Mizmor 94
Mizmor 94
Rhythm of the Heart by Rabbi Yitzhak Rubin
This kapital speaks of the ultimate time of reckoning when the evil done in this world by those who despise HaShem will be punished. Perhaps it can also be seen as a message about our personal battle with malevolence. We too should accept that if we allow maliciousness to dwell in our souls, we face terrible consequences. There is no such thing as a spiritual vacuum; the space in our soul is filled with what we allow to enter.
KEL NEKAMOS HASHEM ... “Almighty of vengeance HaShem, Almighty of vengeance, reveal Yourself.”
I have noted before, gutte Yidden were wont to say; Der velt iz nisht hefker, “The world is not unaccountable!” There are consequences that we must realize. HaShem is a Loving Father, but then, a loving parent must set borders for his young, or else they can come to ruin. When we absorb some awful traits, we must realize that HaShem's vengeance can be swift. I have seen situations where hate and anger have spawned horrendous results, things that could never be explained away as mere accidents of fate. If we pollute our hearts, we cannot expect purity. HaShem's “vengeance” is not what we mere humans understand the expression as meaning. Its core does not come from the normal human sense of anger or retribution. Rather, HaShem's rule over this world stems from His complete love for all His creation, and His “vengeance” is to rectify spiritual inconsistencies that we have caused.
YABI’U YEDABRU ASAK ... “They express, they speak with arrogance; all the evil doers are boastful.”
The inner site of our wrongdoing is the direct result to our clogging up our hearts with arrogance and boasting. We do not like admitting our failures, rather than accept that we have allowed wrong to become ingrained in our being; we talk ourselves into believing that in fact we are righteous and all is well.
VAYOMRU LO YIREH ... “And they say, “G-d does not see, and the G-d of Jacob is not concerned.”
We are told: Shivisi HaShem Lenegdi tamid, “Keep HaShem before you always;” but that is no simple matter. The Ropshitzer Rav zy”a was known for his quips, quips that were packed with enormous holiness. He once walked over to someone after the fellow finished his private shemone esrei and said, “Shalom Aleichem and welcome back.” The surprised fellow looked at the Rebbe in dismay. The Rebbe continued, “I can tell that during your shemone esrei your mind was a million miles away, so I thought it only right to welcome you back."
It is difficult to keep HaShem in our minds even when praying, how much more so when we go about our daily business. We don't have to think HaShem isn't looking; our problem is we do not even think of Him at all.
HASHEM YODEI’A MACHSHEVOS ADAM ... “HaShem knows the thoughts of men, that they are vanity. Fortunate is the man whom You chastise HaShem, and whom You instruct from Your Torah.”
This is no academic exercise; HaShem does know our thoughts and our vanity. He offers us signs throughout our lives, reminders of where our focus should be. We can turn our backs on these Holy messages or we can hear the Torah lessons and unplug that which blocks our hearts. This is our choice in life – either call the plumber today, or face the flood tomorrow ...
