The following verses from a daily morning psalm convey a comforting message regarding our future personal renewal:
“The Builder of Jerusalem is Hashem; He will gather in the dispersed of
“Who binds up their sorrows” – The Malbim, a noted biblical commentator of the 19th century, explains that this is referring to the sorrow within the heart, for in place of the sorrow, there will be joy and gladness.
When Hashem will fully rebuild
“The One Who counts the number of the stars, to all of them He assigns names.” (Verse 4)
In order to begin to understand the healing and comforting message of this metaphor, we need to refer to a Divine promise to “Avraham Avinu” – Abraham, our father – regarding his chosen descendants who would inherit the Promised Land. Hashem told Avraham to gaze at the stars and then said to him:
“So shall your offspring be!” (Genesis 15:5)
The Malbim explains that this particular Divine promise which compares these descendants to the stars cannot just be referring to quantity, since Hashem already told Avraham that these descendants will be numerous like “the dust of the earth” (Genesis 13:16). According to the Malbim, the comparison to the stars is therefore emphasizing the “quality” of these descendants. The Malbim writes:
“Each one of them will be an important world as an individual, and will be counted as an individual, just as Hashem counts the stars, for each star is a world within itself.”
This explanation of the Malbim can help us to understand why the psalm states that “the Healer of the brokenhearted and the One Who binds up their sorrows” is “the One Who counts the number of the stars, to all of them He assigns names.” The healing of our broken hearts will take place when the Healing One gives each of us the joyous awareness that each of us is a “star” – a unique world. The following truth about ourselves will then be fully revealed:
Just as each star is a unique world with a name that expresses its unique purpose within creation, so too, each of us is a unique world with a name that expresses our unique purpose within the creation.
During the long exile, our hearts became broken as a result of the great suffering we experienced as a people and as individuals; moreover, this great suffering caused many of us to forget our true spiritual worth and greatness. In the age of the great ingathering in
In this spirit, I will cite a commentary of Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch on the following statement which Moshe proclaimed to our people before we entered the Promised Land:
“Hashem, your God, has multiplied you, and you are now like the stars of heaven in multitude.” (Deuteronomy 1:10)
Rabbi Samson Raphael Hirsch finds in the above statement the following additional insight:
“It appears, however, that there is additional significance to Moshe’s comparison of the multitude of the people with the host of heaven. Thereby he intends to negate the erroneous notion that the ‘people’ in its totality is considered just a numberless mass in which the individual has no importance. Rather, the people’s multitudes are like the stars of heaven: Although they are countless, there is independent significance to each individual; each one is a ‘world unto himself,’ has his own value, and is under God’s providence.
As we await the approaching redemption, we can find strength and comfort in the following verse from a psalm which we chant on Shabbos morning:
“Hashem is close to the brokenhearted; and those crushed in spirit, He saves.” (Psalm 34:19)
“And those crushed in spirit, He saves” – For their inner spirit is crushed through inner distress or through their transgressions (commentary of the Malbim).
Have a Good, Sweet, and Comforting Shabbos,
Yosef Ben Shlomo Hakohen (See below)
A Related Teaching:
I found the following explanation of the metaphor of the “stars” in Sha’arei Aharon – an anthology of commentaries on the Torah: According to a noted 19th century biblical commentator, known as KeSav V’HaKabbalah, the Divine promise to Avraham which compared his descendants to the stars is referring to “the quality of the stars that give light to the earth and its inhabitants”; thus, it is written:
“The wise will shine like the radiance of the firmament, and those who teach righteousness to the multitudes like the stars, forever and ever.” (Daniel 12:3)
Just as the stars give light to the inhabitants of the earth, so too, the members of the chosen people that descend from Avraham are to give light to the inhabitants of the earth through their teaching of Torah. The Prophet Isaiah therefore conveyed to our people the following Divine promise regarding our role in
Hazon – Our Universal Vision: www.shemayisrael.com/publicat/hazon
Tuesday and Wednesday, August 11th, are the two days of Rosh Chodesh, the beginning of the new Hebrew month of Elul. This is a very special month in the Jewish year as it is the month preceding Rosh Hashanah (which begins Wednesday evening, September 8th). Jewish cosmology teaches us that each season of the year has a special spiritual opportunity for success. For instance, Passover is the time to work on freedom and Sukkot is the time to work on joy. Elul is the time to work on personal growth.
Elul, spelled in Hebrew letters, is the acronym for the words, "I am to my beloved, my beloved is to me" (ani l'dodi v'dodi li -oftentimes it will be inscribed on the inside of an engagement ring). The month of Elul is a time of heightened spirituality where the Almighty is, as it were, closer and more approachable. It is a time of introspection and preparation for Rosh Hashanah. It is a time to do a spiritual audit and to fix up your life.
To help you prepare for Rosh Hashanah, the Day of Judgment, here are questions for you to ask yourself and discuss with family and friends. They are an excerpt from a fabulous and indispensable book, The Rosh Hashanah/Yom Kippur Survival Kit, written by Aish HaTorah alumnus Rabbi Shimon Apisdorf.
- When do I most feel that my life is meaningful?
- Those who mean the most to me - have I ever told them how I feel?
- Are there any ideals I would be willing to die for?
- If I could live my life over, would I change anything?
- What would bring me more happiness than anything else in the world?
- What are my three most significant achievements since last Rosh Hashanah?
- What are the three biggest mistakes I've made since last Rosh Hashanah?
- What project or goal, if left undone, will I most regret next Rosh Hashanah?
- If I knew I couldn't fail, what would I undertake to accomplish in life?
- What are my three major goals in life? What am I doing to achieve them? What practical steps can I take in the next two months towards these goals?
- If I could only give my children three pieces of advice, what would they be?
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