Mizmor 97
Light Is Sown For The Righteous - What's in an image?
Our psalm begins without any superscription: “The Lord is king! Let the earth exult, the many islands rejoice!” This psalm is sung as part of the Kabbalat Shabbat service.
Verse 11: "Light is sown for the righteous..."
Verse 11: "Light is sown for the righteous..." is recited at the opening of the Kol Nidre service at the beginning of Yom Kippur. The curious figure of light being sown (or zaru'a) is explained by the medieval Biblical commentator, Rabbi David Kimhi (Radak) on verse 11. Light is sown for the righteous in this world, but the harvest of that light awaits the future world. Others add that while the light may sometimes be hidden like the seed in the earth, it is sure to spring forth for the righteous. And for the upright in heart there will be joy (simchah).
Midrash Tanhuma Tetzaveh 6
Midrash Tanhuma Tetzaveh 6 comments that normally when a man constructs windows, he builds them wide on the inside and narrow on the outside so that light coming from outside will spread throughout the house. However, the windows in the Temple were constructed wide on the outside and narrow within, so that the light of the Temple might spread forth to illuminate the world, as it says: “Light is sown for the righteous..."
Midrash Tanhuma Shemini 9
Midrash Tanhuma Shemini 9 states that with the light created by the Holy One, blessed be He, on the first day of creation, Adam was able to gaze and see from one end of the world to the other end. But when, later, the Holy One, blessed be He, saw the wicked deeds of the Generation of Enosh and the Generation of the Flood, He decided to hide this supernal light from mankind, as it says: “Light is withheld from the wicked" (Job 38:15). Where did G-d hide this cosmic light? In the Garden of Eden! And there it is reserved for the righteous, as it says: "Light is sown for the righteous."
According to Pirkei de- Rabbi Eliezer a luminous pearl was suspended inside the belly of the whale that swallowed Jonah and it gave illumination to Jonah, like this sun which shines with its might at noon. And it showed to Jonah all that was in the sea and in the depths, as it is said, "Light is sown for the righteous."
The 13th century Rabbi Isaac ben Moses of Vienna titled his highly popular Halakhic guidebook, Or Zarua, based on this verse, “Light is sown (Or Zarua) for the righteous.
