In the verses before us, we continue with the letter Dalet of chapter 119, which contains four requests built one upon the other: distancing oneself from the way of falsehood, choosing the way of faith, cleaving to the testimonies, and running in the path of the commandments. As is the Malbim's way, each verse features a different central concept from the various designations of the Torah (Torah, judgments, testimonies, commandments), and each verse corresponds to an earlier request in the chapter.
דֶּרֶךְ שֶׁקֶר הָסֵר מִמֶּנִּי וְתוֹרָתְךָ חׇנֵּנִי׃ - Remove from me the way of falsehood, and graciously grant me Your Torah.
The Malbim explains that the central concept in this verse is Torah. Corresponding to what he said earlier, "Open my eyes that I may behold wonders from Your Torah," David now asks: When I delve in order to grasp the secrets of the Torah, help me so that I do not err and stray onto a path of falsehood; rather, graciously grant me true words of Torah, to arrive at the true meaning of matters. And this is indeed what we see with David, about whom it is said that "the halachah follows him everywhere." This is a wondrous thing, an extraordinary level that David attained, proving how fully his prayer, "Remove from me the way of falsehood," was answered - that he should always be directed toward the truth.
In the sefer Tehillot Maharith, a wondrous idea is presented to explain "Remove from me the way of falsehood." Chazal teach: "I resided with Lavan and kept the 613 mitzvot, and I did not learn from his evil deeds." Seemingly, what is the boast here? Yaakov Avinu, the chosen of the Patriarchs, the third leg of the Divine Chariot, recounts that he stayed with Lavan and was not corrupted like him? Could a person of his stature really have turned into a criminal? That is like praising a tzaddik who shared a prison cell with a felon for not starting to commit crimes.
Rather, it is explained: "I did not learn from his evil deeds" means I did not learn to serve Hashem with the same devotion that Lavan displayed in performing his evil deeds. Regarding that fierce dedication with which Lavan clung to his idolatry, Yaakov says: I admit, I did not reach such fervor in the service of my God. In other words, one might think we have something to learn from the actions of the wicked - namely, the intensity of their devotion and zeal.
Yet ultimately, this is not the proper path. Do not say: "I will learn from the deeds of the wicked to be as devoted as they are, and apply it to clinging to Hashem." Why? Because it is written in the sacred texts that doing so gives strength to the kelipah (the shell of impurity) and imparts vitality to uncleanness. Consider an example: if a non-Jew comes to give tzedakah, may one accept it from him? It is permitted. Is it recommended? No, because it gives vitality to the power of impurity and sustains the nations of the world. By the same token, when one learns from Lavan's evil deeds to strengthen oneself in the service of Hashem, it turns out that something good emerged from the kelipah, granting it a kind of profit: it served as an instrument for sanctifying the Name of Heaven, an instrument for serving Hashem. That is a harmful outcome, because it detracts from eradicating the kelipah. We desire that all wickedness perish; when you grant it merit, you allow it to endure. Therefore, Yaakov Avinu pleads: Master of the Universe, I do not want to learn the way of serving You from people like Lavan, but rather through the path of holiness.
This is what King David means here: "Remove from me the way of falsehood" - even merely taking the route that Lavan took, in terms of fervor, to channel it toward holiness so as to cleave to Hashem, remove that from me as well. What do I ask? Only "and graciously grant me Your Torah" - that I may learn the upright path solely from the holy Torah, and not from broken cisterns or realms of kelipah.
This is a principle that the great leaders of Israel constantly emphasized. As is well known, in Europe the gentiles were seen as symbols of prestige, humanism, and human dignity, and many people - especially those weaker in their Judaism - were drawn to the Haskalah movement and the European salons. At the time, a young man asked the Alter of Kelm about this, and he replied: We have nothing whatsoever to learn from the gentile. If something is good, the Torah has written it; and if the Torah did not write it, that is a sign that it is not good. If there is something to learn, learn it from the holy Torah; and if the Torah did not command it, it is neither the path nor the proper conduct.
Likewise, when Communism began to captivate vast audiences in an extraordinary manner and swept entire nations - with slogans of equality and "Workers of the world, unite!" - people approached the great Torah sages. It is recounted that the Chafetz Chaim gave a simple answer: If this were the way, the Torah would have commanded it; and since the Torah did not command it, this is not the right way. Indeed, it took time, but it eventually became clear to all just how wrong that path was. On the surface it appeared to be a lofty ideal: everyone is equal, everyone has the same opportunity to study and earn, with neither excessively wealthy individuals nor destitute poor. Yet we have all seen where it led and what has become of Russia, understanding that an ideology that runs counter to human nature - where an individual works and desires to earn for himself - does not build society, but destroys it.
Look at how kibbutzim continue to fall apart to this day: when a person begins to make money, he no longer stays on the kibbutz; he does not need partners. And whoever does not make money develops nothing. Why should I invest twenty years of my life researching a medication, only to have them tell me when the billions arrive: "Sir, you receive an ordinary kibbutz member's stipend, and the kibbutz keeps the billions"? It is one of two things: either I will not invest the effort, or if I do, I will leave. This runs contrary to human nature, which is why there were almost no innovations or inventions in communist countries - who would build a start-up there if it brings no reward? Everyone remains mediocre and standard. Whereas in places where a person is told: produce, invest, earn - that is where people invest, and that is where the greatest inventions are made. Here we have a seemingly noble idea - equality and fraternity, all very beautiful - but if the Torah did not say so, this is not the path.
We learn, therefore, that genuine learning comes only from the Torah. "Remove from me the way of falsehood" - that I should not need to arrive at the way of truth by reacting to falsehood, but rather, from where should I learn the path of truth? "And grant me Your Torah."
In Otzrot HaAggadah, it is explained: The seal of the Holy One, blessed be He, is truth, and "one who speaks falsehood shall not be established before My eyes." One who speaks falsehood distances himself from the Holy One, blessed be He, and for someone far from Him, how can he hit upon the true meaning of the Torah? The truth of Torah is not mathematics; it depends on how much a person sanctifies himself, how pure his intentions are for the sake of Heaven, and how close he draws to the Holy One, blessed be He - and then he merits arriving at the truth. Therefore, David says: "Remove from me the way of falsehood," and thereby, "grant me Your Torah" - I will merit understanding the Torah correctly, for I will cleave to Him Whose seal is truth, and one who cleaves to Him merits hitting upon the truth of His Torah.
דֶּרֶךְ אֱמוּנָה בָחָרְתִּי מִשְׁפָּטֶיךָ שִׁוִּיתִי׃ - I have chosen the way of faith; I have set Your judgments before me.
From this verse comes the title of Rav Chaim Kanievsky's work, Derech Emunah, on Seder Zera'im - the laws of the mitzvot dependent on the Land of Israel. The Sages expounded on the verse, "And the faith of your times shall be the strength of salvations": emunah ("faith") refers to Seder Zera'im, for one who sows places his trust in the Life of the Worlds and plants. From this came his appellation as the "Ba'al HaDerech Emunah," just as people are commonly known by the names of their works: the "Ba'al HaYabia Omer," the "Ba'al HaYechaveh Da'at," or the "Ba'al HaChafetz Chaim." By the way, the author of the Chayei Adam was once asked why he chose that specific title. He answered: "People love abridgments - there is a Shulchan Aruch, so someone made a Kitzur Shulchan Aruch. I named my work Chayei Adam ('The Life of Man'), because no one would dare compile a 'Kitzur Chayei Adam' ('A Shortening of Man's Life'), for who would want a shortened life? That was how I ensured no one would abridge my book."
Rashi explains: I dedicated myself to Your judgments and cleaved to Your testimonies to choose the way of faith. This is why I asked in the previous verse, "Remove from me the way of falsehood": since I seek faith, and faith is truth - emet and emunah being synonymous - I therefore ask not to err. "I have set Your judgments" - I subordinate myself to the judgments of Hashem, for it is truth that I desire.
Radak explains that "I have chosen" is also part of the prayer: bring the way of faith before me. I desire it, so orchestrate for me a path where I cleave to truth - just as he prayed earlier, "Remove from me the way of falsehood." Likewise with "Your judgments I have set": I have placed them constantly before my eyes; therefore, orchestrate for me that I not act concerning them by mistake, but rather carry out Your judgments in a manner of truth and uprightness.
The Malbim explains that the central concept here is "judgments," and this verse corresponds to "My soul is crushed with longing for Your judgments." King David says: Indeed, and I can achieve this only if faith is firmly established in my heart. For without faith, a person has many perplexing questions about what takes place in the world - a righteous person who suffers, a wicked person who prospers. If one lacks faith that whatever the Merciful One does is for the good, and that everything is from Him, blessed be He, and everything is for the best, then whenever he studies Hashem's judgments, he will constantly face questions and perplexity: this one was righteous - look what happened to him; and this one was wicked - look at all the good he received! To this David says: I have chosen the way of faith, to believe that all His ways are justice, a God of faithfulness and without iniquity. And should you ask: but in reality, the righteous person is suffering? I believe that there is also the World to Come, and that ultimately Hashem will give him his full reward; and I believe that the wicked person who enjoys this world faces judgment and reckoning there in the World of Truth.
Regarding "Your judgments I have set [shiviti]," the Malbim adds - as he explains in several places - that the term shivui does not mean only placement (as in "I have set [shiviti] Hashem before me always"), but also comparison (hashva'ah) - comparing one thing to another. When I weigh suffering against tranquility and compare Hashem's judgments, I understand that the one who currently appears to be suffering has a reward stored up Above, while the one who prospers here will arrive Above empty-handed, having received all his reward in this world. This is "Your judgments I have compared": I make the calculation and comparison, arriving at the conclusion that whoever experiences hardship now experiences it so that it will be good for him in the end, and whoever prospers now experiences the reverse. Through this, I am reinforced in faith - "I have chosen the way of faith" - and I no longer harbor questions about Hashem's judgments.
דָּבַקְתִּי בְעֵדְוֺתֶיךָ יְהֹוָה אַל תְּבִישֵׁנִי׃ - I have cleaved to Your testimonies; Hashem, do not put me to shame.
The Radak explains: Since I have always cleaved to them and continually studied Your mitzvot, "do not put me to shame" - do not bring me to a state where I am embarrassed because I fail to understand them properly. I cleave to Your testimonies, yet suddenly I might study something and not grasp it, causing me humiliation. Therefore, Master of the Universe, grant me proper understanding so that I will not be shamed by a lack of comprehension in studying Your testimonies - and the testimonies are the Torah.
The Malbim explains that the concept here is testimony (eidut). Through these testimonies, as it were, Hashem bears witness, referring to visible evidence in the world, such as in the Book of Bereishit. There, we have clear testimony that whoever does good, the Holy One, blessed be He, rewards him. There were ten generations from Noach to Avraham, generations that the Holy One, blessed be He, wiped out; and in contrast, Avraham Avinu walked in the way of Hashem, so Hashem made promises to him and brought forth the Jewish people from him. The entire Book of Bereishit stands as testimony to reward and punishment. David says: Master of the Universe, through this testimony You have witnessed how You punish the wicked and destroy them even in this world. He already said earlier, "Remove from me reproach and contempt, for I have kept Your testimonies" - so that they will not reproach me and say: Look at David the righteous, David the pious, see how much he suffers and is persecuted, and this proves there is no justice, no righteousness, and the Holy One, blessed be He, does not execute judgment. Therefore he asks: From Your testimonies I learn that there is reward for the righteous and punishment for the wicked, that ultimately it will be good for the righteous and bad for the wicked. Only someone looking at the present moment imagines that this one suffers while that one prospers; but one who looks with perspective sees that in the end it will be good for the righteous and bad for the wicked.
There is a story of a man who traveled to the United States to raise funds for the kollel and yeshivah he supported. He entered the office of a wealthy philanthropist and began telling him about the yeshivah, the students, and the financial situation. For a full quarter of an hour, the philanthropist gave him a severe tongue-lashing: "Parasites, you do not work, you are this and that and the other." The guest stood quietly, listened, and did not answer or react. After fifteen minutes, once the philanthropist had vented all his bitterness, he pulled out his checkbook, wrote a check for two thousand dollars, and handed it to him. The philanthropist asked him, "Wait, I yelled at you for fifteen minutes - why didn't you run away?" He replied, "I work with lists; I don't just knock on doors at random. My list notes how much each person gives and who is worth visiting, and next to your name it says: 'Yells and curses for fifteen minutes, and then gives two thousand dollars.' So I told myself, I will endure the fifteen minutes."
The Ba'alei Mussar explain: Imagine if we had such a sheet for all the afflictions in the world, on which it was written: "Endures such-and-such suffering, and afterward such-and-such sins are cleansed, and afterward he merits the World to Come." We see only the suffering; we do not see what follows. And what happens then? After ten minutes, a person says, "Enough, I have no strength left, I don't need this at all!" Wait just five more minutes, you have two thousand dollars coming - why run away? It is right on the verge of arriving. But someone who has the list, who knows how things work, has no questions.
This is what David HaMelech is saying here: Master of the Universe, let them not reproach me and say, "Look at David, righteous and pious, and see how much he suffers." Do not look with shortsighted vision; rather, understand that the Holy One, blessed be He, ultimately grants a good reward to the righteous and punishment to the wicked. "Do not put me to shame" - that I should not suffer misfortune in this world and bring about shame, where people say, "Where is the law and where is justice? Doesn't the Torah say that Hashem protects the righteous from harm?" Even though on my own account I am willing to accept the suffering, "do not put me to shame" - so that there will be no Chilul Hashem.
דֶּרֶךְ מִצְוֺתֶיךָ אָרוּץ כִּי תַרְחִיב לִבִּי׃ - I will run the way of Your mitzvot, for You broaden my heart.
The Radak explains: You have broadened my heart so greatly that I run in the path of the mitzvot. The expression of running always denotes moving without hindrance; when a person encounters obstacles along the way, it is hard to run. David says: The mitzvot are so smooth for me, I flow with them so naturally, that I run in them. There are people for whom every mitzvah is a struggle - before performing it, they look for ways to delay, and even when doing it, they look for ways to cut it short and minimize it. But David says: For me, everything flows freely; I rejoice in the mitzvot of Hashem, and this broadens my heart so that I run along their path without any delay.
The Metzudat David explains: I fulfill the mitzvot of Hashem with alacrity, and what is meant by "for You broaden my heart"? Because I know that on account of this, You will broaden my heart with the delights of the World to Come. Seemingly, this presents a difficulty, for one should not serve in order to receive a reward - "Do not be like servants who serve the master on condition of receiving a reward." Rather, the understanding is that the Torah nonetheless revealed the reward to us - and why? So that a person will fulfill the mitzvot with joy. My true intention is to perform the mitzvah because Hashem commanded it, but when I know there is also a reward, I do so with joy as well.
This can perhaps be explained based on what the Chida cites in the name of Sefer Zera Beirach: Although "there is no reward for a mitzvah in this world" (sechar mitzvah behai alma leika), the Torah nonetheless states, "And it shall come to pass, if you diligently listen... that Hashem will keep for you the covenant and the kindness..." - which explicitly promises reward in this world! He resolves this: one does not receive reward in this world for the performance of the mitzvot itself, but one does receive reward in this world for the joy experienced in performing the mitzvah. This is a tremendous insight: for the body of the mitzvah there is no reward here, but for the joy - there is.
According to this, we can say: "I will run the way of Your commandments" - running comes from joy, for one who does not act willingly always encounters delays and disruptions, constantly looking for how to exempt himself; whereas for me, it is done with joy. Therefore, "for You broaden my heart" - also here in this world: because I fulfill them with joy, broaden my heart and grant me abundance and reward in this world. Through this, the verse connects to the preceding one: there, according to the Malbim's explanation, he pleaded, "I have clung to Your testimonies, Hashem, do not put me to shame" - so people will not say: here is David the pious, yet he only suffers. David says: Behold, I run the way of Your commandments out of joy, so it is fitting that You broaden my heart here in this world. And this is not at the expense of the World to Come, because the reward here is only for the joy, while the reward for the mitzvah itself is preserved for the World to Come. Thus we find an additional reason why the Holy One, blessed be He, can spare me from shame through suffering, and instead bestow good upon me here, so that doubts will not arise among those lacking faith: here is King David, a righteous man, so why does he suffer?
The Malbim explains that the primary concept here is mitzvot, and he has already noted that there is a difference between a *derech* (a way or road) and a *nativ* (a path): a *derech* is the main highway, whereas a *nativ* is meant for individuals. Just as there is a highway, and there are smaller paths branching off from it to villages and private homes. First, he asks that Hashem guide him on the way of His commandments, which is the broad highway, and later he will ask to be guided along the path of the commandments. What is the difference? Regarding the broad way of the mitzvah, David says, "I will run the way of Your commandments" - the main highway, without delving into every detail and without knowing all the particular laws of the mitzvot: even though the fine details are not yet known to me, along this highway I run. The overarching path that paves the way toward the mitzvot - illuminating faith, good character traits, interpersonal duties - that is known to me, and along it I run swiftly.
And what is "for You broaden my heart"? The Malbim consistently explains that the heart is the governing power within man, representing the power of rulership. Sometimes a person experiences "heartache," troubles that weigh heavily upon the heart - from what? From the "enemies of the soul that besiege it." And who are the enemies of the soul? Negative character traits: anger, lust, jealousy, revenge - that is what weighs on a person's heart. As the saying goes: it is not what you eat that kills you, but what eats you. And this truly kills the heart; today it is also medically known that when a person is subject to stress, pressure, and tension, it literally kills him. So too, anger destroys a person, and these are indeed the enemies of the soul.
David says: This way broadens my heart, the governing faculty within me, and through it I conquer the soul's enemies - overcoming anger, lust, jealousy, and the pursuit of honor. Through the mitzvot, the heart becomes ruler. "You broaden my heart" means that this path expands the heart's capacity to rule over desires and bad character traits, and in this merit, I can confront all trials and all enemies of the soul that torment it.
These four verses build a single progression: "Remove from me the way of falsehood" - that I should learn the way of truth solely from the Torah and not from the impure husks (*kelipah*), and that I merit arriving at the truth of Torah through attachment to the One Whose seal is truth. "I have chosen the way of faith" - that steadfast faith in the heart is the key to understanding Hashem's judgments without stumbling over questions of the righteous who suffer and the wicked who prosper, by recognizing the perspective of reward and punishment in the World to Come. "I have clung to Your testimonies, Hashem, do not put me to shame" - that there be no desecration of Hashem's Name through the suffering of the righteous, for the entire Book of Bereishit is testimony to reward and punishment, and only one who sees the continuation has no difficult questions. And finally, "I will run the way of Your commandments" - running out of joy, for which reward is received even in this world, and through which the heart becomes ruler over one's character traits and desires.