Cytowanie Komentarza do Psalmów 122:2

קומו ונעלה ציון – And on the way, they would recite )Psalms 122:1): “[A song of ascents. Of David.] I rejoiced when they said to me, ‘We are going to the House of the Lord.’” And when they arrived in Jerusalem, they would recite (Psalms 122:2): “Our feet stood inside your gates, O Jerusalem.” On the Temple Mount, they would recite (Psalms 150:1): “Hallelujah. Praise God in His sanctuary.” In the Temple Court, they would recite (Psalms 150:6): “Let all that breathes praise the LORD. Halleljah.”

Consider a statement by Solomon in Kohelet 4,2-3 ושבח אני את המתים שכבר מתו מן החיים אשר המה חיים עדנה. וטוב משניהם את אשר עדן לא היה. “So I consider more fortunate the dead who have already died, than the living who are still alive; but better than either of them is he who has not yet been.” Philosophers described the statements made by Solomon in these two verses as referring to the three different stages we may encounter the צורה, the divine image, as undergoing at different times. The first stage, and in Solomon’s view preferable the preferable one, is when it had not yet been introduced into the body of mortal man; and he praised that condition of man (at the end of the second verse). The second and relatively tolerable condition of the צורה occurs after it has been removed from man when his body has died. This is a stage which Solomon describes as משבח אני את המתים “I praise the dead.” The third and least tolerable situation he considers the state of the צורה while it is imprisoned within man’s body. The philosophers describe this in terms of three parables. 1) A king who sits in his palace. 2) A king who has recently been released from prison. 3) A king who is still serving a sentence in prison. There can hardly be a question that the king in the first parable enjoys greater stature than any of the other two.
In view of all these clever comments why then did the Torah describe the completion by G-d of His handiwork at the end of the sixth day in such glowing terms, i.e. וירא אלוקים את כל אשר עשה והנה טוב מאד, “and G-d saw all that He had made and here it was very good?” Did not that praise also include the fact that G-d had fused body, i.e. “golem” to soul, צורה, when He made Man? Not only that, but how could Solomon come hundreds of years after Moses and praise the Lord for not having fused body and soul when Moses gave G-d “excellent marks” when He praised Him for having fused the two.
The answer is that although the original condition of the צורה prior to its having become fused to a body is superior to the other two conditions listed, seeing it had not yet been fused to a body and had not suffered pain or damage, once it had been fused to a body and had accomplished its mission and left that body in a state of purity, it would be far superior to what it had been prior to being fused to a body. At that point such a צורה will have made a name for itself that sparkles like pure gold. This is the reason that the souls of the righteous are forever anxious to return to their holy origins. Seeing that Moses had presupposed that the צורה would accomplish its mission within the body he saw fit to praise the Creator for having placed such a soul within man and he described G-d’s reaction to His handiwork as “very good.
The proper interpretation of our verse then is exactly what the text says: האדם בארץ, “man,” while he is still attached to earth in an integral manner.” G-d reconsidered the status of such a human being seeing that this arrangement had resulted in sinfulness as the צורה had allowed itself to be dominated by the body. We find an analogous use of the expression בארץ in Isaiah 62,7 עד יכונן ועד ישים את ירושלים תהלה בארץ, “until He establishes Jerusalem and make her renowned on earth.” What the prophet meant was: “until He will make the glory of Jerusalem which is on earth manifest.” [as opposed to the Jerusalem in the celestial regions.] Another verse which spells out the meaning of the word בארץ even more clearly is found in Psalms 122,3 כעיר שחוברה לה יחדו. The psalmist speaks about the Jerusalem on earth and the Jerusalem in the celestial regions which have been fused together.

David,¹²David was a descendant of Judah. however, [similarly] to how we described [Yehuda] in chapter 4, did not render decisions based on his own [individual] reasoning. Rather, he would toil greatly in applying pilpul in group study with other scholars. [This interpretation is further buttressed by] Rashi’s explanation of Eruvin, based on the statements in Tractate Mo’ed Katan;¹³16b. from the verse, “One who sat in the assembly,”¹⁴II Sam. 23:8. [we learn that David engaged in group study, sitting on the ground before the scholars].¹⁵The full discussion in Mo’ed Katan is: “It is stated in Scripture ‘These are the names of David’s mighty men: who sat in the assembly… Adino the Etznite….’ What does this verse mean? R. Abbahu said, The verse actually states: ‘These are the names of David’s mighty deeds: he sat in a low position.’ When [David] sat in the academy, he did not sit upon mattresses and cushions but on the ground. As long as his teacher, Ira ha-Ya’iri was alive, Ira would teach the rabbis while seated upon cushions and mattresses. When [Ira] died, David would teach the rabbis, and he would sit on the ground. [The rabbis] said to him, ‘Let the Master sit upon cushions and mattresses,’ but he would not sit in an elevated position. ‘He is Adiono the Etznite’ – this implies that when [David] sat and engaged in Torah study, he bent himself like a worm. But when he went out to war, he straightened himself like wood.” It is also written [about David], “In the House of God we would walk in company,”¹⁶Psalms 55:15. [i.e., he took counsel with others]. This group interaction ensured that his rulings were established as immutable laws. It therefore follows that [David’s approach to Torah study] also benefited Israel in time of battle, for the sword of Israel is in the merit of applying pilpul to Torah.¹⁷The Netziv is saying that the strength of Torah study, which protects the Jewish people, is comparable to a sword. Tractate Shabbos 63a states that the simple meaning of the verse in Psalms 45:4, “Gird your sword upon your thigh, O mighty one, your majesty and your splendor,” is that it refers to the Torah. See also Bereshis Rabbah 24 that explains Psalms 149:6, “A double-edged sword is in their hands,” as referring to the Torah. The reason the Torah is compared to a sword as opposed to any other weapon, is that a sword is has two parts, the sword itself and its sheath, which are respectively symbolic of the Oral and Written Law. In time of peace, the sheath is more significant than the sword, as it denotes the importance and power of the officer who wears it, while the sword itself is not as significant since it is not used. In times of war, however, the sword is greater than the sheath, since then the main purpose of the sheath is not to display its wearer’s status but to protect the sword, whose condition and sharpness are of the highest importance. When Israel is at peace and the Torah, which is composed of God’s holy names, is studied, the Torah functions as the sheath during times of peace that communicates the greatness of the Jewish nation. This idea is hinted at in Deut. 28:10, “Then all the peoples of the earth will see that the name of the Lord is proclaimed over you, and they will fear You.” However, when Israel is at war, the sword – the pilpul of Torah – needs to be sharpened, meaning that the survival and protection of the nation of Israel require the application of deep analysis of the Torah. This is clearly stated in Tractate Makkos 10a, on the verse, “Our feet were standing within your gates, O Jerusalem.”¹⁸Psalms 122:2. “Who caused our feet to remain standing in battle? It was when Israel [at the time of King David],¹⁹Some explain this verse as describing not what transpired in the time of King David, but as referring to the future Temple. The verse thus describes King David’s recipe for success in battle, which is to be deeply involved in the study of Torah – in other words, pilpul. was involved in the study of Torah, symbolized by the gates of Jerusalem.”