UNKNOWN ITALIAN ARTIST [VENETO]
King David, from The Rothschild Miscellany, c.1479, Illumination on vellum, 21 x 15.9 cm, The Israel Museum, Jerusalem, MS 180.51 fol.1b, B61.09.0803o.s., Zev Radovan / Art Resource, NY
[Accessed at The Visual Commentary on Scripture, https://thevcs.org/blessed-and-wicked/fruit-its-season]
The Hebrew word אשרי / Ashrei / "Happy" refers to Psalm 1:1.
1 About the Book of Psalms
- Where is this book found in Tanach?
- What do the English word 'psalms' and the Hebrew word Tehillim mean?
- How many chapters are in Psalms? Is Psalms organized into sections?
- Do we know who wrote Psalms?
- Do we know when Psalms was written?
- What are the Psalms about?
- What difference does it make that the Psalms are poems?
- What does the book of Psalms have to do with prayer?
About Psalms: Where is the book found in Tanach?
In Hebrew, the book of Psalms is called Tehillim / תהלים. Usually it opens the third section of Tanach, Ketuvim (Writings, Hagiographa).
"a text from the Dead Sea Scrolls...speaks of 'the books of Moses and the books of the Prophets and David,' thus indicating its status." - Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler, "Psalms: Introduction," The Jewish Study Bible, p. 1265.
To learn more about the books in Ketuvim, the third section of Tanach, see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hebrew_Bible.
About Psalms: What do the English word 'psalms' and the Hebrew word Tehillim mean?
Psalms from Greek Psalmoi - songs played to the accompaniment of a stringed instrument (apparently, this is parallel with the Hebrew מזמור / Mizmor, which is a word that appears at the beginning of many psalms.
Tehillim / תהלים - 'praises'. From the root ה.ל.ל h.l.l. (as in "Hallel"). Only one psalm is called a Tehillah/תהלה - Psalm 145 ("Ashrei") - it happens to be one of the most well-known.
About Psalms: Number of Chapters? Divided into sections?
There are 150 chapters in Psalms. They are never called "chapter 1, chapter 2" but "Psalm 1, Psalm 2." In Hebrew, Mizmor Aleph, Mizmor Beit. In Yiddish, "kapitel," pronounced kah-PI-tl, from the Latin word for chapter.
There are 5 books of Psalms: 1-41, 42-72, 73-89, 90-106, 107-150. There is a short praise of God at the end of books I-IV.
...משה נתן להם חמשה חומשי תורה. וכנגדם נתן להם דוד ספר תהלים שיש בו חמשה ספרים.
Midrash Tehillim, also referred to as Midrash Shocher Tov, is a midrash on the Book of Psalms. Compiled in Narbonne (France) between the 11th and 15th centuries.
...Moses gave [the Jews] the Five Books of the Torah. Parallel to them, David gave them the Book of Psalms, in which there are five books.
About Psalms: Do we know who wrote Psalms?
"An ancient and pervasive tradition, going back to the Bible itself, attributes the authorship of Psalms to David. ...
"Davidic authorship, however, on the basis of linguistic and contextual evidence, is not accepted as historical fact by modern scholars, but is viewed as a way the ancients linked biblical writings with the appropriate inspired well-known biblical figure, thereby confirming the divine inspiration and the authority of those writings..."
- Berlin and Brettler, JSB, p. 1266
Psalms are attributed to David, the sons of Korah, Asaph, Ethan the Ezrahite, Heman the Ezrahite, Solomon, and Moses. Many are not attributed.
About Psalms: Do we know when Psalms was written?
Traditionally, Psalms was written by David or by the individuals mentioned in the superscription of a particular psalm. Academic scholars are uncertain about dating.
"While many modern scholars believe that at least some, perhaps even many, of the psalms are from the preexilic period (before 586 BCE), none can be dated on linguistic grounds to the 10th c. BCE, the period of David." - Berlin & Brettler, JSB, p 1267.
About Psalms: What are they about?
"According to the outlook of Psalms, the main religious function of human beings is to offer praise to God, to proclaim His greatness throughout the world. ... If there is one primary underlying assumption of the book of Psalms, it is the potential efficacy of prayer." - Berlin and Brettler, JSB, p. 1268-9
"Most psalms fall into three general categories (sometimes a psalm partakes of more than one category): hymns of praise; complaints or pleas for help (sometimes called laments); and thanksgiving psalms. Other subcategories, like wisdom psalms (see Ps. 1) or royal psalms (see Ps. 2) have also been discerned." - Berlin and Brettler, JSB, p. 1268
[Teacher's note: We will be referring to Psalm 78 in connection with our text (Psalm 23). Psalm 78, the second longest poem in Psalms, is a didactic psalm about God's acts on behalf of Biblical Israel, a lesson from history.]
About Psalms: What difference does it make that the Psalms are poems?
"A major characteristic of Hebrew poetry is parallelism of lines in which the second line can be synonymous, antithetical, or synthetic of the first. ...
"...in synonymous parallelism, the second line repeats in different words what has already been expressed in the first; in antithetic parallelism, the second line presents the same idea as the first by way of contrast or negation; and synthetic parallelism completes or expands the idea of the first part in the second part. Parallelism slows the pace of the poem and sets up resonances between lines."
-- Richard J. Clifford, Introduction to Psalms, The New Oxford Annotated Bible, p. 782
"The psalms are of course poems written out of deep and often passionate faith. What I am proposing is that the poetic medium made it possible to articulate the emotional freight, the moral consequences, the altered perception of the world that flowed from this monotheistic belief, in compact verbal structures that could in some instances seem simplicity itself." -- Robert Alter, The Art of Biblical Poetry, Basic Books, 1985, p. 113.
About Psalms: What does the book of Psalms have to do with prayer?
(יח) בָּר֤וּךְ ׀ ה' אֱ֭לֹקִים אֱלֹקֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל עֹשֵׂ֖ה נִפְלָא֣וֹת לְבַדּֽוֹ׃ (יט) וּבָר֤וּךְ ׀ שֵׁ֥ם כְּבוֹד֗וֹ לְע֫וֹלָ֥ם וְיִמָּלֵ֣א כְ֭בוֹדוֹ אֶת־כֹּ֥ל הָאָ֗רֶץ אָ֘מֵ֥ן ׀ וְאָמֵֽן׃
(כ) כָּלּ֥וּ תְפִלּ֑וֹת דָּ֝וִ֗ד בֶּן־יִשָֽׁי׃
(18) Blessed is the LORD God, God of Israel,
who alone does wondrous things; (19) Blessed is His glorious name forever;
His glory fills the whole world.
Amen and Amen.
(20) End of the prayers of David son of Jesse.
"For about two thousand years the 150 Psalms have been a lovingly memorized prayer book, transposing to the daily life of Jews and Christians the meeting of Israel and its Lord. They were prayed from antiquity onward by the founders of rabbinic Judaism, the early Christians, the fathers of the church, and the medieval synagogue and church. They are today a treasure shared by Jews and Christians. The psalms' power lies not only in being sacred scripture but also in their reflecting human feelings before God and expressing them directly, concretely, and skillfully." -- Richard J. Clifford, The New Oxford Annotated Bible, p. 783.
"When someone reads the words of a psalm as an act of worship, he or she takes over, in a sense, the psalm's authorship. It may have been written by an ancient Levite, but at the moment of its recitation, its words become the worshiper's own: they speak on his or her behalf to God. ... The true author is now the worshiper himself." - James L. Kugel, How to Read the Bible, Free Press, 2007, pp. 472-3.
Liturgy as Psalms!
Ruth Langer, "The Bible in the Liturgy," The Jewish Study Bible, p. 2063, col. 2
Rabbinic Liturgy - 3. Biblicizing Prayers
"...the language of these prayers [such as the Amidah and Birkat HaMazon] retains a close connection to the Bible... it is richly allusive to the language of the Bible, drawing on its vocabulary and imagery for almost every phrase. Because most of these allusions are to Psalms or other poetic texts, the result is a highly poetic prose."
2 The Psalm par excellence: Psalm 23
(1) A psalm of David.
The LORD is my shepherd;
I lack nothing.
(2) He makes me lie down in green pastures;
He leads me to water in places of repose;-a
(3) He renews my life;
He guides me in right paths
as befits His name.
(4) Though I walk through a valley of deepest darkness,-b
I fear no harm, for You are with me;
Your rod and Your staff—they comfort me.
(5) You spread a table for me in full view of my enemies;
You anoint my head with oil;
my drink is abundant.
(6) Only goodness and steadfast love shall pursue me
all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the LORD
for many long years.
Digital Collections, Library of the University of Michigan
The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB)[and the Authorized Version, is an English translation of the Christian Bible for the Church of England, which was commissioned in 1604 and published in 1611, by sponsorship of King James VI and I.(Source: Wikipedia, "King James Version")
[1] The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want.
[2] He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
[3] He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name's sake.
[4] Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
[5] Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
[6] Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the LORD for ever.
Comments and Texts
Meditation for Psalm 23
"A strange calm has come over me. It is not that my troubles are gone. They are still around, believe me. But I have given them over to a 'Higher Power.' That relieves me from a lot of pressure. I have more freedom to solve my problems by myself."
-- Rabbi Dr. Tzvi Hersh Weinreb, The Koren Tehillim, Koren, 2015
"The psalm combines two distinct images of God: shepherd (vv. 1-4) and host of a banquet (v.5)..."
--Richard J. Clifford, The New Oxford Annotated Bible, Commentary to Psalm 23, p. 800
"Oil was used to wash away the grime of a long journey and was placed on the heads of guests at banquets."
--Berlin & Brettler, JSB, Commentary to Psalm 23:5, p, 1293
(52) He set His people moving like sheep,
drove them like a flock in the wilderness. (53) He led them in safety; they were unafraid;
as for their enemies, the sea covered them. (54) He brought them to His holy realm,
the mountain His right hand had acquired.
(15) He split rocks in the wilderness
and gave them drink as if from the great deep. (16) He brought forth streams from a rock
and made them flow down like a river.
(17) But they went on sinning against Him,
defying the Most High in the parched land. (18) To test God was in their mind
when they demanded food for themselves. (19) They spoke against God, saying,
“Can God spread a feast in the wilderness? (20) True, He struck the rock and waters flowed,
streams gushed forth;
but can He provide bread?
Can He supply His people with meat?”
3. Psalm 147, the 3rd of the 6 psalms in "Pesukei deZimra"/the verses of Praise
אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹסֵי: יְהֵא חֶלְקִי מִגּוֹמְרֵי הַלֵּל בְּכׇל יוֹם. אִינִי?! וְהָאָמַר מָר: הַקּוֹרֵא הַלֵּל בְּכׇל יוֹם הֲרֵי זֶה מְחָרֵף וּמְגַדֵּף! כִּי קָאָמְרִינַן — בִּפְסוּקֵי דְזִמְרָא.
Rabbi Yosei [2nd c. CE] said: May my portion be among those who complete [DR: recite] Hallel every day.
The Gemara is surprised at this: Is that so? Didn’t the Master say: One who reads Hallel every day is tantamount to one who curses and blasphemes God. He displays contempt for Hallel by not reserving it for days on which miracles occurred.
The Gemara answers: When we say this statement of Rabbi Yosei, we are referring to the verses of praise [pesukei dezimra, Psalms 145-150], recited during the morning service, not to hallel (Psalms 113–118) recited on special days.
(א) הַ֥לְלוּ־יָ֨הּ ׀
כִּי־ט֭וֹב זַמְּרָ֣ה אֱלֹקֵ֑ינוּ כִּי־נָ֝עִ֗ים נָאוָ֥ה תְהִלָּֽה׃
(ב) בּוֹנֵ֣ה יְרֽוּשָׁלַ֣͏ִם ה' נִדְחֵ֖י יִשְׂרָאֵ֣ל יְכַנֵּֽס׃ (ג) הָ֭רֹפֵא לִשְׁב֣וּרֵי לֵ֑ב וּ֝מְחַבֵּ֗שׁ לְעַצְּבוֹתָֽם׃ (ד) מוֹנֶ֣ה מִ֭סְפָּר לַכּוֹכָבִ֑ים לְ֝כֻלָּ֗ם שֵׁמ֥וֹת יִקְרָֽא׃
(ה) גָּד֣וֹל אֲדוֹנֵ֣ינוּ וְרַב־כֹּ֑חַ לִ֝תְבוּנָת֗וֹ אֵ֣ין מִסְפָּֽר׃
(ו) מְעוֹדֵ֣ד עֲנָוִ֣ים ה' מַשְׁפִּ֖יל רְשָׁעִ֣ים עֲדֵי־אָֽרֶץ׃
(ז) עֱנ֣וּ לַֽה' בְּתוֹדָ֑ה זַמְּר֖וּ לֵאלֹקֵ֣ינוּ בְכִנּֽוֹר׃
(ח) הַֽמְכַסֶּ֬ה שָׁמַ֨יִם ׀ בְּעָבִ֗ים הַמֵּכִ֣ין לָאָ֣רֶץ מָטָ֑ר הַמַּצְמִ֖יחַ הָרִ֣ים חָצִֽיר׃
(ט) נוֹתֵ֣ן לִבְהֵמָ֣ה לַחְמָ֑הּ לִבְנֵ֥י עֹ֝רֵ֗ב אֲשֶׁ֣ר יִקְרָֽאוּ׃
(י) לֹ֤א בִגְבוּרַ֣ת הַסּ֣וּס יֶחְפָּ֑ץ לֹא־בְשׁוֹקֵ֖י הָאִ֣ישׁ יִרְצֶֽה׃
(יא) רוֹצֶ֣ה ה' אֶת־יְרֵאָ֑יו אֶת־הַֽמְיַחֲלִ֥ים לְחַסְדּֽוֹ׃
(יב) שַׁבְּחִ֣י יְ֭רוּשָׁלַ͏ִם אֶת־ה' הַֽלְלִ֖י אֱלֹקַ֣יִךְ צִיּֽוֹן׃
(יג) כִּֽי־חִ֭זַּק בְּרִיחֵ֣י שְׁעָרָ֑יִךְ בֵּרַ֖ךְ בָּנַ֣יִךְ בְּקִרְבֵּֽךְ׃
(יד) הַשָּׂם־גְּבוּלֵ֥ךְ שָׁל֑וֹם חֵ֥לֶב חִ֝טִּ֗ים יַשְׂבִּיעֵֽךְ׃
(טו) הַשֹּׁלֵ֣חַ אִמְרָת֣וֹ אָ֑רֶץ עַד־מְ֝הֵרָ֗ה יָר֥וּץ דְּבָרֽוֹ׃
(טז) הַנֹּתֵ֣ן שֶׁ֣לֶג כַּצָּ֑מֶר כְּ֝פ֗וֹר כָּאֵ֥פֶר יְפַזֵּֽר׃
(יז) מַשְׁלִ֣יךְ קַֽרְח֣וֹ כְפִתִּ֑ים לִפְנֵ֥י קָ֝רָת֗וֹ מִ֣י יַעֲמֹֽד׃
(יח) יִשְׁלַ֣ח דְּבָר֣וֹ וְיַמְסֵ֑ם יַשֵּׁ֥ב ר֝וּח֗וֹ יִזְּלוּ־מָֽיִם׃
(יט) מַגִּ֣יד דְּבָרָ֣ו לְיַעֲקֹ֑ב חֻקָּ֥יו וּ֝מִשְׁפָּטָ֗יו לְיִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃
(כ) לֹ֘א עָ֤שָׂה כֵ֨ן ׀ לְכׇל־גּ֗וֹי וּמִשְׁפָּטִ֥ים בַּל־יְדָע֗וּם הַֽלְלוּ־יָֽהּ׃ {פ}
(1) Hallelujah.
It is good to chant/zamerah hymns to our God;
it is pleasant to sing glorious praise / tehillah.
(2) The LORD rebuilds Jerusalem/boneh Yerushalayim;
He gathers in the exiles of Israel.
(3) He heals their broken hearts,
and binds up their wounds.
(4) He reckoned the number/mispar of the stars;
to each He gave its name.
(5) Great is our Lord and full of power;
His wisdom is beyond reckoning/mispar.
(6) The LORD gives courage to the lowly,
and brings the wicked down to the dust.
(7) Sing to the LORD a song of praise/todah,
chant a hymn/zameru with a lyre to our God,
(8) who covers the heavens with clouds,
provides rain for the earth,
makes mountains put forth grass;
(9) who gives the beasts their food,
to the raven’s brood what they cry for.
(10) He does not prize the strength of horses,
nor value the fleetness of men;
(11) but the LORD values those who fear Him,
those who depend on His faithful care.
(12) O Jerusalem, glorify the LORD;
praise/haleli your God, O Zion!
(13) For He made the bars of your gates strong,
and blessed your children within you.
(14) He endows your realm with well-being/shalom,
and satisfies you with choice wheat (lit. 'cream of wheat').
(15) He sends forth His word to the earth;
His command/devaro / דברו runs swiftly.
(16) He lays down snow like fleece,
scatters frost like ashes.
(17) He tosses down hail like crumbs—
who can endure His icy cold?
(18) He issues a command/devaro/ דברו—it melts them;
He breathes—the waters flow.
(19) He issued His commands/devarav/ דברו to Jacob,
His statutes and rules to Israel.
(20) He did not do so for any other nation;
of such rules they know nothing.
Hallelujah.
Parallel Texts in Tanach and Siddur
O herald of joy to Zion;
Raise your voice with power,
O herald of joy to Jerusalem—
Raise it, have no fear;
Announce to the cities of Judah:
Behold your God! (10) Behold, the Lord GOD comes in might,
And His arm wins triumph for Him;
See, His reward is with Him,
His recompense before Him. (11) Like a shepherd He pastures His flock:
He gathers the lambs in His arms
And carries them in His bosom;
Gently He drives the mother sheep.
(12) Who measured the waters with the hollow of His hand,
And gauged the skies with a span,
And meted earth’s dust with a measure,
And weighed the mountains with a scale
And the hills with a balance? (13) Who has plumbed the mind of the LORD,
What man could tell Him His plan? (14) Whom did He consult, and who taught Him,
Guided Him in the way of right?
Who guided Him in knowledge
And showed Him the path of wisdom?
Who created these?
He who sends out their host by count,
Who calls them each by name:
Because of His great might and vast power,
Not one fails to appear.
the sky proclaims His handiwork.
renewing life;
the decrees of the LORD are enduring,
making the simple wise;
וְלִירוּשָׁלַֽיִם עִירְ֒ךָ בְּרַחֲמִים תָּשׁוּב וְתִשְׁכּוֹן בְּתוֹכָהּ כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבַּֽרְתָּ וּבְנֵה אוֹתָהּ בְּקָרוֹב בְּיָמֵֽינוּ בִּנְיַן עוֹלָם וְכִסֵּא דָוִד מְהֵרָה לְתוֹכָהּ תָּכִין: בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה' בּוֹנֵה יְרוּשָׁלָֽיִם:
And return in mercy to Jerusalem, Your city, and dwell therein as You have spoken; and rebuild it soon, in our days, as an everlasting structure, and may You speedily establish the throne of David therein. Blessed are You, Adonoy, Builder of Jerusalem/boneh Yerushalayim.
4. Resources
Jewish Lists of Psalms for personal devotion
My Jewish Learning - "Psalms as the Ultimate Self-Help Tool: These 150 biblical poems offer a spiritual reservoir in difficult times." by RABBI SIMKHA Y. WEINTRAUB
https://www.myjewishlearning.com/article/psalms-as-prayer/
Aish.com. https://www.aish.com/atr/Recommended-Tehillim-Psalms-Lists.html
Chabad.com https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/1228223/jewish/Psalms-and-Jewish-Prayer-for-Healing.htm
Tikkun HaKlali ("The General Remedy"), a selection of ten Psalms - Rabbi Nachman of Breslov - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tikkun_HaKlali