Tehilim Perek 119: Letter Gimmel

Hello everybody, In today’s NachDaily will be discussing the letter Gimmel. I’m Rabbi Shaya Sussman, covering the entire TANACH one perek at a time.

Lets jump write in.

The word Gimmel actually means “Gomel to give, to bestow or wean off of ”. Like the passuk says by Ahrons staff “vayigmal shkedim and it grew almonds.” We also find when Sorah finished nursing Yitzchak it says “vayigdal haleled vayigamal the boy grew up and he was weaned. Meaning he finished nursing.

Because it's through the letter gimmel Hashem is gommel to us and sustains us from on high. This is no small feet. Thats why the first time the letter gimmel appears in the Torah is in the passuk “vayas Elokim es shnei hamiros haGedolim Hashem made two BIG luminaries in the sky.” this is referring to the sun and moon.

So we see the letter first time the letter gimmel appears in the in the word gedolim big. Because it's a big deal that Hashem is constantly nourishing the world.

The Gemerah in Shabbos 104A explains the reason why gimmel is placed next to the letter daled is because one is supposed to be gomel to dalim give to poor impoverished people

The shape of the letter gimmel looks like a person with two legs. The lower left leg is pointing forward as if its giving to the daled. The daled only has one leg to stand which again represents its weakness and its need for chessed from the gimmel.

In the sequence of letters beis, gimmel, daled. The bais is the bayis house. Its as if the gimmel is leaving the doors of the house and running towards to daled to do chessed. In other words aleph, beis, gimmel and daled meaning aleph/Hashem created the world to be a bais/house for the gimmel to give to the daled. For people or Hashem Himself to bestow kindness on the poor impoverished people/creation.

Similarly, the medrish osiyos D’Rebbe Akiva explains the word Gimmel; gimmel, yud, mem, lamed is a acronym for Gemalti Yachad Michassodim ldaleim I give chessed to the poor impoverished world.

Alternatively, the reason why the letter gimmel looks like its a person running is to teach us, It's not enough to sit in your house, the will of Hashem is for person to run to do chessed.

Certainly a person who’s able to give chessed is true gibbur has strength. Because the gimmel points towards a persons high levels. Which is also why its shaped like a person standing. Because true gevurah comes from spiritual greatness rooted in God.

This is what we say in shmoneh esrei, gommel chassadim. The word chessed is a compound word of chas-daled to have mercy on the poor. To teach true greatness is to be gomel chessed to the daled. Again we see how the letter gimmel gives to the daled.

Another example of gimmel pointing towards elevation. Is in the word gag roof. Which is spelled gimmel gimmel. It should be noted any time in hebrew when a word is doubled it means the same process is happening again and again. As in the word galgal wheal because first it rolls than it rolls again. Because the letter gimmel points to giving in a high elevated way the word gag roof is gimmel gimmel.

Gimmel has the numerical value of 3. If aleph 1 represents God, beis 2 represent duality and multiplicity, the number 3 represents the ability to join together two seemingly opposite forces into one cohesive bundle/unit. As the pasuk says a “chut hameshulosh lo bimhera yinatek a 3 stranded string won't easily unwind.” Again the number 3 has a unifying capability.

Just end to kabbalisticly, 3 represents the 3rd sefira of Bina intuition. The first two are Keter and chochma. So in the process of keter, chochma and bina. The bina is what helps in a sense bring together the keter and chochma to help pass it along in the next set of sefiras. So we see again the number 3 has the ability unify opposing forces to create harmony and peace...