Chassidut on Tehillim 62 – Rabbi Israel of Ruzhin

Chassidut on Tehillim 62 – Rabbi Israel of Ruzhin

Tehillim 62:13 It is said in Tehillim: "Ki atah teshallēm le'ish kema'asehu" – (You repay a person according to his deeds). What does this mean? We often see that the opposite appears to be true. Let us consider a parable. A poor man came to a prince. He was given a drink to toast the prince's health, and, not knowing the value of the goblet, the poor man smashed it, as was customary in that place. The prince, understanding that the poor man's action stemmed from ignorance, demanded that he pay the price of an ordinary glass. So it is with the Almighty: a person, through his ignorance, commits transgressions that cause tremendous harm throughout all the worlds. But since the person did not intend to damage so much, and only wished to satisfy his petty desires, the Almighty, in His great mercy, punishes him like the poor man—not according to the consequences, but “according to his deeds.” (Rabbi Israel of Ruzhin)