כלי יקר — וחדלת מעזב לו עזב תעזב עמו

Q — What is the difference between 'וחדלת מעזב לו' and 'עזב תעזב עמו' — they seem to contradict, with one telling us to refrain and one to help?

A — Kli Yakar resolves them via the Mishnah in Bava Metzia 32a. The obligation to help unload is conditional on 'עמו' — *with him*, i.e., the owner's own participation. If the owner sits aside and says 'since the mitzvah is on you, you do it,' then 'וחדלת מעזב לו' — you are released. The verse encodes the Mishnah's distinction in its own words. Kli Yakar uses the principle to deliver a sharp social critique of his time: עניים who refuse to work and 'throw themselves on the public' while expecting full support are misapplying the very framework Torah builds here. Tzedakah obligation kicks in only after a person has done what he can — 'העני יעשה כל אשר ימצא בכוחו לעשות.'