ואמר רבה בר בר חנה אר"י משום ר"י בר' אלעאי בא וראה שלא כדורות הראשונים דורות האחרונים דורות הראשונים היו מכניסין פירותיהן דרך טרקסמון כדי לחייבן במעשר דורות האחרונים מכניסין פירותיהן דרך גגות דרך חצרות דרך קרפיפות כדי לפטרן מן המעשר דא"ר ינאי אין הטבל מתחייב במעשר עד שיראה פני הבית שנא' (דברים כו, יג) בערתי הקדש מן הבית
Rabbah b. Bar Hannah also stated that R. Johanan said in the name of R. Judah b. R. El'ai : Come and see that the later generations are not like the former generations. The former generations used to bring their fruits home by way of the kitchen-garden in order to make them liable to the tithe ; whereas the later generations bring their fruits home by way of the roof, or courts, or enclosures in order to exempt them from the tithe. For R. Jannai has said : Produce is not subject to the tithe until it sees the face of the house ; as it is said, "I have put away the hallowed things out of my house" (Deut. xxvi. 13).
Shenei Luchot HaBerit
If you look closely you will find that what Rashi writes about "estimating," applies to all kinds of tithes, and not only to תרומה גדולה. Since Rashi writes that the estimate was based on how much the field was expected to yield, it appears that the method of estimating applied to all kinds of tithes, and not just to the מעשר ראשון. We may therefore conclude that already prior to the harvest Isaac "estimated" how much he would have to set aside as a tithe. Once the harvest was in the barn- at which time the obligation to give a tithe became operative, he measured carefully how much one tenth would amount to. Anything one eats from a crop before it is brought into the house or barn is not subject to tithes. Isaac, as we have shown, was especially careful to measure the grain even before anyone could have eaten from it. Since the verse under discussion deals with the commandment of tithing, it is appropriate for the Torah to add the words: "G–d blessed Him (Isaac)." We have a parallel verse in Malachi (3,10) when the prophet assures us הביאו את כל המעשר אל האוצר … והריקותי לכם ברכה עד בלי די, "Bring to Me all the tithes to the storage house,….and I will pour out for you endless blessings."
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