Why the Righteous Are Likened to the Date Palm and Cedar

Midrash Tanchuma Buber, Lech Lecha 9:1

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

It is written, "A righteous one shall flourish like the date palm" (Psalms 92:13). Rabbi Tanhuma opened: Why are the righteous compared to a date palm and a cedar, and not to another tree? You find that, of all the trees, no person is able to say from afar, "This is such-and-such a tree," because they are short. But the date palm and the cedar, because they are tall in stature, are seen from afar. So too the righteous are seen from afar.

Themes

RighteousnessPsalmsDavidMusicTzaddik

Biblical References

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Mekhilta DeRabbi YishmaelWhen God's Name Is Mentioned, One Should Respond with Amen, AffirmingRebbi, Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi, taught a lesson about how Jews should respond whenever the name of a righteous person is mentioned. He cited (Proverbs 10:7): "The Midrash Tanchuma Buber, NoachWhy the Deeds of the Righteous Bear Fruit Like the MountainsMountains and the Deep The Sages opened the verse, "Your righteousness is like the mighty mountains, and Your judgments are a great deep" (Psalms 36:7), and askMidrash Tanchuma Buber, NoachThe Righteous as Mountains and the Wicked as the DeepThe sages turned a single verse of David over like a stone in the sun, and beneath it they found two kinds of men. "Your righteousness is like the mighty mountaMidrash Tanchuma Buber, Lech LechaWhy the Righteous Are Likened to the Palm and the CedarOur Sages asked a question of trees, and answered it about souls. Why does Scripture liken the righteous to the date palm and the cedar, and not to some hardierPsalm 154Psalm of PraiseThis psalm, which didn't quite make the cut for the final version of the Book of Psalms we know and love, is brimming with that very sentiment. It’s an explosioPsalm 154Psalm 154 Found Among the Dead Sea ScrollsThat feeling, that impulse, it's ancient. And it's echoed in the words of Psalm 154. You might be thinking, "Psalm 154? I don't remember that one in the traditi