In the section before us, Kohelet turns to praise wisdom, but not wisdom standing entirely on its own. The two verses before us teach that wisdom requires an accompaniment: an inheritance, bequeathing it to others, the merit of the forefathers (zechut avot), or a livelihood. At the same time, they contrast wisdom with money, showing where the power of money ends and where the eternal advantage of wisdom begins.
טוֹבָה חׇכְמָה עִם נַחֲלָה וְיֹתֵר לְרֹאֵי הַשָּׁמֶשׁ׃ (יא) - "Wisdom is good with an inheritance, and an advantage to those who see the sun." (11)
The Pesikta Zutarta explains: this refers to a wise person who teaches Torah to the public and bequeaths his Torah to them. "Inheritance" (nachalah) here stems from the idea of bequeathing (lehanchil), as in "Moses commanded us the Torah, an inheritance (morashah)." Wisdom is good when it comes together with imparting it to the many. And "an advantage to those who see the sun" - that he clarifies the matter for them as bright as the midday sun. This is what was told to Moshe Rabbeinu: it is not enough to say to them, "So said the Lord," but rather he must arrange it before them like a set table, prepared for a feast.
From here stems a profound lesson for teachers of Torah. A scholar must not suffice with general principles, brief hints, or assuming that the listeners will understand on their own. He must explain matters with utmost clarity. When he teaches halachah, the listeners should emerge with a clear practical conclusion. There are those who deliver a halachah shiur and cite the opinion of the Rashba, the opinion of the Ritva, the ruling of the Tur, and the view of the Rambam, yet the listener leaves not knowing what to do in practice. If it is a group in a yeshivah or kollel, the goal is to analyze the sugya and understand the varying opinions (and even there it is proper to reach the halachic conclusion). But when coming to teach people who need to know how to act, it is far more important that they leave with the final conclusion than that they leave confused by a multiplicity of views. "Like a set table before them, prepared for a feast."
Rashi explains: "'Wisdom is good with an inheritance' - their wisdom stood by them together with the inheritance of their ancestral merit." That is, to grow wise in Torah requires two things: that a person possess wisdom, and that the merit of his forefathers assist him. As the Tanna in Avot says, "the merit of their forefathers aids them." A person should never say, "This is to my own credit." True, you may have accomplished something, but the merit of your ancestors stands by you. Great sages have remarked regarding people who achieved great deeds: it is not through their own strength, but through the merit of their forefathers. And if a person has repented, it is not merely through his own power: there is a grandmother in heaven praying for him, a righteous grandfather interceding on his behalf. A person needs to be a bit humble and not think, "It was my doing and my accomplishment."
Rashi continues: "'And an advantage to those who see the sun' - wisdom is an advantage to all living beings." "Those who see the sun" refers to all inhabitants of the world, as Kohelet repeatedly says, "under the sun." And why are they called this? Rashi cites Masekhet Nedarim: one who vows against benefiting from "those who see the sun" is forbidden to benefit even from the blind. Why is he forbidden, when a blind person cannot see the sun at all? Because "those who see the sun" actually means those whom the sun sees, not necessarily those who see the sun. Accordingly, "and an advantage to those who see the sun" denotes the advantage of wisdom to all humanity. Do not think it is the exclusive domain of a select few; rather, all people can attain wisdom, alongside an inheritance.
The Torah Temimah cites Midrash Rabbah: wisdom is good when it is accompanied by an inheritance, as we have learned, "Excellent is the study of Torah combined with derech eretz (worldly occupation)." In their times, one who engaged in Torah without engaging at all in worldly labor could not sustain his Torah. There were no kollelim and no institutional support. Had Hillel not gone out to work part of the day to earn half a tropaic for his household's sustenance, he would not have been able to enter the beit midrash. For this reason, Rabbi Yochanan was a shoemaker and Rabbi Yitzchak was a blacksmith.
We have already discussed this regarding Masechet Avot, noting that this does not apply to our generation. In our generation, if someone claims they will combine a worldly trade with Torah study and still become a Torah giant, we have yet to see such a thing. The chances are practically zero, and there are simply no examples of it. Look at all the Torah giants of the recent generation: Rav Ovadia Yosef, Rav Elyashiv, Rav Shteinman, Chacham Shalom Cohen, Rav Ben Zion Abba Shaul. Not one of them reached their stature while combining Torah with something else. Since hearts and capacities have diminished, one can only hope that by dedicating oneself entirely to Torah, one might achieve something in it. Two or three generations ago there were still such individuals: the Rashash, Rabbi Shmuel Strashun, was a banker and property owner while also being an immense talmid chacham. But in the recent generation, we know of no such examples.
In accordance with the reality of those days, the Midrash states: 'Wisdom is good when accompanied by an inheritance' - this refers to Torah that is accompanied by derech eretz (a worldly occupation), for without it, it ultimately ceases and leads to sin. One who lacks a livelihood might God forbid resort to robbery and indecent acts, resulting in both neglecting the Torah and being dragged into sin. Therefore, wisdom is good when accompanied by an inheritance, a field from which to earn a living.
Our Sages also expound: Good was the wisdom of Moshe, 'with an inheritance', for he bequeathed the Torah to Israel. Good was the wisdom of Betzalel, who possessed not only wisdom but also an inheritance, for he bequeathed the Ark to Israel. Good was the wisdom of Yehoshua, who likewise did not keep his wisdom to himself, but rather 'with an inheritance', for he apportioned the Land as an inheritance to Israel. Another interpretation: Good is wisdom when accompanied by the merit of the forefathers that stands by and illuminates a person; and this is 'to those who see the sun', for the merit of the forefathers illuminates one's path like the sunrise.
כִּי בְּצֵל הַחׇכְמָה בְּצֵל הַכָּסֶף וְיִתְרוֹן דַּעַת הַחׇכְמָה תְּחַיֶּה בְעָלֶיהָ׃ (יב) - For to be in the shelter of wisdom is to be in the shelter of money, and the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who possess it. (12)
This brings to mind the first chareidi radio station, Channel 2000, which blazed the trail some twenty-five years ago, back in the days of pirate broadcasting, when there were police raids and claims that the transmissions interfered with airplanes. They had to keep the broadcast running continuously, and those behind the microphone were not always Torah scholars. Once, an announcer read this verse without vowels and proclaimed: 'Wisdom will keep a person be'aliyah (on an ascent)' - meaning that wisdom ensures a person is always climbing higher in the service of Hashem! Apparently, the speaker himself had not attained that wisdom. That same announcer also introduced a track, reading from the CD: 'Now we will hear the song: Koma Heh (Fifth Floor)' - reading Kumah Hashem as an apartment floor! In any case, let us return to our subject.
The Midrash expounds: 'Wisdom gives life to those who possess it.' There were four wealthy men in Jerusalem, among them Ben Batiach, the nephew of Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai, who was the leader of the zealots (the sirikin, from the word sreiki, empty ruffians) in Jerusalem, and he ruled with an iron fist. The story is recounted in the Gemara in Gittin. He arose and burned the storehouses in Jerusalem, stores of food that could have sustained the city for many years. His intention was that as long as the storehouses remained, the people remained at ease and no one would go out to fight the enemy, whereas once they were burned, there would be no choice but to engage in battle.
People came and told Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai: 'Your sister's son is burning the storehouses.' He exclaimed: 'Vay!' (Woe!). Ben Batiach heard this, and being a man who showed favoritism to no one - not even his own uncle - he sent for him and had him brought before him. He demanded: 'Why did you say vay?' Rabban Yochanan replied: 'I did not say vay, but rather vah! - an expression of joy.' Ben Batiach asked: 'And why did you say vah?' - he was not one to be easily fooled. Rabban Yochanan answered: 'I said to myself: as long as the storehouses remain intact and they have food to eat under siege, they will not commit themselves to fight, but once the storehouses are burned, they will battle the enemy.' Between a 'vay' and a 'vah', Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai was spared, and he applied this verse to himself: 'And the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who possess it.'
There was no violation of the prohibition against lying here, since this was a matter of saving a life, and one is permitted to alter the truth for the sake of pikuach nefesh. Those ruffians did not hesitate to harm even the Sages, just as we see that they killed Rabbi Elazar HaModa'i, and therefore it was certainly permissible for him to alter his words to save his life.
Another interpretation: It happened that Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai was seized by a ravenous hunger (bulmus), so he went and sat on the eastern side of a fig tree and was cured - simply put, he ate from the figs. They asked him: 'From where did you know this secret?' He told them: 'From David, as it is said, "And they gave him a cake of pressed figs... and his spirit returned to him."' He applied to himself the verse: 'And the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to those who possess it.' Here too, through the wisdom he possessed and recognized from David's conduct, his life was preserved.
The Pesikta Zutreta states: Rabbi Chanina and Rabbi Yirmiyah in the name of Rav Chiyya bar Abba taught: in the place where the Holy One, blessed be He, will make a canopy of shade for masters of Torah, He will make one for masters of mitzvot, as it is said, "For in the shade of wisdom is the shade of money." This is the famous homily heard at every charity gathering: "Shade" refers to the canopy that the Holy One, blessed be He, will make for the wise, and that very same canopy will also be for the men of means, for those who fulfilled the mitzvah of tzedakah and supported the masters of Torah. And it continues: "'And the advantage of knowledge is that wisdom gives life to its possessor' - this refers to one who upholds the words of Torah and makes them known to the public." The advantage is that he does not keep the wisdom to himself, but teaches it to others, and this grants him length of days.
Rashi explains: Whoever is in the shade of wisdom is in the shade of money, for wisdom causes wealth to come. At first glance, this is astonishing, for is it not said, "Bread is not to the wise, nor wealth to the discerning"? Rather, the intention of that verse is not to assert that no wise person is wealthy, but that you should not be surprised when you see a great sage who has no bread.
A man once approached a Rebbe and said, "Rebbe, I have talents and abilities, yet everything I do falls flat, fails, collapses, and my financial situation is dire." The Rebbe told him, "King Solomon already said: 'Bread is not to the wise, nor wealth to the discerning.'" The man replied, "Rebbe, that is exactly what I am asking - why?" The Rebbe said to him, "The Holy One, blessed be He, says: Are you wise? Achieve it on your own. Are you discerning? Achieve it on your own. A wise and discerning person enters his business with self-confidence: 'Do you know how talented I am, how much I learned? People will snap me up anywhere!' And suddenly, here things do not work out, and there they fall apart. What is demanded of him? Self-nullification (hitbatlut). Let him say to the Master of the Universe: 'It is neither my wisdom nor my understanding; only You can help me.' When a person turns to the Holy One, blessed be He, the Holy One, blessed be He, helps him."
Thus, one cannot lay down rigid rules. There are poor sages and there are wealthy sages, and this is what the verse comes to teach: at times, in the shade of wisdom is the shade of money, and wisdom brings about wealth. In any case, wisdom is superior to money, for "wisdom gives life to its possessor," whereas money does not give life to its owner. In truth, today money can also give life to its possessor: if you do not have a substantial sum to pay for a medication not covered by the health basket, your life is in danger. A recent survey revealed that a large percentage of patients did not take their medications due to their exorbitant cost. There are medications costing tens of thousands of shekels a month, hundreds of thousands, and even millions, for which the pharmaceutical company charges astronomical sums during its first ten years of patent, and one who lacks the funds - Heaven forbid. May Hashem protect us so that we need neither doctors nor their medications.
In the Gemara in Pesachim 53b, Rabbi Yochanan said: Anyone who casts merchandise into the purse of a talmid chacham - that is, supports his livelihood - merits sitting in the Heavenly Yeshiva. What is the reason? "For in the shade of wisdom is the shade of money." We have already mentioned the incident involving Rabbi Chaim of Volozhin, when they had a major doubt regarding a complex halachah in the laws of sha'atnez. A simple tailor passed away there in Volozhin, and the next day he appeared to him and laid out all the facets of the doubt and the Talmudic topic. Rabbi Chaim was amazed and asked him, "Were you not a simple man? From where did you acquire all this?" He answered him, "It is true, I was simple and not a master of Torah, but all my days I supported a talmid chacham. When I arrived in Heaven, they gave me his entire Torah as well, and now I am in the shade of wisdom, in the exact same place where that scholar resides."
This is easily understood: if they bring a person in Gan Eden into a shiur and he does not understand what is being discussed, it would be Gehinnom for him, not Gan Eden! They must teach him everything the scholar knows so that he can truly delight in the radiance of the Shechinah and the holy Torah there. When Rabbi Chaim awoke in the morning, he remarked: "I knew that this is how it is in Heaven, for it is an explicit Gemara, but I did not know it happens so quickly. Today he passes away, and by the next day he already knows the entire Torah!"
Likewise, Rabbi Chiyya said in the Yerushalmi (Sotah): In the future, the Holy One, blessed be He, will make shade for the masters of mitzvot in the shade of the masters of Torah. What is the reason? "For in the shade of wisdom is the shade of money."
The Imrei Shefer connects the two verses. Even though wisdom is good only "with an inheritance" - meaning when one has sustenance ("flour"), for "if there is no flour, there is no Torah," and one has a means of earning a livelihood - nonetheless, do not equate them, for there is great advantage to "those who see the sun." He notes with precision: observe how wisely King Solomon defined the wise as "those who see the sun." There are two classes among the wise: one seeks what is good, and the other seeks what is beneficial. There is a person who directs his analysis and wisdom solely toward spiritual matters, toward what is good and precious in the eyes of Hashem, through Torah study, intellectual concepts, and cleaving to Hashem, blessed be He. And there is a wise person who chooses civic life and seeks what is beneficial: inventions, technologies, startups, and developments - whatever will benefit him here in this world.
Therefore, Scripture does not say "an advantage to wisdom," which would imply both types of wise individuals at once, but rather "to those who see the sun." The sun represents something limited - this world, which is subject to the constraints of time. The true advantage belongs to those who recognize that they exist under the limitations of time, and therefore invest all their time in spiritual pursuits. Such a person knows that he will take nothing from here and that nothing will accompany him. These are the people of the "good," not the people of the "useful"; they choose the ultimate good, which is eternal bliss, and do not gaze at the merely useful, which is fleeting, perishable, and transient.
The verse continues to explain: "For to be in the shelter of wisdom is to be in the shelter of money." Just as the wise man takes refuge in the shelter of his wisdom, so does the wealthy man take refuge in the shelter of his money. People honor the wise man for his wisdom, and people honor the wealthy man for his wealth and heed his words. Ostensibly, both have a protective shelter to take refuge in. However, there is "an advantage to knowledge" - a great advantage to genuine knowledge, which is wisdom, in that it "preserves the life of its possessor." Just like the breath of life within a person, which clings to him and continuously gives him life, so does wisdom continually give life to its owner. Wealth can leave a person; wisdom never leaves. Wealth may fail to benefit him at a certain stage, whereas wisdom is beneficial in every situation, both in this world and in the World to Come.
A story is told of a ship carrying merchants that set sail, with each one boasting of his cargo: "I brought such-and-such a container," and "I brought this kind." There was one man on board who appeared simple and impoverished. They asked him, "And what did you bring? What is your merchandise?" He told them, "I brought Container 48." They said to him, "There is no Container 48 here!" They began to laugh at him and mock him. Later during the voyage, the ship was caught in a fierce storm and wrecked. All the containers sank into the depths, and each passenger clung to a wooden plank. Another ship passed by, rescued the survivors, and brought them ashore, left with only the shirts on their backs. These were Jewish merchants, so they began looking for a town with fellow Jews, knowing that Jews show mercy to other Jews. They found a community that took them in, clothed them, and cared for all their needs from A to Z. While speaking with that simple-looking passenger, the locals realized he was a vessel brimming with Torah. They said to him, "Be our rabbi; we have no one to teach us Torah! We will give you a home, arrange your marriage, provide you with everything - just teach us." He gladly agreed, and they set him up in a palace. The other merchants looked at him, while each of their containers lay at the bottom of the sea. He said to them, "Do you now understand what Container 48 is? Mem-Chet in gematria equals 48 - moach, the brain! There is a container that travels with you always, and that is the Torah. If the Torah is within you, it accompanies you at all times. Wisdom preserves the life of its possessor."
Wealth, by contrast: first, you never know when the wheel of fortune will turn. Second, no one takes anything of what he acquired here up to the Next World. Even the great inventor may reap temporary profit; he may be regarded as a sought-after figure and a man of means courted by many, but how long do we live? Seventy years, eighty years. Everything will be left behind, and who will remember you?
Even more heartbreaking is that with almost most inventions, it turns out someone else preceded them without ever receiving the credit. This is said of the Wright brothers and the invention of the airplane, Edison and the lightbulb, and Graham Bell and the telephone. There was almost always someone before them who had already grasped the concept, only for someone else to come along, reshuffle the deck, and claim all the fame. Even if you invent something, you will not necessarily enjoy its fruits. Similarly, regarding the owner of a major social network, a Jewish entrepreneur rolling in billions rather than millions, it turned out that a group of students had conceived the original idea; he caught the wave and developed it, and ultimately had to pay them around ten million dollars. In contrast, one who studies Torah - even if no one here knows him or will remember him, on the contrary, if he studied in modesty such that only the Holy One, blessed be He, knows - his reward is far greater and eternal.