Doing Mitzvot for the Reward

The gemara (4a) quotes a braita that if a person gives tzedakah and says that he is
doing it so that his sons should live he is considered a complete tzadik. We do not
criticize him whatsoever even though he is doing the mitzvah for the reward. In fact, we
call him a tzadik. Tosafot asks how this fits with the famous mishnah in Pirkei Avot (1:3)
which says that a person should not serve Hashem like a servant who does it for the
reward, but rather should serve Hashem without the reward in mind.

Tosafot answers that only non-Jews should not have reward in mind when they
serve Hashem, but Jews can also have the reward in mind when they do mitzvot. This
answer seems difficult for two reasons. First of all, our own gemara also says that only
Jews can have reward in mind when doing mitzvoth. But our gemara says this for a
different reason, and otherwise doesn’t seem to need to limit the statement. However,
according to Tosafot, even before our gemara began its discussion, you must make this
distinction because of the mishnah in Pirkei Avot. Secondly, according to Tosafot, the
mishnah in Pirkei Avot which says you shouldn’t serve Hashem for the reward is only
talking about non-Jews. However, it seems strange that there is a mishnah in Pirkei Avot
which is only talking to non-Jews.

Rav Eliezer Landau (found in the back of the gemara) offers a different solution
to Tosafot’s problem. The gemara (Ta’anit 9a) says that in general a person cannot test
Hashem by saying that he will only do mitzvoth if he is rewarded, but there is one
exception. It says that when a person gives ma’aser he can assume that Hasem will
reward him. The gemara bases on the pasuk in Malachi (3:10) where Hashem says “Bring
al the tithes into the storage house, and let it be sustenance in my Temple. Test Me, if you
will… if I do not open up for you the windows of the heavens and pour out upon you
blessins without end.” Here, Hashem promises us that if we give ma’aser than He will
bless us. It’s so guaall ranteed that we can even, so to speak, test Hashem to fulfill this
promise.

In the Shulchan Aruch, the Rema quotes two opinions regarding this gemara. One
says that Hashem’s promise for blessings only applies to ma’aser given from produce, but
another opinion says it applies to all forms of tzedakah. Rav Landau points out that
according to this second opinion we can easily answer Tosafot’s question. Our gemara
which says a person can give tzedaka for the reward is not a general rule, but applies only
to tzedakah. Only with tzedaka, do we have a guarantee from Hashem to see the reward.
Likewise only with tzedakah are we allowed to “test” Hashem by expecting blessings in
return. The mishnah in Pirkei Avot which says a person should not serve Hashem for the
reward refers to all other mitzvot where we have no guarantee from Hashem. There is no
contradiction whatsoever, because tzedakah is different than all other mitzvot.