{"id":82914,"date":"2020-11-07T19:26:57","date_gmt":"2020-11-07T17:26:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=82914"},"modified":"2020-11-17T08:31:59","modified_gmt":"2020-11-17T06:31:59","slug":"turning-the-other-cheek","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/turning-the-other-cheek\/","title":{"rendered":"Turning The Other Cheek?"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/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":"82914","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":80006,"related_cahpter":"606","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"Some thoughts on Psalms - from pre-War Lithuania\r\n\r\n","content":"

What goes through the mind of the righteous individual who is attacked and chooses not to respond? Does Judaism believe that when attacked we should \u201cturn the other cheek\u201d? These are the issues dealt with in Psalm 39.<\/span><\/p>\n

This psalm was composed after the incident (2 Sam 16) where Shim\u2019i ben Gera came to face David when he was fleeing from his son, Absalom, cursing him and saying \u201cGet out, get out, you criminal, you villain!\u201d (v. 7). In response, Abishai ben Zeruyah said, \u201cWhy let that dead dog abuse my lord the king? Let me go over and cut off his head!\u201d (v. 9), to which David replied: \u201cLet him go on hurling abuse, for the LORD has told him to. Perhaps the LORD will look upon my punishment and recompense me for the abuse [Shim\u2019i] has uttered today\u201d (v. 11-12).<\/span><\/p>\n

The entire psalm was composed with this in the background. King David opens by declaring before God his own righteous path, by which he accepted as a rule that he would never harm nor do evil to a member of the Israelite nation who insulted him or who caused him dishonor. We know of the way he thanked Abigail who succeeded in restraining him from shedding blood (1 Sam 25:33), as he said: \u201cmurderous, deceitful men the LORD abhors\u201d (Ps 5:7).<\/span><\/p>\n

Having established this, David complains to God that he had been punished with difficult trials and travails to the extent that others began saying that God had abandoned him, and those people belittle him by calling him names. He believes, however, that his punishments are a consequence of God measuring his sins against the greatness of the Creator, which is why he prays to God that his sins be measured against his own lowly status and short lifespan. Recognizing how ephemeral human life is – like the brief shadow of a bird that flies by – leads to an understanding that a person\u2019s iniquities are not so great, and can be atoned for by his suffering.<\/span><\/p>\n

For this reason, David asks that God\u2019s hand weighing down against him be removed, so that he should no longer be belittled, in a similar manner to the prayer of \u201cMoses, the man of God\u201d in Psalm 90.<\/span><\/p>\n

In summary, from the beginning David remained silent and did not agree to allow Abishai kill Shim\u2019i, recognizing that it was God who commanded him to curse. Shim\u2019i cannot be blamed. But now he turns to God and asks Him to remove the plagues that overwhelm him.<\/span><\/p>\n

Translated and adapted by Rabbi Shalom Z. Berger, Ed.D.<\/span><\/p>\n

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