Curses in the Book of Tehillim (Book of Praises)

Curses in the Book of Tehillim (Book of Praises)

Tehillim 109 The Book of Tehillim derives its name from the word “tehillah,” meaning praise. And yet, among its 150 psalms of praise, we find one psalm containing curses. “Appoint a wicked man over him, and let an adversary stand at his right hand. When he is judged, let him be found guilty, and let his prayer be counted as sin. Let his days be few, and let another take his property. Let his children be orphaned, and his wife a widow. Let his children wander about and beg, seeking alms from those who have ruined them. Let the creditor seize all that he has, and let strangers plunder the fruit of his labor. Let there be no one who shows him kindness or compassion for his orphans. Let his descendants be cut off; in the next generation, let their name be erased. Let the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the L-rd, and let the sin of his mother not be erased. Let them always be before G-d, and let Him erase their memory from the earth.” (Tehillim 109:6–16) Terrible curses—a whole chain of anguish and suffering. And when we encounter such curses from the holy lips of King David himself, the sweet singer of Israel, it certainly seems that all these curses are intended for the most wicked of men: someone who spent all his days seeking only to do evil, a thoroughly corrupt person whose crimes are known throughout the world. But the pasuk of the psalm that follows these curses explains their cause and meaning, and to whom they are directed—and this makes it even more frightening: “Because he did not remember to do good and pursued the poor and humble man, brokenhearted, in order to kill him.” And that is all. A person who did not “remember” to perform chesed deserves such curses! A person who causes pain to someone whose heart is already broken, crushed by circumstances. For goodness is not only giving something, but also showing consideration and taking care not to cause pain. Gemilut chasadim—sowing goodness despite everything, whether our kindness is met with kindness or with bitter ingratitude—is what the Creator so deeply expects from all of us. Selfless goodness—l'shem Shamayim—is intended to glorify the Almighty and bring joy to the Creator. Chesed must have only one intention: to bring joy to the Creator. Otherwise, King David foretells what awaits such a person: “He loved cursing—and it came upon him; he did not desire blessing—and it kept away from him. He clothed himself in cursing as in a garment, and it entered his innards like water and his bones like oil. It shall be for him like a garment in which he wraps himself, and like a belt with which he always girds himself. “This is the reward from the L-rd for those who hate me and speak evil of my soul.” (from the book Pathways of Light by the Gaon Rabbi Nissim Yagen)