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| Psalm 100: Serving God in Joy |
In this exuberant psalm of thanksgiving, Mizmor Le-todah,
King David teaches us how to feel joy and happiness in our
service of God:
The first step toward serving God in joy is to recognize
God's infinite greatness, a grandeur that transcends all boundaries and limits.
No law of nature can restrain the abundance of God's
kindness from spreading in the world.
Along with this recognition, we must be aware of our deep inner connection
to God. Despite His incomparable loftiness, God relates to
His creations with boundless care and concern.
The verse uses the Tetragrammaton, the ineffable name for
God. This name indicates His eternal holiness, beyond
limitations of time and place. However, recognition of God's
transcendent nature could cause one to mistakenly wonder:
how can mortal man, so deeply immersed in ignorance and
impurity, be connected to such incomparable holiness?
Therefore we stress "The Eternal is God [Elokim]." Despite His
infinite transcendence, beyond human thought and understanding, He is
nonetheless Elokim — God Who established the laws of nature and
governs the universe. God relates to His finite creatures
with great love and care.
Constant Connection
"He created us." It is not difficult to understand that creation ex nihilo
logically requires a Creator. But a flawed spiritual perception can lead one to
erroneously distinguish between one-time creation and an
ongoing, continual creation. If we are unaware of God's
continual perpetuation of the universe, we will lack appreciation for
our constant dependence on God's kindness and our ongoing connection with Him.
This unawareness will certainly dilute our joy in serving God.
Therefore we declare that not only "He created us," but also "we are
His." God's relationship with the universe did not end after
its initial creation. The verse's written form contributes an additional layer
of meaning. The verse is read, "we are His," but it is
written, "we are not." Were it not that "He created us," were it not for
God's continuous creation at each moment, "we are not." We
would not exist if God did not constantly sustain the world.
Our connection to God is ingrained throughout the
universe. This bond exists on many levels: all of creation,
all of humanity, and for the special community of Israel —
"His people." The universal connection, however, does not
detract from God's particular care for each
individual. We are "the sheep of His pasture" — members
of the Shepherd's flock, benefiting from His careful supervision.
With this awareness, our joy in serving God soars.
(Adapted from Olat Re'iyah vol. I, pp. 221-222)
Copyright © 2006 by Chanan Morrison
"ãÌÀòåÌ ëÌÄé ä' äåÌà àÁ-ìÉäÄéí.
äåÌà-òÈùÒÈðåÌ, åìà [åÀìåÉ] àÂðÇçÀðåÌ , òÇîÌåÉ åÀöÉàï îÇøÀòÄéúåÉ."
(úäéìéí ÷:â)
"Know that the Eternal is God. He created us and we are His — His
people, and the sheep of His pasture." (Psalm 100:3)
"Know that the Eternal is God. He created us [or else we are not]; and
we are His — His people and the sheep of His pasture."