הוֹדוּ לַה' כִּי טוֹב כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ

The psalm begins on a festive note, with a verse of thanksgiving for God’s benevolence, which is found in a number of other chapters of Psalms as well: Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good; He has shown kindness toward us, for His kindness is forever.

יֹאמַר נָא יִשְׂרָאֵל כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ

Let Israel now say: His kindness is forever.

יֹאמְרוּ נָא בֵית אַהֲרֹן כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ

Let the house of Aaron, the priests who serve in the Temple, now say: His kindness is forever.

יֹאמְרוּ נָא יִרְאֵי ה' כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ

Let those who fear the Lord now say: His kindness is forever.

מִן הַמֵּצַר קָרָאתִי יָּהּ עָנָנִי בַמֶּרְחָב יָהּ

After the introductory declarations of praise, the main theme of the psalm, namely, thanksgiving to God for the deliverance He wrought, begins here. From the context (verse 10), it appears that the psalmist is referring to a rescue from a difficult military or political situation. From the straits I called to the Lord. When I began my prayer, I felt as though I were in a narrow, constricted space, as if the boundaries of my life were closing in on me. But then the Lord answered me with a wide expanse. He answered my prayers not with words but with action, placing me in a situation that alleviated my sense of distress and confinement.

ה' לִי לֹא אִירָא מַה יַּעֲשֶׂה לִי אָדָם

The Lord is with me; I shall not fear. What can man do to me if God is with me?

ה' לִי בְּעֹזְרָי וַאֲנִי אֶרְאֶה בְשׂנְאָי

The Lord is with me, with those who help me; I will gaze upon the downfall of my enemies.

טוֹב לַחֲסוֹת בַּה' מבְטֹחַ בָּאָדָם

It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in man, both because of His superior power and, as is pointed out so frequently in Psalms, His unsurpassed trustworthiness.

טוֹב לַחֲסוֹת בַּה' מבְטֹחַ בִּנְדִיבִים

It is better to take refuge in the Lord than to trust in nobles.

כָּל גּוֹיִם סְבָבוּנִי בְּשֵׁם ה' כִּי אֲמִילַם

All the nations surrounded me. The psalmist depicts his desperation in the face of a military attack by his enemies, who were closing in from all sides. But, he declares: It is in the name of the Lord that I put my trust, and it is because of this that I am able to cut them down.

סַבּוּנִי גַם סְבָבוּנִי בְּשֵׁם ה' כִּי אֲמִילַם

They, those enemies, swarmed around me, indeed they surrounded me; it is in the name of the Lord that I cut them down.

סַבּוּנִי כִדְבוֹרִים דֹּעֲכוּ כאֵשׁ קוֹצִים בְּשֵׁם ה' כִּי אֲמִילַם

They swarmed around me like bees that attack one who approaches their hive, swarming around him, seeking to sting him and drive him away. They flickered and faded like fire amid thorns. The psalmist now depicts his enemies as a raging fire; but their conflagration is in fact nothing but a fire among thorns, which begins with a huge flame but very quickly dissipates. It is in the name of the Lord that I cut them down.

דָּחֹה דְחִיתַנִי לִנְפֹּל וה' עֲזָרָנִי

The psalmist now addresses his enemies: You pushed me hard to make me fall, but the Lord helped me to prevent this from happening.

עָזִּי וְזִמְרָת יָהּ וַיְהִי לִי לִישׁוּעָה

The Lord is my strength and song, and He has become my salvation. All my strength is derived from God, and therefore God is the object of all my songs of praise.

קוֹל רִנָּה וִישׁוּעָה בְּאָהֳלֵי צַדִּיקִים יְמִין ה'עֹשָׂה חָיִל

After God delivers me from my enemies, a voice of song and deliverance is heard among the tents of the righteous, who praise Him for His salvation, saying: The right hand of the Lord brings success. The “right hand” of God is a poetic symbol of power, as the right hand is generally the stronger one.

יְמִין ה' רוֹמֵמָה יְמִין ה' עֹשָׂה חָיִל

The right hand of the Lord is exalted; the right hand of the Lord brings success.

לֹא אָמוּת כִּי אֶחְיֶה ואֲסַפֵּר מַעֲשֵׂי יָהּ

The psalmist now offers words of prayer: May I not die but live, so I may tell the deeds of the Lord. This is one of many verses in the Bible that reflect the idea that if a person survives mortal danger, it is incumbent on him to make his story known to others and acknowledge God’s hand in his survival, thanking God publicly.

יַסֹּר יִסְּרַנִּי יָּהּ וְלַמָּוֶת לֹא נְתָנָנִי

The Lord chastised me severely during those periods of peril and distress, but He did not deliver me to death.

פִּתְחוּ לִי שַׁעֲרֵי צֶדֶק אָבֹא בָם אוֹדֶה יָהּ

Because of God’s salvation in protecting me from death, I must recount His deeds and thank Him, and so I declare: Open for me the gates of righteousness, apparently a reference to the gates of the Temple, where the psalmist goes to offer his thanks in public. I will enter through them; I will give thanks to the Lord.

זֶה הַשַּׁעַר לַה' צַדִּיקִים יָבֹאוּ בוֹ

This is the gate to the Lord; the vindicated, those who were found by God to be deserving, and were granted victory by Him, will enter through it to praise God.

אוֹדְךָ כִּי עֲנִיתָנִי וַתְּהִי לִי לִישׁוּעָה

I will give thanks to You, for You answered me and my prayers; You have been my salvation.

אֶבֶן מָאֲסוּ הַבּוֹנִים הָיְתָה לְרֹאשׁ פִּנָּה

The stone that the builders rejected, considering it of inferior quality or appearance, subsequently became the cornerstone, the most structurally essential and most visible part of the building. This metaphor is intended to express the idea that sometimes a person’s perspective can change upon pondering past events. Things or people that may have at first seemed insignificant may turn out to be the key to one’s deliverance.

מֵאֵת ה' הָיְתָה זֹּאת הִיא נִפְלָאת בְּעֵינֵינוּ

Concerning such reversals of import and significance, it may be said: This was from the Lord. When seemingly decisive or critical events turn out to be inconsequential, or vice versa, it is God’s doing. It is wondrous, remarkable and surprising, in our eyes.

זֶה הַיּוֹם עָשָׂה ה'נָגִילָה וְנִשְׂמְחָה בוֹ

This day of deliverance is the day of the Lord’s doing; we rejoice and exult in Him.

אָנָּא ה' הוֹשִׁיעָה נָּא אָנָּא ה' הַצְלִיחָה נָּא

The first part of this verse is a prayer offered during a time of distress: Lord, save us, we beseech You! It is followed by words that are said after the danger has passed: Lord, grant us success, we beseech You!

בָּרוּךְ הַבָּא בְּשֵׁם ה' בֵּרַכְנוּכֶם מִבֵּית ה'

The preceding verse marks the end of the prayer of the person who, having been saved from peril, comes to the Temple to offer his thanks. At this point, the priests or others within the Temple offer their response: Blessed be the one who comes in the name of the Lord; we bless you from the House of the Lord.

אֵל ה' וַיָּאֶר לָנוּ אִסְרוּ חַג בַּעֲבֹתִים עַד קַרְנוֹת הַמִּזְבֵּחַ

Both parties continue: The Lord is God; He has given us light by delivering us from distress and darkness into bright salvation. Bind the festival offering with cords, in order to prevent it from running free and creating havoc, and from there to the horns of the altar.

אֵלִי אַתָּה וְאוֹדֶךָּ אֱלֹהַי אֲרוֹמְמֶךָּ

The psalmist restates his gratitude to God: You are my Almighty, and I will give thanks to You. My God, I will exalt You.

הוֹדוּ לַה' כִּי טוֹב כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ

The psalm ends with a repetition of the praise of the first verse: Give thanks to the Lord, for He is good, for His kindness is forever.