Psalm 133 is one of the shortest psalms, consisting of only three verses, and it revolves entirely around a single praise: "brothers dwelling together in unity." The central question of the chapter is: who are these "brothers"? The commentators offer several approaches to this question, each illuminating a different dimension of unity and the divine abundance that flows from it. We will examine these approaches in order, and then proceed with the explanation of the Malbim, who steers the entire chapter in a single, consistent direction.
שִׁיר הַמַּעֲלוֹת לְדָוִד הִנֵּה מַה טּוֹב וּמַה נָּעִים שֶׁבֶת אַחִים גַּם יָחַד׃ - A song of ascents, of David: Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together in unity.
Rashi explains that the verse refers to when the Holy One, blessed be He, dwells in the Chosen House together with the Jewish people, who are called "brothers and companions," and He is together with them as well. This can be read in the future tense, since David lived before the construction of the Beit HaMikdash, or in the past tense, looking back at the First Temple. When the Holy One, blessed be He, dwells among us in the Beit HaMikdash, we are considered brothers and companions, as in the phrase, "This is my beloved and this is my companion," which we say of the Holy One, blessed be He.
Radak cites in the name of his father that the psalm is spoken regarding the Jewish people, who are all like brothers. When they dwell together in peace and harmony with one another, how good and pleasant it is - like the fine oil running down upon Aaron's beard down to his garments, and like the dew of Hermon, as described in the subsequent verses.
Ibn Ezra explains that the verse relates back to the Kohanim mentioned in the previous chapter: "Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brothers to dwell together" refers to the fellowship of Kohanim when they are united, including the Kohen Gadol. This is why the verse mentions Aaron, "like the fine oil upon the head, running down upon the beard, the beard of Aaron," because it speaks of the Kohanim, and the head of this fellowship of Kohanim is the anointed one - Aaron.
Radak himself writes: In my view, it refers to the King Messiah and the Kohen Gadol who will serve in his days. That is to say, the "brothers" are the two leaders of Israel: the national leader - the king, and the spiritual leader - the Kohen Gadol. Both are anointed with the anointing oil, and both are among the greatest figures in Israel. The king sits on the throne of judgment and sovereignty to direct Israel as he sees fit, while the Kohen - "for the lips of a Kohen should safeguard knowledge, and people seek Torah from his mouth" - teaches Torah and mitzvot. They are brothers in greatness, free of jealousy toward one another, with each knowing his place.
This is the essential point: in contrast to a king who decided he wished to offer incense and tzara'at broke out on his forehead. Each must know his proper place, and then their dwelling together is a dwelling in peace - "how good and how pleasant."
So it was as well during the Return to Zion. Zechariah prophesied concerning both of them: Zerubbabel, who was the prince, and Joshua the Kohen Gadol. He describes them (Zechariah 4) as two olive trees, "the two sons of oil" - and why "oil"? Because both of them were anointed with the anointing oil, one anointed to the High Priesthood and the other to royalty. And so it is said: "Make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua son of Jehozadak, the Kohen Gadol," and the second "upon the man whose name is the Branch" - this is Zerubbabel, who would cause salvation to sprout. Once again we see the two leaders, the spiritual and the temporal, exemplifying "brothers dwelling together in unity."
So it will be in the Future to Come: the king and the Kohen Gadol, each seated on a throne of greatness, and how good and pleasant it is for them to sit together. The Radak adds an insight into the nuance of the words "gam yachad" (even together): just as they will be brothers in greatness, so too will they be brothers in their hearts - all their actions will be done in complete accord, and neither will envy the other, as was said of Zerubbabel and Joshua: "and the counsel of peace shall be between them both." This is the greatest blessing: when peace and tranquility, love and brotherhood prevail between the leaders, it brings immense benefit to the leadership of the nation.
The holy Alshich explains that this psalm is a continuation of the preceding psalm, and that it speaks of the Second Temple. We know that the Second Temple was destroyed because of baseless hatred between brothers. According to this, the verse laments: Behold, how good and pleasant it would have been had there been "brothers dwelling together in unity" during the Second Temple, free of baseless hatred - for then the Second Temple would have endured.
The Malbim explains that the brothers here are Yissachar and Zevulun. They joined together so completely that they were like body and soul, each guiding the other toward perfection and each needing the other. This is the meaning of "Rejoice, Zevulun, in your going out, and Yissachar, in your tents": Yissachar engages in Torah and perfects the soul, while Zevulun engages in commerce and provides for the body. Yissachar cannot manage without Zevulun - for "if there is no flour, there is no Torah"; yet what will Zevulun do with flour alone? Everything remains behind in this world, and what has he done for the life of the World to Come? Thus it emerges that he, too, needs Yissachar in order to achieve his own completeness.
Therefore, through their combination, both "good" and "pleasant" are brought to completion: true goodness belongs to the realm of the World to Come, while pleasantness belongs to earthly life - in that Yissachar is not forced to suffer privation all his days, because Zevulun supports and sustains him. And this is the meaning of "Behold, how good and how pleasant" - how are goodness for the World to Come and pleasantness for this world achieved? Through "brothers dwelling together in unity": when Yissachar and Zevulun sit together and assist one another, their partnership is good and pleasant for both this world and the World to Come.
כַּשֶּׁמֶן הַטּוֹב עַל הָרֹאשׁ יֹרֵד עַל הַזָּקָן זְקַן אַהֲרֹן שֶׁיֹּרֵד עַל פִּי מִדּוֹתָיו׃ - Like the precious oil upon the head, running down upon the beard, the beard of Aaron, running down to the collar of his robes.
Like the precious oil with which Aaron the Kohen was anointed, which ran down from the head onto the beard, and from there "upon the collar of his robes." What does "middotav" mean? All the commentators explain it as his garments, related to the word "mado" (his tunic), as in "his linen tunic (umido vad)." The oil would flow down from the beard onto his garments. And Rashi explains: onto the opening of the neck of his tunic, where the beard rests upon the collar of the tunic. And just as the oil is pleasant, so too is the dew of lofty Hermon pleasant as it descends upon the mountains of Zion. Just as the anointing oil is designated for greatness, so Mount Zion is glory and honor for Israel, the site of the Beis HaMikdash.
Chazal expounded these verses regarding "brethren dwelling together in unity" as referring to Moshe and Aharon, in the context of the laws of me'ilah (sacrilege) regarding the anointing oil: just as there is no liability of me'ilah for Aharon, so too there is no liability of me'ilah for Moshe. Nevertheless, Rashi writes: these are the words of the Sages and their riddles, but despite all this, the primary intent of this Shir HaMa'alot was said concerning the Beit HaMikdash, for all the themes of Shir HaMa'alot were composed regarding the ascents of the Beit HaMikdash.
Radak notes that kashemen ("like oil") is vocalized with a patach, signifying the definite article - the specific, renowned oil. And just as it was pleasant at the anointing of Aharon on the day he was appointed Kohen Gadol, so will it be good and pleasant when brothers dwell together in unity. Yet ostensibly, if the chapter deals with both anointings - the anointing of the king and the anointing of the Kohen Gadol - why did it mention specifically the anointing of the Kohen Gadol and not the anointing of David?
There are two reasons for this. First: Aharon's anointing came first chronologically, and took place at the time the divine glory rested upon Israel with the erection of the Mishkan, that is, when Hashem caused His Shechinah to dwell among us. So it will also be in the future: when the Beit HaMikdash is rebuilt and King Mashiach and the Kohen Gadol arise, the divine glory will rest there and the Shechinah will abide. Second: Aharon's anointing was public, before the eyes of all Israel, whereas David's anointing was in secret, before Yishai and his sons alone, since Shmuel feared that Shaul might kill him. In the future to come, this will occur openly, before the eyes of Israel and before the eyes of all the nations.
And the description of the anointing: First Moshe dressed Aharon in the priestly garments, and then poured the oil upon his head and anointed him with the oil between his eyelashes in the shape of a chi - which Chazal say is like the Greek letter chi. The oil poured upon his head flowed down onto his beard and his garments, and "the opening of his garments" refers to the neck opening of the vestment. And this oil was "how good and how pleasant," for it was compounded and scented with various spices, and its fragrance was delightful.
The Malbim explains that divine flow sometimes descends from Heaven directly upon one who is prepared for it, without any intermediary - such as a prophet who is accustomed to walking in the ways of prophecy, like the sons of the prophets, preparing himself for the divine influence. However, at times it descends in such tremendous abundance that even one who is unprepared is influenced by it. As we find with Shaul, when he drew near to the prophets and to Shmuel he began to prophesy: the abundance descending upon the prepared person overflows and impacts the unprepared as well, even one who has not yet attained those spiritual levels.
This is the analogy of the oil: the primary pouring of the anointing oil descends upon the head, where holy anointing takes place, because the head is the place prepared for it - the seat of the brain and the faculties of intellect and thought, the highest spiritual component, the locus of the soul, the mochin, the crown of chokhmah and binah, which signifies spiritual perception. That is where it is fitting for the exalted spiritual flow to be bestowed. Nonetheless, the oil subsequently flows down as well onto the beard, the beard of Aharon, and descends to the opening of his robes, extending downward even to that which is unprepared, lacking spiritual attainment, and not originally worthy of that flow.
And the application: The bestowal of wisdom rests upon Yissachar, who corresponds to the head - the one immersed in Torah, a man of stature, prepared to receive wisdom, and he receives the divine influence in vast and boundless measure. Yet it descends and affects the one who is not inherently prepared for it as well - Zevulun. Because Zevulun assists, supports, and aids Yissachar, the abundance extends to him as well. "Your name is like oil poured out" - the oil is poured and flows downward even to one who was not originally fit for it, because he serves as a supporter and stands beside Yissachar. Just as the oil descends upon the head and from there to the beard and the rest of the garments, even though on their own they were not worthy of that oil.
In Shir HaShirim Rabbah, the Midrash addresses a difficulty in the phrasing of the verse: "running down upon the beard, the beard of Aharon" - did Aharon have two beards? Why the repetition? Rather, when Moshe saw the oil running down upon Aharon's beard, he rejoiced as though it were running down upon his own beard.
And one must reflect on this: Who was originally supposed to be the Kohen Gadol? Moshe. And now he was sent to anoint his brother. "It was I who was meant to be, and now I am anointing another, losing the supreme stature of the High Priesthood." Let us understand: for Moshe, this was not a matter of power or position; rather, the High Priesthood was yet another dimension of closeness to God that he had lost. Even so, there was not the slightest grievance or hesitation; rather, as the oil ran down upon Aharon's beard, Moshe rejoiced as though it were running down upon his own beard, out of the sheer greatness of his joy and goodness of heart, genuinely delighting in Aharon's elevation.
And this is precisely like "dwelling together as brothers" from the other side: when Moshe arrived from Midian, it was said of Aharon, "He will see you and rejoice in his heart" - he rejoiced in Moshe's greatness, harboring no resentment that he had been the one prophesying to them until that day and suddenly Moshe arrived. From this we see the immense bond between the brothers, their closeness and love for one another, as each truly rejoiced in the other's good fortune.
כְּטַל חֶרְמוֹן שֶׁיֹּרֵד עַל הַרְרֵי צִיּוֹן כִּי שָׁם צִוָּה יְהֹוָה אֶת הַבְּרָכָה חַיִּים עַד הָעוֹלָם׃ - Like the dew of Chermon descending upon the mountains of Zion, for there Hashem commanded the blessing, life forevermore.
Radak explains that the word "like dew" stands in place of two, just as we have seen with similar expressions: "like the dew of Chermon that descends upon the mountains of Zion" - like the dew of Chermon, and like the dew that descends upon the mountains of Zion, as if the word were written twice. And why does it mention Chermon? Because it was among the tallest mountains in Eretz Yisrael, as it is said, "Tavor and Chermon sing in Your Name." And "the mountains of Zion" refers to the seat of royalty; and it is in the plural because "Jerusalem has mountains surrounding it," meaning there are many mountains there.
Here continues his approach: the psalm already mentioned the allegory of the oil, which symbolizes the Kohen Gadol, and now it mentions dew, which symbolizes the king. For in Radak's view, the chapter deals with the union between the king and the Kohen Gadol, with the peace and brotherhood between them, where each is responsible for his own realm, dwelling together as brothers. So too it says, "A king's wrath is like the roar of a lion, but his favor is like dew upon the grass" - we see that the king's goodwill is likened to dew. Redemption is also compared to dew: "like dew from Hashem," "I will be like dew to Israel."
And why is kingship compared to dew? Because dew descends gently, expressing the ideal character of monarchy, which must be gentle: the king should not be harsh, nor should he lead the people with whips, but rather guide them gently, like dew descending softly. And why does it mention dew of the mountains? Because on the mountains dew brings blessing, and they need it more than the valleys and plains, since rain naturally flows downward, making dew far more vital for the mountains. And why? "For there Hashem commanded the blessing," there He commands "life forevermore."
What is "life forevermore"? Radak brings one interpretation that it means a very long life, as it says, "They shall not build and another inhabit, they shall not plant and another eat, for as the days of a tree are the days of My people, and My chosen ones will outlive the work of their hands" - that they will have longevity, seeing what they built wear out while they are still alive. Another possibility: "forevermore" - until the life of the World to Come.
Malbim continues along his path concerning Yissachar and Zevulun. Until now, we saw that the bounty reaches Yissachar and flows downward, also impacting one who is not prepared for it, Zevulun. Now Malbim adds: sometimes the bounty reaches the one prepared for it through an intermediary - that is, the bounty first descends in a place not inherently prepared for it, and from there continues to the place worthy of it.
The example is the dew of Chermon: the dew that descends upon Chermon is not meant for Chermon, but for the mountains of Zion, "for there Hashem commanded the blessing." The primary blessing is for Mount Zion, and it merely passes through Chermon. For the life brought by dew on Mount Chermon is not "life forevermore," as Mount Chermon represents something physical; whereas the life upon Mount Zion, the place of the Beit HaMikdash, is spiritual life, eternal life forevermore.
So too with the bounty that the Holy One, blessed be He, grants to Zevulun: it is like dew descending upon Chermon, seemingly out of place. But where is it meant to go? To Yissachar, to Mount Zion, where Hashem commanded life, life forevermore. The bounty reaches Yissachar through Zevulun, and in this Zevulun is like Mount Chermon, which receives the dew for the mountains of Zion, for Yissachar, so that Yissachar can engage in Torah study.
This short psalm presents this very unity before us in several dimensions: Israel dwelling with the Shechinah in the Beis HaBechirah; Klal Yisrael, who are brothers to one another; the fellowship of the Kohanim; and the king and the Kohen Gadol, each sitting upon his throne of greatness without jealousy - and contrasted with them, the rebuke concerning the Second Temple, which was destroyed through brotherly hatred. The Malbim grounds the entire matter in the partnership of Yissachar and Zevulun, body and soul complementing each other: the oil descends upon the head and also affects the beard and the garments, and the dew descends upon Chermon so that it may reach the mountains of Zion. All of this is learned from the brothers Moshe and Aharon, each of whom rejoiced in the good of his fellow - Moshe in the beard of Aharon, and Aharon in the arrival of Moshe. And in the place where there is brothers dwelling together in unity, there Hashem commanded the blessing: life forevermore.