My grandfather, the Kretchnifer Rebbe zy”a (quoted in Gilyon Kol Emunah) says that we see the great humility of Yaakov Avinu from this verse. My ancestor, Rav Mordchele of Nadovrna zy”a, said that one merits humility through the performance of good deeds. Yaakov thus said that he became small “from all the kindness”. Through acts of kindness, he merited humility. He therefore was worried that he may have used up his zechusim when he received this reward, and that he would have no more siyata d’shmaya.
The truth is, however, that the more humility one attains, the closer he gets to Hashem. And the closer one is to Hashem, the more siyata d’shmaya one has. A haughty person, on the other hand, is like a balloon. He is full of hot air, and when he is insulted even in a very small way, it is like he is pricked by a tiny needle that causes all the air to leak out of him.
