(א) וּבְ֒נֻחֹה יֹאמַר שׁוּבָה יְהֹוָה רִבְ֒בוֹת אַלְפֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל: קוּמָה יְהֹוָה לִמְ֒נוּחָתֶֽךָ אַתָּה וַאֲרוֹן עֻזֶּֽךָ: כֹּהֲנֶֽיךָ יִלְבְּ֒שׁוּ צֶֽדֶק וַחֲסִידֶֽיךָ יְרַנֵּֽנוּ: בַּעֲבוּר דָּוִד עַבְדֶּֽךָ אַל תָּשֵׁב פְּנֵי מְשִׁיחֶֽךָ: כִּי לֶֽקַח טוֹב נָתַֽתִּי לָכֶם תּוֹרָתִי אַל תַּעֲזֹֽבוּ: עֵץ חַיִּים הִיא לַמַּחֲזִיקִים בָּהּ וְתוֹמְ֒כֶֽיהָ מְאֻשָּׁר: דְּרָכֶֽיהָ דַּרְכֵי נֹֽעַם וְכָל נְתִיבוֹתֶֽיהָ שָׁלוֹם: הֲשִׁיבֵֽנוּ יְהֹוָה אֵלֶֽיךָ וְנָשׁוּבָה חַדֵּשׁ יָמֵֽינוּ כְּקֶֽדֶם:
(1) And when it. rested, he would say: Return, Adonai, to the myriads and thousands of Israel. Arise, Adonai unto Your resting place, You and the Ark of Your strength. Let Your priests clothe themselves in righteousness, and let Your devoted ones sing in joy. For the sake of David, Your servant, do not reject Your anointed. For I have given you good instruction, do not forsake My Torah. It is a tree of life to those who grasp it, and those who support it are fortunate. Its ways are ways of pleasantness and all its paths are peace. Cause us to return to you, Adonai, and we shall return; renew our days as of old.
Proverbs (“Mishlei”), the second book of the section in the Hebrew Bible called Writings, contains guidance for living a wise, moral, and righteous life, in the form of poems and short statements.
(13) Happy is the man who finds wisdom, the man who attains understanding. (14) Her value in trade is better than silver, her yield, greater than gold. (15) She is more precious than rubies; all of your goods cannot equal her. (16) In her right hand is length of days, in her left, riches and honor. (17) Her ways are pleasant ways, and all her paths, peaceful. (18) She is a tree of life to those who grasp her, and whoever holds on to her is happy.
The Talmud is the textual record of generations of rabbinic debate about law, philosophy, and biblical interpretation, compiled between the 3rd and 8th centuries and structured as commentary on the Mishnah. Tractate Taanit (“Fast”) is part of the Talmud and discusses laws and stories relating to fast days and other public prayers.
Kohelet Rabbah is a midrash (explanation) on Ecclesiastes compiled between the 6th and 8th centuries.
בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁבָּרָא הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא אֶת אָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן, נְטָלוֹ וְהֶחֱזִירוֹ עַל כָּל אִילָנֵי גַּן עֵדֶן, וְאָמַר לוֹ, רְאֵה מַעֲשַׂי כַּמָּה נָאִים וּמְשֻׁבָּחִין הֵן, וְכָל מַה שֶּׁבָּרָאתִי בִּשְׁבִילְךָ בָּרָאתִי, תֵּן דַּעְתְּךָ שֶׁלֹא תְקַלְקֵל וְתַחֲרִיב אֶת עוֹלָמִי, שֶׁאִם קִלְקַלְתָּ אֵין מִי שֶׁיְתַקֵּן אַחֲרֶיךָ
When the Holy One blessed be He created Adam the first man, He took him and showed him all the trees in the Garden of Eden, and He said to him: ‘See My creations, how beautiful and exemplary they are. Everything I created, I created for you. Make certain that you do not ruin and destroy My world, as if you destroy it, there will be no one to mend it after you.
Vayikra Rabbah is a midrash (explanation) on the Book of Leviticus compiled sometime between the fifth and seventh centuries.
רַבִּי יְהוּדָה בֶּן רַבִּי סִימוֹן פָּתַח (דברים יג, ה): אַחֲרֵי ה' אֱלֹהֵיכֶם תֵּלֵכוּ, וְכִי אֶפְשָׁר לְבָשָׂר וָדָם לַהֲלֹךְ אַחַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא...
אֶלָּא מִתְּחִלַּת בְּרִיָּתוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם לֹא נִתְעַסֵּק הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא אֶלָּא בְּמַטָּע תְּחִלָּה, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (בראשית ב, ח): וַיִּטַּע ה' אֱלֹהִים גַּן בְּעֵדֶן, אַף אַתֶּם כְּשֶׁנִכְנָסִין לָאָרֶץ לֹא תִתְעַסְּקוּ אֶלָּא בְּמַטָּע תְּחִלָּה, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב: כִּי תָבֹאוּ אֶל הָאָרֶץ וּנְטַעְתֶּם.
Rabbi Yehudah ben Shimon began, "'After the Lord your God shall you walk' (Deuteronomy 12:5). But is it possible for a man of flesh and blood to walk after the Holy One, blessed be He...
The Holy One, blessed be He, from the very beginning of the creation of the world, only occupied Himself with plantation first. Hence it is written (Genesis 2:8), 'And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden.' You also, when you enter into the land, only occupy yourselves with plantation first. Hence it is written, 'When you shall come to the land.'"
Psalms (“Tehillim”), the first book of the section in the Hebrew Bible called Writings, is an anthology of 150 poems attributed to King David and to others.
they thrive like a cedar in Lebanon;
Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki (Rashi) wrote his commentary in 11th-century France. It is considered to be an essential explanation of the Tanakh and resides in a place of honor on the page of almost all editions of the Tanakh.
Bamidbar Rabbah is a 12th-century midrash (explanation) on the Book of Numbers.
צַדִּיק כַּתָּמָר יִפְרָח... מַה תְּמָרָה זוֹ אֵין בָּהּ פְּסוֹלֶת אֶלָּא תְּמָרִים לַאֲכִילָה, לוּלָבִין לְהִלּוּל, חֲרָיוֹת לְסִכּוּךְ, סִיבִים לַחֲבָלִים, סַנְסַנִּים לַכְּבָרָה, שִׁפְעַת קוֹרוֹת לְקָרוֹת בָּהֶן אֶת הַבַּיִת. כָּךְ הֵם יִשְׂרָאֵל אֵין בָּהֶם פְּסֹלֶת אֶלָּא מֵהֶם בַּעֲלֵי מִקְרָא, מֵהֶם בַּעֲלֵי מִשְׁנָה, מֵהֶם בַּעֲלֵי אַגָּדָה, מֵהֶם בַּעֲלֵי מִצְווֹת, מֵהֶם בַּעֲלֵי צְדָקוֹת וְכָל הָעִנְיָן.
"A righteous person will flourish like a palm tree"... Just as this palm tree has no waste but only dates for eating, branches for rejoicing (in the festival of Sukkot), fronds for covering (the Sukkah), fibers for ropes, small branches for the sieve, leaf stalks for beams in the house. So are the people of Israel, there is no waste among them but only some who are masters of the scripture, some are masters of the Mishnah, some are masters of the Aggadah (stories and folklore), some are masters of the commandments, some are masters of charity and every kind of subject.
Ein Yaakov (“Well of Jacob”) is a multivolume compilation of stories, parables, and biblical interpretation from the Babylonian Talmud. The Glick edition was first published in Chicago in 1921 by Rabbi Shmuel Tzvi-Hirsch Glick.
The Zohar ("Splendor" or "Radiance") was composed in Spain during the Middle Ages and is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah.
Kav HaYashar by Rabbi Tzvi Hirsch Kaidanover was composed in Germany in the late 17th-century and is a popular work of musar (virtue-based instruction for moral and spiritual character development).
וּבִפְרָט צְרִיכִים לְהַזְהִיר אֶת הַחַזָּנִים. עַל פִּי הָרֹב, הֵם מְדַקְדְּקִין בַּהֲרָמַת קוֹלָם וְעַל הַנִּגּוּן, וְאֵין כַּוָּנָתָם כְּלָל אֶל הַתְּפִלָּה, רַק כַּוָּנָתָם הוּא לְהִתְפָּאֵר בְּקוֹלָם, וּמְקוֹם עִקַּר שִׁיר וָשֶׁבַח לְהַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא מַבְלִיעִין וְחוֹטְפִים. וּלְחַזָּנִים כָּאֵלּוּ אֵין תְּקוּמָה לֶעָתִיד, כִּי "יִפְרַח כְּאֶרֶז בַּלְּבָנוֹן" סוֹפֵי תֵּבוֹת חַזָּן, לְהוֹרוֹת כִּי הַחַזָּנִים, הַמִּתְפַּלְּלִים לִפְנֵי הָעַמּוּד בְּכַוָּנָה שְׁלֵמָה, יִהְיוּ כְּאֶרֶז בַּלְּבָנוֹן יִשְׂגֶּה לֶעָתִיד.
A special admonition should be given to the chazzanim.. In most cases they pay great attention to the melody but give little thought to the actual prayer. Their only goal is to show off their voices. As a result they swallow up or cut short the most important praises of the Holy One Blessed is He. These chazzanim will be unable to stand in the future. For the word chazzan is an acronym for the final letters of the phrase Yifrach ke’erez balevanon — “He will flourish like a cedar in Lebanon” (Tehillim 92:13). This indicates that a chazzan who prays with complete concentration will flourish like the cedars of Lebanon in the future.
(יט) כִּֽי־תָצ֣וּר אֶל־עִיר֩ יָמִ֨ים רַבִּ֜ים לְֽהִלָּחֵ֧ם עָלֶ֣יהָ לְתׇפְשָׂ֗הּ לֹֽא־תַשְׁחִ֤ית אֶת־עֵצָהּ֙ לִנְדֹּ֤חַ עָלָיו֙ גַּרְזֶ֔ן כִּ֚י מִמֶּ֣נּוּ תֹאכֵ֔ל וְאֹת֖וֹ לֹ֣א תִכְרֹ֑ת כִּ֤י הָֽאָדָם֙ עֵ֣ץ הַשָּׂדֶ֔ה לָבֹ֥א מִפָּנֶ֖יךָ בַּמָּצֽוֹר׃ (כ) רַ֞ק עֵ֣ץ אֲשֶׁר־תֵּדַ֗ע כִּֽי־לֹא־עֵ֤ץ מַאֲכָל֙ ה֔וּא אֹת֥וֹ תַשְׁחִ֖ית וְכָרָ֑תָּ וּבָנִ֣יתָ מָצ֗וֹר עַל־הָעִיר֙ אֲשֶׁר־הִ֨וא עֹשָׂ֧ה עִמְּךָ֛ מִלְחָמָ֖ה עַ֥ד רִדְתָּֽהּ׃ {פ}
(19) When in your war against a city you have to besiege it a long time in order to capture it, you must not destroy its trees, wielding the ax against them. You may eat of them, but you must not cut them down. For are trees of the field human to withdraw before you into the besieged city? (20) Only trees that you know do not yield food may be destroyed; you may cut them down for constructing siegeworks against the city that is waging war on you, until it has been reduced.
FOR IS THE TREE OF THE FIELD A MAN [THAT IT SHOULD BE BESIEGED BY THEE]? — [Ki] has here the meaning of “possibly”, “perhaps” — is the tree of the field perhaps a man who is able to withdraw within the besieged city from before you, that it should be chastised by the suffering of famine and thirst like the inhabitants of the city? Why should you destroy it?
Daat Zekenim is a Torah commentary compiled by later generations of scholars from the writings of the Franco-German school in the 12th-13th century (Ba’alei Tosafot).
(א) כי האדם עץ השדה... סרס המקרא ודרשהו וה"ק ואותו לא תכרות וגו' לבא מפניך במצור כלו' לעשות ממנו מצור לכבוש העיר. כי האדם עץ השדה לאכלה ולא תשחיתהו:
(1) “for man is the tree of the field.” Assume that this verse had been abbreviated and should have read: “for a human being is like a fruit bearing tree, which you are forbidden to cut down.” How would the fact that this phenomenon occurred while you were laying siege to the city behind this orchard affect you? Just as a human being is meant to produce children, i.e. fruit, so the trees are supposed to produce the fruit for which they have been provided by nature. You must not destroy such trees!
Haamek Davar is a commentary on the Torah written by Naftali Zvi Yehuda Berlin, also known as the Netziv, c.1840 - c.1880 CE. The commentary is mostly based on the Netziv’s Parashat Hashavua shiur in the Volozhin Yeshiva in Lithuania.
אילן אילן במה אברכך?
שיהיו פירותיך מתוקין,
הרי פירתיך מתוקין,
שיהא צילך נאה, הרי צלך נאה.
אלא יהי רצון שכל נטיעותיך יהיו כמותך
Tree, tree, with what can I bless you?
That your fruit may be sweet--it is already sweet; that you should give plenty of shade--that you also do; that a spring of water may be near you, -even that you have. The one thing left me which I can wish for you is, that all trees planted from your seed may be as fruitful as you are.