Positive Commandment 130 (Digest)
Tithes for the Poor
"At the end of three years, you shall bring forth all the tithes of your produce"—Deuteronomy 14:28.
We are commanded to separate a tenth of our harvest [in addition to the First Tithe given to the Levites] on the third and sixth year of the seven-year Shemitah cycle, and give it to the poor.
During these two years, this tithe substitutes [the Second Tithe.]
This biblical precept only applies in the Land of Israel.
Unabridged English Text of this Mitzvah »
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> The 130th mitzvah is that we are commanded to give ma'aser ani [a tenth of one's harvest to the poor] every third year—i.e., the third and the sixth—of the seven-year (shemittah) cycle.
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> The source of this commandment is G‑d's statement,;) "At the end of each three year period, you must bring out all the tithes of your crop..."
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> This Biblical precept, too, applies only in Eretz Yisroel.
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> The details of this mitzvah are explained in tractate Pe'ah,;) Demai,;) and Ma'aseros. It is also mentioned in various passages of the other tractates of [Seder] Zeraim, and in Machshirin;) and in Yadayim.;)
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> Footnotes
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> 1.
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> Deut. 14:28.
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> 2.
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> Ch. 8.
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> 3.
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> Ch. 4.
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> 4.
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> End of Ch. 2.
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> 5.
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> Ch. 4, Mishneh 3.
Positive Commandment 195 (Digest)
Charity
"You shall surely open your hand "—Deuteronomy 15:8.
We are commanded to give charity to the indigent, to relieve them of their distress. We are commanded to feed the needy and provide them with whatever they lack.
Even a pauper who is sustained by charity is obligated to fulfill this mitzvah—by giving charity (even if only a pittance) to someone needier than himself, or someone in a similar predicament.
Unabridged English Text of this Mitzvah »
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> The 195th mitzvah is that we are commanded to give charity—to support and relieve the poor.
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> This command is expressed in the Torah in various ways: "Open your hand generously";;) "Help him survive, whether he is a convert or a born Jew";;) "Help your brother survive with you.";) These verses all have the same point—that we must provide for our poor and support them in accordance with their need.
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> The details of this mitzvah are explained in a number of places, the majority in tractates Kesubos;) and Baba Basra.;)
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> The Oral Tradition relates that even a poor person who himself lives from charity is also obligated in this mitzvah—to give even a small amount of charity to someone less fortunate than him or on the same level as himself.
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> Footnotes
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> Deut. 15:8.
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> Lev. 25:35.
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> 3.
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> Ibid. 25:36.
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> 4.
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> See 67a.
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> See 8a.
Negative Commandment 232 (Digest)
Ignoring a Needy Person
"Do not harden your heart nor shut your hand from your destitute brother"—Deuteronomy 15:7.
It is forbidden to be stingy and withhold charity and relief from our needy brethren—if we are aware of their desperate situation and have the means to assist them.
Unabridged English Text of this Mitzvah »
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> The 232nd prohibition is that we are forbidden from withholding charity and assistance from our needy brethren once we have become aware of their difficulty and know we have the ability to help them.
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> The source of this prohibition is G‑d's statement,;) "Do not harden your heart or shut your hand against your needy brother."
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> This prohibits being cruel and stingy to the extent that we do not give to those who deserve our assistance.
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> Footnotes
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> 1.
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> Deut. 15:7.