One of the books that make up the "Kesuvim" (or "Writings). Composed mostly by King David, but includes chapters by Adam, Avraham, King Shlomo (Solomon) and others.
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3answers
254 views
Understanding of Ps. 137 before the exile
Psalm 137 starts (in my own translation)
On Babylon's rivers, there, we sat, also cried, in our remembering Zion.
and continues to describe the scene. Ibn Ezra cites some who hold that David ...
13
votes
7answers
290 views
“I never saw a tzaddik be abandoned…” - how do we understand this?
At the end of bentching we say that "I was young, and I also became old, and I never saw a righteous person be abandoned, and his children asking for bread".
How do we reconcile that with the ...
5
votes
1answer
169 views
Who divided the Tehillim into days?
Who divided the Sefer Tehillim into daily sections (both day of week and day of month)?
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1answer
115 views
Translation of פתחו לי שערי צדק
What is the most accurate English translation of the famous verse from Tehillim (Psalms)
פתחו לי שערי צדק
?
5
votes
4answers
499 views
The power of saying tehillim
When I was starting to become observant, at the end of shacharis one day, someone asked me "are you finished with tehillim?". I told them I don't know what that is. They told me "if we knew what was ...
2
votes
2answers
72 views
Who is the author of Tehilim 137?
Who is the accepted author of Psalm 137, and if it was David Hamelech, then is it accepted as a prophecy?
10
votes
1answer
175 views
Why do Sifrei Emes use different taamim?
I know that the Sifrei Emes (Tehillim, Mishlei, Iyov) use a different system of taamim. Why is this?
What is it about these books that makes it that they cannot — or should not — use the ...
9
votes
2answers
74 views
Tehilim divided into five sections?
According to Wikipedia, Jewish tradition divides the book of Tehilim into five sections (1-41, 42-72, 73-89, 90-106, 107-150). This is unsourced there; the references at the bottom of the page ...
7
votes
3answers
139 views
Sitting for “Ashre”?
I have seen people seemingly careful to sit down when beginning the paragraph of prayers that starts "Ashre yosh've vesecha" (Ps. 84:5). One such person told me that he was, in fact, careful to do so, ...
7
votes
2answers
126 views
Should we say Al Naharos Bavel?
Tehillim 137 is printed in several bentchers before birkas hamazon, but from what I have seen most people do not say it. What is the correct thing to do: say or omit? Are there different minhagim?
7
votes
2answers
174 views
Stress of הושיעה and הצליחה in Hallel
Why is הושיעה Mileel (penultimately stressed) whereas הצליחה is Milra (ultimately stressed) in Psalms 118:25?
6
votes
2answers
354 views
Nun in Ashrei- Psalm 145
The prayer Ashrei, which we recite three times a day, is an acrostic consisting of all the letters of the Hebrew alphabet except for nun (נ). Why is the nun omitted?
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votes
0answers
74 views
What do Chazal mean when they say that when Moshiach comes there will be another note added to the octave making a total of 8 notes?
Related: What were Chazal referring to when they said there were 7 notes in a musical octave?
There is a well known Medrash (anyone help with the source?) [I think on the Posuk 'Lamnatzeich Al ...
2
votes
0answers
85 views
What were Chazal referring to when they said there were 7 notes in a musical octave?
Related: What do Chazal mean when they say that when Moshiach comes there will be another note added to the octave making a total of 8 notes?
There is a well known Medrash (anyone help with the ...
