"If you lend money to any of My people, even to the poor with you..." (Exodus 22:24) Our sages explain here that what needs to be with the poor person, is with you.
On face value, this is difficult to understand. Why would the money you have belong with the poor person? Without getting into a discussion about reincarnation or the heavenly constellations that channel shefa, sustenance, from here to there, our sages provide us with a straightforward explanation based on two consecutive verses in the Torah: "You have declared this day that the Lord is your God..." etc., and "...the Lord has declared this day that you are His people..." etc. (Deuteronomy 26:17-18)
Our sages explain that God said to the Jewish people, "Since you made Me a single unit in the world, I will make you a single unit." In other words, the Jewish people unify God's name through every single detail in Creation and serve as witnesses to the Oneness of HaShem. There is nothing else but Him, and there is nothing without Him. Every detail of the world is filled with His vitality to the extent that anyone with clear pure vision can see the Godliness in everything. Each according to their level will see and sense the Divinity in every aspect of Creation. This is what God will do for the people who make Him One in the world.
Thus, looking on a higher level, we can now understand the deeper meaning of our Sages' explanation of the verse, "...even the poor with you..." stated in the beginning where what needs to be with the poor person, is with you. It is here, between you and the poor person, where the Jewish people are made into a single unit in the world through the mitzvah, "If you lend money to any of my people..." (Exodus 22:24)
[Taken from talk by Rav Ephraim Kenig, shlita, on this past Shabbat Parshat Mishpatim / Shekalim 5770 in Cedarhurst, New York]
Thank you for writing this...it is beautiful
Posted by: | Tuesday, February 16, 2010 at 02:59 PM