We are talking about humility and arrogance as it connects to Bitachon. The prophet Yirmiyah says in 9,22 (we read this on Tisha B’Av), כֹּ֣ה ׀ אָמַ֣ר ה׳ אַל־יִתְהַלֵּ֤ל חָכָם֙ בְּחׇכְמָת֔וֹ וְאַל־יִתְהַלֵּ֥ל הַגִּבּ֖וֹר בִּגְבֽוּרָת֑וֹ אַל־יִתְהַלֵּ֥ל עָשִׁ֖יר בְּעׇשְׁרֽוֹ “ So said God. The wise man should not be proud of his wisdom. The strong man should not be proud of his strength. And the wealthy man should not pride himself on his wealth. כִּ֣י אִם־בְּזֹ֞את יִתְהַלֵּ֣ל הַמִּתְהַלֵּ֗ל הַשְׂכֵּל֮ וְיָדֹ֣עַ אוֹתִי֒ כִּ֚י אֲנִ֣י יְהֹוָ֔ה עֹ֥שֶׂה חֶ֛סֶד מִשְׁפָּ֥ט וּצְדָקָ֖ה בָּאָ֑רֶץ כִּֽי־בְאֵ֥לֶּה חָפַ֖צְתִּי נְאֻם־יְהֹוָֽה What should the one who's praising himself praise himself about? Having knowledge of Me.” That's what you should be proud of. Be proud of your knowledge of God. The pasuk is telling us not to take credit for any of our deeds. When the Rishonim talk about arrogance, they cite this pasuk. Devarim 17,20, says that a king is not allowed to get arrogant, and the Ramban uses that as the source for the sin of arrogance for all people. The king is just an example, he says. If a king, can’t be arrogant, than it’s surely so for everybody else. The king is used as an example because he has reason to be arrogant. Only God is deserving of honor and greatness, and he quotes the above pasuk. Similarly, Rabbenu Yona, in Shaare Teshuva, (third shaar, letter 34), cites the same pasuk about the king, and brings this pasuk down. He asks, What should you be proud of ? Quoting this pasuk, he says, Be proud of serving Hashem. Be proud of fear of Hashem. Be proud of Bitachon, relying on Hashem. Be proud of your love of Hashem and you're connection to Him. These are the things be proud of. Why? Because that's what we do. The Bet Halevi once asked somebody, “ What are you doing?” The man thought he meant business, so he said he owned a sugar factory. But the Bet Halevi said, “ I asked what you are doing.” Again, the man said, “I have a sugar factory.” Once again, the Bet Halevi reiterated his question, “ What are you doing?” The man thought the Bet HaLevi lost his mind. Finally, the Bet Halevi clarified, “ I didn't ask what God's doing with you. Your sugar factory is what's God doing with you? What are you doing means What is your Avodat Hashem? What are you working on in your service of God? Because that's what we truly do.” This is a Bitachon principle. We don't take credit for our strength, our wisdom, or our wealth, because all these things come from God. Rav David Soloveichik points out something very interesting in chapter nine of Yirmiyah. He was the prophet of doom. He's the one that wrote Echa, and he prophesied, warning the Jewish people about the impending doom. And he writes (9,20) כִּי־עָ֤לָֽה מָ֙וֶת֙ בְּחַלּוֹנֵ֔ינוּ בָּ֖א בְּאַרְמְנוֹתֵ֑ינוּ לְהַכְרִ֤ית עוֹלָל֙ מִח֔וּץ בַּֽחוּרִ֖ים מֵרְחֹבֽוֹת The death has come through our window has entered our palaces. It's killing people in the streets. And then he goes on to talk about the horrible things that are happening. And then it says, The wise man should not be proud of his wisdom . His question is, “ What do all these horrible pesukim have to do with the man not being proud of his wisdom ?” He explains that this is the source of all the problems- the problems came because they were proud of their wisdom, proud of their strength, proud of their wealth… When we start taking credit for what we do, and we don’t use what we have for the sake of Hashem, that's when we get into trouble. The Gaon of Vilna says about the pasuk כִּ֣י אִם־בְּזֹ֞את יִתְהַלֵּ֣ל הַמִּתְהַלֵּ֗ל that it doesn't mean you can't be proud of your wisdom, your strength or your wealth. When you use it properly and you realize it's a gift from Hashem, and it's Leshem Shamayim, then everything's fine. The problem is when you think you made it. When you think it's yours and you think it's for your own usage, that’s when everything goes off the rails. So we need the bitachon mindset of understanding where everything comes from, and what the purpose of the gifts of God are. That is what keeps us in check and protects us from sin. But when a person starts disconnecting and taking credit for what he does and starts taking pride in himself, it’s trouble. This is the litmus test of whether we have real bitachon. Are we proud of our accomplishments or are we proud of our efforts ? Efforts, you're allowed to be proud of. But your accomplishments? You didn't accomplish anything. You worked hard? Good. Be proud. You tried hard? Be proud. You finally got it? That's not about you. That's a gift of God. Have a wonderful day.