A Song of Ascents, recounting Israel's many afflictions from its youth, from which Hashem has always delivered it, and calling for the downfall of those who hate Zion.
Tap any Hebrew word to reveal its root, value, and meanings.
A Song of Ascents. 'Much have they afflicted me from my youth up', Let Israel now say;
verse value 3438
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 35 letters. Verse gematria: 3438 is divisible by 18, the value of chai ('life'). The shortest word is "a·song" (שִׁ֗יר, 3 letters) and the longest is "of·the·ascents" (הַֽמַּ֫עֲל֥וֹת, 6 letters). 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "let·him·say·now" (root אמר, 111x in Psalms); "a·song" (root שיר, 68x in Psalms); "much" (root רב, 67x in Psalms). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·my·youth', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 2 words. Full calculation: שִׁ֗יר [a·song] (510) + הַֽמַּ֫עֲל֥וֹת [of·the·ascents] (551) + רַ֭בַּת [much] (602) + צְרָר֣וּנִי [they·afflicted·me] (556) + מִנְּעוּרַ֑י [from·my·youth] (376) + יֹאמַר־נָ֝֗א [let·him·say·now] (302) + יִשְׂרָאֵֽל [Israel] (541) = 3438.
Ibn Ezra
'A Song of Ascents' — these are the words of the poet; he speaks in the voice of Israel in exile. 'Much' — I have explained it [elsewhere]. 'Let Israel now say' — by way of prophecy, for thus it shall say 'much,' time after time. And the sense is: even though adversaries [oppress them], they will not be able to destroy their memory.
Radak
"A song" — He compares the days of exile to the days of a person's life: the beginning of the exile to the days of youth, and the length of the days of exile to the days of old age. And he says that from the beginning of the exile the enemies afflicted us with great distress. And this is what Israel says: praise to God, that we were not destroyed in exile — from the beginning of the exile they began to afflict us, and despite all this they were not able to destroy me. And the reason the matter is doubled is to strengthen the acknowledgment [of thanks] to God, blessed be He, as is the convention of the language.
Metzudat David
"Much have they afflicted me" — indeed, many nations have afflicted me from my youth.
Malbim
"A Song of Ascents" — speaks of Hashem's providence and His guarding of Israel from all their enemies. "Much" — that is to say, this is a great and mighty thing, that "they have afflicted me from my youth, let Israel now say" — that Israel shall say and recount that from their youth they were under siege; the metaphor pictures them as a besieged city which, from the day of its founding, an enemy has beleaguered for thousands of years. "Much" — that is to say, and accordingly this is a still greater novelty: that although "they have afflicted me from my youth," nevertheless they have not prevailed against me. The metaphor is that from the time Israel became a nation, enemies have stood against them to destroy them, and this itself is a great matter, for by virtue of their divine form it would be expected that the nations would oppress them and wage wars against them, since they are a people that dwells alone, and is not reckoned among the nations. But this is a still greater matter: that although all the nations were their oppressors in their scheming, they were unable to do them harm, for their God is with them to save them:
'Much have they afflicted me from my youth up; But they have not prevailed against me.
verse value 1714
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 25 letters. The shortest word is "also" (גַּ֝֗ם, 2 letters) and the longest is "they·afflicted·me" (צְרָר֣וּנִי, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Psalms. Unique to this verse in Psalms (hapax): "not·prevailed" (לֹא־יָ֥כְלוּ). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "against·me" (root לי, 68x in Psalms); "much" (root רב, 67x in Psalms). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'from·my·youth', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: רַ֭בַּת [much] (602) + צְרָר֣וּנִי [they·afflicted·me] (556) + מִנְּעוּרָ֑י [from·my·youth] (376) + גַּ֝֗ם [also] (43) + לֹא־יָ֥כְלוּ [not·prevailed] (97) + לִֽי [against·me] (40) = 1714.
Metzudat David
"Much... etc." — meaning, although many rose up against me, nevertheless none of them were able to prevail against me to make an end of me.
The plowers plowed upon my back; They made long their furrows.
verse value 2705
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 34 letters. The shortest word is "plowed" (חָרְשׁ֣וּ, 4 letters) and the longest is "to·their·furrows" (לְמַעֲנִיתָֽם, 7 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Psalms. Unique to this verse in Psalms (hapax): "upon·my·back" (עַל־גַּ֭בִּי), "plowed" (חָרְשׁ֣וּ), "plowers" (חֹרְשִׁ֑ים). The root חרש appears 2 times in this verse. 4 unique roots are used. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'plowers', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words.
Rashi
"the plowmen...they lengthened their furrow" — That is the hill of the plowshare, as (I Sam. 13: 14): “about half a furrow (מענה) [which] a yoke [of oxen plow in] a field.”
Ibn Ezra
'Upon' — even though, upon my back, plowers have plowed. And the sense is humiliation and abasement, in the manner of: 'and you made your back like the ground' (Isaiah 51:23). 'Their furrows' — from the same root as 'about half a furrow' (1 Samuel 14:14). The sense of 'cut' — when the cords are cut, they will no longer be able to plow upon [my back]. And the sense is that Hashem will remove their burden from the shoulder of Israel, by cutting off their kingdom.
Radak
"Upon my back" — a metaphor for the abundance of burdens and harsh labor. "Their furrows" — this is the line that the plowman plows with oxen in the field, to whatever length he wishes, and afterward he turns back and makes another one like it, and so on until he has plowed the whole field. And the longer the furrow, the greater the exertion of the oxen, for they do not rest until the end of the line. And in saying "they made long their furrows," he means to say that they did not let us rest from their labor and from their burdens.
Metzudat David
"Upon my back" — those who plow the earth plowed upon my back, and lengthened further the furrow of the plow; meaning, they made the yoke heavy and prolonged for a great length of time.
Metzudat Zion
"Back" — thus is called the back of the body, as in "and all their flesh, and their backs" (Ezekiel 10). "Their furrows" — this is the line which the plowman plows along the length of the field, then returns and plows alongside it by the same measure, until the field is finished, as in "about half a furrow's length in an acre of field" (I Samuel 14).
Malbim
'Upon my back' — He explains that the reason they were not able [to prevail] over me is not due to my own strength and might, for on the contrary, I was not comparable to a city, exalted and fortified, against an enemy; rather I was like a level plain, over which the enemy walked at his will, also plowing it with the plow-instrument, and also lengthening his furrow as he wished, for there was no mountain or hill to hinder him before him — that is to say, that by nature they were fit for trampling, only.
Hashem is righteous; He has cut asunder the cords of the wicked.'
verse value 1608
Insights
Verse structure: 5 words, 20 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "cut·off" (קִ֝צֵּ֗ץ, 3 letters) and the longest is "wicked" (רְשָׁעִֽים, 5 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Psalms. Unique to this verse in Psalms (hapax): "cut·off" (קִ֝צֵּ֗ץ). 5 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 688x in Psalms); "wicked" (root רשע, 87x in Psalms); "just" (root צדיק, 52x in Psalms). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'just', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 3 words. Full calculation: יְהֹוָ֥ה [Hashem] (26) + צַדִּ֑יק [just] (204) + קִ֝צֵּ֗ץ [cut·off] (280) + עֲב֣וֹת [cords·of] (478) + רְשָׁעִֽים [wicked] (620) = 1608.
Radak
"He has cut" — the past tense used in place of the future. He says that Hashem, who is righteous and upright in His ways, will cut and sever the cords of the wicked, His enemies. "The cords" — these are the straps of the yoke; that is, He will remove their yoke from upon us. When God, blessed be He, cuts off their cords from upon us, then:
Metzudat David
"Hashem is righteous" — but Hashem the righteous cut the cords of the ropes of the wicked, with which they had bound me.
Metzudat Zion
"Cut asunder" — an expression of cutting and severing, as in "and cut into wires" (Exodus 39).
Malbim
'Hashem is righteous' — He 'cut asunder the cords of the wicked,' so that the oxen were unable to drive the plow-instrument, in such a way that the hindrance was not due to the plowed ground itself, but rather because Hashem frustrated the plan of the plowers and severed their cords.
Let them be ashamed and turned backward, All those who hate Zion.
verse value 1185
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 23 letters. The shortest word is "all" (כֹּ֝֗ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·let·them·turn" (וְיִסֹּ֣גוּ, 5 letters). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "all" (root כל, 82x in Psalms); "haters·of" (root שנא, 42x in Psalms); "let·them·be·ashamed" (root בוש, 36x in Psalms). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'backward', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: יֵ֭בֹשׁוּ [let·them·be·ashamed] (318) + וְיִסֹּ֣גוּ [and·let·them·turn] (85) + אָח֑וֹר [backward] (215) + כֹּ֝֗ל [all] (50) + שֹׂנְאֵ֥י [haters·of] (361) + צִיּֽוֹן [Zion] (156) = 1185.
Ibn Ezra
'Let them be ashamed' — in the end. And the sense of 'Zion' — the Congregation of Israel.
Radak
"Let them be ashamed and turned backward" — from their evil intentions against us. "Those who hate Zion" — the nations do not hate Zion; rather they love it, so much so that they fight over it. Rather, the meaning is "those who hate the children of Zion," who are Israel.
Metzudat David
"Let them be ashamed" — when they see that I have come out from under their hand. "And turned backward" — it is the way of one who is ashamed to turn backward, [retracing] the way by which he came.
Metzudat Zion
"And turned backward" — an expression of retreating backward, as in "turned not back" (II Samuel 1).
Malbim
'Let them be ashamed' — Therefore 'all who hate Zion' (that is, those who hate the holiness of Israel and God, their stronghold, which is alluded to by 'Zion,' the place where the holiness and the Divine Presence resided) — they 'shall be ashamed' on their own, for they have no share in Hashem, 'and turned backward' through the punishments of Hashem.
Let them be as the grass upon the housetops, Which withers before it springs up;
verse value 2337
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 24 letters. The shortest word is "springs·up" (שָׁלַ֣ף, 3 letters) and the longest is "like·grass·of" (כַּחֲצִ֣יר, 5 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Psalms. Unique to this verse in Psalms (hapax): "roofs" (גַּגּ֑וֹת), "which·before" (שֶׁקַּדְמַ֖ת), "springs·up" (שָׁלַ֣ף). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "let·them·be" (root היה, 97x in Psalms). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'roofs', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: יִ֭הְיוּ [let·them·be] (31) + כַּחֲצִ֣יר [like·grass·of] (328) + גַּגּ֑וֹת [roofs] (412) + שֶׁקַּדְמַ֖ת [which·before] (844) + שָׁלַ֣ף [springs·up] (410) + יָבֵֽשׁ [withers] (312) = 2337.
Rashi
"which, before it is plucked, withers" — Which, before they pluck it and uproot it from its place, is withered.
Ibn Ezra
'Let them be as the grass' — that grows on the roof, which does not endure. 'Which withers before' — before it comes to fruition, like the drawing [sheliphah] of a sword, or of a sandal — it is immediately dry.
Radak
"Let them be as the grass upon the housetops" — grass that grows on a roof has no permanence or endurance; indeed, even before it has fully sprouted and become visible, it has already dried up in the heat of the sun. This is a manner of hyperbole. "Springs up" [שלף] — this term denotes the removal of a thing and its going out from its place, as in the phrase "a man drew off his shoe," except that there it is [the shoe] that goes out, whereas here it [the grass] remains [in place].
Metzudat David
"Like the grass of the housetops" — like grass that grows on rooftops, which, before it is plucked, dries up from the heat of the sun, on account of the scant moisture in the soil beneath it.
Metzudat Zion
"As the grass" — like herbage. "Before" — from the language of "kodem" (prior). "Springs up" — an expression of plucking and drawing out from its place, as in "a man drew off his shoe" (Ruth 4).
Malbim
'Let them be as the grass upon the housetops' — grass does not last a long time, and therefore it is uprooted before all [other] plants; and this serves as a parable, that the wicked will not live long. And as for the grass of the housetops — because the sun scorches it from above, they do not manage to pull it up at the time when grass is [normally] pulled up, since 'it withers before it is plucked up.' So too they will be like grass whose end is cut off, and therefore they shall be ashamed; and like the grass of the housetops, so shall they be turned back before their time, through providential punishment and the sun of judgment that scorches from above.
With which the reaper does not fill his hand, Nor he who binds sheaves his bosom.
verse value 1414
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 22 letters. The shortest word is "which·not" (שֶׁלֹּ֤א, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·his·bosom" (וְחִצְנ֥וֹ, 5 letters). 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Psalms. Unique to this verse in Psalms (hapax): "his·hand" (כַפּ֥וֹ), "reaper" (קוֹצֵ֗ר), "and·his·bosom" (וְחִצְנ֥וֹ). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which·not" (root לא, 174x in Psalms); "fills" (root מלא, 30x in Psalms). Full calculation: שֶׁלֹּ֤א [which·not] (331) + מִלֵּ֖א [fills] (71) + כַפּ֥וֹ [his·hand] (106) + קוֹצֵ֗ר [reaper] (396) + וְחִצְנ֥וֹ [and·his·bosom] (160) + מְעַמֵּֽר [who·binds·sheaves] (350) = 1414.
Rashi
"his arm" — Like (Isa. 49:22): “and they will bring your sons in [their] arms (בחצן),” aisselle in French, and so (Neh. 5:13): “Also I shook out my arm (חצני).”
Ibn Ezra
'With which... not' — for this grass has no benefit; and this is the opposite of: 'he shall surely come home with joy, bearing his sheaves' (Psalm 126:6). 'And his bosom' — like 'also my lap I shook out' (Nehemiah 5:13); and it is a verb. 'One who binds sheaves' — one who gathers the sheaves.
Radak
"With which... does not fill" — that is to say, it does not reach the stage of harvesting. "Nor his bosom with sheaves" — [i.e.,] one who gathers the sheaves. And it is the custom of passersby to say [a greeting] to the reapers:
Metzudat David
"With which... does not fill" — meaning, it never reaches the stage of reaping, for the reaper to fill his hand with it, in the manner of reapers, who fill their hand and reap all at once. "Nor his bosom with sheaves" — this refers back to "does not fill," stated at the beginning of the verse, to say that he does not fill his bosom; meaning, he does not fill the corner of his garment with sheaves, because they never reaped it at all.
Metzudat Zion
"His bosom" — the hem/fold of a garment is called "chotzen," also "I shook out my lap" (Nehemiah 5:13). "He who binds sheaves" — a bundle of stalks, as in "and have forgotten a sheaf" (Deuteronomy 23).
Malbim
'With which...not' — And the grass of the housetops, even if one hurries to pull it up before it withers, does not grow much, to the point 'that the reaper cannot fill his hand' to reap a full handful at one time, for it is scattered here and there; and even after gathering it from the whole roof, there is not found from the whole of it a quantity sufficient for the binder of sheaves to fill his bosom. So too, even while they [the wicked] still exist in their prosperity, all workers of iniquity will be scattered apart and will not form a single band.
Neither do those who go by say: ‘The blessing of Hashem be upon you; We bless you in the name of Hashem.'
verse value 2467
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 42 letters. Notable word values: "Hashem" (יְהֹוָֽה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "and·not" (וְלֹ֤א, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·blessing·of·Hashem" (בִּרְכַּֽת־יְהֹוָ֥ה, 8 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Psalms. Unique to this verse in Psalms (hapax): "the·passersby" (הָעֹבְרִ֗ים), "the·blessing·of·Hashem" (בִּרְכַּֽת־יְהֹוָ֥ה), "to·you" (אֲלֵיכֶ֑ם). 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Hashem" (root יהוה, 688x in Psalms); "and·not" (root לא, 174x in Psalms); "in·the·name·of" (root שם, 119x in Psalms). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·you', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְלֹ֤א [and·not] (37) + אָמְר֨וּ [say] (247) + הָעֹבְרִ֗ים [the·passersby] (327) + בִּרְכַּֽת־יְהֹוָ֥ה [the·blessing·of·Hashem] (648) + אֲלֵיכֶ֑ם [to·you] (101) + בֵּרַ֥כְנוּ [we·bless] (278) + אֶ֝תְכֶ֗ם [you] (461) + בְּשֵׁ֣ם [in·the·name·of] (342) + יְהֹוָֽה [Hashem] (26) = 2467.
Ibn Ezra
'Neither do those who go by say' — it is the custom of passersby to say to the reapers, 'Hashem bless [you with] what He has given you.' And the sense is that people do not praise [Hashem] for His Torah and faith in their heart, for there is no faith in them; therefore he likened Israel, the keepers of the Torah, to sowers, while the nations of the lands, the keepers of their vanities, he likened to the grass of the rooftops.
Radak
"The blessing of Hashem be upon you" — as Boaz said. And what he says, "we bless you in the name of Hashem," is a doubling of the same statement. And concerning the grass of the housetops, this would not be said, for it is not a seed of blessing and does not reach the stage of harvest; and the thanksgiving of Israel is compared to a seed of blessing.
Metzudat David
"Neither do those who go by say" — it is the way of passersby beside the reapers to say to them, "The blessing of Hashem be upon you; we bless you," etc. But concerning the grass of the housetops, passersby do not say such a thing, because it never reaches the stage of reaping. And like this grass shall the haters of Zion be, for they shall perish from the world before the days of old age come upon them.
Malbim
'Neither do those who go by say' — It is the way of passersby to bless the reapers: at a time when the grain is blessed [abundant], they say, 'The blessing of Hashem be upon you'; and at a time of drought they say, 'We bless you in the name of Hashem,' that the blessing may now take effect. But they [the wicked] will not be blessed by the passersby, for they will become an object of curse and not of blessing.
Ibn Ezra
Radak
Metzudat David
Malbim