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Boker Tov! Good morning, and welcome back to Mishkan Katan. In our study of the Psalms, we have been recently studying the psalms of Asaph, many of which are about the exile of the people of Hashem from their rightful land. I find it interesting that Asaph would write so voluminously about a topic he had not experienced. I mean, in his day, there WAS no exile. True, the people had been fighting for sovereignty in the land of Canaan, ever since Joshua had led the people across the Jordan River. Maybe the psalmist, divine inspiration aside, just assumed that one day an exile would come. After all, the Torah was very clear that if the people strayed from Hashem’s ways, they would be put into exile. But, to that point in the nation’s history, they had not been exiled, and with our vantage point of many centuries later, we know that it was not until around 250 years after the time of David that the first “exile” occurred. The reason that I put that word, exile, in quotation marks is because some rabbis don’t consider the dispersion of the 10 northern tribes to be an exile. However, it is clear that the psalmist, speaking prophetically, did consider them both AS important as the tribes of Judah, Benjamin and Levi, but that he also considered that after their exile, they would one day be restored.
Today, we are going to look at Psalms 79-81.
Psalm 79, which is not directly quoted in the New Testament, is a psalm that describes the destruction of the Temple. It’s so interesting to me that, when Asaph wrote this psalm, King David was formulating the plans for the Temple, but it had not been yet built! So much of what Asaph wrote about in his psalms was prophetic! Asaph is writing about what must have been a nightmare or horrific vision he was given. So, really, this is like a funeral song, a dirge, we should say.
We are not going to go verse-by-verse in Psalm 79. Let me just read Psalm 79 aloud with you. We will then hit some high points. Look at your copy of Psalm 79, as we go. This is from the CJB, as usual in this Psalms study we have been doing.
0) A psalm of Asaf:
(1) God, the pagans have entered your heritage.
They have defiled your holy temple
and turned Yerushalayim into rubble.
2 They have given the corpses of your servants
as food for the birds in the air,
yes, the flesh of those faithful to you
for the wild animals of the earth.
3 All around Yerushalayim
they have shed their blood like water,
and no one is left to bury them.
4 We suffer the taunts of our neighbors,
we are mocked and scorned by those around us.
5 How long, Adonai?
Will you be angry forever?
How long will your jealousy burn like fire?
6 Pour out your wrath on the nations that don’t know you,
on the kingdoms that don’t call out your name;
7 for they have devoured Ya‘akov
and left his home a waste.
8 Don’t count past iniquities against us,
but let your compassion come quickly to meet us,
for we have been brought very low.
9 Help us, God of our salvation,
for the sake of the glory of your name.
Deliver us, forgive our sins,
for your name’s sake.
10 Why should the nations ask,
“Where is their God?”
Let the vengeance taken on your servants’ shed blood
be known among the nations before our eyes.
11 Let the groaning of the captives come before you;
by your great strength save those condemned to death.
12 Repay our neighbors sevenfold where they can feel it
for the insults they inflicted on you, Adonai.
13 Then we, your people and the flock in your pasture,
will give you thanks forever.
From generation to generation
we will proclaim your praise.
First of all, Asaph, seeing the Temple destroyed, viewed this event as the Temple complex itself and the orderly city of Jerusalem bearing the brunt of Hashem’s anger, thereby sparing some of it from the Jewish people. Although many of the people were killed by the marauding invaders, the nation was saved from the total destruction of its people, thereby reflecting Hashem’s mercy.
Yes, in verse 2, their blood was valued as cheaply as water, and “there was no burier” refers to a situation where the survivors were too terrified of exposure to come out of their hiding places to bury their fellow citizens.
In verses 5 and 6 we have some Passover language. “Pour forth your wrath at the nations who know you not.” Verses 5 and 6 of this psalm are recited during the Passover Seder, after the fourth cup of wine is sipped, Elijah’s cup, and the doors of the home are flung open to welcome Elijah in. This happens every year. Elijah is clearly seen in Judaism as the forerunner to Mashiach. This is why Yeshua referred to John the Baptist as having the spirit of Elijah. It is also why one of “the two witnesses” in the book of Revelation are said to be Elijah and Moses, as they will herald the return of Yeshua Mashiach as Conquering King.
At any rate, at the end of the Passover Seder, the long-looked-for arrival of Elijah will announce the fulfillment of the dream of the return of all Jews to Zion/Jerusalem. See how Jewish and Christian Eschatology overlap? It’s fascinating!
In verse 7, the psalmist is begging Hashem to not lay upon the people who will be living at the time of the Temple’s destruction the sins of their ancestors, since their own sins will be more than enough for them to bear. I love the Artscroll translation that says, “Let Your mercy come to meet us, for we have fallen very low.” We have all had times in our lives where “we have fallen very low” and we realize just how vastly and deeply we are in need of God’s mercy!
Verses 8 and 9 are a plea to Hashem we have often seen in Scripture, where the human being appeals to Hashem to intervene “for the glory of Hashem’s name”. Basically, the idea is, “God, please don’t let the unbelieving world besmirch your name because you are letting your people be trampled. The very fact you are allowing this will cause the heathen to say that you are not much of a God.” Can you think of other places where this plea was made?
I can think of two - - King David, in Psalm 25, and King Hezekiah, in 2 Kings 19, when he was begging Hashem to deliver the nation from the hand of The Assyrian.
In verse 10, the exiled Jews are compared to prisoners in jail, groaning from the burden of their imprisonment among the heathen nations.
In verse 11, you may wonder why the Psalmist is entreating Hashem to repay the invaders for their evil seven-fold? Why 7? Well, seven in Scripture is the number of completion. So, the psalmist is asking for a complete repayment, a complete revenge. Then, there’s the reference to repaying them in their “bosom”, that is in the very essence of their being, since they destroyed the Holy Temple, which was the very heart, the very center, the very essence of Jerusalem. The psalmist is begging for a retribution, a disgrace like unto the disgrace they visited upon Hashem and His people, a repayment commensurate with the crime, so to speak.
The wise ones caution us to “never make a promise you can’t keep”, right? We do this with wedding vows, work-related contracts, etc. Well, in verse 13, Asaph makes a promise, a futuristic promise to Hashem, believing that He will avenge the eventual destruction of Jerusalem, the future ravaging and ransacking of the Holy City. Asaph is promising on behalf of the nation, the people, that they, His sheep, will thank and praise Him forever, from generation to generation, after He, the Good Shepherd, rescues and redeems them from their enemies. Sadly, while that did happen in the short term, somewhere in the generation after generation, it fell by the wayside.
Now, let’s move on to Psalm 80.
There’s a good bit of disagreement about the historical events that are attributed to the verses of this psalm, even though it clearly refers to three separate events.
Psalm 80, only 19 verses long, is not directly quoted in the New Testament. It is a psalm of beseeching, of the psalmist begging Hashem to release His people from exile.
Let’s glance briefly at the superscription. Both psalms 45 and 69 also reference the Shoshanim in their superscriptions. As we studied those, I mentioned that it could be a reference to a rose-shaped musical instrument. Another school of thought is that the members of the Sanhedrin were referred to in the Targum, in this context, as “roses”, since they are perfumed with good deeds and wisdom. So, take your pick as to whether the designation applies to a musical notation or a song dedication.
Let’s read the first 3 verses.
(1) Shepherd of Isra’el, listen!
You who lead Yosef like a flock,
you whose throne is on the k’ruvim,
shine out!
(2) Before Efrayim, Binyamin and M’nasheh,
rouse your power; and come to save us.
(3) God, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
Something I find curious in verse 2 is this. In my daily devotional reading a few mornings ago, I was reading about the children of Jacob, and their mothers. Recall that Joseph was the favorite son of Jacob, the patriarch of the 12 tribes. But, Joseph was allotted a double-portion of inheritance from his father, bestowed upon Joseph’s twin sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. So, of the 12 tribes, two of them were named Ephraim and Manasseh. The 3rd tribe named in verse 2 is Benjamin. Benjamin was the youngest son, and he was the only brother who was Joseph’s full-blooded brother. Both Benjamin and Joseph were the two sons of Rachel. Rachel was Jacob’s favored wife. Here’s another interesting thing about Rachel. I was reading this morning that, when she left her father’s house, Laban’s house, she hid and took with her the “household idols”. She had not fully left behind the idolatry in which she was raised, in order to serve Jacob’s God, the one, true Elohim.
In Numbers 2:18-24, we read that these three tribes traveled under the same banner as one unit. So, they were close in kin and in purpose.
Of these three tribes that descended from Rachel, two of the three went off with 8 half-brothers’ tribes to form the apostate Northern Kingdom. Benjamin, though, did not secede with the others. Benjamin, whose land territory was adjacent to Judah’s, stayed loyal to Hashem, along with the tribe of Levi. Also, the two who were the sons of Joseph - - Manasseh and Ephraim - - as I mentioned last week, their mother was Egyptian, like the children of Ismael.
And here, prophetically, these three tribes are prophesied to arouse the might of Hashem. Makes you wonder why these three….some commentators, like Radak, for instance, have claimed conversely that these three represent the glory of the Israelite nation. Sometimes, in Scripture, the designation of Joseph, such as in verse 1 here, refers to the 10 lost tribes, the 10 Northern tribes, because it was Ephraim who led the 10 astray. His tribe was “the ringleader”, so to speak, as we discussed in last week’s teaching.
Ok, onward. Verses 4-7
(4) Adonai, God of armies, how long
will you be angry with your people’s prayers?
(5) You have fed them tears as their bread
and made them drink tears in abundance.
(6) You make our neighbors fight over us,
and our enemies mock us.
(7) God of armies, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
The commentators note that there are three verses in this psalm that are almost identical, in that they all invoke a name of God. Those verses are verses 4, 7 and 19. Also, each one is a plea for Hashem to lead His people back to the land of promise, the Holy Land. In each one, Hashem is addressed by a progressively more intense Divine name. Here in verse 4, the Hebrew name used is Elohim (God – masculine plural). We’ll examine the other two verses more closely momentarily.
You may have heard the expression: “God has smiled on him/her.” This comes from verse 7 here. Throughout Scripture, God’s displeasure has been often depicted as Him hiding His face from His people. By contrast, His pleasure has been expressed by His turning His face toward His people. Here “cause your face to shine upon us” is a plea for a return of Hashem’s favor and by extension, rescue.
Verse 7 is the second time in this psalm, the second of the three parallel verses, that the Divine Name is invoked for deliverance from exile, and this time the name is Elohim Tsavaot, God of Angel Armies or Lord of Hosts.
(8) You brought a vine out of Egypt,
you expelled the nations and planted it,
(9) you cleared a space for it;
then it took root firmly and filled the land.
(10) The mountains were covered with its shade,
the mighty cedars with its branches;
(11) It put out branches as far as the sea
and shoots to the [Euphrates] River.
In these verses we find a mighty, sprawling vine described. Often the nation of Israel is described in Scripture as a fig tree. But, also, we find it likened very often to a vine, that is, a grape vine. Southerners generally think of kudzu when they think of a vine, but this is not referring to that invasive monster. Isaiah 5 compares Israel to a vine. Ezekiel 15 does also.
The sages say that the Jewish nation is like a vine in three respects. The first is that, although it is supported by dead wood which does not produce, the vine itself is alive. Secondly, the vine can be transplanted, if it is not producing fruit in the the current soil. It can be moved to different soil, so that it will again bear fruit. And thirdly, the grapes of the vine can produce either sweet wine or sour vinegar. Similarly, the fate of the nation of Israel can be either sweet or bitter, depending on how closely they draw near to Hashem.
(12) Why did you break down [the vineyard’s] wall,
so that all passing by can pluck [its fruit]?
(13) The boar from the forest tears it apart;
wild creatures from the fields feed on it.
These two verses allude to how the LORD fulfilled His warning, given in Deuteronomy 31:17. “And I will forsake them, and I will hide my face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall deal them.”
Verse 13 is considered by the sages to be the verse in the very middle of the Psalms. The verb (yə·ḵar·sə·men·nāh)in the first part of verse 13 only appears once in Scripture. It’s meaning is determined from where it is found in the Talmud (Peah 2:7), where it refers to how insects break down and destroy stalks of grain. The last word in the verse has a raised ayin to point out that, in Hebrew, this is the exact middle of the book. The sages say this ayin refers to Esau, whose name begins with ayin and who is the forefather of the Romans. Further, the Midrash in Bereshit Rabbah 65 identifies the boar which terrorized Israel as Esau. The swine is seen as a symbol of deception and hypocrisy. Although pigs have one sign of a kosher animal, the split hoof, it has only that one sign. The sages say that when a pig lies at rest, it extends its hooves out to say, “Look at my hooves, which prove I’m kosher!” When Esau and Jacob were reunited, as Jacob moved back home from the 20 years with Laban, Esau greeted him and pretended to be a man of integrity and piety, although this was merely a façade. This was manifest early on in the wives he chose (Genesis 26:35) - - two Hittites first and then later on he wed a daughter of Ishmael, his cousin Mahalath.
(14) God of armies, please come back!
Look from heaven, see, and tend this vine!
(15) Protect what your right hand planted,
the son you made strong for yourself.
(16) It is burned by fire, it is cut down;
they perish at your frown of rebuke.
(17) Help the man at your right hand,
the son of man you made strong for yourself.
(18) Then we won’t turn away from you —
if you revive us, we will call on your name.
(19) Adonai, God of armies, restore us!
Make your face shine, and we will be saved.
Verse 14 at first looks like one of the three identical verses, due to how it begins. But, it differs from verses 4, 7 and as you will see, 19.
Verse 17 is viewed as a Messianic verse, with similarities to Psalm 110:1, with its reference to Mashiach being at the right hand of Hashem. Recall that the first martyr of The Way, in Acts of the Apostles, Stephen, had a vision as he was dying. In his vision, he saw Yeshua at the right hand of the Father, and Yeshua stood up as if to receive Stephen into Heaven.
This verse is also viewed as applying to Esau and Jacob. Isaac preferred Esau, but Hashem chose Jacob to be the heir of Isaac. In that way, Hashem strengthened him for Himself.
That brings us to the last verse of the psalm, and the third one of the trio that is virtually identical. Recall that the first two were verse 4 and verse 7. Here, the divine name is expanded further to be “Hashem, God of Angel Armies”. In each successive of these three verses, the plea is stronger, and that is by the use of which divine name is used in each verse.
Now on to Psalm 81, which rejoices in the Lord’s salvation that delivered His people from Egypt.
The mixed multitude, Hebrew and non-Hebrews, left Egypt during the night after the Passover meal was eaten, on Nisan 15. However, the sages say that the process of their redemption began six months earlier, on the first of Tishri, that is Rosh Hashanah, because it was at that time that the Israelites stopped working as slaves for their Egyptian taskmasters. This is recorded in the Talmud in Rosh Hashanah 11a. We tend to think of the plagues of Egypt happening in rapid succession, since they just follow one after the other in the Bible. However, the sages say they took place over a period of six months, during which time the Hebrews were basically “on strike”.
According to Rosh Hashanah 30b, this psalm was designated to accompany the Temple sacrifices on Rosh Hashanah. It is also the Song of the Day for the 5th day of the week. The sages designated it to be read on every 5th day of the week because it was on the 5th day of creation that Hashem made the birds and fish, which with their color and delightful beauty bring much joy into the world. People are awed by the God’s tremendous creativity, and they are stirred to praise Him with song.
Psalm 81 is not directly quoted in the New Testament. So, of today’s psalms, none of them are quoted directly in the NT.
As we look at the superscription of this psalm, we see another reference to what was likely a musical instrument, the gittith. This instrument was referenced in Psalm 8, and we will see it mentioned again in connection with Psalm 84.
Strong’s concordance tells us that this word is related to the ancient city of Gath, a Philistine stronghold and the city of Goliath. Both Goliath and Gath mean “winepress”, where grapes would be squished in order to extract their juices, which would then be used to make wine. I am not sure if winepress has any relation to the instrument or if it was one that came from the Philistine culture.
Let’s read verses 1-5.
(1) Sing for joy to God our strength!
Shout to the God of Ya‘akov!
(2) Start the music! Beat the drum!
Play the sweet lyre and the lute!
(3) Sound the shofar at Rosh-Hodesh
and at full moon for the pilgrim feast,
(4) because this is a law for Isra’el,
a ruling of the God of Ya‘akov.
(5) He placed it as a testimony in Y’hosef
when he went out against the land of Egypt.
Why do you think Ya’akov, Jacob, was singled out in verse 1? The sages say it as because he took his family of 70 members down to Egypt in the time of extreme famine, and that it was from that point when the 210 years of bondage began.
In verse two we have reference again (as we did in Psalm 33) to two musical instruments, the Kinor and the Neivel Ossor. It is translated in the CJB as “sweet lyre and the lute.” The Kinor is believed to be a type of harp, and the the Neivel Ossor to have been an instrument with 10-somethings - - that is 10 holes on a wind instrument or 10 strings on a stringed instrument.
A new song….I found this interesting. As many of you know, in Hebrew, nouns are either masculine or feminine, and sometimes, rarely, are both. In most cases in Scripture, Shirah is a feminine noun. But, when referring to the song of the Olam Haba, it is a masculine form. The sages say that after every joyful song, there is inevitably, eventually, troubles that are born. This is like a woman giving birth to child after child. But, the song of the Olam Haba is in a masculine form, because after that final song of victory, no more misfortune will be born.
Verse 3 contains Rosh Hashanah language, referring to not only the monthly renewal of the moon, but especially to the one at the head of the year. Rosh Hashanah is the only one of the seven holy, biblical festivals which occurs at the first day of the month, at the new moon. The Shofar, for those who do not know, is a wind instrument that is made from the horn of a ram. It is sometimes translated as “trumpet” when going from Hebrew to English.
In verse 4, “judgments” or “right rulings” are mentioned. In the mitzvot, the commandments, there are both “judgments”, which the purposes of are easily understood, and chukim, translated “statutes”, for which there is no apparent, easily discerned, reason.
In verse 5, Yosef is mentioned because it is believed that he was released from Egyptian prison and brought before Pharaoh to interpret his dreams, on that day of Tishri 1. Also, here, Yosef’s name is spelled Y’HOsafe, with an added “hay”. The sages say the reason it is spelled thus, here, is that Yosef feared Hashem when he resisted the sexual advances of Potiphar’s wife, refusing to give in to temptation. They say that since he sanctified Hashem’s name, he merited having a “hay” (one of the divine Hebrew letters that make up the Tetragrammaton) added to his name, which made it Y’HOsafe, as opposed to simply Yosef.
Let’s read some more verses, 6-10.
I heard an unfamiliar voice say,
(6) “I lifted the load from his shoulder;
his hands were freed from the [laborer’s] basket.
(7) You called out when you were in trouble,
and I rescued you;
I answered you from the thundercloud;
I tested you at the M’rivah Spring [by saying,] (Selah)
(8) “‘Hear, my people, while I give you warning!
Isra’el, if you would only listen to me!
(9) There is not to be with you any foreign god;
you are not to worship an alien god.
(10) I am Adonai your God,
who brought you up from the land of Egypt.
Open your mouth, and I will fill it.’
Verse 6 can be a little puzzling. It is translated here as “I heard an unfamiliar voice say….” But, in the ArtScroll translation, it says, “a language unknown to me I heard….” Those are two very different concepts. About the last one, there is a wild story in the Talmud about how Yosef had to learn several foreign languages before he was assigned by Pharaoh to the post of 2nd-in-command over all Egypt. The sages believe the language unknown to me reference is what the psalmist was thinking of, that historical bit of oral tradition.
Verse 7 hearkens back to how the people tested Hashem’s patience about their water supply and also how Hashem tested Moses and the people at two Meribah locations.
The Two Incidents
Exodus 17:1-7 (Meribah/Massah): (Deuteronomy 6:16; 9:22; 33:8; Psalm 95:8.
Location: Near Rephidim in the desert of Zin.
Event: The people complained bitterly to Moses about thirst. God told Moses to strike a rock at Horeb, and water flowed out.
Name: Called Massah (testing) and Meribah (quarrel) because the people tested God and quarreled with Moses.
Numbers 20:1-13 (Meribah-Kadesh): (Numbers 27:14; Deuteronomy 32:51; Ezekiel 47:19; 48:28).
Location: At Kadesh Barnea
Event: Similar complaints about water arose. God told Moses to speak to the rock to bring forth water, but Moses struck the rock twice in anger, disobeying God.
Consequence: Because Moses and Aaron did not uphold God's holiness before the people, they were forbidden from entering the Promised Land.
Meribah was also mentioned in Psalm 95:8, as we’ll see when we get there. You can see that these were very serious incidents of unfaithfulness on the part of the Israelites, as evidenced by the consequences and by how often the incident is brought up, in Scripture.
Verse 8 is Hashem pleading with the nation, and mourning over the fact that they did not listen to Him. It reminds me of the passage in Matthew 23:37-39 and also recorded in the book of Luke, where Yeshua lamented over the fact that Jerusalem (symbolic of the nation and its religious system) had rejected Him. He foresaw the destruction of Jerusalem only about 40 years in the future, and this broke His heart as well. The people were worshipping the alien god of a religious system inherited from their forefathers, instead of worshipping the one, true God that the system purported to represent. This was idolatry then, and Yeshua “called it out”. It is still idolatry today, and we see it in our world in many forms, across multiple “religions.”
Verse 10 is a re-statement of the very first commandment. Many see the Exodus as merely a liberation of slaves in the physical sense. It was that, but more importantly, it was a liberation of slave people in the spiritual sense. This was a people who had been enslaved for more years than America has been a country. They were thoroughly steeped in slave mentality. This is why they had such a hard time accepting God and following him, at Sinai and during the wilderness years. They had been given physical and spiritual freedom, but they did not know how to live as a free people under the leadership of a benevolent God. You may have seen this among those who choose to follow Yeshua, especially after coming out of a life of deep sin and degradation. It is not a straight, upward, linear path of sanctification. They have to learn how to walk in holiness, and part of that is seeing themselves as loved and accepted in the Beloved. That is very hard for many - - to accept as fact that they have been washed in the Blood of the Lamb. That their sins have been forgiven. The Adversary, the Enemy of Souls, uses their guilt to hamstring them in their walking out their salvation, their sanctification journey, if allowed to by the individual follower of Yeshua.
After re-stating the first commandment of the 10 commandments, He says simply in verse 10, “Open wide our mouth and I will fill it!” We need to be circumspect in our holy walks as to which teachings and which influences we “open wide our mouths to.” There’s a saying that “nature abhors a vacuum”. In other words, gravity or some other natural force will fill in an empty space. We can close our mouths to false teachings, worldly influences, etc., and choose a biblical worldview. We can be sure that when we open wide our mouths to the truth of Hashem, revealed in His word, we will be gloriously filled! He will not turn us away. Ibn Ezra, the sage, says that “Ask of me all that your heart desires and I will fulfill every request.” The New Testament concurs. “When we ask anything according to His will”, the Scripture says in 1 John 5:14, “He hears us.” Verse 15 goes on to say there, “And if we know that He hears us, whatever we ask, we know that we have the petitions that we have asked of Him.” I would add to that by saying our job as a disciple is to align our will with the Father’s. It is fine to ask for His favor in our lives, but we must be sure that we are not asking so that we can fulfill improper lustful desires of our own human hearts.
Verses 8-10 here are great admonitions, great re-centering verses, great teshuvah verses, not only for Rosh Hashanah, but for every season.
Let’s read on. Verses 11-16, the end of the psalm.
(11) “But my people did not listen to my voice;
Isra’el would have none of me.
(12) So I gave them over to their stubborn hearts,
to live by their own plans.
(13) How I wish my people would listen to me,
that Isra’el would live by my ways!
(14) I would quickly subdue their enemies
and turn my hand against their foes.
(15) Those who hate Adonai would cringe before him,
while [Isra’el’s] time would last forever.
(16) They would be fed with the finest wheat,
and I would satisfy you with honey from the rocks.”
Verse 11 is one of the saddest verses in all Scripture. The extent to which Hashem had wooed the Hebrew nation and loved her tenderly is extraordinary. Yet, generation after generation, the people pledged their devotions and then turned their backs on Him.
Like earlier, in verse 8, the people did not listen to Hahem’s voice. When God began to audibly deliver the 10 Commandments, He only got as far as the first two, when the people begged Moses to be the intermediator between Hashem and them. They said they were unable to bear it. The sages say that this incident in Exodus 20:19 is the first one to which verses 8 and 11 refer.
Verse 12 lists the consequences of reprobate behavior, even in our lives. When even we turn away from the voice of Hashem, despite knowing His will, He at times will give us over to follow our own desires and to reap our own tragic consequences.
Verses 13 and 14 show how blessed is the nation whose God is the Lord, the nation who walks in His ways. The greatest days of the USA were those when the majority of the people lived according to the dictates of the Old and New Testaments. Most people alive today have never lived in such days, because today idolatry and rebellion are rampant.
Verse 15 is very different in the ArtScroll translation. That translation says, “Those who hate Hashem lie to Him - - so their destiny is eternal.” This verse is referring to those enemies and foes of the previous verse. They persecute and attack Israel because they hate Hashem, and that does not end well for those gentile nations, as Scriptures demonstrates both in history and in prophecy for the future days to come.
The last verse refers to spiritual Israel, all the beloved of Hashem. When our spiritual ancestors were in the wilderness, were they not fed with manna, which the sages said was even more delicious and nutritious than the finest wheat, the cream of the wheat? Similarly, Hashem provided them with the purest water, from Miriam’s well, The Rock that moved and traveled with the company of Hashem’s beloved children? The sages say that water was sweeter than honey!
Some sages, most notably Rashi, Ibn Ezra, Radak and Rokeach, liken this last verse of the psalm to Deuteronomy 32:13, which says, “He made him suck honey out of the stone, and oil out of the hard rock.” This last verse, with its reference to honey, is a fitting conclusion to this psalm, with its Rosh Hashanah references and overtones, because on Rosh Hashanah we pray for a sweet and pleasant year, and we eat fruit with honey, to symbolize that sweetness.
Hashem’s supplies are inexhaustible, today until forever! He never fails to meet our deepest needs.
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