ideal here, besides providing for the needs of the citizens.

In order to explain this, we will preface that even though it obviously is forbidden to steal from a gentile or to harm him, these special Mitzvot and prohibitions were commanded only with regard to Jews. Therefore, apparently, in contrast to the gentiles, whose purpose for a normative state is to safeguard an orderly society which aids the weak, the Torah desires that the connection within Am Israel will be one of togetherness – like a family, brotherly connection.
 

Enforcement in secular law only means punishment. One can be corrupt and filled with hatred, but the law is only concerned that he doesn't hurt other people. However, in Judaism character is also important: "Just as He is merciful, you too be merciful", one must feel connection to his brother.
 

And in spite of the fact that economic logic sanctions charging interest, the Torah prohibits this since we expect one to treat his friend like his brother, and we expect him to act toward him with middat hachessed (the attribute of kindness). And therefore we expect one to sell to his friend – brother at a fair price, and to allow him to redeem his field.
 

In conclusion, the relationship within Am Israel must be a relationship of brotherhood, and not just a mechanism for the preservation of a properly functioning society.
 

In a few days we will celebrate Lag B'Omer. The Shulchan Aruch writes: "The custom is not to get haircuts until Lag B'Omer, as it is said that then they ceased to die." The Gemara tells us that the students of Rabbi Akiva died in an epidemic because they did not act with respect toward each other. And we must ask: why did HaShem punish Rabbi Akiva's students specifically with a plague?

Perhaps as an analogy we can explain this according to our recent experience during the Covid epidemic. The best way to cope with it was by social distancing, as the Sages said (Babba Kamma 60b): "Dever b'ir – k'nos raglecha" ('When there is a plague in the city – bring in your legs' meaning: stay home) as it is written: "and you shall not go out, no man from the entrance of his house until morning." When there is a plague, we must remain socially isolated.
 

Perhaps HaShem wanted to tell Rabbi Akiva's students something through the plague:
 

First of all, HaShem tells them: If you don't know how to respect one another, stay home. You are not fit for social contact.

But perhaps there is a deeper message here: the plague proves that we are all linked to each other, that one cannot live alone but requires connection and cooperation and with everyone, and that defeating the plague demands of us mutual responsibility. When Rabbi Akiva's students internalized these lessons, the plague ceased by itself.

Let us pray that we too will learn these lessons, and in that our day as well the plague will soon be stopped.
 

Do you have a comment or question on the shiur?
Comment below and we'll join the discussion