בַּיּוֹם הַהוּא יוּשַׁר הַשִּׁיר הַזֶּה בְּאֶרֶץ יְהוּדָה עִיר עָז לָנוּ יְשׁוּעָה יָשִׁית חוֹמוֹת וָחֵל

The prophet returns to the song of the future redemption. On that day of the redemption, this song will be sung in the land of Judah: Ours is a mighty city; He will place salvation in walls and rampart. Alternatively, the salvation that God will bring to the city will provide protection like the walls and rampart.

פִּתְחוּ שְׁעָרִים וְיָבֹא גוֹי צַדִּיק שֹׁמֵר אֱמֻנִים

The prophet addresses the redeemed city of Jerusalem: Prayer and praise to God will be recited in your midst. Therefore, open your gates, and a righteous nation, the keeper of unwavering faith in God, will enter.

יֵצֶר סָמוּךְ תִּצֹּר שָׁלוֹם שָׁלוֹם כִּי בְךָ בָּטוּחַ

This nation possesses a will of reliance in You; You will guard peace, its peace, for it is trusting in You.

בִּטְחוּ בַה' עֲדֵי עַד כִּי בְּיָהּ ה' צוּר עוֹלָמִים

Trust in the Lord forever, for God the Lord is an everlasting rock.He is the source of all and the strength of all.

כִּי הֵשַׁח יֹשְׁבֵי מָרוֹם קִרְיָה נִשְׂגָּבָה יַשְׁפִּילֶנָּה יַשְׁפִּילָהּ עַד אֶרֶץ יַגִּיעֶנָּה עַד עָפָר

For on the one hand, He bowed the dwellers on high. He will lower the exalted, large, and glorious city, lower it to the ground, bring it to dust.

תִּרְמְסֶנָּה רָגֶל — רַגְלֵי עָנִי פַּעֲמֵי דַלִּים

A foot will trample it, this lowered city: the feet of the poor, the feet of the impoverished. The poor, oppressed by the upper class which lived in the lofty quarters of the city, will step on its houses and ruins.

אֹרַח לַצַּדִּיק — מֵישָׁרִים יָשָׁר מַעְגַּל צַדִּיק תְּפַלֵּס

On the other hand, the proper path for the righteous is uprightness; You will level straight the course of the righteous.

אַף אֹרַח מִשְׁפָּטֶיךָ ה'קִוִּינוּךָ לְשִׁמְךָ וּלְזִכְרְךָ תַּאֲוַת נָפֶשׁ

Like the righteous, even we, in the path of Your judgments, Lord, we hoped for You to lead us along the path of Your justice. The desire of the people’s soul is for Your name and for Your appellation.

נַפְשִׁי אִוִּיתִיךָ בַּלַּיְלָה אַף רוּחִי בְקִרְבִּי אֲשַׁחֲרֶךָּ כִּי כַּאֲשֶׁר מִשְׁפָּטֶיךָ לָאָרֶץ צֶדֶק לָמְדוּ יֹשְׁבֵי תֵבֵל

The prophet says about himself: With my soul (see, e.g., 44:20), I desired You at night, even at those times not dedicated to prayer, Torah, or toil. While my spirit is within me, as long as I live, I will seek You, for when Your judgments, Your reward and punishment, are revealed on the earth, the inhabitants of the world learn of the righteousness, justice, and truth with which You govern the world.

יֻחַן רָשָׁע בַּל לָמַד צֶדֶק – בְּאֶרֶץ נְכֹחוֹת יְעַוֵּל וּבַל יִרְאֶה גֵּאוּת ה'!

Conversely, will the wicked, who did not learn righteousness, who in the land of the upright will perform evil and will not see the majesty of the Lord, receive grace?

ה' רָמָה יָדְךָ בַּל יֶחֱזָיוּן יֶחֱזוּ וְיֵבֹשׁוּ קִנְאַת עָם אַף אֵשׁ צָרֶיךָ תֹאכְלֵם

Lord, Your hand is raised to perform Your lofty actions, but they, the wicked, do not see it; they will see Israel’s success and as a result will be ashamed at the sight of the zealousness You display for the people. Even the fire of Your enemies, which they themselves kindled, will consume them.

ה' תִּשְׁפֹּת שָׁלוֹם לָנוּ כִּי גַּם כָּל מַעֲשֵׂינוּ פָּעַלְתָּ לָּנוּ

Lord, You will establish peace for us, for indeed, You have performed all our actions for us. You are behind all our actions.

ה' אֱלֹהֵינוּ בְּעָלוּנוּ אֲדֹנִים זוּלָתֶךָ לְבַד בְּךָ נַזְכִּיר שְׁמֶךָ

Lord our God, masters besides You have dominated us. We have not always lived under Your sole authority, as we submitted to other nations, politically and even spiritually. But ultimately, it is You alone whose name we invoke; only You are our haven.

מֵתִים בַּל יִחְיוּ רְפָאִים בַּל יָקֻמוּ לָכֵן פָּקַדְתָּ וַתַּשְׁמִידֵם וַתְּאַבֵּד כָּל זֵכֶר לָמוֹ

The masters who once dominated us are already considered dead, and they will not live again; they are disembodied spirits [refa’im], or: They are terminally weak [rafim], and they will not rise again. Therefore, You reckoned and destroyed them, and You eradicated all memory of them.

יָסַפְתָּ לַגּוֹי ה' יָסַפְתָּ לַגּוֹי — נִכְבָּדְתָּ רִחַקְתָּ כָּל קַצְוֵי אָרֶץ

You added to the nation of Israel, Lord, and the more You added to the nation, the more You are honored; You expanded the borders of Your people’s land, the land in which Your glory is revealed, to all the ends of the earth.

ה' בַּצַּר פְּקָדוּךָ צָקוּן לַחַשׁ מוּסָרְךָ לָמוֹ

Lord, they, Your people, invoked You in times of trouble, pouring out their hearts in silent prayer when Your rebuke was upon them.

כְּמוֹ הָרָה תַּקְרִיב לָלֶדֶת תָּחִיל תִּזְעַק בַּחֲבָלֶיהָ כֵּן הָיִינוּ מִפָּנֶיךָ ה'

Like a pregnant woman approaching childbirth trembles and cries out in her pangs, so were we before You, Lord.

הָרִינוּ חַלְנוּ כְּמוֹ יָלַדְנוּ רוּחַ יְשׁוּעֹת בַּל נַעֲשֶׂה אֶרֶץ ובַל יִפְּלוּ יֹשְׁבֵי תֵבֵל

We conceived, we were in pain, but it was as though we gave birth to wind rather than a viable child. Salvations were not realized in the land, and if only salvations will transpire, the inhabitants of the world will not fall.

יִחְיוּ מֵתֶיךָ נְבֵלָתִי יְקוּמוּן הָקִיצוּ וְרַנְּנוּ שֹׁכְנֵי עָפָר כִּי טַל אוֹרֹת טַלֶּךָ וָאָרֶץ רְפָאִים תַּפִּיל

Your dead, the dead of Your nation Israel, will live; my corpses will rise. Awaken and sing, dwellers of the dust, for the dew of light, or the dew of the fields, is Your dew, which will cause the dead to arise at the end of days, and You will cause the spirits, those who lack physical or spiritual vitality, to fall to the earth. You will destroy the existing world of evil and build a new world.

לֵךְ עַמִּי בֹּא בַחֲדָרֶיךָ וּסְגֹר דְּלָתְךָ בַּעֲדֶךָ חֲבִי כִמְעַט רֶגַע עַד יַעֲבָר זָעַם

In the meantime, until that great day arrives, go, my people, enter your chambers and close your door after you; hide for a brief moment, daughter of Zion, until fury will pass.

כִּי הִנֵּה ה' יֹצֵא מִמְּקוֹמוֹ לִפְקֹד עֲוֹן יֹשֵׁב הָאָרֶץ עָלָיו וְגִלְּתָה הָאָרֶץ אֶת דָּמֶיהָ וְלֹא תְכַסֶּה עוֹד עַל הֲרוּגֶיהָ

For behold, the Lord emerges from His place, reveals Himself, in order to reckon the iniquity of the inhabitants of the earth against them; the earth will reveal its blood, and it will no longer conceal its slain. The murdered and their blood will no longer be covered by the earth, and the murderers will be punished. In this period of chaos, God’s nation must hide.