Remembering Hashem Grants Endurance

במדרש חוטפין להם כו'

In the Midrash: "they snatch up [the words of Torah] for themselves," etc.

The Sfas Emes opens with the Midrash that pictures Bnei Yisrael eagerly snatching up the words of Torah for themselves, an image of grasping at what is precious.

אף שכל דבר הוא רק מהשי"ת

Even though every single thing comes only from Hashem,

He notes the underlying truth that nothing exists on its own — every thing in the world flows from Hashem alone.

רק מדייק בזמן שבא בכח התורה כו'

the Midrash is being precise: at the time that something comes through the power of the Torah, etc.,

The Midrash's precise point is that a thing has true vitality specifically when it is drawn down through the power of the Torah, recognized as coming from its Source.

אבל אח"כ נשכח זאת באדם

but afterward this is forgotten within a person,

The problem is that a person quickly forgets this awareness once he possesses the thing, losing sight of where it came from.

ועי"ז אין לו קיום

and through this he has no lasting endurance,

Once that awareness is forgotten, the thing itself loses its grip on permanence and cannot endure.

כי כפי מה שזוכרין שהוא מהשי"ת זה קיומו

for according to the degree that one remembers that it comes from Hashem — that is what gives it its endurance.

The measure of a thing's endurance is exactly the measure to which one keeps in mind that it is from Hashem.

וז'"ש מקנה רב הי' כו':

And this is the meaning of "they had abundant livestock" (Bamidbar 32:1), etc.

This explains the verse describing the tribes of Reuven and Gad who 'had abundant livestock' — a hint to the test of holding wealth while remembering its true Source.

Summary: The Sfas Emes builds on the Midrash that Bnei Yisrael snatch up the words of Torah for themselves. While everything in the world comes only from Hashem, a thing receives its true vitality when it is drawn down through the power of the Torah and recognized as coming from its Source. The danger is that a person forgets this once he possesses the thing, and that forgetting is precisely what robs it of any lasting endurance. The measure of permanence a thing has is the measure to which one remembers that it is from Hashem. This is the deeper meaning of the abundant livestock of Reuven and Gad — the challenge of holding great possessions while keeping the awareness of their true Source alive.