The Upward Path of Life Through Torah and the Corner of the Field

Rabbi Berekhiah in the name of Rabbi Jeremiah opened: "The path of life leads upward for the wise, that he may turn away from Sheol beneath" (Proverbs 15:24). "The path of life" — there is no "path of life" except the words of Torah, as it is written, "It is a tree of life" (Proverbs 3:18). Another interpretation: "the path of life" — there is no "path of life" except sufferings, as it is written, "and the reproofs of discipline are the way of life" (Proverbs 6:23). "Upward for the wise" [maskil] — for one who looks closely [mistakel] at the commandments of the Torah. What is written above the matter? "You shall not wholly reap the corner of your field when you harvest" (Leviticus 23:22) — the nations of the world, who consume their fields entirely. The rest of the proem is like the first.