Ilustration Credit: Elad Lifshitz, Dov Abramson Studio
Midrash מִדְרָשׁ
If you find someone else’s lost animal, there’s a mitzvah to return it. And…
וְאִם־לֹ֨א קָר֥וֹב אָחִ֛יךָ אֵלֶ֖יךָ וְלֹ֣א יְדַעְתּ֑וֹ וַאֲסַפְתּוֹ֙ אֶל־תּ֣וֹךְ בֵּיתֶ֔ךָ וְהָיָ֣ה עִמְּךָ֗ עַ֣ד דְּרֹ֤שׁ אָחִ֙יךָ֙ אֹת֔וֹ וַהֲשֵׁבֹת֖וֹ לֽוֹ׃
If your brother does not live near you, or you do not know who they are, bring it home and keep it until they claim it; va-hasheivoto lo (then give it back).
The final (bolded) words seem obvious. What else would you do with a lost animal that you found when your neighbor shows up to claim it?!
From va-vasheivoto lo, Rashi teaches that you have to spend your own money to care for a lost animal. So if I lose my dog, and you find it and keep it for me, when I come for the dog, you shouldn’t present me with a bill for all the dog food you bought!
Va-hasheivoto lo means the returning has to be complete, no strings attached. Like in this story from the Gemara:
מַעֲשֶׂה וְעָבַר אָדָם אֶחָד עַל פֶּתַח בֵּיתוֹ וְהִנִּיחַ שָׁם תַּרְנְגוֹלִין, וּמְצָאָתַן אִשְׁתּוֹ שֶׁל רַבִּי חֲנִינָא בֶּן דּוֹסָא, וְאָמַר לָהּ: אַל תֹּאכְלִי מִבֵּיצֵיהֶן.
וְהִרְבּוּ בֵּיצִים וְתַרְנְגוֹלִין וְהָיוּ מְצַעֲרִין אוֹתָם, וּמְכָרָן וְקָנָה בִּדְמֵיהֶן עִזִּים.
פַּעַם אַחַת עָבַר אוֹתוֹ אָדָם שֶׁאָבְדוּ מִמֶּנּוּ הַתַּרְנְגוֹלִין וְאָמַר לַחֲבֵירוֹ: בְּכָאן הִנַּחְתִּי הַתַּרְנְגוֹלִין שֶׁלִּי. שָׁמַע רַבִּי חֲנִינָא, אָמַר לוֹ: יֵשׁ לְךָ בָּהֶן סִימָן? אָמַר לוֹ: הֵן. נָתַן לוֹ סִימָן וְנָטַל אֶת הָעִיזִּין.
A person passed by the entrance to R. Hanina ben Dosa’s house, and left chickens there. R. Hanina’s wife found them and cared for them. R. Hanina said to her, “Don’t eat their eggs (because they don’t belong to us).”
The chickens laid many eggs, and more chickens hatched. The chickens were bothering them, so they sold them and got goats with the money.
Eventually the person who had lost the chickens passed by and said, “Here is where I left my chickens.”
R. Hanina heard this and said, “Do you have a sign to identify them?” The person said, “Yes,” and gave him the sign, and took the goats.
- Why do you think the Gemara says it’s fair for the person who lost chickens to get goats back?
- Why does the Torah want us to be so extremely careful with other people’s property?
- Have you ever returned something someone lost? Did anybody ever help you get back something you lost? How did that feel?
-------------------
-------------------
