We are now in the pasuk from Mishleh 3,5
׃ בְּטַ֣ח אֶל־יְ֭הֹוָה בְּכׇל־לִבֶּ֑ךָ וְאֶל־בִּ֥֝ינָתְךָ֗ אַל־תִּשָּׁעֵֽן /Rely on Hashem with all your heart, and don't rely on your understanding.
Rabbenu Bachye author of Rabbenu Bachye Al HaTorah (not to be confused with the other Rabbenu Bachye, author of Hovot Halevavot), in his introduction to Parashat Miketz says that simply, one would say Rely on Hashem with all your heart and don’t rely on your understanding means Don’t trust your understanding.. Don't use your understanding. But he adds to this. He says, Don't listen to your understanding, which is going to say, ‘I can trust my wealth, my strength, or my wisdom.’ Don't listen to your simple understanding that tells you that you have powers.
It’s not just saying don't listen to your wisdom. It means don’t listen to what your mind is telling you about all of your abilities in general, because Hashem can take the wisdom of the wise and cause them to be foolish. Ultimately, רַבּ֣וֹת מַחֲשָׁב֣וֹת בְּלֶב־אִ֑ישׁ וַעֲצַ֥ת יְ֝הֹוָ֗ה הִ֣יא תָקֽוּם
All your ideas don't mean anything, because ultimately the idea of God is going to come to the forefront.
He quotes the pasuk from Kohelet 9,11 ‘The light footed don't win the race. The strong ones don't win the war. The wise don't always have bread, the understanding don't have wealth, and those that know don't always have grace.’ Furthermore, in Mishleh 16,1 it says, לְאָדָ֥ם מַעַרְכֵי־לֵ֑ב וּ֝מֵיְהֹוָ֗ה מַעֲנֵ֥ה לָשֽׁוֹן
Man can prepare what he wants to say in his heart, but ultimately what comes out of his mouth is controlled by God.
He says, If Shlomo is telling you what comes out of your mouth is controlled by God, that it’s surely so for your deeds. Therefore, there's no place for any hope, other than to God. He says that's why it says BeTach El Hashem/Rely to God, not BeTach b’Hashem/Rely on God.
That tells us that complete reliance is in your whole heart and all your focus is on God. Betach el Hashem/Rely to God means that all my thoughts are on God.
Like the pasuk in Tehilim 25, 15 says,
עֵינַ֣י תָּ֭מִיד אֶל־יְהֹוָ֑ה
My eyes are always on God.
Rabbenu Yonah on Mishleh says, Rely Hashem with your whole heart means without any doubts, with absolute conviction.
Rabbenu Yonah seems to argue on a nuance with Rabbenu Bachye on the meaning of וְאֶל־בִּ֥֝ינָתְךָ֗ אַל־תִּשָּׁעֵֽן
He says it means Don't rely on your wisdom- wisdom because that's the thing that most people rely on. They rely on their wisdom, but of course it means other things as well). Rabbenu Bachye said, don't listen to your understanding that tells you to rely on your wealth, your wisdom or your power. The Gaon of Vilna says
בְּטַ֣ח אֶל־יְ֭הֹוָה בְּכׇל־לִבֶּ֑ךָ וְאֶל־בִּ֥֝ינָתְךָ֗ אַל־תִּשָּׁעֵֽן means Rely on Hashem with all your heart and don't lean on your understanding. As we've mentioned many times in the past, there's a difference between Mivtach and Mishan. Mivtach means to rely totally on something. A Mishan is a cane. You still have some strength, and you are leaning a little bit on the cane for a bit of additional help. So the Gaon of Vilna is telling us the pasuk is saying, Rely Hashem with your whole heart and don't say, ‘But I'll also rely on my wisdom.’ No. Don’t even use your wisdom as something to lean on.
I saw an interesting explanation on this pasuk, based on the juxtaposition with the prior pasuk, which says, וּמְצָא־חֵ֥ן וְשֵֽׂכֶל־ט֑וֹב בְּעֵינֵ֖י אֱלֹהִ֣ים וְאָדָֽם׃
And you'll find grace and wisdom in the eyes of God and people
That means the ultimate blessing is the blessing of Chen/grace. People just like a person with Chen. They have a charm, they have charisma. Yet Shlomo Hamelech says Sheker HaChen/Chen is false. There's nothing there. You just somehow have this charisma. And if you have it, it's magic. People will buy from you, people will marry you. There's a lot of things that chen does. It's magical. So how do you get that Chen? You can try to come up with different ways to get Chen, but Shlomo Hamelech says, No- Betach El Hashem B’chol Libecha / Rely on Hashem with all your heart to get the Chen, וְאֶל־בִּ֥֝ינָתְךָ֗ אַל־תִּשָּׁעֵֽן
And don’t think you're going figure out ways to get Chen.
It’s elusive. There's no way to get it. You need to rely on Hashem. That's the explanation of the Sefer Mei HaShiloach, written by the great Chassidic Ishbitzer Rebbe, Rabbi Mordechai Leiner (1800-1850), in his commentary on Mishleh.
One last interesting point is that Sefer Charedim, in chapter 35 when he talks about the Mitzvot Aseh from Divreh Kabbalah quotes our pasuk Bitchu- and says it’s a command from God to rely on Hashem.
Have a wonderful day.