Se uno assume lavoratori per lavorare nella sua neta revai [(frutti di un albero del quarto anno, che può essere mangiato solo a Gerusalemme, o che può riscattare per portare i soldi a Gerusalemme)], non possono mangiare. Se non li ha informati (che erano neta revai), li riscatta e permette loro di mangiare. Se le sue torte di fichi si staccassero [e assunse lavoratori per riformarli], o le sue caraffe fossero aperte [e assunse lavoratori per chiuderli], non avrebbero potuto mangiarne, [poiché il loro lavoro (i frutti) era completati e divennero soggetti a ma'aser e sono in tevel (prodotti proibiti non protetti).] Se non li ha informati, deve decimarli e permettere loro di mangiare.
Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
נטע רבעי – fourth-year fruit of the tree, which are not eaten other than in Jerusalem or one redeems them and brings their monetary value (plus twenty percent) to Jerusalem.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Metzia
If one hired laborers to work among his fourth-year plantings, they not eat from them. If he had not told them [that they were fourth-year plantings] he must first redeem the fruit and then allow them to eat. In this scenario workers are hired to work with produce from plants that are in their fourth year. Such fruit may not be eaten in any place but Jerusalem. (During the first three years of a plant’s life its fruit may not be eaten at all. This law is called “orlah”.) If the owner wished to, he could redeem the fruit of his fourth year plants with money and bring the money to Jerusalem and spend it there. If the workers were told beforehand that they would be working with fourth-year plantings, then they may not eat from them. Since they agreed to work with that which they could not eat, the employer is not obligated to make the food able to them. However, if the employer had not informed them that they would be working with food from which they may not eat, he is obligated to redeem the fruit and then let them eat.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
נתפרסו עיגוליו – cakes of figs that became separated and works were hired to combine them, or jugs that opened up and workers were hired to seal them closed.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Metzia
If his fig-cakes broke up or his jars burst open, they may not eat from them. If he had not told them [that they were liable to be tithed] he must first separate the tithes and then allow them to eat. One is not obligated to separate the tithe (which will go to the Levi) from produce until the work on the produce has been completed. In other words, fruit in the fields that has not yet been made ready for sale need not be tithed before eating, whereas fruit in the market must be tithed before it is eaten. In our mishnah the laborer was hired to work with produce upon which the work has already been completed. He therefore may not eat of the produce until the appropriate tithes have been taken. In this case the worker was hired to work with food after the work had been completed and yet something went wrong with the packaging. As we learned in section one, if the employer had informed the worker that he would be working with produce from which he could not eat then they may not eat from the produce. If, however, he had not informed them, then he must separate the tithes and allow them to eat from the produce.
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Bartenura on Mishnah Bava Metzia
הרי לאו לא יאכלו – because their work had been completed and they were ready for tithing as they had become eatables forbidden pending the separation of sacred gifts.
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English Explanation of Mishnah Bava Metzia
Questions for Further Thought: Mishnah seven: What general principle can you extract from this mishnah?
