Forty-eight verses of national history told as a confession. Psalm 105 recites the same events as a list of what God did; this one recites them as a list of what Israel did, and the pronoun in verse 6 is we, not they. It closes Book Four of the Psalms, which is why verse 48 blesses God and asks the congregation to answer Amen: that line belongs to the book, not only to the psalm. Watch the verbs of memory. Forgetting is the failure the recital keeps returning to, and remembering is what God finally does in verse 45 to end it.
1
הַלְלוּ יָהּ
הוֹדוּ לַיהֹוָה כִּי טוֹב
כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ
לַיהֹוָה
lai-ho-VA
to the LORD
Give thanks to the LORD, for He is good,
חַסְדּוֹ
chas-DO
His kindness
for His kindness is forever.
The opening is a fixed thanksgiving formula, the same one that opens Psalms 107 and 136. Everything that follows tests whether its last word, kindness, holds.
2
מִי יְמַלֵּל גְּבוּרוֹת יְהֹוָה
יַשְׁמִיעַ כׇּל תְּהִלָּתוֹ
יְמַלֵּל
ye-ma-LEL
can utter
גְּבוּרוֹת
gvu-ROT
the mighty acts of
Who can tell the mighty acts of the LORD,
יַשְׁמִיעַ
yash-MI-a
can make heard
תְּהִלָּתוֹ
te-hi-la-TO
His praise
or make all His praise heard?
A rhetorical question with an implied no. Nobody can recite the full record of the acts, which is the reason the psalm goes on to recite the failures instead.
3
אַשְׁרֵי שֹׁמְרֵי מִשְׁפָּט
עֹשֵׂה צְדָקָה בְכׇל עֵת
שֹׁמְרֵי
shom-REI
those who keep
Happy are those who keep justice,
עֹשֵׂה
o-SE
the one who does
צְדָקָה
tze-da-KA
righteousness
who do what is right at every moment.
The blessing is placed on continuous practice, at every moment, not on a single act. It sets the standard the rest of the psalm will watch the nation fail.
4
זׇכְרֵנִי יְהֹוָה בִּרְצוֹן עַמֶּךָ
פׇּקְדֵנִי בִּישׁוּעָתֶךָ
זׇכְרֵנִי
zoch-re-NI
remember me
בִּרְצוֹן
bir-TZON
with the favour of
עַמֶּךָ
a-me-CHA
Your people
Remember me, LORD, with the favour You show Your people;
פׇּקְדֵנִי
pok-de-NI
attend to me
בִּישׁוּעָתֶךָ
bi-shu-a-te-CHA
with Your salvation
attend to me with Your salvation,
The speaker steps out of the choir and asks for himself, in the singular, with two verbs that both carry the object suffix me.
5
לִרְאוֹת בְּטוֹבַת בְּחִירֶיךָ
לִשְׂמֹחַ בְּשִׂמְחַת גּוֹיֶךָ
לְהִתְהַלֵּל עִם נַחֲלָתֶךָ
בְּטוֹבַת
be-to-VAT
in the good of
בְּחִירֶיךָ
be-chi-rei-CHA
Your chosen ones
so that I may see the good of Your chosen,
לִשְׂמֹחַ
lis-MO-ach
to rejoice
בְּשִׂמְחַת
be-sim-CHAT
in the gladness of
גּוֹיֶךָ
go-ye-CHA
Your nation
rejoice in the gladness of Your nation,
לְהִתְהַלֵּל
le-hit-ha-LEL
to glory
נַחֲלָתֶךָ
na-cha-la-te-CHA
Your inheritance
and glory with Your inheritance.
Three infinitives, all of them about being present when the nation is restored. The request of verse 4 was personal; its purpose here turns out to be collective.
6
חָטָאנוּ עִם אֲבוֹתֵינוּ
הֶעֱוִינוּ הִרְשָׁעְנוּ
חָטָאנוּ
cha-ta-NU
we have sinned
אֲבוֹתֵינוּ
a-vo-tei-NU
our fathers
We have sinned along with our fathers;
הֶעֱוִינוּ
he-e-vi-NU
we have done wrong
הִרְשָׁעְנוּ
hir-sha-NU
we have acted wickedly
we have done wrong, we have acted wickedly.
The hinge into confession. The first person plural takes in the ancestors, which makes the history that follows an account of us rather than of them.
7
אֲבוֹתֵינוּ בְמִצְרַיִם לֹא הִשְׂכִּילוּ נִפְלְאוֹתֶיךָ
לֹא זָכְרוּ אֶת רֹב חֲסָדֶיךָ
וַיַּמְרוּ עַל יָם בְּיַם סוּף
אֲבוֹתֵינוּ
a-vo-tei-NU
our fathers
בְמִצְרַיִם
ve-mitz-RA-yim
in Egypt
הִשְׂכִּילוּ
his-ki-LU
understand
נִפְלְאוֹתֶיךָ
nif-le-o-tei-CHA
Your wonders
Our fathers in Egypt did not grasp Your wonders;
חֲסָדֶיךָ
cha-sa-dei-CHA
Your kindnesses
they did not remember the abundance of Your kindnesses,
וַיַּמְרוּ
va-yam-RU
and they rebelled
and they rebelled at the sea, at the Sea of Reeds.
The first failure is one of attention and memory rather than of belief. The rebellion happens at the sea, before the sea has even been crossed.
8
וַיּוֹשִׁיעֵם לְמַעַן שְׁמוֹ
לְהוֹדִיעַ אֶת גְּבוּרָתוֹ
וַיּוֹשִׁיעֵם
va-yo-shi-EM
and He saved them
לְמַעַן
le-ma-AN
for the sake of
But He saved them for His name's sake,
לְהוֹדִיעַ
le-ho-DI-a
to make known
גְּבוּרָתוֹ
gvu-ra-TO
His might
to make His might known.
The pattern of the whole psalm in one verse: rescue is granted, and the reason given is the name, never the merit of the rescued.
9
וַיִּגְעַר בְּיַם סוּף וַיֶּחֱרָב
וַיּוֹלִיכֵם בַּתְּהֹמוֹת כַּמִּדְבָּר
וַיִּגְעַר
va-yig-AR
and He rebuked
וַיֶּחֱרָב
va-ye-che-RAV
and it dried up
He rebuked the Sea of Reeds and it dried up,
וַיּוֹלִיכֵם
va-yo-li-CHEM
and He led them
בַּתְּהֹמוֹת
bat-ho-MOT
through the deeps
כַּמִּדְבָּר
ka-mid-BAR
as through the wilderness
and He led them through the deeps as through the wilderness.
The crossing in three verbs. The deeps behave like dry ground here, which is the exact reversal the wilderness episodes will later undo.
10
וַיּוֹשִׁיעֵם מִיַּד שׂוֹנֵא
וַיִּגְאָלֵם מִיַּד אוֹיֵב
וַיּוֹשִׁיעֵם
va-yo-shi-EM
and He saved them
מִיַּד
mi-YAD
from the hand of
שׂוֹנֵא
so-NE
one who hates
He saved them from the hand of the one who hated them,
וַיִּגְאָלֵם
va-yig-a-LEM
and He redeemed them
מִיַּד
mi-YAD
from the hand of
and redeemed them from the hand of the enemy.
Salvation stated twice, with two different verbs and two different words for the oppressor. The doubling is what biblical poetry does instead of emphasis.
11
וַיְכַסּוּ מַיִם צָרֵיהֶם
אֶחָד מֵהֶם לֹא נוֹתָר
וַיְכַסּוּ
vai-cha-SU
and they covered
צָרֵיהֶם
tza-REI-hem
their adversaries
The waters covered their adversaries;
not one of them was left.
The enemy is finished off in a clause with no divine verb in it. The waters do the work, and the count is exact: not one.
12
וַיַּאֲמִינוּ בִדְבָרָיו
יָשִׁירוּ תְּהִלָּתוֹ
וַיַּאֲמִינוּ
va-ya-a-mi-NU
and they believed
בִדְבָרָיו
vid-va-RAV
in His words
Then they believed His words;
יָשִׁירוּ
ya-shi-RU
they sang
תְּהִלָּתוֹ
te-hi-la-TO
His praise
they sang His praise.
Belief and song arrive together. This is the high point of the historical section and it lasts exactly one verse.
13
מִהֲרוּ שָׁכְחוּ מַעֲשָׂיו
לֹא חִכּוּ לַעֲצָתוֹ
מִהֲרוּ
mi-ha-RU
they hurried
שָׁכְחוּ
shach-CHU
they forgot
מַעֲשָׂיו
ma-a-SAV
His deeds
They quickly forgot His deeds;
לַעֲצָתוֹ
la-a-tza-TO
for His counsel
they did not wait for His counsel.
The collapse takes two verbs, hurried and forgot. What breaks is not doctrine but patience: they would not wait.
14
וַיִּתְאַוּוּ תַאֲוָה בַּמִּדְבָּר
וַיְנַסּוּ אֵל בִּישִׁימוֹן
וַיִּתְאַוּוּ
va-yit-a-u-U
and they craved
בַּמִּדְבָּר
ba-mid-BAR
in the wilderness
They craved a craving in the wilderness,
וַיְנַסּוּ
vai-na-SU
and they tested
בִּישִׁימוֹן
bi-shi-MON
in the wasteland
and they tested God in the wasteland.
The appetite is named with its own cognate noun, a verb and its object from one root. Testing God is presented as the same act as wanting.
15
וַיִּתֵּן לָהֶם שֶׁאֱלָתָם
וַיְשַׁלַּח רָזוֹן בְּנַפְשָׁם
וַיִּתֵּן
va-yi-TEN
and He gave
שֶׁאֱלָתָם
she-e-la-TAM
their request
He gave them what they asked for,
וַיְשַׁלַּח
vai-sha-LACH
and He sent
בְּנַפְשָׁם
bnaf-SHAM
into their soul
and sent wasting into their soul.
The most unsettling answer in the psalm. The request is granted in full, and the granting is itself the punishment.
16
וַיְקַנְאוּ לְמֹשֶׁה בַּמַּחֲנֶה
לְאַהֲרֹן קְדוֹשׁ יְהֹוָה
וַיְקַנְאוּ
vai-kan-U
and they grew jealous
לְמֹשֶׁה
le-mo-SHE
of Moses
בַּמַּחֲנֶה
ba-ma-cha-NE
in the camp
They grew jealous of Moses in the camp,
לְאַהֲרֹן
le-a-ha-RON
of Aaron
קְדוֹשׁ
ke-DOSH
the holy one of
and of Aaron, the holy one of the LORD.
The revolt against leadership. The verb of jealousy takes a directional prefix on each name, aimed at Moses and at Aaron in turn.
17
תִּפְתַּח אֶרֶץ וַתִּבְלַע דָּתָן
וַתְּכַס עַל עֲדַת אֲבִירָם
תִּפְתַּח
tif-TACH
it opened
וַתִּבְלַע
va-TIV-la
and it swallowed
The earth opened and swallowed Dathan,
וַתְּכַס
vat-CHAS
and it covered
and covered over the company of Abiram.
The earth is the grammatical subject, not God. Judgment arrives as something the ground does, and Korah is not named.
18
וַתִּבְעַר אֵשׁ בַּעֲדָתָם
לֶהָבָה תְּלַהֵט רְשָׁעִים
וַתִּבְעַר
va-tiv-AR
and it burned
בַּעֲדָתָם
ba-a-da-TAM
in their company
A fire burned in their company;
תְּלַהֵט
te-la-HET
it blazed against
רְשָׁעִים
re-sha-IM
the wicked
a flame blazed against the wicked.
The second half of the same judgment, told with fire instead of earth. The victims are relabelled between the lines: the company becomes the wicked.
19
יַעֲשׂוּ עֵגֶל בְּחֹרֵב
וַיִּשְׁתַּחֲווּ לְמַסֵּכָה
בְּחֹרֵב
be-cho-REV
at Horeb
They made a calf at Horeb,
וַיִּשְׁתַּחֲווּ
va-yish-ta-cha-VU
and they bowed down
לְמַסֵּכָה
le-ma-se-CHA
to a molten image
and bowed down to a molten image.
The calf is placed after the wilderness rebellions rather than in its chronological slot. The psalm is arranging failures by kind, not by date.
20
וַיָּמִירוּ אֶת כְּבוֹדָם
בְּתַבְנִית שׁוֹר אֹכֵל עֵשֶׂב
וַיָּמִירוּ
va-ya-mi-RU
and they exchanged
כְּבוֹדָם
ke-vo-DAM
their glory
They exchanged their glory
בְּתַבְנִית
be-tav-NIT
for the image of
for the image of an ox that eats grass.
The idolatry is stated as a transaction with a price. What is given up is glory; what is taken is an animal defined by what it eats.
21
שָׁכְחוּ אֵל מוֹשִׁיעָם
עֹשֶׂה גְדֹלוֹת בְּמִצְרָיִם
שָׁכְחוּ
shach-CHU
they forgot
מוֹשִׁיעָם
mo-shi-AM
their saviour
They forgot God their saviour,
עֹשֶׂה
o-SE
the one who did
גְדֹלוֹת
gdo-LOT
great things
בְּמִצְרָיִם
be-mitz-ra-YIM
in Egypt
who had done great things in Egypt,
Forgetting returns as the root failure, and the object forgotten is given a title: saviour, the one thing they could least afford to lose track of.
22
נִפְלָאוֹת בְּאֶרֶץ חָם
נוֹרָאוֹת עַל יַם סוּף
נִפְלָאוֹת
nif-la-OT
wonders
בְּאֶרֶץ
be-E-retz
in the land of
wonders in the land of Ham,
נוֹרָאוֹת
no-ra-OT
awesome things
awesome things at the Sea of Reeds.
Two lines of pure apposition listing what was forgotten. The place names hold the abstraction down to Egypt and to the sea.
23
וַיֹּאמֶר לְהַשְׁמִידָם
לוּלֵי מֹשֶׁה בְחִירוֹ עָמַד בַּפֶּרֶץ לְפָנָיו
לְהָשִׁיב חֲמָתוֹ מֵהַשְׁחִית
וַיֹּאמֶר
va-YO-mer
and He said
לְהַשְׁמִידָם
le-hash-mi-DAM
to destroy them
So He said He would destroy them,
לוּלֵי
lu-LEI
had it not been for
בְחִירוֹ
ve-chi-RO
His chosen one
בַּפֶּרֶץ
ba-PE-retz
in the breach
לְפָנָיו
le-fa-NAV
before Him
had Moses His chosen not stood in the breach before Him,
לְהָשִׁיב
le-ha-SHIV
to turn back
חֲמָתוֹ
cha-ma-TO
His wrath
מֵהַשְׁחִית
me-hash-CHIT
from destroying
to turn back His wrath from destroying.
The sentence of destruction is spoken and then suspended by one man standing in a gap. Moses is called chosen, the same word used of the people in verse 5.
24
וַיִּמְאֲסוּ בְּאֶרֶץ חֶמְדָּה
לֹא הֶאֱמִינוּ לִדְבָרוֹ
וַיִּמְאֲסוּ
va-yim-a-SU
and they rejected
בְּאֶרֶץ
be-E-retz
in a land of
They rejected the desirable land;
הֶאֱמִינוּ
he-e-mi-NU
they believed
לִדְבָרוֹ
lid-va-RO
in His word
they did not believe His word.
The land is refused before it is entered. Rejecting the gift and disbelieving the word are set down as one act, not two.
25
וַיֵּרָגְנוּ בְאׇהֳלֵיהֶם
לֹא שָׁמְעוּ בְּקוֹל יְהֹוָה
וַיֵּרָגְנוּ
va-ye-rag-NU
and they grumbled
בְאׇהֳלֵיהֶם
ve-o-ho-LEI-hem
in their tents
They grumbled in their tents;
שָׁמְעוּ
sham-U
they listened
בְּקוֹל
be-KOL
to the voice of
they did not listen to the voice of the LORD.
The grumbling happens indoors, in private, which makes this a description of a mood rather than of a riot.
26
וַיִּשָּׂא יָדוֹ לָהֶם
לְהַפִּיל אוֹתָם בַּמִּדְבָּר
וַיִּשָּׂא
va-yi-SA
and He raised
So He raised His hand against them,
לְהַפִּיל
le-ha-PIL
to make fall
בַּמִּדְבָּר
ba-mid-BAR
in the wilderness
to make them fall in the wilderness,
The oath is described physically, as a raised hand. The sentence matches the crime: they refused the land, so they will not arrive in it.
27
וּלְהַפִּיל זַרְעָם בַּגּוֹיִם
וּלְזָרוֹתָם בָּאֲרָצוֹת
וּלְהַפִּיל
ul-ha-PIL
and to make fall
בַּגּוֹיִם
ba-go-YIM
among the nations
to make their seed fall among the nations,
וּלְזָרוֹתָם
ul-za-ro-TAM
and to scatter them
בָּאֲרָצוֹת
ba-a-ra-TZOT
in the lands
and to scatter them through the lands.
The sentence reaches past the generation that earned it, into exile among the nations. The psalm's own present is being described here.
28
וַיִּצָּמְדוּ לְבַעַל פְּעוֹר
וַיֹּאכְלוּ זִבְחֵי מֵתִים
וַיִּצָּמְדוּ
va-yi-tzam-DU
and they attached themselves
לְבַעַל
le-va-AL
to Baal of
They attached themselves to Baal of Peor,
וַיֹּאכְלוּ
va-yoch-LU
and they ate
זִבְחֵי
ziv-CHEI
the sacrifices of
and ate sacrifices offered to the dead.
A new kind of failure. Not impatience now but attachment, and the meal that seals it is shared with the dead.
29
וַיַּכְעִיסוּ בְּמַעַלְלֵיהֶם
וַתִּפְרׇץ בָּם מַגֵּפָה
וַיַּכְעִיסוּ
va-yach-i-SU
and they provoked
בְּמַעַלְלֵיהֶם
be-ma-al-LEI-hem
by their deeds
They provoked Him with their deeds,
וַתִּפְרׇץ
va-tif-ROTZ
and it broke out
and a plague broke out among them.
Cause and consequence welded together by the narrative verb form. The plague is the grammatical subject of its own breaking out.
30
וַיַּעֲמֹד פִּינְחָס וַיְפַלֵּל
וַתֵּעָצַר הַמַּגֵּפָה
וַיַּעֲמֹד
va-ya-a-MOD
and he stood up
פִּינְחָס
pin-CHAS
Phinehas
וַיְפַלֵּל
vai-fa-LEL
and he intervened
Then Phinehas stood up and intervened,
וַתֵּעָצַר
va-te-a-TZAR
and it was stopped
הַמַּגֵּפָה
ha-ma-ge-FA
the plague
and the plague was stopped.
One man interrupts the sequence. The psalm gives Phinehas the same structural position it gave Moses in verse 23.
31
וַתֵּחָשֶׁב לוֹ לִצְדָקָה
לְדֹר וָדֹר עַד עוֹלָם
וַתֵּחָשֶׁב
va-te-CHA-shev
and it was counted
לִצְדָקָה
litz-da-KA
as righteousness
It was counted to him as righteousness,
לְדֹר
le-DOR
for generation
וָדֹר
va-DOR
and generation
for generation after generation, forever.
The credit is recorded in the language Genesis uses of Abraham. An act performed inside the failure story gets written into the permanent ledger.
32
וַיַּקְצִיפוּ עַל מֵי מְרִיבָה
וַיֵּרַע לְמֹשֶׁה בַּעֲבוּרָם
וַיַּקְצִיפוּ
va-yak-tzi-FU
and they angered Him
They angered Him at the waters of Meribah,
וַיֵּרַע
va-YE-ra
and it went badly
לְמֹשֶׁה
le-mo-SHE
for Moses
בַּעֲבוּרָם
ba-a-vu-RAM
because of them
and it went badly for Moses because of them,
The last wilderness episode, and the only one where the punishment lands on the leader rather than on the people.
33
כִּי הִמְרוּ אֶת רוּחוֹ
וַיְבַטֵּא בִּשְׂפָתָיו
הִמְרוּ
him-RU
they embittered
for they embittered his spirit,
וַיְבַטֵּא
vai-va-TE
and he spoke rashly
בִּשְׂפָתָיו
bis-fa-TAV
with his lips
and he spoke rashly with his lips.
The verse divides the blame precisely. The people embittered him; the rash speech is nonetheless his own, and so is the cost.
34
לֹא הִשְׁמִידוּ אֶת הָעַמִּים
אֲשֶׁר אָמַר יְהֹוָה לָהֶם
הִשְׁמִידוּ
hish-mi-DU
they destroyed
הָעַמִּים
ha-a-MIM
the peoples
They did not destroy the peoples,
as the LORD had told them,
The scene shifts from wilderness to land, and the failure changes character with it: not rebellion now but obedience left unfinished.
35
וַיִּתְעָרְבוּ בַגּוֹיִם
וַיִּלְמְדוּ מַעֲשֵׂיהֶם
וַיִּתְעָרְבוּ
va-yit-ar-VU
and they mingled
בַגּוֹיִם
va-go-YIM
with the nations
but mingled with the nations
וַיִּלְמְדוּ
va-yil-me-DU
and they learned
מַעֲשֵׂיהֶם
ma-a-SEI-hem
their deeds
and learned their deeds.
Two verbs describe assimilation as a sequence. Mingling comes first and learning second, and the psalm insists on that order.
36
וַיַּעַבְדוּ אֶת עֲצַבֵּיהֶם
וַיִּהְיוּ לָהֶם לְמוֹקֵשׁ
וַיַּעַבְדוּ
va-ya-av-DU
and they served
עֲצַבֵּיהֶם
a-tza-BEI-hem
their idols
They served their idols,
וַיִּהְיוּ
va-yih-U
and they became
לְמוֹקֵשׁ
le-mo-KESH
a snare
and these became a snare to them.
The idols are not merely served, they close on the worshippers. The word for snare belongs to hunting, and the hunters have become the game.
37
וַיִּזְבְּחוּ אֶת בְּנֵיהֶם
וְאֶת בְּנוֹתֵיהֶם לַשֵּׁדִים
וַיִּזְבְּחוּ
va-yiz-be-CHU
and they sacrificed
בְּנֵיהֶם
BNEI-hem
their sons
They sacrificed their sons
וְאֶת
VE-et
and (object marker)
בְּנוֹתֵיהֶם
bno-TEI-hem
their daughters
לַשֵּׁדִים
la-she-DIM
to the demons
and their daughters to the demons.
The worst line in the psalm, stated flatly. The object marker is repeated so that sons and daughters are counted separately.
38
וַיִּשְׁפְּכוּ דָם נָקִי
דַּם בְּנֵיהֶם וּבְנוֹתֵיהֶם
אֲשֶׁר זִבְּחוּ לַעֲצַבֵּי כְנָעַן
וַתֶּחֱנַף הָאָרֶץ בַּדָּמִים
וַיִּשְׁפְּכוּ
va-yish-pe-CHU
and they shed
They shed innocent blood,
בְּנֵיהֶם
BNEI-hem
their sons
וּבְנוֹתֵיהֶם
uv-no-TEI-hem
and their daughters
the blood of their sons and their daughters,
זִבְּחוּ
zib-CHU
they sacrificed
לַעֲצַבֵּי
la-a-tza-BEI
to the idols of
whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan;
וַתֶּחֱנַף
va-te-che-NAF
and it was polluted
בַּדָּמִים
ba-da-MIM
with the blood
and the land was polluted with the blood.
The land itself becomes a victim. Blood is named three times inside thirteen words, and the final clause makes the land the subject.
39
וַיִּטְמְאוּ בְמַעֲשֵׂיהֶם
וַיִּזְנוּ בְּמַעַלְלֵיהֶם
וַיִּטְמְאוּ
va-yit-me-U
and they became unclean
בְמַעֲשֵׂיהֶם
ve-ma-a-SEI-hem
by their deeds
They became unclean by their deeds,
וַיִּזְנוּ
va-yiz-NU
and they went whoring
בְּמַעַלְלֵיהֶם
be-ma-al-LEI-hem
in their doings
and went whoring in their doings.
The summary of the whole Canaanite section, in two verbs of impurity. Whoring is the standard prophetic image for the worship of other gods.
40
וַיִּחַר אַף יְהֹוָה בְּעַמּוֹ
וַיְתָעֵב אֶת נַחֲלָתוֹ
וַיִּחַר
va-yi-CHAR
and it burned
בְּעַמּוֹ
be-a-MO
against His people
The anger of the LORD burned against His people,
וַיְתָעֵב
vai-ta-EV
and He abhorred
נַחֲלָתוֹ
na-cha-la-TO
His inheritance
and He abhorred His inheritance.
The consequence, phrased in the Hebrew idiom of a burning nose. What is abhorred is the inheritance, the same word the speaker used in verse 5.
41
וַיִּתְּנֵם בְּיַד גּוֹיִם
וַיִּמְשְׁלוּ בָהֶם שֹׂנְאֵיהֶם
וַיִּתְּנֵם
va-yit-NEM
and He gave them
בְּיַד
byad
into the hand of
He gave them into the hand of nations,
וַיִּמְשְׁלוּ
va-yim-SHLU
and they ruled
שֹׂנְאֵיהֶם
son-EI-hem
those who hated them
and those who hated them ruled over them.
Exile described as a transfer of custody. The hand that rescued in verse 10 is now the hand they are handed to, and the haters do the ruling.
42
וַיִּלְחָצוּם אוֹיְבֵיהֶם
וַיִּכָּנְעוּ תַּחַת יָדָם
וַיִּלְחָצוּם
va-yil-cha-TZUM
and they oppressed them
אוֹיְבֵיהֶם
oi-VEI-hem
their enemies
Their enemies oppressed them,
וַיִּכָּנְעוּ
va-yi-kan-U
and they were subdued
and they were subdued under their hand.
Oppression is completed by submission. Being brought low under a hand answers the hand of the enemy earlier in the recital.
43
פְּעָמִים רַבּוֹת יַצִּילֵם
וְהֵמָּה יַמְרוּ בַעֲצָתָם
וַיָּמֹכּוּ בַּעֲוֺנָם
יַצִּילֵם
ya-tzi-LEM
He would rescue them
Many times He would rescue them,
בַעֲצָתָם
va-a-tza-TAM
in their counsel
but they would rebel in their own counsel,
וַיָּמֹכּוּ
va-ya-mo-KU
and they sank low
בַּעֲוֺנָם
ba-a-o-NAM
in their iniquity
and sank low in their iniquity.
The cycle stated as a cycle, in verbs of repeated action: rescue and rebellion, many times over. The whole book of Judges is compressed here.
44
וַיַּרְא בַּצַּר לָהֶם
בְּשׇׁמְעוֹ אֶת רִנָּתָם
בַּצַּר
ba-TZAR
in the distress
Still He saw when they were in distress,
בְּשׇׁמְעוֹ
be-shom-O
when He heard
רִנָּתָם
ri-na-TAM
their cry
when He heard their cry.
The turn, and nothing in their behaviour has changed to earn it. What changes is that God looks and listens; the reason comes in the next verse.
45
וַיִּזְכֹּר לָהֶם בְּרִיתוֹ
וַיִּנָּחֵם כְּרֹב חֲסָדָו
וַיִּזְכֹּר
va-yiz-KOR
and He remembered
בְּרִיתוֹ
bri-TO
His covenant
He remembered His covenant for them,
וַיִּנָּחֵם
va-yi-na-CHEM
and He relented
כְּרֹב
krov
according to the abundance of
חֲסָדָו
cha-sa-DAV
His kindnesses
and relented according to the abundance of His kindnesses.
The ground of the turn is the covenant, not repentance. Relenting is credited to the abundance of kindness that verse 1 announced before the story began.
46
וַיִּתֵּן אוֹתָם לְרַחֲמִים
לִפְנֵי כׇּל שׁוֹבֵיהֶם
וַיִּתֵּן
va-yi-TEN
and He gave
לְרַחֲמִים
le-ra-cha-MIM
to compassion
He made them objects of compassion
שׁוֹבֵיהֶם
sho-VEI-hem
their captors
before all their captors.
Mercy is delivered through the captors themselves. Rescue here does not require the end of exile, only a change in how the exile is administered.
47
הוֹשִׁיעֵנוּ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ
וְקַבְּצֵנוּ מִן הַגּוֹיִם
לְהֹדוֹת לְשֵׁם קׇדְשֶׁךָ
לְהִשְׁתַּבֵּחַ בִּתְהִלָּתֶךָ
הוֹשִׁיעֵנוּ
ho-shi-e-NU
save us
אֱלֹהֵינוּ
e-lo-hei-NU
our God
Save us, LORD our God,
וְקַבְּצֵנוּ
ve-kab-tze-NU
and gather us
הַגּוֹיִם
ha-go-YIM
the nations
and gather us from among the nations,
לְהֹדוֹת
le-ho-DOT
to give thanks
לְשֵׁם
le-SHEM
to the name of
קׇדְשֶׁךָ
kod-she-CHA
Your holiness
to give thanks to Your holy name,
לְהִשְׁתַּבֵּחַ
le-hish-ta-BE-ach
to glory
בִּתְהִלָּתֶךָ
bit-hi-la-te-CHA
in Your praise
to glory in Your praise.
The petition the whole recital was built toward. The speakers are still scattered, which places the psalm's present after the history it has just told.
48
בָּרוּךְ יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל
מִן הָעוֹלָם וְעַד הָעוֹלָם
וְאָמַר כׇּל הָעָם אָמֵן
הַלְלוּ יָהּ
אֱלֹהֵי
e-lo-HEI
the God of
יִשְׂרָאֵל
yis-ra-EL
Israel
Blessed is the LORD, God of Israel,
הָעוֹלָם
ha-o-LAM
everlasting
הָעוֹלָם
ha-o-LAM
everlasting
from everlasting to everlasting,
וְאָמַר
ve-a-MAR
and let say
and let all the people say: Amen.
The doxology that closes Book Four of Psalms, not this psalm alone. The congregation is handed a line to answer, and the opening Hallelujah comes back as the last word.
♦ PARDES analysis: פרדס
The four levels of Jewish reading of the sacred text: פשט Peshat (literal meaning), רמז Remez (symbolic allusion), דרש Drash (midrashic interpretation), סוד Sod (mystical meaning). The word פרדס means "orchard", each level is a fruit.
פשט · Peshat: literal meaning
A confession built on a historical recital. Verses 1 to 5 are praise and one personal request, verse 6 is the confession that governs everything after it, verses 7 to 46 are the record, and verses 47 to 48 are the petition and the doxology. The record runs in order: Egypt, the sea, the wilderness episodes, the entry into the land, and out again into exile, and each unit has the same shape, where the people fail, judgment follows, something or someone intervenes, and God rescues for the sake of the name rather than for merit. Readers commonly count seven rebellions, though the psalm itself never numbers them. What separates this psalm from 105, which recites the same events, is the verb in חָטָאנוּ (cha-ta-nu, v.6): the speaker is not reporting on the ancestors, he is joining them. And the request in וְקַבְּצֵנוּ (ve-kab-tze-nu, v.47) to be gathered from among the nations tells you where he is standing when he says it, which is outside the land, inside the punishment described in verse 27.
רמז · Remez: allusion
Two words carry most of the philological weight. כְּבוֹדָם (ke-vo-dam, v.20) reads their glory, and traditional lists of the tikkunei soferim, the scribal emendations, count this verse among them on the claim that the text once read the divine glory instead; whether any such emendation ever took place is disputed, and the received text is the one that is read. וַיְפַלֵּל (vai-fa-lel, v.30) is a form of a root that ordinarily means to pray, but the episode it points to in Numbers 25 demands something closer to intervening or executing judgment, and translators split between the two senses without settling it. וַתֵּחָשֶׁב (va-te-cha-shev, v.31) is the clearest deliberate echo in the psalm: counted to him as righteousness is the phrasing Genesis 15 uses of Abraham, transplanted here onto a priest in the middle of a plague. Note also וַיָּמֹכּוּ (va-ya-mo-ku, v.43), a rare verb of sinking or being brought low, which ends the historical section on a slow downward motion rather than a violent one, and מִהֲרוּ (mi-ha-ru, v.13), where the verb for hurrying is doing the work of an adverb: they were quick to forget.
דרש · Drash: midrashic reading
The intercession verses are where the reading tradition concentrates. בַּפֶּרֶץ (ba-pe-retz, v.23) pictures Moses standing in a breach, the gap in a city wall where an attack comes through, and the image has been read as a definition of what prayer is: not persuasion but occupying a position that would otherwise be empty. פִּינְחָס (pin-chas, v.30) puts Phinehas in the same slot, and the pairing raises a question the tradition returns to, whether the zeal that stops the plague is being praised or only recorded, since the reward in the next verse is granted rather than claimed. The omission of Korah from verse 17, where only Dathan and Abiram are named, was noticed early and read variously; one reading connects it to Numbers 26, which states plainly that the sons of Korah did not die. Across the whole recital the operative teaching is carried by two verbs rather than by any episode: forgetting is treated as the root sin, and remembering, when God does it in verse 45, is what reverses everything the forgetting caused.
סוד · Sod: mystical reading
The mystical reading takes the two ends of the psalm as a single movement and treats the history between them as a test of one word. לְעוֹלָם (le-o-lam, v.1) declares the kindness to be forever, before any of the failures have been named, so every rebellion in the recital becomes an obscuring and every rescue an uncovering, and nothing in the middle is allowed to alter what was said at the start. חֲסָדָו (cha-sa-dav, v.45) closes the circuit by making the abundance of kindness the operative cause of the turn, which means the covenant works downward from above rather than being triggered from below by anything the people do. In that frame וְקַבְּצֵנוּ (ve-kab-tze-nu, v.47), gather us, is heard as more than a national petition: exile is read as a condition of scattering that reaches further than the people who are scattered, and the gathering asked for is the return of everything dispersed to the place it belongs. That the last word of the psalm repeats the first is read as a circle rather than a repetition.