Introduction
We continue in Psalm 119 with the letter Samech, from verse 113 onward. The eight verses before us center upon a single theme: total devotion to the Torah - in thought, in trust, and in life itself. King David testifies about himself that not only are his speech and his actions dedicated to the Torah, but even his thoughts; and from this vantage point he requests protection, not from physical harm, but from anything that might hinder him in fulfilling the mitzvot.
"I Hate Divided Thoughts" - Who Are the Se'afim?
סֵעֲפִים שָׂנֵאתִי וְתוֹרָתְךָ אָהָבְתִּי׃ (קי"ג) - I hate divided thoughts, and Your Torah I love. (113)
Rashi explains: Se'afim are those who harbor deceitful thoughts. This phrasing appears in Scripture: "Therefore my thoughts (se'ipai) cause me to answer" (Iyov 20:2) - meaning my thoughts; as well as "How long will you halt between two opinions (se'ipim)?" (Melachim I 18:21), where the reference is to thoughts - you do not know which thought to adopt, whether that of the Baal or that of the Holy One, blessed be He. However, when it says se'afim, the term falls upon the thinkers themselves, the conceivers of these thoughts. Thus the explanation here is: those devious people who scheme and take crooked paths - them I hate. Whereas "Your Torah I love" - I cling to the Torah without any thoughts of "perhaps it would be better this way," or "perhaps there are other ways"; all such thoughts are deceptive thoughts that sway a person from the path of Torah.
The Radak first cites this interpretation, according to which se'afim is an adjective, referring to the thinkers themselves, and then adds: "And in my opinion, it is a noun." That is, in his view, se'afim is not a description of the thinking person, but an abstract noun - the thoughts themselves. The distinction is simple: an adjective describes a person - one who harbors thoughts, much like "angry"; whereas a noun denotes the concept itself, like "anger." According to this, David says: I hate all other thoughts, and only one thought do I love - meditating upon the Torah of Hashem. In it alone lies all my contemplation and thought.
A Mind With No Room for Anything Other Than Torah
So it is told of the great Torah sages, that other thoughts not only failed to trouble them, but they did not even spare a single brain cell for them. It was related of Rav Ovadia Yosef that he had a set study session with his son, Rabbi David. Every evening, when he concluded his studying and writing, he would call him to come learn - sometimes at ten, eleven, or midnight. Each time anew, he would ask: "Margalit, what is David's phone number?" And she would say to him: "They say about you that the entire Torah is in your head, yet a single phone number you cannot remember?"
Similarly with Rav Chaim Kanievsky: people would come and ask him about mundane matters, and he remembered nothing - neither street names, nor who had visited him yesterday or the day before. Once he was asked: "How is it possible that the Rav remembers the entire Torah down to the letter, yet cannot remember the name of a street or a place?" He replied: "I prayed to Hashem that anything that is not Torah should not take up space in my head - for whatever takes up room in the mind comes at the expense of room for Torah." A member of his household recounted that he remembered the people who wrote letters to him regularly through Torah expressions: someone writing from Ekron would be remembered through the phrase Ekron te'aker ("Ekron shall be uprooted"); Ashdod, through a verse concerning Ashdod. Through verses and phrases from the Gemara he remembered them, but for his mind to be occupied with anything else was out of the question. This is what David says: I hate all other thoughts, and Your Torah I love - all my thoughts are focused solely upon the holy Torah.
The Malbim establishes that the key word in this verse is "Torah," which corresponds to what he stated earlier: "O how I love Your Torah! It is my meditation all day long" (v. 97) - I converse about nothing other than matters of Torah. And here he adds: I do not even harbor any thought other than the thought of Torah; since I meditate upon it constantly, my mind is always upon it, and there is no room within me for any other thought.
"You Are My Hiding Place and My Shield" - Two Layers of Protection
סִתְרִי וּמָגִנִּי אָתָּה לִדְבָרְךָ יִחָלְתִּי׃ (קי"ד) - You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope for Your word. (114)
The Radak explains: You hide me and protect me from people who plot to harm me, and "I have hoped for Your word" - for the promise You made to rescue me from them I wait and hope, and through it I will be protected. Another interpretation: "I have hoped for Your word" - I have hoped for Your Torah; and since I cling to Hashem's Torah, one who guards the Torah finds that it "shields and rescues" (agonei megana ve'atzolei matzla), and no harm will befall him. It follows that because I engage in Your Torah, I am assured that You will be my hiding place and my shield.
The Malbim notes that the key word here is "words" (devarim), and thus the parallel phrasing is explained: I am not afraid of those who come to harm me, for You are "my hiding place" - hiding me from them so they will not see me at all; and if they nevertheless discover me and draw near, You are "my shield," defending me. Furthermore, "I have hoped for Your word" - You have promised to guard and deliver, and therefore I have no fear that they will harm me.
What Is There to Fear? "Depart from Me, You Evildoers"
סוּרוּ מִמֶּנִּי מְרֵעִים וְאֶצְּרָה מִצְוֺת אֱלֹהָי׃ (קט"ו) - Depart from me, you evildoers, and I will keep the commandments of my God.
Notice: he is not afraid of bodily harm, but he does harbor another concern. Master of the Universe, let those who seek to harm me depart from me! And why? Because my greatest worry is that they will disrupt me from keeping the commandments of my God. I am not worried that they will harm me physically, for "You are my hiding place and my shield"; the fear is that they will cause an interference in my fulfillment of the mitzvos, distracting me from Torah and mitzvos. Therefore, "depart from me, you evildoers" - so that I may guard and observe the commandments of my God.
The Ibn Ezra explains that "depart from me" is stated in relation to the "wavering thinkers" (se'afim) mentioned earlier: those who harbor iniquitous thoughts and distress me - concerning them he asks that they depart from him, and thereby "I will keep the commandments of my God," enabling me to observe Hashem's mitzvos.
"Uphold Me According to Your Word, That I May Live"
סָמְכֵנִי כְאִמְרָתְךָ וְאֶחְיֶה וְאַל תְּבִישֵׁנִי מִשִּׂבְרִי׃ (קט"ז) - Uphold me according to Your word, that I may live, and do not let me be put to shame in my hope.
The Ibn Ezra explains "that I may live" in light of the verse, "which a person shall do and live by them" - if I observe the commandments of Hashem, I will naturally live. The Radak adds: "Uphold me according to Your word" - in accordance with the promise You gave me, and thereby I will live and not die at the hands of those who wish me harm. And "do not let me be put to shame in my hope" - the word shever denotes expectation, as in the verse, "The eyes of all look hopefully to You" (einei chol eilecha yeshabeiru); do not bring shame upon me regarding what I hope for - that You save me from them. For if a person hopes for something and ultimately it does not materialize, he suffers disgrace: "Here, you claimed He would protect you, yet look what has become of you!" Therefore, he asks that he not be shamed in his hope.
And which word or promise is meant? The Radak explains: "Which a person shall do and live by them," and I will perform them. You stated that whoever performs the mitzvos of Hashem is assured of life, and here I am observing Your commandments. It is only fitting, therefore, Master of the Universe, that You protect me. "Uphold me according to Your word" - in accordance with that very utterance of "and live by them"; and since I fulfill that "which a person shall do," fulfill my hope and grant me life.
What Is Life? - "I Will Not Live a Life of Idleness"
The Malbim notes that the central term here is "utterances" (amrot): Master of the Universe, uphold me according to Your word that I may live. And beyond life itself - "do not let me be put to shame in my hope," for my aspiration is to perform mitzvos and good deeds. In his words: "And let me not live a life of idleness, for that would not be considered life to me, and I would be ashamed of my expectation and hope." A life of idleness is not true life. Although the world refers to such leisure as "living it up," we know that this cannot truly be called life.
This concept was once explored at length around Pharaoh's question to Yaakov: "How many are the days of the years of your life?" Yaakov begins with a lengthy explanation: "The days of the years of my pilgrimage... have not attained to the days of the years of the life of my fathers." Seemingly, when someone asks how old you are, say a hundred and thirty, and you are done; why deliver an entire discourse? Rather, the Malbim explains: What is truly called "life"? Serving Hashem and fulfilling the mitzvos - that is what is called life. Therefore Yaakov answered him: When you ask, "How many are the days of the years of your life," one must understand what you are actually asking. If you are asking about years of life - how much spiritual attainment I have achieved - not much; I have not lived a long life, for consider how much sorrow I endured, how much I was persecuted, how many disruptors and troublemakers stood in my way so that I could not meditate on the Torah and cling to Hashem's mitzvos properly and fittingly, as I could have had I lived in tranquility. If you are asking about "the days of the years of my pilgrimage," how long I have resided in this world - to that I will answer you; but the days of the years of my life are not as long as you think, and the reason I appear so old is that old age leaped upon me due to all the troubles that befell me.
"Yosef Is Still Alive" - Why Yaakov Did Not Believe
With this, the continuation of the narrative is also resolved: they came and told Yaakov, "Yosef is still alive, and he is ruler over all the land of Egypt," yet he did not believe them, and "his heart grew numb." Everyone asks: Would his own children deceive him? After twenty-two years of mourning his lost son, they come and tell him he is alive - does not a living person disprove a lie? If you say he is alive, they can go and show him to you; how does it make sense that "he did not believe them"? According to what was explained, it becomes beautifully clear. "Alive" does not merely mean "breathing." They told him: Yosef is alive - I do not believe it. And in Egypt of all places? What possibility of true life is there in Egypt? Yosef is strikingly handsome; what chance is there that he is truly spiritually alive? That he is breathing - fine; that he resides there - fine; but truly "alive" is impossible.
"And he saw the wagons" - if he still holds fast to spirituality and remembers the topic of the *eglah arufah* (the heifer whose neck was broken), then he is truly alive; now I know. "It is enough! Yosef my son is still alive; I will go and see him before I die" - now I know that he is genuinely alive. For had he only wanted to send a sign that he was physically living, he would have sent a completely different sign: "Father, the morning I left you, we ate an omelet." Instead, he sent a Torah sign - this was proof that he was immersed in Torah. Only seeing the wagons put his mind at ease, knowing that Yosef still held onto the Torah, and only then did he say: He is truly worthy of being called alive.
"Do Not Put Me to Shame in My Hope" - Trust of the Mouth and Trust of the Heart
In *Sefer Tehillos*, the verse is explained based on a well-known story cited by the Chazon Ish in his work *Emunah U'Vitachon*, which has been studied in these lessons. "Reuven, who constantly extols trust": Reuven works half the day, closes his shop, and sits down to learn, all the while speaking disparagingly of those people who lack faith and trust in Hashem, working from sunrise until their strength is drained. If only they had a little bit of *bitachon*, they would know that sustenance comes from Heaven, and why work so hard - one can work just a little and the Holy One, blessed be He, will provide. He always has criticism for anyone who does not trust sufficiently in Hashem, may He be blessed.
Then one day, someone opened a competing shop across the street. Reuven sees this, and his heart sinks: What, another one? He is also going to sell what I sell? Now the customers will be divided between him and me. "And Reuven began pacing and whispering among his associates": Did you see this? Who is this man? Why did he come in here? He is robbing my livelihood, he is squeezing my living! He even began organizing a boycott so people would not patronize him. Where is the trust? Where is the faith? Where is the belief that "sustenance comes from Heaven"? It was all mere lip service to *bitachon*, and at the slightest test, he faltered. Why? The Chazon Ish explains: because all that trust he spoke of earlier was not genuine trust. He had seen success in business despite dedicating time to Torah study, and he attributed that success to his trust - but that was not the real cause. Proof of this: the moment things hit a snag, he completely lost the awareness that the Creator of the universe sustains and provides, and that He has more than enough to sustain the entire world, including you, even if ten other people were standing right there selling the exact same merchandise. Does your livelihood depend on him, or on the store? Everything depends on the Master of the Universe. From this we learn that a person may speak grandly about *bitachon*, but when it touches even his "little fingernail," his tune changes completely.
Based on this introduction, we can understand the words of Dovid Hamelech: "Sustain me according to Your word and let me live, and do not put me to shame in my hope" - do not let me be shamed by the trust that is always on my lips. I am constantly saying that one must trust in Hashem, constantly saying that the Holy One, blessed be He, provides and sustains and everything comes from Him; let me not be shamed, let me not be exposed in my nakedness, where people might say: "Dovid, you spoke of trust, so why are you suddenly frightened and afraid?" Therefore: Master of the Universe, sustain me according to Your word and let me live - support me and help me strengthen my faith in You, so that as long as I live I will remain devoted to trusting in You and truly live according to these principles. Let me not act like that Reuven, where a person loses his trust in Hashem; rather, let people see how I trust even in difficult circumstances and learn from me, so that it will not be a situation of "putting me to shame in my hope," where people mockingly say: Look at you, the great "believer" - bringing me nothing but humiliation.
"What Can We Do When the Dogs Will Not Even Let Us Utter a Verse?"
This is like the schoolteacher who took his students out on a sunny day and said, "Today we will study in the forest." They went out to a lovely, pleasant, shaded spot, sat and studied, and in the distance spotted some dogs. The teacher said to them: "You have nothing to fear at all. Know that if a dog approaches, you only need to recite the verse, 'And against any of the children of Israel not a dog shall whet its tongue,' and there is no need to worry; you can remain calm." Shortly thereafter, the dogs began approaching and barking, and the very first one to pick up his feet and run was the teacher himself. They asked him: "Rebbi, why?" He replied: "What can I do when the dogs will not even let me utter a verse?" And they tell of a preacher who was told: "Deliver a sermon on whatever you wish, but do not mention any verses to us; tell stories, without verses - no 'And Hashem spoke to,' no verses." He told them this very story: What can we do when the dogs will not even let us utter a verse?
At any rate, one sees that a person can preach and declare, "Rely and trust," yet when the moment of truth arrives, he picks up his feet and flees. Concerning this, the psalmist comes and says: "Do not put me to shame in my hope" - may that trust which is constantly on my lips be something I truly live by as well, so that I will not later be shamed when they tell me: You spoke about *bitachon*, and yet look where you are.
In summary: The four verses before us build a single theme. "I hate divided thoughts, but Your Torah I love" - not only my speech, but even my thoughts are devoted exclusively to Torah, leaving no room in my mind for distracting thoughts. "You are my hiding place and my shield" - one who clings to the Torah and to Hashem's promise does not fear harmful forces: Hashem conceals him in advance, and if they come close, He shields him. "Depart from me, you evildoers" - the only true concern is not bodily harm, but interference with fulfilling the mitzvos. "Sustain me according to Your word and let me live" - true life is not a life of idleness, but a life of Torah and mitzvos, just as Yaakov Avinu did not acknowledge that "Yosef is still alive" until he saw that his son was steeped in Torah. And "Do not put me to shame in my hope" - may a person merit that the trust on his lips also be the trust in his heart, and that he stand firm in it even in times of trial.