Each morning, before we begin the Pesukeh De'zimra section, we recite twice the declaration "Hashem Melech, Hashem Malach, Hashem Yimloch Le'olam Va'ed" – "Hashem is King, Hashem was King, Hashem will be King for all eternity."

Strikingly, this declaration follows the sequence of present, past and future. We would have naturally expected that we should first mention the past – that Hashem has been King – followed by the acknowledgement that He is King in the present, and that He will be King in the future. Indeed, the Name of "Havaya" is explained as an allusion to the expression "Haya, Hoveh, Yiheyeh" – "He is, was, and will be," following the sequence of past, present and future. Why does the pronouncement of "Hashem Melech" reverse past and present, beginning with "Hashem Melech" and then proceeding to "Hashem Malach"?

The Ben Ish Hai (Rav Yosef Haim of Baghdad, 1833-1909), in his work Od Yosef Hai (Parashat Vayigash, 2), answers by explaining that "Hashem Melech" refers to our acknowledgement of Hashem's Kingship here in our world, which we recognize by seeing and contemplating the great miracles and wonders that He performs. He performed miracles for Abraham Abinu, rescuing him from the furnace into which he was thrown, and enabling him to defeat the four armies that captured his nephew, Lot. Hashem brought ten miraculous plagues upon the Egyptians, and split the sea to rescue Beneh Yisrael. He provided manna from the heavens to sustain Beneh Yisrael in the desert, and then granted them miraculous military triumphs over the powerful kingdoms of Sihon and Og, and over the 31 kingdoms of Canaan. Later, Hashem miraculously saved our nation from enemies such as Sisera and Sanherib, protected Daniel in the lion's den, and brought Hananya, Mishael and Azarya out of the furnace unscathed. Many more miracles have been performed throughout the generations. The Ben Ish Hai notes that even Nebuchadnesar, the evil king of the Babylonian Empire, marveled at G-d's infinite greatness (Daniel 3:33). Moreover, nature itself testifies to G-d's infinite greatness. The fact that the sun rises and sets at the precisely correct millisecond each and every day is a miracle. The fact that our bodies function, and that all organisms in the universe function, is miraculous. (I am reminded of the time when I had a fishtank installed in my home, and the fellow whom we hired explained to me precisely how I need to care for the fish. After just several days, one fish died, and even though I called him and he right away clarified and reiterated the instructions, all the fish ended up dying very quickly. I couldn't keep a few fish alive in a fishtank for several days, yet Hashem sustains countless creatures and entire ecosystems in all the world's oceans, since the time of creation…) And so King David exclaimed in Tehillim (chapter 8) after contemplating the wonders of the natural world, "Hashem Adonenu Ma Adir Shimcha Be'chol Ha'aretz" – "Hashem, our Master, how mighty is Your Name throughout the earth!"

The Ben Ish Hai thus explains that through the recognition of "Hashem Melech," of the remarkable miracles that we witness in our world, we arrive at the recognition of "Hashem Malach," that Hashem was King already before the world's creation. And, this leads us to the recognition that "Hashem Yimloch Le'olam Va'ed" – Hashem will always reign, for all eternity, even in the next world.

Rav Haim of Volozhin (1749-1821), in his Ru'ah Haim commentary to Pirkeh Abot, offers a different explanation of "Hashem Melech, Hashem Malach, Hashem Yimloch Le'olam Va'ed." He writes that when the world was first created, the entire universe recognized fully and unquestioningly that "Hashem Melech," that G-d is the sole ruler over the earth. However, when Adam sinned by eating the forbidden fruit, this belief began to erode, and people began worshipping idols. The firm belief in Hashem was restored at the time of Matan Torah, when Beneh Yisrael beheld the Revelation and unanimously and unconditionally committed themselves to G-d's service. Alas, this renewed level of faith was lost shortly thereafter, with the sin of the golden calf. Rav Haim of Volozhin explains that "Hashem Melech" refers to the universal belief in Hashem at the time of creation, and "Hashem Malach" speaks of the short-lived restoration of this level of faith at the time of Matan Torah. "Hashem Yimloch Le'olam Va'ed" expresses our fervent hope that we will soon return to this level with the arrival of Mashiah. As we say in the Alenu prayer, once Mashiah comes, "Vi'ykabelu Chulam Et l Malchutecha, Ve'timloch Aleihem Le'olam Va'ed" – "They shall all accept upon themselves the yoke of Your Kingship, and You shall reign over them for all eternity." We long and pray for the time when "Hashem Yimloch Le'olam Va'ed" – when Hashem's exclusive, uncontested rule over the universe will be clearly recognized and acknowledged by all mankind.

More lectures from Rabbi Eli Mansour

Beki'im BaHalacha - Hilchot Tefilin - Soferim: Forming Each Letter Correctly - Halachot 3-4 & Ashkenazic and Sephardic Writing Halachot 5-7

The Daily Recitation of “La’menase’ah Bi’neginot”

Beki'im BaHalacha - Hilchot Tefilin - Soferim: The Number of Lines on Each Scroll - Halachot 1-2 & Forming Each Letter Correctly - Halachot 1-2

Etz Hayim #112

Mishna Kelim 22_4-8

Etz Hayim #113