Sefer HaMiddot, Money, Part II/ספר המדות·ממון·חלק שני

1When the year is one of economic prosperity, it augurs physical health.

2Whoever has an unquenchable desire to work the land will come to one of three things: either shedding innocent blood, or leprosy, or drunkenness.

3Fearing God and acting kindly to others saves one from being harmed by fire, and he merits earning a living.

4A decline in adherence to legal rulings based on the Torah causes a decrease in livelihood. The inverse is also true, [as an increase in adherence to Torah law brings an increase in income].

5Supportive proofs from the Torah for Rabbinical enactments bring abundant prosperity to the world. This is because there are a number of things for which we find no explicit verse in the Torah on which to base them, and the Sages labored to find some supportive reference [as proof for their enactment].

6The Holy One will at times boast to Satan about a righteous gentile. This is so that God can then provide the Jews with livelihood without any opposition.

7When a person yearns to be buried in the Land of Israel, he is blessed with abundant livelihood.

8A person should expend energy on [the preparations for] a meal to be held in honor of some mitzvah, even chopping firewood. While chopping, he should have in mind that he is breaking apart and separating the bad from the good in the Tree of Knowledge. By doing so, he merits earning a living.

9By returning to God in repentance, one earns his living easily.

10One who fulfills “Your neighbor’s money should be as precious to you as your own” (Avot 2:12) merits praying with an attentive heart.

11Living from the fruits of one’s own labor is so great, that one who does so recognizes God’s glory in a way that even the angels cannot.

12The changes that take place in the angels—sometimes they are sitting and at other times standing, sometimes they appear as women and at other times as men, as well as all the other changes—are mirrored by the changes that take place in the flow of blessing that descends from heaven. Sometimes the blessings appear as fire, at other times as water, or as stone, or as any of the other forms. All of these changes affect both the world and man. A person’s will also alternates according to these changes, so that at times he wants one thing and at other times he wants something else.

13One’s livelihood is in accordance with [the holiness of] one’s marital relations.

14The economic prosperity of a generation is in accordance with its elders.

15Charging usury causes one to lose his fear of God.

16One who charges usury for lending money will not find anyone willing to speak favorably of him.

17A person who is careful not to transgress the prohibition against coveting will be saved from anger and haughtiness, and from the lack of faith that results from these two evil traits.

18Conducting one’s business affairs faithfully nullifies curses.

19One who is obliged to borrow from others is comparable to an animal.

20When the agent of someone important cannot convince an ordinary person to sell some object to his client, he should pray that the ordinary person accept the offer and agree to the sale.

21When a person controls his evil inclination, his children do not follow evil ways. Because of this his money is plentiful, and consequently he will not come to be tested.

22Being on the road brings a person to slander, idolatry, immorality and bloodshed. And these sins diminish one’s livelihood.

23The charity a person gives to the poor of the Land of Israel causes him to prosper monetarily.

24Fires rage in the world in order to consume the wealth associated with idolatry.

25When a new king or minister takes over, people’s livelihood is renewed and changes.

26When a person’s livelihood comes from the business he does with gentiles during their holiday season, or even at other times of the year but involves his doing something that strengthens the worship of idolatry, his wife’s menstrual flow will begin soon after her ritual immersion.

27A person who causes a rift between husband and wife—talking to the husband about how beautiful his wife is, and telling the wife degrading things about her husband—will, because of his actions, find it difficult to earn a living.

28A person is sometimes spared having to rend his garment in mourning because his merchandise and property are spread out and not located in one area.

29The most successful businessman of a town is the light of the town.