TEHILLIM LIGHT

Commentaries

Mizmor 007, Verse 001

שִׁגָּי֗וֹן לְדָ֫וִ֥ד אֲשֶׁר־שָׁ֥ר לַֽיהֹוָ֑ה עַל־דִּבְרֵי־כ֝֗וּשׁ בֶּן־יְמִינִֽי

shiggoyon ledovid ʾasher–shor ladoonoy ʿal–ddivreychush ben–ymiyniy

Shiggaion of David, which he sang to the LORD, concerning Cush, a Benjaminite.

MIDRASH TEHILLIM

1.....(7.1)
Shiggaion "impulsive speech" of David, which he sang to the LORD,
"Even in your thought, you shall not curse a king, nor in your bedrooms shall you curse a wealthy man, for the bird of the heaven shall carry the voice, and the winged creature will tell the matter." (Kohelet - Ecclesiastes 10:20)
Indeed, for such curses even walls have ears.
God asked David: "Why do you curse Mine annointed? Do you not call Saul enemy?"
David replied, Master of the universe, do not fetch up against me words spoken impulsevely, as though they had been spoken deliberately.
2.....(7.3)
Shiggaion of David...
Rabbi Aha, When a man requests God to rebuff the insult that offered to him, he would not be punished for such a request. Why, then, should David have spoken of his request as Shiggaion, impulsive speech?
Rabbi Hinena answered, Because David rejoiced in some at the fall of Soul, as is said, He sang unto the LORD, concerning the matter of the Cush the Benjaminite, though it is written: "When your enemy falls, do not rejoice, and when he stumbles, let your heart not exult" (Mishlei - Proverbs 24:17)
Therefore, God said to David, If Saul's fate, or if your fate had been his fate, how many Davids would i have caused to perish for his sake.

RASHI

1.
Shiggaion of David...
Menachem says (p. 170) that this, too, is one of the names of a melody named for the instrument, and so he explained “on shigyonoth,” [in Habakkuk 3:1].
But our Sages (Midrash Tehillim 7:18) explained it as an expression of error, that he confessed and prayed about the error that he had [committed by] reciting a song upon Saul’s downfall.
The contents of the psalm, however, do not indicate this, because it speaks of the nations (in verse 9): “May the Lord judge the peoples.” I, therefore, say that he recited it concerning Ishbi in Nob (II Sam. 21:16), who came upon him as a punishment for Saul; as our Rabbis explained, that the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “Through you, Doeg the Edomite was banished; through you, Saul and his sons were slain, etc.” as is stated in “Chelek” (Sanh. 95a).
The errors that David asked of the Holy One, blessed be He, [were] that he [himself] be delivered into the hands of his enemies and that his descendants should not be destroyed. [Therefore, because his life was endangered,] David reversed his prayer and prayed that he should not fall into the hands of his enemies.
Now this is its meaning: An error that David sang to the Lord because he had erred in saying to the Holy One, blessed be He, to deliver him into the hands of his enemies on account of Saul, who was slain because of him.
Another explanation: Concerning the error of the skirt of Saul’s coat, which he had severed.
2.
Cush...
Just as a Cushite has unusual skin, so did Saul have unusual deeds.

RADAK

1.
Shiggayon of David:
We have already explained that Shiggayon is a kind of music. And so it says in the Prayer of Habakkuk (iii. i) " Set to Shigyonoth."
2.
which he sang unto the Lord concerning Cush, a Benjamite:
Our teachers have said that this Psalm was uttered concerning Saul. And he calls him Cush because he was beautiful, as "the Cushite woman" (Num. xii. i), which is interpreted in the Targum as "the beautiful woman"; and such is the opinion of all the exegetes. And they say that he calls him "Cushite" as a Cushite is one who does not change his skin, so Saul did not change in his hatred towards David.
3.
(על דברי, lit. " concerning the matters of")
(it is used) because the matters and affairs which he had in connection with him were numerous. Many times also he had purposed to slay him:
The first occasion, when he became his son-in-law, he purposed to make him fall into the hand of the Philistines;
afterwards he purposed to slay him in his house;
and when he stood (ministering) before him he hurled the javelin at him many times;
and (even) after he had parted from him (he acted) in a like manner also when he was pursuing him.

Rabbi HIRSCH

1.
shiggoyon ledovid...
Difference between [שׁגג] and [שׂגה ]
[שׁגג] denotes a practical error due to carelessness.
[שגיה] is an error due to a delusion of the mind caused by a devious trend of thought.
Therefore [שִׁגָּי֗וֹן] is an intellectual error
2.
(which he) sang [שָׁ֥ר]...
[שיר] is that song which sees the hand of God in every event and which sings of the manifestation of God's greatness as it reveals itself in such occurrences.
According to the teaching of our sages,
[שירה], in the feminine form, indicates a song in praise of the manifestation of God in history which leads to the ultimate, final redemption.
[שיר] in the masculine form, on the other hand, denotes a hymn in praise of the actual redemption which constitutes the manifestation of God's greatness.

WORDS

shiggoyon

שִׁגָּי֗וֹן

a wild passionate song with rapid changes of rhythm
FROM KLEIN DICTIONARY:
A.
שִׁגָּיוֹן
m.n. a word of uncertain meaning,
usually rendered by ‘hymn’, ‘dithyramb’ or ‘song’.
Of uncertain etymology:
Some scholars derive it from שׁגה (= to go astray, err), and accordingly, render it by ‘wild, passionate song’ or ‘dithyramb’.
Others connect it with Arab. saj‘ (= rhymed prose); see שׁגע.
Others compare it with Akka. shegū (= dirge), a derivative of shegū (= to rave, rage; to lament violently).

B.
שִׁגָּיוֹן
m.n.
Medieval Hebrew - being absorbed in vanities.
New Hebrew 1 - hobby.
New Hebrew 2 - idée fixe.

שׁגע to be mad.