Psalm 136 is "Hallel HaGadol" (the Great Hallel), in which every single verse concludes with "for His kindness endures forever" (ki le'olam chasdo). In the previous section, we addressed the kindnesses of Creation: the making of heaven and earth, the luminaries, and the stars. From here onward, King David turns to the kindnesses manifested throughout history: the Exodus from Egypt, the splitting of the Red Sea, the journey through the wilderness, the defeat of Sihon and Og and the inheritance of the Land, through to the perpetual kindness of "He gives food to all flesh." We will examine the verses in order, through the insights of Rashi, Radak, Ibn Ezra, the Malbim, and the masters of Mussar.
לְמַכֵּה מִצְרַיִם בִּבְכוֹרֵיהֶם כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - To Him Who smote Egypt through their firstborn, for His kindness endures forever.
Rashi makes a precise observation: it does not say "To Him Who smote the firstborn of Egypt," nor "To Him Who smote their firstborn," but rather "To Him Who smote Egypt through their firstborn" - the Holy One, blessed be He, struck the Egyptians by means of their own firstborn. When the firstborn heard from Moshe about the impending plague of the firstborn, they realized that if Israel was not sent free that night, they would all die. They came out in protest against their fathers: "What are you doing? Why is Israel still kept here? Release them immediately!" And since the parents did not act quickly enough, "the firstborn arose and struck down their fathers who were holding Israel back." The firstborn struck their own parents for failing to take action to release Israel from Egypt.
The Radak asks why the plague of the firstborn is specifically highlighted, and answers: because it was through this blow that they were freed; it was the final, decisive strike. Furthermore, as noted earlier, there is an additional reason: the plague of the firstborn was forewarned from the very beginning, with the advance notice of "Behold, I will slay your son, your firstborn." The Malbim explains that the verse here comes to detail the wonders: through the plague of the firstborn, the Holy One, blessed be He, brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand, and all these wonders were performed solely to redeem Israel. The plague of the firstborn was an affliction brought upon Egypt whose ultimate purpose was the good of Israel.
וַיּוֹצֵא יִשְׂרָאֵל מִתּוֹכָם כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ בְּיָד חֲזָקָה וּבִזְרוֹעַ נְטוּיָה כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - And brought out Israel from their midst, for His kindness endures forever; with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, for His kindness endures forever.
The Holy One, blessed be He, struck the firstborn of Egypt in order to bring Israel out from their midst, and He brought them out with a strong hand and an outstretched arm, displaying His absolute might over them - and in this, too, His kindness is eternal. The Ibn Ezra explains that "with a strong hand" means with a high hand, not like slaves fleeing from their masters. Moshe told Pharaoh that we would not slip away in the dark of night. Pharaoh came at midnight pleading, "Rise up, go out from among my people," to which Moshe replied: No, we will leave at high noon like valiant men, openly and proudly. "And the Children of Israel went out with a high hand" - the Targum renders this: with head held high (be-reish galei). Moreover, Moshe wanted Pharaoh to provide written release that they were fully emancipated, sovereign over themselves, and not escaping runaways.
The Radak adds that after stating "and brought out Israel from their midst," the text says "with a strong hand" to include the rest of the plagues, through which the Egyptians felt His mighty hand upon them. Yet this requires clarification: the plagues of Egypt occurred in the past and are over, so how does "for His kindness endures forever" apply to them? Regarding the sun, the moon, and the spreading of the earth over the waters, one can easily see an enduring, perpetual kindness, but the plague of the firstborn came and passed! The Radak answers: it was a monumental kindness that will be recounted for all time, that Israel dwelt in their land while the Egyptians were struck with every plague, and Israel living among them was entirely spared. One may add further that this kindness is what binds us forever to the service of Hashem: "I am Hashem your God" - and what obligates me to observe His commandments? "Who brought you out of the land of Egypt." As we recite in the Haggadah, had He not done so, we and our children would still be subjugated to Pharaoh in Egypt. Thus, the ramifications of that kindness endure forever, making it entirely fitting to declare: "for His kindness endures forever."
לְגֹזֵר יַם סוּף לִגְזָרִים כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - To Him Who divided the Red Sea into parts, for His kindness endures forever.
"Into parts" (ligzarim) is in the plural, and Rashi explains: twelve paths for the twelve tribes. Radak explains that this kindness, too, is worthy of being recounted forever: the Holy One, blessed be He, did not want Israel to experience war, "lest the people reconsider when they see war and return to Egypt." Therefore, He did not lead them through the way of the land of the Philistines, and He altered the nature of the water for them so they could pass through it and be saved from Egypt. And He performed a great kindness with them in the splitting of the Sea, tearing it into twelve paths so they would not enter in confusion and disarray, but rather each tribe entered along the path designated for it.
Radak further explains that "into parts" means the sea was divided across its breadth up to halfway or more, and then along its length. What this means is: children usually imagine that the sea split because the Jewish people needed to cross from one bank to the other, and the splitting of the sea enabled their crossing. But this was not the case. Their route through the sea was in the shape of a semi-circle; they entered on one side and emerged on that very same bank, in order to shake the Egyptians off their backs. If so, since they did not actually need to cross the sea to reach the other side, why did the Holy One, blessed be He, do this? Only so that the Egyptians would drown in the sea, and to display the magnitude of His greatness, that Israel would walk through the sea on dry land while the Egyptians drowned within it. And this is a kindness to be recounted to every generation. For when an act is strictly necessary - such as the splitting of the Jordan River for Joshua, where they had to cross over to the opposite bank - it does not manifest the same surplus of pure benevolence. Here, however, crossing was not structurally necessary at all; it was nothing other than Hashem's lovingkindness to vanquish the Egyptians and drown them in the sea, and to grant us the Seventh Day of Pesach, a festival in its own right and an additional time of rejoicing over the miracle of the splitting of the Red Sea.
In the sefer Tehillot Maharit, a wondrous Midrash is cited: In the merit of the two splittings with which Avraham Avinu, peace be upon him, split the wood for the burnt-offering, he merited that the sea would split before the Children of Israel, as it says, "and he split (vayevaka) the wood for the burnt-offering," and it says, "and the waters were split (vayibak'u)." "Wood" is in the plural (atzei), implying at least two splittings. But what is the connection? Merely because they share the same Hebrew root, does that mean they are intrinsically linked?
This can be explained as follows: Chazal say that the splitting of the Red Sea was in the merit of the Torah that Israel was destined to receive. The sea asked, "How are these different from those?" and the Holy One, blessed be He, answered: "These are destined to receive the Torah, while those are not destined to receive the Torah." It turns out that we merited the splitting of the Red Sea on account of a future potential, without having anything tangible in hand at that moment. Rather, our preparation to receive the Torah was sufficient for it to be considered as if we had already received it. And from where do we know that preparation alone is considered by the Holy One, blessed be He, as if the deed were actually performed? From the Akeidah: Avraham bound (akad) Yitzchak - meaning he tied him up - but he did not slaughter him or offer him up. Yet because he made all the preparations - splitting the wood, arranging the fire, and placing Yitzchak upon the altar - the Holy One, blessed be He, credited the preparation to him as if he had actually carried it out. To this day we plead, "Remember for us the binding of Yitzchak," as though he had actually been bound and sacrificed, and this merit is preserved for eternity.
So too with Israel: they already possessed the preparation for receiving the Torah. The years they spent in Egypt - whether counted as four hundred or two hundred and ten - this exile was a crucible of refinement, and Egypt is indeed called the "iron furnace." This is elaborated upon at length in Mishnat HaGilgulim, in the chapter "The Secret of the Egyptian Exile and the Sin of Adam HaRishon," presenting a wondrous teaching of the holy Ari on how their years in Egypt served as preparation for receiving the Torah, through which all the sins of the previous generations were refined. At the time of the splitting of the sea, they had not yet received the Torah, but the preparation for receiving the Torah was already theirs. And if you ask, who says that preparation alone suffices? To this the Midrash responds: in the merit of the two splittings with which Avraham cleaved the wood for the offering, the sea was split - for through them Avraham demonstrated that one who prepares himself for a mitzvah is considered as having fulfilled it.
Tehillot Maharit adds: this is why King David says here, "To Him Who divided the Red Sea into parts (gezarim)" - an allusion to the two split logs (gezarei eitzim) of Avraham Avinu. And in their merit, "for His lovingkindness endures forever," for the Holy One, blessed be He, prepared an eternal kindness for the world, demonstrating that He does not wait until the deed is fully actualized, but rather considers the very preparation as if the act had already been carried out.
וְהֶעֱבִיר יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּתוֹכוֹ כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - And led Israel through its midst, for His lovingkindness endures forever.
"Through its midst" (betocho) means in the very depths of the sea, halfway through, and He led them on dry land, as it is written: "And the Children of Israel went into the midst of the sea on dry land." Could there be any greater kindness than this, that not even their feet were dipped in water or became wet at all? It does not say "He led Israel through it," but "in its midst" - right into the depths of the sea - and despite this, they did not get wet.
The Malbim, in another place in his commentary on the Torah, explains that the Holy One, blessed be He, raised the seabed for them. Under natural conditions, when a sea bed is exposed, one must descend very deep into a low depression. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He created a kind of ramp for them, raising the sea floor so that they could walk along a level path. This is the meaning of "and led Israel through its midst": they passed through the midst of the sea, yet they did not have to descend into the abyss and climb back out; rather, they walked across an elevated plane. Furthermore, the seabed is not a paved road; it is full of rocks, ravines, and crevasses, yet the Holy One, blessed be He, smoothed the way so that they walked upon a level path.
וְנִעֵר פַּרְעֹה וְחֵילוֹ בְיַם סוּף כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - And shook off Pharaoh and his army in the Yam Suf, for His kindness is eternal.
"And He shook off" - meaning that they had no ability to turn back. And it is a great kindness that Israel witnessed vengeance taken upon their enemies and no longer feared them. We have already cited the Midrash: when Israel emerged from the sea, they were fearful and said, "Perhaps just as we are coming out alive from here, the Egyptians are coming out alive from over there?" The Holy One, blessed be He, commanded the ministering angel of the sea, who cast out their corpses onto the shore. The Midrash relates that each and every Jew saw and gazed upon the specific Egyptian who had subjugated him, placed his foot upon his neck, and said to him: "See where you are and where I am" - after he was already dead and drowned.
There was a psychologist who read this Midrash, and as a result, he became a ba'al teshuvah. He said: In psychology, we learn that when a person is harmed - when someone hurts or abuses him - part of the victim's healing process is seeing the perpetrator pay the price. This is why the victim is often brought to the courtroom, so that he may see the perpetrator being judged. This is part of his emotional healing and recovery, where he feels that justice has been served, which removes the lingering, painful trauma of those injuries. That psychologist said: I saw that the Holy One, blessed be He, brought Israel not only a physical redemption, but also an emotional and spiritual redemption. The Egyptians had enslaved Israel and subjected them to horrific abuses, and now the Jew places his foot upon his tormentor's neck and says, "See where you are and where I am." This brings true healing to the victim's soul, enabling them to leave Egypt in complete redemption. From this we understand the verse, "O Lord, God of vengeance; God of vengeance, shine forth!" and likewise for the future to come: "These to eternal life, and these to shame and eternal contempt."
The Malbim explains: As for the fact that the Holy One, blessed be He, split the Yam Suf into sections and led Israel through it, the primary purpose of the miracle was for the downfall of Egypt, in order to destroy them. For He could easily have saved us in another manner; rather, the intention was that the Egyptians would enter the sea and drown. Therefore, He hardened Pharaoh's heart to pursue Israel, "for in the very matter in which they conspired against them" - in the very pot in which they cooked, they were cooked: they drowned our sons in the river, and the Holy One, blessed be He, drowned them in the sea.
לְמוֹלִיךְ עַמּוֹ בַּמִּדְבָּר כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - To Him Who led His nation through the wilderness, for His kindness is eternal.
The Radak explains: A wilderness is a land through which no man has passed; there was no paved path there, yet Hashem led His people through it. In His lovingkindness, He guided them with a pillar of cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night, showing them the way. The desert is a barren wasteland of drought and the shadow of death. In such a place, how could even a single individual survive, let alone an entire nation of some five million people? They had to be provided with water, with manna, and with meat. The Holy One, blessed be He, sustained five million people in the wilderness, and this kindness will be recounted forever.
The Malbim adds that Hashem's kindness is evident here from another angle: through their journey in the wilderness, they learned to know the ways of Hashem and His Torah, and to purge from their hearts the corrupt impressions and corrupt mindsets they had absorbed from the Egyptians. After all, they had grown up in Egypt, where they were idol worshippers. Thus Moshe said: "Why, Hashem, should Your wrath blaze against Your people, whom You brought out of the land of Egypt?" - why the emphasis on "whom You brought out of Egypt"? Master of the Universe, You are angry with them for worshipping an idol, but in what were they immersed for two hundred and ten years? In Egyptian culture! This is a nation that has only just departed from there, and what wonder is it? For the Gemara says: "Throw a stick into the air, and it falls back to its roots" - you cast a stick upward, and it naturally falls back toward the place from which it originated. All the ingrained habits and distorted worldviews of Egypt were still within them. The Holy One, blessed be He, led us through the wilderness, and there we learned the ways of Hashem and His Providence; there we learned to straighten our path and align our will with the Divine will. When they strayed and voiced grievances, they received rebukes and discipline; we received the Torah, and Moshe Rabbeinu taught the nation emerging from Egypt how a Jew is meant to live. All of this was the kindness of Hashem, Who guided us through the desert and taught us all these lessons.
The Malbim further cites based on the Midrash that because Israel journeyed through the wilderness and endured hardship, the land of Sichon and Og was granted to them as an addition. This is a novel insight: the land of Sichon and Og was given as a kind of bonus for the suffering we endured in the wilderness. According to this, the verses that follow "To Him Who led His nation through the wilderness" are remarkably precise: "To Him Who struck down great kings," "and slew mighty kings," "Sichon, king of the Amorites," "and Og, king of the Bashan," "and gave their land as a heritage" - all of it is directly tied to the journey through the desert.
לְמַכֵּה מְלָכִים גְּדֹלִים כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ וַיַּהֲרֹג מְלָכִים אַדִּירִים כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - To Him Who struck down great kings, for His kindness is eternal; and slew mighty kings, for His kindness is eternal.
Rashi explains that this alludes to the war against the thirty-one kings of the Land of Canaan, and the verse balances against them Pharaoh and his army, the plagues of Egypt, and Sichon and Og. It is an established principle: when scripture mentions a group and then highlights one individual from among them on his own, it signifies that he is either the foremost among them or equivalent to all of them combined. This is similar to the verse, "And the entire congregation came, and Moshe and Aharon" - are Moshe and Aharon not part of the congregation? Of course they are; rather, because they were the leaders, the verse mentions them separately. So too here: "To Him Who struck down great kings," and afterward it mentions Sichon and Og on their own, giving specific thanks for the downfall of each one individually.
It is interesting that the Malbim, whose method is to explain every duplication, does not explain here the double phrasing of "great" and "mighty," while the Metzudat David interprets it as poetic parallelism (a repetition of the theme). One might suggest that "great" refers to quantity and "mighty" to strength: even though they were numerous in quantity and mighty in strength, the Holy One, blessed be He, struck them down through us, and that is "for His lovingkindness is eternal." The Metzudat David also explains that Sichon is mentioned individually because he was exceedingly strong, as was Og, who was exceptionally mighty, which is why the verse singles each of them out on his own.
לְסִיחוֹן מֶלֶךְ הָאֱמֹרִי כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ וּלְעוֹג מֶלֶךְ הַבָּשָׁן כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ וְנָתַן אַרְצָם לְנַחֲלָה כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - To Sichon king of the Amorites, for His lovingkindness is eternal; and to Og king of Bashan, for His lovingkindness is eternal; and gave their land as a heritage, for His lovingkindness is eternal.
The Radak notes: It was not enough that He struck them down; He also gave their land to us as a heritage. Why is this significant? Because there can be a situation where you defeat a nation and expel it from its land, yet there is a phase two to the campaign: other nations and their allies arrive and drive you out in turn. Therefore it says, "and gave their land as a heritage" - do not think that they subsequently came, defeated us, and expelled us; rather, the land remained our heritage permanently, and this is an additional kindness, "for His lovingkindness is eternal." The Radak defines *chesed* as an added, overflowing good.
In light of this, notice that the giving of the land of Canaan is not mentioned here at all. Why? Because the land of Canaan was already promised in advance, and fulfilling what was promised is not *chesed* (pure lovingkindness) but an obligation, whereas here we are speaking of "for His lovingkindness is eternal." Therefore, specifically the giving of the lands of Sichon and Og constitutes *chesed*, especially according to the Malbim (following the Midrash) that we were never originally supposed to receive them. The land of Canaan belongs to us by virtue of the covenant with Avraham Avinu: the land of seven nations plus three others - the Kenite, the Kenizzite, and the Kadmonite - which we are destined to inherit fully only in the future to come, being bordering areas of Eretz Yisrael (though in this world they were subjugated under King David, forming parts of Ammon and Moav). Thus, the Holy One, blessed be He, promised ten nations to Avraham: three - the Kenite, Kenizzite, and Kadmonite; and seven - the Hittite, Perizzite, Rephaim, Amorite, Girgashite, Canaanite, and Jebusite (and in that verse the Hivvite is not explicitly mentioned, with Chazal explaining that the Rephaim correspond to the Hivvites). However, east of the Jordan River, Avraham Avinu received nothing, yet this too Hashem gave to Israel as an inheritance: the land of Sichon (taken from Moav) and the land of Og, king of Bashan. This was pure *chesed*. That is why the gift of Canaan is omitted here, mentioning only the gift of the eastern bank of the Jordan, which had never been promised to Avraham.
נַחֲלָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל עַבְדּוֹ כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - A heritage to Israel His servant, for His lovingkindness is eternal.
The Radak explains: He took the land away from them, for they were idolaters, and gave it to Israel, who serve none other than Hashem, blessed be He.
שֶׁבְּשִׁפְלֵנוּ זָכַר לָנוּ כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ וַיִּפְרְקֵנוּ מִצָּרֵינוּ כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - Who remembered us in our lowly state, for His lovingkindness is eternal; and released us from our oppressors, for His lovingkindness is eternal.
The simple meaning of the verse refers to Egypt: in our lowly state in Egypt, He remembered us - that is, He remembered in order to redeem us. The Radak, however, applies this to the period of exile: we were exiled from the Land due to our iniquities and sins, reaching the lowest state, yet the Holy One, blessed be He, remembered for us the covenant of the Patriarchs, as it is written, "Yet even then, when they are in the land of their enemies..." The Radak states regarding this, "and this is the correct interpretation" - meaning that it is most accurate to understand the verse as referring to this final exile in which we have languished for two thousand years, and despite it all, the Holy One, blessed be He, remembers us and redeems us from our oppressors.
The Alshich HaKadosh cites the teaching of Chazal that when Israel left Egypt, astrological signs seemed to portend total destruction, Heaven forbid. Pharaoh warned them that there was a star, an omen of evil facing them, which symbolizes blood and misfortune, indicating that upon entering the Land they would be slain by their enemies. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? That very blood Pharaoh foresaw, He transformed into the blood of circumcision (*dam milah*). Yehoshua circumcised Israel, so when they entered the Land there was indeed bloodshed, but it was the blood of *milah*. This is the meaning of the verse, "This day have I rolled away the reproach of Egypt from off you": what the Egyptians predicted - that there would be blood upon your arrival in the Land - indeed came to pass, yet it was not the blood of the reproach of Egypt, which anticipated our death, but the blood of the covenant of circumcision in its stead, through which Hashem redeemed us. This is "in our lowly state" - even when our situation appeared lowly and doomed according to the stars, the Holy One, blessed be He, remembered His lovingkindness for us, and "released us from our oppressors," saving us through the blood of circumcision from the death our enemies had foreseen for us.
In the *Sefer Shirat Yonah*, an explanation is cited in the name of the *Noam Megadim* along the path of Chassidut: "Who remembered us in our lowly state" - meaning that during the time of our lowliness, when we were exiled from our Land, the Land is still remembered by us. We still remember Yerushalayim, we still remember Eretz Yisrael, and we still yearn to return and be redeemed. And in that merit, "for His lovingkindness is eternal" and "He released us from our oppressors": Hashem's lovingkindness accompanies us, liberating us from our enemies. The Yaavetz similarly asks: What was the greatest of all misfortunes and the tragedy of tragedies? That this mourning departed from our hearts, that we forgot Yerushalayim. The Jewish people settled in Europe and built grand estates, as the Yaavetz puts it, and that brought all the troubles upon Israel. But if "in our lowly state" there is remembrance within us - if we still remember Yerushalayim and the destruction, yearning to return - then "His lovingkindness is eternal" and "He will release us from our oppressors"; there is redemption and there is salvation.
The book Tehilos Maharitz explains in another way: for our sins, there are generations in which the Jewish people do not conduct themselves properly, and a merit must be sought for their existence - a merit that, even in the degraded state in which they find themselves, will stand by them so that they endure. And what merit can be found in such a dire reality? That we are measured against the nations. One looks at the nations and says: well, compared to the nations, the Jewish people are righteous! The Gemara notes that one of the merits of the nations was that they did not sell human flesh openly in the butcher shop. Another merit they had in the past, which has now vanished, was that they did not write a marriage contract for a male; today they write one for a male as well and hold official marriages, thereby losing that merit too. In any event, when we are measured against the nations, says the Maharitz Dushinsky, even though we are low and degraded, we are still considered exalted compared to the state of the nations. And this is the meaning of "Who remembered us in our lowliness": if we are in a lowly state and there is no defending advocate, what merit will the Holy One, blessed be He, remember for us in His kindness? To this the verse answers: "And released us from our oppressors" - the Holy One, blessed be He, frees and delivers us by virtue of looking upon our oppressors. Look at how our oppressors look, and that in itself is a reason to redeem us.
Radak adds: The great kindness is that He keeps us alive among the nations - something before which the nations stand astonished. Historians, Tolstoy, and others, sat, researched, and pondered: How can it be that this nation is alive, existing, breathing, thriving, and influential for three thousand years? And not as some remote tribe at the edge of the globe, but deeply rooted and embedded in the world's highest positions. Rather, the Holy One, blessed be He, in His great kindness, keeps us alive among the nations even in exile, and proclaims, "For His lovingkindness endures forever," promising that He will yet redeem us from our oppressors, and His kindness will never depart from us.
נֹתֵן לֶחֶם לְכָל בָּשָׂר כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - Who gives food to all flesh, for His lovingkindness endures forever.
After describing the kindness shown to Israel, David shows us at the conclusion of the psalm the kindness of the Holy One, blessed be He, toward all living things: He nourishes and sustains all His creatures. And it is a great kindness that He provides each creature with the food suited to it. It is worthy of dedicating a lesson in its own right to reflect upon how the Holy One, blessed be He, is wondrous in counsel in arranging food for all living creatures, sometimes through extraordinary means, until it literally reaches their mouths - as in the Gemara regarding "the young ravens that cry," where gnats hatch from their droppings and fly directly into their mouths, along with many other such examples.
Malbim explains that man's sustenance is also included in this. Even though Chazal state that "the matter depends on mazal" (destiny/constellation), meaning that livelihood is influenced by mazal, it is the Holy One, blessed be He, Who is "He gives bread to all flesh." And even if it appears to you that this comes from heaven through the heavenly order, constellations, and stars - such that one is born under a constellation of poverty while another is born under a constellation of wealth, as was said to Rabbi Elazar ben Pedas who was born under a constellation of poverty: "Would you like Me to overturn the world for you, and perhaps you will be reborn under a different constellation?" - therefore, the psalm concludes: "Give thanks to the God of heaven."
הוֹדוּ לְאֵל הַשָּׁמָיִם כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ׃ - Give thanks to the God of heaven, for His lovingkindness endures forever.
Give thanks to the Holy One, blessed be He, for He is the God of heaven - He directs the heavens, He directs the heavenly order and the constellations; consequently, everything emanates and flows from Him, blessed be He, and everything is from His kindness. David concludes the psalm: Give thanks to the God of heaven Who prepares food for every creature, for His kindness is forever. In correspondence to this, Chazal taught that the twenty-six occurrences of "For His lovingkindness endures forever" in this psalm correspond to the twenty-six generations during which the world existed without Torah and was sustained solely by the kindness of the Creator, blessed be He. And why "to the God of heaven"? Radak explains: because rain comes from heaven, and rain is the source of food, as it is written, "For as the rain and snow come down from heaven" - referring to the upper atmosphere. Hashem is the God of heaven, He commands the rain to descend, and through this He gives bread to all flesh, and through this His kindness is ever upon us; may it always be so, Amen and Amen.
The second half of the psalm leads us on a journey through the kindness of the Holy One, blessed be He, toward His people: the Plague of the Firstborn in which the firstborn themselves took part; an exodus with a high hand and not like fleeing slaves; a sea parted into twelve pathways in the merit of Abraham's two acts of splitting wood and in preparation for receiving the Torah; traversing the seabed on dry, level ground without their feet even becoming wet; the drowning of the Egyptians, which also brought healing to the souls of the afflicted; forty years in the wilderness during which we learned the ways of Hashem and were cleansed of Egyptian culture; and the land of Sihon and Og given as an unpromised gift of pure kindness. And from there to the present: even in our lowliness and exile, the Holy One, blessed be He, remembers us and preserves us among the nations, while we still remember Jerusalem and yearn for redemption. And it concludes with the simplest and greatest kindness of all: "Who gives food to all flesh" - for everything, whether mazal, rain, or livelihood, is in the hand of the God of heaven, and His lovingkindness endures forever.
With this, we conclude Psalm 136.