The economic situation in the Land of Israel from the second century AD onwards - Chapter Three - Intensive economy: a real agricultural revolution

A series on the economy in the Land of Israel from the second century AD onwards. This chapter contains the essence of the previous two chapters, i.e. rural villas and capital and government and is wrapped up in them.

Additional episodes in the series:

• First chapter - Villas in the literature of the Sages
• Chapter Two - Agriculture: Capital and Government
• Chapter four - literal royal cradling
• Chapter Five - Ceramics as a sign of capital and rule
• Chapter six - the glass and the presidency

From a bird's eye view on the one hand and from digging into the sources on the other hand, it turns out that the leadership of the Land of Israel, as an object of life and as promoting its political and economic-personal position, used to cooperate with the Romans and the Greek-Hellenistic urban leadership on the one hand and with armed parties such as the "Mitzim" on the other hand, with personal and economic gain as a result it was clear.

In this chapter, we will see how the leadership of the Sages, the Sanhedrin, "collaborated" with the results of reality, and brought forth laws and regulations that benefited, of course, the presidential leadership of the Land of Israel, and especially during the time of Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi, who forged close ties with the Roman authorities and benefited her and obesity of the population.

All of this promoted and leveraged the significant transition from extensive to intensive, and we open here with an indirect example, although instructive in itself.

The Sage's article (Midrash Vaikra Rabbah Kaha, 5) presents us with an interesting picture about the Roman Empire encouraging planting in the Land of Israel, and there the matter of the "treasure" comes up: "Rabbi (Yehuda the President) and Rabbi Yossi Barbi Yehuda were from you on the way. They saw one ACM coming towards them. Amerin (they say) three (three) milin (words and borrowed - questions) He asked Len (asked them): What will I bring? (Who are you) and what art exactly? And where are you Azlin (going)? What is Athens? - Yehudain, what is art exactly? - Pragmattotin (merchants), and ethano ezelin? - To store wheat from the Divanai treasury (to buy wheat from the Greco-Roman royal storehouse, and perhaps from the city of Yavne which was controlled by the Romans), as appears in the Roman author Tacitus, when the population is forced to buy grain from the Roman silos as a kind of tax.

This text testifies to the expansion of Roman taxation and its deepening in the Land of Israel mainly after rebellions and riots. One of the ways of dealing with the fiscal problem was the transition from an extensive to an intensive agricultural economy, which is more profitable.

Already in the first and second chapters we talked about the intensive method of agriculture in the Land of Israel, such as (Baba Metzia 135:4): "The tenant rented a field from his neighbor and there was grain to harvest, grapes to harvest, olives to harvest...". And the Babylonian Talmud made a beautiful distinction between the large farm of "first generations" and the more intensive farm of "last generations" - the generation of Rabbi Yehuda dating from 1 CE onwards, and in the Mishnah we found "the grain mills between the olives", exactly as recommended by the Roman agricultural writer (Agricola 1, XNUMX). The flax, for example, was sown densely, and this is how Rabbi Elazar instructed Rabbi Shimon - "Whoever wants to make his field rows of grain and rows of many kinds..." (Tosefta Kalaim XNUMX:XNUMX), and in the Mishnah - "A bed that is six spans by six spans sows five seeds in it - four In the four winds of the bed and one in the middle... Rabbi Yehuda says: Six in the middle" (Klaiim XNUMX:XNUMX)

What is an intensive economy? The method was developed in the very early times in the Sumerian agricultural culture, the main of which is the intensive cultivation of large areas, the development of an irrigation system and the use of professional and skilled personnel for specific agricultural operations. This method was adopted and perfected in the Roman economy and from there it reached the Land of Israel. This agriculture was characterized by a large crop per unit area, mostly with the help of irrigation systems. This method was characterized by the combination of agriculture and livestock with craft and industry.

Why did the economy become more and more intense after the destruction of the Second Temple?

First - because of the gradual departure of Jews in Judea after the destruction of the Second Temple and its aftermath. These turned to the Galilee, especially after the results of Ben Kusva's rebellion became known.

Secondly - the infrastructural conditions of the Galilee promoted the growth of intensive farms, including the "city", which is the rustic villa in the Roman style.

Thirdly - the phenomenon of small agricultural farms dwindled due to the seizure of land by landowners after the end of the great rebellion, and this really "required" a change in the essential agricultural concept, i.e. an interface between extensive and intensive.

Fourthly - the burden of taxes that became more and more difficult on extensive agriculture required a drastic change that was expressed in a more rational exploitation of the forces of the land and the produce in general.

Fifth - direct and indirect influence of the intensive Roman agricultural economy.

Sixth - geographical distance from the religious-ritual center, i.e. the Temple, brought the public who wanted to find refuge and shelter from the fighting areas of the rebellions to more peaceful areas and those that caused some change in their worldview, i.e. to more realists and from that to think more in the direction of personal profits. These found what they were looking for in the intensive method.

Seventh - in terms of "the chicken and the egg" - the improvement of the irrigation systems, the work tools and the professional reliability of the agricultural workers enabled a relatively easy transition from the extensive to the intensive method.

One of the problems that arose in relation to this method was the need to spend immediate funds, such as for a regular supply of workers, materials, seeds, work tools and more, and from this the interest loan developed. Rabbi Yehuda came out in favor of the farmer and allowed him to be a party to the usury transaction, and President Rabbi Shimon ben Gamaliel Harrah followed him by saying: "There is no trespasser on his field, and there is no fear of usury" (Talmud Yerushalmi Baba Metziya, Chapter XNUMX, XNUMX, p. XNUMX-p. XNUMX).

Into this cauldron of evidence that reflects a common reality, the issue of the seventh issue of its problems and consequences was integrated, and its teacher and rabbi, Prof. Shmuel Safrai, has singled out a detailed study (Mitzvot of the seventh in the reality after the destruction of the Second Temple, Tarvit La, 304, p. XNUMX et seq.), And his argument is summed up in the statement that the seventh commandment, that is, giving rest to the field once every seven years, is one of the most difficult commandments to sustain economically for the public, most of whom live from their work in the field. And in addition to the prohibitions on sowing and harvesting in the field and trimming the trees listed in the Torah, according to the Tanah tradition, other prohibitions were added such as the prohibition of eating dregs (that is, the prohibition of gathering and eating dregs of grain and vegetables that grew on the Sabbath as harvest dregs of the sixth year) and the prohibition of working the soil in the sixth year that is not intended for that year's needs , but it has some preparation for the seventh year.

The decrees on the shemita were mainly aimed at the requirement to pay taxes in the year of the shemita, and as a result the commandment of the sheviyat was loosened (Sefrai Isam, p. 321), and elements appeared who had "shefiyat collectors" and "shefiyat merchants" and the Mishna testifies to an entire city of shefiyat eaters after the rebellion of Ben Khosva.

For this reason that grew stronger after the Great Rebellion, and it is the one that led to the leveraging of the intensive processing method. The intensive method therefore did not grow in one day, but it is a very interesting historical process in my opinion and the main thing is an integral combination of cause and effect, namely - dealing with a problematic economic situation that worsened in the face of Roman taxation; Aid indirectly in terms of the influence of the Roman agricultural economy; Extensive discussions in the Sanhedrin that resulted in rulings on the issue and supportive halachic intervention and in particular a gradual improvement in the status of the agricultural economy which over time became profitable.

We mentioned the extent of the involvement of the members of the Sanhedrin, especially during the presidency of Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi (until about 225 CE), also for personal financial reasons, and we have an example of this in connection with the laws of the seventh and "Shipuran", we realized - in the generation of Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi there were changes in status The seventh, either as a result of his regulations or as a result of his instruction and method in perceiving the place of the seventh in Halacha, and thus, from this regulatory line, Rabbi Yehuda the Hanasi exempted entire cities from the tithes such as Ashkelon, Beit Shan, Kiserin, Beit Govrin and more. The president in question even tried to allow the shemita at all.

The purpose of the permits was to encourage agricultural Jewish settlement in various places and to strengthen the hands of those who were already living there. The renewed regulations regarding the seventh reflected changes and technological innovations in everything related to the work of the land such as plowing, sowing, blessing and assembly, irrigation and more.

Following on from the above, it will be emphasized that as a result of those innovations, an interesting phenomenon became known regarding the size of the produce, its nature and character. The evidence is steeped in a considerable degree of exaggeration and imagination, such as "the people of Jericho ... plucking palms all day long" (Yerushalmi Demai, chapter XNUMX XNUMX p. XNUMX) and to this the Jerusalem Talmud adds with apparent astonishment - "grinding palms all day? And with the will of the sages they would do (this)..." (Yerushalmi Pesachim chapter XNUMX not p. XNUMX). This Talmudic section is a treasure in which is a fascinating and interesting proof of how the members of the Sanhedrin intervened, not in the framework of theoretical, substantive legislation, but chose to intervene in the matter of agricultural assembly operations in order to improve the quality of the fruits. This is to know that in the area of ​​Jericho there were known areas of intensive cultivation and that the Roman involvement in this area was great.

On Ein Gedi it is said that a vineyard would yield between four and five times a year. They used to say about Tzoan that "Beit Sa'ah makes five rivu's of Korin" (Kivvut Kiv p. 19) and Rabbi Yehuda the Hanasi testifies of a horseradish that grew in his surroundings and had sixty thousand leaves of husk and that "the roots of the wheat sprout in the land of Gamma (and) the roots of the fig sprout in Tzur (a very hard stone) (Genesis XNUMX:XNUMX). Rabbi Haya says that the vines are as big as goats and "Had Bar Nesh was a seed farmer for turnips and he was a segmenter and a gardener (gathered and sold). A story about a fox that came and nested in the head of a turnip" (Yerushalmi Pah chapter XNUMX XNUMX p. XNUMX). Rabbi Shimon ben Chalfata testifies that "Father left (bequeathed) a head of cabbage to us, and we used to go up and down him on the ladder" (Kituvot Kiya p. XNUMX) and conclude with the testimony of Rabbi Yaakov ben Dostai, a contemporary of Rabbi Yehuda the Hanasi: (about four and a half km). Once I led a ball and walked up to my ankles in the honey of figs" (ibid.).

These imaginary voyages originate on the one hand in the success of the intensive farm, which resulted in the improvement of the produce, and in an ancient era like ours, it is no wonder that the aforementioned phenomenon took on literally miraculous growth dimensions, and on the other hand, these "practice stories" were intended to increase the intensive method.

We will briefly go over the agricultural operations, with most of them being dedicated to the intensive farm:

earing - The plowing direction was mainly according to height lines. The fields were divided into square plots, each of which was called "Beit HaPeres". The length of the field was 50 cubits, that is, about 28 m, and its area - Beit Saa, which means about 2500 square cubits. Some mention fields that are about 10.5 cubits long.

The farmers of the Land of Israel knew eight types of plowing: Newer and reclamation, opening plowing, Ptolemy Rabiah, plowing in preparation for sowing, plowing for covering the seeds, plowing in summer crops, plowing in orchards and plowing in steps (as proof of intensity, as confirmed by archaeological findings.

The main crops were the winter grains from the cereal family, and festha was added to them. The registration of summer crops was limited. A growth in straws and gourds developed towards the half of the second century AD. The cattle plowing reflects the intensity of the farms.

garbage - was very accepted and developed in intensive agriculture and due to the nature of this farm they used to use many substances, organic and chemical. The mishna stated that "Since when do we take out garbage to the ashfat (to spread over the fields)?" Mishipko transgressors (and in another wording - "labor workers") Rabbi Meir's words. Rabbi Yehuda says: The sweet dries up. Rabbi Yossi says: Mishikshor" (Saviyat 1:2). That is, they used to take the manure to the field in the rainy season for the winter crops, or at the beginning of the spring - for the summer crops, and we have already seen the rate of manure in the Land of Israel close to the Roman one (Sheviyat 4 20 and the Jerusalem Talmud, Moed Katan), and the housing in the Sahars (Sheviyat 15 XNUMX; Tzusfata Shevi XNUMX XNUMX-XNUMX) and the many crops in the period in question of fodder plants such as lupine, quince, clover, pulse and more.

sowing - The mishna is delivered as follows: "What are the things said? A grain in a grain and a pea in a pea. Grain in small grain and small grain in grain, they truly said: Garden seeds that are not eaten add up to one out of twenty four in the fall in Beit Saa. Rabbi Shimon says: Just as they said to make it worse, so they said to make it easier. The flax in the grain joins one out of twenty-four in the fall of Beit Sa'ah" (Klaiim 2:16; Tosefta Klaiim XNUMX:XNUMX). And in relation to the sowing classes in "Beit Sa'ah" the Baryat states our Mishnah in "things that fall three and four cabins to Beit Sa'ah" (ibid.) and this is to testify to the intensive cultivation of field crops, which resulted in the healthy development of the crops and their branching, and on the other hand, there is an explanation here for articles of thirty, Forty, sixty and even a hundred Shearim. That is, the farm was a unit that was divided into different crops, which were cultivated intensively, without unused areas, and for the efficient use of his plot, the farmer tried to grow as many species as possible, especially intermediate crops.

The same plots within the field were described in different terms: heads of rows, rectangles, heads of turn, mesher and rows and baldness.

In order to produce healthy produce, the farmers used different techniques such as soaking the seeds in water before sowing. The rice used to be sown first in the nursery and then they took care of transplanting it to the flooded field. They also used to grow grain seeds in special experimental plots in order to test results for the praise of the produce. And they would sow "to seed" as the sources say, even here to praise the particular variety. And in this context we will mention Rabbi Yehuda's testimony regarding the phenomenon of trading in seeds.

Over time, the method of growing fruits and vegetables in pots developed as was common among the Romans.

The farmers made special efforts to grow different plants and crops out of season and in this way increase their price. These attempts can also be seen as a result of an increase in the Roman demand, due to the presence of the officials, the army and Roman residents in general. These are species such as radish, horseradish, zucchini and more, which were developed both in the hot season and in the rainy season in the farms of Rabbi Yehuda Hanasi. In this context, it is possible to understand the statement that "Rabbi (Yehuda the President) would take Kishoin firstborns for the kingdom" (Yerushalmi Meshar Shani Chapter XNUMX Ned p. XNUMX). In the Jerusalem Talmud it is said that between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur large heads of radish grew and based on this fact Rabbi Yehuda the Hanasi allowed to take a vegetable on the evening of Shabbat "immediately". And in another place we saw that the caplottes, which are winter vegetables and were grown in the Beit Shean Valley, which is an extremely hot area, only in the winter months, from Hanukkah to Shavuot, and in the Kif months they were grown in the other parts of the country and from there they came to Beit Shean.

harvesting - As a result of technical and other innovations in the treatment and cultivation, we find cases in which it is told about the field of barley that allowed them to be harvested on the day of the feast and due to the intensive nature of the farms, when the ripening of the crops is not uniform, and therefore the owner of the field has a "tiger for the bones" (Beresheet Rabba end of Peb), and as we have seen was This is what is known as "state custom", we were completely common. And the Sages say: "A place where they used to reap, shall reap, uproot, uproot" (Tosefta Avoda Zerah 8:XNUMX), and in this case, as well as in other matters, the Roman sources expressly testify to this.

harvest - A sign of a multiple blessing in Rabbi Meir's time, that is, from the thirties of the second century CE onwards, involved the transportation of the grain in a wagon to the threshing floor, and regarding the use of an animal for threshing the Torah mitzva "You shall not cross an ox with its dish" (Deuteronomy 4:XNUMX) the Sages taught The act of blocking the beast, in terms of a normalizing interpretation. Also mentioned in the sources are developed dishes such as a spike and sowing tools such as the jar.

Watering - The operation of irrigation was an excellent indicator of the transition of the farms to the intensive method and the development of the irrigation technique, especially when it comes to the Eastern Mediterranean climate.

Unlike the sages of the Sanhedrin, who permitted watering on the days of Moed and on the seventh day, only "the field of Beit HaShalchin" (Bava Metzia 8:1), or "the field of Beit HaShalchin (according to other sources, this is from Rabbi Yehuda's lesson) was destroyed", Rabbi Meir permits watering on the day of Sde Beit HaBaal, provided that the water flows "From a kind that came out in the first place" (Tosefta Moed Ketan XNUMX XNUMX), and according to the Jerusalem Talmud that uses the term "mudiyot" (drawn from the Roman measure) in relation to irrigation, it is possible to examine the degree of Roman influence on this subject.

In the irrigated house, fast intensive crops were grown, mainly jade and fir, and for this reason the harvest was blessed. Here, as we showed above, they invested a lot of manual labor in decorating, burying and/or treating the water aqueducts whose operation malfunctions from time to time. Naturally, here is required the organization of the works in the repair and use of the common aqueduct and the arrangement of the distribution of water for the seasons" (ibid. 2). It should be noted that the sources distinguish between several types of plots in relation to the subject, such as "Gan", "Beit Ilan" and more.

The methods of irrigation, among which the haberza technique stands out, i.e. - directing the water through dug canals, gravity and non-gravitational irrigation, such as pumping by a wheel that developed into a "wheel house" (Tosefta baba Batra 16:XNUMX)

It should be emphasized that all the details provided here, as well as regarding the other chapters, originate from a systematic collection of many years as a result of "probing and wandering" in the sources of the Sages, only a tiny bit of which has been brought here to the readers' attention.

"An egg born on a good day"