{"id":81877,"date":"2020-10-21T16:29:00","date_gmt":"2020-10-21T13:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=81877"},"modified":"2020-10-21T16:29:00","modified_gmt":"2020-10-21T13:29:00","slug":"the-lord-is-my-strength-and-my-shield","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/the-lord-is-my-strength-and-my-shield\/","title":{"rendered":"The Lord Is My Strength And My Shield"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"entry-content\"><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[],"acf":{"old_id":"81877","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":33877,"related_cahpter":"595","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"A classic prayer for help and song of thanksgiving\r\n\r\n","content":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Our psalm is a Davidic prayer for help and an expression of thanksgiving. The psalmist offers up this blessing: \u201cThe Lord is my strength and my shield. My heart trusts in Him. I was helped, and my heart exulted, so I will glorify Him with my song. The Lord is their strength. He is a stronghold for the deliverance of His anointed\u201d (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sefaria.org\/Psalms.28.6-8?lang=bi\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">28:7-8<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sefaria.org\/Psalms.28.7?lang=bi&amp;p2=Midrash_Tehillim.28.6&amp;lang2=bi&amp;w2=all&amp;lang3=en\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Midrash Tehillim 28:6<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> interprets the psalmist\u2019s declaration: \u201cThe Lord is my strength and my shield\u201d with a parable of a king who had a precious pearl. His son came and said, Give it to me! The king replied, It\u2019s not yours! But the son pressured his father, the king, into giving the pearl to him. Similarly, Israel pleaded before the Holy One, blessed be He, that He give them the Torah. God replied, It\u2019s not for you, for it is from the Heavens (<\/span><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Ha-\u2018Elyonim<\/span><\/em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">). But when Israel pressured God, He gave the Torah to them, as it says: \u201cThe Lord grants strength (i.e. the Torah) to His people\u2026(<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sefaria.org\/Psalms.29.11?lang=bi&amp;with=all&amp;lang2=en\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">29:11<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">). Israel then exclaimed, Let us acknowledge Him with our songs of thanksgiving, for His giving us the Torah, as it says: \u201cSo I will glorify Him with my song \u2013 <\/span><i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">u-mi-shiri \u2018ahodenu<\/span><\/i><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sefaria.org\/Psalms.28.7?lang=bi&amp;with=all&amp;lang2=en\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">28:7<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/p>\n<p><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sefaria.org\/Olat_Reiyah%2C_Essays_on_Prayer%2C_The_Constant_Prayer_of_the_Soul.4?ven=Trans._Rabbi_Mike_Feuer,_2019&amp;lang=bi\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Rav Kook <\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">(<\/span><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Olat Reiyah<\/span><\/em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, Essays on Prayer 19<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sefaria.org\/Psalms.28.7?lang=en&amp;p2=Shmonah_Kvatzim.6.79.1&amp;lang2=en\"> <em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Shmonah Kvatzim<\/span><\/em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> 6:79<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">) cites our psalm in elaborating on prayer: One can know \u201chis spiritual standing \u2013 <\/span><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">ma\u2019amado ha-ruchani<\/span><\/em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u201d by the clarity of the expression of his words in prayer. This occurs the more the light of the soul lives within his words. And this is true the more the praying individual feels how each and every expression of prayer shoots forth from him like an arrow, like the flow of living waters. And how each of his prayers flows from the source of life, acting in the world\u2026When one speaks of holy matters, he may feel within himself a certain kind of distress. This is because of the manifestation of holiness that begins to flow within him. But then he should know that any impurity of his soul is gradually shrinking. Indeed, his soul may be pained by its very reduction. But, in fact, his goodness is gradually prevailing. And with this knowledge, and with deep faith, his pure soul awakens in joy, for it now knows that it is becoming holy, ascending, and continually spreading out. And this is what the psalmist meant by exclaiming: \u201cThe Lord is my strength and my shield. My heart trusts in Him. I was helped, and my heart exulted, so I will glorify Him with my song. The Lord is their strength. He is a stronghold for the deliverance of His anointed\u201d (<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.sefaria.org\/Psalms.28.7?lang=en&amp;with=all&amp;lang2=en\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">28:7-8<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">).<\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":81879,"id":81879,"title":"ps28-shield","filename":"ps28-shield.png","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/ps28-shield.png","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/the-lord-is-my-strength-and-my-shield\/ps28-shield\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"ps28-shield","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":81877,"date":"2020-10-21 13:28:15","modified":"2020-10-21 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