"God redeems the souls of his servants." Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachmani said (Proverbs 25:21), "If your enemy is hungry, feed him bread." What does the verse mean by this? If a person walks with his friend for an hour, he becomes his beloved, and the evil inclination is born with him and grows with him all his days, as it is said (Genesis 8:21), "for the inclination of man's heart is evil from his youth."
If you find a place to defeat it, a son of twenty, or fifty, or eighty, or a hundred, can defeat it. There is no greater enemy than this. Rabbi Shmuel bar Nachmani said, "If the evil inclination stands against you, make war with it by studying Torah," as it is said (Proverbs 25:21), "if your enemy is hungry, feed him bread." And if it is thirsty, give it water from the well of Torah, as it is said (Isaiah 55:1), "Ho, every one that thirsts, come ye to the waters."
Why (Proverbs 25:22), "for thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head." What is it? God will repay you. He will repay us with you.
And it says (Proverbs 16:7), "When a man's ways please the LORD, He makes even his enemies to be at peace with him." Let all my bones say, "LORD, who is like unto Thee, Who delivers the poor from him that is too strong for him?" Rabbi Acha said, "He who saves the good inclination from the evil inclination, the poor and needy are rescued." There is a greater robbery than this (Ezekiel 18:24), "But when the righteous turns away from his righteousness and commits iniquity."
Rabbi Yitzhak said in the name of Rabbi Menachem, "Every righteous person has a world in himself and a paradise in himself," as it is said (Psalms 36:9), "For with Thee is the fountain of life; in Thy light do we see light."