Introduction This is another statement by Rabbi Akiva.
He used to say: everything is given against a pledge, and a net is spread out over all the living; the store is open and the storekeeper allows credit, but the ledger is open and the hand writes, and whoever wishes to borrow may come and borrow; but the collectors go round regularly every day and exact dues from man, either with his consent or without his consent, and they have that on which they [can] rely [in their claims], seeing that the judgment is a righteous judgment, and everything is prepared for the banquet. There are many metaphors employed in this mishnah and we shall attempt to make sense of them one by one. Everything is given against a pledge: everything that a person receives in this world is given against a pledge that may be exacted from him in the future. This means that everyone will have to pay eventually for their sins. A net is spread out over all the living: there is no escaping from God’s power. God sees all of the deeds of man and will eventually exact payment for them. The store is open and the storekeeper allows credit: a person can take what he wishes in this world, and even take it temporarily without paying. God does not punish sinners immediately, but rather extends them credit, hoping that eventually they will return to righteousness. But the ledger is open and the hand writes: although God is merciful, this is not the same as forgetting or ignoring man’s deeds. All of man’s deeds are written in a book; eventually he will be held accountable for them. And whoever wishes to borrow may come and borrow: a person has free choice and may act wrongly today, hoping that in the future he will act better and be able to overcome the things he did wrong. But the collectors go round regularly every day and exact dues from man, either with his consent or without his consent: although a person may borrow, he must be careful for he does not know when his day of judgement will arrive. The “collectors” can come any day, and when they do they will collect whether he is ready to pay back his debt or not. Therefore a person should be careful to make sure he is never in “overdraft”. And they have that on which they [can] rely [in their claims], seeing that the judgment is a righteous judgment: in the end God’s judgement is righteous and fitting, even if humans cannot see it in this world. And everything is prepared for the banquet: in the world to come each person will eat the meal that he has prepared for himself in this world.
Questions for Further Thought:
• Why does Rabbi Akiva use the metaphor of the world as a shop and God as the shopkeeper?
• What is the one central message of this mishnah?