Psalm-43
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history of Ezra, Nehemiah, and Chronicles I & II.
Please Note: Some alterations or (additions) have been made relating to ‘Names’ and ‘Attributes’ of אֱלֹהִים - Elohim, having been corrected like it once was pre the “Masoretic Text”.
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Remember the following two
truth’s from our beloved Scriptures!
“Ye
shall NOT ADD TO THE WORD which I command you, NEITHER SHALL YE DIMINISH FROM IT, that ye may keep the commandments of יְהוָה
אֱלֹהֵיכֶם - the LORD your Eloleichem, which I command you”. Davarim -
Deuteronomy 4:2.
Remember we are Never Alone!
Davarim - Deuteronomy Chapter 31, verse 6.
JPS-1917 version of the Torah.
חִזְקוּ וְאִמְצוּ, אַל-תִּירְאוּ וְאַל-תַּעַרְצוּ מִפְּנֵיהֶם: כִּי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, הוּא הַהֹלֵךְ עִמָּךְ-לֹא יַרְפְּךָ, וְלֹא יַעַזְבֶךָּ
“Be strong and of good courage, fear not, nor be affrighted at them; for יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ - the LORD thy Eloheycha (God), He it is that doth go with thee; He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee’”.
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With Rabbi, Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens, PhD.
Introduction:
Tehillim - Psalm 43 is a rather compact, but an intense prayer that moves quickly from a ‘legal plea’ to ‘personal lament’, then to ‘petition for guidance’, and finally to ‘self-exhortation and renewed hope’. Its language blends with courtroom imagery (“judge,” “plead my cause”) with temple imagery (“holy mountain,” “altar”), showing a speaker who seeks both vindication and restored access to אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s (God’s) presence. Read as a single unit or as the close of the paired lament with Psalm 42, it models honest faith: naming injustice and abandonment while deliberately choosing ‘trust and praise’.
Let us now read Tehillim - Psalms Chapter 43: (JPS-1917 version of the Tanakh).
1. “Be Thou my judge, O אֱלֹהִים - Elohim, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation; O deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man.
2. For Thou art the אֱלֹהִים of my strength; why hast Thou cast me off? Why go I mourning under the oppression of the enemy?
3. O send out Thy light and Thy truth; let them lead me; let them bring me unto Thy holy mountain, and to Thy dwelling-places.
4. Then will I go unto the altar of אֱלֹהִים, unto אֱלֹהִים, my exceeding joy; and praise Thee upon the harp, O אֱלֹהִים, my אֱלֹהִים.
5. Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why moanest thou within me? Hope thou in אֱלֹהִים; for I shall yet praise Him, the salvation of my countenance, and my אֱלֹהִים”.
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To understand this Psalm better, let us look at the verse by verse description:
Verse 1: The legal plea:
Text: “Be Thou
my judge, O אֱלֹהִים -
Elohim and plead my cause against an ungodly nation; O deliver
me from the deceitful and unjust man”.
What is said: The Psalmist opens by asking אֱלֹהִים to act as both judge and advocate.
The threat is described on two levels: a ‘hostile people; (“ungodly nation”)
and a treacherous individual (“deceitful and unjust man”).
The petition frames the situation in moral-legal terms: The speaker seeks Divine intervention to correct injustice and to be rescued from betrayal.
Verse 2: Affirmation and anguished question:
Text: “For Thou art the אֱלֹהִים of my strength; why hast Thou cast me off? Why go I mourning under the oppression of the enemy?”
What is said: The speaker affirms past experience of אֱלֹהִים - Elohim as strength, then contrasts that memory with present feelings of ‘abandonment’. The two rhetorical questions expose raw bewilderment: if אֱלֹהִים is the source of strength, why this sense of being forsaken and oppressed? The verse captures the tension between trust and suffering.
Verse 3: Petition for guidance:
Text: “O send out Thy light and Thy truth; let them lead me; let them bring me unto Thy holy mountain, and to Thy dwelling-places”.
What is said: The request shifts from vindication to direction. “Light and truth” are invoked as guiding forces light for clarity and deliverance, truth for moral steadiness. The goal is explicit: to be led back to the holy mountain and אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s dwelling-places, images that evoke the temple, communal worship, and restored intimacy with אֱלֹהִים.
Verse 4: Promise of worship:
Text: Then will I go unto the altar of אֱלֹהִים, unto אֱלֹהִים, my exceeding joy; and praise Thee upon the harp, O אֱלֹהִים, my אֱלֹהִים.
What is said: The Psalmist vows a concrete response if restored: ‘return to the altar’, ‘offer praise, and make music on the harp’. אֱלֹהִים is named not only judge but “my exceeding joy”, Emphasizing ‘relationship and delight’. Worship is both the outcome of deliverance and the proper response to it.
Verse 5: Self-exhortation and confident
close:
Text: “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why moanest thou within me? Hope thou in אֱלֹהִים; for I shall yet praise Him, the salvation of my countenance, and my אֱלֹהִים”.
What is said:
The Psalm ends with an inward dialogue: the speaker addresses his own soul,
repeating the refrain of lament but immediately countering it with a command, hope
in אֱלֹהִים. The promise “I shall
yet praise Him” affirms expectation of restored joy; “the salvation of
my countenance” pictures a visible renewal, both ‘cheerful’, ‘peaceful’
expression returned by אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s
saving action
My Closing remarks:
Tehillim - Psalm 43 teaches a faithful posture for times of trial: speaking plainly about injustice and pain, ask אֱלֹהִים - Elohim both to ‘judge and to guide’, and intentionally choose hope. Its movement from ‘complaint to petition’ to ‘vowed praise’ shows that honest lament and steadfast trust can coexist with faith that names darkness while walking toward the light of אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s presence.
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This site was originally created, for those who desired to return to our blessed and wonderful faith. Thus be wise and work on your faith and pray at least two or three times a day (if possible) and always seek our beloved אֱלֹהִים - Elohim’s guidance, for His love is always with us, especially when we seek Him, blessed be He! However this site has become very much a teaching site with hundreds of studies!
Remember what אֱלֹהִים - Elohim, blessed be He, said the following via several
of our prophets...
“Return unto Me, and I will return unto you, saith צְבָאוֹת- יְהוָה- the LORD of hosts”. Mal’a’chi - Malachi 3:7. (JPS).
And Remember ...
Enjoy your Sabbath Rest, Shabbat Shalom!
אֲנִי
יְהוָה
אֱלֹהֵיכֶם, בְּחֻקּוֹתַי
לֵכוּ; וְאֶת-מִשְׁפָּטַי
שִׁמְרוּ, וַעֲשׂוּ
אוֹתָם
וְאֶת-שַׁבְּתוֹתַי, קַדֵּשׁוּ; וְהָיוּ
לְאוֹת, בֵּינִי
וּבֵינֵיכֶם-לָדַעַת, כִּי
אֲנִי יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵיכֶם
“I am אֱלֹהֵיכֶם יְהוָה - the LORD your Eloheichem;
walk in My statutes, and keep Mine
ordinances, and do them; and hallow My Sabbaths, and they shall be a sign
between Me and you, that ye may know that I am אֱלֹהֵיכֶם יְהוָה - the LORD your Eloheichem”.
Yechezkel - Ezekiel 20:19-20. (JPS).
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“The More Torah, the
More Life”
For אֱלֹהִים יְהוָה - the LORD Elohim, Blessed be His Sanctified Name,
He is
the one who gave us our Life!”
May the שָׁלוֹם - Shalom = Peace of צְבָאוֹת- יְהוָה= the LORD of hosts. be with you, and please always uphold our blessed שַׁבָּת - Shabbat, as well as the מוֹעֲדִים - Mo’a’dim - Feasts, and continue saying your daily תְּפִלָּה - Tefeelah’s (Prayers) and regular בְּרָכָה - Be’ra’chah’s (blessings) before food and drinks, etc!
שָׁלוֹם
עֲלֵיכֶם - Shalom Aleichem - Peace be with you!
Rabbi,
Dr. Reuven Ben Avraham-Goossens,
PhD.
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