Sefer HaChinuch ספר החינוך

The commandment of the fourth-year plant: That the fourth-year plant be completely holy — the explanation [of which] is that all fruits that come out of the tree in the fourth year from its planting are holy; meaning to say, that they are eaten by the owners in Jerusalem, like the second tithe, and that is their holiness — as it is stated (Leviticus 19:23-24), “and you shall plant any food tree[...] And in the fourth year all of its fruit shall be holy, for praising to the Lord.” And the explanation comes about it that it is for the owners — and the explanation of praising is that the owners should eat it in Jerusalem, and that is rejoicing. And the Sages called it the fourth-year plant, in every place. And in Sifrei Bamidbar 6:1, it expounds that the fourth-year plant is for the owners, from that which is written (Numbers 5:10), “And a man’s consecrated things shall be his.” As they said there, “‘A man’s consecrated things, etc.’ — it pulled back all of the consecrated things and gave them to the priests; and there is nothing remaining for them except for the thanksgiving-offering, the peace-offering, the Pesach-offering, the animal tithe, the second tithe and the fourth-year plant, which are for the owners.

It is from the roots of the commandment that God wanted man to be inspired to praise God, blessed be He, with the beginning of the best fruits of his trees; so that the pleasantness of God, may He be blessed, and His blessing rest upon him, and [that] his fruits be blessed. Because the Good God wants the good of His creatures; therefore He commanded us to bring them up and to eat them in the place He chose long ago for His service, blessed be He — for there has He commanded blessing. And the best of the fruits of the tree come out in the fourth year. And there is another benefit to man that he is commanded to eat some of his fruits — such as this and the second tithe and also the animal tithe — in that place; because through this, his dwelling or the dwelling of some of his sons will be fixed in that place, to study Torah there. [This is] since the teachers of Torah and the center of wisdom is there, and as we will write on the commandment of the second tithe (Sefer HaChinukh 473), with God’s help.

And Ramban, may his memory be blessed, wrote about the reason for the commandment in his commentaries (Ramban on Leviticus 19:23) [that it is] to honor God, may He be blessed, from the beginning of all our produce, and not to eat from them until we bring all of the fruits of one year [as] ‘praising to the Lord.’ And behold, within the first three years, the fruit is not fit to offer, since it is meager; and also because [the tree] does not give taste or a good fragrance into its fruit [then]; also because most trees do not put out fruit at all until the fourth year from their planting — and so we wait for them all. And this commandment is similar to the first-fruits. And he also wrote that the truth of the thing is also that the fruit at the beginning of its planting until the fourth year is full of moisture that is very clingy, [which] injures the body and [so] is not good to eat; like the fish that have no scales, and the [other] foods prohibited by the Torah, which are bad also for the body.

From the laws of the commandment is that which they, may their memory be blessed, said (Berakhot 35a) that one who wants to redeem the fourth-year plant redeems it like the second tithe, which [can be] redeemed — meaning to say, that he redeems it with money and brings [that] up to Jerusalem. And if he redeems it himself, he adds a fifth. As so is the law with the second tithe, from that which it is written about it (Leviticus 27:31), “And if a man surely redeems his tithes.” But one who redeems the second tithe for others, does not add a fifth. And he does not redeem [the fourth-year plant] until it reaches the season of the tithe; as it is stated about it (Leviticus 19:25), “to increase its produce for yourselves” — and they, may their memory be blessed, expounded (Sifra, Kedoshim, Section 3:10), “Until it becomes produce” — meaning to say that it reaches the season of the tithe, and that is a third of its ripeness. And according to Rambam (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Second Tithes and Fourth Year’s Fruit 9:2), may his memory be blessed, we do not redeem it when it is attached [to the tree], like the tithe. But others explain (Rashi on Orlah 5:5) that we redeem it even attached. And it is called money of the Higher Realm, like the tithe. And therefore it cannot be acquired as a gift — unless he gave it when it is still unripe fruit, as the obligation has not yet rested upon it, as we said. And its law in the other things — such as eating, drinking and anointment — is like the tithe. And on the commandment of the second tithe in Parashat Re’eh Anokhi (Sefer HaChinukh 473), we will write more about it at length with God’s help.

And one who redeems a fourth-year vineyard — [if] he wants he redeems it [as] grapes, [and if] he wants, he redeems it [as] wine; and so [too,] olives. But with other fruits, he redeems them before they change from their natural state. And the redemption is that he say, “These fruits are desanctified upon this money” — and behold, they are desanctified with this. And he [then] brings up the money and consumes [that which is purchased with it] in Jerusalem. And Shmuel said in the Gemara (Kiddushin 11b) that consecrated things worth a maneh (a hundred large coins) that is desanctified upon the value of a perutah (the smallest coin) is desanctified (is effective) — but not less than the value of a small coin, as it does not have the legal status of money, for any [purpose]. And the same is the law for the fruits of the fourth year. And a fourth-year vineyard does not have [the law of] forgotten [grapes] and the corner (Mishnah Maasrot 5:3), nor fallen grapes and bunchless grapes. And we do not separate the priestly tithe and the [other] tithes from it, but rather it all goes up to Jerusalem, or he redeems it and brings up the money and consumes it in Jerusalem. And the law of that which they, may their memory be blessed, said from when do we count the new year for fourth-year plant, and so [too,] (Talmud Yerushalmi Orlah 1:1) that everything that is obligated in orlah is obligated in the fourth year. And in the commandment of orlah (Sefer HaChinukh 246), we will write about this at length, with God’s help — and we will write which tree is obligated in it, and what [part] of the tree. And from it, we will learn to the fourth year. And the rest of all of its details are elucidated in the last chapter of Maaser Sheni. (See Mishneh Torah, Laws of Second Tithes and Fourth Year’s Fruit 9.)

And this commandment is practiced at the time of the [Temple] in the Land by males and females, but not outside the Land. And so wrote Rambam, may his memory be blessed (Mishneh Torah, Laws of Second Tithes and Fourth Year’s Fruit 9:1): “In the same way as there is no second tithe in Syria, so is there no fourth-year plant in Syria.” To here [are his words]. And all the more so outside of the Land. But there are some of our rabbis who instructed (see Tosafot s.v. u’lema’an on Berakhot 35a) us today that the obligation of this commandment is even now in the Land; and [that] even outside the Land, fourth-year vineyard is practiced rabbinically. And according to this, every man should now redeem the fruits of his fourth-year vineyard upon the worth of a small coin or more. They also said that we recite a blessing over the redemption and, afterwards, we throw the redemption into the Dead Sea — meaning to say a desolate place — so that no creature benefit from it, as it is [still] holy today, rabbinically. And afterwards he eats the fruit of his vineyard. But fourth-year plants are not practiced at all outside the Land, even rabbinically. And one who transgresses this commandment and does not bring up the fruits or their redemption to Jerusalem at the time of the [Temple] — or does not redeem it in the Land, according to the opinion of some commentators, even today — has violated this positive commandment, and has not desired blessing. And one who fulfills it will be blessed.