Tisha B'Av: Midrash
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Devash: Tisha B'Av

Midrash מִדְרָשׁ

תהילים ע״ט:א׳
מִזְמוֹר לְאָסָף
אֱלֹקִים בָּאוּ גוֹיִם בְּנַחֲלָתֶךָ
טִמְּאוּ אֶת־הֵיכַל קׇדְשֶׁךָ
שָׂמוּ אֶת־יְרוּשָׁלַ͏ִם לְעִיִּים׃
Psalms 79:1
A song of Asaf.
O God, the nations have entered Your space,
made Your holy Temple impure,
and turned Jerusalem into ruins.
We don’t know exactly who Asaf was, but there are 12 chapters of Tehillim associated with him, including this one. Asaf might have been the poet who wrote these chapters, or a singer in the Beit Ha-Mikdash who performed them. (Asaf might not even be a name at all—but this midrash assumes it is!)
This chapter of Tehillim is a painful and intense description of the destruction of the Beit Ha-Mikdash. So, why is it introduced as a מִזְמוֹר (mizmor), a term that usually suggests a joyful song? What was Asaf thinking? Why would he want to sing about this kind of destruction?
איכה רבה ד׳:י״ד
לָא הֲוָה קְרָא צָרִיךְ לְמֵימַר אֶלָּא בְּכִי לְאָסָף, נְהִי לְאָסָף, קִינָה לְאָסָף! וּמָה אוֹמֵר מִזְמוֹר לְאָסָף?
אֶלָּא מָשָׁל לְמֶלֶךְ שֶׁעָשָׂה בֵּית חֻפָּה לִבְנוֹ וְסִיְּדָהּ וְכִיְּרָהּ וְצִיְּרָהּ, וְיָצָא בְּנוֹ לְתַרְבּוּת רָעָה.
מִיָּד עָלָה הַמֶּלֶךְ לַחֻפָּה וְקָרַע אֶת הַוִּילָאוֹת וְשִׁבֵּר אֶת הַקָּנִים. וְנָטַל פַּדְגּוֹג שֶׁלּוֹ אִיבּוּב שֶׁל קָנִים וְהָיָה מְזַמֵּר.
אָמְרוּ לוֹ: הַמֶּלֶךְ הָפַךְ חֻפָּתוֹ שֶׁל בְּנוֹ וְאַתְּ יוֹשֵׁב וּמְזַמֵּר?!
אָמַר לָהֶם: מְזַמֵּר אֲנִי שֶׁהָפַךְ חֻפָּתוֹ שֶׁל בְּנוֹ וְלֹא שָׁפַךְ חֲמָתוֹ עַל בְּנוֹ.
כָּךְ אָמְרוּ לְאָסָף: הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא הֶחֱרִיב הֵיכָל וּמִקְדָּשׁ וְאַתָּה יוֹשֵׁב וּמְזַמֵּר?!
אָמַר לָהֶם: מְזַמֵּר אֲנִי שֶׁשָּׁפַךְ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא חֲמָתוֹ עַל הָעֵצִים וְעַל הָאֲבָנִים וְלֹא שָׁפַךְ חֲמָתוֹ עַל יִשְׂרָאֵל.
Eikhah Rabbah 4:14
The pasuk should have called this a “cry” of Asaf, or a “wail” of Asaf, or a “mourning song” of Asaf! Why does it say, “A song of Asaf”?
This can be compared to a king who built a new home for his son. The king plastered, cemented, and decorated it; but his son ended up on an evil path.
The king went to the house he had built and tore the curtains and broke the rods. But the son’s caregiver took a piece of broken rod and used it as a flute and played music on it.
People said to the caregiver, “The king has messed up the home he built for his son, and you are sitting there playing a tune?!”
He replied, “I play because the king destroyed the house, but did not pour out his anger on his son.”
So they said to Asaf, “The Holy Blessed One has caused the Temple and Sanctuary to be destroyed, and you sit singing a song?!”
Asaf replied, “I sing a song because the Holy Blessed One poured out anger on wood and stone, and not on Israel.”
  • In this midrash, what do the caregiver and Asaf have in common?
  • According to this midrash, why does God destroy the Beit Ha-Mikdash? Is it possible for
  • there to be love and kindness even in acts of punishment?
  • Is it always possible to stay optimistic? Can you think of times that it was hard for you to be positive or hopeful? What could have helped you?