איוב, פרק כ׳, פסוק כ״א

Job 20:21Sefaria

אֵין־שָׂרִ֥יד לְאׇכְל֑וֹ עַל־כֵּ֝֗ן לֹא־יָחִ֥יל טוּבֽוֹ׃

A life consumed by greed, selfishness, and a refusal to share ultimately engineers its own destruction. The moral choices a person makes regarding their wealth and the people around them directly dictate the stability of their success and their future.

The primary approach among commentators is that a wicked individual, driven by a boundless appetite, consumes everything he has immediately and leaves absolutely nothing behind [מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. He does not even save provisions for the next day, operating under the arrogant assumption that he can simply continue to extort and steal to meet his future needs [מצודת דוד]. This behavior extends beyond mere appetite into deep stinginess. He leaves no leftovers to distribute to the poor, acting with the cruelty associated with the people of Sodom [רש״י].

Others view this lack of a remnant not as a description of his greed, but as the ultimate punishment of total loss. In this view, his wealth will be so thoroughly wiped out that absolutely nothing will remain for anyone to inherit after him [רמב״ן, תקות אנוש].

Another perspective frames this absence of leftovers in social and human terms. The selfish individual refuses to welcome guests into his home or invite Torah scholars to his table to offer them support [רש״י, חומת אנך]. Similarly, he neglects to provide steady nourishment for the orphan, who is essentially the fragile remnant left behind by a deceased father [אלשיך].

As a direct result of this behavior, severe consequences follow, unfolding in three complementary ways: a loss of success, a loss of hope, and a loss of strength. First, any wealth or prosperity the corrupt person possesses will simply fail to succeed or endure in his hands [רש״י, רלב״ג, מצודת דוד, מצודת ציון, מלבי״ם בביאור המילות]. Second, as poverty and ruin inevitably overtake him, he will be left completely without hope of ever experiencing good fortune again [אבן עזרא, רמב״ן, תקות אנוש, מלבי״ם בביאור המילות]. In the specific case of his refusal to support Torah scholars, his failure to provide for them financially during their studies means he cannot hope to share in the spiritual reward of their learning [חומת אנך]. Finally, in a striking twist of irony, the very food he hoards will fail to provide him with physical strength. Because of his intense greed and narrow selfishness, he will perpetually remain weak and unfulfilled [מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

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