Avot 4:5 - May a Rabbi be Compensated for Teaching Torah?

(5)..... Rabbi Zadok said: do not make them a crown for self-exaltation, nor a spade with which to dig. So too Hillel used to say, “And he that puts the crown to his own use shall perish.” Thus you have learned, anyone who derives worldly benefit from the words of the Torah, removes his life from the world.

After I decided not to speak about this testament because it is clear and since, according to my opinion, my words will not please most of the great Torah sages - and perhaps any of them - I went back on my decision and I will speak about it, without paying attention to the earlier or contemporary [rabbis]. Know that that which he said not to make the Torah into a spade with which to dig - meaning to say, do not consider it a tool to live by - he explained and said that anyone who benefits in this world from the honor of Torah removes his life from the world - the explanation of which is, from life in the world to come. Yet people have missed this obvious language and thrown it over the backs. And they have depended upon understandings of the words that they [themselves] did not understand - and I will explain them. And they established rules for themselves upon individuals and upon communities, and they brought people to think in their total foolishness that it is mandatory and fitting that they help the sages and their students and the people involved in Torah, and for whom their Torah [study] is their craft. And this is all a mistake, and nothing is found in the Torah or in the words of the rabbis, may their memory be blessed, that substantiates it or gives it a basis to rest upon at all. As when we look into the words of the rabbis, may their memory be blessed, we do not find among them that they were requesting money from people and they did not collect money for the honored and precious academies, nor for the heads of the exiles, nor for their judges, nor for the promulgators of Torah - not for one of their greats and not for any people of the nation. Rather, we find in each and every generation in all of their communities that there were among [the Torah scholars] poor men of extreme poverty and wealthy men of extreme wealth. And God forbid that I should suspect those generations of not being doers of kindness and givers of charity. As if such a poor man had extended his hand to receive it, they would have filled his house with gold and pearls; but he did not want [it]. Rather he sufficed with [the earnings from] the work in which he engaged - whether comfortably or with duress - and he was loath of what [came from] the hand of people, since the Torah prevented him from it.

And you already know that Hillel the Elder was a wood chopper and that he studied in front of Shemaya and Avtalyon and he was extremely poor.... And [also] Rabbi Chaninah ben Dosa - about whom a heavenly voice went out and said, "The whole world is only nourished for the sake of my son, Chaninah; and my son, Chaninah, has enough with a kav of carobs from one Shabbat eve to [the next] Shabbat eve" (Berakhot 17b) - yet he did not request [anything] from people.

(9) The words of the Torah are likened unto water, even as it is said: "Ho, everyone that thirsteth, come ye for water" (Is. 55.1), which is to teach you, even as waters do not gather in steep places, but flow by gravity and gather in a well, so are the words of the Torah, they are not found among the high spirited nor in the heart of all haughty but in the humble and meek spirited who embraces the dust of the feet of the wise and removes the passions and the pleasures of the age from his heart and does a little work daily for his living, if he happens to be unprovided with food, and the rest of his days and his nights he pursues the study of the Torah.

(10) Nevertheless, whosoever sets his heart to pursue the study of the Torah but do no secular work at all, and permits himself to be supported by charity, behold him, he blasphemed the Name, and degraded the Torah, and shadowed the light of religion, and caused evil to be brought upon himself, and deprived his own life from its share in the world to come; because it is forbidden to enjoy aught in this world in return of the study of the words of the Torah. The sages said: "Whosoever enjoys aught in return of the study of the words of the Torah takes his own life away from the world" (Pirke Abot, 4.7). They have, moreover, commanded and said: "Thou shalt not make them a garland by which to be considered great nor a spade to dig with them" (Ibid.). Again they have commanded and said: "Love manual labor and hate rank". (Pirke Abot, 1.10); whosoever studies the Torah and does not acquire at the same time a manual trade his knowledge of the Torah will be nullified and bring about sin" (Ibid. 2.2.). The end of this will be that he will rob people for his living.

(11) He who supports himself by the labor of his own hands attains a high degree. It is an ethical conduct of the pious man of yore.

The Gemara relates another incident: A certain man found Rabbi Tarfon eating figs from his field at the time when most of the knives had been set aside. He placed Rabbi Tarfon in a sack, lifted him up, and carried him to throw him into the river. Rabbi Tarfon said to him: Woe to Tarfon, for this man is killing him. When that man heard that he was carrying the great Rabbi Tarfon, he left him and fled. Rabbi Abbahu said in the name of Rabbi Ḥananya ben Gamliel: All the days of that righteous man, Rabbi Tarfon, he was distressed over this matter, saying: Woe is me, for I made use of the crown of Torah, as Rabbi Tarfon was only released out of respect for his Torah learning....

The Gemara returns to the incident involving Rabbi Tarfon. And in the case of Rabbi Tarfon, since he was eating during the time when most of the knives had been set aside, why did that man trouble him? The Gemara explains: It was because someone had been stealing grapes from that man all year, and when he found Rabbi Tarfon he thought: This is the one who stole from me the entire year. The Gemara asks: If so, why did Rabbi Tarfon berate himself? Clearly he was justified in saving himself. The Gemara answers: Since Rabbi Tarfon was very wealthy, he should have sought to appease him with money in order to save himself, rather than relying on his status as a Torah scholar.

It is related that Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi once opened his storehouses to distribute food during years of drought. He said: Masters of Bible, masters of Mishna, masters of Talmud, masters of halakha, masters of aggada may enter and receive food from me, but ignoramuses should not enter. Rabbi Yonatan ben Amram, whom Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi did not know, pushed his way in, and entered, and said to him: Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, sustain me. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi said to him: My son, have you read the Bible? Rabbi Yonatan ben Amram said to him, out of modesty: No. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi continued: Have you studied Mishna? Once again, Rabbi Yonatan ben Amram said to him: No. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi then asked him: If so, by what merit should I sustain you? Rabbi Yonatan ben Amram said to him: Sustain me like a dog and like a raven, who are given food even though they have not learned anything. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi was moved by his words and fed him. After Rabbi Yonatan left, Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi sat, and was distressed, and said: Woe is me, that I have given my bread to an ignoramus. His son, Rabbi Shimon bar Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, said to him: Perhaps he was your disciple Yonatan ben Amram, who never in his life wanted to materially benefit from the honor shown to the Torah? They investigated the matter and found that such was the case. Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi then said: Let everyone enter, as there may also be others who hide the fact that they are true Torah scholars.

(1) (10) Anyone who believes in his mind ... Our master, z"l, opened his mouth and his tongue in commenting on the Mishna, Avot chapter 4, regarding subsidies given to students and teachers, and even though it seems from his words that most of the great Torah sages of that time, or all of them, did that.... And there he cites a proof from Hillel the Elder (Yoma 35b), who was a wood-cutter and studied. But there is no proof from that example, because that was specifically at the beginning of his studies; because in their times there were thousands and myriads of students, perhaps they gave [subsidies] only to the famous [prominent] among them, or that anyone who was able [to get along] without benefiting [from study] did so. However, when he [Hillel] achieved wisdom and taught knowledge to the people, would you imagine that he [still] chopped wood? Likewise the example that he cited of R' Hanina ben Dosa (Ber. 17b) is no proof, for if he had wanted to become wealthy, he would not have needed to ask people, but rather Heaven would have provided for him, as is mentioned in Ta'anit (25a). But rather he, z"l, did not want to benefit from this world, and our words apply only to those who do want to benefit from this world except not in a prohibited way.

Even if that is not the view of our master, but rather it is as his words appear to say in his explanation of the mishnah, still, we know that when the law is uncertain to you, you should follow the minhag. We have seen all sages of Israel, from before the time of our master and afterward, accept payment from the community.

Even if we must admit that the law follows our master‟s words in his explanation of the mishnah, it is possible that all of the sages of the generations agreed to this practice, due to „It is a time to act for Gd; they have annulled Your Torah.‟ Without the available support of students and teachers, they could not work in Torah appropriately, and Torah would - Gd forbid! - be forgotten. When support is available, they can involve themselves in study, and Torah will grow and be strengthened.