Why Don’t the Righteous Receive Their Full Reward in This World?

“In the beginning Hashem created the heavens and the earth” (Bereishit 1:1).

In his commentary on the Torah’s opening verse, the Ohr HaChaim HaKadosh reveals a fascinating allusion to two worlds: this world and the World to Come.

His explanation offers insight into how Hashem rewards a person for Torah study and mitzvot, and why even a righteous person may not receive the full reward for their good deeds during their lifetime.

Which Reward Comes First?

The Ohr HaChaim explains that Hashem first prepares a person’s spiritual reward in the World to Come, the eternal world and the soul’s primary destination.

Only after that reward has been prepared, if the person has accumulated additional merit through Torah and good deeds, may Hashem grant them goodness in this world as well.

“He further alludes to the fact that, since there are two worlds, the present world and the World to Come, and through engaging in Torah and good deeds a person attains goodness and life, the verse informs us that the righteous will not receive the reward for Torah and mitzvot in this world until He has prepared for them the treasury of goodness, which is the primary portion for the soul.

“Afterward, if there is more remaining, He does good for them in this world as well, for Hashem first chooses to prepare for a person the reward of the upper world, which is eternal.”

According to the Ohr HaChaim, the order itself is significant. Hashem first ensures that a person’s eternal spiritual reward is prepared before granting additional reward in the temporary physical world.

“The Heavens” and “The Earth”

The Ohr HaChaim sees this idea hinted at in the very first verse of the Torah.

“In the beginning Hashem created the heavens and the earth.”

“The heavens,” he explains, allude to the higher world, the world of souls. “The earth” represents the lower, physical world in which we currently live.

“This is what He hinted at when He said, ‘In the beginning Hashem created the heavens,’ which are the world of souls, and afterward, ‘and the earth,’ which is the lower world, if He has an abundance of goodness.”

The order of the verse therefore reflects the order of Divine reward: first “the heavens,” and only afterward “the earth.”

A person’s Torah study and good deeds first secure the reward prepared for the soul in the eternal world. If there is an abundance of merit beyond that, the person may also receive goodness in this world.

The Reward That Lasts Forever

The Ohr HaChaim concludes:

“You have learned from this that the righteous are not granted goodness in this world until after they merit their inheritance of light in the light of life.”

This teaching offers a different perspective on how we understand reward.

We naturally see the blessings and difficulties of this world and may wonder why good deeds do not always appear to produce immediate results. But according to the Ohr HaChaim, the greatest reward is not necessarily the reward we can see.

Hashem first prepares what is eternal.

The opening words of the Torah can therefore be read as more than an account of Creation. “The heavens and the earth” also hint at the two dimensions of a person’s existence and the order in which Hashem prepares goodness for the righteous.

Our Torah, mitzvot, and good deeds are building something far greater than what can be measured by the circumstances of this world. Their primary reward belongs to the eternal world of the soul.