Tefillah 025

57:
P^esuké d^eZimra now draws towards its conclusion with two very contrasting psalms . Psalm 149 [Siddur Sim Shalom page 100, Siddur Va'ani Tefillati page 52] is very different from the preceding psalms. If the preceding psalms were predominately concerned with God and nature psalm 149 is concerned with God and man in a historical situation. According to at least one Talmudic sage the whole psalter was composed by King David:

By changing the vocalization of one Hebrew word Rabbi Me'ir suggests that the whole psalter was composed by David. The Gemara goes on to suggest that certain psalms were composed by various biblical personalities – Moses, Joshua. But the general Talmudic consensus agrees with Rabbi Me'ir. However, from the historical point of view this is clearly not the case. Many psalms bear superscriptions to other personalities; for example, we have already noted [Tefillah 017] a psalm that is ascribed to Moses.

58:
Modern scholarship can also categorize the psalms according to the historical stage of the Hebrew language that is demonstrated in each psalm. The general consensus of modern scholarship is that Psalm 149 is a "late" psalm. That is, that it was composed long after the time of King David; indeed, that it was composed long after the time of the latest historical biblical personalities Ezra and Nehemiah. (You will recall that we ascribed Psalm 147 to their period: see Tefillah 023.) Psalm 149 may have been composed as late as the middle of the 2nd century BCE. Indeed, it is almost certain that Psalm 149 is one of the songs sung by the insurgents led by Matityahu and Judah the Maccabee during their struggle to free Judah and Jerusalem from the Hellenistic yoke of Syria. The story is well-known as the story of Ĥanukah.

59:
In the very first verse of the psalm is a clue.

The psalm itself recognises that it is "a new song", but the designation Ĥasidim is a most clear indication. For this was the name of the religious element in the Maccabean army (they were to desert Judah after the reconquest of Jerusalem because they were only interested in religious freedom and not in political freedom as well). Verse 6 of the psalm most aptly describes both their motivation and the duality of their activities:

And verse 7 clearly indicates their goal:

who had deprived them of their religious independence, forced many into idolatry, polluted their Temple and prevented them from practising the mitzvot. (For the historical background to the Maccabean uprising see Avot 031 and the following shiurim in our study of Tractate Avot.)

They were certain in their ultimate victory and that they would humiliate the Syrian King Antiochus, who dared describe himself as "the visible god" (Epiphanes) and his generals:

60:
We have now reached Psalm 150 [Siddur Sim Shalom page 100, Siddur Va'ani Tefillati page 52], the last psalm in the psalter. This is a glorious paean of praise in which the whole of humanity is invited to praise God with song and dance. The book of Daniel is a very late book, which is also dated to the Hasmonean era. In Daniel 3:5 we find a list of musical instruments, including the Greek word "symphony". Psalm 150 is a veritable "symphony" of praise to God:

What a superb conclusion to the book of psalms and what a superb climax to P^esuké d^eZimra! Tradition requires us to repeat the last verse, probably as an indication that the psalms are concluded. While the psalms are concluded the P^esuké d^eZimra section is not, and we shall continue our discussion of P^esuké d^eZimra in the next shiur, God willing.

To be continued.

Hayyim Halpern has written concerning Psalm 148, which we studied in our last Shiur ( Tefillah 024).

I particularly appreciate your approach that helps us to see both the forest and the trees in the Pesukay DeZimra. Concerning Psalm 148: the vision that you call attention to between the marvels of the heavens and those of the earth was especially apt. I find it fascinating that the author devoted almost exactly the same number of words to both heaven and earth!

I respond

Now that is something that I had never noticed. Thank you, Hayyim, so much for that insight.