DEUT239 [I]n one of the most famous paragraphs in the entire Torah, the Shema, it says that a Jew should love God with "all his heart, with all his soul, and with all of his Me'od (might)" [this verse]. Rashi explains that the third phrase actually signifies that a Jew should love God with all his money, i.e., God should be more important to him or her than money is. Rashi then answers an unasked question: Why is "money" in "third-place" in the verse, after loving God with all of one's heart and soul? Certainly, if a Jew loves God with all of his or her heart and soul, loving God with money is obvious or redundant? Rashi answers that there are certain people who are so greedy that to them, money and possessions are more important than even their lives. For them, it is harder to love God with all of their money than to love Him with all of their soul. Maharal expands on Rashi's words and says that we already encountered Jews in the Torah who are very greedy--the two-and-a-half tribes that wanted to stay out of Israel proper in order to have grazing land for their multitude of cattle.... Why does this verse, then, have to remind us of this lesson again-that God is more important than worldly goods? He answers that for some greedy people, the idea of acquiring more money actually gives them a sense of life and a reason to live. These people are so greedy that their entire existence is about accumulation of more wealth. Thus, God commands that even these Jews must put God before their money (Rashi and Gur Aryeh (Maharal) commentaries on this verse). Rabbi Chaim ibn Attar (1696-1743) gives a similar explanation, but he says the verse is not speaking about actual money, but rather about the desire for money. For greedy people whose entire life hinges on their great and insatiable desire for money, they should learn to love God with that same insatiable desire (Ohr HaChaim commentary on this verse).