תהלים כ״ד | Psalms 24, the Psalm for Sunday (translation by Reb Zalman Schachter-Shalomi)

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Date: 2017-07-29

Last Updated: 2025-04-11

Categories: Sunday, Tehilim Book 1 (Psalms 1–41), Psalm of the Day

Tags: devotional interpretation, English Translation, interpretive translation, Psalm of the Day, Psalms 24, Sunday, שיר של יום Shir Shel Yom, תהלים Psalms

Excerpt: Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, z"l, included his translation of the Psalm of the Day for Sunday (Psalms 24) in his Siddur Tehillat Hashem Yidaber Pi (2009). To the best of my ability, I have set his translation side-by-side with a transcription of the vocalized text of the Psalm. --Aharon N. Varady . . .

Content:

This psalm was the Sunday song of the Levites in the Holy Temple.

Source (Hebrew)	Translation (English)
^א לְדָוִ֗ד מִ֫זְמ֥וֹר	¹ David’s song (for opening himself to Spirit).
לַֽ֭יהוָה הָאָ֣רֶץ וּמְלוֹאָ֑הּ תֵּ֝בֵ֗ל וְיֹ֣שְׁבֵי בָֽהּ׃ ^ב כִּי־ה֭וּא עַל־יַמִּ֣ים יְסָדָ֑הּ וְעַל־נְ֝הָר֗וֹת יְכוֹנְנֶֽהָ׃	Earth and her fullness Are Yours, Yah, The cosmos and its beings. ² You founded Earth On the endless seas of space. You set her by the streams Of the great Flow.
^ג מִֽי־יַעֲלֶ֥ה בְהַר־יְהוָ֑ה וּמִי־יָ֝קוּם בִּמְק֥וֹם קָדְשֽׁוֹ׃ ^ד נְקִ֥י כַפַּ֗יִם וּֽבַר־לֵ֫בָ֥ב אֲשֶׁ֤ר ׀ לֹא־נָשָׂ֣א לַשָּׁ֣וְא נַפְשִׁ֑י וְלֹ֖א נִשְׁבַּ֣ע לְמִרְמָֽה׃ ^ה יִשָּׂ֣א בְ֭רָכָה מֵאֵ֣ת יְהוָ֑ה וּ֝צְדָקָ֗ה מֵאֱלֹהֵ֥י יִשְׁעֽוֹ׃	³ Who can rise To Your summit, Yah? Who can stand In Your place of holiness? ⁴ One who has hands that are clean, A heart that is pure, Who has no false oath On her conscience, Who swore not to larceny. ⁵ Such a one Will raise a blessing from You, Yah, Kind generosity from You, Her helpful God.
^ו זֶ֭ה דּ֣וֹר דרשו [דֹּרְשָׁ֑יו] מְבַקְשֵׁ֨י פָנֶ֖יךָ יַעֲקֹ֣ב סֶֽלָה׃	⁶ Such people are of a generation That seeks You. Like Jacob seeking to face You, Selah!
^ז שְׂא֤וּ שְׁעָרִ֨ים ׀ רָֽאשֵׁיכֶ֗ם וְֽ֭הִנָּשְׂאוּ פִּתְחֵ֣י עוֹלָ֑ם וְ֝יָב֗וֹא מֶ֣לֶךְ הַכָּבֽוֹד׃ ^ח מִ֥י זֶה֮ מֶ֤לֶךְ הַכָּ֫ב֥וֹד יְ֭הוָה עִזּ֣וּז וְגִבּ֑וֹר יְ֝הוָ֗ה גִּבּ֥וֹר מִלְחָמָֽה׃	⁷ Open your minds’ imagination! Let the Gates to eternity Come into view! Then the King of Glory Will appear. ⁸ Who is this, the King of Glory? Yah – Tzebaot, She is the Queen of Glory. Yah! Powerful and strong. Yah, the ever victorious!
^ט שְׂא֤וּ שְׁעָרִ֨ים ׀ רָֽאשֵׁיכֶ֗ם וּ֭שְׂאוּ פִּתְחֵ֣י עוֹלָ֑ם וְ֝יָבֹא מֶ֣לֶךְ הַכָּבֽוֹד׃ ^י מִ֤י ה֣וּא זֶה֮ מֶ֤לֶךְ הַכָּ֫ב֥וֹד יְהוָ֥ה צְבָא֑וֹת ה֤וּא מֶ֖לֶךְ הַכָּב֣וֹד סֶֽלָה׃	⁹ Open your minds’ imagination! Let the Gates to eternity Come into view, And then the King of Glory Will appear. ¹⁰ Who is this, the King of Glory? Yah – Tzebaot, She is the Queen of Glory. Selah!

Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, z”l, included his translation of the Psalm of the Day for Sunday (Psalms 24) in his Siddur Tehillat Hashem Yidaber Pi (2009). To the best of my ability, I have set his translation side-by-side with a transcription of the vocalized text of the Psalm. –Aharon N. Varady

The association of particular psalms sung by Levites in the Temple for each day of the week is first attested in Mishnah Tamid 4.7.

Source

Contributor: Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (translation)

Co-authors:

Name: Zalman Schachter-Shalomi (translation)
Bio: Rabbi Dr. Zalman Meshullam Schachter-Shalomi, affectionately known as "Reb Zalman" (28 August 1924 – 3 July 2014) was one of the founders of the Jewish Renewal movement. Born in Żółkiew, Poland (now Ukraine) and raised in Vienna, he was interned in detention camps under the Vichy Regime but managed to flee the Nazi advance, emigrating to the United States in 1941. He was ordained as an Orthodox rabbi in 1947 within the ḤaBaD Hasidic movement while under the leadership of the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn, and served ḤaBaD communities in Massachusetts and Connecticut. He subsequently earned an M.A. in psychology of religion at Boston University, and a doctorate from the Hebrew Union College. He was initially sent out to speak on college campuses by the Lubavitcher Rebbe, but in the early 1960s, after experimenting with "the sacramental value of lysergic acid", the main ingredient in LSD, leadership within ḤaBaD circles cut ties with him. He continued teaching the Torah of Ḥassidut until the end of his life to creative, free and open-minded Jewish thinkers with humility and kindness and established warm ecumenical ties as well. In September 2009, he became the first contributor of a siddur to the Open Siddur Project database of Jewish liturgy and related work. Reb Zalman supported the Open Siddur Project telling its founder, "this is what I've been looking forward to!" and sharing among many additional works of liturgy, an interview he had with Havurah magazine in the early to mid-1980s detailing his vision of "Database Davenen." The Open Siddur Project is proud to be realizing one of Reb Zalman's long held dreams.
Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zalman_Schachter-Shalomi
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/zalman-schachter-shalomi-translation

Name: David ben Yishai (traditional attribution)
Bio: David ben Yishai was the second king of the United Kingdom of Israel and Judah, reigning ca. 1010–970 BCE. While almost half of the Psalms are headed "l'David" and tradition identifies several with specific events in David’s life (e.g., Psalms № 3, 7, 18, 34, 51, 52, 54, 56, 57, 59, 60, 63 and 142), most scholars consider these headings to be late additions and that no psalm can be attributed to David with certainty. 1 Samuel 16:15-18 describes David as a skillful harp (lyre) player and "the sweet psalmist of Israel."
Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/david-ben-yishai

Name: the Mesorah (TaNaKh)
Bio: The Mesorah (Heb: מָסוֹרָה) a/k/a, the Masoretic text is the authoritative Hebrew and Aramaic text of the TaNaKh for Karaite and Rabbinic Judaism. It was primarily copied, edited and distributed by a group of Jews known as the Masoretes between the 7th and 10th centuries CE. The Masoretic Text defines the Jewish canon and its precise letter-text, with its vocalization and accentuation known as the Masorah.
Website: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Masoretic_Text
Profile Link: https://opensiddur.org/profile/mesorah

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