Tehilim Perek 5

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

For the leader on nechilos. A psalm of David.

There are two basic understandings of what the word “nechilos” means.

The Metsudos says that it is the name of an instrument that sounded like a swarm of bees. Alternatively, Rashi explains it as “soldiers,” that it is a tefilah to day when Yisrael’s enemies try to attack us.

God,Listen to my words and consider my thoughts.

Rashi explains that Dovid is requesting, “Hashem listen to my words” when I am able to express and articulate my feelings and “consider my thoughts” when I’m unable to express myself. Consider my thoughts to You as prayer.

I think there is great chizuk here. Dovid Hamelech writes that even when we can’t get the right words out, or feel so out of sorts and lost our self-composure, Hashem considers our thoughts alone as tefilah.

A young adult recently told me that he feels terrible because he never makes it to Minyan in the morning. He explained that he needs to get up early just to make the train to work and returns, after along day, around 7pm or so.

While I certainly encouraged him to attempt to make it to a minyan, I told the young man to take a step back and look at what is bothering him. He was distressed because he couldn’t make it to a minyan.

He found great comfort and chizuk to serve Hashem by understanding that even though he couldn’t properly daven as he would have liked, Hashem considers his thoughts and yearning as a tefilah.

Heed the sound of my cry, my king and God, for I pray to You.

Notice that Dovid says, “Heed the sound of my cry”, not “listen to my words,” because in a certain way the feelings behind the spoken words are more important than the words themselves.

A child, for example, can say the word “sorry” in an angry tone, and not really feel regret. The opposite is also true. A person can actually feel sorry and communicate the emotion without ever saying the actual word.

In this possuk, Dovid is asking that Hashem focus on the feelings behind our words and not necessarily on the spoken words themselves.

Hear my voice, O God, at daybreak; at daybreak I plead before You, and wait. For You are not a God who desires wickedness; evil cannot abide with You;

The Malbim explains that this passuk contrasts Yisrael’s understanding of God with the Gentiles’ understanding. We believe that God l does not come to be cruel to His creations. He always has our best interests in mind even if it doesn’t appear that way.

This leads us into the next pessukim that show how Hashem only desires goodness and evil dissipates in His light.

Madmen cannot stand in your sight. You hate all perpetrators of iniquity. You doom those who speak lies; God loathes murderous, deceitful men. But I, through Your abundant love, enter Your house; I bow down in awe at Your holy Temple.

Rashi explains that Dovid would go to the Beis Hamikdash and experience God’s love.

Obviously, this applies to us as well. After 2000 years of Galus. Hashem has returned His nation back to Eretz Yisrael. We often take this for granted because it just seems normal to us. Like Dovid, we need to remind ourselves of the goodness that Hashem has done for us in relation to Eretz Yisrael and Yerushalayim. In return we will feel Hashem’s abundant love just as Dovid felt it on Har Habayis.

God, lead me along Your righteous [path] because of my watchful foes; make Your way straight before me. For there is no sincerity on their lips; their heart is [filled with] malice; their throat is an open grave; their tongue slippery. God, condemn them; let them fall by their own devices; cast them out for their many crimes, for they defy You. But let all who take refuge in You rejoice, ever jubilant as You shelter them; and let those who love Your name exult in You. For You surely bless the righteous man, encompassing him with favor like a shield.

The Medresh Tehilim says about this passuk that normally, if someone gives a gift of gold and thieves steal it, the gift is worthless. But God’s gifts are different. He is “Mivarech the Tzaddik,” he gives bracha to the Tzaddik then protects it with a shield.

In other words, when a person invests in Yiddishkeit, he is investing in a stock that never goes down, but yields returns for all of eternity. Hashem not only gives gifts. He protects them as well!

Thank you for listening and have a wonderful day.