Summer Pslams Project

Psalms Project Summer 5771 to 5772

After I finished my commentary, I wanted to reward myself and also to keep up my study chops. Therefore, this summer I have decided to study the psalms. I don't conceive of doing this in total. Nor at this time does my ambition extend to grammatical and hebrew studies. I am mostly doing personal meditations which I can build on in the future.

I completed a work on the Tikkun HaKlali of Rabbi Nachman (A group on ten psalms he thought especially meritiorious. It consists of psalms (16, 32, 41, 42, 59, 77, 90, 105, 137, 150).

Meditations on Tikkun HaKlali

I have also decided to post a work I did on the first ten psalms in 2003. Psalms 1-10 - This work is eight years old and I have changed a lot. I focuses mainly on esoteric ideas. It has many flaws.

I have been working on the following exploration of P'sukei D'Zimra as part of my intended project. It has been very fulfilling. I have stumbled apon many intersting Torah references, liturgical facts, and most importantly spent a good deal of time thinking of the Most High.

P'sukei D'zimra (The Verses of Song)
This is a liturgical work consisting mainly of psalms and blesssings. There are also a few passages from the Tanak.

The Order of the P'sukei D'zimra.
I plan to fill in each section over the summer but for the main I just copy/pasted the wikipedia. Click the psalm name or header to read my essays.

• Baruch Sheamar

• Pslam 30 - the Songs of thanksgiving

• Psalm 100 (omitted on Shabbat, Yom Tov, Erev Yom Kippur, Erev Passover, and Chol Hamoed Passover)

• The following psalms are recited on Shabbat, Yom Tov, and Hoshanah Rabbah only:

• Psalm 19

• Psalm 33

• Psalm 34

• Psalm 90

• Psalm 91

• Psalm 135

• Psalm 136

• Psalm 92

• Psalm 93


• Yehi Kivod
is a prayer recited daily during Pesukei Dezimra prior to Ashrei.

• Ashrei (Essays on Psalms 146-150 are below.)

• Hallel Hallel consists of six Psalms (113–118), which are said as a unit, on joyous occasions. On those occasions, Hallel is usually chanted aloud as part of Shacharit (the Morning Prayer service) following the Shacharit's Shemoneh Esreh.


• Baruch Hashem L'Olam
Baruch Adonai L'Olam is a paragraph recited during Shacharit in Pesukei Dezimra following Hallel. The paragraph consists verses beginning with the word Baruch (ברוך), Hebrew for Blessed, which states that G-d is a source of blessing. It is recited following Hallel as a way to relate Hallel to blessing.

The paragraph consists of four verses: Verse 53 from Psalm 89, verse 21 from Psalm 135, and verses 18-19 from Psalm 72.

The word Amen is recited twice in the first verse as an emphasis on this word. The word Amen can have three meanings: to accept a vow upon oneself, to acknowledge the truth of a statement, and the expression of hope that a prayer will come true.

not to be confused with another prayer called Baruch Adonai L'Olam that is recited during Maariv in the Ashkenazi tradition on weekdays immediately preceding the Amidah. It contains 18 verses followed by a blessing titled Yiru Eineinu (may our eyes see).

The prayer was composed during talmudic times when synagogues could not be built in residential areas, and when Maariv was held in open fields. Its 18 verses took the place of the 18 blessings of the Amidah. The Amidah would then be recited in full privately by participants when they returned to their homes.

This prayer is not recited on Shabbat and Yom Tov due to the prohibition against separating the Shema and its blessings from the Amidah on these days.


• Vayivarech David
is a prayer recited during Shacharit (morning prayers) in pesukei dezimra. It is composed of Verses 10-13 of Chapter 29 from Chronicles Book I.

• Pslams 146-149

• Psalm 150

• Ata Hu Hashem L'Vadecha
Atah Hu Adonai L'Vadecha is a series of verses recited during Shacharit, the morning prayers of Judaism, in pesukei dezimra. It is composed of verses 6-11 in Chapter 9 of Nechemiah.

The recitation of these verses was introduced in the 13th century by Rabbi Meir of Rothenburg. The custom to recite these verses, along with Vayivarech David (from Chronicles) prior to the Song of the sea is to recall miracles brought on by G-d at the Red Sea.

In most siddurim, this prayer appears as two separate paragraphs. What is interesting about this division is not the mere division, but that the split occurs in the middle of the third verse (Nechemiah 9:8). This is signifying Abraham's change of name from Abram to Abraham, elevating his status from the father of Aram to the father of a multitude of nations.

• Az Yashir
is a poem that appears in the Book of Exodus of the Hebrew Bible, at Exodus 15:1-18. It is followed in verses 20 and 21 by a much shorter song sung by Miriam and the other women. The Song of the Sea was reputedly sung by the Israelites after they crossed the Red Sea in safety, and celebrates the destruction of the Egyptian army during the crossing, and looks forward to their future conquest of Canaan.

The poem is included in Jewish prayer books, and recited daily in the morning shacharit services. The poem also comprises the first ode or hymn of the Eastern Orthodox canon, where it is known as the Song or Ode of Moses.

It is also used in the Roman Catholic liturgy, where it is sometimes known as the "Song of Moses" (not to be confused with the Song of Moses in Deuteronomy).The poem forms part of parshat Beshalach. It is one of only two sections of the Sefer Torah that is written with a different layout to the normal simple columns.
The alternating words are supposed to represent the two walls of the split sea with Israel walking down the middle. (The other section written differently is the Song of Moses at the end of Deuteronomy, in parshat Ha'azinu.)


• Nishmat (Shabbat and Yom Tov only)
Nishmat (נשמת or Nishmat Kol Chai, The breath of every living thing) is a Jewish prayer that is recited following the Song of the Sea during Pesukei D'Zimrah but before Yishtabach on Shabbat and Yom Tov. It is also recited during the Passover seder in some traditions[1]. The recitation of this prayer is not required by halakha in Judaism, but nevertheless, is prized by halakhic authorities because the concepts covered in this prayer are basic to Halakha.

Nishmat and Yishtabach are in some ways considered to be one long prayer, abridged just to Yishtabach on weekdays when there is no time to recite the entire prayer[3].

In this prayer, the word Nishmat (breath) that begins the prayer is related to the word neshama (soul), suggesting that the soul is part of the breath of all life[4]. The theme of the prayer is the uniqueness of G-d.

Some halakha can be derived from the prayer Nishmat. The commandment Do not lie idly by the blood of your neighbor requires a person to rescue another s/he sees is in danger. But from Nishmat, it can be seen that one who is not physically present where the danger is taking place is exempt from performing any rescue action. Some examples of this include the obligation to rescue a person from a burning building in one's own location, but an exemption from the obligation to donate an organ when doing so can save a life (though doing so is still permitted).

The Nishmat is considered one of the masterpieces of Jewish liturgy. It is seen as a journey of self-discovery, describing G-d as a source of prayer.

The existence of this prayer is believed to have been from early on. The Talmud attributes the prayer to Rabbi Yochanan in the third century, but there are opinions that it may be older.

Nishmat became a standard part of the liturgy by the time of Saadia Gaon.

The exact author of the prayer is not known. Some scholars have suggested that it was authored by a man named Yitzchak (יצחק, Isaac) with a wife named Rivka (רבקה, Rebecca) based on the acrostic arrangement of the verses, but others have dismissed this idea.

Some scholars have suggested that the author's name may have been Shimon (שמון, Simon) from an acrostic within the prayer, and have considered this could be Shimon ben Shetach or perhaps even Apostle Peter, whose Hebrew name was Shimon, which would place the date of authorship at around 100 BCE.

• Shochein Ad (Shabbat and Yom Tov only)
(Translated as He Who abides forever or He Who dwells in eternity) is a prayer recited toward the end of Pesukei Dezimra during the Shacharit service of Shabbat and Yom Tov, and during the Passover Seder. It is based on the verse from the Book of Isaiah 57:15

On Shabbat, Shochen Ad marks the beginning of the service for the chazzan of the Shacharit (following Pesukei Dezimra).

This is a sign of G-d's creation of the world during the other six days of the week, followed by Shabbat being a day of rest. On the Shalosh regalim, the chazzan begins the service on the previous verse known as Hakel B'tzatzumot (part of Nishmat), signifying miracles G-d performed associated with these holidays. On the High Holidays, the chazzan begins on the word Hamelekh within that verse, as during these days, an emphasis is placed on recognition of G-d as King[2]. It is also described in Sefer HaChaim that loudly chanting the word Hamelekh has the effect of driving away accusers from the throne of judgement. Additionally, the letter ? is dropped off the word ?????, alluding to the fact that now G-d is sitting on the throne[4].

After the verse Shochen Ad are four lines of three verses each. The second word in each of these verses begin with the Hebrew letters ?,?,?, and ?, giving rise to a theory that ???? (Yitzchak, Isaac) may be the name of the unknown author of this prayer[5]. On Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur only, the third words from each verse are rearranged from the regular order so the third letters of each of these words in order spell the name ???? (Rivka, Rebecca). This alludes to how Isaac and Rebecca (from the Book of Genesis) prayed together to have children.


• Yishtabach
is a prayer in the final portion of the Pesukei Dezimra morning prayers of Judaism known as shacharit, recited before the second kaddish leading to the Shema prayers.The theme of the number "fifteen" plays a pivotal role in the blessing; there are fifteen expressions conveying praise in the beginning half of the paragraph and fifteen words in the concluding blessing (after "Blessed are You, God..."). The number fifteen is an allusion both to the Divine Name ?? (whose gematria is fifteen) and to the fifteen Songs of Ascents composed by King David (Psalms 120–34).There are two themes of Yishtabach: God's power and might are deserving of our praise and adoration, and that one must continually praise God. Since Baruch Sheamar and Yishtabach are both blessings, this gives the sense that Pesukei Dezimra is one single prayer. Yishtabach is not recited unless Baruch Sheamar is recited, because Baruch Sheamar is the opening blessing, and Yishtabach is the closing blessing. Yishtabach is normally recited while standing. This is because Baruch Sheamar is recited while standing, and since Baruch Sheamar is the opening of Pesukei Dezimra and Yishtabach is the conclusion, they are both recited in the same manner.However, on Shabbat, some congregations have a custom to sit. The author of Yishtabach is not known to this day. But with words 2-5 in the prayer spelling ????? (Shlomo), this alludes to a reference to King Solomon.