The Theme of this paragraph of Hallel is Trusting God: See “Hallel Rosh Chodesh Tevet: Paragraph Three”  “Trusters” and “Chanukah Hallel Paragraph Three: Becoming Trusters.”

“Let all those who put their trust in You rejoice (Psalms 5:12),” because You took vengeance upon Babylon (Tenth of Tevet); “let them ever shout for joy,” because in Persia, You took vengeance upon Haman and upon his sons (Purim); “shout for joy because You defended them,” in the days of the Greeks, when You surrendered the Greeks into the hands of the Maccabees and their sons (Chanukah); “let them also who love Your name and be joyful in You,” when You will inflict punishment upon Gog & Magog. (Midrash Tehillim 5:11)

We declare that we sing this Hallel of Chanukah and Rosh Chodesh Tevet as Trusters that God will give us cause to rejoice as He did after He punished the Babylonians and the Greeks.

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Learn & discover the Divine prophecies with Rabbi Simcha Weinberg from the holy Torah, Jewish Law, Mysticism, Kabbalah and Jewish Prophecies. The Foundation Stone™ is the ultimate resource for Jews, Judaism, Jewish Education, Jewish Spirituality & the holy Torah.

Tzitzit are always associated with light; they are even described as Clothes of Light. In this, they are also associated with Hanukkah, the Festival of Light. When we hold our Tzitzit during the Shema, we hold all four corners in our hands so that we are surrounded by Light. This is a perfect Kavanah to keep in mind as we move from Hanukkah, the Festival of Light, to the Tenth of Tevet, when Jerusalem was surrounded by the invading Babylonian army.

Rabbi Meir used to say: When a man wears the Tefillin upon his head and upon his arm, as prescribed, and his four knotted fringes enclosing on all four sides, and when as he enters his house there is a mezuzah at the entrance, you find that Seven Testimonies of his awe of God surround him like a wall. It was of such a person that David said: “The angel of God camps round about them who fear Him, and deliver them (Psalms 34:8).” [Midrash Tehillim 6:1]
Kavanah: “I hold my Tzitzit surrounding me as a wall to protect me from the enemies who surround me.”

This can also be used as a Kavanah when reciting Psalm 34 in the Shabbat morning Pesukei d’Zimrah.

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Learn & discover the Divine prophecies with Rabbi Simcha Weinberg from the holy Torah, Jewish Law, Mysticism, Kabbalah and Jewish Prophecies. The Foundation Stone™ is the ultimate resource for Jews, Judaism, Jewish Education, Jewish Spirituality & the holy Torah.

Many of the verses in the concluding Psalm of the Hallel resonate powerfully on Rosh Chodesh Tevet, the month in which Nebuchadnezzar and his Babylonian hordes lay siege to Jerusalem:

“I called to the Creator of Heaven and Earth from a tight spot (inside besieged Jerusalem), and He answered me broadly.”

Sefat Emet: The Baal Shem Tov explained that we should read this verse as, “Not only will God take us out of this tight spot, but it will be from within the tight spot itself that the salvation will come (Netzavim 5640).” Kavanah: Rather than look for the salvation to come from outside besieged Jerusalem; we can look inside the city, at ourselves, and find the key to salvation.

Kedushat Levi: Just as the Creator, Blessed is He, is Infinite; so are His Attributes without measure. At the time of creation, He constricted His Attributes. However, from within the constricted Attributes, as they are drawn to Israel, they expand broadly (Ki Tisa). Kavanah: The siege of Jerusalem was possible only because of the constricted Attributes. We need only access their Essence, and they will broaden and wipe away all who fight them. “May we merit to access all of the Divine Attributes and broaden their expression in this world through our service of God, so that all boundaries imposed on us will be smashed.”

Ohr HaChochmah: When the Evil Inclination pushes me into a limited state, so that I feel besieged, I consider whether Above I am being constricted, and I call out,  as in, “I called to the Creator of Heaven and Earth from a tight spot, and He answered me broadly,” to the One Who promised that He will always be with us when we are suffering, so that I will be empowered to break all boundaries and limitations (Beshalach). Kavanah: The Spiritual Influence of the siege of Jerusalem is experienced when we feel constricted in our spiritual growth. We turn to God and request His ‘Broadness,” expansiveness, so that we can achieve explosive growth.

Ohr Yisrael: When we are suffering and besieged by troubles and enemies, we do not respond as others, described by the prophet, “Through the land will pass the troubled and hungry. When he will be hungry he will be angry and curse his kings and gods, and direct his face on high (Isaiah 8:21),” rather, we, “Call out to God from a tight spot,” and this committed expression of love and loyalty, elicits, “He answers me expansively.” (Tikkunei Zohar #12) Kavanah: We sing this Hallel in loyal love even though we hear the Babylonians, and our other enemies approaching, confident that You will respond to our love for You with Infinite blessings and kindness.

Shufrah d’Yaakov: When we are in exile, we call out because Your Name is not whole. We pray that Your Name be fully expressed in this world (Chanukah) Kavanah: Had the inhabitants of Jerusalem prayed, not for themselves, but for God’s Name to be expanded in the world; the Babylonian siege would have been smashed, just as was the Assyrian attack. We commit ourselves to focus on Your Glory; not our suffering.

Yismach Yisrael: “I called out to Y-H,” as in, “For with Y-H, He created worlds (Isaiah 26:4),” ‘worlds,” meaning, this world and the World to Come. When I am besieged by enemies, limited by my sins, I fear that I have lost both worlds. They respond from Heaven, “and He was for me, Li, a salvation,” your salvation is in returning Li, to Me, and then you will experience the broadness of God (Likkutim; Tehillim). Kavanah: “We call out to You to return to You. Please respond broadly.”

I suggest that we focus on the following verses in the same context of escaping the “siege.”

“All the nations surrounded me but I survived them in God’s Name. They surrounded and encircled me but I survived them in God’s Name. Though they surrounded me like a swarm of bees, they were snuffed out like burnt thorns. I survived them in God’s Name. I was pushed to fall but God helped me.”

“Open the gates of justice for me, I will enter and thank the Creator. This is the gate to God, the just may enter here.”

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We derive the appellation for God’s Name, used in the Rosh Chodesh Mussaf – Additional Prayer – from the combination of letters and vowels of the following verse: “Declare the greatness of God with me, and let us exalt His Name together.” (Psalms 43:4)

I. Individual Divine Providence

There are those who believe that God is so exalted and that it is not respectful of Him to even believe that He is directly involved with the physical beings of this earth. Therefore, Moshe declared, “Declare the greatness of God,” – “Who is with me,” meaning, who is directly involved with me. (Ketav Sofer)

We are entering winter the darkest time of the year. The Kabbalists teach that Tevet is one of the months that because of their darkness are in the hands of the angel of Eisav. However, the beginning of Tevet always falls during Chanukah, and the light of the Menorah can weaken and even defeat the darkness of Eisav right from the beginning of the month.

II. Partners

The Talmud teaches that we should never rely on a miracle. (Ta’anit 20b) A person must accept responsibility to act with an absolute trust that God, Who will be, “With me,” and will bless and empower our efforts, will join his efforts. (Ketav Sofer)

This flows directly from the strength of Chanukah, when the Chashmonaim chose to act without relying on miracles. Their choice stirred the heavens and God empowered their victories and success. We pray on Rosh Chodesh that we should have the clarity to define how much effort is necessary, the courage to act, and that God will join with us and empower our actions.

III. Humility

Usually when someone says, “Do this with me,” he is asking the other to join him, but he is primary. Moses begins by inviting us to praise God with him, but he concludes, “We will exalt His Name together.” We will all be equal. (Rabbi Akiva Eiger)

We can attach to the strength of those greater than we, and join them in serving God. The name of God hidden in this verse, allows us to draw on that strength and actually rise to the level of those greater individuals who inspire us.

We pray that during this coming month we will be able to draw on the strength of all those who teach us Torah and Service of God, even if only through their sefarim – books – written long ago. We pray that we can then make that strength part of our own service and growth.

Author Info:
Learn & discover the Divine prophecies with Rabbi Simcha Weinberg from the holy Torah, Jewish Law, Mysticism, Kabbalah and Jewish Prophecies. The Foundation Stone™ is the ultimate resource for Jews, Judaism, Jewish Education, Jewish Spirituality & the holy Torah.