כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י - can one take credit for doing a good job?

We read in our parsha (8:11-18):

הִשָּׁ֣מֶר לְךָ֔ פֶּן־תִּשְׁכַּ֖ח אֶת ה׳ אֱלֹקיךָ לְבִלְתִּ֨י שְׁמֹ֤ר מִצְו‍ֹתָיו֙ וּמִשְׁפָּטָ֣יו וְחֻקֹּתָ֔יו אֲשֶׁ֛ר אָֽנֹכִ֥י מְצַוְּךָ֖ הַיּֽוֹם:

פֶּן־תֹּאכַ֖ל וְשָׂבָ֑עְתָּ וּבָתִּ֥ים טֹבִ֛ים תִּבְנֶ֖ה וְיָשָֽׁבְתָּ:

וּבְקָֽרְךָ֤ וְצֹֽאנְךָ֙ יִרְבְּיֻ֔ן וְכֶ֥סֶף וְזָהָ֖ב יִרְבֶּה־לָּ֑ךְ וְכֹ֥ל אֲשֶׁר־לְךָ֖ יִרְבֶּֽה:

וְרָ֖ם לְבָבֶ֑ךָ וְשָֽׁכַחְתָּ֙ אֶת־יְהֹוָ֣ה אֱלֹהֶ֔יךָ הַמּוֹצִֽיאֲךָ֛ מֵאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרַ֖יִם מִבֵּ֥ית עֲבָדִֽים:

הַמּוֹלִ֨יכְךָ֜ בַּמִּדְבָּ֣ר | הַגָּדֹ֣ל וְהַנּוֹרָ֗א נָחָ֤שׁ | שָׂרָף֙ וְעַקְרָ֔ב וְצִמָּא֖וֹן אֲשֶׁ֣ר אֵֽין־מָ֑יִם הַמּוֹצִ֤יא לְךָ֙ מַ֔יִם מִצּ֖וּר הַֽחַלָּמִֽישׁ:

הַמַּֽאֲכִ֨לְךָ֥ מָן֙ בַּמִּדְבָּ֔ר אֲשֶׁ֥ר לֹא־יָֽדְע֖וּן אֲבֹתֶ֑יךָ לְמַ֣עַן עַנֹּֽתְךָ֗ וּלְמַ֨עַן֙ נַסֹּתֶ֔ךָ לְהֵיטִֽבְךָ֖ בְּאַֽחֲרִיתֶֽךָ:

וְאָֽמַרְתָּ֖ בִּלְבָבֶ֑ךָ כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י עָ֥שָׂה לִ֖י אֶת־הַחַ֥יִל הַזֶּֽה

וְזָֽכַרְתָּ֙ אֶת־ה׳ אֱלֹקיךָ כִּ֣י ה֗וּא הַנֹּתֵ֥ן לְךָ֛ כֹּ֖חַ לַֽעֲשׂ֣וֹת חָ֑יִל לְמַ֨עַן הָקִ֧ים אֶת־בְּרִית֛וֹ אֲשֶׁר־נִשְׁבַּ֥ע לַֽאֲבֹתֶ֖יךָ כַּיּ֥וֹם הַזֶּֽה:

I hear people all the time quote this warning against saying  כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י.  You hear people say things like, "What do you mean Tzahal does a great job?  Do you think it's  כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י?"  Or, "Are you worried about your parnasa?  Do you think it's  כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י?"  This past week at my job I had to fill out a mid-year performance review.  I should have just written that I deserve no credit for anything because it's not כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י that accomplished anything.  Does any frum person ever write that?  Does any person in his heart of hearts really think that the effort he puts in has no bearing on the outcome or success of what he is working on?  

Here's the catch: Despite what everyone things about not saying כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י, it doesn't actually say that anywhere in the parsha.  You can just read the words, but if you still don't believe it, R' Chaim Kanievsky in his Taama d'Kra asks the question for you: לכאורה חסר כאן חסיום, דהוה לי׳ לסים ״לא תאמר כן וזכרת..."  The punchline -- לא תאמר כן -- is absent from the text!

We've been brainwashed so effectively to think that it must be there that we find ways of putting it there.  Some change the pasuk from a statement to a question.  In other words, instead of:

"...and you will say to yourself, 'My strength and the might of my hand that has accumulated this wealth for me.'" 

with a period at the end, read it like this:

"...and you will say to yourself, "My strength and the might of my hand that has accumulated this wealth for me?!"

Can you possibly say such a thing?!

RCK suggests that the word פֶּן in the second pasuk is the start of a long quote that only ends *after* the pasuk of כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י, so we are in effect it should be translated "Lest you say..." instead of "And you will say..."  (The 'and' is wrong anyway, because it's a ואו ההיפּוך and not a ואו החיבּור, but translations always mess that up.)

The simplest answer, however, is that קושׁיא מעיקרא ליתא.  As Derashos haRan (derush #10, and Abarbanel follows in his footsteps) explains, despite what the world thinks, there really is no problem with saying כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י.  The only caveat is that when you say כֹּחִי֙ וְעֹ֣צֶם יָדִ֔י, remember: וְזָֽכַרְתָּ֙ אֶת־ה׳ אֱלֹקיךָ כִּ֣י ה֗וּא הַנֹּתֵ֥ן לְךָ֛ כֹּ֖חַ לַֽעֲשׂ֣וֹת חָ֑יִל  

When you write your performance review, you can take credit for doing a good job.   If you think our military really does pull off amazing feats, you are right to do so.  It is our strength and ability and talent which produces results.  We don't need to twist our emotions and brain into a pretzel fighting what our natural instinct tells us is true.

The only catch is that we have to acknowledge that that strength, ability, and talent which bring us success all come from G-d.  It is in our hands to make of it what we will, but it all comes from Him alone.