Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic commentaries on the Book of Psalms, grapples with that very feeling. Specifically, it dives into Psalm 3. And right off the bat, we get a powerful image: "I call to the Lord with my voice."
Rabbi Berachiah offers a poignant reflection on this verse. He says that when the Beit Hamikdash, the Temple in Jerusalem, was standing, God would answer our prayers directly. There was an immediacy, a clear channel. But now? Now that the Temple is gone?
Even now, Rabbi Berachiah insists, even though Jerusalem is just a mountain, a memory... God still answers. As the verse says, "He answered me from His holy mountain, Selah." That little word Selah, often translated as "forever," is a powerful affirmation. A reminder that even in the face of destruction and loss, God's presence, God's response, endures.
What does that mean for us today? In a world that often feels chaotic and disconnected, where is that "holy mountain" from which we can still hear God's answer?
The Midrash then shifts its focus to another line in Psalm 3: "I lay down and slept." David, the author of the Psalm and King of Israel, offers a deeply personal interpretation. He explains, "I lay down from prophecy and slept from the spirit of holiness."
Think about that for a moment. David, a man known for his profound connection to the divine, is saying that he experienced a spiritual exhaustion. He needed to rest not just physically, but also from the intense demands of prophecy. He "slept from the spirit of holiness."
Then comes the awakening: "I awoke by my own senses." David emphasizes that he came back to himself, grounded in his own being. This wasn’t a miraculous reawakening, but a return to his own agency, his own awareness.
And what sustained him through this dark night of the soul? David credits Nathan the Prophet. Nathan, who confronted David about his sin with Bathsheba (2 Samuel 12:13). Nathan, who delivered the difficult but ultimately forgiving words: "The Lord has also put away your sin; you shall not die."
It's a powerful reminder that even in moments of deep spiritual fatigue and personal failing, redemption is possible. It comes not just from divine intervention, but also through human connection, through the courage to confront our mistakes, and through the grace of forgiveness. The Lord sustained him.
So, what can we take away from this short glimpse into Midrash Tehillim? Perhaps it's this: even when the Temple is gone, the holy mountain remains. And even when we feel spiritually exhausted, even when we stumble and fall, there is always the possibility of awakening, of forgiveness, and of being sustained. It’s a message of enduring hope, whispered across the centuries.