Tehilim Perek 18D

Welcome to NachDaily, covering the entire TANACH one perek at a time. I’m Rabbi Shaya Sussman, and today we’ll be concluding Tehilim perek yud ches.

This perek is a song that Dovid sang at the end of his life to praise Hashem for saving him from all his detractors. What is the significance of shira, song?

The Gemarah in Sanhedrin explains that Techiyas Hameisim, resurrection of the dead, is found in the words that Am Yisrael sang at the splitting of the sea. “Az yashir” literally means, “in the future they will sing.” In the future, at the time of Techiyas Hameisim, the entire Jewish nation will burst out in song and dance.

The Lekutey Maharan in Torah 64 explains that the Tzaddik, Mashiach, who will be as great as Moshe Rebbeinu, will sing a nigun, a Jewish song, to bring even the most fallen, depraved people back to Hashem. As Mashiach’s song will be so elevated and powerful, it will have the ability to lift up anyone found even in the lowest of places.

Not only did Dovid sing this perek for the vanquishing of his personal enemies, therefore, but as a taste of the song that Mashiach and Am Yisael will sing at the last moments of the final redemption. Then the dead will come back to life, and all death will end forever. With this understanding in mind, the rest of the chapter becomes easier to understand.

אֶרְדּ֣וֹף א֭וֹיְבַי וְאַשִּׂיגֵ֑ם וְלֹֽא־אָ֝שׁוּב עַד־כַּלּוֹתָֽם׃ אֶ֭מְחָצֵם וְלֹא־יֻ֣כְלוּ ק֑וּם יִ֝פְּל֗וּ תַּ֣חַת רַגְלָֽי׃ וְֽאֹיְבַ֗י נָתַ֣תָּה לִּ֣י עֹ֑רֶף וּ֝מְשַׂנְאַ֗י אַצְמִיתֵֽם׃וַתְּאַזְּרֵ֣נִי חַ֭יִל לַמִּלְחָמָ֑ה תַּכְרִ֖יעַ קָמַ֣י תַּחְתָּֽי׃ יְשַׁוְּע֥וּ וְאֵין־מוֹשִׁ֑יעַ עַל־יְ֝הוָ֗ה וְלֹ֣א עָנָֽם׃ וְֽאֶשְׁחָקֵ֗ם כְּעָפָ֥ר עַל־פְּנֵי־ר֑וּחַ כְּטִ֖יט חוּצ֣וֹת אֲרִיקֵֽם׃

I pursued my enemies and overtook them; I did not turn back until I destroyed them. I struck them down, and they could rise no more; they lay fallen at my feet. You have girded me with strength for battle, brought my adversaries low before me, made my enemies turn tail before me; I wiped out my foes. They cried out, but there was none to deliver; [cried] to the LORD, but He did not answer them. I ground them fine as windswept dust; I trod them flat as dirt of the streets.

These and the following pessukim can be understood about Dovid’s personal life as well as how the Jewish nation will sing to God in the future, when we will be rescued from the long dark Galus.

תְּפַלְּטֵנִי֮ מֵרִ֪יבֵ֫י עָ֥ם תְּ֭שִׂימֵנִי לְרֹ֣אשׁ גּוֹיִ֑ם עַ֖ם לֹא־יָדַ֣עְתִּי יַֽעַבְדֽוּנִי׃ לְשֵׁ֣מַֽע אֹ֭זֶן יִשָּׁ֣מְעוּ לִ֑י בְּנֵֽי־נֵ֝כָ֗ר יְכַחֲשׁוּ־לִֽי׃ בְּנֵי־נֵכָ֥ר יִבֹּ֑לוּ וְ֝יַחְרְג֗וּ מִֽמִּסְגְּרֽוֹתֵיהֶֽם׃

You have rescued me from the strife of people; You have set me at the head of nations; peoples I didn’t know must serve me. By virtue of what they hear they obey me; foreigners cringe before me. Foreigners are worn out trembling in their strongholds.

חַי־יְ֭הוָה וּבָר֣וּךְ צוּרִ֑י וְ֝יָר֗וּם אֱלוֹהֵ֥י יִשְׁעִֽי׃

The LORD lives! Blessed is my rock! Exalted is the God of my salvation.

Rav Yaakov Moshe Charlop, z’tsal, in his sefer Mey Marom on Tehilim, explains that Dovid was saying that all the aforementioned good happened to him because of his deep emunah in God. He spent his entire life trying to reveal God’s presence in both the upper and lower worlds. Even when God was hidden from him, Dovid knew that He was still there. That’s why he said that God lives and He’s my Rock.

הָאֵ֗ל הַנּוֹתֵ֣ן נְקָמ֣וֹת לִ֑י וַיַּדְבֵּ֖ר עַמִּ֣ים תַּחְתָּֽי׃ מְפַלְּטִ֗י מֵאֹ֫יְבָ֥י אַ֣ף מִן־קָ֭מַי תְּרוֹמְמֵ֑נִי מֵאִ֥ישׁ חָ֝מָ֗ס תַּצִּילֵֽנִי

the God who has vindicated me and made peoples subject to me, who rescued me from my enemies, who raised me clear of my adversaries, saved me from lawless men.

Dovid ends the perek with a triumphant declaration:

׃ עַל־כֵּ֤ן ׀ אוֹדְךָ֖ בַגּוֹיִ֥ם ׀ יְהוָ֑ה וּלְשִׁמְךָ֥ אֲזַמֵּֽרָה׃ מגדל [מַגְדִּיל֮] יְשׁוּע֪וֹת מַ֫לְכּ֥וֹ וְעֹ֤שֶׂה חֶ֨סֶד ׀ לִמְשִׁיח֗וֹ לְדָוִ֥ד וּלְזַרְע֗וֹ עַד־עוֹלָֽם׃

Therefore, I acknowledge You before the nations, O God, and sing praise to Your Name. He grants His kings great salvations, and does loving kindness for His anointed one- for David and His offspring forever!

The Meiri says that the simple meaning of this was that Dovid was thanking Hashem for anointing him with the Shemen Hamishicha, that Hashem promised him that the Kingship would never leave his ancestral lineage.

The Mey Marom says that Dovid was saying, Hashem didn’t raise me and my family up for my sake. He did it for His sake! My entire being swelled with wanting to do Your will.

All the good that You’ve done for me was really for You, Hashem. When You lifted me up, You increased Your name and Malchus, Kingship, in the world.

The deep insight in this is that praying for our own needs is a low level of tefilah. We need to prey for Hashem’s needs, for His Malchus to be revealed in the world, for all mankind to pronounce God as the King.

The Gemarah says that a person should only Daven from a place of “kavod rosh,” which simply means a person should stand before God with a certain weightiness and seriousness about what they are doing.

The Maggid of Mezrich and the Degel Machene Efriam claim that “mitoch kavod Rosh” refers to the Shechina that’s called Rosh. We should daven for Hashem’s “needs,” and not our own.

These are the high level of tefilos that we pray on Rosh Hashana and Yom Kippur. We ask that Hashem should reveal His Kingship and exalted awesomeness to the world. Hashem wants us to succeed. Our success is His success.

Thank you for listening and have a wonderful day.