Today’s pasuk is Tehilim perek יח, pasuk לא, a continuation of the same Perek that we did yesterday.
הָאֵ-ל תָּמִים דַּרְכּוֹ אִמְרַת ה' צְרוּפָה מָגֵן הוּא לְכֹל הַחֹסִים בּוֹ
Hashem, His way is perfect. The promise of Hashem is flawless, He is shield for all who take refuge in Him.
There is an interesting Midrash on this pasuk: Hashem told Abraham Avinu,
אל תירא אברם אנכי מגן לך
Don’t be afraid, I will protect you, I will be a shield for you.
This is why we say, everyday in our tefila Magen Avraham- the shield of Avraham.
Similarly, David HaMelech said, ותתן לי מגן ישעך You gave me the shield of Your salvation.
Perhaps this is only for Avraham Avinu, or David HaMelech? But David HaMelech continues and says,
ולא לעצמי, אלא לכל מי שבוטח בך
It’s not just for me- this shield is for anyone that relies on God.
As it says, מגן הוא לכל החוסים God is a shield for all those who seek refuge in Him-Regardless of who you are.
How does this work?
The word חוסה/ Hoseh, means to seek refuge, but as we’ve said many times, this doesn’t mean that you were promised anything.
So if Hashem promised you, it’s one thing, but here it’s referring to לכל החוסים בו
All those that seek refuge in Hashem. How can that guarantee protection and a shield?
The Ibn Ezra explains the first half of the pasuk הָאֵ-ל תָּמִים דַּרְכּוֹ Hashem is perfect in His ways
What does this mean?
א-ל/El means He is all powerful. And the Ibn Ezra says that תמים דרכו His ways are perfect means, ולא יעשה עול He doesn’t commit an act of inequity.
Similarly, there is another another pasuk in Tehilim, where David HaMelech says,
צרי, God is my Rock, and He doesn’t commit inequity.
Rav Bloch explains that an עולה an inequity isn’t something necessarily illegal or wrong, but rather its considered improper. For example, if someone is counting on you for something, and you don’t come through, that’s an Avlah/inequity. Rav Bloch gives a good example, of someone had a very important meeting, that his whole business depended on, in a strange town, and he didn’t have a car, and he called his friend the night before the meeting, to ask him to take him to the meeting, but before the friend could answer him, the line went dead. This man knows his friend heard him, and he knows his friend can help him. And the friend knows that the man is counting on him, and that his whole business depends on it.
Although he never said he would, he knows his friend is counting on him, and he can do it. He has the time and ability.... in this case, not doing it would be an avlah/ עולה.
Rav Bloch explains that this is the logic behind seeking refuge in Hashem. This is what David HaMelech is telling us in this pasuk:
הָאֵל He is all powerful
תָּמִים דַּרְכּוֹ He is perfect in His ways.
Hashem wouldn’t commit a lack of Middot like that. Of course, when someone is counting on you, you are supposed to come through.
And that is why מָגֵן הוּא לְכֹל הַחֹסִים בּוֹ
God is a shield for all those that truly rely on Him.
In this pasuk in Tehilim it says, צורי, My Rock..
Yesterday, we mentioned that the term, “Rock,” is specifically used in seeking refuge. You never spoke to the rock, and the rock never spoke to you. It’s raining and windy outside, so you go under the rock for protection. That’s what, “God is my rock,” means.
Therefore, if I seek refuge in God, he will not commit an inequity and let me down.
That is the meaning of this pasuk.
מָגֵן הוּא לְכֹל הַחֹסִים בּוֹ
God is a shield for all those that truly rely on Him.
These pesukim are all techniques. The goal of these classes is to understand these pesukim. Soldiers in the old days used to recite these pesukim. Any pasuk that talks to you and strengthens your bitachon has a power. The more you understand, the more powerful it is.
B’ezrat Hashem, we now have an understanding of how the first half of the perek talks about God’s perfect ways and middot, which matches the second half of the perek, which is
מָגֵן הוּא לְכֹל הַחֹסִים בּוֹ
God is a shield for all those that truly rely on Him.