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לְדָוִד ה׳ אוֹרִי

L'David Hashem Ori

Psalm 27, 149 words. Said after prayers, most of all from Elul through Sukkot.

Daven with itRead it here

Also said at Mincha.

Draft. This siddur is waiting for a rav's review. For a halachic question, ask your rav.

At a glance

When
Said from the start of Elul to Hoshana Rabbah.
From
Tehillim 27, all 14 verses
The Name of God
Written 13 times in 14 verses
Odd detail
One word in verse 13 has dots above it

The moment behind it

King David. The heading says only "Of David" and does not say when he said it. Ibn Ezra (a medieval Spanish Bible commentator) thinks it was late in his life, when his own soldiers swore he would never fight beside them again, so that "the lamp of Israel" would not go out.

Siddur Sefard puts it at the end of the morning service, followed by the mourner's Kaddish. The note above it says it is a good custom after every prayer, most of all from Rosh Chodesh Elul (the start of the month before Rosh Hashanah) until Hoshana Rabbah (the seventh day of Sukkot).

Ibn Ezra on Tehillim 27:4; Shmuel II 21:17; Moreh BeEtzba 37; Mateh Efrayim 581:6

The words

Hebrew, then English. Open "What it means" under any line for the explanation.

  1. A good custom after any prayer, most of all from the start of Elul until Hoshana Rabbah (the seventh day of Sukkot):

    לְדָוִד יְיָ אוֹרִי וְיִשְׁעִי מִמִּי אִירָא יְיָ מָעוֹז חַיַּי מִמִּי אֶפְחָד.

    Of David: Hashem is my light and my rescue whom should I fear? Hashem is the stronghold of my life whom should I dread?

    What it means

    A midrash (an early collection of rabbinic teachings on the Bible) reads this verse as the High Holidays: "my light" is Rosh Hashanah and "my rescue" is Yom Kippur. The Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (a short code of Jewish law, first printed in 1864) says the Elul custom of saying this psalm rests on that midrash.

    Vayikra Rabbah 21:4; Midrash Tehillim 27:3; Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 128:2

  2. בִּקְרֹב עָלַי מְרֵעִים לֶאֱכֹל אֶת בְּשָׂרִי צָרַי וְאֹיְבַי לִי הֵמָּה כָשְׁלוּ וְנָפָלוּ.

    When evildoers close in on me to devour my flesh my tormentors and my foes against me, they stumbled and fell

    What it means

    When evildoers close in on me to devour my flesh, my tormentors and my foes against me, they are the ones who stumbled and fell.

    Radak (Rabbi David Kimchi, a Bible commentator in southern France who died around 1235) reads the last words as true history. David is not predicting. He says he saw it happen many times: when his enemies came for him, they stumbled and fell.

    Radak on Tehillim 27:2

  3. אִם תַּחֲנֶה עָלַי מַחֲנֶה לֺא יִירָא לִבִּי אִם תָּקוּם עָלַי מִלְחָמָה בְּזֹאת אֲנִי בוֹטֵחַ.

    If an army camps against me my heart will not fear if war rises against me in this I trust

    What it means

    What is "this"? Rashi (the main medieval Bible commentator, who died in 1105) says it points back to what David said above: Hashem is the stronghold of my life. Radak says the same: "this" is the statement in the first verse.

    Rashi on Tehillim 27:3; Radak on Tehillim 27:3

  4. אַחַת שָׁאַלְתִּי מֵאֵת יְיָ אוֹתָהּ אֲבַקֵּשׁ שִׁבְתִּי בְּבֵית יְיָ כָּל יְמֵי חַיַּי לַחֲזוֹת בְּנֹעַם יְיָ וּלְבַקֵּר בְּהֵיכָלוֹ.

    One thing I asked from Hashem that same thing I will seek to live in the house of Hashem all the days of my life to gaze at the pleasantness of Hashem and to visit His Temple

    What it means

    Radak says David is sure God will save him. But war keeps his mind on the needs of the body and leaves no time for the needs of the soul. So the one thing he asks for is quiet from war, so he can be free to sit in God's house.

    Radak on Tehillim 27:4

  5. כִּי יִצְפְּנֵנִי בְּסֻכֹּה בְּיוֹם רָעָה יַסְתִּרֵנִי בְּסֵתֶר אָהֳלוֹ בְּצוּר יְרוֹמְמֵנִי.

    For He will hide me in His shelter on a day of trouble He will conceal me in the hiding place of His tent He will lift me high on a rock

    What it means

    For He will hide me in His shelter on the day of trouble; He will conceal me in the hiding place of His tent; He will lift me high on a rock.

    The Kitzur Shulchan Aruch says "in His sukkah" hints at Sukkot. Rashi reads it another way: God will hide David in His Temple. The Story section tells whom Rashi says this verse is about.

    Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 128:2; Rashi on Tehillim 27:5

  6. וְעַתָּה יָרוּם רֹאשִׁי עַל אֹיְבַי סְבִיבוֹתַי וְאֶזְבְּחָה בְאָהֳלוֹ זִבְחֵי תְרוּעָה אָשִׁירָה וַאֲזַמְּרָה לַייָ.

    And now my head will rise over my enemies all around me and I will offer in His tent sacrifices of joyful shouting I will sing and make music to Hashem

    What it means

    And now my head will rise above my enemies all around me. I will offer sacrifices in His tent with joyful shouting; I will sing and make music to Hashem.

    Rashi explains "sacrifices of teruah" as sacrifices over which a song is said. Radak adds that they are brought with shouting, praise and thanks, because God saved David from many enemies.

    Rashi on Tehillim 27:6; Radak on Tehillim 27:6

  7. שְׁמַע יְיָ קוֹלִי אֶקְרָא וְחָנֵּנִי וַעֲנֵנִי.

    Hashem, hear my voice when I call have mercy on me and answer me

    What it means

    Radak marks a turn here. Up to now David has been describing the kindness God does for him. Radak says this verse begins the request David named in verse 4.

    Radak on Tehillim 27:6-7

  8. לְךָ אָמַר לִבִּי בַּקְּשׁוּ פָנָי אֶת פָּנֶיךָ יְיָ אֲבַקֵּשׁ.

    On Your behalf my heart says "Seek My face" Your face, Hashem, I will seek

    What it means

    This verse is hard to read. Rashi says "lecha" means "on Your behalf": David's heart is God's messenger, telling all Israel, in God's voice, "Seek My face." And David listens: "Your face, Hashem, I will seek."

    Rashi on Tehillim 27:8

  9. אַל תַּסְתֵּר פָּנֶיךָ מִמֶּנִּי אַל תַּט בְּאַף עַבְדֶּךָ עֶזְרָתִי הָיִיתָ אַל תִּטְּשֵׁנִי וְאַל תַּעַזְבֵנִי אֱלֺהֵי יִשְׁעִי.

    Do not hide Your face from me do not turn Your servant away in anger You have been my help do not cast me off and do not abandon me God of my rescue

    What it means

    On Radak's reading, "You have been my help" means God already helped David with the needs of the body. Now he asks for more: rescue me from the toil of the body too, so I can attend to the needs of the soul. That is the request from verse 4.

    Radak on Tehillim 27:9

  10. כִּי אָבִי וְאִמִּי עֲזָבוּנִי וַייָ יַאַסְפֵנִי.

    When my father and mother abandon me Hashem will gather me in

    What it means

    Radak reads it as a fact from David's life: after he left his parents' territory, God took him in and arranged his food and needs. And since God has kept him until now, Radak continues, David asks to be taught God's way.

    Radak on Tehillim 27:10

  11. הוֹרֵנִי יְיָ דַּרְכֶּךָ וּנְחֵנִי בְּאֹרַח מִישׁוֹר לְמַעַן שׁוֹרְרָי.

    Hashem, teach me Your way and lead me on a level path because of my watchful enemies

    What it means

    Teach me Your way, Hashem, and lead me on a level path, because of those who watch me.

    Radak says the "watchers" are enemies who look at David with an evil eye, as King Shaul once did, and who think he has no share in God.

    Radak on Tehillim 27:11

  12. אַל תִּתְּנֵנִי בְּנֶפֶשׁ צָרָי כִּי קָמוּ בִי עֵדֵי שֶׁקֶר וִיפֵחַ חָמָס.

    Do not hand me over to the wishes of my enemies for false witnesses have risen against me who breathe out violence

    What it means

    Do not hand me over to the wishes of my enemies, for false witnesses have risen against me, breathing out violence.

    Radak says the false witnesses spoke violent words against David: that he was wicked, a man of blood, with no share in God.

    Radak on Tehillim 27:12

  13. לוּלֵא הֶאֱמַנְתִּי לִרְאוֹת בְּטוּב יְיָ בְּאֶרֶץ חַיִּים.

    Had I not believed that I would see the goodness of Hashem in the land of the living...

    What it means

    In the traditional Hebrew Bible, dots are written over this word. The Gemara (the Rabbis' long discussion of Jewish law and stories, about 1,500 years old) explains: David said, "I am sure You reward the righteous in the future, but I do not know if I have a share among them." Rashi repeats this.

    Berakhot 4a; Rashi on Tehillim 27:13

  14. קַוֵּה אֶל יְיָ חֲזַק וְיַאֲמֵץ לִבֶּךָ וְקַוֵּה אֶל יְיָ.

    Hope in Hashem be strong, and He will strengthen your heart and hope in Hashem

    What it means

    The Gemara uses this verse as advice: if you prayed and were not answered, pray again, since the verse says "hope in Hashem" twice. It also lists prayer among four things that need strengthening, from this same verse. Rashi reads the verse the same way.

    Berakhot 32b; Rashi on Tehillim 27:14

How to say it

Said after the prayers, morning and evening, followed by the mourner's Kaddish. So says Mateh Efrayim (a guide to the laws of Elul and the High Holidays, from the early 1800s). The Halacha cards cover when in the year to start and stop.

Mateh Efrayim 581:6

The story

A baby hidden for six years

Rashi (the most widely studied medieval Bible commentator, from France) says verse 5, "He will hide me in His shelter," was said about a baby. Joash was a prince whose grandmother, Queen Athaliah, killed the rest of the royal family. His aunt Jehosheba took him and hid him in the Temple. He was there six years, and in the seventh the priest Jehoiada crowned him king. Rashi took this from Seder Olam (an ancient timeline of the Tanach).

Rashi on Tehillim 27:5; Seder Olam Rabbah 18; Melachim II 11:1-12

The Splitting of the Sea, hidden in the opening

Midrash Tehillim (a collection of rabbinic teachings on Tehillim) reads the first verses as the story at the sea. "My light": God lit the night (Shemot 14:20). "My rescue": Moshe tells the people to see "the rescue of Hashem" (14:13). "Whom should I fear": Moshe also tells them "Do not fear" (14:13). "The stronghold of my life": "my strength and my song" (15:2). "Close in on me": "Pharaoh drew near" (14:10).

Midrash Tehillim 27:3; Shemot 14:10-20, 15:2

A custom with a paper trail

Your siddur's note comes from a book by the Chida (Rabbi Chaim Yosef David Azulai, born in Jerusalem in 1724): a good custom after every prayer, most of all from Rosh Chodesh Elul to Hoshana Rabbah (the seventh day of Sukkot). Mateh Efrayim, a guide to the High Holiday laws, says the custom in his lands ran until Yom Kippur, but his own community went through Shemini Atzeret. So does the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (a short code of Jewish law from 1864). The earliest books we found that mention it are from the 1700s.

Moreh BeEtzba 37; Mateh Efrayim 581:6; Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 128:2

Hard questions

Why say a psalm about enemies and war in the month before Rosh Hashanah?

On its surface this psalm is about danger: people trying to destroy David, an army camped against him, liars testifying against him. Radak reads it that way, as David's own enemies and his own wars. It is not an obvious fit for the weeks before the High Holidays.

The Midrash (the Rabbis' collections of teachings on the Tanach) makes the fit. In Vayikra Rabbah, one of those collections, the Rabbis read the first verse as a calendar: "Hashem is my light" is Rosh Hashanah, and "my rescue" is Yom Kippur. The Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (a short code of Jewish law from 1864) gives this as the reason for the custom, and adds that "He will hide me in His shelter" hints at Sukkot.

Then the enemies change. In the same Midrash, the ones who come "to devour my flesh" are the angels in charge of the other nations, who argue before God that Israel is no better than anyone else.

It adds a number. The Hebrew for "the accuser," ha-satan, adds up to 364, and the year has 365 days. All year the accuser may speak. On Yom Kippur he may not. The Midrash even ties "in this I trust" in verse 3 to the Torah's Yom Kippur service, in a verse that says "With this Aaron shall enter the Sanctuary."

Read this way, the opening is said by someone about to be judged who is not afraid. That is the Rabbis' second layer of meaning, not the plain one.

Vayikra Rabbah 21:4,Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 128:2,Radak on Tehillim 27:3,Vayikra 16:3

David says he is not afraid, then begs God not to leave him. Which is it?

Both, and the psalm is built that way. Verses 1 to 6 are confident: "Whom should I fear?" From verse 7 the tone changes: "Hear my voice," "Do not hide Your face from me," "Do not abandon me."

Radak does not treat this as a contradiction. He says David trusted God to save him from every trouble, and still had one thing to ask for. When verse 7 says "Hear my voice," Radak says this is that same request. Trusting and asking go together.

Then comes verse 13, "Had I not believed..." In the traditional Hebrew text, dots are written above the first word. The Gemara (the main record of the Rabbis' discussions, about 1,500 years old) asks why, and quotes an answer in the name of a sage called Rabbi Yosei. David is saying: I am sure You reward the righteous in the World to Come, but I do not know if I have a share among them. The Gemara explains the worry: maybe a sin would cost him that share. Rashi and Radak both repeat this teaching.

So the dots mark a doubt inside the confidence, and the Rabbis noticed it.

The last verse is advice, and Radak says David is speaking to himself: "Hope in Hashem. Be strong, and He will strengthen your heart. And hope in Hashem." The Gemara uses it as the proof that prayer needs strengthening, and that a person who prayed and was not answered should pray again.

In these sources, doubt and trust sit in the same person. And when a prayer seems unanswered, the advice is to try again.

Radak on Tehillim 27:4, 27:7, 27:13, 27:14,Berakhot 4a,Rashi on Tehillim 27:13,Berakhot 32b

The psalm says "my father and mother left me." What if mine did not?

The verse is blunt: "My father and my mother have left me, but Hashem will gather me in." Many people saying it have parents who are still around. So what is it doing in a prayer for everyone?

The commentators do not agree on what it means, and none of them needs a bad parent. Ibn Ezra says the parents who brought David into the world left him by dying, and God took care of him ever since. He adds that the Hebrew could also mean "will leave me," some day. Radak says that after David left his parents' land, God was the one who provided what he needed.

Rashi's reading is about every parent. It comes from a teaching in Vayikra Rabbah, where David says to God: did my father Yishai (Jesse) have me in mind? When parents bring a child into the world they are thinking of their own enjoyment, not of this particular child. Once that moment is over, each one turns away. God is the one who guards the beginning of a life and forms the baby.

That makes three readings: a loss, a move away from home, and the part of your life that no parent controls.

Radak then connects it to the next verse. Since God has looked after David until now, David asks: "Teach me Your way." The verse is not saying parents do not matter. It is giving a reason to ask for guidance.

Ibn Ezra on Tehillim 27:10,Radak on Tehillim 27:10,Rashi on Tehillim 27:10,Vayikra Rabbah 14:5

Sparks

Short ideas from the Chassidic masters, the Kabbalah and the Mussar teachers.

Chassidut

A psalm that follows the holidays

In Midrash Tehillim (a collection of rabbinic teachings on Tehillim), the sages read "my light" as Rosh Hashanah and "my rescue" as Yom Kippur. Rabbi Tzadok HaKohen of Lublin (a Chassidic master of the 1800s) quotes this and keeps going. The next words, "Hashem is the stronghold of my life," point to Sukkot, he says, the holiday of joy, as in "the joy of Hashem is your strength." So the first verse runs through the three holidays in order. Now read that verse again.

ה׳ מעוז חיי הוא מרמז על חג הסוכות

Peri Tzadik, Motzei Yom Kippur 9
Zohar

Where you look decides what you fear

The Zohar (the central book of Kabbalah) reads the first line of the psalm. When a person looks at the light above, and God shines on him, he is not afraid of anything above or below. Then comes "Hashem is the stronghold of my life": when God holds on to a person, he has no fear in the next world of those in charge of judgment. Now read the first line again.

כֵּיוָן דְּבַר נָשׁ אִסְתָּכַּל ... בִּנְהוֹרָא דִּלְעֵילָּא, וְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא אַנְהִיר עָלֵיהּ, לָא דָּחִיל מֵעִלָאִין וְתַתָּאִין

Zohar, Parashat Bamidbar
Chassidut

Trust first, then ask for one thing

Sefat Emet (Rabbi Yehudah Aryeh Leib Alter of Ger, a Chassidic leader who died in 1905) notices the order here. First comes "in this I trust." Only then, "One thing I asked." He writes that faith and trust prepare a person for complete prayer. When you trust that everything comes from God and is for the good, your heart can turn away from everything else and ask for one thing. And whoever trusts in God, he adds, is full of joy.

אמונה ובטחון הוא הכנה אל התפלה השלימה

Sefat Emet, Parashat Acharei Mot
Chassidut

Find yourself in the psalm

Rebbe Nachman of Breslov (a Chassidic master in Ukraine who died in 1810) taught that you can find yourself in every psalm, simply and without cleverness, because Tehillim was said for the whole Jewish people and for each person one by one. The enemies and haters in the book, the teaching goes on, are mainly the evil inclination and its forces, who try to block a person from the way of life. His student Rabbi Natan wrote this down as what he understood from his teacher. Now read "my enemies" again.

כָּל מִלְחֲמוֹת הַיֵּצֶר שֶׁיֵּשׁ עָלָיו וְכָל מַה שֶּׁנַּעֲשֶׂה עִמּוֹ, הַכֹּל מְבֹאָר וּמְפֹרָשׁ בִּתְהִלִּים

Rebbe Nachman, Likutei Moharan II, 101
Rav Kook

Why you may need to pray again

Rav Kook (the first Chief Rabbi of the Land of Israel, who died in 1935) comments on the last verse, "Hope in Hashem, be strong." The Gemara says that if you prayed and were not answered, pray again. Rav Kook explains why. Sometimes an answer comes late because the inner change you need has not yet been fully formed in your soul, and it may take many repeats. So do not say all is lost. God's hand is never too short to save.

על כן האדם שלא נענה, עליו לחזור ולהתפלל, ולא לומר נואש

Rav Kook, Olat Re'iyah, Essays on Prayer

Halacha

The practical laws. For a final ruling, ask your rav.

Is this only for Elul, or all year?

The note above the psalm comes from Moreh BeEtzba by the Chida (Rabbi Chaim Yosef David Azulai). It calls this a good custom after every prayer, especially from Rosh Chodesh Elul (the start of the month before Rosh Hashanah) to Hoshana Rabbah (the seventh day of Sukkot). In his Sansan LeYair he adds that it is good all year after the Amidah, and at least each day after Shacharit: whoever says it with focus "will find life." The Mishnah Berurah (a commentary on daily law, 1884 to 1907) gives only the holiday season.

Moreh BeEtzba 37:1; Sansan LeYair 3:36; Mishnah Berurah 581:2

Which day in Elul do I start?

Rosh Chodesh Elul is two days long: the last day of Av and the first of Elul. The Kitzur Shulchan Aruch (a short guide to daily law, 1864) says to begin on the second day. The Mishnah Berurah and Mateh Efrayim (a guide to the laws of Elul and the High Holidays, early 1800s) say only "from Rosh Chodesh Elul," without naming a day. For the shofar, the Mishnah Berurah says some begin on the first day and some on the second. For the psalm he does not say which day he means.

Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 128:2; Mishnah Berurah 581:2-3; Mateh Efrayim 581:6

Which day do I stop?

The books differ. The Chida's Moreh BeEtzba says Hoshana Rabbah. His Sansan LeYair says until after Yom Kippur, and again on Hoshana Rabbah. Mateh Efrayim says the custom "in these lands" is until Yom Kippur, but "we" say it through Shemini Atzeret, the day after Hoshana Rabbah. The Mishnah Berurah repeats that, and the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch also says until Shemini Atzeret.

Moreh BeEtzba 37:1; Sansan LeYair 3:36; Mateh Efrayim 581:6; Mishnah Berurah 581:2

Do I say it twice a day? And on Shabbat?

Twice a day. The Kitzur Shulchan Aruch, the Mishnah Berurah and Mateh Efrayim all say "morning and evening," and the Chida says after every prayer. On a day with Musaf (the extra service on Shabbat, Rosh Chodesh and holidays), Mateh Efrayim and the Mishnah Berurah put the morning psalm after Shacharit but before Ein Kamocha, the verses said before the Torah scroll is taken out, and the evening one after Mincha, the afternoon prayer. In old Hebron it was said after Arvit, the night prayer.

Mateh Efrayim 581:6; Mishnah Berurah 581:2; Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 128:2; Moreh BeEtzba 37; Ben Ish Hai, Year 1, Pekudei

Is there a Kaddish after it?

Yes. The siddur prints the mourner's Kaddish here, Mateh Efrayim calls for that Kaddish after it, and the Mishnah Berurah also says a Kaddish follows. On Rosh Chodesh, Mateh Efrayim gives his own view: where there is no mourner, Barchi Nafshi (Tehillim 104, said on Rosh Chodesh) and this psalm go back to back, with no Kaddish between, so as not to add extra Kaddishes. But between the Song of the Day (the daily psalm) and this psalm a Kaddish is always said, so this psalm does not look like part of the Song.

Mateh Efrayim 581:6; Mishnah Berurah 581:2

Does the prayer leader say it out loud?

In old Hebron, yes. The Chida's Sansan LeYair says the custom there is that the prayer leader says it aloud after Aleinu, the prayer that ends each service. The Ben Ish Hai (Rabbi Yosef Chaim of Baghdad, who died in 1909) quotes a letter about Hebron: from Rosh Chodesh Elul to Shemini Atzeret, after Shacharit and Arvit (the night prayer), then a Kaddish. The Mishnah Berurah and the Kitzur do not say whether it is said aloud.

Sansan LeYair 3:36; Ben Ish Hai, Year 1, Pekudei 6:1

Sources

Show the 10 sources quoted on this page
  • Moreh BeEtzba 37 (the Chida)

    מנהג טוב לומר אחר כל תפלה מזמור לדוד ה׳ אורי וישעי. ובפרט מר״ח אלול עד הושענא רבא

    It is a good custom to say, after every prayer, the psalm "Of David, Hashem is my light and my rescue." Most of all from Rosh Chodesh Elul until Hoshana Rabbah.

  • Kitzur Shulchan Aruch 128:2

    מיום ב' דראש חדש אלול עד שמיני עצרת אומרים בבוקר ובערב לאחר התפלה את המזמור לדוד ה' אורי וישעי. והוא על פי המדרש

    From the second day of Rosh Chodesh Elul until Shemini Atzeret, they say the psalm "Of David, Hashem is my light and my rescue" in the morning and in the evening, after the prayer. This is based on the Midrash.

  • Vayikra Rabbah 21:4

    אוֹרִי בְּרֹאשׁ הַשָּׁנָה וְיִשְׁעִי בְּיוֹם הַכִּפּוּרִים... הַשָּׂטָן גִּימַטְרִיָּא שְׁלשׁ מֵאוֹת שִׁשִּׁים וְאַרְבָּעָה, שֶׁכָּל יְמוֹת הַשָּׁנָה הַשָּׂטָן מְקַטְרֵג וּבְיוֹם הַכִּפּוּרִים אֵינוֹ מְקַטְרֵג

    "My light" is Rosh Hashanah, and "my rescue" is Yom Kippur... The accuser (ha-satan) adds up to 364. All the days of the year the accuser accuses, but on Yom Kippur he does not accuse.

  • Midrash Tehillim 27:3

    אורי בים שנאמר... ויאר את הלילה. וישעי בים שנאמר... התיצבו וראו את ישועת ה'. ממי אירא... ויאמר משה אל העם אל תיראו

    "My light" is at the sea, as it says, "and it lit up the night." "My rescue" is at the sea, as it says, "stand and see the rescue of Hashem." "Whom should I fear": "Moshe said to the people, do not fear."

  • Rashi on Tehillim 27:5

    בטוח אני שיצפנני בבית מקדשו ושנינו בסדר עולם שהמקרא הזה נאמר על יואש בן אחזיה שהסתירתו יהושבע אחותו

    I am sure He will hide me in His Temple. We learned in Seder Olam that this verse was said about Joash son of Ahaziah, whom Jehosheba, Ahaziah's sister, hid.

  • Radak on Tehillim 27:4

    לבו טרוד בהם ומתעסק בצרכי הגוף ואין לו פנאי להתעסק בצרכי הנפש. ושאל מאת יי' שישקיטהו מן המלחמות

    His heart is busy with the wars and with the needs of the body, and he has no time for the needs of the soul. So he asked Hashem to quiet him from the wars.

  • Ibn Ezra on Tehillim 27:4

    נראה לי כי זה המזמור חברו דוד באחרית ימיו כאשר נשבעו אנשיו

    It seems to me that David wrote this psalm at the end of his life, when his men swore to him.

  • Berakhot 4a

    לָמָּה נָקוּד עַל ״לוּלֵא״... אָמַר דָּוִד לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא: רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם, מוּבְטָח אֲנִי בְּךָ שֶׁאַתָּה מְשַׁלֵּם שָׂכָר טוֹב לַצַּדִּיקִים לֶעָתִיד לָבוֹא, אֲבָל אֵינִי יוֹדֵעַ אִם יֵשׁ לִי חֵלֶק בֵּינֵיהֶם אִם לָאו

    Why are there dots over the word "lulei"? David said before God: Master of the world, I am sure that You pay a good reward to the righteous in the time to come. But I do not know if I have a share among them.

  • Berakhot 32b

    אם ראה אדם שהתפלל ולא נענה יחזור ויתפלל שנאמר קוה אל ה׳ חזק ויאמץ לבך וקוה אל ה׳

    If a person sees that he prayed and was not answered, he should pray again, as it says: "Hope in Hashem. Be strong, and He will strengthen your heart. And hope in Hashem."

  • Vayikra Rabbah 14:5

    כְּלוּם נִתְכַּוֵּן אַבָּא יִשַּׁי לְהַעֲמִידֵנִי וַהֲלוֹא לֹא נִתְכַּוֵּן אֶלָּא לַהֲנָאָתוֹ... וְהוּא שֶׁדָּוִד אָמַר... כִּי אָבִי וְאִמִּי עֲזָבוּנִי וַה' יַאַסְפֵנִי

    David said to God: did my father Yishai mean to bring me into being? He meant only his own enjoyment. That is what David said: "For my father and my mother have left me, but Hashem will gather me in."

Every prayer in the siddur

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