הַלְלוּיָהּ הַלְלוּ אֶת שֵׁם ה' הַלְלוּ עַבְדֵי ה'

Halleluya. Praise the name of the Lord. Praise Him, servants of the Lord,

שֶׁעֹמְדִים בְּבֵית ה' בְּחַצְרוֹת בֵּית אֱלֹהֵינוּ

who stand in the House of the Lord, in the courts of the House of our God. This verse could refer to the Levites who, as choristers in the Temple, sang these psalms. Or it could refer both to Levites and to other God-fearing people who join in their singing.

הַלְלוּיָהּ כִּי טוֹב ה' זַמְּרוּ לִשְׁמוֹ כִּי נָעִים

Praise the Lord, for the Lord is good. Sing praises to His name, for He is pleasant.

כִּי יַעֲקֹב בָּחַר לוֹ יָהּ יִשְׂרָאֵל לִסְגֻלָּתוֹ

For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself, Israel as His treasured possession, His chosen people.

כִּי אֲנִי יָדַעְתִּי כִּי גָדוֹל ה' וַאֲדֹנֵינוּ מִכָּל אֱלֹהִים

For I know the Lord is great, and that our Master is above all gods.

כֹּל אֲשֶׁר חָפֵץ ה' עָשָׂה בַּשָּׁמַיִם וּבָאָרֶץ בַּיַּמִּים וְכָל תְּהֹמוֹת

Whatever the Lord desires to do, He does, for He rules over all aspects of creation: In the heavens and on the earth, in the seas and all the depths.

מַעֲלֶה נְשִׂאִים מִקְצֵה הָאָרֶץ בְּרָקִים למָּטָר עָשָׂה מוֹצֵא רוּחַ מֵאוֹצְרוֹתָיו

He makes clouds ascend from the ends of the earth; He makes lightning for the rain.Lightning and thunder often herald rain. He brings out winds from His vaults. In the imagery of this verse, the winds of the world are stored in a special repository and are taken out and released by God.

שֶׁהִכָּה בְּכוֹרֵי מִצְרָיִם מֵאָדָם עַד בְּהֵמָה

The psalmist turns from God’s greatness in the world to His greatness in history: He smote the firstborn of Egypt, from man to beast, during the last and most severe of the ten plagues brought upon Egypt, as related in the book of Exodus.

שָׁלַח אוֹתֹת וּמֹפְתִים בְּתוֹכֵכִי מִצְרָיִם בְּפַרְעֹה וּבְכָל עֲבָדָיו

The smiting of the firstborn marked the end and summation of the period when He sent signs and wonders into the midst of Egypt, among Pharaoh and among all his servants.

שֶׁהִכָּה גּוֹיִם רַבִּים וְהָרַג מְלָכִים עֲצוּמִים

He struck down many nations and slew mighty kings. This verse refers to the wars waged by the children of Israel when they came to the Land of Israel.

לְסִיחוֹן מֶלֶךְ הָאֱמֹרִי וּלְעוֹג מֶלֶךְ הַבָּשָׁן וּלְכֹל מַמְלְכוֹת כְּנָעַן

The psalmist cites some illustrious examples of these “mighty kings”: Sihon king of the Emorites, Og king of Bashan, and all the kingdoms of Canaan. A host of Canaanite kings were defeated over the course of several years of conquest. The two kings specifically mentioned here, Sihon and Og, controlled more extensive territories than did the other Canaanite kings.

וְנָתַן אַרְצָם נַחֲלָה נַחֲלָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל עַמּוֹ

And He gave their lands as a portion, a portion to Israel, His people.

ה' שִׁמְךָ לְעוֹלָם ה' זִכְרְךָ לְדֹר וָדֹר

The following verses offer words of praise and gratitude to God: Lord, Your name is eternal; Your remembrance, Lord, for all generations.

כִּי יָדִין ה' עַמּוֹ וְעַל עֲבָדָיו יִתְנֶחָם

For the Lord will judge His people and will take pity on His servants. When God juxtaposes the people of Israel, His servants, to other nations of the world, what is most apparent, and what stands in their favor, is their closeness to Him.

עֲצַבֵּי הַגּוֹיִם כֶּסֶף וְזָהָב מַעֲשֵׂה יְדֵי אָדָם

The idols of the nations are silver and gold, the work of man’s hands. As the next verses demonstrate, these idols are devoid of life.

פֶּה לָהֶם וְלֹא יְדַבֵּרוּ; עֵינַיִם לָהֶם וְלֹא יִרְאוּ;

Mouths they have but cannot speak. Eyes they have but cannot see.

אָזְנַיִם לָהֶם וְלֹא יַאֲזִינוּ; אַף אֵין יֶשׁ רוּחַ בְּפִיהֶם

Ears they have, yet they do not hear; nor is there any breath in their mouths. They are nothing but lifeless dolls.

כְּמוֹהֶם יִהְיוּ עֹשֵׂיהֶם כֹּל אֲשֶׁר בֹּטֵחַ בָּהֶם

The psalmist’s reaction to these facts combines mockery with imprecation: May their makers become like them, as lifeless as the idols themselves. So too all who trust in them.

בֵּית יִשְׂרָאֵל בָּרְכוּ אֶת ה'; בֵּית אַהֲרֹן בָּרְכוּ אֶת ה';

In contrast to the other nations and their idols, house of Israel, bless the Lord; house of Aaron, the priests, bless the Lord.

בֵּית הַלֵּוִי בָּרְכוּ אֶת ה'; יִרְאֵי ה' בָּרְכוּ אֶת ה'

House of Levi, bless the Lord; you who fear the Lord, probably referring to those who worship God and who, unlike the priests and Levites, have no specific or designated role in the Temple service, bless the Lord.

בָּרוּךְ ה' מִצִּיּוֹן שֹׁכֵן יְרוּשָׁלִָם הַלְלוּיָהּ

All say, in unison: Blessed be the Lord from Zion, He who dwells in Jerusalem. Halleluya.