Tehilim Perek 146

Hello everybody, in today’s NachDaily we’ll be discussing Tehilim chapter 146. We say this perek every morning as part of the Pesukei D’zimra, Chapters of Song.

The Gemarah in Pessachim 117A explains that halleiluyhu means halleluhu b’hillulim harbeh, praise Hashem with many praises. The Gemara elucidates that since the Tehilim were said in conjunction with the 10 types of music, halleiluyah incorporates all the ten types.

The previous perek praised Hashem for all the goodness that He does for the world in a general sense. This perek commands each of us to give thanks in a very specific and detailed way about the particular types of good that we receive. It also speaks about the advantages of someone who has proper Emunah, faith in God. It’s in God’s hand to lift or raise up whomever He pleases.

Verse 2 says:

אֲהַלְלָ֣ה יְהוָ֣ה בְּחַיָּ֑י אֲזַמְּרָ֖ה לֵֽאלֹהַ֣י בְּעוֹדִֽי׃

I will praise God all my life, sing songs to my God while I exist.

This is Rebbe Nachman’s most famous Torah teaching. He explains in Lekutey Maharan, Lesson 282, that we all have within ourselves a nekudah tovah, good point, which is completely free of ulterior motives. If we look at ourselves and only find flaws, or look at our mitzvos and find that they aren’t pure, we must sift through, search, and find a nekdah tova, good point within ourselves or our mitzvos.

Through judging yourself favorably and collecting your good points, you begin to become alive and sing to Hashem. The clarification process of sifting through your good points, separating the good from the bad, is like making music, sifting through the notes, clarifying each step of the way, setting aside the “good” notes from the “bad” notes.

One by one, we look to find that little bit of good we still have inside of us. We need to celebrate it. We need to polish our mitzvos and let them shine, not take them for granted.

Our passuk says: “Azam’ra l’Elokai b’odi, I will sing to Hashem as long as I exist.” I will sing to Him with every bit of good I still have. I will collect my nekudos tovos, good points, and this will cause me to sing to Him.

May we merit judging ourselves favorably, reveling in our nekudos tovos and singing to Hashem with our od ma’at tov, connecting to our essential goodness and wholesomeness, the Divine piece in ourselves.

Thank you for listening and have a wonderful day.