Outcome of Income
There is a Torah principle that the amount of money we earn depends on how much we give.[1] If, for example, we earn $10,000 and give $1,000 to maaser, then the following year Hashem may give us $15,000 so that we can give $1,500 to maaser. If, however, we then give $1,700 to charity, then we may receive $17,000 the next year.
If we cut back and give only $1,700, which is proportionately less than before, then Hashem may do the same to us.[2] This is in accordance with the principle of mida k’neged mida, meaning Hashem metes out “measure for measure.”[3] It could turn out that the amount of maaser a person originally gave ($1,000) now becomes his base income. This is one explanation in the words, v’ish es kedoshov lo yihyu,[4] the amount of money he gave to maaser (kedoshov) may now be his salary (lo yihyu).
A fascinating allusion is found in the words, aseir te’aseir, you shall surely tithe.[5] The words aseir te’aseir can be hyper-literally translated into “tithe (aseir) tuv, ayin, sin, reish (i.e., the letters of te’aseir).” What do we get when we take a tithe of ten percent from the letters that comprise the word te’aseir?
As shown in the chart below, the numerical value of tuv is 400. One-tenth of that is 40, which is equivalent to the gematria of the letter mem. The next letter is ayin, which equals 70. One-tenth of 70 is 7, which is the gematria of zayin. Following that is shin which equals 300, and one-tenth of 300 is 30, the gematria of lamed. Lastly, reish is 200, and 1/10 of 200 is 20, the same as the gematria of chof.
| Numerical Value (x) | tuv = 400 | ayin = 70 | shin = 300 | reish = 200 |
| One-tenth of the amount (x/10) | 40 | 7 | 30 | 20 |
| Letter whose gematria equals x/10 | mem | zayin | lamed | chof |
The upshot of all this is that taking a ten percent tithe of the letters that comprise the word te’aseir results in the word mazalcha (spelled mem, zayin, lamed, chof), “your mazel!” This hints to the fact that the amount of money you give adds up to what you will receive in return.[6]
Looking at the word nassan (spelled nun, tuv, nun), give, we notice that it is a palindrome, meaning it is spelled the same forwards and backwards. This alludes to the notion that what a person gives to charity, he will receive in return.[7]
Another hint to this is found in the word mamon, money, as the hidden letters are the same as the revealed letters. That is to say: mem spelled out is mem-mem, vav is vav-vav, and nun is nun-nun.
The words aseir (spelled ayin, sin, reish), tithe, and osher (spelled ayin, shin reish), wealth, are essentially spelled the same, but there is a slight difference between them. In the word osher, the letter shin has a dot on the right side, whereas in the word aseir, the letter sin has a dot on the left. With this in mind, we can understand the pasuk, im hasmeol v’amina v’im hayamin v’asmeila,[8] which literally means “if you choose the left, then I will go to the right, and if you choose the right, then I will go to the left.” For the purposes of our discussion, this can be expounded to mean that if you go left (i.e., you place the dot on the left so that it becomes the letter sin and creates the word aseir) and tithe, then Hashem says, “I will go right” (i.e., place the dot on the right so that it becomes the letter shin and creates the word osher) and [grant] wealth. On the other hand, if you go right, osher, and do not give proper maaser, then Hashem says, “I will go left,” aseir, your livelihood may be the amount of maaser you once gave.[9]
[1] See Sefer Hachinuch, 480. In this way, we can explain yesh mefazer v’nosaf od (Mishlei 11:24), there is a person who gives money and gets more. Money spent on doing Hashem’s will can bring a person additional wealth.
[2] See Taanis 9a, Tosafos. Hashem may test us with a little to see what we would do with a lot.
[3] The Baal Shem Tov would remark about the words Hashem tzilcha (Tehillim 121:5), Hashem is your shadow, that just as a shadow does what a person is doing, so too Hashem acts in accordance with the way we act. This is just as chazal (Shabbos 151b) say that one who is compassionate to Hashem’s creatures is shown compassion by Heaven (Kedushas Levi, Beshalach, s.v. v’hinei yadua).
[4] Bamidbar 5:10. See Rashi there. Simply this means, “A man’s holies shall be his.”
[5] Devarim 14:22.
[6] The gemara (Shabbos 104a) mentions an Alphabetical code known as a”t ba”sh, in which the first letter, alef, is exchanged for the last letter, tuv. The second letter, beis, is exchanged for the second to last letter, shin. This system follows that pattern. In this system, the word tzedakah results in the same letters being returned in coded form (tzedakah). This, again, alludes to the fact that the amount of money you give is what you will receive in return.
[7] See the Baal Haturim to Shemos 30:12. Also Shemos Rabba 36:3.
[8] Breishis 13:9. The simple meaning is that Avraham said to Lot, “If you go left, then I will go right and if you go right, then I will go left.”
[9] In this way, the Sifsei Tazdikim explains b’smola osher, at its left, wealth (Mishlei 3:16): If you put the dot on the left (to create the letter sin, and thus yield the word aseir), meaning you give maaser, then osher, wealth comes.
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