ELUL Month 12 PSALM 135:4

כִּֽי־יַעֲקֹ֗ב בָּחַ֣ר ל֣וֹ יָ֑הּ יִ֝שְׂרָאֵ֗ל לִסְגֻלָּתֽוֹ׃

For the Lord has chosen Jacob to Himself, and Israel for His own treasure.

Shutterstock via https://raanana.mynet.co.il/local_news/article/H1QUqGxBw

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gzjnzqUZPDk                         https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ugrd6lqelD4

Yissachar Dror Elul | יששכר דרור אלול | ״אני לדודי ודודי לי״         אריאלה סביר אני לדודי ודודי לי Ariela Savir       

ELUL

*Most of this document was prepared in 5783, prior to the horrors of 5784.  The opening sentence made sense then: “The month of Elul is a month dedicated to repentance, leading into the New Year.”

Now, in 5784/2024, Elul is the month that signals the approaching onset of Tishrei… and Tishrei....

I’ve been unable to re-visit the document for the month of Elul; in fact, I see that I’ve been unable to re-visit and share my texts at the beginning of each month, on Rosh Hodesh, since the month of Nissan, the other main holiday season of the Jewish year… The Calendar (/our calendars) has/have become fraught for so many... The tracking of cyclical and linear time can be both trauma-intensifying and healing. The Covid-19 pandemic, initially viewed by many as unprecedented, is now more often described as “once-in-a-century” or  “once-in-a-generation”; references to the Holocaust are not uncommon in attempts to describe October 7, 2023 and its impact on Jews and Israelis; Israel’s current perpetration of nakba in Palestine is variously seen as an extension or recurrence, or both, of the 1948 nakba.

The marking of time, like memory itself: bitter, sweet, acrid,  bittersweet... the unfathomable unbearable helplessness of being unable to turn back time and have a different reality unfold.

I don’t know if time-marking rituals can be useful for facilitating coping or resilience during ongoing trauma. Perhaps, for some people, in some circumstances. Working on Lishma certainly helped anchor me during my cancer treatments, for example, but…

תכלה שנה וקללותיה - תחל שנה וברכותיה

https://www.nli.org.il/he/sheets/NNL_EPHEMERA997002680280405171/NLI

"Let the year and its curses come to their end And let a year and its blessings now set forth"

One personal/professional goal of mine as the accursed 5784 draws to a close is to finalize this Lishmah project. And so, I will refrain from elaborating further on the nature and texture of Elul, beyond these prefatory remarks.  I may add some brief comments below on the concept of Election in the Hebrew Bible and Jewish thought, since this difficult concept is central to our selected Elul verse and its subsequent rabbinic interpretation and I believe that it is an important factor in dangerous Jewish contemporary theological and political thought. Or, I may avoid the topic, in this particular time-space, as too painful….

The month of Elul is a month dedicated to repentance, leading into the New Year. The first day of the new year, Rosh Hashana, is a day of Judgment on which “all creatures pass before Him like sheep” to be judged (m. Rosh haShana 1:2); that verdict will determine the course of the coming year. The Hebrew letters of the word ELUL form an acronym for the Hebrew expression “I am for my beloved and my beloved is for me,” (Song of Songs 6:3) pointing to a mutuality of love between God and Israel.^[1]
אני לדודי ודודי לי

This bi-directional love is reflected in a midrash that makes use of the syntactic ambiguity that we explore for Psalm 135:4:  תהלים קלה: ד. Aside from this creative midrashic exercise, the phrase is not actually ambiguous in its scriptural context, as is evidenced in the agreement among all of the following traditional translations:

 כִּֽי־יַעֲקֹ֗ב בָּחַ֣ר ל֣וֹ יָ֑הּ יִ֝שְׂרָאֵ֗ל לִסְגֻלָּתֽוֹ׃:

  “for Jacob, the Lord has chosen; Israel, for his treasure”

NRSVUE 

For the Lord has chosen Jacob for himself,
    Israel as his own possession.

NJPS

For the LORD has chosen Jacob for Himself,
Israel, as His treasured possession.

KJV

For the Lord hath chosen Jacob unto himself, and Israel for his peculiar treasure.

Alhatorah.org:

For Hashem has chosen Jacob to Himself, and Israel for His own treasure.

Background, AMBIGUITY, and READING OPTIONS

Background:  word order in Biblical Hebrew is not rigid as it is in English word order; the norm in prose is VSO: verb-subject-object (in contrast to English SVO: subject-verb-object). Greater variation is found in poetry. for source: try Fuller, “Word Order in Biblical Hebrew Poetry: A Reassessment of the Concept of Focus” https://www.bskorea.or.kr/data/pdf/44-10%20Word%20Order%20in%20Biblical%20Hebrew%20Poetry%20A%20Reassessment%20of(David%20Fuller).pdf ) 

See our discussion in the month of Av text, and R. Steiner’s reference to:  רב יעבד צעיר  Gen. 25:23  and also to this verse Psa. 135:4 ‏ כִּֽי־יַעֲקֹ֗ב בָּחַ֣ר ל֣וֹ יָ֑הּ יִ֝שְׂרָאֵ֗ל לִסְגֻלָּתֽוֹ ׃

S. Kogut points out that when the grammatical object is placed prior to the subject, there should be a definite direct object marker  (את) placed before the object.  He lists examples:
Gen 27:40 ואת אחיך תעבוד;  Exod 26:1 ; ואת המשכן תעשה and adds a note about Radak’s comment on Gen 25:23, criticizing Radak for ignoring the fact that the nouns in this verse are indefinite, so that there would have been no place for את.

< Radak on Gen 25:23: ^[2]

ורב יעבד צעיר – לא זכר עמהם מלת ׳את׳ שהיא מורה על הפעול. והנה הדבר מספק ולא באר מי יעבד את חברו, הרב את הצעיר או הצעיר את הרב. אלא שיש בו מעט ביאור, כי ברוב הפועל הוא הראשון, אלא בדברים שאין לספק בהם, כמו אבנים שחקו מים (איוב י״ד:י״ט), מים תבעה אש (ישעיהו ס״ד:א׳). והיה זה שלא התבאר הענין בנבואה הזאת, לפי שפעמים יעבד הרב את הצעיר,ד כמו שהיה בימי דוד, ופעמים יעבד הצעיר את הרב כמו שהוא היום. ומעט הביאור שיש בנבואה זו, כי רוב הימים הרב יעבד את הצעיר, לפיכך היה הפועל ראשון. וכן יהיה אחר שוב שבותנו.
<

READING A: God is the subject of the verb “chose”; Jacob is the object. “for Jacob has God chosen” (it is “Jacob” whom God has chosen”: object-verb-subject word order).

READING B: Jacob is the subject of the verb “chose”; God is the object. “for Jacob has chosen God for himself.” (subject-verb-object word order)

On 'אהבת ה: see the discussion of the  IYYAR ambiguity^[a];^[3] helpful examples of the “construct-genitive relation” are brought by Waltke and O'Connor on  'אהבת ה (in section 9.4), demonstrating that the "love of God" can indicate either humans' love towards God or God's love towards humans: objective or subjective genitive.

Reading A is not only grammatically preferable, but it is also the most natural and logical reading of the verse.

• In the broad context of the psalm, which is a hymn that praises God, particularly for the favor he has bestowed upon Israel in history– it is clear that the verse describes God’s election of Israel.^[4] A useful summary of the psalm is available on the website of the 929 project.^[5] 
• The second stich of the verse also points to Reading A: In “Israel as His treasured possession,”^[6] no new verb is supplied, so “he chose” has to be carried over from the first stich; since “Israel” appears as a replacement for “Jacob,” the smoothest way to fill in the second stich is with “the Lord” as the implied referent of the pronominal suffix, and the implied subject of the verb.^[7]
• Further support for reading the Lord as the subject of “chose” is the fact that Psalm 135 draws extensively upon verses in other Psalms and in the Pentateuch, as described in the above-mentioned summary from 929. This makes it likely that Ps 135:14 recapitulates Deut 14:2:

כִּ֣י עַ֤ם קָדוֹשׁ֙ אַתָּ֔ה לַיהֹוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ וּבְךָ֞ בָּחַ֣ר יְהֹוָ֗ה לִֽהְי֥וֹת לוֹ֙ לְעַ֣ם סְגֻלָּ֔ה

For you are a holy people to Hashem your God, and Hashem has chosen you to be a treasured people.

Reading A, with God as the subject of “chose” is thus the reading adopted in most traditional Jewish sources, including midrashic texts, besides the outlying Midrash Tannaim, Midrash Psalms, and possibly Sifre, discussed below. As noted by E. Mihaly, the following midrashim read Psalm 135:4 according to Reading A: Genesis Rabbah 76:1; Leviticus Rabbah 27:5; Numbers Rabbah 3:2, 14:10; Tanhuma Zav 8, Emor 9; Tanhuma (Buber) Lev p. 18 and p. 91.^[8] Mihaly notes that the use of the verse in Midrash Psalms 119:21 is “somewhat ambiguous.” (E. Mihaly, “A Rabbinic Defense of the Election of Israel: An Analysis of Sifre Deuteronomy 32:9, Pisqa 312.” Hebrew Union College Annual 35 (1964): 103–43. http://www.jstor.org/stable/23506614).

Genesis Rabbah 76:1: READING A

וַיִּירָא יַעֲקֹב מְאֹד וַיֵּצֶר לוֹ (בראשית לב, ח), רַבִּי פִּינְחָס בְּשֵׁם רַבִּי רְאוּבֵן, שְׁנֵי בְּנֵי אָדָם הִבְטִיחָן הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא וְנִתְיָרְאוּ, הַבָּחוּר שֶׁבָּאָבוֹת וְהַבָּחוּר שֶׁבַּנְּבִיאִים, הַבָּחוּר שֶׁבָּאָבוֹת זֶה יַעֲקֹב, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים קלה, ד): כִּי יַעֲקֹב בָּחַר לוֹ יָהּ, וְאָמַר לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא (בראשית כח, טו): וְהִנֵּה אָנֹכִי עִמָּךְ, וּבַסּוֹף נִתְיָרֵא, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וַיִּירָא יַעֲקֹב.

And Jacob became very frightened and distressed (Genesis 32,8). Rabbi Pinchos says in the name of Rabbi Re'uven that there were two people that Hashem promised them and nevetheless they were afraid. The chosen of the patriarchs and the chosen of the prophets. The chosen of the patriarchs is Jacob as it states (Psalms 135,4) "For Jacob, Y-H chose for Him" and and Hashem said to him (Genesis 28,15) "And behold I am with you" and at the end, he became frightened as it says "And Jacob became frightened."

Leviticus Rabbah 27:5: READING A

וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף (קהלת ג, טו), רַב הוּנָא בְּשֵׁם רַב יוֹסֵף אָמַר, לְעוֹלָם וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף, אַתָּה מוֹצֵא צַדִּיק רוֹדֵף צַדִּיק וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף, רָשָׁע רוֹדֵף צַדִּיק וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף, רָשָׁע רוֹדֵף רָשָׁע וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף, אֲפִלּוּ צַדִּיק רוֹדֵף רָשָׁע וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף, מִכָּל מָקוֹם וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף… יַעֲקֹב נִרְדַּף מִפְּנֵי עֵשָׂו וּבָחַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא בְּיַעֲקֹב, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים קלה, ד): כִּי יַעֲקֹב בָּחַר לוֹ יָהּ.

“And God seeks that which is pursued” (Eccl. 3:15). Always ‘God seeks that which is pursued’. You find a case where a righteous man pursues a righteous man, ‘And God seeks that which is pursued’; where a wicked man pursues a righteous man, ‘And God seeks that which is pursued’; where a wicked man pursues a wicked man, ‘And God seeks that which is pursued’; even where a righteous man pursues a wicked man, ‘And God seeks that which is pursued.’ Whatever the case, ‘And God seeks that which is pursued.’...The Holy One demands satisfaction for the blood of the pursued at the hands of the pursuers. Abel was pursued by Cain and the Holy One chose Abel... Jacob was pursued by Esau, and the Holy One chose Jacob, as it is stated, “For Jacob has God chosen for Himself.”

Numbers Rabbah 3:2: READING A

דָּבָר אַחֵר, הַקְרֵב אֶת מַטֵּה לֵוִי וגו', הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (תהלים סה, ה): אַשְׁרֵי תִבְחַר וּתְקָרֵב, אַשְׁרֵי מִי שֶׁבְּחָרוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁלֹא הִקְרִיבוֹ, וְאַשְׁרֵי אִישׁ שֶׁקֵּרְבוֹ אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁלֹא בְּחָרוֹ, וְאֵיזֶה זֶה שֶׁבְּחָרוֹ, זֶה אַבְרָהָם, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (נחמיה ט, ז): אַתָּה הוּא ה' הָאֱלֹהִים אֲשֶׁר בָּחַרְתָּ בְּאַבְרָם, אֲבָל לֹא קֵרְבוֹ אֶלָּא הוּא קֵרַב אֶת עַצְמוֹ. יַעֲקֹב, בְּחָרוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (תהלים קלה, ד): כִּי יַעֲקֹב בָּחַר לוֹ יָהּ, וְכֵן הוּא אוֹמֵר (ישעיה מא, ח): יַעֲקֹב אֲשֶׁר בְּחַרְתִּיךָ, אֲבָל לֹא קֵרְבוֹ אֶלָּא הוּא קֵרַב אֶת עַצְמוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר (בראשית כה, כז): וְיַעֲקֹב אִישׁ תָּם ישֵׁב אֹהָלִים.

Another [explanation]: "Bring close the tribe of Levi, etc." - this is [the meaning of] what is written (Psalms 65:5), "Happy is the one whom You have chosen and You have brought close": Happy is the one whom the Holy One, blessed be He, has chosen, even though he has not brought him close. And happy is the man that He has brought close, even though He has not chosen him. And who is the one whom He has chosen? That is Avraham, as it is stated (Nehemiah 9:7), "You are He, Lord God, Who chose Avram." But He did not bring him close, but rather he brought himself close. The Holy One, blessed be He, chose Yaakov, as it is stated (Psalms 135:4), "For Yaakov did the Lord choose." And so [too] it says (Isaiah 41:8), "Yaakov whom You have chosen." But He did not bring him close, but rather he brought himself close, as it is stated (Genesis 25:27), "Yaakov was a simple man that sat in tents."

Numbers Rabbah 14:10: READING A

בְּיוֹם עַשְתֵּי עָשָׂר יוֹם נָשִׂיא לִבְנֵי אָשֵׁר פַּגְעִיאֵל בֶּן עָכְרָן וגו' (במדבר ז, עב)...כֶּסֶף, עַל שֵׁם חֶרְפָּה, שֶׁיֵלְכוּ כֻּלָּם (דניאל יב, ב): לַחֲרָפוֹת לְדִרְאוֹן עוֹלָם. וּמִנַיִן לְכֶסֶף שֶׁהוּא לְשׁוֹן חֶרְפָּה, שֶׁכֵּן בִּלְשׁוֹן יְרוּשַׁלְמִי קוֹרִין לְחֶרְפָּא כִּסּוּפָא. מִזְרָק אֶחָד כֶּסֶף, אֵלּוּ יִשְׂרָאֵל שֶׁהִפְרִישׁ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא מֵהֶם, כְּמָה דְתֵימָא (תהלים קלה, ד): כִּי יַעֲקֹב בָּחַר לוֹ יָהּ וגו', וְאוֹמֵר: וָאֶקַח אֶת אֲבִיכֶם אֶת אַבְרָהָם מֵעֵבֶר הַנָּהָר וָאוֹלֵךְ אוֹתוֹ בְּכָל אֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן וָאַרְבֶּה אֶת זַרְעוֹ וָאֶתֶּן לוֹ אֶת יִצְחָק  (יהושע כד, ג).

^[9] “On the eleventh day Pagiel, the son of Ochran, prince of the children of Asher etc.” (Num 7:72)...”silver”--to represent shame… “one silver basin”--This alludes to Israel whom the Holy One, blessed be He, separated from the other nations; as you read, “For the Lord hath chosen Jacob for Himself etc.” (Ps 135:4) and as it says, “I took your father Abraham from beyond the river, and led him throughout the land of Canaan, and multiplied his seed, and gave him Isaac (Josh 24:3).

Tanhuma Zav 8 (= Tanchuma Buber Tzav 11; partial parallel with Numbers Rabbah 14:10, with some differences even in the overlapping text)

READING A

וַיְדַבֵּר ה' אֶל מֹשֶׁה קַח אֶת אַהֲרֹן וְאֶת בָּנָיו וְאֶת הַבְּגָדִים. זֶה שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב: אַשְׁרֵי תִּבְחַר וּתְקָרֵב יִשְׁכֹּן חֲצֵרֶיךָ (תהלים סה, ה). אַשְׁרֵי מִי שֶׁבְּחָרוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁלֹּא קֵרְבוֹ. וְאַשְׁרֵי מִי שֶׁקֵּרְבוֹ, אַף עַל פִּי שֶׁלֹּא בְּחָרוֹ. וְאֵיזֶהוּ שֶׁבְּחָרוֹ. זֶה אַבְרָהָם, אֲבָל לֹא קֵרְבוֹ, אֲבָל הוּא קֵרֵב אֶת עַצְמוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: אַתָּה הוּא ה' הָאֱלֹהִים אֲשֶׁר בָּחַרְתָּ בְּאַבְרָם וְגוֹ' (נחמיה ט, ז). יַעֲקֹב בְּחָרוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: יַעֲקֹב אֲשֶׁר בְּחַרְתִּיךָ (ישעיה מא, ח). וְכֵן הוּא אוֹמֵר, כִּי יַעֲקֹב בָּחַר לוֹ יָהּ, יִשְׂרָאֵל לִסְגֻלָּתוֹ (תהלים קלה, ד), אֲבָל לֹא קֵרְבוֹ. אֲבָל הוּא קֵרֵב אֶת עַצְמוֹ, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: וְיַעֲקֹב אִישׁ תָּם יוֹשֵׁב אֹהָלִים (בראשית כה, כז).

(Lev. 8:1-2:) “Then the Lord spoke [unto Moses]…, ‘Take Aaron and his sons along with him, the vestments […].’” This text is related (to Ps. 65:5), “Fortunate is the one You choose and bring near, to dwell in Your courts.” Fortunate is the one whom the Holy One, blessed be He, has chosen, even though He has not brought him near. And fortunate is the one whom He has brought near, even though He did not choose him. Now which was this one whom He chose? This was Abraham. It is so stated (in Neh. 9:7), “You are the Lord, the God who chose Abram….” However He did not bring him near. Instead he brought himself near. In the case of Jacob, the Holy One, blessed be He, chose him, as stated (in Is. 41:8), “Jacob, whom I have chosen.” It also says (in Ps. 135:4), “For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself.” But He did not bring him near. Instead he brought himself near. Thus it is stated (in Gen. 25:27), “but Jacob was a perfect man dwelling in tents.”

Tanhuma Emor 9 (= Tanchuma Buber Emor 12; some overlap with Leviticus Rabbah 27:5). READING A

שׁוֹר אוֹ כֶּשֶׂב אוֹ עֵז (ויקרא כב:כז). זֶה שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב: מַה שֶּׁהָיָה כְּבָר הוּא, וַאֲשֶׁר לִהְיוֹת כְּבָר הָיָה (קהלת ג, טו)... מו). זֶה שֶׁאָמַר הַכָּתוּב: וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף (קהלת ג, טו). רַב הוּנָא בְּשֵׁם רַב יוֹסֵף אָמַר, עָתִיד הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא לִתְבֹּעַ דָּמָן שֶׁל נִרְדָפִין מִיַּד רוֹדְפֵיהֶן. צַדִּיק רוֹדֵף צַדִּיק, וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף. רָשָׁע רוֹדֵף רָשָׁע, וְרָשָׁע רוֹדֵף צַדִּיק, וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף. נִמְצֵאתָ אוֹמֵר, שֶׁאֲפִלּוּ צַדִּיק רוֹדֵף רָשָׁע, מִכָּל מָקוֹם, וְהָאֱלֹהִים יְבַקֵּשׁ אֶת נִרְדָּף. תֵּדַע לְךָ שֶׁהוּא כֵן, שֶׁהֲרֵי הֶבֶל הָיָה נִרְדָּף מִפְּנֵי קַיִן, וְלָכֵן, וַיִּשַׁע ה' אֶל הֶבֶל וְאֶל מִנְחָתוֹ, וְאֶל קַיִן וְאֶל מִנְחָתוֹ לֹא שָׁעָה (בראשית ד, ד-ה)... יַעֲקֹב נִרְדַּף מִפְּנֵי עֵשָׂו, וּכְתִיב: כִּי יַעֲקֹב בָּחַר לוֹ יָהּ, יִשְׂרָאֵל לִסְגֻלָּתוֹ (תהלים קלה, ד).

(Lev. 22:27:) “When a bull or a sheep or a goat.” This text is related] (to Eccl. 3:15), “That which is has already happened.” … This is what Scripture stated (in Eccl. 3:15, cont.), “then God seeks the pursued.” R. Huna said in the name of R. Joseph, “In the future, the Holy One, blessed be He, is going to claim the blood of the pursued from the hand of those who pursue them. When a righteous person pursues a righteous person, God seeks the pursued. When a wicked person pursues a wicked person and when a wicked person pursues a righteous person, then God seeks the pursued. It comes out that you will say that even when a righteous person pursues a wicked person, in any case, then God seeks the pursued.” You know that this is so. Note that Abel was pursued by Cain; and therefore (in Gen. 4:4), “and the Lord paid heed unto Abel and unto his offering.” … Jacob was pursued by Esau; and it is written (Ps. 135:4) “For the Lord has chosen Jacob for Himself.”

Midrash Psalms 119:21 : READING B; likely, also, READING A

חלקי ה' אמרתי לשמור דבריך. אמר משה (דברים ז ו) כי עם קדוש אתה לה' אלקיך. בכם בחר ה' אלקינו אין כתיב כאן אלא בך בחר ה' אלקיך. אפילו אחד מכם חביב לפני הקב"ה מכל העכו"ם. וכן ישעיה אמר (ישעיה מ יז) כל הגוים כאין נגדו וגו'. לכך נאמר בך בחר ה' אלקיך. הוא בחר בכם ואתם בחרתם בו. וכן הוא אומר (תהלים קלה ד) כי יעקב בחר לו יה וגו'. ה' בחר ביעקב ויעקב בחר בה'. וכן הוא אומר (שיר השירים ו ג) אני לדודי וגו'. הוא אומר לכם חלקי אתם ואתם אומרים לו (איכה ג כד) חלקי ה' אמרה נפשי. וכן הוא אומר חלקי ה' אמרתי. והקב"ה אומר להם חלקי אתם ושלי אתם ומה אני מבקש מכם דברים שנאמר (דברים ו ו) והיו הדברים האלה וגו'. וכן הוא אומר (שם יא יח) ושמתם את דברי אלה וגו'. לכך נאמר חלקי ה' אמרתי וגו'. חליתי פניך בכל לב חנני כאמרתך (שמות לג יט) וחנותי את אשר אחון וגו':

I said, "I will keep Your words, O Lord." Moses said (Deuteronomy 7:6), "For you are a holy people to the Lord your God." It is written here not "<in> you, [plural]" but "<in> you [singular] the Lord your God has chosen." Even one of you is more beloved before the Holy One, blessed be He, than all the nations of the world. And so Isaiah said (Isaiah 40:17), "All the nations are as nothing before Him, etc." Therefore, it is said, "<in> you has the Lord your God has chosen." He chose you, and you chose Him. And so it says (Psalm 135:4), "כי יעקב בחר לו יה" The Lord chose Jacob, and Jacob chose Him. And so it says (Song of Songs 6:3), "I am my beloved's, etc." He says to you, "You are My portion," and you say to Him (Lamentations 3:24), "My portion, O Lord." And so He says, "You are My portion, and I am yours." And what do I ask of you? Things that are said (Deuteronomy 6:6-7), "And these words which I command you today shall be in your heart, etc." And so it says (Deuteronomy 11:18), "Therefore, you shall lay up these words of mine in your heart, etc." Therefore, it is said, "I said, 'I will keep Your words, etc.'" "I entreat Your favor with all my heart; be gracious to me according to Your promise" (Exodus 33:19), "and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion, etc."

NOTE: This passage most likely takes כי יעקב בחר לו יה as bivalent, expressing both God’s love for Israel and Israel’s love for God, like the subsequently-quoted verse, “I am my Beloved’s and my Beloved is mine” (Song of Songs 6:3, the verse with the acronym “E.L.U.L.”). Alternatively, it is possible that the midrash is using the verse in the specific sense of Reading B, that Jacob chose the Lord. In the continuation of the passage, verses are cited in pairs, with the first verse of the pair demonstrating God’s special attitude towards Israel, and the second verse indicating Israel’s special attitude towards God. If the opening of the passage fits this pattern, then perhaps Psalm 135:4, as the second verse in the pair, is being  used to prove that Jacob chose God, in reciprocity to God’s election of Israel as expressed in the first verse, Deuteronomy 7:6, “<in> you has the Lord your God has chosen.” Either way, this midrash seems to understand Psalm 135:4 according to Reading B, whether exclusively or together with Reading A, and it associates the verse with bi-directional Chosenness.

COMMENTARIES

In the selection of traditional commentaries presented here, we cannot really say that the commentators “disambiguate,” as there is no clear indication that they identify an ambiguity that they seek to resolve. They simply interpret naturally according to Reading A. Still, some of their comments are worded in ways that explicitly clarify that the LORD is the subject of the verb “chose” and Israel is the object.

Ibn Ezra B

אבן עזרא ב'

כי – שאתם זרעו.

“For…” as you are his seed.

In supplying a rationale for the choosing described in the verse, Ibn Ezra uses a 2nd person pronoun in place of “Jacob,” with the 3rd person pronominal suffix of the verse’s זרעו standing in for “the Lord.” This demonstrates his understanding that God is the agent, i.e., the grammatical subject of the 3rd person verb, making the choice, “for himself,” because Israel is God’s seed.

Radak 

רד״ק

כי יעקב – אתם ראויים להללו על כל עם, כי אתכם בחר מכל העמים.

Note: although there is no evidence that Radak identifies an ambiguity here, his paraphrase clarifies that Israel is the object of the verb, using typical disambiguating techniques: He rephrases the verse in 2nd person address to Israel, and states: “כי אתכם בחר,” making it very clear, through the use of the definite direct object marker את with 2nd person suffix, that Israel is the object of the verb, and that the LORD is the subject.

Seforno 

כי אמנם יעקב בחר לו יה. גם בגלות, ׳בחר׳ והסכים שישארו זרע ׳יעקב׳ בסוף הכל, כאמרו (ירמיה מו כח) ׳כי אעשה כלה בכל הגוים [וגו׳] ואותך לא אעשה כלה׳: ישראל לסגולתו. וזה כי בחר את ישראל לשׂור עם אלקים ועם אנשים לימות המשיח, להיות אז ׳סגולה מכל העמים׳ (שמות יט ה), וזה להיותם אז ׳ממלכת כהנים׳ (שם פסוק ו) - מלמדים דעת את העם בכל שאר המין האנושי, ויהיו ׳גוי קדוש׳ (שם) לחיי עולם, כמו שיעד בראשית מתן תורתו:

Seforno’s comment includes descriptions of a number of parallel actions performed by God as subject towards Israel as object, indicating that he takes the Lord as the subject in the verse and Israel as the object.

Metzudat Zion/Metzudat David

מצודת ציון

לסגולתו – ענין אוצר נחמד כמו וסגולת מלכים (קהלת ב׳:ח׳).

מצודת דוד

בחר לו יה – ה׳ בחר לעצמו את יעקב. לסגולתו – להיות לו כאוצר נחמד.

The paraphrase of Metsudat David has elements of classic disambiguating technique: he changes the word order, placing the LORD at the beginning of the clause, and he adds the definite direct object marker את before “Jacob,” as well as lengthening the pronominal suffix of לו into לעצמו to emphasize that its referent is the LORD.

READING B

Midrash Tannaim on Deut 14:2 

בך בחר ה' אלהיך (דברים יד:2) למה נאמר? לפי שהוא אומר: כי יעקב בחר לו יה ישראל [לסגלתו] (תה' קלה:4) ואין אנו יודעין אם יה בחר ביעקב ואם יעקב בחר ביה. תלמוד לומר: בך בחר ה' . ומנין שאבינו יעקב בחר במקום? שנאמר לא כאלה חלק יעקב (ירמיהו י:16). להיות לו לעם סגולה (דברים, שם) למה נאמר? לפי שהוא אומר ישראל לסגלתו (תה' קלה:4) ואין אנו יודעין אם ישראל עושין למקום סגלה, ואם המקום עושה להן סגולה לישראל. תלמוד לומר (ישראל לסגולתו) [להיות לו לעם סגלה]

“For you has God chosen” (Deut 14:2)--why was this written? For it is stated (Ps 135:4), "כי יעקב בחר לו יה ישראל [לסגלתו]." And we don’t know whether the Lord chose Jacob, or if Jacob chose Him. Therefore, Scripture states: “For you has God chosen.”

“to be to him a treasured people” (ibid.) --why was this written? For it is stated (Ps 135:4), ישראל לסגלתו. And we don’t know if Israel makes God treasure, or if God makes a treasure of them, of Israel.

Therefore, Scripture states: “to be to Him a treasured people” (Deut 14:2)

Kogut^[10] explains: the midrash expresses uncertainty about which of the nouns in the first stich is the subject of the verb and which is the object, as both nouns agree with the verb in gender and number– masculine, singular. Appeal is made to another verse, Deut 14:2, ‘בך בחר ה, in which God is unambiguously the subject. On this basis, it is argued that also in Ps 135:4, the nation (Jacob) is the object and God is the subject. Similar uncertainty is also found in the second stich of the verse– ישראל לסגלתו. As is typical of parallel stichs, in which an element sometimes needs to be pulled from one to the other (“״המושך עצמו ואחר עמו) , the second stich here needs to be filled in with words from the first:  ישראל [ בחר לו יה] לסגולתו.

The midrash repeats the question that it asked about the first stich, about the second: “We do not know whether Israel make God a treasure– i.e.,:

 ישראל (נושא) [ בחר לו  (את) יה (מושא)] לסגולתו

or whether God made them a treasure:

  [את] ישראל (מושא) [בחר לו יה (נושא)] לסגולתו״

The midrash again resolves the dilemma on the basis of Deut 14:2: להיות לו לעם סגלה.

The decision is reached, that also the latter part of the verse describes the election of Israel: ואת ישראל  [בחר לו יה] לסגולתו

DESCRIPTION of AMBIGUITY:

ואין אני יודעין אם ה' בחר ביעקב ואם יעקב בחר בה...ואין אנו יודעים אם ישראל עושים למקום סגלה, ואם המקום עושה להן סגלה לישראל

DISAMBIGUATION READING STRATEGY: comparison to another verse, Deut 14:2, which uses the same words–and is therefore presumed to have the same meaning–but is configured with more definitive syntax, in which God is clearly the subject and the nation is the object:

Deut 14:2

כִּ֣י עַ֤ם קָדוֹשׁ֙ אַתָּ֔ה לַיהֹוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ וּבְךָ֞ בָּחַ֣ר יְהֹוָ֗ה לִֽהְי֥וֹת לוֹ֙ לְעַ֣ם סְגֻלָּ֔ה מִכֹּל֙ הָֽעַמִּ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל⁠־פְּנֵ֥י הָאֲדָמָֽה׃

For you are a holy people to Hashem your God, and Hashem has chosen you to be a treasured people, above all peoples who are on the face of the earth.

DISAMBIGUATION EXPRESSION:

תלמוד לומר: בך בחר ה' .[...] להיות לו לעם סגולה (דברים, שם)

תלמוד לומר [להיות לו לעם סגלה 

Note: Mihaly emphasizes that the Midrash Tannaim is not in fact tannaitic, but rather a late work, and that it therefore has no bearing on proper interpretation of the Sifre passage.

SIFRE DEUTERONOMY 32:9, Pisqa 312^[11] 

ספרי דברים שי״ב

The following passage has frequently been interpreted as citing Psalm 135:4 in the same manner as Midrash Tannaim.

כי חלק ה' עמו (דברים לב:ט)^[12] - משל למלך שהיה לו שדה ונתנה לעריסים, התחילו העריסים נוטלים וגונבים אותה. נטלה מהם ונתנה לבניהם, התחילו להיות רעים יותר מן הראשונים. נולד לו בן, אמר להם צאו מתוך שלי, אי אפשר שתהיו בתוכה, תנו לי חלקי שאהיה מכירו. כך כשבא אברהם אבינו לעולם - יצא ממנו פסולת ישמעאל ובני קטורה. בא אבינו יצחק לעולם - יצא ממנו פסולת עשו אלופי אדום, חזרו להיות רעים יותר מן הראשונים. כשבא יעקב לא יצא ממנו פסולת אלא נולדו כל בניו כשרים כמותו, שנא' (בראשית כ״ה:כ״ז) יעקב איש תם יושב אהלים. מהיכן המקום מכיר את חלקו? מיעקב, שנא' (תהלים קלה) כי יעקב בחר לו יה ישראל. ואומר: כי חלק ה' עמו יעקב חבל נחלתו (דברים לב:ט). ועדין תלי בדלא תלי, אין אנו יודעים אם המקום בחר לו ישראל לסגולתו ואם ישראל בחרו להקב"ה?^[13] ת"ל (דברים ז׳:ו׳) ובך בחר ה' אלהיך.

מנין שאף יעקב בחר לו הקב"ה? שנא' (ירמיה י) לא כאלה חלק יעקב כי יוצר הכל הוא, וישראל שבט נחלתו ה' צבאות שמו:  

English translation:^[14]

“For the portion of the Lord is His people”:

This is comparable to the matter of the king who had a field and gave it to tenant farmers. The tenant farmers began to plunder it. He took it from them and gave it to their children, who began to be worse than their predecessors. He took it from their children and gave it to their grandchildren. They became much worse than their predecessors. When a son was born to him, he said to them, “Get off my property, I do not want you to be on it. Give me my portion that I may have it identified as mine.”

In like fashion, when Father Abraham came into the world, there issued from him the dreg of Ishmael and the children of Ketura. Isaac came into the world— there issued from him the dreg of Esau and all the chiefs of Edom. They became much worse than their predecessors. When Jacob came no dreg issued from him but all his children were born upright people. That is according to the matter of which Scripture states, "Jacob was a perfect man dwelling in tents" (Genesis 25:27).

From whence does God have His portion identified as His? From Jacob, as it is said, "For the portion of the Lord is His people, Jacob the lot of His inheritance" (Deuteronomy 7:6) And the Scripture also states, “For the Lord Jacob hath chosen” (Psalm 135:4). But the matter still remains ambiguous and we do not know if the Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose Jacob or Jacob chose the Holy One, Blessed Be He.^[15]—Scripture states, “Israel, to be His treasured one (Psalm 135:4). But the matter still remains ambiguous and we do not know if the Holy One, Blessed Be He, chose “Israel to be His treasured one” (Deuteronomy 14:2)  or if Israel chose the Holy One, Blessed Be He.^[16]—Scripture states, "And the Lord thy God hath chosen thee to be His own treasured people" (Jeremiah 10:16).

And from whence do we know that Jacob also "chose the Lord"? We understand it from that which is stated, "Not like these is the portion of Jacob" (Jeremiah 10:16). (For He is the former of all things and Israel is the חבל of His inheritance, the Lord of Hosts is His name).” —”Jacob is the חבל of His inheritance”: חבל  distinctly means “allotment”, as it is said, “The allotments (חבלים) are fallen unto me in pleasant places" (Psalms 16:6). And Scripture also states, "And there fell ten allotments (חבלים) to Manasseh," (Joshua 17:5); "Out of the allotments (חבלים) of the Children of Judah was the inheritance of the Children of Simeon" (Joshua 19:9).

Another tradition suggests that just as this [portion] is threefold (referring to the previous discussion), so was Jacob the third of the Patriarchs—Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

DESCRIPTION of AMBIGUITY*** but see below, on Mihaly’s analysis.

ועדין תלי בדלא תלי, אין אנו יודעים אם המקום בחר לו ישראל לסגולתו ואם ישראל בחרו להקב"ה?

DISAMBIGUATION READING STRATEGY:

Comparison to other verses–Deut 14:2 and, more decisively, Jeremiah 10:16–which use the same words, and presumably therefore have the same meaning, but are configured in a more definitive syntax, in which God is clearly the subject and the nation is the object:

Deut 14:2

כִּ֣י עַ֤ם קָדוֹשׁ֙ אַתָּ֔ה לַיהֹוָ֖ה אֱלֹהֶ֑יךָ וּבְךָ֞ בָּחַ֣ר יְהֹוָ֗ה לִֽהְי֥וֹת לוֹ֙ לְעַ֣ם סְגֻלָּ֔ה מִכֹּל֙ הָֽעַמִּ֔ים אֲשֶׁ֖ר עַל⁠־פְּנֵ֥י הָאֲדָמָֽה׃

For you are a holy people to Hashem your God, and Hashem has chosen you to be a treasured people, above all peoples who are on the face of the earth.

Jeremiah 10:16:
לֹא⁠־כְאֵ֜לֶּה חֵ֣לֶק יַעֲקֹ֗ב כִּֽי⁠־יוֹצֵ֤ר הַכֹּל֙ ה֔וּא וְיִ֨שְׂרָאֵ֔ל שֵׁ֖בֶט נַחֲלָת֑וֹ יְהֹוָ֥ה צְבָא֖וֹת שְׁמֽוֹ׃

The portion of Jacob is not like these; for He is the former of all things; and Israel is the tribe of His inheritance; Hashem of Hosts is His name.'"

DISAMBIGUATION EXPRESSION:

ת"ל (דברים ז׳:ו׳) ובך בחר ה' אלהיך.

***In his meticulous analysis of this passage in the Sifre, Mihaly argues that the passage is not interested in the question we have been exploring, of whether it is God or Jacob doing the choosing in Psalm 135:4. He demonstrates, in painstaking and elaborate detail, and with great passion, that the function of the prooftext is instead a polemical one– to make the case, against Christian claims, that the patriarch who was chosen by God was specifically Jacob, and that this Elect status persists even after Israel has sinned. In other words, the purpose of the prooftext is not to emphasize that it was God who chose Jacob (let alone to introduce the alternative possibility that the verse might be about Jacob choosing God), but rather to emphasize that it was Jacob whom God chose (specifically, Jacob, and therefore Israel = the Jewish people, even after they’ve sinned; and the special status does not begging with Abraham and extend to all Abrahamic descendants). He plots the logic of the passage and its use of scriptural prooftexts as follows:^[17]

1. The Jews are the chosen people. (The underlying issue in the entire passage.)
2. Proof-texts, Deut 32:9 and Ps. 135:4. (These proof-texts must be understood in light of the specific challenge to the doctrine of Jewish election which centered on God’s choosing Abraham.)
3. But the matter is still in doubt. (Deut. 32:9 and Ps 135:4 are inconclusive.)
4. We do not know whether God chose Israel or (implied) whether God rejected Israel. (This question must again be understood in terms of the challenge which argues against Israel’s chosenness on the basis of the golden calf incident and which questions the validity of the legal prescriptions). < ST: these verses leave room for somebody to argue that although God chose Jacob, his descendants lost their Elect status through sin>
5. The final proof-text (Deut. 14:2). (This text affirms the original alternative stated in a., God chose Israel.)  <ST: Mihaly emphasizes that Deuteronomy 14:2 affirms Israel’s Elect status after the sin of the golden calf, and in a context that is primarily about the dietary laws–making it a perfect text to refute Christian supercessionist claims, especially the specific chain of claims discussed by Mihaly.>

Conclusion

In the discussion of the syntactic ambiguity example for Sivan, Ruth 2:20, we explored the possibility of deliberate multivalence, as argued by Mordecai Cohen. I will not try to make the case for deliberate ambiguity in Ps 135:4. But I will point out that the text accommodates exegetical development about reciprocity, and perhaps even invites eisegetical activity in that direction. From one socio-religious/ethnographical perspective, I find the text and this line of development problematically supremacist, even potentially dangerously so. (On the concept of the divine Election of Israel and its reverberations in Jewish thought, see ****). From another angle, I see potential for inspiration in a myth of mutual love between God and God’s people.

INVESTIGATE: Mihaly p. 118.  N.26: “See H.J. Schoeps’ analysis of Kurt Emmerich’s thesis that God did not elect Israel but Israel chose God as its Volkskönig in Aus Frühchristlicher Zeit (Tübingen, 1950), pp. 184 ff.

ADDENDUM:

Psalm 47, recited on Rosh Hashana…

יִבְחַר־לָ֥נוּ אֶת־נַחֲלָתֵ֑נוּ אֶ֥ת־גְּא֨וֹן יַעֲקֹ֖ב אֲשֶׁר־אָהֵ֣ב סֶֽלָה׃

א)  לַמְנַצֵּ֬חַ ׀ לִבְנֵי־קֹ֬רַח מִזְמֽוֹר׃

ב) כׇּֽל־הָ֭עַמִּים תִּקְעוּ־כָ֑ף הָרִ֥יעוּ לֵ֝אלֹהִ֗ים בְּק֣וֹל רִנָּֽה׃

ג) כִּֽי־יְהֹוָ֣ה עֶלְי֣וֹן נוֹרָ֑א מֶ֥לֶךְ גָּ֝ד֗וֹל עַל־כׇּל־הָאָֽרֶץ׃

ד) יַדְבֵּ֣ר עַמִּ֣ים תַּחְתֵּ֑ינוּ וּ֝לְאֻמִּ֗ים תַּ֣חַת רַגְלֵֽינוּ׃

ה) יִבְחַר־לָ֥נוּ אֶת־נַחֲלָתֵ֑נוּ אֶ֥ת גְּא֨וֹן יַעֲקֹ֖ב אֲשֶׁר־אָהֵ֣ב סֶֽלָה׃

ו) עָלָ֣ה אֱ֭לֹהִים בִּתְרוּעָ֑ה יְ֝הֹוָ֗ה בְּק֣וֹל שׁוֹפָֽר׃

ז) זַמְּר֣וּ אֱלֹהִ֣ים זַמֵּ֑רוּ זַמְּר֖וּ לְמַלְכֵּ֣נוּ זַמֵּֽרוּ׃

ח) כִּ֤י מֶ֖לֶךְ כׇּל־הָאָ֥רֶץ אֱלֹהִ֗ים זַמְּר֥וּ מַשְׂכִּֽיל׃

ט) מָלַ֣ךְ אֱ֭לֹהִים עַל־גּוֹיִ֑ם אֱ֝לֹהִ֗ים יָשַׁ֤ב׀ עַל־כִּסֵּ֬א קׇדְשֽׁוֹ׃

י) נְדִ֘יבֵ֤י עַמִּ֨ים׀ נֶאֱסָ֗פוּ עַם֮ אֱלֹהֵ֢י אַבְרָ֫הָ֥ם כִּ֣י לֵ֭אלֹהִים מָֽגִנֵּי־אֶ֗רֶץ מְאֹ֣ד נַֽעֲלָֽה׃