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Psalm 27: Nepotism



“God is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?” This is related to the verse in Isaiah (50:8): “My Champion is near; whoever would contend with me, let us stand together; whoever is my adversary, let him approach me.” Rabbi Acha taught in the name of Rabbi Shemaiah, “The nations of the world desire to attack Israel and say ‘The Holy One, Blessed is He, despises them, therefore they are vulnerable.’ Israel responds and says, ‘Fools! Would you want to face someone in court in front of a judge who is his family? God is our family, our Champion. Do you really want to stand before Him and challenge us?’ (Aggadah Bereishit 12:1)

The Sages understand that David is describing the feeling of many that God hates them. Why would He allow me/us to so suffer if He didn’t despise me/us?

How can we possibly approach the Day of Judgment with a sense that the Judge hates us? David reminds us that God is our Champion, and He is near – “Karov” – which also means family. God is our family; even if He is angry, He loves us and is committed to us. We must approach Rosh Hashana with a sense of God, our Champion, as family. The Judge is connected to us. He is our Champion. We can approach the Yom HaDin – The Day of Judgment – with confidence.

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