Today’s class is dedicated le’ilui nishmat Mr. Abe S. Sutton whose Hessed and generosity knew no bounds.
(It’s interesting that we started discussing the topic of Hessed yesterday, and today we’re discussing a topic that was close to his heart)
Yesterday we mentioned that the Ramban says that when a person gives Sedaka, וְלֹא־יֵרַ֥ע לְבָבְךָ֖ בְּתִתְּךָ֣ ל֑וֹ -He should not feel like he’s losing out.
We should not look at Sedaka as a loss; rather, we should look at Sedaka as a
gain. That’s what Ramban says in his Sefer HaMitzvot. Interestingly, Rabbenu Yonah makes similar points on this same pasuk.
The Bet HaLevi tells us, that not only is Bitachon a Mitzvah of its own, that you get rewarded for mostly in Olam Habah, (for relying on Hashem) and not
only is it a powerful tool to use when you need things. (We rely on Hashem and He gives us things) That’s just one area of Bitachon.
Another area is the many side benefits of Bitachon.
The Bet HaLevi tells us that when a person has Bitachon, he will avoid many sins, and be able to do many mitzvot properly.
One of the things he talks about is the middah of generosity. If a person has bitachon, he’s able to act in a generous way. He is able to give Sedaka.
Yesterday we spoke about the Ramban, who said that we are supposed to believe that when you give Sedaka, you are gaining on the deal. When you give Sedaka, it’s like you’re investing your portfolio with guaranteed good returns.
Rabbenu Yonah (in Shaare Teshuva, (3:35 when discussing- Mitzvot of the Heart) takes a slightly different twist. He says that when G-d told us not to
have a bad heart when we give, he meant that -לְהַרְחִיק מִנַּפְשֵׁנוּ צָרוּת - הָעַיִן we shouldn’t have a limited eye- in other words, don’t be cheap.
We should be broad. Spend and have a good eye. Don’t give someone a half cup of a drink. Fill up the cup. Some people give small portions, and others
give large portions. Be a Tov eyin.
That’s what G-d meant when he said -וְלֹא־יֵרַ֥ע לְבָבְךָ֖ בְּתִתְּךָ֣-
Do not be cheap. He brings a Pasuk from Mishleh to show the benefits of being a Tov Eyin, having a good eye-טוֹב - עַיִן הוּא יְבֹרָךְ-a good eye brings blessings.
Therefore, Rabbenu Yonah continues,
וְלֹא דַי בְּמַתְּנַת - הַיָּד, -it is not enough to give with your hand
Besides for Sedaka being a Mitzvah of action, that’s not enough.
עַד אֲשֶׁר נִטַּע בְּנַפְשׁוֹתֵינוּ מִדַּת הַנְּדִיבוּת. -We must implant it and root into our hearts.
Hashem doesn’t want grumpy charity, or charity with a groan. He wants charity that comes out of a Tov Eyin.
That’s what he meant when he said -וְלֹא־יֵרַ֥ע לְבָבְךָ֖-Do not have a bad heart when you give Sedaka.
Furthermore, Rabbenu Yonah says in the next pasuk לֹא תְאַמֵּץ אֶת - לְבָבְךָ וְלֹא תִקְפּוֹץ אֶת - יָדֶךָ
remove the trait of cruelty from your soul, and implant mercy and kindness in our soul, as is the way of Hashem.
He says it’s possible that a person gives charity, but it is not enough. It has to come from a middah in your heart. It has to be come out of mercy, concern, and care.
One of the benefits of mercy is that
וְנָתַן - לְךָ רַחֲמִים וְרִחַמְךָ וְהִרְבֶּךָ, -G-d will give you mercy, He will have mercy on you, and make you multiply.
And as the Gemarah tells us in Shabbat, כָּל הַמְרַחֵם עַל הַבְּרִיּוֹת, מְרַחֲמִים עָלָיו מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם. -Whoever has mercy on other people will have mercy upon himself from the heavens. And the opposite is true as well.
Both these points are teaching us that when a person gives Sedaka, it’s not just enough to give. It has to come from mercy. It has to come from a good eye, from generosity. All these things can only come about when a person has
Bitachon and realizes that when he gives, he’s not losing, because Hashem will take care of him.
When I have mercy on someone else, Hashem’s mercy will come back to me. Hashem will take care of me.
That’s why we need to have bitachon; in order to enable us to be kind and generous and give Sedaka in the right way. Hashem wants us to give Sedaka with heart.
Prior to the pandemic, we’d been learning at length from the Sefer Hovot HaLevavot- Duties of the Heart.
That’s what we we are taking about. These are things you can’t see on a person’s face. You can’t tell what’s going on in someone’s heart from their action.
But our goal is duties of the heart. The only way to get to the proper duties of the heart is through bitachon.
Be’Ezrat Hashem, we will get there. We will give, and we give with generosity and a good eye.
Have a nice day.