Knowing When to Give Credit

By: Rabbi Shlomo Farhi

The Torah introduces us to Avraham Avinu, one of the greatest people who ever lived, yet it does not shy away from revealing his mistakes. According to the Ramban, Avraham's decision to ask Sarah to identify herself as his sister reflected a deficiency in emunah on his level. Chazal also teach that Hashem did not speak to Avraham while Lot was with him, and that Avraham was criticized for taking his students into battle.

Why would the Torah highlight the shortcomings of someone so extraordinary?

Because greatness does not mean never making a mistake. Greatness means constantly striving to overcome our weaknesses.

The Dubna Maggid tells a beautiful mashal about a sculptor who created a magnificent, lifelike horse. Yet nobody stopped to admire it. Frustrated, he approached a wise friend, who took a hammer and struck the sculpture, creating a large crack. Suddenly, everyone stopped in amazement. Until that moment, they had assumed it was an ordinary horse. Only when they saw the crack did they recognize the extraordinary craftsmanship.

The same is true of human beings. When we see the imperfections of great people, we begin to appreciate just how extraordinary their accomplishments really are. Their greatness was not effortless. Every victory represented a struggle, a choice, and an obstacle overcome.

Later in the parashah, Avraham defeats four powerful kings and rescues Lot along with the captives of Sedom. Following his victory, the king of Sedom offers Avraham the spoils of war. Avraham refuses:

"Im michut v'ad seroch na'al," meaning, "Not a thread, nor a shoelace."

Avraham explains that he will not allow the king of Sedom to claim, "I made Avraham rich."

But this raises an obvious question. Earlier, Avraham accepted tremendous wealth from Pharaoh. Why would he accept gifts from Pharaoh but refuse wealth he had legitimately earned through his own victory?

The answer lies in understanding the character of the people involved.

Pharaoh had his own moral failings, but generosity was not necessarily among them. Sedom, however, was defined by selfishness and possessiveness. As Pirkei Avot teaches, "Sheli sheli v'shelcha shelach," what is mine is mine, and what is yours is yours, is the characteristic of Sedom.

Avraham understood that the king of Sedom would never view the situation objectively. Despite Avraham having won the battle and rescued his people, the king would still believe that Avraham's wealth belonged to him.

Avraham therefore chose to walk away. He understood that doing what is right requires considering not only our own actions, but also the character of the person on the other side.

This reflects the Torah's instruction, "V'asita hayashar v'hatov," to do what is upright and good. Sometimes, being technically entitled to something is not enough. True righteousness requires going beyond the letter of the law, taking others into account, and recognizing when walking away is the wiser choice.

There is another beautiful lesson hidden in Avraham's words. Why does he say that he will not take even a thread or a shoelace? Why choose two seemingly insignificant objects?

Perhaps Avraham was saying that even if he found a discarded thread and used it to tie his shoe, the king of Sedom would claim credit for that too.

This is the ultimate expression of Sedom's selfishness. It is not simply refusing to share possessions. It is refusing to share credit.

We see this tendency in everyday life. Someone succeeds, and another person immediately says, "I gave him that opportunity," or "That was my idea." Perhaps they helped, but what about the other person's effort, determination, sacrifice, and hard work?

True generosity means recognizing the contributions of others without needing to claim their accomplishments as our own.

Imagine if we reversed our natural instincts. Instead of taking credit for everything and avoiding blame, what if we became quicker to accept responsibility and more eager to give credit away?

That is the opposite of Sedom. That is the path of Avraham Avinu.

The message of Lech Lecha is that greatness is not found in perfection, but in the constant struggle to become better. And true greatness is not measured by how much credit we can claim, but by how generously we recognize the greatness in others.

May Hashem bless us with the strength to acknowledge our imperfections, the wisdom to understand those around us, and the generosity to give others the credit they deserve.