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Friday

י"ט אדר ב’ התשפ"ד

Friday
י"ט אדר ב’ התשפ"ד

חיפוש בארכיון

131 – Chessed with Utensils / Part II, Chapter Twenty Two (b)

Now that we have clarified that lending utensil and the like are also included in doing chessed, it emerges that every person must be careful to keep this. For since it is an easy mitzvah that does not incur any cost, therefore the punishment is very severe for one who treats the mitzvah lightly. This is similar to what the Sages said with regard tzitzis: The punishment for one who is lightheaded about the white strings of tzitzis — which are inexpensive and readily available — is more severe than one who refrains to attach a string of techeiles, which is expensive and scarce. The same applies here: Even if the Heavenly Court will not hold the person accountable for not lending large sums of money to his fellow, they will hold him accountable for not lending his utensils, which he was able to afford. Even if it is a wealthy person who is asking to borrow a utensil or the like, there is a mitzvah of chessed-kindness, and all the more so if the fellow is poor, since it is conceivable that he could not afford to get a utensil like this at that time.

 

He has told you, O Man, what is good, and what Hashem asks of you; but to do justice, to love loving-kindness, and to walk discreetly with your G-d” (Micha 6:8)