(א) לְדָוִ֨ד ׀ יקוק ׀ אוֹרִ֣י וְ֭יִשְׁעִי מִמִּ֣י אִירָ֑א יקוק מָעוֹז־חַ֝יַּ֗י מִמִּ֥י אֶפְחָֽד׃ (ב) בִּקְרֹ֤ב עָלַ֨י ׀ מְרֵעִים֮ לֶאֱכֹ֢ל אֶת־בְּשָׂ֫רִ֥י צָרַ֣י וְאֹיְבַ֣י לִ֑י הֵ֖מָּה כָשְׁל֣וּ וְנָפָֽלוּ׃ (ג) אִם־תַּחֲנֶ֬ה עָלַ֨י ׀ מַחֲנֶה֮ לֹא־יִירָ֢א לִ֫בִּ֥י אִם־תָּק֣וּם עָ֭לַי מִלְחָמָ֑ה בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ׃ (ד) אַחַ֤ת ׀ שָׁאַ֣לְתִּי מֵֽאֵת־יקוק אוֹתָ֢הּ אֲבַ֫קֵּ֥שׁ שִׁבְתִּ֣י בְּבֵית־יקוק כׇּל־יְמֵ֣י חַיַּ֑י לַחֲז֥וֹת בְּנֹעַם־יקוק וּלְבַקֵּ֥ר בְּהֵֽיכָלֽוֹ׃ (ה) כִּ֤י יִצְפְּנֵ֨נִי ׀ בְּסֻכֹּה֮ בְּי֢וֹם רָ֫עָ֥ה יַ֭סְתִּרֵנִי בְּסֵ֣תֶר אׇהֳל֑וֹ בְּ֝צ֗וּר יְרוֹמְמֵֽנִי׃ (ו) וְעַתָּ֨ה יָר֪וּם רֹאשִׁ֡י עַ֤ל אֹיְבַ֬י סְֽבִיבוֹתַ֗י וְאֶזְבְּחָ֣ה בְ֭אׇהֳלוֹ זִבְחֵ֣י תְרוּעָ֑ה אָשִׁ֥ירָה וַ֝אֲזַמְּרָ֗ה לַֽיקוק׃ (ז) שְׁמַע־יקוק קוֹלִ֥י אֶקְרָ֗א וְחׇנֵּ֥נִי וַֽעֲנֵֽנִי׃ (ח) לְךָ֤ ׀ אָמַ֣ר לִ֭בִּי בַּקְּשׁ֣וּ פָנָ֑י אֶת־פָּנֶ֖יךָ יקוק אֲבַקֵּֽשׁ׃ (ט) אַל־תַּסְתֵּ֬ר פָּנֶ֨יךָ ׀ מִמֶּנִּי֮ אַ֥ל תַּט־בְּאַ֗ף עַ֫בְדֶּ֥ךָ עֶזְרָתִ֥י הָיִ֑יתָ אַֽל־תִּטְּשֵׁ֥נִי וְאַל־תַּ֝עַזְבֵ֗נִי אֱלֹקֵ֥י יִשְׁעִֽי׃ (י) כִּֽי־אָבִ֣י וְאִמִּ֣י עֲזָב֑וּנִי וַֽיקוק יַאַסְפֵֽנִי׃ (יא) ה֤וֹרֵ֥נִי יקוק דַּ֫רְכֶּ֥ךָ וּ֭נְחֵנִי בְּאֹ֣רַח מִישׁ֑וֹר לְ֝מַ֗עַן שֽׁוֹרְרָֽי׃ (יב) אַֽל־תִּ֭תְּנֵנִי בְּנֶ֣פֶשׁ צָרָ֑י כִּ֥י קָמוּ־בִ֥י עֵדֵי־שֶׁ֝֗קֶר וִיפֵ֥חַ חָמָֽס׃ (יג)לׅׄוּׅׄלֵׅ֗ׄאׅׄ הֶ֭אֱמַנְתִּי לִרְא֥וֹת בְּֽטוּב־יקוק בְּאֶ֣רֶץ חַיִּֽים׃ (יד) קַוֵּ֗ה אֶל־יקוק חֲ֭זַק וְיַאֲמֵ֣ץ לִבֶּ֑ךָ וְ֝קַוֵּ֗ה אֶל־יקוק׃ {פ}
(1) Of David. The LORD is my light and my help;whom should I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life, whom should I dread? (2) When evil men assail me aOr “to slander me”; cf. Dan. 3.8; 6.25. to devour my flesh-a—it is they, my foes and my enemies, who stumble and fall. (3) Should an army besiege me, my heart would have no fear;should war beset me, still would I be confident. (4) One thing I ask of the LORD, only that do I seek:to live in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD, b Meaning of Heb. uncertain. to frequent-b His temple. (5) He will shelter me in His pavilion on an evil day grant me the protection of His tent, raise me high upon a rock. (6) Now is my head high over my enemies round about; I sacrifice in His tent with shouts of joy, singing and chanting a hymn to the LORD. (7) Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud;have mercy on me, answer me. (8) bMeaning of Heb. uncertain. In Your behalf-b my heart says: “Seek My face!” O LORD, I seek Your face. (9) Do not hide Your face from me;do not thrust aside Your servant in anger; You have ever been my help. Do not forsake me, do not abandon me, O God, my deliverer. (10) Though my father and mother abandon me, the LORD will take me in. (11) Show me Your way, O LORD, and lead me on a level path because of my watchful foes. (12) Do not subject me to the will of my foes, for false witnesses and unjust accusers have appeared against me. (13) Had I not the assurance that I would enjoy the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living… (14) Look to the LORD; be strong and of good courage! O look to the LORD!
These dots are discussed in the Talmud in Berakhot 4a (see below). The Sages attribute them to King David himself, as an expression of his own doubt about his piety and merit for receiving God's reward for the righteous.
וְדָוִד מִי קָרֵי לְנַפְשֵׁיהּ ״חָסִיד״? וְהָכְתִיב ״לוּלֵא הֶאֱמַנְתִּי לִרְאוֹת בְּטוּב יקוק בְּאֶרֶץ חַיִּים״, וְתָנָא מִשְּׁמֵיהּ דְּרַבִּי יוֹסֵי: לָמָּה נָקוּד עַל ״לוּלֵא״? — אָמַר דָּוִד לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם, מוּבְטָח אֲנִי בְּךָ שֶׁאַתָּה מְשַׁלֵּם שָׂכָר טוֹב לַצַּדִּיקִים לֶעָתִיד לָבוֹא, אֲבָל אֵינִי יוֹדֵעַ אִם יֵשׁ לִי חֵלֶק בֵּינֵיהֶם אִם לָאו?!
With regard to David’s statement, “Keep my soul, for I am pious,” the Gemara asks: Did David call himself pious? Isn’t it written: “If I had not [luleh] believed to look upon the goodness of the Lord in the land of the living” (Psalms 27:13). The dots that appear over the word luleh in the text indicate doubt and uncertainty of his piety, and whether he was deserving of a place in the land of the living (see Avot DeRabbi Natan 34). In the name of Rabbi Yosei, it was taught in a Tosefta: Why do dots appear over the word luleh, as if there are some reservations? Because David said before the Holy One, Blessed be He: Master of the Universe. I have every confidence in You that You grant an excellent reward to the righteous in the World-to-Come since God’s ultimate goodness is manifest in the land of eternal life, but I still harbor uncertainty with regard to myself, and I do not know whether or not I definitely have a portion among them. In any case, apparently David was uncertain whether or not he deserved to receive a portion of God’s reward for the righteous; how, then, could he characterize himself as pious?
In contrast to the spiritual approach of the Sages in the Talmud, a textual approach to לׅׄוּׅׄלֵׅ֗ׄאׅׄ can lead to a different understanding of the double dots. The word לוּלֵא may be split into two words by insertion of a space: לוֹ לֹא. This would change verse 13 to the following: לוֹ לֹאהֶ֭אֱמַנְתִּי לִרְא֥וֹת בְּֽטוּב־יקוק בְּאֶ֣רֶץ חַיִּֽים׃.
Regarding interpretation of this modified verse 13, the grammar in I Kings 10:7 indicates that the verb הֶ֭אֱמַנְתִּי may take an object via the prefix ל (i.e., וְלֹֽא־הֶאֱמַ֣נְתִּי לַדְּבָרִ֗ים). Using this grammar (see also II Chronicles 9:6), this modified verse 13 could have the following interpretation: I did not believe HIM that I would enjoy the goodness of the LORD in the land of the living.
This would be an outrageous statement of apostasy, so this rendering must be prevented. How can the potential splitting of לוּלֵא into לוֹ לֹא be avoided?
To avoid such splitting, לוּלֵא could have been visually reinforced with a row of dots both above and below to keep it intact, somewhat like a splint to aid the proper healing of a broken bone. These upper and lower rows of dots would indicate that לוּלֵא must remain unified and not be broken into לוֹ לֹא.
This is consistent with the discussion in the Talmud about the double dots reflecting King David's uncertainty: better to write לׅׄוּׅׄלֵׅ֗ׄאׅׄ with its integrity fortified by the upper and lower rows of dots than an unadorned לוּלֵא that could be misinterpreted (or mistranscribed) as לוֹ לֹא.
Another rendering of לוּלֵא is mentioned in note 43 to Chapter 8 ("The Masoretic Text") in This is the Torah (A.J. Kolatch). The note mentions commentary by S.L. Gordon that the Masoretes may have applied these dots to express doubt that לוּלֵא is the original word and possibly may have considered the original word to be וְלֹא .וְלֹא instead of לוּלֵא would produce essentially the same interpretation as would splitting לוּלֵא into לוֹ לֹא.
Another approach to לׅׄוּׅׄלֵׅ֗ׄאׅׄ is to assume that the double dots represent two independent significant aspects of לוּלֵא. If there were just one such aspect of לוּלֵא, there would be only an upper row of dots, as there are elsewhere in the Tanakh (e.g., see Deut. 29:28). However, the existence of a second independent significant aspect requires a second row of dots. The only place adjacent to לוּלֵא to put it, so that it is independent of the upper row, is the below the word as a lower row of dots.
(Interestingly, in the Aleppo Codex (see image 27-244-v), the lower dot for לֵ is inside the letter, apparently to avoid conflicting with the vowel tzere below. In the Leningrad Codex, וּ in לוּלֵא has neither upper nor lower dot, and there is a dot under לֵ to the right of the vowel tzere.)
As to one of the two aspects of לוּלֵא, it is established that Psalm 27 is read during the Season of Repentance beginning on Rosh HaShanah Elul. As explained by Rashi, who references Berakhot 4a, לׅׄוּׅׄלֵׅ֗ׄאׅׄ in verse 13 provides a sense of uncertainty about whether one's conduct will be sufficiently righteous to merit God's reward for the righteous. The spiritual uncertainty expressed by Psalm 27 was undoubtedly a reason why Psalm 27 was selected as the reading for the Season of Repentance leading into and through Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur, when we ask God to inscribe and then seal us in the Book of Life for another year.
Another reason for the selection of Psalm 27 might have been that לוּלֵא is literally the reverse spelling of אֱלוּל, the month when the Season of Repentance begins. This לוּלֵא-אֱלוּל connection suggests that the Season of Repentance is a significant aspect of לוּלֵא and a reason for one of the two rows of dots.
(א) לְדָוִ֨ד ׀ [1]יקוק [1]׀ אוֹרִ֣י [2]וְ֭יִשְׁעִי[2] מִמִּ֣י אִירָ֑א [1]יקוק[1] [3]מָעוֹז־חַ֝יַּ֗י[3] מִמִּ֥י אֶפְחָֽד׃ (ב) בִּקְרֹ֤ב עָלַ֨י ׀ מְרֵעִים֮ לֶאֱכֹ֢ל אֶת־בְּשָׂ֫רִ֥י צָרַ֣י [4]וְאֹיְבַ֣י לִ֑י הֵ֖מָּה כָשְׁל֣וּ וְנָפָֽלוּ[4]׃ (ג) אִם־תַּחֲנֶ֬ה עָלַ֨י ׀ מַחֲנֶה֮ לֹא־יִירָ֢א לִ֫בִּ֥י אִם־תָּק֣וּם עָ֭לַי [5]מִלְחָמָ֑ה[5] בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ׃
(1) Of David. The LORD is my light and my help; whom should I fear? The LORD is the stronghold of my life, whom should I dread? (2) When evil men assail me aOr “to slander me”; cf. Dan. 3.8; 6.25.to devour my flesh-a—it is they, my foes and my enemies, who stumble and fall. (3) Should an army besiege me, my heart would have no fear; should war beset me, still would I be confident.
(א) אָ֣ז יָשִֽׁיר־מֹשֶׁה֩ וּבְנֵ֨י יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל אֶת־הַשִּׁירָ֤ה הַזֹּאת֙ לַֽיקוק וַיֹּאמְר֖וּ
לֵאמֹ֑ר אָשִׁ֤ירָה [1]לַֽיקוק[1] כִּֽי־גָאֹ֣ה גָּאָ֔ה [4]ס֥וּס
וְרֹכְב֖וֹ רָמָ֥ה בַיָּֽם׃[4] (ב) [3]עׇזִּ֤י[3] וְזִמְרָת֙ [1]יָ֔-הּ[1] [2]וַֽיְהִי־לִ֖י
לִֽישׁוּעָ֑ה[2] זֶ֤ה אֵ-לִי֙ וְאַנְוֵ֔הוּ אֱלֹקֵ֥י
אָבִ֖י וַאֲרֹמְמֶֽנְהוּ׃ (ג) [1]יקוק[1] [5]אִ֣ישׁ מִלְחָמָ֑ה[5] יקוק שְׁמֽוֹ׃
(1) Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to יקוק. They said: I will sing to יקוק, for He*He The poetic figure in vv. 1–4 takes ancient Near Eastern gender roles as a given: the (male) role of expert warrior represented salvation from military threats. See the Dictionary under “male metaphors for God.” has triumphed gloriously; Horse and driver He has hurled into the sea. (2) יקוק* יקוק Heb. Yah. is my strength and might;*might Others “song.”
He is become my deliverance. This is my God and I will enshrine*enshrine Others “glorify.” Him; The God of my father’s [house], and I will exalt Him.(3) יקוק, the Warrior—יקוק is His name!
The Song of the Sea does not simply fill a Torah column as a continuous string of words. The Song of the Sea has a particular structure. Such use of structure is an interesting way of adding to the meaning of the Torah without violating Deut. 4:2 (below), with הַדָּבָר taken to signify that no word may be added or subtracted. Use of structured text does neither.
(ב) לֹ֣א תֹסִ֗פוּ עַל־הַדָּבָר֙ אֲשֶׁ֤ר אָנֹכִי֙ מְצַוֶּ֣ה אֶתְכֶ֔ם וְלֹ֥א תִגְרְע֖וּ מִמֶּ֑נּוּ לִשְׁמֹ֗ר אֶת־מִצְוֺת֙ יקוק אֱלֹֽקֵיכֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר אָנֹכִ֖י מְצַוֶּ֥ה אֶתְכֶֽם׃
(2) You shall not add anything to what I command you or take anything away from it, but keep the commandments of your God יקוק that I enjoin upon you.
(כב) וַיָּבֹ֧אוּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל בְּת֥וֹךְ הַיָּ֖ם בַּיַּבָּשָׁ֑ה וְהַמַּ֤יִם לָהֶם֙ חוֹמָ֔ה מִֽימִינָ֖ם וּמִשְּׂמֹאלָֽם׃
(22) and the Israelites went into the sea on dry ground, the waters forming a wall for them on their right and on their left.
arrangement causes the leading letters of the first four lines to read א-ל-ו-ל, the reverse of לוּלֵא (see below.)
אָ֣ז יָשִֽׁיר־מֹשֶׁה֩ וּבְנֵ֨י יִשְׂרָאֵ֜ל אֶת־הַשִּׁירָ֤ה הַזֹּאת֙ לַֽיקוק וַיֹּאמְר֖וּ
לֵאמֹ֑ר אָשִׁ֤ירָה לַֽיקוק כִּֽי־גָאֹ֣ה גָּאָ֔ה ס֥וּס
וְרֹכְב֖וֹ רָמָ֥ה בַיָּֽם׃ עׇזִּ֤י וְזִמְרָת֙ יָ֔-הּ וַֽיְהִי־לִ֖י
לִֽישׁוּעָ֑ה זֶ֤ה אֵ-לִי֙ וְאַנְוֵ֔הוּ אֱלֹקֵ֥י
אָבִ֖י וַאֲרֹמְמֶֽנְהוּ׃ יקוק אִ֣ישׁ מִלְחָמָ֑ה יקוק
שְׁמֽוֹ׃
Then Moses and the Israelites sang this song to יקוק. They said: I will sing to יקוק, for He has triumphed gloriously; Horse and driver He has hurled into the sea. יקוק is my strength and might; He is become my deliverance. This is my God and I will enshrine Him; The God of my father’s [house], and I will exalt Him. יקוק, the Warrior—יקוק is His name!
Two different approaches are presented here for understanding the significance of the double dots of לׅׄוּׅׄלֵׅ֗ׄאׅׄ. A textual approach leads to the idea that the upper and lower rows of dots are intended to maintain the integrity of לוּלֵא (like a splint) and to prevent it from being split into לוֹ לֹא and causing verse 13 of Psalm 27 to be a statement of apostasy. A significance approach, which assumes that the upper and lower rows of dots represent two independent significant aspects of לוּלֵא, points to (1) the Season of Repentance beginning in אֱלוּל during which Psalm 27 is read and (2) the Song of the Sea with thematic similarities to Psalm 27 and with אלול spelled down the leading letters of its first four lines in the Torah. These two aspects are verified by their לוּלֵא-אלול connections.
(טו) וַיֹּ֤אמֶר יקוק אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה מַה־תִּצְעַ֖ק אֵלָ֑י דַּבֵּ֥ר אֶל־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל וְיִסָּֽעוּ׃ (טז) וְאַתָּ֞ה הָרֵ֣ם אֶֽת־מַטְּךָ֗ וּנְטֵ֧ה אֶת־יָדְךָ֛ עַל־הַיָּ֖ם וּבְקָעֵ֑הוּ וְיָבֹ֧אוּ בְנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֛ל בְּת֥וֹךְ הַיָּ֖ם בַּיַּבָּשָֽׁה׃
(15) Then יקוק said to Moses, “Why do you cry out to Me? Tell the Israelites to go forward. (16) And you lift up your rod and hold out your arm over the sea and split it, so that the Israelites may march into the sea on dry ground.