The seventh difference: A person who relies on G‑d will not be worried if his request is denied or if he loses that which is beloved to him. He doesn’t hoard his possessions, nor does he concern himself with making efforts to obtain more livelihood than for that day alone. For he doesn’t entertain in his heart or worry about what will happen tomorrow, because he doesn’t know when his end will come.
וְהַשְּׁבִיעִי, כִּי הַבּוֹטֵחַ בֵּאלֹהִים לֹא יֶאֱבַל בְּהִמָּנַע בַּקָּשָׁה וְלֹא בְּהִפָּקֵד אָהוּב, וְלֹא יֶאֱצֹר הַנִּמְצָא, וְאֵינֶנּוּ חוֹשֵׁשׁ לְיוֹתֵר מִטֶּרֶף יוֹמוֹ, כִּי לֹא יַעֲלֶה עַל לִבּוֹ מַה יִּהְיֶה לְמָחֳרָתוֹ, מִפְּנֵי שֶׁאֵינוֹ יוֹדֵעַ עֵת בּוֹא קִצּוֹ,
Just as he relies on G‑d to lengthen his life, so, too he relies upon Him to provide him with food and livelihood for his lifetime.
וּבוֹטֵחַ בֵּאלֹהִים לְהַאֲרִיךְ לוֹ בּוֹ וּלְהַזְמִין טַרְפּוֹ וּמְזוֹנוֹ בּוֹ.
He does not rejoice in anticipation of the good fortune that he expects in the future, nor does he worry or feel afraid about any future bad that may befall him.
וְאֵינֶנּוּ שָׂמֵחַ בֶּעָתִיד וְלֹא יֶאֱבַל לוֹ,
As the verse says (Proverbs 27:1): Do not boast about tomorrow, for you do not know what the day will bear . Ben Sira said ( Sanhedrin 100b): “Grieve not about tomorrow’s trouble, because you do not know what today may bring; perhaps tomorrow he will no longer be, and he will have worried about a world that is not his.
כְּמוֹ שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב (משלי כז, א) "אַל תִּתְהַלֵּל בְּיוֹם מָחָר, כִּי לֹא תֵדַע מַה יֵּלֶד יוֹם," וְאָמַר בֶּן סִירָא (סנהדרין ק, ב) "אַל תָּצֵר צָרַת מָחָר כִּי לֹא תֵדַע מַה יֵּלֶד יוֹם, מָחָר יָבֹא וְאֵינֶנּוּ וְנִמְצָא מִצְטַעֵר עַל עוֹלָם שֶׁאֵינוֹ שֶׁלּוֹ."
Rather, his worries and grievances are regarding his inability to fulfill his obligations to the Creator, and he makes an effort to pay those obligations that he is able to pay, both those that are apparent, as in the mitzvot that are performed with the person’s body, and those that are hidden, as in the mitzvot that are “duties of the heart.”
אֲבָל דַּאֲגָתוֹ וְאֶבְלוֹ עַל מַה שֶּׁהוּא מְקַצֵּר בּוֹ מֵחוֹבוֹת הַבּוֹרֵא, וּמִשְׁתַּדֵּל לִפְרוֹעַ מַה שֶּׁיּוּכַל לִפְרוֹעַ מֵהֶם בְּנִרְאֵהוּ וּבְנִסְתָּרוֹ,
Duties of the heart. The commandments of loving and fearing G‑d.
He is concerned about this, because he thinks about his death and the coming of the day when his soul will be gathered back to its source in the World to Come. His fear of sudden death arouses in him alertness to increase his efforts and to prepare provisions for the end of his days, and he will not heed what he provides for himself in this world. This is what is meant with the statement ( Avot 2:10): “Repent one day before your death.” And the Sages explained in the Talmud ( Shabbat 153a): “He should repent today, because, perhaps he will die tomorrow, and it emerges through such conduct that all his days were spent repenting.”
מִפְּנֵי שֶׁהוּא חוֹשֵׁב בְּמִיתָתוֹ וּבוֹא יוֹם הָאֲסִיפָה. וּפַחְדּוֹ שֶׁיְּבוֹאֵהוּ הַמָּוֶת פִּתְאֹם, יוֹסִיף לוֹ הִשְׁתַּדְּלוּת וּזְרִיזוּת לְהָכִין צֵידָה לְאַחֲרִיתוֹ, וְלֹא יַרְגִּישׁ עַל מַה שֶּׁיַּזְמִין לָעוֹלָם הַזֶּה, וְהוּא מַה שֶּׁאָמְרוּ (משנה אבות ב, י) "וְשׁוּב יוֹם אֶחָד לִפְנֵי מִיתָתָךְ," וּפֵרְשׁוּ בּוֹ (שבת קנג, א) "יָשׁוּב הַיּוֹם שֶׁמָּא יָמוּת לְמָחָר, וְנִמְצָא כָּל יָמָיו בִּתְשׁוּבָה,"
As it is written (Ecclesiastes 9:8): At all times, let your garments be white, which is understood by Rashi ( Shabbat 153a) to mean that the person’s soul should be clean and pure as a result of his repentance.
כְּדִכְתִיב (קהלת ט, ח) "בְּכָל עֵת יִהְיוּ בְגָדֶיךָ לְבָנִים."
Conversely, a person who does not rely on G‑d will be greatly pained due to the constant troubles that befall him, the loss of his friends, and his requests being denied to him. He will save up a great fortune of the world for himself, as if he is assured that he will be spared from being transferred from this world to the next. The fear of death is removed from him as if his days will never cease to be and his life will never end. He does not think about what will happen to him at the end of his days, involving himself, instead, in worldly matters alone. He does not pay attention to matters of his observance of the Torah and to how much provision he has prepared for when he will go to his ultimate resting place (the World to Come). His confidence that he will live a long life in this world is the cause for his constant desires for personal matters, and it is also the cause for his decreased desire for spiritual matters, which are needed for the World to Come.
וַאֲשֶׁר אֵינֶנּוּ בּוֹטֵחַ בֵּאלֹהִים, יִרְבֶּה אֶבְלוֹ לְהַתְמָדַת פִּגְעֵי הָעוֹלָם עָלָיו, וְיִפְקוֹד אוֹהֲבָיו, וְיִמָּנְעוּ מִמֶּנּוּ בַּקָּשׁוֹתָיו, וְיַזְמִין מֵהוֹן הָעוֹלָם הַרְבֵּה כְּאִלּוּ בָּטַח מִן הַחֲלִיפָה וְסָרָה מֵעָלָיו אֵימַת הַמָּוֶת, כְּאִלּוּ יָמָיו לֹא יִתַּמּוּ וְחַיָּיו לֹא יִכְלוּ, אֵינֶנּוּ זוֹכֵר אַחֲרִיתוֹ וּמִתְעַסֵּק בְּעוֹלָמוֹ, אֵינֶנּוּ מְעַיֵּן בְּעִנְיַן תּוֹרָתוֹ וְצֵידָתוֹ וּבֵית מוֹעֲדוֹ. וְהָיָה בִּטְחוֹנוֹ בַּאֲרִיכוּת יָמָיו בָּעוֹלָם סִבָּה לְאֹרֶךְ תַּאֲוָתוֹ בְּעִנְיָנָיו, וְסִבָּה לְקֹצֶר תַּאֲוָתוֹ בְּעִנְיְנֵי אַחֲרִיתוֹ.
When a person rebukes him or a teacher guides him in the proper way to behave and says to him, “Until when will you be unconcerned with the provisions that you need to prepare for the World to Come and with the matters of your ultimate resting place?” He responds by saying, “When I will have enough money to provide for my food and other needs, and for those who are my responsibility, i.e., my wife and children, for our entire lives, only then will I rest my mind from the worries of this world, turn to pay my responsibilities to the Creator, and think about the means that will enable me to obtain the provisions for the World to Come.”
וְכַאֲשֶׁר יוֹכִיחֶנּוּ מוֹכִיחַ וְיוֹרֶנּוּ מוֹרֶה וְיֹאמַר לוֹ ‘עַד מָתַי אַתָּה מִתְעַלֵּם מֵחֲשׁוֹב בְּצֵידָתְךָ וְעִנְיְנֵי בֵּית מוֹעֲדֶךָ’? יֹאמַר ‘עַד שֶׁיִּהְיֶה לִּי דֵּי פַרְנָסָתִי וְסִפּוּקִי וּלְכָל אֲשֶׁר אִתִּי מֵאִשָּׁה וּבָנִים עַד סוֹף יָמֵינוּ, תָּנוּחַ נַפְשִׁי מִדַּאֲגוֹת הָעוֹלָם, וְאֶפָּנֶה לִפְרוֹעַ חוֹבוֹתַי לַבּוֹרֵא וְאֶחְשׁוֹב בְּסִבּוֹת הַצֵּידָה לְיוֹם הַמּוֹעֵד’.
When I will have enough money to provide for my food and other needs. A reasonable person will question the source of his livelihood, but the answer must always be this: G‑d can and will take care of it.
When the Torah speaks about a person’s livelihood in the years of shemitah and yovel —when all field work is to cease—the verse states (Leviticus 25:20): And when you will say, “What will we eat in the seventh year, when we do not sow...”
The simple meaning of the verse is a response to the question that will potentially be asked by a non-believer about G‑d’s ability to sustain His people. However, the curious use of the word v’chi —and when—rather than v’im —and if—must be addressed. And when suggests that this question is inevitable. But if the question is that of a non-believer, why should the verse assume that it will be asked?
The explanation is that this question is a reasonable one that should be asked: The earth gets weaker from year to year, and, in fact, one of the reasons for the shemitah year is to allow the land to regain its strength. How then will such weak land sustain us after six years of production?
The next verse tells us that while the question is reasonable, it is important to understand the mechanism of how things will work. In this case, the strength will be a miraculous display by G‑d— And I will command my blessings for you in the sixth year, and the earth will produce enough for three years ( Likkutei Sichot, vol. 27, p. 183 ff. ).
In this chapter, the author elaborated on the seven differences between the way in which a person who has bitachon engages in pursuing his livelihood and a person who does not have bitachon does so:,
- A person who has bitachon joyfully accepts even the bad that comes his way, while a person who does not have bitachon gets angry at G‑d when bad things befall him. ,
- A person who has bitachon will have peace of mind knowing that whatever G‑d does to him is for the good. A person who does not have bitachon is constantly in pain and worry, because he is never happy with his lot. ,
- A person who has bitachon will continue to engage in his means of livelihood even if it isn’t lucrative, because he knows that his livelihood comes from G‑d in any case. A person who does not have bitachon will only engage in those means that prove to bring him material wealth in his pursuit of livelihood. ,
- A person who has bitachon will be generous with his money and use it for mitzvot, while a person who does not have bitachon will not do so. As a result, he will lose his money. ,
- A person who has bitachon will engage only in means of pursuing his livelihood that promote his Torah observance, while a person who does not have bitachon will engage in both permitted and forbidden means of obtaining his livelihood. ,
- A person who has bitachon will not see other people as a threat to his success, and he will therefore have many friends. A person who does not have bitachon sees other people as a threat to his success and as the cause of his misfortune, and he will therefore not have real friends. ,
- A person who has bitachon is primarily concerned about his spirituality and the World to Come, while a person who does not have bitachon is concerned about his materialistic pursuits and not about his spiritual matters.
