שֶׁלֹּא לַעֲבֹד וְלִזְרֹעַ בְּאוֹתוֹ קַרְקַע – שֶׁנִּמְנַעְנוּ מִלַּעֲבֹד וְלִזְרֹעַ בְּנַחַל אֵיתָן, הוּא הַנַּחַל שֶׁנֶּעֶרְפָה שָׁם הָעֲגָלָה, וְעַל זֶה נֶאֱמַר (דברים כא ד) אֲשֶׁר לֹא יֵעָבֵד בּוֹ וְלֹא יִזָּרֵעַ. To not work or sow in that land: That we have been prevented from working or sowing in the mighty riverbed, which is the riverbed where the calf was beheaded. And about this is it stated (Deuteronomy 21:4), “which is not worked and not sown.”
מִשָּׁרְשֵׁי הַמִּצְוָה. מָה שֶׁכָּתַבְתִּי בְּסֵדֶר זֶה בְּמִצְוַת עֲרִיפַת הָעֶגְלָה, (מצוה תקל), שֶׁעִנְיַן הָעֲרִיפָה, לְפַרְסֵם עִנְיַן הָרְצִיחָה כְּדֵי לְעוֹרֵר הֶהָמוֹן עַל הַדָּבָר, וְיַכְנִיסוּ יִרְאָה בְּלִבָּם עַל הַדָּבָר הָרָע הַזֶּה, וְגַם מְנִיעַת הָעֲבוֹדָה וְהַזְּרִיעָה שָׁם לְעוֹלָם מִן הַטַּעַם הַזֶּה בְּעַצְמוֹ הִיא לְפִי הַדּוֹמֶה עַל צַד הַפְּשָׁט, כְּדֵי לְהַזְכִּיר לְעוֹלָם בְּלֵב כָּל עוֹבְרֵי דֶּרֶךְ כִּי עַל דָּבָר שֶׁנִּרְצָח אִישׁ אֶחָד בַּדֶּרֶךְ נֶעֶרְפָה הָעֶגְלָה בַּמָּקוֹם הַהוּא וְנִשְׁאַר חָרֵב לְעוֹלָם, וְיָנִיעוּ לְבָבָם עִם זֶה לְהַרְחִיק עִנְיַן הָרְצִיחָה מְאֹד. וְאִם תַּקְשֶׁה בְּטַעַם זֶה, כִּי הַנַּחַל לֹא מְקוֹם זֶרַע, נָשִׁיב שֶׁרָאוּי הוּא לְכָךְ אַחַר שֶׁתִּמְנָעֵנוּ הַתּוֹרָה מִלִּזְרֹעַ בּוֹ. What I have written in this Order on the commandment of beheading the calf (Sefer HaChinukh 530) is from the roots of the commandment — that the matter of the beheading is to publicize the matter of the murder, so as to arouse the masses about the thing and that fear enter into their hearts about this evil thing. And from the simple understanding, the prevention of work and sowing there forever, also appears to be from this very reason; in order to forever remind the hearts of all wayfarers that the calf was killed in that place because of the fact that a man was killed on the path — and it stayed barren forever — and their hearts will be moved by this to greatly distance the matter of murder [from themselves]. And if you challenge me about this reason, as the riverbed is not a place for seed; we can answer that it is fit for it, since the Torah prevented us from sowing in it.
דִּינֵי הַמִּצְוָה. מָה שֶׁאָמְרוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה (סוטה מו, ב) מָה זְרִיעָה בְּגוּפָהּ שֶׁל קַרְקַע אַף עֲבוֹדָה שֶׁאָסְרָה תּוֹרָה הִיא בְּגוּפָהּ שֶׁל קַרְקַע, כְּגוֹן חוֹרֵשׁ וְחוֹפֵר וְכַיּוֹצֵא בָּאֵלּוּ, אֲבָל מֻתָּר לִסְרֹק שָׁם פִּשְׁתָּן וְלַעֲשׂוֹת שָׁם כָּל עֲבוֹדָה שֶׁאֵינָהּ בְּגוּף הַקַּרְקַע. וְיֶתֶר פְּרָטֶיהָ, בְּסוֹף מַסֶּכֶת סוֹטָה. וְאַף עַל פִּי שֶׁכָּתַבְתִּי לְמַעְלָה שֶׁמִּצְוַת דִּין עֶגְלָה עֲרוּפָה אֵינוֹ נוֹהֵג אֶלָּא בִּזְמַן הַבַּיִת כְּשֶׁאָנוּ דָּנִין דִּינֵי נְפָשׁוֹת, אִסּוּר הָעֲבוֹדָה בְּנַחַל אֵיתָן נוֹהֵג הוּא לְפִי הַדּוֹמֶה לְעוֹלָם, אִלּוּ יָדַעְנוּ בְּקַבָּלָה אֲמִתִּית שֶׁיֵּשׁ שָׁם בְּאַרְצֵנוּ נַחַל שֶׁעָרְפוּ בּוֹ עֶגְלָה בִּזְמַן שֶׁהָיְתָה הָאָרֶץ בְּיִשּׁוּבָהּ, כִּי לֹא הִזְכִּיר הַכָּתוּב בְּאִסּוּר הָעֲבוֹדָה בְּאוֹתוֹ מָקוֹם זְמַן, וְאִם כֵּן יֵשׁ לָנוּ לְכָתְבָהּ עִם הַמִּצְוֹת הַנּוֹהֲגוֹת הַיּוֹם בְּאַרְצֵנוּ. The laws of the commandment — that which they, may their memory be blessed, said (Sotah 46b), “Just as sowing is performed on the land itself, so too, all labor that the Torah prohibited is performed on the land itself,” such as plowing and digging and that which is similar to it, but it is permissible to comb flax there and to do any work that is not done on the land itself; and the rest of its details — are at the end of Tractate Sotah. And even though I have written above that the commandment of the law of the beheaded calf is only practiced at the time of the [Temple] when we are judging capital cases, the prohibition of work in the mighty riverbed is apparently forever, if we would know through a bona fide tradition that there was in our Land a riverbed where they beheaded a calf at the time that our Land was in its inhabitation — as Scripture did not mention a time about the prohibition of work in that place. And if so, we should write it with the commandments that are practiced today in our Land.
וְנוֹהֵג אִסּוּר זֶה בִּזְכָרִים וּנְקֵבוֹת, וְהָעוֹבֵר עַל זֶה וְזָרַע בְּנַחַל אֵיתָן חַיָּב מַלְקוּת, וְכֵן אָמְרוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה שָׁם בַּגְּמָרָא מַכּוֹת (כב, א), כְּשֶׁזָּכְרוּ שָׁם מְחֻיְּבֵי מַלְקוּת, אָמְרוּ וְהָא אִיכָּא זוֹרֵעַ בְּנַחַל אֵיתָן, וְאַזְהָרָתֵהּ מֵהָכָא אֲשֶׁר לֹא יֵעָבֵד בּוֹ וְלֹא יִזָּרֵעַ. הִנֵּה הִתְבָּאֵר לָנוּ מִזֶּה, שֶׁזֶּה שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב לֹא יֵעָבֵד בּוֹ וְלֹא יִזָּרֵעַ, שֶׁהַכֹּל אַזְהָרָה אַחַת, כְּלוֹמַר שֶׁהָעוֹבֵד וְהַזּוֹרֵעַ שָׁם לֹא עָבַר אֶלָּא עַל לָאו אֶחָד וְלֹא נְחַיְּבֵהוּ בִּשְׁנֵי לָאוִין, בַּעֲבוֹדָה וּבִזְרִיעָה. וְלָמַדְנוּ שָׁם גַּם כֵּן שֶׁיֵּשׁ בַּדָּבָר חִיּוּב מַלְקוּת. And this prohibition is practiced by males and females. And one who transgresses this and sows in the mighty riverbed is liable for lashes. And thus did they, may their memory be blessed, say there in the Gemara Makkot 22a: When they mentioned there those liable for lashes, they said, “And behold, there is also sowing in a mighty stream, and its prohibition is from here — ‘which is not worked and not sown.’” Behold, it is clarified to us from this that, that which the verse states, “is not worked and not sown” — it is all one warning. [This is] meaning to say that one who works and sows there only transgressed one negative commandment, and we do not make him liable for two negative commandments — for work and for sowing. And we also learned there that there is liability for lashes in the thing.