Midrash Tehillim, in its commentary on Psalm 36, offers a fascinating insight. It all boils down to fear – or rather, the lack of it, in the right place.
The psalm begins, "To the choirmaster, a psalm of David. An oracle of transgression to the wicked." Right away, we're dealing with something profound. This isn't just a song; it's a prophecy, a warning about the nature of wickedness. But what does it mean, "an oracle of transgression to the wicked?"
The Midrash connects this idea to a verse from Deuteronomy (33:29): "Happy are you, O Israel! Who is like you, a people saved by the Lord?" See, the Holy One, blessed be He, fights Israel's battles and ensures their victory. This isn't just about military might; it’s about divine intervention. And yet, this intervention isn't automatic. It’s tied to something deeper.
Think about Moses. Deuteronomy (34:11-12) tells us, "For all the signs and wonders, and for all the mighty deeds and the great terror which Moses performed in the sight of all Israel, there has not arisen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, whom the Lord knew face to face." Only Moses spoke directly with God! God sent him, and God ensured his victory. Deborah, too, in Judges 5:12, cries out, "Awake, awake, Deborah! Awake, awake, break out in a song! Arise, Barak, lead away your captives, O son of Abinoam." There's a call to action, a recognition of divine power working through them.
And then we get to David and Goliath. This is where the idea of fear really crystallizes. When David goes down to face the Philistine giant, what does he declare? "This day the Lord will deliver you into my hand, and I will strike you down, and cut off your head; and I will give the dead bodies of the host of the Philistines this day to the birds of the air and to the wild beasts of the earth; that all the earth may know that there is a God in Israel" (1 Samuel 17:46). He’s not just confident; he’s proclaiming God's power.
After the victory, when the women sing and dance, proclaiming, "Saul has slain his thousands, and David his ten thousands" (1 Samuel 18:7), David understands. He says to the Holy One, blessed be He, "You gave me the victory, and I will also give You the victory." It's a reciprocal relationship, a recognition that his strength comes from God.
But the Midrash digs deeper. David looks at Goliath, a fearsome warrior decked out in armor, and initially wonders, "Who can defeat him?" But then he sees that Goliath is blaspheming, mocking God. And in that moment, David realizes, "Now I know that I can defeat him, because he is not afraid of the Lord."
This is the key! The Midrash explains that the Holy One, blessed be He, judges the wicked only when they have no fear of Him. Their arrogance, their lack of yirat shamayim (fear of Heaven), becomes their downfall. As Jeremiah 2:19 says, "Your wickedness will chastise you, and your apostasies will reprove you. Know then, and see, how evil and bitter it is for you to forsake the Lord your God." Or, as the psalm itself puts it, "There is no fear of God before his eyes."
So, what does this mean for us? It’s not just about fearing God in a trembling, subservient way. It's about recognizing the divine presence in our lives, understanding that our strength, our victories, our very being are connected to something larger than ourselves. It’s about acknowledging that arrogance and a lack of respect for something greater than ourselves can lead to our own undoing. It’s a powerful reminder that true strength comes not from our own might, but from our connection to the Divine.