Psalms · Psalm 87

"whose foundation is on the mountains of the Sanctuary" — The foundation of this psalm; the Psalmist founded it on the mountains of Zion and Jerusalem.

"Of the sons of Korah, a psalm, a song" — [composed] by one of the grandsons of Samuel, or by one of his sons' sons [descendants]; and the main subject of this psalm is "his foundation is in the holy mountains."

"Of the sons of [Korah]" — I have already explained at the beginning of the second book the reason for "of the sons of Korah." And this psalm, on the praise of Zion, David composed and gave to the sons of Korah to sing; or he [one of the sons of Korah] composed it on his own. And the meaning of "His foundation" — the foundation of the song is "in the holy mountains," which is Jerusalem. And he said "mountains," in the plural, because Mount Zion is one and Mount Moriah, which is the Temple Mount, is another; or he said so on account of the mountains adjacent to Jerusalem. And he mentions

"His foundation" — the foundation of this song is to speak of the praises of the holy mountains, which are Zion and Jerusalem.

"Of the sons of Korach" — this speaks in praise of Zion and the people who are in it, as it says, "His foundation is in the holy mountains."

"Loves" — the gates [of Zion], which are more honored than all the dwellings [of Jacob]. And the sense is: to dwell in them; and afterward he mentions Jerusalem.

"Zion" — for it is the place of kingship, and Jerusalem is included within it. "loves" — He says "the gates of," because the elders and the sages sit in the gates; and he says that although He loves all the dwellings of Jacob, nevertheless He loves the gates of Zion more, because they are the sages and those who occupy themselves with the service of God, may He be blessed.

"[More than] all the dwellings" — for even though all the Land of Israel is beloved to the Omnipresent, nevertheless the gates of Zion are more beloved before Him than all of them.

(2-3) "Hashem loves the gates of Zion" — "glorious things are spoken of you" — meaning, we can already perceive the virtue of a person, a nation, or a place through the disparagement and fault that people attach to it; for the disparagement cast upon an honored and distinguished person will sometimes actually be praise and merit for a lesser, inferior person. For example, people speak disparagingly of a generous man, saying that for the redemption of captives he gave only a tenth of his wealth, and did not give a fifth of his wealth — whereas if a miser were to give such a gift, they would praise him for it. So from this very disparagement it becomes evident that he is generous, and that his way is always to give lavishly. Now, the nations used to speak disparagingly of Zion and Israel regarding the fact that Hashem forbade the high places and commanded that sacrifices be offered only in Jerusalem; from this they said that Hashem's love for Israel and His Presence dwelling among them is not for their own sake — for if it were, He would accept their worship in all the dwellings of Jacob. And since Hashem "loves only the gates of Zion," which He loved "more than all the dwellings of Jacob," it is clear, [so they said,] that He does not love Israel so very much — and this, in their view, is a disparagement of them. And the sense of the verse is: that which "is spoken of you" as disparagement (for the verb that is followed by the letter bet indicates disparaging speech everywhere it is used) is: "Hashem loves the gates of Zion more than all the dwellings of Jacob" — that on this account they speak disparagingly of you, [saying] that Hashem does not love the dwellings of Jacob for their own sake. "Behold, glorious things are spoken of you": this disparaging speech is, for you, glory and great honor. For through this very disparagement they inadvertently admit that you are "the city of God," that in you Hashem chose to dwell — and this is great honor, that in you God dwells upon the earth permanently, and that through you the Divine Presence dwells permanently among Israel. "Selah" concludes the matter.

"Glorious things are said about you" — You, Jerusalemwords of glory were spoken about you from the mouth of the Holy One, blessed be He. Now what are the words of glory? That you are the city of God forever.

"Glorious things" — every one of the glorious praises spoken of you, O city of God, is in truth — and that [city] is Jerusalem.

"Glorious things are spoken" — of those who dwell in you; or its meaning is: glorious excellences are spoken about you, that you are superior to all lands in many things. For the inhabited world is divided into seven parts, and in the middle part is Jerusalem, and it is in the middle of the inhabited world; therefore its air is good and well-blended, more than all other airs, for the health of the body and for wisdom, as he said in Psalm 48, "Beautiful in situation, the joy of the whole earth." "city of God. Selah" — for God chose to have His glory dwell there.

"Glorious things" — and this is because glorious things are spoken about you, O Zion, for the Sanhedrin sits in you and engages in Torah study, and therefore you are called the city of God forever.

"I will remind Rahab and Babylon of My beloved ones" — This too He spoke of You: I shall remind Egypt and Babylon of My beloved ones, to bring them as a gift, as the matter that is stated (Isa. 66: 20): “And they will bring all your brethren, etc., a tribute to the Lord.” "Behold Philistia and Tyre with Cush" — They too, like Egypt and Babylon, will direct their attention to seek out and to remember each one. "“This one was born there”" — This one was of a family of those born in Zion, as the matter that is stated (Isa. 27:12): “and you will be gathered one by one.”

"I will mention" — these are the words of the poet: "I will mention Rahab" — that is Egypt, [as in the phrase] "that hews Rahab"; or "Rahab" is in construct with every nation, in the manner of "and drunk, but not with wine" — as if he said: "I will mention Rahab of whatever nation there may be, with Babylon among them"; I mention this to those who know as I do, and I will also mention Philistia together with Tyre. And the sense of "this one was born there" is that only occasionally, over many years, is a wise man born among them who becomes known in his generation — one who has a name [reputation].

"Rahab" — this is Egypt. And he says thus: when I make mention, to those who know Me, of the great nations among the peoples, I will not see among them anything like Zion. And he says "to those who know" — meaning, to those who know the excellence of Zion. And "to those who know" [the pronoun/suffix] may refer to Zion, or the pronoun may refer to the psalmist, and its meaning is: to those who know Zion as I do. "this one was born there" — in all these great nations, if there should be in one of them a wise man

"I will make mention" — he spoke in the place of Hashem: in the future I will make mention of Egypt and Babylon among those who know Me and love Me, to bring them to Zion; behold, so too I will make mention of Philistia, etc., to bring them there, for it will be said, was this one not born there, in Zion? That is to say, the lineage of his ancestors is from Zion, and therefore they returned him to his place.

"Rahab" — this is Egypt, as it is said of them, "Rahab, they that sit still" (Isaiah 30:7); and they are called so on account of their pride, from the language of "the youth shall behave insolently against the elder" (Isaiah 3:5). "Among those who know Me" — its meaning is beloved and cherished, as in "and call understanding your kinswoman" (Proverbs 7:4).

"I will make mention" — he explains two differences between the people of the city of Zion and the people of another city or nation. First: regarding the collective as a whole. For with every other people, not every individual person among the particular members of the nation contributes to the perfection of the nation as a whole — I mean, that although it is among the conditions of a nation or collective that many individuals are found in it, nevertheless, if one person were missing, the name "people" and "nation" would not be lacking from it — just as if one kernel of wheat were missing from a stack of grain, this lack would not be felt by the stack as a whole. Not so the individuals and collective of the people of Zion, who are comparable to the individual limbs of a living body: if one limb is missing, it is a defect and a lack to the whole body. So too, every single person completes the perfection of the collective, and if one person is missing, the lack will be felt by the collective. And this is what [the verse] means: if I come to mention, to those who know them, the general character of some other nation, Rahab or Babylon, I will not mention the individual persons dwelling in it, but rather, "I will mention Rahab and Babylon to those who know Me" — I will mention the collective in general, not its individual members and persons, for the nation will already be at the height of its completeness even if one person is missing. Likewise, if I come to mention who was born in the land of the Philistines, or Tyre, or Cush, on whose account its inhabitants become a nation, I will not mention individual persons by name; rather I will say only, "this one was born there," regarding Philistia and Tyre together with Cush — that there a nation of Philistia, or a nation of Tyre, or a nation of Cush, was born. Not so if I wish to mention who it is that made Zion into a great nation and a distinguished people — then, "of Zion it shall be said, each and every man (who) was born in her" — then I must mention every single individual person found in her, for every individual person completes the nation as a whole, just as every individual limb completes the body of a living creature, each one being necessary for the completeness of the body. "And He" — meaning, and this individual person — "shall establish her," so that she will be "Most High" — for through each and every one of her people, completeness and elevation is added to the people of Zion as a whole. Second: there is a further difference between them regarding the individual persons themselves. For besides the fact that the individual members of the people of Israel are elevated in that each one contributes to the perfection of the whole collective, they have a further advantage in that each individual person by himself is considered as an entire nation and a complete collective; and this is why it says, "Hashem shall count, when He records the peoples, this one was born there" — an individual person born in Zion, Hashem will count him in the record of peoples as if he were an entire nation by himself, for they are not counted as individuals, but as whole nations. "Selah" concludes the matter.

"And to Zion it will be said, “Man after man was born in her”" — And when they bring them as a tribute to the Lord, it will be said to Zion concerning each one, “This is [one] of those who were exiled from you,” or “from their generations.” Another explanation: The Psalmist says, “I will mention to my people and to my beloved ones the greatness of Egypt and Babylon, whose greatness they now see. Behold Philistia and Tyre with Cush, because they are near Rahab and Babylon, all the nations exalt them [the Israelites] and say about them, ‘This one was born there,’ in Egypt or Babylon.” "And to Zion it will be said, “Man, etc.”" — And this praise that is now [directed] to Rahab and Babylon will be turned around to Zion, and concerning it they will say, “So-and-so and so-and-so were born in her.” "and He will establish it on high" — And the Holy One, blessed be He, will establish it above all the cities.

"But of Zion" — and concerning Zion, the [prefix] lamed is like [the lamed in] "say of me, my brother" — he will always say, "this man and that man was born in her," for the wise men who have a name [reputation, born there] are many. And the sense of "this man and that man" is: not this one alone. "He shall establish her" — in the manner of: "and he commanded me, my brother" — and behold, "and He, the Most High, establishes her," because the [divine] Name functions with the force of the verbs, and its meaning is [that it refers back to] the Name mentioned above: "Hashem loves the gates of Zion." "He shall establish her" — related to "machon" [established place], "Most High." And the sense is: a place such as this, where many wise men are born, Hashem will set firm and establish.

"But of Zion" — but of Zion it will be said, "this man and that," [meaning] born in her — of many sages a person will be able to say that they were born in her, and always, at every period, there will be found in her many sages, great and renowned. "and the Most High Himself establishes her" — like "and He, the Most High, establishes her," meaning: God, who is Most High over all and who formed the whole world, formed and established this place for praise above all other places. Or its meaning is by way of prayer: may the Most High establish this city and make it endure for many years.

"But of Zion it shall be said" — the herald will bring good tidings to Zion, and it will be said to her: behold, every single man who was born in her has been brought back. "And He" — the One who has the power to establish it, He will establish it to be supreme.

"The Lord counts in the script of the peoples, “This one, etc.”" — This is a transposed verse, and סלה, forever, which is said at the end, refers to the beginning: When the Lord counts in the script of the peoples forever. That means that in the future, when the Holy One, blessed be He, inscribes the nations for an abhorrence, He will count the Israelites who are assimilated among them and those who were coerced [to abandon Judaism] among them and extract them from their midst, and [He shall] say, “This one was born of those of Zion,” and He will choose them for Himself. This is what Isaiah says (66:21): “And from them, too, will I take for priests and for Levites.” From the nations bringing them for tribute, I shall take those assimilated among them. And there will be among them priests and Levites who are unrecognizable, but they are revealed to Me, says the Lord. Now where did He say it? (Deut. 29:28) “The secret things belong to the Lord, our God.”

"Hashem" — the sense is that Hashem alone knows the number of the whole world in His register, and He is able to count all who are born who are wise in Zion, for they are too numerous for a man to count. "This one was born there" — refers back to Zion. And the sense of "in the register" is: the Name and the books [registers] — they are [related to] "the heavens."

"Hashem will count" — this is a matter of writing/recording; that is to say, when God, may He be blessed, wrote down the peoples, [determining] which of them would have sages of whom it would be said, "this one was born there," He wrote of this place for praise, that there would be many sages there — and the writing is His decree. And this verse follows the pattern of "When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He separated the children of man, He set the borders of the peoples according to the number of the children of Israel" (Deuteronomy 32:8).

"Hashem shall count, etc." — at the time when He writes [the register of] the peoples, He will then count Israel who are absorbed among them, and He will sort them out and say: is this one not from the children of the Hebrews of old, from the days of his ancestors, who were born in Zion — and they are Mine?

"And singers as well as flute players" — concerning this. "with you" — With your salvation. "as well as flute players" — Heb. כחללים, an expression of (Jud. 21:21) בַּמְחֹלוֹת, musical instruments.

"And singers, in You" — addressed to the man of God; and there [in Zion] are singers and dancers who never cease, like "springs of water"; and [the word] "ma'yanai" [my springs] is [formed] like [the word] "atzilei yadai" [the joints of my hands]. And it is the way of the world for singers to be fewer than dancers; but the singers of Zion are like the dancers, and the grammatical pattern of "chol'lim" [dancers] is like [that of] "I said to the revelers."

"And singers" — the singers and the flute-players, all of them will sing Your praise, for I too will make all my "wellsprings" flow toward You — meaning, all the wellsprings of my heart, for my heart, whose source pours forth, [flows with] songs about You. Or the meaning of "my wellsprings" is: my contemplation and my attentiveness are toward You. "like flute-players" — and the kaf [prefix] is like the kaf in "portion like portion they shall eat" (Deuteronomy 18:8), like "these as these" [a comparative kaf] — and all of them will respond concerning You and sing about You. "and flute-players" — they are those who play on flutes.

"And singers" — then they will sing like those who play on flutes, and they will say: all my contemplation and my gaze and my hope are in You.

"They sing" — from the language of shirah ("song"). "As flute-players" — the name of a musical instrument, like the tof ("drum") and chalil ("flute") (Isaiah 5:12). "My thoughts" — from the language of iyun ("contemplation") and machashavah ("thought").

"And singers" — after he explained the virtues found for the dwellers of Zion above other peoples, he says that when the nation sings its songs with flutes and musical instruments, then they sing out, saying, "All my springs are in You" — that these springs of salvation are all in You; it is Zion that is the source from which these springs flow, and the abundance of stature and glory found among the people dwelling in Zion.