Rabbi Simon said in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi: Let the mitzva of [charity to] the poor not be insignificant in your eyes, as its failure engenders twenty-four curses, and its reward is twenty-four blessings. Its failure engenders twenty-four curses; it is written: “Appoint a wicked one over him…when he is judged, may he be found guilty…may his days be few…may his children be fatherless…may his children wander and beg…may creditors seize all that he has…may there be no one to offer him kindness…may his legacy be cut off…may the iniquity of his fathers be remembered by the Lord…may these be before the Lord continually…he loved curses…may he be clothed in curses” (Psalms 109:6–15, 17–18), and the entire content of the psalm.
Why to that extent? “For he did not remember to practice [kindness]” (Psalms 109:16). Its reward is twenty-four blessings: It is written: “Is it not slicing your bread for the hungry?” (Isaiah 58:7).28The subsequent verses detail the rewards engendered by supporting the poor; see: Isaiah 58:8–12. Rabbi Simon said: “Will you not slice [tifros]” is not written here, but rather, “slicing [paros]” – it is already sliced [parus], as on Rosh Hashanah it is decreed regarding a person, what he will earn and what he will lose.29Thus, one will not lose out by giving charity, because if one does not spend the money in that way it will be lost in some other way.