Shemittah renews the gift of the Land

כי תבואו אה"א אשר אני נותן לכם ושבתה הארץ שבת לה'.

"When you come to the land that I am giving you, the land shall rest a Shabbos to Hashem" (Vayikra 25:2).

The mitzvah of Shemittah opens by tying the land to Hashem: it is a gift that He gives, and it must "rest a Shabbos" for Him.

כי הש"י נתן לנו ארץ ישראל להודיע כי לה' הארץ.

For Hashem gave us Eretz Yisrael to make known that "the earth is Hashem's" (Tehillim 24:1).

The very gift of the Land is meant to teach that the world and everything in it belong to Hashem.

כדאיתא בתנחומא הש"י הקנה העולם לאברהם וחזר והקנה לו.

As stated in the Tanchuma: Hashem transferred ownership of the world to Avraham and then transferred it [back] to him again.

The Midrash describes a repeated act of giving — Hashem granting the world to Avraham anew, conveying that the gift is continually renewed.

וזה מצות השמיטה שניתן לבנ"י הארץ מחדש.

And this is the mitzvah of Shemittah — that the land is given to Bnei Yisrael anew.

Shemittah re-enacts the original gift: every seventh year the Land is, as it were, given afresh to Bnei Yisrael.

ובכל שמיטה נתחדש המתנה כענין שכ' בפ' תולדות ויתן לך האלהים יתן ויחזור ויתן ע"ש.

And in every Shemittah the gift is renewed, similar to what is written in Parshas Toldos, "And may God give you" (Bereishis 27:28) — "may He give and give again" — see there.

As Chazal read Yitzchak's blessing to mean continual giving, so each Shemittah cycle is a renewed bestowal of the Land.

וז"ש אשר אני נותן לשון הוה.

And this is the meaning of "that I am giving" — in the present tense.

The Torah uses the ongoing present tense "am giving," not the past, signaling that the gift of the Land is perpetual and ever-current.

ובנ"י הם מוכנים לקבל זו המתנה.

And Bnei Yisrael are prepared to receive this gift.

Bnei Yisrael have the readiness — the proper inner orientation — to receive this continually renewed gift.

וז"ש כי גרים ותושבים אתם עמדי.

And this is the meaning of, "for you are strangers and sojourners with Me" (Vayikra 25:23).

The verse declaring Bnei Yisrael "strangers and sojourners with Hashem" expresses exactly the awareness that enables them to receive the gift.

הוא שבחן של בנ"י שיודעין שהם גרים ומבררין כי לה' הארץ ודבקים תמיד בכח הנתינה.

This is the praise of Bnei Yisrael — that they know they are "strangers," and they clarify that "the earth is Hashem's," and they cling always to the power of the [divine] giving.

Their greatness is recognizing they are mere sojourners, not owners; this keeps them perpetually attached to Hashem as the true Giver and Owner of the Land.

ובזה יתכן לפרש מה דכתיב וכרות עמו הברית לתת כו' לתת.

And with this we can explain what is written, "and You made a covenant with him to give... to give" (Nechemiah 9:8) — "to give" [stated twice].

The verse repeats "to give," which calls for explanation; the doubling hints at a giving that is ongoing.

תרתי ל"ל רק שיהיה להם תמיד בחי' הנתינה.

Why two [mentions of "to give"]? Only that they should always have the aspect of [continual] giving.

The repetition teaches that the covenant's gift is not a one-time act but a constant, renewing flow.

יתן ויחזור ויתן.

"He gives and gives again."

The blessing is one of perpetual giving, over and over.

שבכל שמיטה ושבתה הארץ לה'.

For in every Shemittah, "the land shall rest, a Shabbos to Hashem."

Each Shemittah, when the Land rests for Hashem, renews this giving and reaffirms His ownership.

וכעין שכ' באוה"ח על כל שבת שניתן חיות חדש להבריאה ע"ש פ' ויכלו.

And similar to what the Ohr HaChaim wrote regarding every Shabbos — that new vitality is given to creation — see there, on Parshas [Bereishis,] "Vayechulu."

Just as the Ohr HaChaim teaches that each weekly Shabbos infuses fresh life into all creation, so too Shemittah renews the world's vitality.

וכשם שנאמר בשבת בראשית כן בשמיטה:

And just as it is said regarding the Shabbos of creation, so too regarding Shemittah.

Shemittah is the agricultural counterpart of weekly Shabbos: as Shabbos renews creation's life-flow, the Shemittah year renews the gift and vitality of the Land.

Summary: Shemittah re-enacts and renews Hashem's original gift of Eretz Yisrael, taught by the present-tense "that I am giving" and the doubled "to give" — "He gives and gives again." Bnei Yisrael's greatness is knowing they are mere "strangers and sojourners with Hashem," so they remain forever attached to Him as the true Owner and Giver. Just as each Shabbos pours fresh vitality into creation, so each Shemittah renews the life of the Land and reaffirms that "the earth is Hashem's."