"One who benefits from his hard labor is greater than a God-fearing person" [i.e., one who is so enthralled by his fear of God that he sits idly by and does not work]. The person who benefits from his toil, in this case, also reveres the Almighty. He does not, however, seek to benefit from his reverence by imposing himself on the community and having its members maintain and support him because of his qualities. Instead, he allows himself slight idleness from Torah study to pursue his craft and work, and to make his livelihood and obtain his income from the fruit of his labor.
The author of this saying seeks to teach us that it is not the person who stays at home and studies Torah, reveres the Almighty and imposes himself upon others to sustain him who is the better person and who, as a result, benefits from his reverence of the Almighty. The word "benefits" relates both to the fruit of his labor and to reverence. It is as though the text reads, "Greater is one who benefits more from the fruit of his labor than from his reverence of the Almighty".