602. One Should Not Be Ashamed of the Mockers

Ezov [moss] comes from the word Azuv [forsaken], when one feels that he is forsaken of good deeds. “One should not be ashamed of the mockers” means that when a person wants to do something good, Torah, or prayer, or good deeds, charity, almsgiving, and there are thoughts or desires in his heart that mock him and tell him, “Why do you need to do those things? What will it give you that you want to exert?” It is written about it, “One should not be ashamed of the mockers.”