Rav Yosef Machlouf Chadad zt”l of Jerba, writes the following story, which he heard from shliach from Eretz Yisroel, in his Sefer Kerachem Av:
During the times of Shlomo Hamelech, there lived a man named Elkanah, who was extremely wealthy. He was a generous man whose home was open to all, and he gave a lot of tzedakah. Unfortunately, his mazal changed and he lost all his money, which caused him much sadness.
Shlomo Hamelech used to disguise himself in the clothes of the poor from time to time, wandering through the markets and streets, and listening to people’s conversations to understand their situation and learn about their needs. One hot day, the king went to the market as was his custom, and Elkanah came to him, inviting him to rest in the shade of his tent. He gave him cool water to drink, and urged him to have a meal, providing him with tender, roasted meat.
During the meal, Elkanah spoke freely about his own situation and, in honor of the guest, he slaughtered the last goat he owned. Shlomo was moved by his generosity and said to him, “I am a friend of King Shlomo. I will give you a letter to show the king, and he will restore you to your status and enrich you with the great wealth you deserve!”
Elkanah took the letter, went up to Yerushalaim, and approached the royal palace. The guards told him that the king was currently in the Bais Hamikdosh, so Elkanah went there and saw the king kneeling on his knees, his hands stretched out to Heaven, asking Hashem to bless the year and its produce, and to provide his subjects with life, prosperity, and peace. Elkanah heard this and thought to himself: If King Shlomo himself, with all his majesty, asks for goodness and blessings from the Almighty, who is the source of blessings, why should I turn to him and rely on his favors? Why not turn to the source of all blessings?
He also thought to himself: If the king grants me some money out of his goodness, he will not be able to guarantee my wealth isn’t lost like happened in the past. But if the Almighty blesses me with wealth, then I will also gain protection from loss and destruction, as is stated (Bamidbor 6:24): “Hashem will bless you and protect you.”
He immediately bent down and bowed to Hashem, and asked for His help.
Elkanah rose with his heart strengthened with faith and trust in Hashem, and returned to his city, deciding to devote himself to work and to rely on Hashem’s help. He took an ax and went to the forest to chop wood. He approached a tree and tried to cut it down, but the day was blazing hot and the tree was hard to chop. Soon he grew tired and began to cry bitterly to Hashem. Then, he swung the ax again, but it still didn’t work. He decided to try to uproot the tree with its roots. To his surprise, he succeeded, and saw that under the tree there was a pit filled with gold dinars.
He thanked Hashem for His gift, and began doing business with the money. Hashem placed a blessing upon his efforts, and he became twice as rich as he had been before.
Days passed, and Shlomo Hamelech remembered Elkanah and wondered why he had not come to deliver the letter. He asked his servants, and the doorkeeper told him, “There was a man here who wished to deliver a letter to the king, and I told him that the king had gone to the Bais Hamikdosh. He made his way there and did not return.”
The king was astonished and decided to investigate the matter. He changed his clothes and went to Elkanah’s city, where he found a splendid palace, filled with many guests. Elkanah was attending and serving them. He saw the king in his simple attire and invited him to join the feast. Shlomo said to him, “Do you not recognize me? I am the guest, in honor of whom you sacrificed the last goat! I gave you a letter for King Shlomo. Did all this wealth have come from that?”
Elkanah replied, “No, I went up to Yerushalaim and saw that King Shlomo himself prays for the help of the Creator. I said to myself: If so, is it not better to trust in Hashem rather than in nobles? And I too prayed to Hashem to help me!”
Shlomo told him, “I am Shlomo! You are fortunate for not trusting in a man and relying only on Hashem. This is as my father, Dovid Hamelech said (Tehillim 146:3): ‘Do not trust in donors, in a man who has no salvation.’ This means that even a donor, a rich man, can only receive salvation from Hashem. So why should one turn to him? Go straight to the source of all blessing!”
