English Basic Explanation - Chapter 105

Chapter 105

The first fifteen verses of this chapter are virtually identical to the song of praise David composed for the occasion of the bringing of the Aron (ark) to Jerusalem, as recorded in the Book of Divre Hayamim I (chapter 16).  Accordingly, a number of commentators claimed that this Psalm is simply a more elaborate version of the song David had composed for that occasion.

The ark had been largely ignored ever since the fall of Shilo – where the Mishkan had been situated – at the hands of Philistines many years earlier.  After successfully defeating Israel's enemies, bringing security to the country's borders, and capturing the city of Jerusalem, David decided it was time to bring the Aron to the chosen city, to what would eventually become the site of the Bet Ha'mikdash.  This was a particularly joyous and festive event, in honor of which David composed this special song of praise and ordered the Levi'im to sing it as the Aron was brought to its place.

The ark is commonly referred to the "Aron Ha'berit" – "the Ark of the Covenant" – as it serves as the symbol of the covenant between God and Am Yisrael.  Appropriately, this song focuses on God's loyal fulfillment of the covenant He made with the patriarchs, His promise to produce a great nation from their descendants that would inhabit the Land of Israel.  David here recalls the nation's very humble beginnings, how we were few in number and were forced to wander from place to place, ultimately becoming enslaved to Egypt.  This Psalm poetically tells the story of the Egyptian bondage and the ten plagues which led to our nation's eventual freedom.  David proceeds to tell also of the miraculous sustenance God provided for Bene Yisrael in the wilderness, and, finally, of the successful conquest of their ancestral homeland.

This Psalm's final verse reminds us that God brought us into the land for the purpose of observing the laws of the Torah.  David, who effectively completed the process of "Kibush Ha'aretz" (conquest of the land) by securing Israel's borders, made a point of publicly bringing the Aron to his new capital – Jerusalem – to demonstrate that this process revolved around the Aron – the covenant between us and the Almighty.  The long, complex history of Am Yisrael, which began with the trials and tribulations confronted by Avraham Yishak and Yaakov, was for the purpose of Bene Yisrael's establishment of a nation in their land where their would loyally serve God by observing the Torah.  In this song David seeks to remind the people of the underlying purpose behind their capture and settlement of the land, and the need to make the Aron – the Torah – the focal point of the country's existence.