Midot Hayom 5770 Day 46: Netzach in Malchut

The most praiseworthy King was David. The most praiseworthy prophet was Moses . . . Whatever Moses did, David did. Moses took Israel out of Egypt, David took Israel out of the subjugation of the kingdoms [which menaced Israel at that

time; also an allusion to Messiah son of David, who will deliver Israel from persecution and exile]; Moses waged war, and David waged war; Moses was king of Israel and Judah, and David was king of Israel and Judah; Moses split the sea for Israel, and David split the rivers for Israel [i.e., the kingdom of Aram Naharaim – “Aram between the two rivers”]; Moses erected an altar, and David erected an altar; [Moses] sacrificed, and [David] sacrificed; Moses gave Israel the Five Books of Torah, and David gave Israel the five books which constitute Psalms (Shocher Tov 1:2).

The staff that was in Moses’ hand was [also] in David’s hand, as it is written, “He took his staff in his hand (I Samuel 17:40), and it was in the hand of every King until the Holy Temple was Destroyed (Yelamdeinu Chukat, ed. Greenhut, Likutim 4).

David agonized over building the Holy Temple. The prophet Nathan said to him, “If the thought had not arisen before the holy one, blessed is he, that you should build him a temple, [the thought] would not have occurred to you either. Although your son Solomon will build it, it will be considered as if you did.” Indeed, David was worthy of building it, but the prophet Nathan came and said, “You have shed much blood” (I Chronicles 22:8). Upon hearing this David exclaimed in alarm, “I have been disqualified from building the temple!” The holy one, blessed is he, said to him, “Fear not, David! By your life, all the blood that you shed was like [that of] a deer and a hart before me.” “If so,” David asked, “why am I not to build the temple?” The Holy One, Blessed is He, replied, “Were you to build it, it would endure and never be destroyed.” “wouldn’t that be a good thing?” asked David. The Holy One, Blessed is He, said to him “It is clearly revealed to me that Israel will sin. [Instead of destroying them,] I will vent my wrath on [the temple] and destroy it, and Israel will be spared” (Shocher Tov 62:4).

David’s greatness is that he composed songs of praise that raised him to sublime heights where Divine Inspiration came to rest upon him. He achieved this exalted spiritual level only at the end of his life, when he had reached extraordinary perfection (Zohar 3:285a).

It is clear from all the comparisons to Moshe, the man of Netzach, that David’s Malchut shared the sense of Netzach, which is why God said, “Were you to build it, it would endure and never be destroyed.” David was so connected to Hashem, the King, that his Malchut actions would be for eternity, or Netzach.

Which is greater? Was it that King David composed some Psalms with Divine Inspiration, or that he was able to compose songs of praise that were able to raise him to Divine Inspiration?

I believe that the achievement was his ability to compose songs that were able to lift him to such sublime levels. His sense of God’s Malchut was so powerful that he was able to express it in such a powerful manner that the expression would lift him to a sense of Netzach, Divine Inspiration, so that he could then compose more Psalms.

When we approach Malchut, we will find that we possess the tools to express our insights, awareness of, and love for, God, in a manner that reflects Netzach, the eternal life that exists above our daily lives.
Tools:

1. Share your insights into Hashem as King with others.
2. Use your own insights, and all the ideas you have learned about God as part of all the praises you sing in the Siddur.
3. Sing your favorite song(s) of praise to Hashem for at least 15 minutes, in intense concentration and without distraction.