We continue with Perek קיח of tehilim; today we will study pasuk ט:
טוֹב לַחֲסוֹת בַּה׳ מִבְּטֹחַ בִּנְדִיבִים׃
It is better to seek refuge in Hashem than rely on generous people (donors)
This is very similar to the previous pasuk, which we studied yesterday, but the commentaries add some additional points.
The sefer Nachalat Yaakov says that “It’s bette to seek refuge in Hashem than rely on generous people” means that you should ask from Hashem that you shouldn’t need to rely on people. We should never be in a situation where we are reliant on people. Like David HaMelech said, “Do not rely on generous people.”
Therefore, seek refuge and ask Hashem that you should not come to a situation that you need, heaven forbid, to rely on people.
Another explanation is that sometimes a person does need to rely on people. And when you have to put your tail between your knees, as the saying goes, and knock on doors, or take a loan…etc, while doing so, the person should feel that they are going through the motions, but recognize that it’s not actually the person that he is relying on. Going through the motions of relying on the person is actually rooted in seeking refuge from Hashem.
Another way to read this pasuk is that one way to know that it’s good to seek refuge in Hashem is to look at what happens when you ask a person for something- when you rely on a person, he comes though, so surely when you seek refuge in Hashem, He will come through. If a person, such as a parent or friend who loves you, is reliable, surely you know what will happen if you rely on Hashem.
The sefer Binah L’Yitim quotes a Midrash that says, “From the אני/ I of humans, we can learn what happens with the אני Ani of Hashem.
When Paroah told Yosef, “Ani Paroah/I am Paroah,” look at all the honor that Yosef got.
And when Hashem says Ani Asiti, I did, and Ani Esah, I carried, how much more so we will get kavod and honor from that?
In other words, if you can see what a human being is capable of doing for your situation (and the human being is limited) imagine how much more God, who controls everything, is able to bring about.
Our last of explanation of this pasuk is from the Chafetz Chaim, who says that in this pasuk, the word בִּנְדִיבִים/ generous people, does not refer to flesh and blood. It is referring to the Shamayim. It says that God has a court system in the heavens, with angles of judgment and mercy. The angels of mercy are referred to as נְדִיבִים, generous ones.
It’s better to seek refuge in Hashem than rely on those angels.
How does someone get judged by God Himself?
The Chafetz Chaim says that when a person is a Baal hessed, a kind person, he gets judged by Hashem. And based on this pasuk, we can add that טוֹב לַחֲסוֹת בַּה׳ if you rely on Hashem, then God Himself deals with you, and then you aren’t subjected to the norms of the judgement system in Shamayim.
So we have four new and innovative explanations of how to read this pasuk.
1- You should rely on Hashem that you shouldn’t come to rely on people.
2- When you do have to rely on people, you should still rely on Hashem
3- We learn from what happens when we rely on people that we can rely on Hashem.
4- It’s better to count on Hashem and get judged by Him, than be judged by the ministering angels.
Have a wonderful day.