Ilustration Credit: Elad Lifshitz, Dov Abramson Studio
Midrash מִדְרָשׁ
(לה) וְכִֽי־יָמ֣וּךְ אָחִ֔יךָ וּמָ֥טָה יָד֖וֹ עִמָּ֑ךְ וְהֶֽחֱזַ֣קְתָּ בּ֔וֹ גֵּ֧ר וְתוֹשָׁ֛ב וָחַ֖י עִמָּֽךְ׃
(35) If your kin, being in straits, come under your authority, and are held by you as though resident aliens, let them live by your side:
"וְכִי יָמוּךְ אָחִיךָ" (ויקרא כה:לה)—הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב "אַשְׁרֵי מַשְׂכִּיל אֶל דָּל" (תהלים מא:ב)....
אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹנָה אַשְׁרֵי נוֹתֵן לְדָל אֵין כְּתִיב כָּאן, אֶלָּא אַשְׁרֵי מַשְׂכִּיל אֶל דָּל, הֱוֵי מִסְתַּכֵּל בּוֹ הֵיאַךְ לְזַכּוֹת עִמּוֹ. רַבִּי יוֹנָה בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁרָאָה בֶּן גְּדוֹלִים שֶׁיָּרַד מִנְּכָסָיו וְהוּא מִתְבַּיֵּשׁ לִקַּח, הָיָה הוֹלֵךְ אֶצְלוֹ וְאוֹמֵר לוֹ בִּשְׁבִיל שֶׁשָּׁמַעְתִּי שֶׁנָּפְלָה לְךָ יְרֻשָּׁה בִּמְדִינַת הַיָּם…"
“If your family member becomes poor” (Vayikra 25:35)—this is connected to what is written, “Happy is a person who acts wisely to the poor” (Tehillim 41:2)….
R. Yonah said: It doesn’t say, “Happy is one who gives to the poor,” but rather, “Happy is one who acts wisely to the poor.” This means you should understand a person who is poor to figure out the best way to help them. When R. Yonah would see a person who grew up wealthy but then lost their money, and who was embarrassed to take tzedakah, he would go to this person and give them money while saying, “I heard that you gained an inheritance overseas…”
This midrash is pointing out that, in order to give tzedakah, we don’t just have to be generous. We also have to be wise!
- What kinds of wisdom are needed when giving tzedakah? Can you think of different examples?
- It’s usually not good to lie, but in this story we hear that R. Yonah would lie in order to help a person feel more comfortable accepting tzedakah. What can we learn from that?
- Could this midrash also be offering an interpretation of the words וְהֶחֱזַקְתָּ בּוֹ (ve-he-hezakta bo, you must strengthen them)? What kind of strengthening is described here?
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