As we know, part of Teshuva is working on our bitachon, as we mentioned in the haftara of Shabbat Shuva, Hoshea chapter 14, where it says (14,4) אַשּׁ֣וּר לֹ֣א יוֹשִׁיעֵ֗נוּ עַל־סוּס֙ לֹ֣א נִרְכָּ֔ב וְלֹא־נֹ֥אמַר ע֛וֹד Assyria won't save us. We are not going to ride on horses, and we will no longer say, אֱלֹקינוּ לְמַעֲשֵׂ֣ה יָדֵ֑ינוּ ‘Elohenu/Our God, ׳ to our handiwork. Firstly, the simple explanation: Maaseh Yadenu/our handiwork means an idol (which was was made by hand). It can also mean our business, what we do with our our hands , So “ we won't say to that handi work- ‘Elohenu’” Meaning, we're not going to point at that idol and say, “You are my God.” So simply, we will no longer say the three words - “Elohenu” leMaaseh yadenu/to these handiworks. But there is a different way of reading the pasuk, which is not the simple way. V’Lo Nomar/we're not going to say Od Elohenu/ also our God leMaaseh yadenu /to our handwork. Which means we aren’t going to say that ‘ God will be helping me also,’ to our handiwork. What's wrong with saying ‘ God Also?’ ‘God Also’ means ‘ I'm basically doing it. I just need a little help.’ But of course, that is not the way it happens. What really happens is God's doing it totally. And if anything, I'm just covering it up with my actions; I'm not doing anything. To say God is helping is really not a proper description. And in fact, when I was working on the sefer Bet HaLevi , in the commentary section we quoted from a source that said It's not the best thing to say, “B’Ezrat Hashem”/with Hashem’s help because it sounds like Hashem is only helping . It’s better to say “ Im Yirtza Hashem/God willing, ” If God wills it. But the editor of the project, my esteemed father in law, Rabbi Nosson Scherman took that line out. He said, “ The Jewish people say ‘B’Ezrat Hashem,’ you can't now say it's the wrong thing to say. ” Not everything that you say, do you print. So it's not in the book, but nonetheless, we can explain what it means a bit more. And after I mentioned this, someone said, “ What do you mean? Every day in the Amida,we say “Melech Ozer U’Mashia U’Magen/ King, Helper, Deliverer and Shield.” So how can we say that God helps, if we're not supposed to say that? The Gaon of Vilna says that these three terms, Ozer, Mashia and Magen are three different levels of bitachon. Magen is the level where God shields you, referring to Magen Avraham . He jumped into the fiery furnace and God shielded him. He actively did something that was detrimental and God saved him, and there was no question in the world that God saved Avraham from Ur Kasdim . He was saved from the fiery furnace– that was not something that Avraham did. That's actually a lower level of bitachon because it's quite clear that God did it all. The next level's called Moshia , which refers to it Yitzhak Avinu, where it says in the second beracha Rav L’ Hoshea- Hoshea means You saved me Yitzhak Avinu didn’t put himself into trouble. At the Akeda , Avraham put the knife to Yitzhak’s neck, and God saved him. This is not as clear (as the fiery furnace) that it was Hashem, but it's fairly clear that God said, “ Stop Avraham.” So again, we know God was involved. The highest level is level of Ozer, where we say Ezri M’Im Hashem/ my help is from God , which is what Yaakov Avinu said when he was working in the house of Lavan. Yaakov was doing all the work. He was cutting up the the sticks for working with the sheep, and doing all kind of tactics and all different types of Hishtadlut / effort in order to outsmart Lavan. And God helped him. That's the highest level- to actually do it with your own hands, but realize you're not doing it. As was revealed to Yaakov in the dream, the angels were coming in the middle of the night and switching the sheep. It had nothing to do with his handiwork. He was just covering up the miracle. God was doing everything . Could putting spots on sticks actually make sheep give birth to spotted sheep? That doesn't happen in a science lab. That was just a way to cover it up. Hashem did everything and Yaakov realized that. That's the highest level- to say Ozer and really understand what it means and that's what it means. So don't say ‘ B’Ezrat Hashem,’ thinking Hashem’s going to help - understand what it really means. Hashem is doing it all. There is another famous explanation in the Midrash about four kings: David Hamelech said, “ I'm going to chase the enemy down and catch him.” Yehoshaphat said, “ I'm not going to catch them. I can't do that. I’ll just chase them.” The next king said, “ I don't need to chase them. I'm just going to sing songs of praise.” And the final king said, “ No, I'm just going to go to sleep.” Whose is the highest level? They say the highest level was David Hamelech, because he was able to chase the enemy, catch him and kill him and still realize it was God. The other kings knew that if they had put in that much effort, they would take the credit. So they did less and less and less. Of course, we're going the other way around. When we do our efforts, it's not because we're on a higher level, like David Hamelech. It's because, as it goes, we work and realize it's Bitachon, then we do less and less and less. But then we’re at the point where we can't even do less, because we don't think it's going happen with less, so we do more and more…. But still, we think we’re doing it. So don't think we're holding at David Hamelech’s level. We have to realize, at the time that when we're doing our efforts, that God's doing it. There are all kinds of levels of what B’Ezrat Hashem really means. Does B’Ezrat Hashem mean I'm doing it and God's helping a little bit ? Or does B’Ezrat Hashem mean God's doing everything and I'm only covering it up? B’Ezrat Hashem , we will reach that highest level of understanding what it means when we say B’Ezrat Hashem. And according to one way of reading the Haftara, this is an important part of our teshuva process, to realize Hashem is doing everything , and He’s not just helping us out. Have a wonderful day.