Psalm 128 is one of the Songs of Ascents (Shirei HaMa'alot), in which King David portrays the figure of the God-fearing person and the happiness that accompanies him. The Radak explains that this psalm speaks to one who is in exile, promising him that if he walks and conducts himself in the ways of God, he will merit to see the good of Jerusalem, as we will see later in the psalm. Here, we will focus on the first two verses, which establish the foundations of human perfection.
שִׁיר הַמַּעֲלוֹת אַשְׁרֵי כׇּל־יְרֵא יְהֹוָה הַהֹלֵךְ בִּדְרָכָיו׃ - A Song of Ascents: Praiseworthy is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways.
Rashi notes: all these are words of rebuke and ethical instruction. And why does it say here, "Praiseworthy is everyone (kol) who fears the Lord," rather than simply "Praiseworthy is the one who fears the Lord"? Because elsewhere Scripture says, "Praiseworthy is the man (ashrei ha'ish)," or "Praiseworthy is a man (ashrei ish)" - and here the text comes to teach that it does not refer only to a man. "Praiseworthy is everyone" includes everyone.
The Radak explains that Scripture praises the ways of the God-fearing person. "One who fears the Lord" refers to someone who is careful with the negative commandments. "Who walks in His ways" represents an active, dynamic endeavor - the positive commandments. Following this, the verse continues by describing the course of his life.
The Malbim explains here the ways in which human effort is beneficial and effective, dividing the perfection of the God-fearing individual into three domains: personal perfection, perfection in one's home, and societal perfection. In the language of the classical commentators, "societal" (medinit) does not refer to international relations between countries, but rather to an individual's conduct within the community - how one conducts oneself with those around him and with the public. Personal perfection is expressed in the verse, "Praiseworthy is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways" - one who walks in the ways of Hashem achieves the essence of spiritual happiness. Meanwhile, "When you eat the labor of your hands" addresses physical happiness.
The work Tehilot Maharitz cites that for a person to attain genuine fear of Heaven, one must also possess refined character traits (middot tovot), being a person of lovingkindness just as the Holy One, blessed be He, conducts Himself toward His creations: "Just as He is gracious, so must you be gracious; just as He is merciful, so must you be merciful." This is the meaning of "Praiseworthy is everyone who fears the Lord, who walks in His ways" - how does one attain fear of Heaven? By walking in the ways of Hashem. A person must not think that fear of Heaven means being meticulous only in matters between man and God (bein adam laMakom); the path also passes through matters between man and his fellow (bein adam lachavero). As Chazal expounded on the verse, "After the Lord your God shall you walk, and to Him shall you cling" - this means walking in His ways: just as He is gracious, so must you be gracious; just as He is merciful, so must you be merciful, showing compassion to His creations.
In the sefer Imrot Tehorot, this is explained based on a well-known phenomenon: when a person travels on the road, he often feels that all restraints have somehow been loosened. At home, he is meticulous about minyanim, Torah classes, and kashrut - scrupulous about everything. But on the road? "Well, whatever happens is fine; I heard that rabbinate is okay; some relative of the mashgiach told me that if I am not mistaken, it is permissible to eat there." A person feels that on the road, restraints are cast off, as though the Holy One, Blessed be He, of the road is a different God from the Holy One, Blessed be He, of the home.
There was once a person flying on an airplane dressed in full traditional attire, appearing as a God-fearing Jew, yet he was seen sitting and watching a movie. People asked him, "A movie? What about your soul?" He replied, "It is not in heaven - in the sky, there is no Torah..." Regarding this, the verse declares: Praiseworthy is the one who fears Hashem at home, and also when he is on the road. "Praiseworthy is everyone who fears Hashem" - not only at home, but "who walks in His ways" - to remain attached to Hashem even while traveling, and to be just as careful there with all the matters one is careful about at home. That is the great virtue: one who maintains all stringencies even while traveling on the road.
In truth, this is not easy, for it is often much simpler to be stringent in one's own familiar surroundings. For example, there were great sages who were extremely careful regarding the prohibition of chadash, which was not simple at all in Europe - not to partake of the new grain before the sixteenth of Nisan. Despite this, some made sure to take their own wheat and flour with them on their journeys so as not to stumble into eating chadash. It is related of the author of the Sha'agat Aryeh that he underwent voluntary exile (galut), wandering from place to place, as during galut one is forbidden to lodge in the same place for two consecutive nights. Many great sages undertook galut - as is related of the Chida, the Vilna Gaon, Rabbi Zusha, and others - because exile has a powerful capacity for atonement. He would carry his own special grain and flour with him to cook porridge without any concern of chadash. Being stringent at home is easy; let us see you remain stringent on the road. That is the true virtue. Who is one who fears Hashem? One who walks on his ways and still maintains fear of Heaven there.
יְגִיעַ כַּפֶּיךָ כִּי תֹאכֵל אַשְׁרֶיךָ וְטוֹב לָךְ׃ - When you eat the labor of your hands, you are praiseworthy, and it is well with you.
Rashi explains: One who derives benefit from the labor of his hands inherits two worlds. Radak explains that the blessing is that he should live from his own work and not accept benefits from others, as long as he is able to exert himself in labor. If you live according to this conduct - "you are praiseworthy, and it is well with you" - the people of the world will praise you. For when a person is supported by others, he is perceived by people as one who does not sustain himself and depends on others for help.
A memorable incident illustrates this point. Right after a young man's wedding, when he became a full-time kollel student, there was a man in his synagogue who worked as a garbage truck driver. One day, he stopped the young man and asked, "Tell me, do you work?" It bothered him immensely that a yeshivah student had married and was now studying full-time. The young man reassured him: at that time, he happened to write a bit at night after finishing his daily studies. He told him, "Yes, I write." The driver exclaimed, "Ah, that's it, very good!" Calmed down, he stepped on the gas and drove away. That was all that mattered to him. Yet one might have asked him in return: "You are so troubled about whether others work - what about you? Do you study Torah?" This is precisely what the Radak means: if you conduct yourself this way, the people of the world will praise you.
In today's reality, the leaders of the generation explain that if a person wishes to combine work and Torah study, he can certainly live that way, but he will not develop into a great Torah scholar. In our generation, we do not find anyone who grew into a gadol b'Torah through a combination of secular work and Torah study. If only a person could invest his entire day in Torah and merit to grow and flourish in it! If one tries to combine them, his mind is occupied with his livelihood for part of the day - how could he succeed in both? There were rare exceptions: the Rashash, who was a famous wealthy banker as well as a preeminent Torah giant, and a few others like him - but these are rare individuals who can be counted on one's fingers. Reality proves that one who merits attaining Torah is only someone who devotes himself entirely to it. Although the Rambam emphasizes the virtue of not benefiting from others, the Mishnah Berurah and the Acharonim write that this does not apply to recent generations, whose capacities have diminished; a person cannot engage in both livelihood and Torah and still grow into a Torah giant. He can be a fine ba'al habayit - and indeed, that is recommended for a working person: to work half a day and study Torah half a day, which is ideal. But in order to become a Torah giant, one must certainly invest his entire being into it.
Our Sages expounded: "You are praiseworthy" in this world, "and it is well with you" in the World to Come. And in the Gemara: Mar Zutra expounded in the name of Rav Chisda: Whoever reads Scripture, studies Mishnah, inspects a tereifah for himself, and serves Torah scholars - regarding him the verse states, "When you eat the labor of your hands, you are praiseworthy, and it is well with you." "Inspects a tereifah for himself" means that a scholar is permitted to examine his own meat: a chicken is slaughtered, and he inspects it himself to determine whether it is kosher. We do not suspect that because he is ruling for himself, he will permit something that is not kosher and end up eating non-kosher meat. Rav Zevid said: He merits and inherits two worlds, this world and the World to Come - "you are praiseworthy" in this world, "and it is well with you" in the World to Come. What is the meaning of this? On this, the Maharsha offers a wonderful explanation.
One who is faced with a doubtful case of treifah and is a God-fearing person - meaning he is stringent, and since there is doubt he does not eat it - of him it can be said: "Praised are you" in the World to Come. You will receive great reward for having been stringent, even over a doubtful treifah, even over the slightest hint of prohibition. The same applies to one who is stringent not to eat from an animal regarding which a question was brought before a Torah scholar - there is such a concept, that if the matter already required a rabbinic ruling, even though the sage ruled it kosher, the mehadrin prefer not to eat it. A person who is stringent about this - praiseworthy is he, he is a God-fearing person, and he will receive reward in the World to Come.
Yet there is an even greater level, which is "when you eat the labor of your hands": a question arises, and he examines the fowl, checks it, sees that there is a doubt here, opens the books, delves into the matter, studies, debates the nuances, writes a responsa - and reaches the conclusion that it is permitted. He toils and exerts himself, and then "you eat." Regarding this it is said, "Praised are you and it is good for you": praised are you in this world - for you ate the fowl, and it is good for you in the World to Come - since you acted in accordance with Halachah and the law. Concerning the God-fearing person who is stringent, it is said that he will have "praised are you" in the World to Come alone; whereas one who toiled - "when you eat the labor of your hands" - will have both "praised are you" in this world, eating according to what he learned and concluded, and in the World to Come. And this is what Rav Zevid meant: he inherits two worlds, this world and the World to Come.
The Maharil Diskin related that when he was young, his father, the righteous Rabbi Binyamin, whenever any doubt arose regarding a fowl or meat - even when he ruled that it was permitted, he himself would no longer eat from it. He would give it to his family, while he refrained. The Maharil said: My conscience always bothered me - if Father does not eat it, why does he give it to us? What you will not eat yourself, you feed to your children?
When he grew older, he served an apprenticeship (shimush) under his father. People would come with all kinds of halachic questions, and he would examine the question, formulate his own opinion, and then the questioner would enter into the inner sanctum to his father. When the person exited, he would ask him: "What did Father tell you?" In this way he tested himself, and would go in to ask: "Father, to me it seemed this way; why did Father rule differently?"
Once, people came to ask his father what to do with a Sefer Torah that had burned. A fire had broken out in the town, consuming part of the Aron Kodesh, leaving behind burned parchments of a Sefer Torah. He said: When I saw this, my heart truly ached, but I already knew what Father would answer them - there are halachot of genizah, an earthenware vessel, and so forth, exactly how to handle it. But when the man entered Father's room, and Father merely caught sight of it - he fainted on the spot. Then I understood the difference between Father and me, and what true fear of Heaven is. You wish to be meticulous about the stringencies you would expect your father to keep? Then attain your father's spiritual level! Your father sees a burned Sefer Torah, and the Torah is so precious to him that he faints - and fainting is no act, it is a physiological reality. Did you faint? Nothing happened to you. Thus he described himself: vinegar, son of wine. If so, do not wonder that he feeds you things that on his own level he himself would not eat.
The Malbim explains: "When you eat the labor of your hands" - if the toil of your hands is only to the extent of "when you eat," meaning that you do not toil to become rich and do not strive to amass wealth, but only enough for bread to eat and clothing to wear - then "praised are you and it is good for you." You will possess serenity of the soul together with the goodness of life in this world. For whoever believes that by toiling to become rich he will fare well in this world is mistaken. The endless rat race brings a person neither enjoyment, nor calm, nor peace of mind; he is trapped in an unending pursuit. In contrast, one who has his basic necessities - he is the truly happy person.
They tell a story about a president of the United States - some say Nixon, some say another, and presumably that is how the story goes, or as Rav Hillel Zaks used to say, as stories go, it is a fine tale. This man saw a fisherman sitting comfortably in a lounge chair by the seashore, on the pier, fishing. Once every half hour a fish bites; he calmly unhooks it and casts his line again. He said to him: "Excuse me, sir, you are not being productive. Work harder! Why are you fishing with a single rod? Cast a net." - "And then what?" - "Then you will catch many fish at once, and you can invest and buy a boat." - "And then?" - "With a boat, you can drop a motorized net that sweeps up tons of fish at once." - "And then?" - "You buy a yacht - do you know how many fish you can catch with a yacht?" - "And then?" - "You will have a whole fleet of yachts." - "And then?" - "Then you just hire workers and you do not have to work at all." - "And what will I do?" - "You can sit on the seashore with a fishing rod and relax!" Said the fisherman: "That is what I am doing right now! Look at the roundabout path you sent me on, just to arrive at what I am doing today."
This is what the verse is saying: Know that a person who seeks to get rich and toils endlessly - has no peace. Does anyone doubt this? The simple person, who does not rush to become wealthy, has far more tranquility and sleeps peacefully at night. The wealthy person, on the other hand - talk as much as you will about prestige, millions, and billions - lives in perpetual fear and constant stress. How many sedatives does he take, how many psychiatrists and psychologists does he need? Because he is under insane pressure: this stock went up and that one went down, now he must sell, now an urgent meeting with so-and-so. Relax! If you do not rush to become rich - you will have a good life.
One of the participants in the class once related that a man who owned a large printing press came to see him, someone who worked from dawn until sheer exhaustion. He arrived in a rare Mercedes sports car, an ultra-luxurious vehicle that cost a fortune, clearly intending to make an impression. He was asked: 'What time do you get to work?' He replied: 'I am already there by six-thirty in the morning.' 'And when do you finish?' 'Whenever the orders are completed - sometimes at eight, sometimes I leave at ten at night.' He said to him: 'Tell me, when do people even get a chance to see your Mercedes? After all, you bought it for show, so people would notice. From six-thirty in the morning it sits parked in a garage, and you only leave at ten at night - who actually sees it? You bought it for display, but who is watching?' Consider how deeply a person can live in illusions. He has a Mercedes, he has luxury - but what did that truly give him? Where is his life? Is his life peaceful? Is it genuinely good? 'When you eat the labor of your hands' - how much should you labor? Only enough to eat, for basic sustenance. 'You are praiseworthy and it is well with you' - then things will truly be good for you in this world as well. Do not imagine that toiling endlessly to become wealthy will bring you the true goodness of this world.
Another explanation is cited in the book Shirat Yonah: Notice that it says "the labor of your hands" - not the labor of your head or the labor of your mind. Rav Assouline, may Hashem grant him a complete recovery, writes in Ma'ayan Gannim that throughout the generations, the Sages of Israel never chose occupations that exhausted the mind. After all, the Sages possessed extraordinary intellect and were geniuses in every field; they could have engaged in professions that demand heavy mental exertion - accounting, advising royalty, and all manner of prestigious posts in which they could have attained prominent rank. Yet despite this, what did they choose? One was a shoemaker, another a blacksmith, another a woodcutter - Hillel the Elder, the greatest of his generation and the Nasi of Israel, engaged in that very labor. They deliberately chose occupations that engage the body rather than the head: externally, he gathers wood or works the forge, but his mind remains immersed in the debates of Abaye and Rava, in the highest realms of thought.
This aligns with what the Nefesh HaChaim explains regarding "Torah with derech eretz" - "conduct with them the way of the world": alongside words of Torah, maintain a worldly occupation. That is, while working, meditate on Torah; while working, remain immersed in Torah. However, if one is placed in a role such as an accountant, where the mind is drained by figures, he cannot remain immersed in the discussions of Abaye and Rava. It is similarly related of Rabbi Yisrael Salanter that in his youth, he aspired to be a hidden righteous man: he memorized the entire Shas by heart and learned the craft of carpentry. That was his plan - his hands would drive nails, while his mind remained focused on high, completely above mundane matters.
Today concentration is difficult for us, yet the Holy One, blessed be He, provides even for an orphaned generation such as ours: He provided us with portable audio players. Take a player, slip it into your pocket, and listen to words of Torah. When walking twenty minutes home, instead of letting that time go to waste, one can listen to Torah all the way. A person drives to work and sometimes sits in traffic for two hours - burning two hours every day, and not merely burning them, but in a furnace of idle chatter, heresy, mockery, and nonsense. Isn't it worthwhile to put on an audio player and listen to a Torah class during that time? And if someone says he does not have a dedicated player, today everyone carries the greatest library of Torah classes on their phone. Put an earphone in your ear and listen to a shiur: thousands of rabbis covering every area - Halachah, Aggadah, Mishnah, Mussar, Talmud, in-depth analysis, whatever one desires - and in every language: Amharic, Persian, Ladino, Yiddish. Today, no one can claim, 'I lacked the opportunity to learn Torah'; it is readily accessible in every style and flavor.
This is what the verse tells us: "The labor of your hands" - when toiling at manual work, stocking shelves in a grocery store, why waste the time? Put on an earphone. There was a courier who traveled from place to place and related that he completed the entire Tanach during his deliveries - traveling from stop to stop, finishing book after book. One person drives aimlessly and squanders his hours, while another puts on an earphone and listens along the way. If someone finds advanced study too demanding, he can listen to Aggadah, accessible Mussar, or Halachah; there is certainly no lack of material. Concerning this, the verse says: exert your hands while leaving your mind free, and then "you are praiseworthy and it is well with you" - praiseworthy in having a livelihood here in this world, and it is well with you in the World to Come, having become a mobile Beit Midrash throughout the day.
The opening verses of the psalm establish two foundational pillars. "Praiseworthy is everyone who fears Hashem, who walks in His ways" represents personal spiritual perfection: harboring fear of Hashem concerning every person and not just specific individuals, vigilance with negative commandments alongside active fulfillment of positive commandments, refined character traits and emulating the ways of Hashem in interpersonal conduct, and maintaining fear of Heaven on the road just as at home. "When you eat the labor of your hands, you are praiseworthy and it is well with you" represents physical and practical perfection: earning sustenance through the labor of one's own hands rather than depending on others, toiling only to the extent necessary rather than pursuing wealth that brings no peace of mind, engaging in work that occupies the hands while leaving the mind free for Torah, and toiling in Torah itself until reaching clear Halachic guidance. Whoever conducts himself in this manner merits both worlds: praiseworthy in this world, and it is well with him in the World to Come.