PARSHAT HA’AZINU -THE TEST OF WEALTH IN AN ERA OF ABUNDANCE

בס”ד

In the Torah reading of Ha’azinu, we find a sharp warning given through Moses: “The upright ones became fat and kicked” (Deuteronomy 32:15). This verse serves as a timeless warning that material success, when detached from Divine awareness, can mislead a person about their dependence on G-d. Today, we live in an era of unprecedented material and technological comfort across much of the globe. Does our modern prosperity draw us closer to the Creator—or subtly turn us away?

Sometimes a person earns tremendous abundance. It is a blessing — but it carries a critical caution. When a person becomes overly immersed in physical wealth and luxury, that abundance can lead to arrogance. There is nothing inherently wrong with wealth. It offers stability, a comfortable life, and the ability to do good and help others. However, alongside this blessing comes a deep responsibility: a person who prospers must never become arrogant. The test of wealth is often harder than the test of poverty. Poverty causes a person to cry out for mercy, whereas wealth can create a false sense of independence from G-d (Deuteronomy 8:11–18).

The Noahide path is not limited to avoiding negative actions. It also requires internal character refinement: uprooting bad character traits—especially pride—and strengthening good traits. Pride must be uprooted because of a basic truth: everything a person has—wisdom, strength, and possessions—is simply a gift entrusted to them by the Creator. Pride is the only trait where one must go to the extreme opposite (not the middle path). This helps us maintain a healthy perspective and stay humble.

How does a Noahide successfully pass the test of wealth? Wealth was not given merely for luxury, but to support acts of kindness, strengthen the family, establish just legal systems, and spread the light of G-d’s Oneness and the Seven Noahide Laws throughout the world. When material resources are used with a sense of Divine purpose, we elevate the physical world and bring G-d’s light into daily business and society.

Even if we encounter someone who has “gotten fat and kicked”—someone who has sunk into materialism and forgotten their Creator—we should never give up on them. Every human being possesses a soul and a spark of truth. Through gentle explanation, personal honesty and humility, the light of truth will eventually penetrate even the hardest barriers and finally bring good outcomes.

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Sources: Deuteronomy 32:15. Deuteronomy 8:11–18. Maimonides, Mishneh Torah, Laws of Character Traits 2:3. Tanya, Likutei Amarim, Chapter 34: How using money and physical resources for charity and G-dly purposes transforms the material world into a home for the Divine.

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