Welcome to the worldwide "Spread the Psalms" effort. It's thousands of years old but very new. In fact, every time you recite a psalm, you are spreading renewed holiness in the world.
The purpose of this website is to help you understand the meaning of psalms and to experience the timeless, miraculous, healing psalms in your life.
An explanation:
"Hashem" is the word referring to God's infinite name according to Jewish tradition.
It means "the name" in Hebrew.
"Tehillim" is the Hebrew word for Psalms - it means "Praises." In the English Bible, Tehillim is known as Psalms.
A MIRACLE IN
A BOOK
Story after story
is told of a soldier
who survives a
deadly military battle only to later find that a bullet or piece of shrapnel has miraculously lodged in the Tehillim
Psalm 106
הַלְלוּ-יָהּ:
הוֹדוּ לַיהוָה כִּי-טוֹב-- כִּי לְעוֹלָם חַסְדּוֹ.
"Give thanks to Hashem
for His kindness is everlasting.."
We are surrounded by electromagnetic radiation, by all objects that have a temperature above absolute zero (-273 degrees)....(continue)
Psalm 61:5
אָגוּרָה בְאָהָלְךָ, עוֹלָמִים; אֶחֱסֶה בְסֵתֶר כְּנָפֶיךָ סֶּלָה.
"I will dwell in Your tent forever, I will take refuge in the shelter of Your wings..."
בּס״ד (with help
from above)
Psalm 89:3
עוֹלָם, חֶסֶד יִבָּנֶה; שָׁמַיִם, תָּכִן אֱמוּנָתְךָ בָהֶם.
"A world which manifests Your lovingkindness You did build..."
Psalm 67
"May God
favor us and bless us, may He cause His countenance to shine among us..."
Psalm 106
"Give thanks to Hashem
for His kindness is everlasting..."
Within the subatomic structure solid mass makes up less than 1 percent of an atom's size.
Psalm 31:4
כִּי-סַלְעִי וּמְצוּדָתִי אָתָּה
"For You are
my rock and my fortress, lead me and direct me for the sake of Your Name..."
Psalm 31:4
"For You are my rock and my fortress..."
"ki sali um tsudasi ata ulma-an shimcha tancheyni usnahaleyni"
During these uncertain times, we are reminded that Hashem is our rock and fortress.
What does it mean to be a rock and a fortress?
A rock does not change with the passing breeze like the wind or the water. It has been with us through the ages.
Yet stones placed together form a fortress. There is protection. There is more strength than each has alone.
If we apply this to our lives, being placed together doesn't mean we must be exactly the same as our neighbor and worship in exactly the same way - for rocks are each unique, but it is important not to struggle against eachother, we are asked to hold eachother up and respect eachother's strengths and weaknesses.
When we have faith in the unchanging lovingkindness of the One who created and sustains the world and when we support and hold eachother up, we come to experience that Hashem is indeed our rock and our fortress, timeless through the ages, sheilding us from the dangers of uncertain times.
Psalm 150:3
הַלְלוּהוּ, בְּתֵקַע שׁוֹפָר; הַלְלוּהוּ, בְּנֵבֶל וְכִנּוֹר
"Praise God! Praise Him
with blowing of the shofar. Praise Him
with lyre and harp. Praise Him with drumming and dancing...
Psalm 22:2
"Oh God, Oh God, Why have You forsaken me?
Why are You so far from saving me?.."
"Eli, Eli, lama azav tani?..."
It is told that King David wrote this Psalm in foreknowledge of the time of Esther.
One could imagine the time before the miracle. When an order from the king was made to kill every Jewish man, women and child in all 127 provinces of the Persian empire. The forces in the world of material existence were insurmountable. So the Jews reached beyond.They prayed - loudly and softly, in groups and solely, wearing sack cloths and fasting, people of all backgrounds and ages bounded together in their pureness of faith and prayed.
And when the edict was revoked, the holocaust averted, then one could see the miracle that had taken place over many years. Only if all the dots were connected could one see the miracle in everyday events and realize that just like Esther the seemingly ordinary events of our lives are not ordinary after all.
When looked at from a distance, over time, the events of our lives may have a purpose that often is not apparent to us while we are in the midst of hardship.
Psalm 81
"Sing joyously to
Hashem, our strength,
shout for joy to the
God of Jacob. Take
up the hymn, sound the drum, the pleasant harp and the lute. Blow the shofar ..."
Psalm 118:19
"Open for me the
gates of righteousness
I will enter them and give thanks to Hashem..."
"Pitchu li sha'are tzedek..."
Psalm 118:19
"Open for me the Gates of Righteousness!
I will enter and thank Hashem..."
"Pitchu Li Shaare Tzedek.."
"Pitchu Li..." "Open for me.." is not a command but a statement of fact. The Gates are open for me that I may walk through them. They are not fences, walls or bars. They are gates. Unlocked, ready, welcoming .. now it is up to me to walk through them.
How do I walk through them? By giving thanks to Hashem. Even when things are not going the way I would like. Even when it seems the world's forces are waged against me. The Psalmist reveals that the gates of tsedek, of righteousness, are open to me. "I will enter and thank Hashem" - for the blessings that I wished for and for those I would rather have avoided at the time. All are part of Hashem's beautiful and complex symphony of life.
Psalm 20:10
יְהוָה הוֹשִׁיעָה: הַמֶּלֶךְ, יַעֲנֵנוּ בְיוֹם-קָרְאֵנוּ
"May Hashem
answer you
on your day of distress..."
"May Hashem answer you on your day of distress.
May you be made impregnable by the name of the God of Jacob.
May He dispatch your help from the Sanctuary, and from Zion support you..."
In Hebrew the phrase "May Hashem answer you" can be translated as: "a'anancha" (You answer ) Hashem" - this reveals that it can be read as a statement of something that presently is. "You answer Hashem." For it is as if we have called, He has answered. He is just waiting for us to hear it. There is no waiting. He has already answered our prayers.
The Psalm states that the Sanctuary will be where the help will be dispatched from and Zion as the place from where the support will come.
The Sanctuary refers to the Holy of Holies inside the Temple in Jerusalem. (artscroll commentary) This is the special place where Hashem's divine presence (shechina) rests. Our help will be dispatched from the holiest place in the world.
If each of us can be likened to the Temple in Jerusalem, there too is a special place within us that Hashem's divine presence dwells, a spark of holiness. We can know that Hashem's answers to our prayers of help are not some far away abstract concept. They are close at hand and already here.
Psalm 22:2
"Oh God Oh God.
Why have You forsaken me? Why are you so far from saving me?..."
It is told that King David wrote this Psalm in foreknowledge of the time of Esther...
Psalm 30
"A Psalm,a song for
the inauguration of
the Temple by David. I will exalt you Hashem for You have brought me up ..."
Psalm 1
אַשְׁרֵי הָאִישׁ-- אֲשֶׁר לֹא הָלַךְ, בַּעֲצַת רְשָׁעִים
"Happy is the man
who does not walk in the counsel of bad..."
Psalm 102:26
"In the beginning
You laid the foundations of the earth, and the work of Your hands are the heavens..."
Psalm 3
יְהוָה, מָה-רַבּוּ צָרָי; רַבִּים, קָמִים עָלָי.
"How numerous are my tormentors! The great rise up against me. "
Psalm 4
"...I will lie down and
sleep in peace and in harmony, for it is only You Hashem, who enables me to dwell securely."
Psalm 5:8
"And I, through
the abundance of Your kindness will I enter
Your house..."
He was called upon to curse... (continue)
Psalm 2
"Why do
nations throng and regimes talk in vain? Take their stands do the kings of the earth and princes conspire together?..."
Psalm 69:17
"Answer me, Hashem, for Your kindness is good; turn to me in accordance with Your great mercies. Do not hide Your Face from Your servant..."
Tehillim 119
Tav
תִּקְרַב רִנָּתִי לְפָנֶיךָ יְהוָה; כִּדְבָרְךָ הֲבִינֵנִי
"May my prayerful song approach before Your presence Hashem ..."
The final portion of Psalm 119 begins with a simple plea. The psalmist continues "In accordance with Your word You grant me understanding."
With prayerful songs of gratitude and understanding gleaned from the words of the Torah we approach the Creator of the universe..
(For complete text click here)
תְּהִלִּים מקוון
.Psalm 20 - A Psalm of Healing
20 תְּהִלִּים
א לַמְנַצֵּחַ, מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד.
1 For the Leader. A Psalm of David.
ב יַעַנְךָ יְהוָה, בְּיוֹם צָרָה; יְשַׂגֶּבְךָ, שֵׁם אֱלֹהֵי יַעֲקֹב. 2
2. May Hashem answer you on the day of trouble; May you be fortified strongly by the Name of the God of Jacob.
ג יִשְׁלַח-עֶזְרְךָ מִקֹּדֶשׁ; וּמִצִּיּוֹן, יִסְעָדֶךָּ.
3. May He send help from the Sanctuary, and may He support you from Zion;
ד יִזְכֹּר כָּל-מִנְחֹתֶךָ; וְעוֹלָתְךָ יְדַשְּׁנֶה סֶלָה.
4. May He remember all your meal offerings and may He favorably accept your burnt sacrifices; Selah
ה יִתֶּן-לְךָ כִלְבָבֶךָ; וְכָל-עֲצָתְךָ יְמַלֵּא.
5. May He grant you your heart's desire and may He validate your advice.
ו נְרַנְּנָה, בִּישׁוּעָתֶךָ-- וּבְשֵׁם-אֱלֹהֵינוּ נִדְגֹּל;
יְמַלֵּא יְהוָה, כָּל-מִשְׁאֲלוֹתֶיךָ.
6. May we sing for joy at Your salvation and raise our banner in the Name of our God. May Hashem fulfill all your requests.
ז עַתָּה יָדַעְתִּי-- כִּי הוֹשִׁיעַ יְהוָה, מְשִׁיחוֹ:
יַעֲנֵהוּ, מִשְּׁמֵי קָדְשׁוֹ-- בִּגְבֻרוֹת, יֵשַׁע יְמִינוֹ.
7 Now know that Hashem saved His anointed;
He will answer him from His holy heaven with the mighty acts of His saving right hand.
ח אֵלֶּה בָרֶכֶב, וְאֵלֶּה בַסּוּסִים;
וַאֲנַחְנוּ, בְּשֵׁם-יְהוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ נַזְכִּיר.
8 Some trust in chariots, and some in horses;
but we will call out the name of Hashem our God.
ט הֵמָּה, כָּרְעוּ וְנָפָלוּ; וַאֲנַחְנוּ קַּמְנוּ, וַנִּתְעוֹדָד.
9 They are bowed down and fallen; but we are risen, and stand upright.
י יְהוָה הוֹשִׁיעָה: הַמֶּלֶךְ, יַעֲנֵנוּ בְיוֹם-קָרְאֵנוּ.
10. Hashem save us! May the King answer us on the day when we call.
Psalm 30:12
"You have transformed my sorrow into dancing!"
הָפַכְתָּ מִסְפְּדִי, לְמָחוֹל לִי:
Psalm 145 "...Hashem is good to all. His compassion shelters all His creatures..."
Insights have been compiled on the following Psalms thus far: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 19, 20, 22, 30,31, 34, 37, 52, 56, 61, 67,69, 81, 84, 89, 102, 106,118, 119 121, 150, scroll down for more info.
