The Greatest Analogy You Will Ever Hear

Today, I’d like to tell you a famous parable from the Chovot HaLevavot. What does he say? Listen carefully. There was once a certain town, and it was a very weird town. Whenever someone came into the town, they made him king. A poor man walks in to collect money, and they look at him and say, “Oh wow, you’re going to be our king!” They tell him, “Come with us,” and take him to a crazy palace. He sits on a throne, and they give him brand-new clothing with gold ornaments. They dress him in a chashuv, important way. They give him a crazy ring: “This is the signet ring. Whatever you say goes, my dear king.” Now he’s walking around, and they’re all respecting him and giving him honor. He’s saying, “This is the most awkward town I’ve been in. What’s going on over here? This is wild. I come in here and they’re giving me such honor. I’m coming here to collect money, and this is what they do?” Anyway, he has all these advisors and people working for him. He becomes extremely close to one of the advisors, and he keeps giving him money and helping him out. This king is on top of the world with all this gold and everything. One day, he tells one of his main advisors, “What’s going on over here? It’s very, very, very, very abnormal.” The advisor says, “No, everything’s okay. Everything’s okay.” A week goes by, then two weeks, one month, two months, three months, six months. He tells his advisor, “Please, let me know what’s going on.” The advisor says, “My dear king, you were the best king that we’ve ever had. You gave me so much and helped me so much. I’m going to tell you, but if I tell you, don’t tell anybody that I told you, because otherwise they’ll kill me. This town will kill me.” “So, what is it?” He tells him, “In this town, what we do is put in a king. Every year, we change the king and choose someone who comes from out of town. We have visitors who come from out of town, and this person we pull in is so excited when we tell him, ‘You’re the king of our town.’ He brings his family, and he stays as king for the whole year. I’ll tell you what we do: at the end of the year, we throw the king out. We take everything he had—all the gold and silver, the throne and the chariots. But the king himself doesn’t know that. As soon as the year is up—exactly one year—we take him. All the men come together, including his own advisors. They take him and throw him out. They throw him out, him and his family, with nothing. Zero.” He says, “What?” The advisor says, “Yeah, that’s the truth.” “How many months do I have left?” “Right now, you really have about six months left.” So he goes ahead and starts sending gifts to his hometown, where he was originally from. He starts sending gold bars. He’s not wasting any more time. Every day he sends another gold bar, another gold bar. He’s sending them every day, every day, every day. Finally, the six months are over. They take the king and his family and throw him out. They strip him of all his gold and silver and all his clothes. They give him back his old clothing, like a poor man, and send him off to his old town. Now he sits back. He has all these riches, and he’s doing that. The Nimshal (lesson) is this: every person in this world comes here as a king. Yeah, Baruch Hashem, you’re loving life. This amazing life over here. This is awesome. You eat, you sleep, you drink, you do this and that. You’re like a king. But don’t forget where you’re originally from. Where is your original hometown? Where is Hashem? Up there in Shamayim (heaven). That’s your original hometown. Your Neshama (soul)—before it was put in this world, you made a shevuah (oath) that you’re going to come back, right? You’re going to come back to the next world. You’re going to come back. But what are you going to come back with? What are you going to come back with? So, as a person in this world, you have to send gold bars to your hometown, where you’re originally from: the Olam HaNeshamot (World of Souls), with Hashem. You’re originally with Hashem. That’s where you originally came from. Now you’re going to go to this whole entire town after 120 years, and they’re going to tell you, “What did you come back with? What did you come back with?” That’s why there’s a very famous story about Munbaz HaMelech, which is brought down in Masechet Bava Batra. He was a king, and the wealth had been passed down from generation to generation, to generation, to generation. So this is a few generations later, and now he becomes king. He has all this wealth from his parents and grandparents. What did he do, Munbaz HaMelech? He started giving tzedakah (charity) like crazy. Tzedakah. Tzedakah. Tzedakah. Tzedakah. Tzedakah. It was amazing to see. They had never seen a king give so much charity. “My dear king,” his advisors tell him, “stop already. You’re giving so much charity. Stop. Look, learn from your father, your grandfather, your great-grandfather. They had all this wealth. You’re going to have nothing. You’re going to give out everything. What are you going to be left with?” Munbaz HaMelech told them, “You’re not understanding. Whatever I give to tzedakah, I’m just giving it, and I’m putting it in my hometown. Because after 120 years, when we leave this world, Hashem is going to bring back all the money that you gave away to charity. And what is going to be with that money? For tzedakah. Hashem says, ‘This is yours. You’re going to get all this back.’ Remember, when you give tzedakah, what you’re doing is just putting that check in your bank account until after 120. They give it back to you.” Do you understand what I’m telling you here today? So, therefore, it’ll be so easy for you to give charity now. Some people find it so easy to give charity. How? You see, I told you: anytime something is going well, something has to get involved. You know, this guy’s screaming, “Joey!” Something has to get involved over here. It’s always like that, because something knows, “Oh man, he’s going to send such a message like that. I’ve got to break it.” So he screams out, “Joey, could you move your car? Your car’s blocking.” That’s what it is, by the way. Something is always there to stop you. Right now, in a way, we got him. Now, in a way. The next time you’re giving a charity check, this is great: “I’ll give you a check. I’ll give you whatever you want.” You know, you’re helping the guy. But the Gemara says, our rabbis teach us: who is getting helped out more? You. Somebody comes to Joey and says, “Yeah, Joe, can I get a check? I need a charity check.” You write him a check, and you feel so good that you helped him out—which you should. You should feel great that you helped him out. But you have to know that you’re gaining more than you’re giving. This is facts. This is facts. You’re gaining more when you give that check to tzedakah. You gain more than the person receiving the check. Now you see, “Wow, I got a check.” The guy can go eat, support his family, pay his tuition bill, and support his wife and kids. He’s so happy. It comes out that he got $20,000, $30,000, and he’s so happy. “Wow, he’s got $30,000. He’s got $30,000. He’s got $30,000. He’s got $30,000.” He’s so thrilled. But who has to be more thrilled? The guy who wrote the check. The guy who wrote the check has to make a party. He has to go and say, “Before you leave my office, we’re going to make a l’chaim. We’re going to make a l’chaim. You want to bring a cup of coffee? You want to bring orange juice? You want to bring whatever you want to bring. L’chaim. Shehakol nihyeh bidvaro (by whose word all things came to be).” Why? You have to celebrate more. It’s the same thing with everything. Why? You support a yeshiva. You support a shul (synagogue). You support a beit midrash (study hall). Wow. You have to jump up with joy. You have to jump up with joy. You know why? Because you’re gaining. All you’re doing is putting money back in your bank account. That’s what you’re doing. You’re putting money in your bank account. It’s like that king. That king knows he has only one year. We have 120 years, and then you’re going to go back to your creator. What are you going to go with? What are you going to go with? I’m giving just an example of charity, but the best one of the examples is charity. So the next time you’re giving somebody a check, whether to help or support, whether to support anything, guess where it’s coming back to you? It’s coming back to you. And that’s why you have to be happy. You have to be ecstatic with the simcha (joy). That’s charity. But now we’re going to go to mitzvot (commandments). I can end here. I can end here. That would be sufficient. However, I just want to say: it’s with every mitzvah. I just gave an example for charity. It’s every mitzvah. You finish. You learn one word. You learn one halacha (Jewish law). Every day you come to shul. You learn one halacha. Just one halacha. Gan Eden: “Kol ha-shoneh halachot (Jewish laws) muvtach lo shehu ben ha-Olam Haba (World to Come)” (Whoever studies laws is assured that he is among the people of the World to Come). It’s facts. If it says it, it means it. It’s not a joke. It’s not just writing like that. That’s why sometimes a person hears the halacha that the rabbi is saying during the day. If you’re in a shul where they don’t do that, speak to the rabbi. Maybe: “Rabbi, can you do that?” You’ll have a Zechut (merit) for every single person sitting there for the rest of your life. Then, wow, the rabbi generated. Even go, even go to the shul you’re in, whichever yeshiva, whatever you’re in. Tell the rabbi, “Let’s add a shiur (class). Let’s add a shiur. I’ll get you the guys. I’ll help you out.” You know what happens? Every single person learning in that shiur, you have part of the Zechut. You know what’s going on over here? Every single person in that shiur—you have part of the Zechut. And it’s with every single mitzvah. So the next time you’re writing a check for charity, or you’re sending money for charity, sending things, just know you are putting it in your own bank account. Like Munbaz HaMelech. He sent it all out. This is the great lesson. Have that Emunah (faith). Feel it in your bones. The next time you give tzedakah, just be happy. Because guess what? You’re helping, and you’re sending all the money to your own bank account after 120.