Rebbe Shlomo Bobover zy'a talked about his grandfather, the first Reb Shlomo of Bobov. He was the Rav in Vishnitza and founded the first yeshiva in Galicia. He invested a lot of effort to ensure the success of the yeshiva, and for the growth of the bachurim in Torah and yiras Shamayim. He also carried the heavy burden of funding the yeshiva, which forced him sometimes to borrow money. All the silver utensils of his home and his Rebbetzin's jewelry were used as collateral.
The debts were constantly increasing, and the Rebbe had no choice other than to travel to other cities to collect money for the yeshiva. He traveled for several weeks, and wherever he went, many people came to him with kvittelach and gave him money. In exchange, he bestowed them with many brachos and salvations.
His attempts were successful. During one of these trips, he collected 1,200 gold coins. This was enough to cover all the debts, with money left over for the Rebbe's home, and for the yeshiva.
The Bobover Rebbe was a grandson of the Divrei Chaim of Sanz zt'l. (The Bobover Rebbe's father was a son of the Divrei Chaim.) An unkind, wealthy person went to the Rebbe's uncles (who were children of the Divrei Chaim), and relayed negative reports about the Bobover Rebbe zt”l, totally false accusations, and the Rebbe suffered immensely from these libels. When the Rebbe was returning from his successful fundraising trip, this man came to speak to him. The gaba'im didn't recognize who it was and allowed him to speak with the Rebbe. Had they known who he was, they wouldn't have permitted him.
The man told the Rebbe that he wasn't wealthy anymore. He lost all his money and was in great need of funds.
The Bobover Rebbe gave him all the money he raised on this trip.
When the man left, the Rebbe called for his gabbai and told him to go to a certain person and to borrow from him twenty reinish so that they could continue their trip. He explained that he doesn’t have any money at all to pay for the rest of his trip. It was all given to tzedakah, to help that person.
When the gabbai heard this, he thought he would faint. They were so happy with the outcome of the trip, and now they were returning empty-handed, with nothing at all. And who got the money? An opponent of the Rebbe!
Reb Yisrael Yitzchak was a close chassid of the Rebbe. He was the one who organized the entire trip. The gabbai went and told him what happened. Reb Yisrael Yitzchak was very upset. He broke out in tears, "How could the Rebbe do that? How could he give all the money to a person who has so much chutzpah, and who caused him so much distress?!" He avoided talking to the rebbe until he calmed down because he feared he might say something that wasn't proper.
The Rebbe sensed that Reb Yisrael Yitzchak was upset, so he sent a shaliach to call for him. The Rebbe opened a Chumash to parashas Kedoshim and showed him the pasuk (19:18), ָלְרֵעֲך ָּוְאָה ַבְת ָעַמֶּך בְּנֵי אֶת תִט ֹּר וְלֹא תִק ֹּם לֹא 'ה אֲנִי כָּמוֹךָ, "You shall not take revenge and you shall not bear a grudge against the members of your people; you shall love your fellow man as yourself." The Bobover Rebbe said, "Tell me, isn't this pasuk speaking about me?" If I had given the money to ploni or ploni (he mentioned the names of two of his outstanding chasidim, Reb Kalmile Klasner and Reb Michile Kalivarer, who were tzaddikim and Torah giants), you wouldn't be upset because they are from the greatest people of our chaburah. So, your distress isn't about the loss of money. It's just that I gave the money to a person who caused us tzaar with his discrediting words. I want you to know that my yetzer hara told me the same thing. Why should I give so much money to this man? But I remembered the Chazal לכוף עדיף יצרו את, that there is a benefit in bending and going against one's yetzer hara. I also realized that giving him the money will arouse Hashem's immense compassion on us."
The holy sefer Tomer Devorah (ch.1) writes, "כמוך ל-א מי, means that Hakadosh Baruch Hu is a נעלב מלך, a King Who is shamed, yet He tolerates His disgrace... Hashem sees everything and nothing is concealed from Him... Even when a person sins against Hashem, Hashem bestows His kindness on him... Even as the person is committing an aveirah and angering Hakadosh Baruch... Hashem tolerates the disgrace, and He gives strength to the person’s limbs..." He helps the person even at the time of the aveirah, to give him life and strength. "Don't say that Hashem can't stop giving him good, chas v'shalom, because Hashem can ... say, 'You are sinning against Me, so do it with your own strength.' ... But even at these times, Hakadosh Baruch Hu doesn’t stop bestowing His kindness. He tolerates the shame, and still He bestows strength and goodness onto the person ... This is an attribute that a person must acquire and practice. It is the attribute of savlanus, tolerance. Even if he is נעלב, shamed, and even if someone sinned against him, nevertheless, he should continue performing kindness to this person."
Rebbe Shlomo Bobover zt'l learned this trait from Tomer Devorah. He said that all his madreigos were attained solely because he learned every day the holy words of the sefer Tomer Devorah. And that is how he became a Rebbe.
With this in mind, we understand how the Bobover Rebbe was able to do kindness even to a man who harmed him. As the Tomer Devorah teaches us, we must go in Hashem's ways, to do kindness even to those who go against us.
3. The Alter of Kelm zy'a said that Tomer Devorah is the Shulchan Aruch for middos tovos.
The Shlah Hakadoesh writes, "Whoever is accustomed to studying this sefer, and he reads it every week, or every month, he is guaranteed to be a ben Olam Haba. לו וטוב לו אשרי, he is fortunate, and good will be his portion."
