Psalm 4:8-9 Conscious of G-d’s constant presence

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“נָתַתָּה שִׂמְחָה בְלִבִּי מֵעֵת דְּגָנָם וְתִירוֹשָׁם רָבּוּ.
בְּשָׁלוֹם יַחְדָּו אֶשְׁכְּבָה וְאִישָׁן כִּי אַתָּה יְהֹוָה לְבָדָד לָבֶטַח תּוֹשִׁיבֵנִי”

“You gave joy into my heart from the time that their corn and their wine increased.
In peace together, I would lie down and sleep, for You, O Lord, would make me dwell alone in safety.”

What makes us more satisfied than the falls of our opponents? Malicious joy.

King David finds joy and happiness even when his opponents are prospering. Obviously the joy doesn’t come because of them, but has to do with David’s realization, maybe mindset.

Being chased after by enemies that are strong and successful, David.. ‘lies down and sleep’ .
What is his secret for this serenity? – ..“for you, O Lord, would make me dwell alone in safety”.

Conscious of G-d’s constant presence, I can sleep peacefully feeling wholeness. Not afraid from any enemy, never troubled from attacks.  You, G-d are the only thing that really exist. When I know you put me in the place I am, in the condition and circumstances I face, there is no need to refer to those who chase after me and try to harm me.

 

We mentioned the phrase ..”Raise up over us the light of Your countenance, O Lord.” in the previous verse.

In the current verse (psalm 4:8-9), David shares his perspective to things that happen in his life. In this case, the subject is not ‘enlightenment’, but more ‘point of view’, perspective and consciousness to Hashem’s presence.

Briefly about ‘enlightenment’, meditation and the Buddha’s zen:

First, here is a summary from a Buddha colleague:

My teacher, Zenkai Taiun (Michael Elliston) Roshi explains the difference between enlightenment and awakening by saying that we are already enlightened in the first place.  In the Soto school of Zen, the practice of meditation is not considered a means to an end.  Enlightenment is the aspiration to clarify the problems of birth, death, selfhood, and suffering through the practice of meditation.
 
Awakening, on the other hand, is the undeniable realization of the truth of Buddhist teaching.
– There is a core difference between the Buddha meditation towards ‘enlightenment’ and the Jewish one that is mentioned few times in the Bible – G-D.
When the ‘Bnei Ha Nevi’im’, sons of the prophets were meditating in the time of the Bible, they praying and waited for Hashem to reveal himself to them, whereas in the Buddha there is no reference to any sort of G-d at all. The closest to that is one’s self, therefor the enlightenment comes from within the individual’s self.

Another meditation in Judaism (can be found in the time of the Talmud and more focused in the different branches of the Chasidut) is preparing oneself before starting the services. One might also see the structure of the Jewish services, which includes also first part of preparation / meditation – usually in the form of Psalms (psalm 144:15, P’sukei D’ Zimra).
This is not completely opposite to the meditation of the Buddha, described above. Although it is ‘preparation’ on the way to the services, it has also self-sufficient significance, so that a person is trying to form a change (in a good manner) within himself, so he will be ‘closer’ to G-d, this way will have better prayers. Still the change itself has an independent meaning.

Psalm 4:7 Real goodness

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“רַבִּים אֹמְרִים מִי יַרְאֵנוּ טוֹב נְסָה עָלֵינוּ אוֹר פָּנֶיךָ יְהֹוָה”

“Many say, “Who will show us goodness?” Raise up over us the light of Your countenance, O Lord.”

Many (most?) of the people ask G-d to show His goodness to them, so they will achieve as many desires they can have as possible.

“I”, say David, “ask otherwise”: I know my bliss is not dependent on external / material items, instead, by inner spiritual ones. “The light of your countenance, O Lord”.

– Spread your light upon us, so we will see our true inner self.
The emphasize is, that we usually think we know what is best for us, according to our feelings. David says, that the creator, who ‘invented’ us and our needs, He knows best what is the real good – even for us.

Question 1: Is this similar to the Buddha’s enlightenment?

Question 2: It is easy to say ‘G-d’s point of view’, but there is no reference whatsoever to what is this point of view that leads to peacefulness, stability and bliss.

Answer: It is mentioned two verses ahead (Psalm 4:9), there we will also look for the Buddhist’s approach.

Psalm 4:6 Sacrifices of righteousness

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“זִבְחוּ זִבְחֵי צֶדֶק וּבִטְחוּ אֶל יְהֹוָה”

“Offer up sacrifices of righteousness and trust in the Lord.”

“Sacrifices of righteousness” – Commandments of the Lord (Mitzvot), that are considered as offering up a sacrifice.
So, follow his paths and fulfill His laws, even though sometimes involves with.. some self sacrifices. Trust Him, it worth it.

Question: Doesn’t David means real animal sacrifices?

Answer: As explained, the meaning is good deeds. Following G-d’s commandments is considered as a regular animal sacrifice, this equalization is firm: the same way a person gives up his animal in order to make the offering , fulfilling G-d’s will involves overcoming one’s natural desires while doing what is right and good.

Question: Does it mean there shouldn’t be any more animal sacrifices?

Answer: No, Psalm 4:6 doesn’t talk at all about animal offerings. The Psalmist just uses the sacrifices as an allegory for giving up one’s will in order to to fulfill Hashem’s.

Psalm 4:5 Self examination prevents the sin and brings peace

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“רִגְזוּ וְאַל תֶּחֱטָאוּ אִמְרוּ בִלְבַבְכֶם עַל מִשְׁכַּבְכֶם וְדֹמּוּ סֶלָה”

“Quake and do not sin; say in your heart on your bed and be forever silent.”

A main ritual for the Buddah’s is the ‘meditation’. In a nut shell, by sitting and letting calmness overtake one’s self, the troubles and inconveniences of life are being observed (by themselves) in a way they just stop causing suffering any longer.

Psalm 4:5 suggests otherwise: Confront wrongness –> Will help you avoid sins in the future –> Reduces the bad side in general –>  Which brings peace to the world.

“Quake”, that is self examination and criticism.
Do daily self examination – ‘Did I do the right thing?’, ‘Were my intentions pure?’, ‘how can I improve’,
therefor you won’t sin – You know that by the end of the day, you’re going to face the mirror and will have to provide justifications to yourself,
by themselves, the false complaints towards HaShem will stop – The criticism leads to awareness of the source of wrong doing..  Eventually will the false complaints  disappear from the world. Selah.

Question: Why do you compare the Buddhist ‘Discomfort’ to the Jewish ‘Sin’?

Answer: The comparison is between the ‘Wrongness’ of each of the worlds. What is wrong for the Buddhist in this world is that people suffer (‘Dukah’) , whereas for us the source of good and bad, right and wrong – are absolute laws decided by the Creator himself.

Psalm 4:4 Arrogance VS Definition, ‘Armed with righteousness’

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“וּדְעוּ כִּי הִפְלָה יְהֹוָה חָסִיד לוֹ יְהֹוָה יִשְׁמַע בְּקָרְאִי אֵלָיו”

“You shall know that the Lord has set apart the pious man for Himself; the Lord shall hear when I call out to Him.”

Question: Was King David arrogance? Calling himself ‘pious’?

Answer: It is not just a title: ‘I am a pious person’. David knows HaShem will help him because his righteousness and being ‘pious’ – more than that, being aware of this fact, David even goes to battles that no other general will dare to participate in.

Explanation – Arrogance V.S Definition:

A proper definition of himself as a pious, allows King David go and win wars no other kings will be willing to endanger themselves with.
If it was a case of egotism and false pride, one would prevent himself of doing dangerous action. It is always a matter of self benefit. As opposed to a decent definition, that arms King David with confidence to go into battle, certain of the Lords aid.

Psalm 4:3 Honorable people who disgrace King David

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“בְּנֵי אִישׁ עַד מֶה כְבוֹדִי לִכְלִמָּה תֶּאֱהָבוּן רִיק תְּבַקְשׁוּ כָזָב סֶלָה”

“Sons of man, how long will my honor be disgraced? [How long] will you love futility? [How long] will you constantly seek lies?”

‘Sons of man’ is a literal translation, in biblical Hebrew though, when someone is referred as ‘Ish’, it usually means an honorable individual.

David addresses important and honorable people, not those who want to kill him physically nor reckless people, he addresses decent men who are trying to dishonor him with false claims and lies:
‘Why and for what purpose are you putting your efforts in humiliating me while spreading these lies?’ – Decent people who are trying to dishonor him.

I noticed two interesting issues:

– King David is not bothered by ”everyone’s word”, the emphasize is on honorable individuals.

– What bothers him is being dishonored by lies, rather than physical fright he’s sometimes in.

Psalm 4:2 King David’s life, is harmonious life, he can always sing

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“בְּקָרְאִי עֲנֵנִי אֱלֹהֵי צִדְקִי בַּצָּר הִרְחַבְתָּ לִּי חָנֵּנִי וּשְׁמַע תְּפִלָּתִי”

“When I call, answer me, O God of my righteousness; in my distress You have relieved me, be gracious to me and hearken to my prayer.”

..”A song of David..in my distress..”  Again the question arises, what room is there for songs, when the time is a time of distress?  and again, the answer lies within the question itself: King David continue singing even at the most complicated times and situations.

In music, harmony is the use of simultaneous pitches (tones, notes), or chords. (Malm, William P. 1996.).

Life, as the Torah teaches, can be described as a harmony. It includes many types of notes, high soprano along with low base.. distressful occasions and times of relief.

David sees things in a faithful perspective, seeing the positiveness of life, even in hard moments. Whenever there is nothing good to spot the light on, something good will be derived from the situation – King David’s life, is harmonious life, he can always sing.

We can also notice the faithful perspective in the way David articulates his prayers, a plea and request, rather than a demand of someone who exclaims he deserves something.

Question: What good did happen from David and Bat Sheva?

Retro-perspective, from this bad deed of Bat Sheva, in which David thirteen years later still cries about in the nights “I am weary from my sighing; every night I sully my bed; I wet my couch with my tears.” (Psalm 6:7), the one sin David admits all his life and refer as: “For I know my transgressions, and my sin is always before me.” (Psalm 51:5) – G-d turned this distress into a relief, from the awkward occurrence  King Solomon himself was born and a big relief to Israel.

 

Psalm 4:1 King David prepares for the Temple, even the Levite songs

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“לַמְנַצֵּחַ בִּנְגִינוֹת מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד”

“To the conductor with melodies, a song of David.”

Unfortunately, King David himself wasn’t able to see or be part of the actual building of the Beth Mikdash (The Temple). As David says in his will to his son Solomon, in Chronicles 1 22:7-10 :

“And David said to Solomon, “My son, as for me, it was in my heart to build a House in the name of the Lord my God. But the word of the Lord was upon me, saying: ‘You have shed much blood, and you have waged great wars; you shall not build a House in My Name because you have shed much blood to the ground before Me. Behold a son will be born to you; he will be a man of peace, and I shall give him peace from all his enemies around about, for Solomon will be his name, and I shall give peace and quiet to Israel in his days. He shall build a House in My Name, and he shall be to Me as a son, and I to him as a Father, and I shall prepare the throne of his kingdom forever.’ ”

Let’s have a broader look, historically, how we got to this situation of building the Temple of G-d.

The Israelites finished the first part of the journey, from the Exodus of Egypt through Mount Sinai, desert, towards Israel. At that point their leader changes from Moshe to his student, Yehoshua. During  Yehoshua’s time, the twelve tribes conquer most of the Land of Israel, while each tribe get his own portion of it and settles in.
The next era, is known as ‘The Judges’, describes more than once: “In those days (there was) no king in Israel; every man did what was right in his eyes.” . No real leadership. Each time a different enemy/nation attacks Israel, sometimes all of the Land is ruled by it’s enemies, moral corruption among Israel themselves..  Then came King Saul and puts an end to this bad era.
No more ‘short time judge’ who comes and saves the day. From now on, a kingdom with strong leadership.

King David gets a kingdom that is still surrounded by enemies. His life is full of wars and battles against all types, even within his family. Already long time before being a king, in his youth, David saves Israel’s dignity and kills Goliath.

From there on, he proceeds to destroy all the enemies, by that, brings the peace to The Land of Israel. David aims for more than that, his bigger and real inspiration is building the holy Temple for HaShem.

Indeed, as we opened this post with, King David himself wasn’t the one who built the Beth Mikdash, nevertheless, some of it he did..
Along with Samuel the prophet he made the plans, collected all money and materials needed for the construction, and… prepared the Levite for their role in the Mikdash and composed songs that will be sung there.

“To the conductor with melodies..”
Among these songs, is the following one, Psalm 4, “To the conductor with melodies, a song of David.”

 

Psalm 3:9 David’s wars are always for Israel

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“לַיהֹוָה הַיְשׁוּעָה עַל עַמְּךָ בִרְכָתֶךָ סֶּלָה”

“It is incumbent upon the Lord to save, and it is incumbent upon Your people to bless You forever.”

Lots of enemies fought against King David, never had he any prevention from fighting and killing them, by the thousands.
Here, it is all different. In his war against Absalom, the soldiers he’s facing are people of his own.

King David loves the Jewish people, he doesn’t want them defeated, although they chose Absalom. King David wishes the success and salvation of Israel, even though most of the people oppose and chase him.

“Salvation is the Lord’s, bless your people with it.” (A different translation for verse)

Psalm 3:7-8 Even though surrounded by tens of thousand, King David is never left alone

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.לֹא אִירָא מֵרִבְבוֹת עָם אֲשֶׁר סָבִיב שָׁתוּ עָלָי”
“.קוּמָה יְהֹוָה הוֹשִׁיעֵנִי אֱלֹהַי כִּי הִכִּיתָ אֶת כָּל אֹיְבַי לֶחִי שִׁנֵּי רְשָׁעִים שִׁבַּרְתָּ

“I will not fear ten thousands of people, who have set themselves against me all around.
Arise, O Lord, save me, my God, for You have struck all my enemies on the cheek; You have broken the teeth of the wicked.”

Never mind how social a person is, how many friends he’s got, that will always be willing to come to his aid, there are many times it seems to us we’re being left alone. I have daily appointments with such people in these occasions of their lives. Sometime to get over this, is a matter just of catharsis, for others it is meditation, approval or a piece of advice..
For me, the occasion I felt this terrible solemness in it’s Biggest tensity, was during the 2006 Lebanon war.
In a war, never mind how many warriors you fight with, in due time you are by your own (the fellow soldier, camouflages five meters beside you, fills exactly the same..).

In the midst of the his battles, In these times of complete loneliness, David finds his comfort with the Lord. The One who stands in war beside King David is G-d himself.

With this strong belief “I will not fear ten thousands of people”.

 

Question: What is “..for You have struck all my enemies on the cheek; You have broken the teeth of the wicked.“?

Answer: It is a strike with humiliation and disgrace.