The mitzvah of shemitah, allowing the land to lie fallow in the seventh year, corresponds to the seventh millennium of the world’s existence. At that future time, there will no longer be any “sowing” or “reaping.” How the question in this week’s Torah portion, “What shall we eat in the seventh year?” and its answer, “Then I will command My blessing upon you in the sixth year,” relate to the Messianic era.

This week’s Torah portion, Behar, contains the mitzvah of shemitah. “When you come into the land that I give you, the land shall observe a Sabbath rest for G-d” (Vayikra 25:2). As will be explained, this mitzvah has a special connection to the Final Redemption and the seventh millennium.

In Tractate Sanhedrin (97a) of the Talmud Rabbi Katina states: “The world will exist for six millennia, followed by one millennium in a state of destruction.” This is supported by a Beraisa: “In the same way that once in seven years the land lies fallow, so too will the entire world ‘lie fallow’ in the seventh millennium, as it is written, ‘And G-d alone will be exalted on that day.’”

The Torah’s seven-year agricultural cycle thus parallels the seven thousand years of the world’s existence. The shemitah year, in which no work is done, corresponds to the seventh millennium, when physicality itself will be nullified – “in a state of destruction.” At this future time, the words of the prophet Yeshayahu will be fulfilled: “And G-d alone will be exalted on that day” (Yeshayahu 2:11).

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Faith and the Seventh Millennium

The Ramban explains that the shemitah year is an expression of faith in the Creator, Who created the world in six days and rested on the seventh, and Who will likewise cause the world to “rest” after six thousand years. As a sign of our faith, we refrain from working the land in the seventh year.

According to the Ramban, this accounts for the Torah’s unusual stringency with regard to shemitah and the dire consequences of not keeping it. “Exile comes to the world…for not leaving the earth at rest during the Sabbatical year” (Avos, Chapter 5). Similarly, “Then the land will appease its shemitah years during all the years of its desolation, while you are in the land of your foes; then the land will rest and it will make its shemitah years appeasing. All the days of its being desolate it will rest, whatever it did not rest during your shemitah years when you dwelled upon her” (Vayikra 26:34-35).

The mitzvah of shemitah thus expresses our basic faith in the creation of the world and the World to Come. Accordingly, the Torah prescribes severe punishment for neglecting to observe this commandment.

The Abarbanel writes that the yovel (Jubilee) year is also connected to the Messianic era, and divides this future time when the physical world will “rest” into two distinct periods: In the first stage, the heavens and earth will continue to exist, albeit in a state of desolation. This is in keeping with Rabbi Katina’s statement: “The world exists for six millennia, and one millennium in a state of destruction.” In the Abarbanel’s words, “The world will be partially lost.” In the second stage, the physical world itself will cease to exist – “absolute loss” – as he describes it.

According to the Abarbanel, belief in the eventual end of the physical world is part and parcel of belief in the Creator. Anyone who believes that the world did not always exist and was created by G-d ex nihilo at a certain point must also accept that it will ultimately revert to its former state of nothingness.

In fact, these two periods correspond to the shemitah and yovel years of the cycle. The Sabbatical year, in which we refrain from agricultural labors, alludes to the first stage of the seventh millennium, “a state of destruction.” The Jubilee year, by contrast, is symbolic of the second period, as it possesses the added dimension of actually being able to “erase” everything that took place during the previous fifty years (i.e., properties return to their original owners and slaves are freed). In this respect the yovel is similar to the later stage of the seventh millennium, when heaven and earth will revert to their original nothingness and the physical world will cease to exist: “And G-d alone will be exalted on that day.”

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“Sowing” and “Reaping” in the Spiritual Sense

Chasidic philosophy has much to say on the seven-year/seven thousand year parallel:

In Sefer Hamaamarim 5678, the Rebbe Rashab discusses the spiritual implications of “Six years you shall sow your field, and in the seventh year you shall not sow your field.” In general, the Torah uses the metaphor of “sowing” to describe the observance of mitzvos. For example, “Sow for yourselves by righteousness” (Hoshea 10:12) and “Blessed are you who sow beside all waters” (Yeshayahu 32:20). Likewise, we pray every day, “He sows righteousness and causes deliverance to sprout forth.”

To explain:

In the physical sense, “sowing” consists of taking a seemingly lifeless kernel or seed and placing it in the ground. The kernel has neither taste nor smell, nor is it particularly aesthetically pleasing. After a certain period of time the kernel sprouts, and with the passage of time, grows into a beautiful, fruit-bearing tree.

In truth, the ostensibly lifeless kernel contains a tremendous power, even though it can’t be seen with the naked eye. However, this latent ability is only activated when the seed is planted, thereby enabling the earth’s “vegetative power” to reveal its hidden potential and bring it to fruition.

On the spiritual plane, mitvzos work much in the way:

On a superficial level, the mitzvos we perform seem like simple, physical acts that are devoid of deeper significance. From this perspective, a mitzvah is similar to a seed, in that both contain a tremendous hidden power. In the case of mitzvos, this potential is only revealed in Gan Eden, where the spiritual “vegetative power” brings these mitzvos to fruition and the soul “reaps” the Divine light that “grew” as a result of those mitzvos. In other words, in Gan Eden the soul basks in the light that was created by the deceptively simple acts of our Divine service and Torah study.

Metaphorically speaking, therefore, the performance of mitzvos is analogous to the phenomenon of sowing: The physical act of doing the mitzvah is the seed; the “vegetative power” in Gan Eden enables the seed to grow; and the beautiful, fruit-bearing tree is the G-dly revelation that results from our observance of the commandments.

Now we can understand the spiritual significance of the verse, “Six years you shall sow your field, and in the seventh year you shall not sow your field”: For the first sixth thousand years of the world’s existence, a Jew is obligated to “sow,” to observe G-d’s commandments, in order to allow the soul to enjoy the G-dly revelations of Gan Eden. In the “seventh year,” however, i.e., the seventh millennium, “There shall be a complete rest for the land…you shall not sow your field.” This corresponds to the later stage of the Messianic era, when we will no longer perform mitzvos as we know them, as our Sages declared (Niddah 61b): “The commandments will be nullified in the future.”

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Divine Revelation Independent of Our Efforts

This leads us to a logical question: If G-dly revelation is “caused” by our observance of mitzvos, and we will no longer perform mitzvos in the Messianic era, where will the Divine illumination come from?

Indeed, this philosophical dilemma is expressed in the verse in this week’s Torah portion (Vayikra 25:20): “And if you will say: What shall we eat in the seventh year? Behold, we will not sow and we will not gather our crop.” As we will see, G-d answers this question a few verses later: “But you will eat from the old crop.”

To explain:

According to Chasidus, just as our physical world is a created entity, so too are all the higher spiritual worlds created entities, called into being at G-d’s command, as it is written, “In the beginning G-d created the heaven and the earth.” Thus regardless of whether a particular entity is physical or spiritual, it was created by G-d and requires His ongoing involvement and sustenance in order to exist, as we say in our prayers, “In His goodness He renews each day, continuously, the work of Creation.”

There is, however, a level of infinite Divine light that is not a created entity but has always existed, even before Creation. As our Sages put it in Pirkei D’Rabbi Eliezer (Chapter 3), “Before the world was created there was only G-d and His Name.”

As this relates to the verse “But you will eat from the old crop”:

In the seventh millennium, this pre-existing (“old”) light will be revealed in the world, i.e., the same G-dly illumination that existed before the world was created. This level of illumination is so sublime that it is entirely independent of man’s actions. For that reason, although the performance of mitzvos will cease in the seventh millennium, the world will nonetheless be illuminated by a transcendent and infinite Divine light.

As previously explained, the performance of mitzvos is the “sowing” that enables the “growth” of Divine revelation. This is true, however, only with regard to those levels that relate to the created world, where man’s conduct and actions can have an influence. The very highest level, by contrast, completely transcends creation and is not at all affected by the performance of mitzvos.

This superior level of Divine illumination is considered “an undeserved gift” from G-d, as it is not a result of our actions and behavior. There is thus no contradiction between the commandments being nullified in the seventh millennium and the fact that it is precisely then that the world will experience the highest level of Divine revelation.

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Mitzvah Observance at Present

At the same time, this does not mean that we have been given a “free pass” and that our present conduct is irrelevant. While the revelations of the seventh millennium are ultimately attributable to G-d’s mercy and kindness, they will only come about after we have fulfilled all of our obligations.

In order to understand, let us use the analogy of a person who is sentenced to jail after committing a serious crime. No matter how exemplary his behavior is in prison he will be not be freed; his only chance of release is a special pardon from the governor. At the same time, it is obvious that if he continues to behave negatively he will not be pardoned. In this sense, while the pardon may be considered an “undeserved gift” dependent on the whim on the governor, to a small degree, being released does depend on the prisoner’s actions.

So, too, is it in our case: The Torah’s promise that we will “eat from the old crop” is prefaced by “And I will ordain My blessing for you in the sixth year” (Vayikra 25:21). Thus although the revelations of the seventh millennium are far greater than our performance of mitzvos could ever generate or justify, they will come only after the Jewish people have perfected their Divine service for the first six thousand years of existence.

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The Special Blessing of the Sixth Year

In Volume 27 of Likutei Sichos the Rebbe offers another insight into the above verses, “What shall we eat in the seventh year…and I will ordain My blessing for you in the sixth year,” that is especially relevant to our generation, the last generation of exile and the first of the Redemption:

The Rebbe has repeatedly stated that Divine Providence has chosen us to usher in the Messianic era. Nonetheless, when we consider our lowly spiritual status in comparison to previous generations, it might prompt us to question our ability to achieve such an overwhelming objective: “What shall we eat in the seventh year?” The answer is likewise found in this week’s Torah’s portion, “And I will ordain My blessing for you in the sixth year.”

The Kli Yakar comments on the above verses as follows: “The way of the Gentiles is to cultivate the land for two years and allow it to lie fallow for one, to avoid depleting the soil. However, G-d has commanded us to sow for six years in succession, year after year, and has promised us that the land will not be depleted. Moreover, there is an additional ‘miracle within a miracle’ in that not only does the soil not become depleted but grows stronger in the sixth year, to the extent that it states, ‘And I will ordain My blessing in the sixth year and it will yield a crop sufficient for three years.’”

Thus although we are indeed spiritual “midgets” compared to the giants of our illustrious past, it is precisely our generation that corresponds to the “sixth year” that is especially blessed by G-d. We are therefore assured and confident in our ability to usher in the Messianic era, immediately and at once, and begin “the day that is entirely Shabbos and rest everlasting.