Today’s pasuk is from Tehilim perek 27
אִם־תַּחֲנֶ֬ה עָלַ֨י ׀ מַחֲנֶה֮ לֹא־יִירָ֢א לִ֫בִּ֥י אִם־תָּק֣וּם עָ֭לַי מִלְחָמָ֑ה בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ׃
David HaMelech says, If the enemy makes encampments around me, I am not afraid. If war comes against me, I rely on THIS
The various explanations of the commentaries revolve around the meaning of the words
בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ
I rely on THIS
Our first explanation is from the Midrash that says the word
“זאת/ zot This” refers to the Torah, as we say, “Zot HaTorah” when the Torah comes out.
According to this, בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ means I rely on the Torah.
I feel confident in the fact that I learn Torah, that I keep the Torah, and that is what is going to protect me.
Another explanation is that the word Zot /THIS refers back to a pasuk in the beginning of the chapter,where David HaMelech says,
לְדָוִ֨ד ׀ ה׳ ׀ אוֹרִ֣י וְ֭יִשְׁעִי מִמִּ֣י אִירָ֑א ה׳ מָעוֹז־חַ֝יַּ֗י מִמִּ֥י אֶפְחָֽד
L’David, God is my light and my salvation-who am I afraid of ? God is the strength of my life. Who am I petrified of?
David HaMelech realizes that when he is connected to Hashem, he has many advantages. When a person is in the dark, he can stumble because way is not clear to him. But to that, David HaMelech says, Hashem is my light. When situations are unclear Hashem lights the way. On the other hand, when a person is in the light, he may be at a disadvantage because his enemies can see him. Therefore, David HaMelech says, Hashem is my salvation even in the light. Therefore I am not afraid. Even in situations where, as it says in the next pasuk,
בִּקְרֹ֤ב עָלַ֨י ׀ מְרֵעִים֮ לֶאֱכֹ֢ל אֶת־בְּשָׂ֫רִי
They’re coming to eat my flesh,
צָרַ֣י וְאֹיְבַ֣י לִ֑י הֵ֖מָּה כָשְׁל֣וּ וְנָפָֽלוּ
My enemies and oppressors will stumble and fall
According to this second explanation, when David HaMelech says,
בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ
I rely on THIS
He is referring to the earlier pasuk where it says he’s not afraid. Because he’s not afraid, he’s relying on Hashem. He is relying on the fact that he is not afraid.
The Alshech tells us that when a person is scared, thar is an indicator that he is disconnected from Hashem, and therefore, he has what to be afraid of.
As the pasuk says, פחד פחדתי I feared a fear, And it came upon me. Fear itself is detrimental. So, David HaMelech says, “When I see that the enemy is surrounding me and fear does not fall upon me, that gives me strength, because I know there is nothing to worry about. I am relying on Hashem. The lack of fear gives him added reliance.
בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ
I rely on THIS- on the fact that I am not afraid.
The pasuk that follows says,
אַחַ֤ת ׀ שָׁאַ֣לְתִּי מֵֽאֵת־יְהֹוָה֮
Is one thing that I ask from Hashem
אוֹתָ֢הּ אֲבַ֫קֵּ֥שׁ שִׁבְתִּ֣י בְּבֵית־יְ֭הֹוָה כׇּל־יְמֵ֣י חַיַּ֑י
I want to be in the house of Hashem- I want to serve Hashem
This is yet another explanation of
בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ
I rely on THIS
It means I rely on the fact that I am not trying to do things to get a great name, or just to conquer. Whatever I do is because ultimately, I want to serve Hashem.
And this is yet another reason to have reliance: Because the goal, in everything that I am trying to do, is to serve Hashem properly.
For our final explanation, the Pele Yoetz says that anytime the word enemy is mentioned in Tehilim, we have the right to have two kavanot/ meanings in our minds:
1- physical enemies,
2- spiritual enemies.
David HaMelech was always praying on both fronts.
As such, we hve yet another way to understand this pasuk:
אִם־תַּחֲנֶ֬ה עָלַ֨י ׀ מַחֲנֶה֮
if an encampment surrounds me,
It’s the camp of the Yetzer Hara , and now that I am in danger of sinning, what is going to save me?
בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ
I rely on THIS- referring to the Torah, even though the Yetzer Hara is constantly trying to overtake me.
As the Gemarah tells us,
I created the Yetzer Hara And I created the Torah as the antidote.
So David HaMelech says,
“As strong as the Yetzer Hara is, and as dangerous as the world we will live in is, the fact that I am learning Torah gives me the bitachon and reliance that I will make it through these challenging situations.
That is a two-dimensional explanation to this pasuk.
So, when David HaMelech says,
בְּ֝זֹ֗את אֲנִ֣י בוֹטֵֽחַ
I rely on THIS,
THiS can mean:
1- the Torah
2- the fact that I am not afraid
3- the fact that my goal is to serve Hashem
4- despite the challenges of the Yetzer Hara, I can still rely on my Torah learning
Have a wonderful day.