We continue in chapter 91 of Tehilim, and today we will study pasuk ט
כִּי־אַתָּה ה׳ מַחְסִי עֶלְיוֹן שַׂמְתָּ מְעוֹנֶךָ
You, Hashem, are my refuge
You placed your abode above.
What exactly is David HaMelech telling us?
The first explanation is that David HaMelech is saying Hashem is his refuge, even though
עֶלְיוֹן שַׂמְתָּ מְעוֹנֶךָ
God is high, high above, in His heavenly abode. He is still supervising down here, on every individual.
So even though You, Hashem, are Elyon/above, I am still seeking refuge in You.
Another explanation is that
Hashem is high, above all of the mazalot. God is pulling the strings from high above.
Therefore, I am placing my refuge in You, because I know that You’re high, high above.
It’s like a puppet-show, with the strings being pulled by Hashem. We can’t see the One directing this puppet show. He’s above. But ultimately, you don’t want to deal with the puppet but rather, with the puppeteer who is pulling the strings.
David HaMelech understands that Hashem is high above, and therefore he puts reliance on Him.
The Gemara tells us that certain chapters of tehilim were written by other authors, and David HaMelech brought them down.
According to some, this perek was written by Moshe Rabbenu. Moshe Rabbenu was telling the people not to worry that Hashem was
עֶלְיוֹן שַׂמְתָּ מְעוֹנֶךָ
He said not to worry that we are living in a time when we don’t see open miracles, in times when God has, so to say, removed Himself from this world
(This refers to the time after the destruction of the Bet HaMikdash, when we don’t see God in an open way).
Moshe Rabbenu says, “Don’t worry about that. We don’t need to have Hashem dwelling in a Mishkan. Even before the Mishkan, when God was dwelling high up in His heavenly abode, He was still watching over us. He was bringing the makkot to the Mitzrim -eventually Makkat Bechorot. Hashem led us through the desert before there was a Mishkan that He dwelled in down here.
Therefore, don’t feel that when Hashem doesn’t have a place to dwell down here but rather, עֶלְיוֹן שַׂמְתָּ מְעוֹנֶךָ His place of dwelling is high up,
don’t think that Hashem can’t or won’t help us when we don’t have Him in a dwelling place down here.
Rav Shamshon Raphael Hirsch has a completely different way of reading this pasuk. He says that עֶלְיוֹן שַׂמְתָּ מְעוֹנֶךָ is talking not about God, but about the person with Bitachon
He places his abode in the One above. He is dwelling, so to say, with Hashem.
עֶלְיוֹן
High above, (with Hashem)
שַׂמְתָּ מְעוֹנֶךָ Your whole existence is build on Hashem, who is high above.
And even though He is high up above, like it says רָם עַל־כׇּל־גּוֹיִם ׀ ה׳ עַל הַשָּׁמַיִם כְּבוֹדוֹ
Hashem is high above the goyim,
As high up as He is, we believe that we can still connect to Him.
Therefore, I place my abode with the Elyon/above.
And if a person places his dwelling above, Malbim says that just like the angels don’t worry about wars and things going on down here, because they are living “upstairs” and none of the evils of down here can touch them, so too, when a person feels he’s dwelling up there, with Hashem, he is no longer dwelling down here.
So he’s no longer following the norms and rules of this world. He’s dwelling with God above, and therefore, he is untouchable.
This is a totally diff way of reading
עֶלְיוֹן שַׂמְתָּ מְעוֹנֶךָ
The person places his dwelling place with God above.
And the more he connects with God above, the more protected he is down here.
To recap, there are two approaches to this pasuk-
1- עֶלְיוֹן שַׂמְתָּ מְעוֹנֶךָ
God is high above, pulling the strings, and therefore we rely on Him to take care of us down here
2- עֶלְיוֹן שַׂמְתָּ מְעוֹנֶךָ
The human being placed his dwelling place above, and
therefore, he is protected in God’s presence above.