Book of Common Prayer
49 Remember the davar to Thy eved, on which Thou hast made me hope.
50 This is my comfort in my oni (affliction); for Thy word hath revived me.
51 The zedim (arrogant ones) have had me greatly in derision; yet have I not turned aside from Thy torah.
52 I remembered Thy mishpatim from of old, Hashem; and have comforted myself.
53 Zalafah (indignation) hath taken hold upon me because of the resha’im that forsake Thy torah.
54 Thy chukkot have been my zemirot (songs) in the bais of my pilgrimage.
55 I have remembered Thy Shem, Hashem, in the lailah, and have been shomer over Thy torah.
56 Zot hayetah li, because I kept Thy pikkudim. CHET
57 Thou art my chelek, Hashem; I have said I would be shomer over Thy words.
58 I sought Thy Face with my kol lev; be gracious unto me according to Thy word.
59 I thought on my drakhim, and turned my feet unto Thy edot (testimonies).
60 I made haste, and delayed not to be shomer over Thy mitzvot.
61 The ropes of the resha’im have bound me; but I have not forgotten Thy torah.
62 At midnight I will rise to give thanks unto Thee because of Thy righteous mishpatim.
63 I am a chaver of all them that fear Thee, and of them that are shomer over Thy pikkudim.
64 Ha’aretz, Hashem, is full of Thy chesed; teach me Thy chukkot. TET
65 Thou hast dealt well with Thy eved, Hashem, according unto Thy word.
66 Teach me good judgment and da’as; for I have believed in Thy mitzvot.
67 Before I was afflicted I went astray; but now have I been shomer over Thy word.
68 Thou art tov, and doest tov; teach me Thy chukkot.
69 The zedim (arrogant ones) have forged a sheker against me; but I will keep Thy pikkudim with my kol lev.
70 Their lev is callous like chelev; I delight in Thy torah.
71 It is tov for me that I have been afflicted l’ma’an (in order that) I might learn Thy chukkot.
72 The torah of Thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of zahav and kesef. ' YOD
49 (For the one directing. A Mizmor for the Bnei Korach). Hear this, kol HaAmim; give ear, all ye inhabitants of the cheled (world, duration):
2 (3) Bnei Adam and bnei ish, ashir (rich) and evyon (poor) alike,
3 (4) My mouth shall speak chochmot; and the meditation of my lev tevunot (understanding).
4 (5) I will incline mine ear to a mashal; I will disclose my dark saying upon the kinnor (harp).
5 (6) Why should I fear in the days of rah, when the avon (iniquity) of my akev (supplanters, deceivers) surrounds me?
6 (7) They that trust in their chayil (wealth), and boast themselves in the rov of their oshir (riches);
7 (8) A brother cannot by any means redeem ish (man), nor give to Elohim a kofer (ransom) for him—
8 (9) For the pidyon [ransom] of their nefesh is costly, and is forever beyond their power to pay—
9 (10) That he should live on lanetzach, and not see shachat (corruption, decay, the pit [cf Psa16:10]).
10 (11) For he seeth that chachamim die, likewise the kesil (foolish) and the ba’ar (brutish, senseless person, dolt) perish, and leave their chayil (wealth) to others.
11 (12) Their inward thought is, that their batim (houses) shall continue l’olam and their mishkenot (dwelling places) l’odor vador; though they call their lands by their shmot (names).
12 (13) Nevertheless adam in his pomp endureth not; he is like the behemot (beasts) that perish.
13 (14) This is their derech, kesel (folly, imprudent confidence) is theirs; and the fate after them of those who approve their words.
14 (15) Like tzon they are destined for She’ol; mavet shall pasture them; and the yesharim (upright ones) shall have dominion over them in the boker; and their tzir (form) shall waste away to Sheol, so there is no dwelling place for it.
15 (16) But Elohim will redeem my nefesh from the yad (hand, power) of Sheol; for He shall receive me. Selah.
16 (17) Be not thou afraid when one is made an ish oishir, when the kavod of his bais is increased;
17 (18) For in his mot (death), he shall carry nothing away; his kavod (glory, wealth) shall not descend after him.
18 (19) Though his nefesh during his life yevarech (he blessed)—for they praise thee when thou doest well for thyself—
19 (20) He shall go to the dor (generation) of his avot; they shall never see ohr (light).
20 (21) Adam that is in his pomp, and understandeth not, is like the behemot (beasts) that perish.
53 (For the one directing. According to ma’alot. Maskil of Dovid). The naval (fool) hath said in his lev, Ein Elohim (There is no G-d). Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity; there is none that doeth tov.
2 (3) Elohim looked down from Shomayim upon Bnei Adam, to see if there were any of seichel, that did seek Elohim.
3 (4) Every one of them has fallen away; they are altogether perverse; there is none that doeth tov, no, not echad (one).
4 (5) Have the workers of iniquity no da’as? Who eat up My people as they eat lechem; they have not called upon Elohim.
5 (6) There were they in great pachad (fear), pachad such as never was; for Elohim hath scattered the atzmot of him that encampeth against thee; thou [Yisroel] hast put them to shame, because Elohim hath rejected them.
6 (7) Oh that the Yeshuat Yisroel would come out of Tziyon! When Elohim bringeth back the captivity of Amo (His people), Ya’akov shall rejoice, and Yisroel shall be glad.
49 Listen, O iyim (islands), unto Me [Moshiach]; and pay heed, ye nations afar off; Hashem hath called Me from the beten (belly, womb) [See Isaiah 7:14; Gn 3:15; Ps 22:9f; Mic 5:1-2] from the inward parts of immi hath He remembered My Shem.
2 And He hath made My mouth like a sharpened cherev; in the tzel (shadow) of His Yad hath He concealed Me, and made Me a polished arrow; in His quiver hath He hid Me;
3 And said unto Me [Moshiach, i.e., the She’erit of the She’erit, the true and worthy Israel and also the King who personifies the People], Thou art Avdi, O Yisroel, Thou in Whom I glorify Myself.
4 Then I [Moshiach] said, I have toiled in vain, I have spent My ko’ach for tohu, and hevel; yet surely My mishpat is with Hashem, and My peulah with Elohai.
5 And now, saith Hashem My Yotzer from the beten to be Eved of Him, to bring back Ya’akov to Him, so that Yisroel would be gathered to Him; so shall I [Moshiach] be honored in the eyes of Hashem, and Elohai shall be My oz (strength).
6 And He said, It is too small a thing that Thou shouldest be Eved to Me to raise up the Shivtei Ya’akov, and to bring back the Netzurei Yisroel (Preserved of Israel, the She’erit); I will also give Thee for Ohr Goyim, that Thou mayest be My Yeshuah (Salvation) unto the ketzeh ha’aretz.
7 Thus saith Hashem, the Go’el Yisroel, and His Kadosh, to Him of despised nefesh [See 53:11,3], to Him whom the Goy (Nation, i.e., Israel; see Isaiah 53:3,8) abhorreth, to the Eved Moshelim: Melachim shall see and arise, Sarim also shall worship [52:15], because of Hashem Who is Ne’eman and the Kadosh Yisroel, that hath chosen Thee.
8 Thus saith Hashem, In a time of [My] ratzon (favor) have I answered Thee {Moshiach], and in a Yom Yeshuah have I helped Thee; and I will preserve Thee, and give Thee for a Brit Am [See Jer. 31:31-34; Mk 14:24 OJBC] to raise up Eretz, to reapportion desolate nechalot (inheritances; Josh chp 13-21). [T.N. Notice that in the previous verse the Moshiach is depicted as a new Yehoshua, which is also his namesake, Yehoshua Tzemach Shmo, Zech 6:11-12.]
9 That thou mayest say to the asurim (the prisoners, those of the Golus) to them that are in choshech, Reveal yourselves. They shall feed in the derakhim and their pastures shall be in kol shefayim (high hills).
10 They shall not hunger nor thirst; neither shall the sharav [35:7] nor shemesh beat on them; for He that hath rachamim on them shall guide them, even by the springs of mayim shall He lead them.
11 And I will make all My harim into derech, and My highways shall be exalted.
12 Hinei, these shall come from afar; and, hinei, these from the tzafon and from the yam; and these from Eretz Sinim [Sinites].
11 But when Kefa came to Antioch, I stood against him to his face, because there was found in him a dvar ashmah (a thing of guilt, condemnation).
12 For, before certain ones [Jerusalem visitors] came from Ya’akov, Kefa was as a matter of course sitting at tish at betzi’at halechem (breaking of bread) at the Seudos Moshiach with the Goyim; but, when they came, Kefa drew back and was separating himself, fearing the ones [the Jerusalem party] of the bris milah (Ac 15:5).
13 And the rest of the Yehudim who were ma’aminim b’Moshiach joined with Kefa in this dissembling, so that even Bar-Nabba was carried away with their tzevi’ut (hypocrisy).
14 But when I saw that their halichah, their hitnahagut (conduct) was not the Derech HaYashar (Straight Way) with respect to HaEmes of HaBesuras HaGeulah, I said to Kefa before all, "If you, being a Yehudi, have a hitnahagut that is according to the Derech Goyim and not the Derech Yehudim, how do you compel the Goyim to live as the Yehudim?
15 We ourselves are Yehudim by birth and not Goyishe chote’im (sinners).
16 Yet we have da’as that a man cannot be YITZDAK IM HASHEM ("be justified with G-d" IYOV 25:4) by chukim of the Torah (laws of Torah), but through emunah in Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua." And we have come to have bitachon in Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Yehoshua, that we can be YITZDAK IM HASHEM ("be justified with G-d" IYOV 25:4) by emunah in Moshiach and not by chukim of the Torah, because by chukim of the Torah KOL CHAI LO YITZDAK ("all living shall not be justified" TEHILLIM 143:2).
17 Now, if, by seeking to be YITZDAK IM HASHEM in Moshiach, we ourselves were found also to be chote’im (sinners) [2:15; Ro 3:9,23], then in that case is Moshiach a kohen for iniquity, a minister serving sin? Chas v’Shalom (G-d forbid!)!
18 For if what I destroyed, these things I again rebuild (1:23; 5:2), I display myself to be a poshei’a (transgressor).
19 For I, through the Torah (3:13), died in relation to the chok (Ro 7:4-6), so that I might live to Hashem. With Moshiach I have been talui al haetz (hanging on the tree, DEVARIM 21:23).
20 But it is no longer Anochi (I) who lives, but Moshiach who lives in me, and the Chayyim I now live in the basar, I live by emunah, emunah in the Ben HaElohim [Moshiach], the one having ahavah (agape) for me and having given himself over, on my behalf.
21 I do not set aside the Chen v’Chesed Hashem; for if the MAH ("how") an ENOSH ("man") is to be YITZDAK IM HASHEM (IYOV 25:4) is found through chumra (legalism), then Moshiach died for nothing and L’TOHU (in vain) [Isa 49:4; 65:23].
13 And many shedim they were casting out, and they were anointing with shemen many cholim, and they were administering refuah to them.
14 And Herod the king heard of it, for the name of Yehoshua had become bavust (famous), and some were saying, Yochanan of the tevilah of teshuva has been made to stand up alive from [the] mesim, and for this reason the nissim (miracles) are at work in him.
15 But others were saying, It is Eliyahu HaNavi. Still others were saying, He is a navi, like one of the neviim of old. [MALACHI 4:5]
16 But when Herod heard of it, he kept saying, Yochanan whom I beheaded has stood up alive from the mesim!
17 For Herod himself had sent and had Yochanan arrested and bound in the beis hasohar, on account of Herodias, the wife of his brother, Philip, for he had married her.
18 But Yochanan was saying to Herod, It is not mutar according to the Torah for you to have your brother’s wife. [VAYIKRA 18:16, 20:21]
19 And Herodias bore a grudge against Yochanan and desired to kill him. But she could not.
20 For Herod feared Yochanan, knowing him [to be] a tzaddik and kadosh, and Herod was protecting Yochanan. And when Herod heard Yochanan, he was greatly disturbed, and [yet] gladly Herod was listening to Yochanan.
21 And, an opportune day having come, when Herod, on his yom huledet (birthday), gave a mishteh for the court of his nobles, and the military commanders, and those of chashivut (prominence) of the Galil, [ESTHER 1:3, 2:18]
22 And when his daughter entered and danced, she pleased Herod and the ones reclining at the seudah with him. And the king said to the girl, Ask me whatever you wish and I will give [it] to you.
23 And he made a shevuah (oath) to her solemnly, Whatever you ask me, I will give you, up to half of my Malchut. [ESTHER 5:3,6; 7:2]
24 And having gone out, she said to her mother, What should I ask [for]? And her mother said, The rosh Yochanan of the tevilah of teshuva.
25 And having entered, ofen ort, with haste before the king, she made a request, saying, You may give to me upon a platter the rosh Yochanan of the tevilah of teshuva.
26 And having become very sad, the king, on account of his shevuah and on account of the ones reclining at the seudah [with him], was unwilling to refuse her.
27 And, ofen ort, the king sent an executioner and commanded him to bring the rosh Yochanan. And having left, the executioner beheaded Yochanan of the tevilah of teshuva in the beit hasohar.
28 And he brought the rosh Yochanan upon a platter and gave it to the young girl, and the young girl gave it to her mother.
29 And, having heard this, Yochanan’s talmidim came and carried away his geviyah (body) and placed it in a kever (grave).
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