RR Psalm 33:1 Part 1

Rabbi’s Reflections - Monday, July 21 2025
Shalom,

Special Announcement: Ken Fish will be returning to Shomair in two week, on Saturday, August 2nd for a special healing and impartation service. Please plan to attend and pass the word along. Thank you and much blessing. Rabbi Michael.  https://orbisministries.org/
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Psalm 33:1 Sing for joy to Adonai, you righteous. Praise is fitting for the upright.

There are two important parts of our RR devotional today; what is in the verse, and what is not in the verse.  What is missing from Psalm 33?  There is nothing here to ascribe the Psalm to David.  While eventually about half of the Psalms are written (or ascribed) to someone other than David, this is the first Psalm (With the sole exception of Psalm 10, which we will address in the Rabbi Trail below.) that is not “a Psalm of David.”  

Rabbi Trail: Some scholars believe that Psalm 10 is not labeled “of David” because it is really the second half of Psalm 9.  Perhaps they were originally one Psalm, but split into two for some obscure reason.  Perhaps someone compiling the entire book of Psalms wanted there to be exactly 150 of them. End RT.

The unknown author starts out with a flourish of six Hebrew words, broken into two parts of three words each.  Two distinctly different words are used to describe the people who follow the Lord.  “Tzadikim” are “righteous ones” who do what is right, good and just according to God’s righteous standard.  Y’sharim are the upright.  Let’s go deeper on both.

Rabbi Trail: Yeshua asked a lot of questions during His time of ministry.  We should take a lesson from Him and ask questions too.  If you really want to know where a person stands, ask him/her, “How do you know the difference between right and wrong?”  

Isaiah 33:22 For Adonai is our Judge, Adonai is our Lawgiver, Adonai is our King—He will save us!

2Corinthians 3:4 Such is the confidence we have through Messiah toward God— 5 not that we are competent in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our competence is from God.

The secular humanist will have some form of an answer based on what “feels good,” while a “God fearer” will base his/her answer on what God says is right and wrong.  End RT.

Tzadikim (Righteous ones) actually do what God commands… John 14:15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.”  The word was first used in Genesis 6 to describe Noah.  Genesis 6:9b Noah was a righteous man. He was blameless among his generation. Noah continually walked with God.

The other word for “righteous” is “Y’shar’im,” meaning “upright.”  It actually has the connotation of being “straight,” which is the opposite of crooked or twisted.  To be “Yashar” is to be “straightforward.”  Yeshua put it like this… Matthew 5:37 “But let your word ‘Yes’ be ‘Yes’ and your ‘No,’ ‘No’—anything more than this is from the evil one.”

Our subject verse commands an outburst of joy in the Lord and praise of the Lord from those who know His blessing.  It is appropriate for those who have received His blessing to then bless Him in return.  This is a consistent message throughout the Scriptures.  

Psalm 111:1 Halleluyah! I praise Adonai with all my heart in the company and congregation of the upright.  Shalom shalom.

Daily Bread, reading plan by Lars Enarson (https://www.thewatchman.org/)
Mon21-July 202525th of Tamuz, 5785
Nu 31:13-54Ez 221 Ch 2Php 2 (Lk 20)

Rabbi H Michael Weiner

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