Psalm 67

Design from Sinai Transported Through Tradition

By SUDINmag | Tweet

This Psalm, after introducing itself as demanding musical accompaniment, has 49 words which correspond to the 49 days counted beginning on the second day of Passover. This period, referred to as “Sfirat HaOmer” counts the days leading up to the holiday of Shavuot, which celebrates the original giving of the Torah.

According to tradition, when Moses received The Torah on Mount Sinai, the text of this Psalm was shown to him etched onto a seven branched Menorah with a golden base.

According to tradition, when Moses received The Torah on Mount Sinai, the text of this Psalm was shown to him etched onto a seven branched Menorah with a golden base. Tradition also says that King David, who would later be credited with writing down the Psalms, was given the same vision.

The seven branched Menorah would later be built out of a single solid piece of gold for the Holy Temple, one of the great artistic triumphs of the Jewish people. Its light was a constant illumination for the Jewish people and is the source of the events that led to the holiday of Chanuka. The rekindling of all seven branches for eight nights was a symbolic triumph for all time.

A Hebrew-English version can be found here.