Psalm 76

A Hymn of Destruction by Divine Intervention and Eschatological Defeat of Enemies. A song of Zion, resembling PSS xlvi and xlviiin which celebrates God's victory over the nations. The psalm moves on two levels: it hymns the destruction through divine intervention of historical foes who sought to plunder Jerusalem, and at the same time announces the eschatological defeat of the nations at the last judgment. Though presenting some difficulties, the text does not deserve Gunkel's description, "repeatedly very corrupt." In fact, several (vss. 3, 6, 7) of the obscurities are cleared away by the recognition of a simple metaphor. -The Anchor Bible

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2. God becomes known in Judah. This psalm is a celebration of God’s power in history. Perhaps it was composed to mark a particular victory over enemies who assailed Jerusalem, but the text does not provide sufficient evidence for any specific historical identification. As in the Exodus story and elsewhere, God “becomes known” by exerting His triumphant power. -Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary (pp. 2913-2914).

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Defeat of Sennacherib. The psalm speaks of an enemy defeated in Jerusalem (see verses 3-4). According to Rashi and Metzudot, the psalm prophesies about the defeat of Sennacherib, "for we do not find any other enemy defeated in Jerusalem, aside from him" (Rashi). Sennacherib succeeded in conquering all of the Land of Israel up until Jerusalem. When he arrived there, He spoke arrogantly against God and His nation, after which God destroyed his camp, made up of 180,000 soldiers, as related in Isaiah (37:36). The Psalmist praises God, speaking of the event in the past tense, as if it had already occurred (Meiri).

According to Radak, the Psalmist prophesies regarding the war of Gog and Magog, when the enemies of Israel will gather against Jerusalem and be defeated there. -Tehillim - Book of Psalms with English Translation and Commentary: With Commentary from the Talmud, Midrash, Kabbalah, Classic Commentators, and the Chasidic Masters.

• Sennacherib was the king of the Neo-Assyrian Empire from 705 BC to his own death in 681 BC. Sennacherib is one of the most famous Assyrian kings for the role he plays in the Hebrew Bible, which describes his campaign in the Levant.[Hezekiah was the king of Judea 715-686 BCE. The siege of Jerusalem was in 701 BCE]. -Wikipedia

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Gog and Magog and the End of Days. The preceding psalm spoke of the final days of Jewish exile; this psalm, continuing that theme, describes the war of Gog and Magog, which will be waged at the end of the exile (Radak v. 13). This final battle has a historical precedent in the siege of Jerusalem by Sennacherib, who amassed an army composed of all the nations he had conquered.

At an earlier date, the armies of Assyria had led the Ten Tribes of Israel into exile. Only the small Kingdom of Judah remained; it was led by King Chizkiyahu, who ruled over the two tribes of Judah and Benjamin. This illustrious monarch's very name testifies to the source of his authority, for Chizkiyahu literally means My strength is HASHEM (Sanhedrin 94a).

HASHEM did not fail those who trusted in Him, for Assyria was annihilated and God's fame spread far and wide: God is recognized in Judah, in Israel His Name is great (v. 2).

Similarly, God's majesty is now concealed in the shrouds of exile. The future triumph over Gog and Magog will signal the return of Divine prestige. God's glory will gradually spread, until it is recognized throughout the world.

All the nations will be stricken, but Divine protection will envelop Jerusalem like a tabernacle, as the psalm says, When His Tabernacle was in Salem [Jerusalem] and His dwelling in Zion (v. 3).

Rav Hai Gaon transmitted a Rabbinical tradition that the war of Gog and Magog is destined to take place in the month of Tishrei [in conjunction with Sukkos, the Feast of Tabernacles] (Tur; Orach Chaim 490).

Therefore, the Gaon of Vilna (Maaseh Rav 234) designates this psalm as the 'NV , the Song of the Day, for the first day of Sukkos. -Artscroll

• Gog and Magog. In Ezekiel 38, Gog is an individual and Magog is his land;^[1] in Genesis 10, Magog is a man, but no Gog is mentioned; and centuries later Jewish tradition changed Ezekiel's "Gog from Magog" into "Gog and Magog",^[2] which is the form in which they appear in the Christian New Testament, although there they are peoples rather than individuals.^[3]

• The Gog prophecy is meant to be fulfilled at the approach of what is called the "end of days", but not necessarily the end of the world. Jewish eschatology viewed Gog and Magog as enemies to be defeated by the Messiah, which would usher in the age of the Messiah ­-Wikipedia

2. God is known in Judah, His Name is great in Israel. When Sennacherib falls, God will be well known in Judah and Israel (Metzudot). Judah is mentioned before the rest of the tribes ("Israel") in deference to the monarchy, which belongs to the tribe of Judah (Meiri).

As a reference to the war of Gog and Magog, the verse can be interpreted as follows: Because God is known in Judah even during the exile, His Name will be great in Israel in the future redemption, when God will do great and wondrous things for the Jewish people (Sforno). -Book of Psalms with English Translation and Commentary: With Commentary from the Talmud, Midrash, Kabbalah, Classic Commentators, and the Chasidic Masters.

3. Salem. This is a variant, perhaps archaic, form of the name Jerusalem, something made clear by the parallelism with “Zion” in the second verset. -Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary (p. 2914).

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His Tabernacle was in Shalem, Jerusalem, and His dwelling place in Zion. It will then be known that God's Sanctuary and dwelling place is in Zion and Jerusalem (Metzudot).

According to Radak, the verse refers to the Messianic age, when God's Tabernacle, the Holy Temple, will be built in Jerusalem. Shalem is the name given to Jerusalem by Shem, son of Noah (see Genesis 14:18). Abraham later called it Yireh (ibid. 22:14). God chose to include both names and to call it Yireh-Shalem, i.e., Jerusalem (Radak, citing Midrash Tehillim). -Book of Psalms with English Translation and Commentary: With Commentary from the Talmud, Midrash, Kabbalah, Classic Commentators, and the Chasidic Masters.

4. There He broke the flying arrows of the bow, the shield, the sword, and battle—forever. There, in the area around Jerusalem, God will neutralize the weapons of Sennacherib forever, never to be raised again (Metzudot).

As a reference to the Messianic age, the verse means that God will neutralize all weaponry forever, as it is written: Nation will not raise sword against nation (Isaiah 2:4; Sforno). -Book of Psalms with English Translation and Commentary: With Commentary from the Talmud, Midrash, Kabbalah, Classic Commentators, and the Chasidic Masters.

7. chariot and horse. The use of this phrase would seem to be a direct allusion to the Song of the Sea (Exodus 15), the paradigmatic poem celebrating God’s triumph over the enemies of Israel. -Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary (p. 2914).

9. From heaven, You let the verdict be heard; the earth feared and was still. Through His prophets, God announced the fate of the enemy. Isaiah spoke of Sennacherib's defeat (Rashi); Ezekiel (38:22 and 13:11) spoke of Gog and Magog's (Radak).

This announcement caused the inhabitants of the earth to fear the nation of Israel—or God (Radak)—and to refrain from attacking her (Metzudot). Alternatively: the land of Israel, which was fearful of the enemy, was reassured by God's words and became still (Rashi). -Book of Psalms with English Translation and Commentary: With Commentary from the Talmud, Midrash, Kabbalah, Classic Commentators, and the Chasidic Masters.

Healthy Fear

We all struggle with our flaws. We hope to ultimately eliminate them completely, to purge ourselves of our unhealthy instincts. Realistically, however, it is a process that demands patience. At first, we battle our shortcomings and continually subdue them. Ultimately, we reach a new plateau where our previous challenges subside. But even then, we must remain humbly vigilant. The danger is in delusion—in imagining that we are no longer susceptible to human frailties.

In the language of our verse: the earth feared and was still. As the commentaries explain, the seemingly contradictory feelings—fear and stillness—are in fact complementary, since fear leads to stillness. The same is true of our inner struggles: When we maintain a healthy concern about our weaknesses, we are able to vanquish them and attain a measure of stillness. We will maintain this stillness as long as we maintain the healthy fear and do not fall into complacency.

In the Messianic age, we will graduate completely from the era of "fear" and attain true stillness. We will then no longer struggle with negativity. The earth will be truly still, and we will serve God in peace (The Rebbe).²³ -Book of Psalms with English Translation and Commentary: With Commentary from the Talmud, Midrash, Kabbalah, Classic Commentators, and the Chasidic Masters.

• When are people afraid today? What do they fear?
• How do we manage fear?

When God rises to pass judgment, to save all the humble of the earth forever. When God rises to pass judgment on His enemies, He frightens them away from harming the humble of the earth (Metzudot). -Book of Psalms with English Translation and Commentary: With Commentary from the Talmud, Midrash, Kabbalah, Classic Commentators, and the Chasidic Masters.

12. the Fearsome One. The received text reads moraʾ, which would mean fear, but several ancient versions reflect noraʾ, “fearsome,” a term used in verse 8 and again in the concluding line of the poem. That epithet is apt for a triumphant LORD of Armies. -Alter, Robert. The Hebrew Bible: A Translation with Commentary (p. 2914).

Spiritual Applications

To believe that the ideal world has dawned can make one either a confirmed optimist, or a delusional naïf. The tone of this psalm seems to favor the former, but it remains a challenge for spiritual seekers in our own troubled time. To believe that Judgment Day will constitute the redemption of the humble is itself an impressive belief, calling on us to hold to a humble view of ourselves— whatever torments we endure in the process.

The Musar literature on this subject, though, calls on us not to see the humble life as being a doormat for the feet of the arrogant, but rather a call to live in a balance between humility regarding our own accomplishments— seeing them as opportunities for gratitude to God and others who have helped us— and assertiveness when values we cherish are being threatened.

This psalm suggests that anger over the ill treatment of modest people needs to be reserved for God; rather than agonizing over why wicked people seem to be rewarded, the way of the humble is to concentrate on the moral quality of our own lives, to pray for the enlightenment of the wicked, and even to empathize with the troubles they have, rather than secretly rejoicing in them. As difficult as this path is, it is not impossible: it is assisted by prayer, by meditation, by Torah study, by doing mitzvot, and by sharing with others the love we have received from God. If we live our lives believing that God is nora, the very definition of Awesome, and if we seek to demonstrate that this quality infuses all that we do, then we shall assist the realization of a Judgment Day for the humble from which all may benefit. -Levy, Rabbi Richard N.. Songs Ascending: The Book of Psalms (Vol. 2)

• How do you respond to the idea from Rabbi Levy, "...the way of the humble is to concentrate on the moral quality of our own lives."
• Do you believe practices , "...by prayer, by meditation, by Torah study, by doing mitzvot, and by sharing with others the love we have received from God." are means to stay centered as we respond to evil in the world?