The chapter before us deals with the attribute of justice and uprightness of the Holy One, Blessed be He. According to the Radak, its primary focus is the era of the Redemption, when the Holy One, Blessed be He, will be revealed and will judge with uprightness all the nations that oppressed Israel. During the chapter, the right to speak is, as it were, given to "Uprightness" itself, which rebukes the boastful and the wicked. In this lesson, we will examine the verses from "When I seize the appointed time" through "For God is the Judge; He brings down one and raises up another," exploring multiple interpretations - each with its own profound lesson.
כִּי אֶקַּח מוֹעֵד אֲנִי מֵישָׁרִים אֶשְׁפֹּט׃ - "When I seize the appointed time, I will judge with equity."
In one sense, mo'ed is related to stumbling and falling: as it were, the Holy One, Blessed be He, does not fall on His own, but people cause Him to "slip" and fall - when they act deceitfully. "When I take a stumble" - I endure, as it were, stumbling and being brought down by those who cause Me to fall, and concerning this, "I will judge with equity."
The author of Devar Avraham, in his collection of homilies, in a discourse for the festival of Shavuos, explains our verse in a completely different way: a person cannot judge uprightly before he "takes time" (yikach mo'ed). The meaning is that when we witness a particular event, we view it in isolation, from a single vantage point, and judge according to that - and this is a mistake. To judge a matter properly, one must see what came before, what will follow afterward, and only then render judgment.
For example: suppose we step into a room for a brief moment and see someone slapping his fellow. At first glance, we would view this in a very negative light. But if we were shown what happened beforehand and what happened afterward, we would gain perspective and understand that what was done was done justly and uprightly - without, Heaven forbid, encouraging violence. In any case, we would understand that it was the proper thing to do.
A person must internalize: you can never judge uprightly unless you "take time." "Taking time" means grasping the full continuum of time - what happened in the past, what will happen in the future - and only then will you understand what is unfolding. How much more so when trying to comprehend divine Providence! When a person looks through a narrow window and attempts to understand why the tragedy in Meron occurred, may Hashem have mercy, claiming forty-five lives - can one possibly understand such a thing? You are looking through a narrow aperture. You do not see the time that preceded it, nor do you see the time that is yet to come; you lack the broader perspective and the complete knowledge of reality in its entirety.
This is akin to the famous parable of the Chofetz Chaim: a person enters a synagogue and sees the gabbai calling people up to the Torah from different corners of the room each time, and he immediately begins to criticize. Had you been here for two or three months, you would understand the system and realize that everything is calculated and planned. So too here: a person must "take time," says the Devar Avraham, and through this, he can understand where everything is leading. But if you do not look at the time before and the time after, you certainly cannot judge uprightly or comprehend the ways of Hashem.
Here there is a very famous insight cited in the name of the Chida, which is also mentioned in other works, such as Binah Le'ittim and others. The Chida says: a person always has an excuse for why he does not engage in Torah study. He is preoccupied, overwhelmed with work, does not even have time to breathe - there are always excuses. Yet when Shabbos arrives, what do you see? He sleeps from dawn until dusk. After all, he is exhausted; he worked hard all week. To this, the Holy One, Blessed be He, says: I will judge the sincerity of your weekday Torah study - when? At the mo'ed. On Shabbos and Yom Tov, you are free from the burdens of earning a livelihood; what do you do then?
If you make use of every moment, run to the beit midrash, open a book, and say, 'I must make up for lost time; I have no time all week, but now I do' - then 'I will judge with equity': I will judge you favorably, seeing that all week you were indeed too preoccupied to engage in Torah. This does not absolve a person from engaging in Torah study, but the attitude toward him will be more lenient. But when a person gets up on Shabbat, or on Yom Tov, and squanders his time - Hashem says: Then I will judge you with equity, strictly according to justice, for all the neglect of Torah throughout the entire week and the entire year. Through the appointed time (*mo'ed*) that I take, through it 'I will judge with equity.'
The holy Shelah cites in the name of his father, as also mentioned in the *Me'am Lo'ez*, explaining homiletically: 'When I take an appointed time' (*ki ekach mo'ed*) - when a legal case comes before me and I take an appointed time, meaning I take a pause and do not render judgment precipitously. I do not immediately declare, 'Such is the halachah, this one is liable and that one is exempt,' but rather proceed with deliberation - and then 'I will judge with equity,' for only then do you truly judge with integrity.
However, one who insists on shooting from the hip - often regarding him is fulfilled: 'I said in my haste, all men are deceitful' (Tehillim 116:11): when you are hasty, you arrive at falsehood. People who come to consult the Gedolei Yisrael see this tangibly: when you come to ask a great Torah sage, he does not fire off an immediate answer. You see him deliberate, perhaps ask a few clarifying questions beforehand, and only then indicate where his opinion leans. Take your time, do not rush - and through this you will be able to judge with equity.
In the sefer *Neveh Tehilla*, which is also cited in the *Me'am Lo'ez*, another allusion is brought: the verse comes to teach that a judge should not preside over a matter that touches upon himself. As the Gemara relates regarding a man whose tree was leaning into the public domain. The residents of the public domain came before Rabbi Yannai to demand that he cut down the tree. He told them: Come back tomorrow. The next day he ruled that he must cut it down. They asked him: Why did the master not tell us this yesterday? It turned out that on that very day, he ran and cut down his own leaning tree. For how could he tell another person to cut down his tree when he himself owned such a tree? Would he act deceitfully, preaching one thing and doing the opposite?
If I say something, I must practice what I preach. And this is 'When I take an appointed time': first of all, I take time to rectify what I myself need to rectify, and only then 'I will judge with equity' regarding what you are doing, and I will be able to tell you that your conduct is improper - because I corrected myself first. And this is what Chazal said: ''Gather yourselves together, yes, gather' (*hitkosheshu vakoshu*) - from here they derived: 'Adorn [correct] yourself, and then adorn others.'' First correct yourself, and then correct others; for if not, they will say to you: Before you tell me, 'Cast out the splinter from between your teeth,' cast out the beam from between your eyes!
And regarding this we say: before a person rebukes his fellow - 'Let us search our ways and examine them' (*nachpesah deracheinu venachkorah*). If first of all 'let us search our ways,' if you corrected yourself first, then *nach korah* (the beam rests / is set aside) - you have preempted the claim of 'cast out the beam.' They will not say to you, 'Cast out the beam,' but rather *nach korah*. First of all let us search our ways; correct yourself, and then correct others.
נְמֹגִים אֶרֶץ וְכָל־יֹשְׁבֶיהָ אָנֹכִי תִכַּנְתִּי עַמּוּדֶיהָ סֶּלָה׃ - The earth and all its inhabitants dissolve; it is I Who set up its pillars, Selah.
Chazal interpret the verse as referring to the Giving of the Torah: 'The earth and all its inhabitants dissolve' - for the Holy One, blessed be He, made a stipulation with Creation that if Israel does not accept the Torah, the world will return to chaos and void (*tohu vavohu*). But when Israel said, 'We will do and we will hear' - 'it is I Who set up its pillars.' The Metzudat David explains further: I established the pillars of the earth to keep them standing forever, Selah, because I accepted the Torah. And now we can understand what is written: 'The earth trembled, the heavens also dropped' (Shoftim 5:4) - why did the earth tremble? Lest Israel fail to accept the Torah; and once they accepted it, the earth became tranquil.
The Radak explains according to his approach that the chapter speaks of the time of the ultimate Redemption: when Hashem is revealed and judges with equity all the nations that oppressed us, then 'the earth and all its inhabitants dissolve' - they will shake and tremble upon seeing the retribution Hashem will exact upon the nations on Israel's behalf. And then they will recognize that 'it is I Who set up its pillars' - by My will the earth stands, and by My will it dissolves. And what are its 'pillars'? The mountains. As it were, the pillars of the earth, the mountains, will shake, as Yeshayahu says in chapter 24, 'The earth is utterly broken down.' And through this, dread and terror will fall upon them when Hashem calls them to judgment for how they oppressed us.
אָמַרְתִּי לַהוֹלְלִים אַל־תָּהֹלּוּ וְלָרְשָׁעִים אַל־תָּרִימוּ קָרֶן׃ - I said to the revelers: "Do not act insolently!" and to the wicked: "Do not raise your horn!"
Rashi explains that holelim (revelers) refers to the wicked who confound and confuse Israel, who afflict Israel to disturb and destroy them - from the root meaning turmoil and confusion. Radak explains that "I said" is the voice of the psalmist, Asaph. And who are the revelers? Those who indulge in the pleasures of this world and revel in wild recklessness; they do not fear God, thinking, "My power and the might of my hand have gained me this wealth." To them, Asaph the psalmist says: Do not act insolently; do not engage in wanton folly.
And to the wicked as well, I say: Do not raise your horn. The expression "to raise a horn" is drawn from an ox, which lifts its horn upward when it prepares to gore. To the wicked, he says: Do not lift your head upward to gore against Heaven, acting as though you neither fear nor submit before Hashem, thinking that Hashem is not the One granting you goodness, but rather "my own power made me this wealth" - do not raise a horn to gore against the Creator, blessed be He. Metzudat Tziyon explains that keren (horn) denotes rule and strength, for the horn represents might. This is what we request in the prayers, "May He raise the horn of His people" - that the Holy One, blessed be He, should strengthen the sovereignty and might of Israel.
The Malbim explains that these words, too, are spoken by uprightness and equity (meisharim). Uprightness itself is granted the floor, so to speak, and it is the one declaring: "I said to the revelers, do not act insolently." And what is this uprightness (yosher)? It is something planted deep inside every human heart, finding its voice through the conscience. The Holy One, blessed be He, created man with inner uprightness; when a person does something improper, then as long as he has not completely worn down his conscience, he feels ashamed of what he did, even if he hides it outwardly.
The caveat "as long as he has not worn down his conscience" is intentional, for a person can erode his conscience until he completely forgets what uprightness is, and then, if someone performs an upright deed, it will appear strange and distorted to him. We are speaking here of a person who has still preserved the basic foundations of upright conduct; such an individual, even if he does something wrong, will feel uncomfortable with himself. This is what is known as pangs of conscience.
And what are these pangs of conscience? The Malbim explains: this is the inner uprightness that the Holy One, blessed be He, planted within humanity. The soul of every human being was created with an innate love of uprightness and justice etched into the heart; therefore, when a wicked person swerves from equity, he is acting against his very nature - for "God made man upright." What happens then? The pangs of conscience arise, and they themselves steer him back toward the good. This is why Chazal taught that the wicked are filled with regrets: they are continuously doing wrong, while uprightness, justice, and conscience relentlessly gnaw at them.
The Hebrew word matzpon (conscience) comes either from tzafun (hidden) - because it is hidden deep within the human heart - or from the idea of a matzpen (compass), for the conscience is meant to serve as a compass so that a person does not lose his bearing (his "north," tzafon), knowing the straight and proper path. The quality of uprightness hidden within him acts as a compass guiding him onto the right way.
According to this, Uprightness poetically proclaims: "It is I who said to the revelers, do not act insolently; I am the one chastising and rebuking them. It is I who say to the wicked, do not raise your horn, do not raise your horn on high, do not speak with a haughty neck." When one sees the wicked take to heart that their actions are unjust and desire to improve, when one sees them suffering anguish of the soul so that they do not revel nor lift their horn against Heaven - what moves them to feel this? Uprightness declares: "It is I. The nature of uprightness planted in their souls is what causes them not to revel, not to raise their horn." The uprightness embedded in human nature is what chastises man and restores him to the right path.
אַל־תָּרִימוּ לַמָּרוֹם קַרְנְכֶם תְּדַבְּרוּ בְצַוָּאר עָתָק׃ - Do not raise your horn on high; do not speak with an arrogant neck.
The Ibn Ezra explains: "Do not lift up your horn" - do not exalt yourselves over your peers, over people who are like you. And not only do you lift up your horn against your peers, but even against those who are greater than you: "[do not] speak with an arrogant neck," similar to "he runs at him with an outstretched neck," meaning arrogance issues forth from your mouth - lofty, haughty words even against those greater than you, acting insolently toward them. It is also possible that "atek" (insolent/mighty) describes the neck itself: a stiff, mighty neck that speaks with force and impudence.
Regarding the double phrasing, "Do not lift up a horn" - "Do not lift your horn on high," the Radak explains in his typical manner that the idea is repeated for emphasis. But the Keli Yakar in Parashat Vayeira makes a precise observation: Why is it stated once as "keren" (horn) in the singular, and the other time as "karnchem" (your horns)? The Keli Yakar says: "Keren" refers to a sin against Heaven - a single goring, directed at the Holy One, blessed be He. "Karnchem," two horns, refers to a double goring: directed both toward the Holy One, blessed be He, and toward other people, bein adam lachavero - a sin against Heaven and a sin against one's fellow creatures.
Therefore, says the Keli Yakar, a sinner brings a goat or a calf as a sacrifice, animals that possess horns, because every sin a person commits is both against other people and against the Holy One, blessed be He. And if you ask: I desecrated Shabbat - how is that against other people? The answer is that you bring damage and spiritual ruin into the world. Every transgression creates damage, and this damage harms all creations. If you perform mitzvot, a single "Chanina my son" can sustain and nourish the entire world; whereas if you commit transgressions, you impair the sustenance of the whole world and harm everyone.
And how wonderful: it is written that the ox Adam HaRishon brought as a sacrifice had only a single horn on its forehead. Why? Because his sin was solely against Heaven - there was no other human being in the world of whom you could say he harmed him. Therefore, it had only one horn. But every other sinner brings a sheep or a goat that has two horns, because he gores in two directions - both toward Heaven above and toward his fellow creatures. And this is what is said to the wicked: "Do not lift up a horn" to gore toward Heaven, and further, "Do not lift your horn on high" - both toward Heaven and in relation to fellow men.
כִּי לֹא מִמּוֹצָא וּמִמַּעֲרָב וְלֹא מִמִּדְבַּר הָרִים׃ - For neither from the east nor from the west, nor from the wilderness of the mountains.
This is an obscure verse, and as always with obscure verses, interpretations abound. Rashi explains: "For neither from the sunrise nor from its setting" - motza refers to the place of sunrise, the east, and ma'arav is the place of sunset, the west; "nor from the deserts where you travel in caravans to amass wealth" - in none of these is there the power to lift up a horn. This connects back to what we saw earlier, when he told the wicked not to lift up their horn, for the wicked walk in arrogance and say: We did this, we earned this, everything is through our own strength. Scripture says to them: Where do you think your success came from? From the east, from the west, from the desert? Because you travel to distant deserts to bring back wealth? Wealth does not come from there, nor does your livelihood come from there, but solely from Hashem.
And this is the continuation in the following verse: "For God is judge; He lowers one and lifts up another" - Hashem gives wealth to whomever He wishes, and takes it from whomever He wishes; He elevates whomever He wishes and humbles whomever He wishes. You are not the one who earned it, nor did it happen through your own power; profit and business success are not "from the east nor from the west nor from the desert," but rather all abundance flows from Him, blessed be He.
The Radak, with a source in the Midrash, explains differently: "Harim" here does not mean "mountains," but rather comes from the root of elevation and lifting up (harama). Greatness, elevation, does not come to a person from the rising of the sun, nor from the west, nor from the wilderness - greatness does not come from your frantic efforts of running here and there, but solely from Hashem, blessed be He, for "God is judge; He lowers one and lifts up another." This is generally in the same direction as Rashi, except that the Radak explains it in the sense of greatness, and reads "harim" as elevation.
The Radak notes that there is support for his interpretation, "for mimidbar has a kamatz and is not in the construct state (samuch)." Let us explain: had the intention been "midbar harim," a wilderness of mountains or the mountains of the wilderness, it ought to have been vocalized with a patach under the letter beit, for the rule is that when a word is in construct with the following word, the vowel changes from a long vowel to a short vowel. From the fact that you see "midbar" vocalized with a kamatz, you understand that "mimidbar" stands on its own, and "harim" is an expression of lifting up - not "midbar harim" as a single compound phrase.
It should be emphasized: in the Radak's text it was vocalized with a kamatz, whereas in our standard printed editions of Tehillim it is vocalized with a patach, apparently following the interpretation that understands the words as being in construct. Furthermore, the cantillation marks (te'amim) do not support the Radak: beneath the word "mimidbar" there is a conjunctive accent (ta'am molech) rather than a disjunctive accent (ta'am mafsik), whereas according to the Radak there should have been a disjunctive accent under "mimidbar," followed by "harim."
However, as we have already mentioned several times, when there are interpretations that do not align with the cantillation marks (the te'amim), one cannot bring proof from the te'amim, since the cantillation marks were set according to one particular interpretation. When two interpretations exist, the text could potentially be vocalized or cantillated in different ways, and the te'amim were established according to one approach. Likewise, many times when the Gemara presents two different homiletical expositions (derashot), one might ask: But do not the te'amim support the second view? The answer is that the te'amim were recorded according to only one of the approaches, and therefore no disproof can be brought from them.
Indeed, there is a Midrash that interprets the verse in accordance with the Radak. The Radak cites Midrash Tanchuma (Matot 6): What is the meaning of "nor from the wilderness comes elevation" (harim)? Rabbi Abba said: Every instance of the word harim in Scripture refers to actual mountains, except for this one, where it denotes elevation and exaltation (harama and romemut). The Midrash explicitly states that the word harim here is distinct from all other mountains, teaching that a person is not elevated through these natural avenues. And what does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He takes wealth from one and gives it to another, as it is stated, "For God is the Judge; He brings down one, and exalts another" - whatever He humbles from this one, He elevates to that one.
כִּי־אֱלֹהִים שֹׁפֵט זֶה יַשְׁפִּיל וְזֶה יָרִים׃ - For God is the Judge; He brings down one, and exalts another.
Everything proceeds in justice and equity from Him, blessed be He: lowering a person is never a matter of chance, nor is exaltation the product of human prowess. Rather, the Holy One, blessed be He, is the Judge - He is the One Who lowers, and He is the One Who raises up.
In these verses, we have seen a single cohesive progression: "When I take the appointed time, I will judge with equity" - true judgment requires an appointed time (mo'ed), whether in the sense of viewing the full perspective of before and after (the Dvar Avraham); or in the sense of the appointed festivals during which a person's engagement in Torah study is tested (the Chida); or in the sense of deliberation and taking a pause before rendering judgment (the Shelah); or in the sense of "adorn yourself first, and then adorn others" (the Neveh Tehilla and the incident of Rabbi Yannai). "The earth and all its inhabitants are melting" - the giving of the Torah stabilized the pillars of the world, and at the time of the redemption, the nations will tremble before Hashem's judgment. "I said to the boastful" - the meisharim, the inherent sense of integrity and conscience implanted by the Creator in the human heart, rebukes the arrogant and the wicked not to lift up their horn toward Heaven or against their fellow human beings. And finally, "For neither from the east, nor from the west" - greatness and wealth do not come from human effort alone, but rather "For God is the Judge; He brings down one, and exalts another," and everything is guided by justice and equity from Him, blessed be He.