Psalm 105 is a chapter of thanksgiving and remembrance: a call to give thanks to Hashem, sing to Him, seek His presence, and remember His wonders from the Patriarchs until the Exodus from Egypt. In this lesson, we will continue exploring the commentary of the Malbim from the verse "Seek Hashem and His strength", return to additional explanations on the preceding verses, and proceed until "He is Hashem our God; throughout all the earth are His judgments."
דִּרְשׁוּ יְהֹוָה וְעֻזּוֹ בַּקְּשׁוּ פָנָיו תָּמִיד׃ - Seek Hashem and His strength; seek His presence continually.
The Malbim explains: The essence of seeking is the quest itself, not the finding. For the blessed Hashem cannot be fully grasped; therefore, the ultimate purpose is not "to arrive," but to seek continually. A person seeks and continues to seek, because the goal itself is to seek God, to yearn for closeness to God. And this is something infinite, because the One being sought is infinite, and consequently, attaining Him is also infinite.
In simple words: The Holy One, blessed be He, is without end, and consequently grasping Him is likewise endless. A person cannot say, "I have comprehended Him," for saying "I have comprehended" implies reaching the very end. If an ocean were boundless, could anyone say, "I have dried up the entire sea"? We are speaking of something that has no end, which cannot be encompassed. So it is with grasping the Creator: there is no limit and no boundary, and thus one can never say, "I have reached the ultimate comprehension."
Hence, says the Malbim, "Seek His presence continually" - always seek His face, and whatever we grasp of Him will always be something we had not grasped before. The more we advance, the more we perceive, and the more we seek, the further we progress, in the sense of "they go from strength to strength." A Jew is not required to reach the end, but to seek: to aspire, exert effort, and press forward.
שִׁירוּ־לוֹ זַמְּרוּ־לוֹ שִׂיחוּ בְּכָל־נִפְלְאוֹתָיו׃ - Sing to Him, make music to Him; speak of all His wonders.
הִתְהַלְלוּ בְּשֵׁם קָדְשׁוֹ יִשְׂמַח לֵב מְבַקְשֵׁי יְהֹוָה׃ - Glory in His holy Name; let the heart of those who seek Hashem rejoice.
The Chevel Na'im explains: When a person praises the blessed Name, he might have an illusion that he added something to the Creator, that he did Him a favor, or granted Him honor. Where does this illusion come from? From the earthly world in which we live. Here, when I compliment you and praise you, you feel good; I have given you something and brought you joy. People even pay for this: some hire an entourage of admirers to praise them everywhere and organize grand welcomes, receiving a salary for doing so. In earthly honor, one indeed gives something to another.
Yet when it comes to the Holy One, blessed be He, this is a total misconception. If you want to understand what you have given, know that you have given something to yourself. This is what the verse means: "Sing to Him, make music to Him" - and when you sing and make music to Him, in that very song, "glory in His holy Name," you yourselves are the ones glorified. You can take pride that you are worthy, that the Holy One, blessed be He, desires your song.
For example, if someone were offered the opportunity to prepare a cup of tea for the gadol hador (the preeminent Torah sage of the generation), we would readily pay for the privilege. No one would say, "That Rav owes me, I once made him a cup of tea." Rather, it is precisely the opposite: "What an incredible privilege fell to my lot, that I merited to make him a cup of tea!" Someone once related how he had a taste of this merit: he visited Rav Chaim Kanievsky, and on his way out, someone asked who could drive the Rebbetzin to a wedding. He gladly volunteered. They asked him to wait a moment while she prepared a cup of tea for the Rav; he waited, and then drove her to the hall. Indirectly, he had the merit of enabling that cup of tea for Rav Chaim. And no one would ever say, "I did him a favor." On the contrary, when a tzaddik is willing to receive a favor from you, you rejoice that he was willing to accept it from you.
This is also the principle behind a woman becoming betrothed by giving a gift to an eminent person (*adam chashuv*). Ordinarily, the man must give the gift to her, yet the Gemara explains that by agreeing to receive a gift from her, she is considered the recipient, and that benefit is her gain. So too here: "Sing to Him, chant praise to Him" - do not think that you are magnifying Him; rather, "Glory in His holy Name" - you are the one who is glorified, for the Holy One, blessed is He, desires your song. He is "the Chooser of songs of praise," meaning He desires your singing and is willing to listen to you. The glory is yours, and do not imagine that you are somehow bestowing praise upon Him, blessed be He, from which He gains.
The Chafetz Chaim makes a precise observation: the verse does not say, "Let the heart of those who serve the Lord rejoice," nor those who "love the Lord," nor those who "fear the Lord," but rather "those who seek the Lord." Why this emphasis on seekers? He offers a parable: Reuven was an honorable man and a wealthy magnate, and his daughter came of age to marry. He arranged a match with the son of Shimon, and each side committed to provide five thousand rubles, an enormous sum in those days. Shimon, who was also a wealthy man, delayed in depositing the funds, and eventually it turned out that he was facing liquidity difficulties and was unable to fulfill his commitment. The engagement was broken, Shimon apologized and asked for forgiveness, and Reuven married his daughter to someone else.
When a grandson was born to Reuven, people suggested that he invite Shimon as well. He asked, "Why?" They answered, "After all, he was one of those who wanted to become your family through marriage." Reuven replied, "If I were to invite everyone who wanted to make a match with me, I could fill several banquet halls." They told him, "It is not the same; he actually entered into an engagement, he simply could not fulfill it." He said, "Not at all. I invite my actual relatives. One who was only a potential relative is not invited."
The Chafetz Chaim explains: this is how things work among human beings, but with the Holy One, blessed is He, it is not so. One who wants to marry the Torah, who desires to connect with it, even if in the end the match does not materialize, yet he seeks Hashem - he strives, toils, attends a shiur, tries to understand, and grasps very little - the Holy One, blessed is He, says to him: "You are seeking Me, you are with Me, you are invited to My celebration." Why? Because you are a seeker. With the Holy One, blessed is He, the mere desire to connect to the holy Torah is enough, and even one who did not attain mastery still merits to be counted among the fellowship of those who study His Torah. As Chazal teach, Hashem joins a good thought to deed. After all, he is seeking; what can he do if his natural talents and abilities are modest and he lacks the strength to reach the heights?
This is the meaning of "Glory in His holy Name": every Jew, says the Chafetz Chaim, should always glory in Hashem's Name, rejoicing that he has such a good God, for "the heart of those who seek the Lord will rejoice." He gladdens the hearts of those who seek Him, even those who only had the aspiration and ultimately did not reach the destination. There is immense encouragement here, for often a person feels: "I wanted to, I tried, I exerted myself, but I did not succeed," and he is seized by the feeling of "I have toiled in vain, I have consumed my strength for naught." He is told: No, my friend. The seeking itself is more precious in the eyes of Hashem than anything else. The very desire to connect to Him, blessed be He, is the primary thing, and that is what Hashem asks of you.
The great masters of Israel used to say: We are not contractors tasked with delivering success. Our duty is to try, to exert ourselves, and to act, while the outcome rests in the hands of the Holy One, blessed is He. A person must make the effort to attend a Torah shiur, make the effort to fulfill mitzvot, and make the effort to pray. And if someone says, "What is such a mitzvah that I did even worth? What did my prayer look like? And during the shiur I slept through three-quarters and didn't understand the remaining quarter," leaving him with the feeling that he accomplished nothing, to this the verse responds: "Let the heart of those who seek the Lord rejoice." If you are genuinely seeking, the Holy One, blessed is He, says: "It is you whom I desire."
Ibn Ezra explains that the word *dirshu* ("seek") serves what follows, as if the verse said, "Seek the Lord and seek His strength." This is a stylistic form found throughout Scripture, termed by the early commentators *loke'ach acheret imo* (carrying another with it): a single word at the beginning of a clause applies to the continuation as well. A common example is in *Aleinu*: "That He has not made our portion like theirs, nor our lot like that of all their multitude" (*shelo sam chelkenu kahem vegoralenu kechol hamonam*). Read strictly without carrying the negative, it might heaven forbid sound as though "our lot is like all their multitude," but the initial "not" carries over into the next clause: "and not our lot like that of all their multitude." Some have the practice of reciting "and not" (*velo*) explicitly, as is the custom in the tradition of Rav Mazuz and in the Yemenite rite; in the Sephardic rite, however, this additional "not" is omitted, and Rav Ovadia Yosef ruled that it is unnecessary, since the first "not" encompasses what follows.
Similarly, in the Selichot prayer: "Our God and God of our fathers, do not make an end of us; lay hold of judgment" (*tochez yadcha bemishpat*). At first glance, it should have said, "Do not lay hold of judgment," for we do not desire judgment. Some have explained that "lay hold of judgment" is intentional, because judgment also contains mercy, and we are asking that He not bring total destruction upon us, which is unmitigated strict justice, but rather tempered judgment that incorporates mercy. Others have explained *tochez yadcha* as holding back and restraining: restrain the judgment, soften it, and have mercy upon us. Yet according to the principle mentioned above, the explanation is far simpler: the initial "do not" (*al*) carries over to the next phrase, meaning: do not make an end of us, and do not lay hold of judgment. So too here: seek the Lord, and seek His strength.
What is "His strength" (*uzo*)? Ibn Ezra says: this refers to the Ark of the Covenant, as it is written, "And He delivered His strength into captivity." Furthermore, "The Lord will give strength to His people" refers to the Torah, and within the Ark were the Tablets of the Covenant and the Sefer Torah. Accordingly, the Radak explains the meaning: seek out the resting place of the Ark, and pray before Hashem there. "Seek His presence continually" - pray before Him at all times in the place where His strength resides, in the place of the Ark.
The Radak quotes from Midrash Shocher Tov: Rabbi Yose ben Chalafta said to his son Rabbi Yishmael, "Do you wish to see the Shechinah in this world? Engage in Torah in Eretz Yisrael." That is to say, the presence of the Shechinah is found in Eretz Yisrael, and there one's prayer is swiftly accepted. As noted previously, the world center of Torah is Eretz Yisrael, and the leading Torah giants who guide the generation reside here. Naturally, there have also been great luminaries in the Diaspora, without question, yet the focal point remains Eretz Yisrael. There is no Torah like the Torah of Eretz Yisrael, and there are no yeshivot like the yeshivot of Eretz Yisrael; in many respects, the unique spiritual atmosphere of the Land cannot be compared to anywhere else. This is what the Midrash means: If you wish to engage in Torah, engage in Torah in Eretz Yisrael, for there rests the Shechinah and there your prayer will be swiftly answered.
Chazal teach that the Torah protects and saves both while one is actively engaged in it and while one is not actively engaged in it, whereas mitzvot protect only while one is performing them. Based on this, the *Tehilot Mahari"tz* explains: *Oz* ("strength") refers to the Torah, as in "Hashem will give strength (*oz*) to His people." "Seek Hashem and His strength" - meaning the holy Torah - and then "seek His presence continually": you will be able to seek Hashem's presence and find favor before Him continually, both while you are studying it and while you are not, for it continuously protects and saves. Had you engaged only in mitzvot, Hashem's favorable presence would turn toward you only while performing the mitzvah. Because you engaged in Torah, Hashem's favorable countenance is with you always.
Rav Mazuz adds an insight into "seek His presence continually": Unlike a mortal king, whom one cannot see without an advance appointment - which might be scheduled a year ahead of time, and even then, one might be notified a month, a week, or a day beforehand that the meeting was canceled due to pressing developments, urgent business, or sudden upheavals. The only King Whom one can approach at any moment is the Holy One, blessed be He. As was said of Moshe: Fortunate is one born of woman who was assured of this, "Stand and I will hear what Hashem will command regarding you." There is never a time when He is unavailable, never a time when He is resting or lacks the time. With the Holy One, blessed be He, visiting hours are always open, and no one will ever tell you that it is not the right time; rather, one can always seek His presence.
זִכְרוּ נִפְלְאוֹתָיו אֲשֶׁר־עָשָׂה מֹפְתָיו וּמִשְׁפְּטֵי־פִיו׃ - Remember His wondrous deeds that He has done, His signs, and the judgments of His mouth.
Here we find another variation between our psalm and the passage of *Hodu* recited in the morning from Divrei HaYamim: there it reads *u'mishpetei fihu*, whereas here it reads *u'mishpetei fiv*. As noted earlier, the variations are truly subtle nuances. Ibn Ezra explains: "Remember His wondrous deeds that He has done" - to recall in our hearts the wonders of creation, heaven and earth. "His signs (*moftav*)" - the miracles He performed in Egypt. "And the judgments of His mouth" - the laws He taught us, namely the giving of the Torah. All of this one is commanded to remember.
The Radak adds that there is also an allusion here to remember the wonders Hashem performed through the Ark among the Philistines, as they were now returning the Ark after the plagues with which the Holy One, blessed be He, had struck them. Radak articulates a profound principle: upon a single miracle and a single wonder, a person ought to recall all previous wonders. That is, when Hashem performs a miracle for you, do not thank Him only for that specific miracle; rather, offer thanks for it and for all the miracles He has performed for us up to this day. This is the meaning of "He has made a memorial for His wonders": when Hashem performs a miracle for you, let it evoke the memory of all the earlier wonders as well.
Regarding "the judgments of His mouth," the Radak explains that this refers back to the plagues He brought upon Egypt. Why are they called the judgments of His mouth? Because they were carried out through Moshe, who pronounced with his mouth beforehand which plague would come and when, and accordingly the judgments befell Egypt. These were the judgments and decrees the Holy One, blessed be He, executed against Egypt in accordance with the spoken word He had communicated to Moshe in advance.
The Malbim explains: After stating "Seek Hashem and His strength" and "seek His presence," the verse teaches how one attains this desired goal and perceives the Divine: through His deeds, by recalling the wonders He performs beyond the natural order. The verse enumerates three categories. The first is "His wondrous deeds (*nifle'otav*)," such as the splitting of the Red Sea and "Sun, stand still at Giv'on," which transcend the laws of nature entirely.
The second category is "His signs (*moftav*)." The distinction between a wonder (*pele*) and a sign (*mofet*), the Malbim explains, is that a wonder is an event that defies nature, whereas a sign is an act performed in order to verify or prove something. In modern Hebrew, *mofet* is often understood in the sense of a supernatural wonder, but among the classical commentators its primary meaning is a proof. Thus Pharaoh requests proof when he says, "Provide a sign (*mofet*) for yourselves," and classical authors write "and the *mofet* for this" meaning "and the proof for this." In Moshe's case, the sign was demonstrated through a miracle, turning the staff into a serpent, yet a *mofet* does not inherently need to be a supernatural wonder; it is fundamentally a proof. These signs served as undeniable proof of Hashem's existence.
The third is "and the judgments of His mouth" - the plagues and punishments that Hashem brought upon Egypt in the manner of justice, along the lines explained by Radak, as punishment for their sins. Indeed, in the sacred books there are endless explanations of how all the plagues of Egypt were measure for measure, that whatever they did, the Holy One, blessed be He, meted out to them in that very same measure. This is also connected to the weekly Torah portion: "for in the very thing wherein they dealt arrogantly against them" (Shemot 18:11), which Rashi explains: in the very pot in which they cooked, they were cooked - "zadu" from the language of nazid (stew), measure for measure. And this was what impressed Yitro.
The Malbim adds that these judgments are distinct from all other judgments that the Holy One, blessed be He, carries out in the world, because they are "the judgments of His mouth" - He stated them explicitly in advance with His mouth. Usually, when something occurs in the world, we do not know how to connect cause and effect. There was an earthquake: why, and for what purpose? What is being communicated to us, what are they trying to tell us by this? We do not understand. But in Egypt, it was a judgment that the Holy One, blessed be He, announced beforehand: now there will be the plague of blood, go and warn him; now frogs; now lice. Furthermore, everything was decreed from the very outset, as it says, "And also that nation, whom they shall serve, will I judge" (Bereishit 15:14), for even in this Hashem announced with His mouth that He would exact retribution from them. Thus, these were judgments that the Creator announced in advance, unlike His other judgments, which are certainly carried out in truth and justice, yet are not made known to us beforehand.
זֶרַע אַבְרָהָם עַבְדּוֹ בְּנֵי יַעֲקֹב בְּחִירָיו׃ - "O seed of Avraham His servant, you children of Yaakov, His chosen ones."
Ibn Ezra explains: Why does it mention Avraham specifically? Because Avraham was our first patriarch, and he was the one who began receiving Hashem's mitzvot. And why does the pasuk not continue by mentioning Yitzchak, but instead skips directly to Yaakov? Because Yaakov alone is exclusively our father, and no other joined with us, as it is written, "Is not the God of Israel our Father?" That is to say, if we seek to define from what point onward we became the nation of Israel, it is from Yaakov. It cannot be from Yitzchak, for Yitzchak also fathered Eisav; and it cannot be from Avraham, for Avraham also fathered Yishmael and the sons of Keturah. Therefore, the pasuk mentions Avraham as the first forefather from whom everything began, and Yaakov as our exclusive forefather with whom no outsider is mixed.
Radak notes that in Divrei HaYamim (I Chronicles 16:13) it is written, "seed of Israel His servant," which is one of the slight variations between Tehillim and Divrei HaYamim, "and the meaning is the same." As for what is said here, "seed of Avraham," it refers specifically to Israel. Do not make the mistake of thinking that the seed of Avraham includes Yishmael and Eisav as well, for the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Avraham, "for in Yitzchak shall seed be called to you" (Bereishit 21:12).
This is also the answer to that ridiculous argument that has sometimes been heard: Avraham had a son named Yishmael, and if the Land was promised to Avraham and his seed after him, then supposedly they too are entitled to a share in the Land. But this claim is entirely flawed, for the Holy One, blessed be He, explicitly said, "for in Yitzchak shall seed be called to you" - only Yitzchak is considered his seed. And Yitzchak himself says to Yaakov, "And may He give you the blessing of Avraham, to you and to your seed with you" (Bereishit 28:4), which proves that the designated seed of Yitzchak is not Eisav, but Yaakov and his seed alone. Thus, the reference is exclusively to the Jewish people.
And we have no need to debate with the Quran at all. The Arabs created nothing of their own: they took the narratives from us, and they even took the holy site from us instead of building their own place. By contrast, the Tanach - what is referred to as the "Old Testament" - is accepted by all, and they accept it as well; and there, what we have mentioned is written explicitly.
Regarding Yaakov, there are no questions at all, for from Yaakov onward there was no branching off. The entire discussion begins with Avraham and Yitzchak, since Avraham also had Yishmael and Yitzchak also had Eisav, and there one might argue about which seed is meant. Regarding that, we cited explicit verses showing that the seed in question is us. Radak says the same: "you children of Yaakov, His chosen ones" reveals who the seed of Avraham is - namely, the children of Yaakov, who were chosen from the rest of the descendants.
The Malbim explains that this verse continues "Remember His marvelous works that He has done": Who must remember? You, the seed of Avraham. Hashem performed the wonders for Avraham because he was "His servant," for Avraham served Hashem faithfully and therefore merited this. The Holy One, blessed be He, does not hand out unearned gifts: you exerted yourself and labored. Avraham Avinu recognized his Creator as early as the age of three - and some say at age forty, and we have explained in the past that this indicates stages in attainment - and in any event, he served Him faithfully. And you, the children of Yaakov, you are His chosen ones, for Hashem chose you as His portion through divine selection, as it is written, "the seed of Israel My servant, Yaakov whom I have chosen" (Yeshayahu 41:8). Remember this matter, and thereby you will cleave to Him and to His Torah.
הוּא יְהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ בְּכָל־הָאָרֶץ מִשְׁפָּטָיו׃ - "He is Hashem our God; His judgments are in all the earth."
The Ibn Ezra explains: We have reason to glory, for our God endures forever and He judges the entire earth. Hashem exists eternally, unlike the idols of the nations which exist today and tomorrow are broken and shattered. The Holy One, blessed be He, executed judgment against all the gods of Egypt and they have no enduring existence; whereas Hashem our God endures forever, and He also judges the whole earth - "in all the earth are His judgments."
The Radak explains: Even though His judgments are in all the earth, and Hashem guides the entire world, nevertheless "He is our God" and we are His people. The Holy One, blessed be He, has many children, but we are His only true and beloved child, while all the rest are like stepchildren. Even though His judgments are in all the earth, He is our God, and we are an only child to Him, blessed be He.
The Midrash asks: What is meant by "our God"? You find that the word "He" (hu) appears five times for evil and five times for good. Five for evil: "He was a mighty hunter," "He is Esau the father of Edom," "He is Dathan and Abiram," "He is King Ahaz," and "He is Ahasuerus." And five for good: "He is Abraham," "He is Aaron and Moses," "He is Ezra who went up from Babylon," and "And he, Hezekiah, stopped the upper spring of the waters of Gihon." Rabbi Berechiah said: And God is counted among the righteous, as it says, "He is Hashem our God." Even the Holy One, blessed be He, is referred to as "He," alongside the righteous, for this expression also appears in a positive sense.
The Malbim explains that the meaning here is that through the wonders Hashem performs, we perceive Him and see that He is our God. And as is the Malbim's regular approach, which we have explained countless times: when speaking of Hashem as "Elokim," it refers to Him as the Ruler of creation and the natural order, but when speaking of "our God" (Elokeinu), it refers to His individual divine providence over us as His children - a unique providence wherein He is specifically our God. Therefore, it is always conjugated: "our God" indicates the bond He shares with us and His constant individual providence.
And even though the Holy One, blessed be He, is in His essence utterly unknowable, nevertheless, "in all the earth are His judgments": we perceive Him through His judgments and through His actions on earth. We have already discussed this at length in our study of Sefer HaKuzari, that we cannot grasp the Holy One, blessed be He, or speak of His essence at all, for "no thought can grasp Him whatsoever." What, then, do we speak of? Of the effects that flow from Him, and through them we perceive His kingship. There is an entire parable there about the king of India, which can be studied in the lessons on Sefer HaKuzari. We see that Hashem is merciful through specific actions that He performs, and on the other hand, we see that He is zealous and avenging through other actions. Our apprehension of Him, blessed be He, is derived entirely from His deeds: His essence cannot be grasped by us, but "in all the earth are His judgments," and through His judgments we come to know His governance.
We learned that the ultimate goal is not final attainment, but the constant pursuit: "seek His presence continually," for the Creator is infinite, and consequently our apprehension of Him has no end; the more we seek, the further we advance and comprehend. "Glory in His holy Name" teaches that song and praise are not a gift we bestow upon Him, but rather our own glory, that He desires our praise; and regarding "let the heart of those who seek Hashem rejoice," the Chafetz Chaim revealed to us that even one who merely sought and did not arrive, the Holy One, blessed be He, welcomes him close. "Seek Hashem and His strength" refers to the Ark and the Torah, which always protects and rescues, and to engaging in Torah in Eretz Yisrael, where the presence of the Shechinah dwells. "Remember His wonders" obligates us to remember the wonders, the portents, and the judgments that Hashem declared with His mouth in advance, measure for measure, and to give thanks for all the miracles of the past. And finally, "O seed of Abraham His servant, O children of Jacob, His chosen ones" and "He is Hashem our God": we are His chosen seed, and even though His judgments are in all the earth, He is our God through individual divine providence; and through His actions and judgments, we recognize His governance and cling to Him and His Torah.