We are now in Tehilim 22,6 which is the famous mizmor that was said by Esther when she walked into the Palace of Achashverosh:
אֵלֶ֣יךָ זָעֲק֣וּ וְנִמְלָ֑טוּ בְּךָ֖ בָטְח֣וּ וְלֹא־בֽוֹשׁוּ
To You, they cried out and were saved. They relied on You and they were not embarrassed.
The Ibn Ezra adds a few important words. They cried to You alone, and they didn't rely on others, that’s why they were not ashamed, and that's why You answered them.
This is an important point. It’s not enough to rely on Hashem. It has to be solely on Hashem. The Hovot Halevavot, in Shaar Bitachon perek ג where he discusses the important fundamentals you need for Bitachon, says, “You individualize God in the area that you're relying, and you do not partner Him up with anybody else.” So you’re not relying on God and the doctor. You’re relying on God alone and on no other creations.
He says that when a person combines his reliance on Hashem with someone else, that is a contaminant, and it makes the bitachon not work. He quotes a story with King Asa where it says, “And in his sickness, he didn't rely on Hashem, only the doctors.”
The issue wasn't that he went to the doctors. The issue was, who is he relying on? And he brings the pasuk
(Yirmiyah 17,7)
בָּר֣וּךְ הַגֶּ֔בֶר אֲשֶׁ֥ר יִבְטַ֖ח בַּיהֹוָ֑ה וְהָיָ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה מִבְטַחֽ
Fortunate is the one that relies on Hashem, and Hashem is his reliance.
We've gone through this many times. It's seemingly superfluous. Blessed, is the one that relies on Hashem, and Hashem is his reliance? But it means and only Hashem is reliance. The Hovot Halevavot continues, “It's well known that if you appoint two people or more for the same job, you're not going to get the job done.” Each person thinks that the other one will handle it. It's not my job. He says the same is true when you rely on Hashem and somebody else. It’s a destruction to bitachon.
He says, “This is the strongest cause of not getting what you relied on.” Sometimes people say, I had so much bitachon on, why didn't it work? The Hovot Halevavot tells you: Because you're not just solely relying on Hashem. When someone feels you are relying on me and only me, that changes the whole demographic. There's a story with a man who came to collect money from Baron Rothschild. He had traveled for days and hadn't eaten well. He knocked on Rothschild’s door and when the servant opened the door, the man collapsed on the floor. After they revived him and gave him food, the man said, “I traveled here just for you.”
Rothschild took care of his whole need- of his daughter's wedding or whatever it was. Another man who heard about this was in town collecting for a similar cause. He knocked on Rothschild’s door and told his story. Rothschild gave him a check but didn’t do for him what he did for the first man. The man asked Rothschild, “What's the difference between me and my friend?”
Rothschild answered, “Your friend came only to me. He traveled from where he was and came directly to me and relied only on me. I have a different responsibility there.”
And it’s the same with Hashem.
As we said, this pasuk comes from Esther. Sefer Megillat Setarim
(Megillat Esther chapter 4,1) says that the reason Mordechai wore a sackcloth with ashes at the time of the Gezera was so that everyone should know he would not be going to the king- because the rule was, you can’t appear before the king dressed in sackcloth. So although they knew Mordechai had connections with the king, they're would not rely on him, because ‘look, he’s wearing sackcloth.’
Mordechai did that intentionally, so that people would not rely on him. It’s similarly brought down that that's why Esther invited Haman to the party, so that the Jewish people should not rely on her but rather rely on Hashem alone.
This is an extremely important fundamental that we learn from Esther,
אֵלֶ֣יךָ
זָעֲק֣ו וְנִמְלָ֑טוּ בְּךָ֖ בָטְח֣וּ וְלֹא־בֽוֹשׁו
To You, And only You- they cried out and were saved. They relied on You and they were not embarrassed.
Have a wonderful day.