TORAH
FIVE BOOKS OF MOSES
NEVI'IM
PROPHETS
KETUVIM
WRITINGS

Chapter 108

Listen to this chapter in Hebrew:

1A song. A psalm of David.

אשִׁיר מִזְמוֹר לְדָוִד׃

2My heart is firm, O Hashem; I will sing and chant a hymn with all my soul.

בנָכוֹן לִבִּי אֱלֹהִים אָשִׁירָה וַאֲזַמְּרָה אַף־כְּבוֹדִי׃

3Awake, O harp and lyre! I will wake the dawn.

געוּרָה הַנֵּבֶל וְכִנּוֹר אָעִירָה שָּׁחַר׃

4I will praise You among the peoples, Hashem, sing a hymn to You among the nations;

דאוֹדְךָ בָעַמִּים יְהֹוָה וַאֲזַמֶּרְךָ בַּל־אֻמִּים׃

5for Your faithfulness is higher than the heavens; Your steadfastness reaches to the sky.

הכִּי־גָדוֹל מֵעַל־שָׁמַיִם חַסְדֶּךָ וְעַד־שְׁחָקִים אֲמִתֶּךָ׃

6Exalt Yourself over the heavens, O Hashem; let Your glory be over all the earth!

ורוּמָה עַל־שָׁמַיִם אֱלֹהִים וְעַל כָּל־הָאָרֶץ כְּבוֹדֶךָ׃

7That those whom You love may be rescued, deliver with Your right hand and answer me.

זלְמַעַן יֵחָלְצוּן יְדִידֶיךָ הוֹשִׁיעָה יְמִינְךָ וַעֲנֵנִי׃

8Hashem promised in His sanctuary that I would exultingly divide up Shechem, and measure the Valley of Sukkoth;

חאֱלֹהִים דִּבֶּר בְּקָדְשׁוֹ אֶעְלֹזָה אֲחַלְּקָה שְׁכֶם וְעֵמֶק סֻכּוֹת אֲמַדֵּד׃

9Gilad and Menashe would be mine, Efraim my chief stronghold, Yehuda my scepter;

LEE gil-AD LEE m'-na-SHEH v'-ef-RA-yim ma-OZ ro-SHEE y'-hu-DAH m'-kho-k'-KEE

טלִי גִלְעָד לִי מְנַשֶּׁה וְאֶפְרַיִם מָעוֹז רֹאשִׁי יְהוּדָה מְחֹקְקִי׃

108:9   Gilad and Menashe would be mine

Gilad mountains

In a moment of confidence, David rejoices at the great promise Hashem made to His people, to give them each a share in the Promised Land. He remarks “Gilad and Menashe would be mine,” and speaks of controlling Ephraim, Yehuda, Moab and the land of the Philistines. He intends to fulfill the biblical command to conquer all the lands occupied by other kingdoms but bequeathed to Israel, or at one point conquered by Israel. Gilad is a mountainous strip of land on the eastern bank of the Jordan River which was conquered by Israel on their journey from Egypt to Canaan. After conquering the land of Sihon and Og, Moshe bequeathed it to the tribes of Reuven and Gad and to half the tribe of Menashe. Yiftach the judge came from this region, King Shaul defended the area from the kingdom of Ammon, and Shlomo also included this area in his kingdom. Once the Israelite kingdom split, however, this land was conquered by Aram.

10Moab would be my washbasin; on Edom I would cast my shoe; I would raise a shout over Philistia.

ימוֹאָב סִיר רַחְצִי עַל־אֱדוֹם אַשְׁלִיךְ נַעֲלִי עֲלֵי־פְלֶשֶׁת אֶתְרוֹעָע׃

11Would that I were brought to the bastion! Would that I were led to Edom!

יאמִי יֹבִלֵנִי עִיר מִבְצָר מִי נָחַנִי עַד־אֱדוֹם׃

12But You have rejected us, O Hashem; Hashem, You do not march with our armies.

יבהֲלֹא־אֱלֹהִים זְנַחְתָּנוּ וְלֹא־תֵצֵא אֱלֹהִים בְּצִבְאֹתֵינוּ׃

13Grant us Your aid against the foe, for the help of man is worthless.

יגהָבָה־לָּנוּ עֶזְרָת מִצָּר וְשָׁוְא תְּשׁוּעַת אָדָם׃

14With Hashem we shall triumph; He will trample our foes.

ידבֵּאלֹהִים נַעֲשֶׂה־חָיִל וְהוּא יָבוּס צָרֵינוּ׃