Parshas Re’eh
“You must surely grant him from your sheep and from your grain and from wine (with) which Hashem has blessed you, you shall give him (Devarim 15,14)
It is a positive commandment to give from that which is ours to a Hebrew slave at the time when he goes out from our dominion to freedom and not to send him out emptyhanded. About this it says “You must surely grant him from your sheep and from your grain and from wine (with) which Hashem has blessed you, you shall give him”
Amongst the roots of the commandment: in order that we should acquire elevated, precious and sweet character traits in our souls, and with the precious and elevated soul we will merit good and the good G-d wants to do good to His people, and our pride and our glory is that we should have mercy on one who has served us and we should give to him from our belongings as an act of kindness apart from that which we have agreed to give him as his due pay and this is a logical matter and there is no reason to speak about it at length.
This commandment applies to men and to women, at the time when the Beis Hamikdash stands, for the law of a Hebrew slave only applies at a time when the laws of Yovel (the fifty-year cycle) apply. In any case, even today, a wise person should listen and take a lesson, that if he hired a Jew and the Jew worked for him for a lengthy period, or even for a short period, when he leaves him he should grant him from that with which Hashem has blessed him.
