Proverbs 11:17 in the Hebrew original reveals an important principle: a person\u2019s attitude toward others determines the condition of the person himself.<\/b> \u201cGomel nafsho ish chesed veokher she\u2019ero akhzari\u201d \u2014 literally: \u201cA man of mercy does good to his own soul, but the cruel harms his own flesh.\u201d What a person gives to others, he first returns to himself.<\/i><\/p>\nKey words of the Hebrew text<\/h2>\n
\u201cGomel\u201d (\u05d2\u05b9\u05bc\u05de\u05b5\u05dc)<\/b> \u2014 a verb meaning \u201cto do good,\u201d \u201cto repay,\u201d \u201cto bestow.\u201d It implies active and conscious kindness, not merely the absence of evil.<\/p>\n
\u201cNafsho\u201d (\u05e0\u05b7\u05e4\u05b0\u05e9\u05c1\u05d5\u05b9)<\/b> \u2014 his soul, his own being. Not someone else\u2014but he himself. A merciful person first enriches his own inner world<\/b>, his character and his spiritual condition.<\/p>\n
\u201cAkhzari\u201d (\u05d0\u05b7\u05db\u05b0\u05d6\u05b8\u05e8\u05b4\u05d9)<\/b> \u2014 cruel, ruthless. The same psychology of hatred and indifference that harms others, first destroys the person himself<\/i>.<\/p>\n \"Blessed are the merciful, for they shall obtain mercy.\" Matt 5:7<\/a><\/cite><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Jesus confirmed this principle: mercy returns to the one who shows it. Not as a mechanical reward, but as a natural law of spiritual life<\/b>. Whoever opens the heart to others opens it to God and to His grace.<\/p>\nThe principle confirmed by Jesus<\/h2>\n
\u201cHarms his own flesh\u201d \u2014 the other side<\/h2>\n