A Short Tribute

"Give to him readily and have no regrets when you do so". I once saw a man, the greatest person of his times, approached by a poor person originally from a privileged background, who shared his suffering with him. He gave him a proper donation, and then gave him a second one. This man was asked, "What is this, Master Rabbi?" His reply was that the first time he had given to ease the poor man's distress, because of the suffering he had described, and that the second time was for the sake of the commandment. This is what the verse says, "Give to him readily" – meaning to say, twice, and then "have no regrets when you do so" – that is, giving should not be done out of your suffering heart or pain, for then the commandment will not be entirely fulfilled; give for the sake of the commandment.

"She conceived and bore a son, and he named him Er. She conceived again and bore a son, and named him Onan. Once again she bore a son, and named him Shelah; he was at Chezib when she bore him." RASHI interprets Chezib as the name of a place. Why does RASHI needs to inform us where it took place? In the book Da'at Zekeinim it says that the custom of old was as follows: The first son's name would be chosen by the father and the mother would name the second; once the father and once the mother and so on. Here, in the case of the first son, it is written "and he named him Er", in the masculine, meaning to say, Yehuda named him. In the second case the text says "and named him Onan", in the feminine form, meaning that his mother named him - in keeping with respectful practice and with their custom. But according to custom, it would have been appropriate that Yehuda be the one to name the third son. How is it that it was his mother who named him, as written in the text, "and named him Shelah"? This is what RASHI comes to explain. "He was in Chezib when she gave birth to him", meaning that Yehuda was not there at the time of Shelah's birth; Yehuda was in a place called Chezib, and therefore it was his mother who named him.

"One who benefits from his hard labor is greater than a God-fearing person" [i.e., one who is so enthralled by his fear of God that he sits idly by and does not work]. The person who benefits from his toil, in this case, also reveres the Almighty. He does not, however, seek to benefit from his reverence by imposing himself on the community and having its members maintain and support him because of his qualities. Instead, he allows himself slight idleness from Torah study to pursue his craft and work, and to make his livelihood and obtain his income from the fruit of his labor.
The author of this saying seeks to teach us that it is not the person who stays at home and studies Torah, reveres the Almighty and imposes himself upon others to sustain him who is the better person and who, as a result, benefits from his reverence of the Almighty. The word "benefits" relates both to the fruit of his labor and to reverence. It is as though the text reads, "Greater is one who benefits more from the fruit of his labor than from his reverence of the Almighty".

"And all the peoples of the earth shall see that the LORD's name is proclaimed over you, and they shall stand in fear of you." This should understood to mean that the duty of every Jew is to be observant of the Almighty's attributes. Just as he is merciful, to be merciful; just as he is forgiving, to be forgiving; the Names of the Lord denote His attributes in themselves. One can become known by the Names of the Almighty, and instruct and teach for the benefit of all dwellers of the universe, open the eyes of the blind, and illuminate the land in absolute faith, in Torah and virtue.

"Therefore, when the LORD your God grants you safety from all your enemies around you, in the land that the LORD your God is giving you as a hereditary portion, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven". This confirms that all commandments should be fulfilled for their own sake. Had the Israelites annihilated Amalek immediately upon their entry to the Land of Israel then they would have done so out of rage, out of passion for vengeance, and not for the sake of the commandment. For this reason the Torah commanded the Children of Israel as follows: "Therefore, when the LORD your God grants you safety from all your enemies around you"– so that they might do so for the sake of the commandment.

"Rav said to Rav Hamnuna: My son, if you have [money], do well for yourself. [There is no point waiting,] as there is no pleasure in the netherworld, and death does not tarry. Should you say: I will leave for my children, who told you the law of the netherworld [which of you will die first]?" If you have been privileged with wealth, distribute it yourself as early in life as you can to benefit your soul, do not tarry. The reason given is that should your inclination seek to seduce you into giving to charity after you reach the netherworld, the Almighty will not be pleased. The Almighty's principal appreciation comes from a person's deeds while he is living and owns his choices, by a person who is held back by his inclination, yet overcomes his inclination. Should you say that you are still a young man and that you have the time to distribute [charity] during your life after you age, the text for this reason it says, "and death does not tarry" – lest you die early in your youth. Should you say, "I will leave for my children" – I do not wish to distribute charity at all, not during my life nor after my death and will only leave all the wealth as an inheritance to my children – this, too, is absurd and foolish.