Psalms · Psalm 113

"Hallelujah, praise, O servants of Hashem" — the meaning of saying "praise" three times is in the manner of "the temple of Hashem, the temple of Hashem, the temple of Hashem" (Jeremiah 7:4), [repeated] one time after another. And the meaning of "servants of Hashem" — [it means:] "you are the servants of Hashem," like "the congregation, there is one statute for you" (Numbers 15:15) [addressing the audience in the third person]. And they say thus: "let it be" — and this is truly the praise.

"Hallelujah" — since he wished to speak of the Exodus from Egypt, he began with the mighty acts of God, blessed be He, which He performed in the world by His will, to raise up the lowly and bring low the exalted, just as He did with Israel and with Egypt. And he says "Hallelujah," and he says "praise" three times [in this verse], to indicate that with many praises we are obligated to praise Him. "Servants of Hashem" — this is the [vocative] address, and the meaning of "servants of Hashem" is the wise, those who fear Hashem, for praise is fitting for them, since they know how to give praise according to their wisdom and their attainment in the knowledge of His name.

"Hallelujah" — He repeats [the call to praise] and explains: "Praise, O servants of Hashem" — but to the wicked man, God has said, "What have you to do with declaring My statutes?"

'Hallelujah' — these psalms, according to the view of Ibn Ezra in [his comments on] the chapter 'Arvei Pesachim' [Pesachim, ch. 10], were composed or instituted by Hezekiah and his company; and the matters fit well with the theme spoken of in them, for they contain a prayer for the sick, thanksgiving for healing, and also thanksgiving for the downfall of the enemy. And according to the view of those who say that they were spoken in ancient times — that what happened to the children had [already] happened to the fathers — David too, at the time of his illness, sought help to save him from the hand of the enemy, as is found in this book several times. But I will explain it in reference to the miracles that happened to Hezekiah, since the events that befell him at that time are recorded in Scripture and correspond with the content of these psalms and with the view of our sages, of blessed memory, that it was instituted in his days. And the details of the matter divide into five parts. — Part One, until 'when Israel went forth from Egypt' [Psalm 114:1], speaks of the providence by which Hashem watches over the lower world, contrary to the view of the idol-worshipping nations, who handed over the governance [of the world] to the order of the stars. He said, 'Praise, O you servants of Hashem' — that they should 'praise the name of Hashem.' But he added that from now on, praise alone does not suffice; rather, 'let the name of Hashem be blessed from this time forth and for ever' — for there is a difference between praise and blessing: praise stems from His greatness and exaltedness, which even the idol-worshippers would acknowledge, calling Him 'the God of gods' (Elaha de-Elahaya), and granting Him praise and glory — but not blessing. For blessing indicates the continual bounty that goes forth from Him through His particular providence, and this they deny. On this basis he commanded the servants of Hashem 'that from now and forever Hashem should be blessed,' through their proclaiming His particular providence — and praise alone does not suffice, for 'from the rising of the sun to its setting the name of Hashem is praised,' meaning that praise had already spread even among the idol-worshippers, for they too offer praise — but they do not bless, for '(Hashem is) high above all nations,' since in their view He is exalted above the lower world, and only 'His glory is above the heavens,' and it is not for His glory to concern Himself with the lowly, and therefore His name is not blessed among them, for in their view blessing and bounty come from the [heavenly] order [of the stars], not from Hashem. But [in truth], 'who is like Hashem our God, who is enthroned on high' ('in heaven and on earth'), 'who looks far down to see, in heaven and on earth' — meaning that His greatness is so without limit that, to Him, there is no difference between heaven and earth: just as He is enthroned on high above the earth, so He is enthroned on high above the heaven, and just as one must look far down to see the earth, so one must look far down to see the heaven — for according to His limitless greatness, there is no difference to Him between heaven and earth, and it cannot be said that He is closer to heaven than to earth.

"Blessed be [the name of Hashem]" — may it be blessed in the mouth of [His] creatures, for all beings endowed with understanding are obligated to bless Him. And the meaning of "from this time forth and for ever" — "from this time" refers to that present time. "And for ever" — refers to the future time.

"Let it be" — That is to say, they say in praise: "Let the name...," etc.

"From the rising [of the sun]" — thus is the length of the inhabited world, which is twelve hours, but its breadth is not so; therefore it is written: "have you considered [the earth] to its breadths" (Job 38:18).

"From the rising [of the sun]" — for all mankind, from the east to the west, all of them shall praise Hashem [Yah], for even though there are among them worshippers of the stars and constellations, all of them acknowledge that He is the supreme cause. And he mentions east and west because that is the greater part of the inhabited world along the equinoctial line (the equator).

"From the rising [of the sun]" — From the mouths of those who dwell in the east, etc. — from the mouths of all of them the name of Hashem is praised.

"From the rising of the sun" — from the place where the sun rises. "To its going down" — until the place of its setting, which is the western side.

"High" — He is exalted above all the praises with which all the nations praise Him, who are in the seven regions, from the rising of the sun to its setting; and the proof of this is that "His glory is above the heavens," which are above all the nations. And it is possible that "high" [in the first clause] carries forward to [the phrase] "and [His glory is] high above the heavens."

"High [above all nations]" — though all the nations shall exalt Him, nevertheless His wondrous glory is above the heavens, for the heavens and their hosts, and the angels, attain more of His glory, and they know how to exalt Him and to declare His glory more than those below. And some explain: "high" means above all the praises with which all the nations shall praise Him; and further, His glory is high above the heavens, for even the heavens and their hosts cannot attain [the full extent of] His glory.

"His glory" — The dwelling place of the glory of His Presence (Shechinah) is above the heavens.

"Who is like the Lord, our God" — in heaven and earth, who dwells on high and lowers His eyes to see? מושיבי, להושיבי, מקימי, משפילי, מגביהי, all have a superfluous “yud.”

"Who" — some say that "ha-magbihi" (who is enthroned on high) is an intransitive verb, like "though you soar high like an eagle" (Obadiah 1:4). But the truth is that it is a transitive verb, and its object is "your nest" [from that same verse]. Rabbi Moshe said: that the object of "ha-magbihi" is "His glory"; the yod of "ha-magbihi" is like the yod of "who hews [his grave] on high" (Isaiah 22:16) [a construct form]. And he said that the meaning is thus: "who is enthroned to dwell in the heavens, who looks down low upon the earth"; and similarly "onyx stones for the ephod, and stones of setting for the breastplate" (Exodus 25:7). But in my opinion, it is to be understood according to its plain sense. "Who is enthroned on high" (ha-magbihi) — [refers to] the place of His dwelling. "Both in heaven and on earth" — all are lowly before Him. And the meaning of "to see" is that He knows everything, as though it were a visible thing; and this is what is written in the Torah: "He is God of gods" (Deuteronomy 10:17), and after it: "who executes justice for the stranger and the orphan" (Deuteronomy 10:18).

"Who [is like]" — since he had mentioned the heavens, and there are nations whose gods are the host of heaven, he therefore said, "Who is like Hashem our God" — that is, who among all the gods of the nations is like Hashem our God, for He is the One "that is enthroned on high" and looks down to see those who are below, whether in the heavens or on the earth, for all of them are lowly before Him, and He sees their deeds.

"Who is like Hashem" — Who is as humble as He, for even though He raises Himself up to sit above the heavens...

"That is enthroned on high" — the yod is superfluous, and likewise in 'who lowers,' 'who raises up,' 'to seat,' 'who seats'; and they said that the addition of these yods is an eloquence of the language.

The yod of "ha-magbihi" ("that is enthroned on high") and "ha-mashpili" ("that looks down low") is an added [suffix letter]. And some explain "ha-magbihi" as referring to dwelling in the heavens, and "ha-mashpili" as referring to seeing on the earth. "Ha-mashpili" — we have [already] explained it.

"Who lowers Himself" — He lowers His eyes to look upon all that is done in heaven and on earth; for compared to His loftiness, even the heavens are counted as nothing.

"Who raises up" — this verse too is connected [to the one before it]; for the dust, which is the earth, is the point [center] of the great circle, which is the [celestial] sphere that surrounds it. And behold, the meaning is that Hashem on high raises up the poor even if he were in the dust — speaking by way of metaphor; therefore the sense of "raises up" [applies]. "Ashpot" (ash-heap) is a singular form of "ashpatot," and even though it follows a different pattern, the meaning is doubled [i.e., parallels what precedes].

"Mekimi" ("who raises up") — the yod is an added [suffix letter], and likewise the yod in "lehoshivi" ("that He may set him") and "moshivi" ("who makes to dwell"). And he says: He is high, yet He sees the lowly — meaning, He looks upon the poor and raises them up from the dust, and lifts them up from the dunghill ('ashpot). And "'ashpot" (dunghill) is a singular form.

"Who raises up" — By His providence He raises the poor from the dust. "From the dunghill" — The matter is repeated in different words.

"Out of the dunghill" — an expression of manure and dung.

'Who raises up' — he explains how His providence extends down to the lowest of the low, 'until He raises the poor from the dust.' Now, against those who would say that wealth and poverty, children and barrenness depend on fate (mazal) and the constellations (ma'arakhah), he says this is not so: rather, both of these depend on the providence of Hashem, as it is said, 'What does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He makes ladders in the firmament, impoverishing this one and enriching that one. What does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He makes matches, [decreeing] the daughter of so-and-so for so-and-so.' Therefore it says that He raises the poor from the dust, even though according to the constellation he would be bound to remain in a lowly state. And he adds that even 'the needy,' who is worse off than the poor, He raises 'from the dunghills,' which is lower than dust — and not only does He raise him, but also 'from the dunghills He lifts up the needy,' to seat him in the heights of the world.

"That He may set him" — the yod [in 'le-hoshivi'] is extra, like [the form] 'mekimi' ('who raises up'). Having just mentioned 'nobles,' he explains that these nobles are the nobles of His people, who are honored — in the manner of the praise [given] to all His pious ones.

"That He may set him" — and it is not enough that He raises them from their lowly state, but He also lifts them up and sets them with nobles. And as for his saying "with the princes of His people" — this is because they [Israel] are exalted above all peoples in doing the will of God, and so shall they be in the future as well.

"To seat him" — He further increases their honor until they sit with nobles; and He then explains: "with the nobles of His people" — these being the finest among the nobles.

'To seat him' — that He lifts him up until 'he sits with nobles,' and more than that, that He seats him 'with the nobles of His people' — for it would be easy to honor him if he went to a place where they do not know that he had been in a lowly state, but Hashem seats him among the nobles of his own people, even though they know his previous lowliness — which is the greater wonder.

"the barren woman of the house" — Zion, which is like a barren woman—He will seat her. "as a happy mother of children" — (Isa. 66:8): “that Zion both experienced birth pangs and bore her children.”

"Who makes the barren woman dwell" — [the word 'akeret'] is on the pattern of 'gevveret' ('mistress'), and it is not in construct with 'the house' [that follows it]. Rather: the barren woman — He makes her dwell, and she becomes a household, as in 'Who makes the solitary dwell in a household' (Psalm 68:7). And 'household' [here] is like [the usage in] 'the house of Aaron,' 'the house of Jacob,' 'a man and his household.' And the meaning of "a joyful mother of children" is that the barren woman will become a joyful mother of children, as in the words of Hannah: 'for I rejoice in Your salvation' (I Samuel 2:1). And the poet concludes with the word 'Hallelujah' concerning these wonders that Hashem performs.

"Moshivi" ("who makes to dwell") — and behold, He overturns the natural order, in that He makes the barren woman have children of the household. And the word "'akeret" ("barren woman") is not in construct with the word "ha-bayit" ("the house"); rather, it is used as the equivalent of "'akerah" and "'akeret" [both forms being used interchangeably], just as with "'atarah/'ateret," "mamlakhah/mamlekhet," "milchamah/milchemet." And the barren woman shall be joyful with them [her children], in place of where she had been sorrowful. And he says "Hallelujah" — meaning, for all these wonders that God performs, you are obligated to praise Him.

"Who makes to dwell" — He makes the barren woman dwell in the house; for while she remained barren, she rarely stayed in the house — sometimes outside, sometimes in the streets — to ease her sorrow. But Hashem, by His providence, opens her womb, and she gives birth and dwells in the house, and thus becomes a joyful mother of children, dwelling in her house with her children. "Hallelujah" — Because of all this, praise Hashem.

'Who makes dwell' — and also 'the barren woman of the house' — the woman who drank a cup of sterilizing herbs (for they had a woman set apart for beauty, and she would drink a cup of sterilizing herbs so that she would not bear children) — nevertheless He heals her through His providence, until she becomes a joyful mother of children.