וְהָאָרֶץ, לֹא תִמָּכֵר לִצְמִתֻת--כִּי-לִי, הָאָרֶץ: כִּי-גֵרִים וְתוֹשָׁבִים אַתֶּם, עִמָּדִי – And the land you shall not sell in perpetuity because the Land is Mine; for you are strangers and residents with Me.
One reading of this verse could mean that the Land belongs to Gd and the Israelites, indeed all inhabitants, are simply residents of Gd's world. However, such a reading does not account for the final words with Me because these words do not add any meaning to such an understanding. The 12th century Tosafist, R. Shimon of Shantz (France) explains that Gd is telling the Jewish people that when the People Israel has sovereignty over the Land of Israel then the land belongs to Gd and Gd's laws as, exemplified by the shmita and jubilee years, are observed. However, when other nations control this part of the earth, then not only are the Jews dispersed and absent from the Land of Israel, but so is Gd – Gd's laws, Gd's love, Gd's compassion, Gd's humility and tolerance. The evidence of this last millennium proves R. Shimon's interpretation of the verse to be eerily accurate...
