Parshas Emor: Cheaters Never Prosper
Parshas Behar 5782: Cheaters Never Prosper
Torah Psych101
Dr. Jonathan M. Lasson
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One of my daughters often asks me (rhetorically) why does life always have to be about money? Money, Money, Money! Most of us have been primed to really become believers in Hashem’s ability to supply our needs from the Mitzvah of Shmitah. Our Parsha this week begins with the laws of Shmitah. A wonderful Mitzvah that tests our faith in Hashem. But right in the middle of this discussion that deals with land, we hear about another seemingly unrelated idea to not cheat your friend. You sell him a book---don’t overcharge him. What is this idea doing here and why does the Torah use the Lashon of “Tonu” to describe what he is doing by cheating his friend?
The exact Passuk is אל תונו איש את אחיו-Don’t aggrieve your brother (when dealing with buying and selling). (1). Many are bothered by this strange placement including the Ohr HaChaim who has a nice approach and I encourage everyone to read through it.
But I want to discuss a different answer which is brought down in the name of Rav Schlesinger in the Beis Av.
The essence of Shmitah is belief that Hashem will provide. Let’s say a person decides to cheat and start working the land one day during Shmitah. Why he would do that---who knows? But he cheated. Plain and simple. Cheating is a way of saying “I think I can get away with this and I will gain something.” Take a different example. A college professor leaves the room and tells the class to continue taking the quiz while he takes an emergency call. He leaves the room and the students are all looking around at each other. One guy pulls out his notes and gets the attention of others who do the same. Then the professor comes back about 15 minutes later. Most students finished the quiz and are heading out when the professor asks for help filing some papers. The likelihood is that more students who had cheated would volunteer to help the professor. This is an actual psychological experiment. The reason the students helped the professor was to assuage their guilt by doing something nice. The feeling of being a cheater comes back to get you unless you are a repeat offender---in which case the guilt is lessened with each new offense. It does come back to haunt you one day.
The Torah is telling us that not only is cheating a bad idea, but it won’t get you anywhere. The expression “Cheaters never prosper” takes on new meaning. Only someone that believes in Hashem can fully understand that cheating is bad for you and that is why this idea is thrown in with the quintessential belief Mitzvah of Shmitah.
The Passuk uses the interesting word of Tonu to describe cheating for a reason. Tonu is the same word as Ona’ah which is oppressing or aggrieving. Rav Frand heard from Rav Shmuel Yaakov Weinberg Zt”l that Ona’ah includes oppressing with words. Psych101 tells us that people who make nasty comments about others---essentially don’t like themselves. So they make fun of others to pump up their own ego. A person who lives with faith in Hashem does not feel the need to cheat or to make fun of others because he is fully satiated with his belief in Hashem. And…Cheaters never prosper!
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(1) Behar 25:14