Behar-Bechukothai: The invisible hand

Economics is fundamentally a human activity.  It is the sum of the things that people do to fulfill their needs and wants.
Yet, no one believes that human activity is the only driver.  One can work very hard and fail..  One can be a slacker and succeed ( although I believe this is unlikely).  There are other elements....luck, fate, Gd.

In these parshoith, Gd decrees a 7 year ( shmitha)  and a 50 year  (Yovel) business cycle. A statement of how man should interact with the  land, the environment, nature . Every 6 years of production is followed by a fallow year. Gd demands it, the land demands it.  The consequences of  greedy disobedience are desolation of the land and exile.

it is not clear whether Gd is explaining a fact of nature ( soil depletion) or declaring a punishment for rebellion against Gd’s rules. ( I am not even sure these are different ideas) But the consequences are outlined in gory detail ( consuming the flesh of your children).  This brings into focus the nature of consequences.  Are consequences Gd’s algorithm  for nature ?  Chok velo yaavor. (Psalm 148)?

Economic theorists try to identify rules that dictate the course of history: supply and demand; class struggle; populations outstripping resources.  Horses, chariots, cars,. oil, facebook... The only certainty is that history is not in our control.  It is ours to do what we should.

So says  the invisible hand from Mount Sinai.
Value it.

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