The Midrash (Tanchuma Bishalach 25) states, טוֹבָה כְּפוּי מֵעַם וְיִפָּרַע טוֹבָה כְּפוּי עֲמָלֵק יָבוֹא, "Let Amalek, who was kafuy tovah, punish the nation who was kafuy tovah."
Rashi (Shemos 17:8) explains that the Jewish nation asked, אָיִן אִם בְּק ִ רְ בֵּנוּ 'ה ׁה ֲיֵש, "Is in our midst or not?" This question expressed their kafuy tovah, their absence in recognizing Hashem's kindness and miracles. They had the manna in the desert, the well of Miriam, the clouds that protected them; how could they doubt whether Hashem was with them or not? Therefore (Shemos 17:9), עִם וַיִּלָּחֶם עֲמָלֵק וַיָּבֹא בִּרְפ ִידִם יִשְׂרָאֵל, "Amalek came and fought with Yisrael in Refidim." They were kafuy tovah, so they were punished by the nation of kafuy tovah.
Rashi writes, "I am always with you. I give you all your needs. And you ask, 'Is Hashem in our midst or not?' I swear that the dog will come and bite you. You will shout to Me, and you will know where I am."
The battle that Amalek waged is written about in parashas Bishalach, and once again at the end of last week's parashah (Devarim 25:17), as it states there עֲמָלֵק ָלְך עָשָׂה ֶׁראֲש אֵת זָכוֹר מִמ ִּצְר ָיִם בְּצ ֵאתְכֶם בַּדֶּרֶ ךְ, "You shall remember what Amalek did to you on the way, when you went out of Mitzrayim." This week's parashah begins with the mitzvah of bikkurim, which is the mitzvah of hakaras hatov, thanking Hashem for all His miracles and kindness, for giving us the land, and for enabling us to harvest the first fruits of the year.
As Rashi (26:3) writes, כְּפוּי שֶׁא ֵינְךָ .אֵלָיו ָּאָֽמַרְת טוֹבָה, the mitzvah of bikkurim is to announce that you aren't ungrateful, and that you recognize Hashem's kindness. This mitzvah rectifies the attitude of ungratefulness, which brought on Amalek. The sefer Ahavas Tzion (printed year 5399 ,ט"שצ) and other sefarim say that this is the reason the mitzvah of bikkurim follows the mitzvah to remember Amalek. The mitzvah of bikkurim reminds us to have hakaras hatov, and to recognize all the wonders and miracles and kindness that Hashem performs with us.
When one brings bikkurim, the Torah states (26:5) אָבִי אֹבֵד אֲרַמִּי אלקיך 'ה לִפ ְנֵי ָּוְאָמ ַרְת וְע ָנִיתָ, "You shall call out and say before Hashem, your G-d..." and the Torah tells the praises he should say before Hashem at this time. There are various translations for the word וְע ָנִיתָ. The Or HaChaim says that it connotes humility, since one should feel humble when he praises Hashem for His kindness. The Or HaChaim writes, "Perhaps וְע ָנִיתָ personifies someone who is on a low [social] standing who received a great favor from a king. He will מעני, make himself very humble before the king, and he will have a broken heart. This is how a person should be humble before Hashem." The Torah tells us וְע ָנִיתָ, praise Hashem with humility.
A Holocaust survivor who rebuilt his life after the war and had children and grandchildren gave a drasha at the pidyon haben of one of his grandchildren and said, "The custom at a pidyon haben is that the kohen says to the father, טְפֵי בָּע ֵית בְּמ ַאי, 'What do you want more?'"
He explained that we are telling the father, "What more can you possibly want? You have so much. Recognize the kindness Hashem has given you!"
When bringing bikkurim, one says (26:5) אָבִי אֹבֵד אֲרַמִּי. Chazal (see Rashi) explain that אֲרַמִּי refers to Lavan who lived in Aram (הארמי לבן). However, the Ibn Ezra and the Siforno say that אֲרַמִּי refers to Yaakov Avinu. The pasuk means אָבִי אֹבֵד אֲרַמִּי, "My father, Yaakov, when he lived in Aram, was אֹבֵד, poor. He was in a foreign land, without anything at all." וַיֵּרֶד מְעָט בִּמְתֵי שָׁם וַיָּגָר מ ִצְר ַיְמָה, "He went down to Mitzrayim and sojourned there with a small number of people..." The pasuk is elaborating on the poverty and low state of Klal Yisrael, at its origin, and we are praising Hakadosh Baruch Hu for elevating us from that lost place to where we are now.
The concept is that when Hashem gives kindness, one should remember the humble beginning, the poor state from where everything began.
Rabbeinu b'Chayei elaborates: "When a person is at a high status and he has peace, he is obligated to remember the days of the past when he was at a very low place." This will help him praise Hashem with a full heart for all the kindness he has now.
Reb Issar Zalman Melzer zy'a in an introduction to his sefer (Even Ha'Azel, Avodah, vol.2), discusses the chapter (Tehillim 30) שִׁיר מִזְמוֹר לְד ָוִד ה ַבַּיִת חֲנ ֻכַּת, which praises Hashem for the dedication of the Beis HaMikdash. This chapter also states (30:3) וַת ִּרְפָּאֵנִי אֵל ֶיךָ שִׁוַּעְתִּי אלקי 'ה, "Hashem, my G-d, I have cried out to You, and You have healed me." The miforshim ask why this sentence is written in this chapter? We are praising Hashem for the dedication of the Beis HaMikdash, why do we mention that Dovid was ill, and Hashem healed him?
Reb Issar Zalman explains: When a person is ill, r'l, it is the only thing that is on his mind. All his tefillos are that Hashem should heal him and that he should have a refuah sheleimah. When he becomes better, and he is cured from his illness, he soon forgets about it, and now davens for parnassah, because his parnassah is tight. Hashem answers those tefillos, and now he has parnassah, as well as health. He has wealth and a large house. When he makes a chanukas habayis, he praises Hashem for his wealth and that he merited to buy a beautiful home, but he forgets to praise Hashem for his health. He is only thinking about his wealth and his big house. This is the way of people. When they are saved from a problem, they totally forget about it. But the correct way to praise Hashem is to remember how Hashem saved him in the past, and not to forget to praise Hashem for those salvations. This is what Dovid HaMelech did. When he praised Hashem for the chanukas habayis, he remembered Hashem's miracles in the past, when Hashem healed him. The chapter (30) ends, אוֹדֶךָּ לְעוֹלָם אלקי 'ה, "Hashem, my G-d, I will always thank you." He was saying, "I will praise You לְעוֹלָם, forever, for all the kindness You gave me in the past and in the present."
Rashi writes that וְע ָנִיתָ means to praise Hashem in a loud voice. But why should he raise his voice when he praises Hashem? Chazal (Brachos 24b) say, "When one raises his voice in his tefillah, it is a sign that he has a low level of emunah." Rashi explains, "He is showing that he doesn't believe that Hakadosh Baruch Hu will answer his tefillah said in silence." So, why should he raise his voice now when he praises Hashem?
The Beis Yisrael zt'l explains that when he was going through hard times, he shouted out to Hashem. Similar to what it states in this week's parashah (26:7) אבותינו אלקי 'ה אֶל וַנִּצְעַק, "We shouted to Hashem, the G-d of our fathers..." We shouted when we had tzaros in Mitzrayim, and now that we are saved, we praise Hashem for saving us. Just as we shouted when we prayed, we should also shout when we praise Hashem for the salvation.
