| Home |Breishith |Shmot |Vayikra |BaMidbar |Dvarim |Holidays |Tehillim |Stories |
| Psalm 119: King David's Nightly Schedule |
How did King David spend his nights? This psalm contains two
seemingly contradictory descriptions.
When exactly did David get up — in the beginning of the
night, or at midnight?
The Talmud (Berachot 3b) resolves this question in three
ways:
According to Rav Kook, all three explanations share a common
idea, distinguishing between David's conduct during the
first and second halves of the night.
King David dedicated the working hours of the day to
attending to the needs of the nation. The first half of the
night, however, is the natural time for the body to rest.
But instead of resting, David utilized those hours for his
own spiritual self-betterment. "I rose in the evening"
refers to the first half of the night, which David spent in
private prayer and Torah study. "At midnight I rise," on the
other hand, refers to the second half of the night, which
David devoted to prayer of a more universal nature.
The difference between his private spiritual efforts and
those for the entire people, is expressed in three aspects:
(adapted from Ein Eyah vol. I p. 8)
Copyright © 2006 by Chanan Morrison
"At midnight I rise to thank You,
for Your righteous judgments." (v. 62)
"I rose in the evening and cried out;
I placed my hope in Your promise." (v. 147)
Private and Public Service
