Being humble does not mean being docile. It means to strive to do something but being aware that we need God’s help in accomplishing our goal.
Good morning. Now for a quick devar Torah.
This week’s parsha, Ki Tavo, begins with the commandment of Bikkurim, bringing the first fruits to the Temple. But the Torah doesn’t simply tell the farmer to bring his fruit. He must also make a declaration—and he has to say it out loud.
He recalls our national history: where our ancestors came from, how we went down to Egypt, how we became slaves, and how God took us out of Egypt and brought us to the Land of Israel.
Why is this declaration so important?
Because the farmer could easily look at his beautiful crop and say, “I did this. I planted. I worked the land. I watered it. I harvested it. This success belongs to me.”
And, of course, he did work hard. Judaism does not tell us to sit back and wait for God to do everything for us. We are expected to work, to strive, to build, and to accomplish.
But then the farmer takes those first fruits and stands before God and says, in effect: I worked hard, but I also know that I did not accomplish this alone.
That is Jewish humility.
Humility does not mean saying, “I am incapable of accomplishing anything.” Quite the opposite. We are supposed to accomplish things. We are supposed to use our talents and abilities. But we must recognize that those talents, the opportunities we receive, and ultimately our success are blessings from God.
The Torah then speaks about the tithes that support the Levite, the stranger, the orphan, and the widow. Our success creates responsibilities. We are not isolated individuals. We are members of a society, and when God blesses us with success, part of that blessing must be used to help others.
That brings us back to the purpose of the Exodus.
God did not take the Jewish people out of Egypt simply because He had nothing better to do that day. And He did not free us merely so that we could stop being slaves. He freed us for a purpose: to become a holy nation governed by His laws and capable of serving as an example to the world.
There is a fellow at my synagogue who was one of the founders of the Student Struggle for Soviet Jewry, the movement of young American Jews who fought for the freedom of Soviet Jews. They organized demonstrations and worked tirelessly so that Jews trapped under Soviet Communism could have the freedom to leave and the freedom to live as Jews.
If you speak to him about what he accomplished, however, he is remarkably humble. His humility does not mean that he did nothing. He did a great deal. His humility is recognizing that he was given the opportunity to do something important, that he was fighting for something right, and that with God’s help his efforts succeeded.
There is a famous story about Abraham Lincoln during the Civil War. When Lincoln was asked whether God was on the Union’s side, his response was essentially that his greater concern was whether the Union was on God’s side.
That is the humility the Torah is teaching us.
Our job is not merely to ask God to support whatever we have decided to do. Our job is to ask ourselves whether what we are doing is right, whether it fulfills the responsibilities God has given us, and whether we are using our abilities for a greater purpose.
Work hard. Accomplish things. Be proud of doing good.
But never forget where the blessings come from—and never forget why we were given them.
Something to think about.
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