Mishnayos Bava Metzia Perek 5 Mishnah 6
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בבא מציעא פרק ה׳ משנה ו׳
One may not accept from a Jew sheep to raise or other items to care for as a guaranteed investment, in which the terms of the transaction dictate that the one accepting the item takes upon himself complete responsibility to repay its value in the event of depreciation or loss, but receives only part of the profit. This is because it is a loan, as the principal is fixed and always returned to the owner, and any additional sum the owner receives is interest. But one may accept a guaranteed investment from gentiles, as there is no prohibition of interest in transactions with them. And one may borrow money from them and one may lend money to them with interest. And similarly, with regard to a gentile who resides in Eretz Yisrael and observes the seven Noahide mitzvot [ger toshav], one may borrow money from him with interest and lend money to him with interest, since he is not a Jew. Also, a Jew may serve as a middleman and lend a gentile’s money to another Jew with the knowledge of the gentile, but not with the knowledge of a Jew, i.e., the middleman himself, as the Gemara will explain.
אֵין מְקַבְּלִין צֹאן בַּרְזֶל מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהוּא רִבִּית. אֲבָל מְקַבְּלִין צֹאן בַּרְזֶל מִן הַנָּכְרִים, וְלֹוִין מֵהֶן וּמַלְוִין אוֹתָן בְּרִבִּית, וְכֵן בְּגֵר תּוֹשָׁב. מַלְוֶה יִשְׂרָאֵל מְעוֹתָיו שֶׁל נָכְרִי מִדַּעַת הַנָּכְרִי, אֲבָל לֹא מִדַּעַת יִשְׂרָאֵל:
Bartenura
אין מקבלין צאן ברזל. כל אחריות הנכסים על המקבל, ושם אותם עליו במעות, וכל זמן שאין נותן לו מעותיו חולקים השכר. ואע״ג דמשנה יתירה היא, דהא תנא ליה לעיל אין מושיבים חנוני למחצית שכר משום דמקבל עליה פלגא בהפסד, וכל שכן הכא דקבל כל האחריות עליו. נקט ליה משום סיפא. אבל מקבלים צאן ברזל מן הנכרים:
מדעת הנכרי. כגון ישראל שלוה מעות מנכרי ברבית וביקש להחזירם לו, מצאו ישראל אחר ואמר תנם לי ואני אעלה לך בדרך שאתה מעלה לו. אם העמידו אצל נכרי, אע״פ שישראל נותנם לו במצות הנכרי, מותר. ואם לא העמידו אצל נכרי, אסור. דהוא ניהו דקא מוזיף ליה בריבית:
אין מקבלין צאן ברזל – all mortgaged property (or property which may be resorted to in case of non – payment) are upon the receiver, and he placed upon them (i.e., the property) his resources, and all the time that he (i.e., the borrower) does not give him his monies, they divide the profit/wages. And even though this is an extraneous Mishnah, for it is taught in the Mishnah above (Mishnah 4), that they do not set up a storekeeper for half the profit because he receives on it one-half with loss, all the more so, here, when he receives all the mortgaged property upon it. They took it (i.e., the language) because of the concluding section of the Mishnah: “but they do accept a flock on ‘iron terms’ from the heathens.
מדעת הנכרי – such as the case where an Israelite borrowed money from a heathen at interest and he requested to return them to him. He found another Israelite and said: give them to me and I will credit you (see Bava Metzia 69b) in the manner that you credit him (as compensation). If he restored them (i.e., the monies) to the heathen, even though an Israelite gives them to him at the command of a heathen, it is permitted, but if he didn’t restore them to the heathen, it is forbidden, for he has lent him [money] at interest.