Sunday, July 26, 2009

Bava Metzia 92 – How Much Can a Worker Eat? (Finds)

A worker may eat a cucumber (cucumbers were expensive vegetables) or a date (which were expensive fruit) even if worth a dinar (six times his wage). The Torah tells the worker, "You may eat grapes as your desire, to your satiety," which implies that he may eat any amount needed to satisfy his hunger.

Rabbi Elazar Chisma says a worker may not eat more than his wage.

But the Sages permit this - however, his friends should teach him not to be a glutton, thereby closing the door to future employment.

Art: Still Life with Cucumbers and Tomatoes by Luis Eugenio Melendez

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