The passage begins with a seemingly simple verse from Leviticus (19:24) about planting fruit trees: “When you will come into the land and plant any food tree, then you shall regard its fruit forbidden; three years it shall be forbidden for you; it shall not be eaten.” But immediately, the text leaps to a verse from Proverbs (3:18): “It is a tree of life for those who grasp it.” What's the connection?
Rav Huna, citing Rabbi Aḥa, offers a powerful analogy. He warns us not to treat Torah like a desperate father trying to marry off his daughter to just anyone. Torah isn't something we’re doing God a favor by accepting. Instead, it's a precious gift, a privilege. As (Proverbs 2:1) puts it, "My son, if you would take my sayings and treasure my commandments with you…” The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) emphasizes that "if" – if you merit it, then you can truly take hold of My sayings.
Think of it like this: Rav Huna, this time in the name of Rabbi Binyamin ben Levi, compares it to a king who tells his son to go into business. The son is afraid of robbers and pirates. So, what does the king do? He gives him a special staff, hollowed out and containing an amulet. “Let this staff be in your hand,” the king says, “and you will not fear anyone.” Similarly, God tells Moses to tell the Israelites: "Engage in Torah, and you will not fear any nation." Torah, then, is our protection, our amulet against the dangers of the world.
But here's where it gets really interesting. The text contrasts "toiling" in Torah with "grasping" it. It says that if the verse had stated "It is a tree of life for those who toil in it", there would be no survival for the enemies of Israel. "Toil" implies hard work, intensive study – something that not everyone can do. But it doesn't say that. Instead, it says "grasp." The emphasis is on understanding, internalizing, and making it your own. It's also about upholding the Torah, not just studying it. As (Deuteronomy 27:26) states, the curse isn't on those who don't study, but on those who "will not uphold" the matters of the Torah.
Rav Huna offers another crucial insight. If someone stumbles and sins, what should they do to live? The answer isn't just rote memorization. If you normally read one page of the Bible, read two. If you study one chapter of Mishnah (the earliest code of rabbinic law), study two. But what if you don't do either of those things? Then, the text suggests, become a leader of the community or a charity collector! Why? Because these acts of service, of upholding the community, are also pathways to life.
The text then circles back to Proverbs: "It is a tree of life for those who grasp it – for in the shelter of wisdom, in the shelter of money" (Ecclesiastes 7:12). Wisdom, in this context, refers to Torah study. Money, of course, refers to charitable giving. Both offer protection and sustenance.
Rabbi Aḥa, citing Rabbi Tanḥum ben Rabbi Ḥiyya, drives the point home. If you study, teach, observe, and perform mitzvot (commandments), and you have the ability to rebuke wrongdoing or support others in their Torah study but fail to do so, you are included among the cursed. Conversely, Rabbi Yirmeya, citing Rabbi Ḥiyya, says that even if you haven't studied, performed mitzvot, or taught others, but you do uphold the community and rebuke wrongdoing when you can, you are included among the blessed.
So, what's the takeaway? It's not enough to simply go through the motions of studying Torah. We must strive to grasp its meaning, to internalize its teachings, and, most importantly, to uphold its values in our daily lives. It's about taking action, about contributing to the well-being of our community, and about standing up for what is right. That is the true path to making the Torah a "tree of life" for ourselves and for the world.
“When you will come into the land and plant any food tree, then you shall regard its fruit forbidden; three years it shall be forbidden for you; it shall not be eaten” (Leviticus 19:24). “When you will come into the land and plant any food tree” – that is what is written: “It is a tree of life for those who grasp it” (Proverbs 3:18). Rav Huna said in the name of Rabbi Aḥa: Matters of Torah should not be in your eyes like a man who has a grown daughter and he seeks to marry her off to anyone. Rather, “My son, if you would take my sayings and treasure my commandments with you” (Proverbs 2:1). If you merit it, take My sayings.1The verse does not state “take my sayings” but rather “if you would take my sayings,” which the midrash interprets to mean: if you merit it, you will take My sayings. The point is that Israel’s acceptance of the Torah is a privilege for them, not a favor, as it were, to God. Rav Huna said in the name of Rabbi Binyamin ben Levi: This is analogous to a king who said to his son: ‘Go engage in commerce.’ [His son] said to him: ‘Father, I am afraid on the road due to the robbers and on the sea due to the pirates.’ What did his father do? He took a staff, hollowed it, placed an amulet in it, and gave it to his son. He said to him: ‘Let this staff be in your hand and you will not fear anyone.’ So too, this is what the Holy One blessed be He said to Moses: ‘Say to Israel: My children, engage in Torah and you will not fear any nation.’ Had it been stated: “It is a tree of life for those who toil in it,” there would have been no survival for the enemies of Israel;2This is a euphemism for the Jewish people. The point is that few people are able to toil in Torah, understood to mean intensive engagement in Torah study. rather, for those who grasp it. Had it been stated: “[Cursed is the one] who will not study,” there would have been no survival for the enemies of Israel; rather, [the verse states: “Cursed is the one] who will not uphold [the matters of this Torah]” (Deuteronomy 27:26). That is why it is stated: “It is a tree of life for those who grasp it” (Proverbs 3:18). Rav Huna said: If a person falters and commits a transgression, he incurs liability for death at the hand of Heaven. What shall he do to live? If he is accustomed to reading one page of the Bible, he shall read two pages of the Bible. If he is accustomed to study one chapter of Mishna, let him study two of Mishna. If he is accustomed neither to read [the Bible] nor to study [Mishna], what shall he do to live? Let him go and become a leader of the community or a charity collector and he will live. Had it been stated: “Cursed is the one who will not study,” there would have been no survival; rather, “cursed is the one who will not uphold.” Had it been stated: “It is a tree of life for those who toil in it,” there would have been no survival; rather, “it is a tree of life for those who grasp it” – “for in the shelter of wisdom, in the shelter of money” (Ecclesiastes 7:12).3God shelters those who engage in wisdom, the study of Torah, and God also shelters those who provide the community with monetary support. Rabbi Aḥa said in the name of Rabbi Tanḥum ben Rabbi Ḥiyya: If a person studied, taught, observed, and performed, and it was within his capability to rebuke but he did not rebuke, to uphold but he did not uphold,4If he could have rebuked others or supported them and thereby facilitated their Torah study or mitzva observance. he is included [among those who are] cursed. That is what is written: “Cursed is the one who will not uphold.” Rabbi Yirmeya said in the name of Rabbi Ḥiyya: If a person did not study, did not perform, did not observe, and did not teach others, and he did not have the capability to uphold but he upheld, to rebuke but he rebuked, he is included [among those who are] blessed.
