Tehillim 81 | “If Only My People Would Listen to Me”

This psalm, which we know today as the 'Shir shel Yom' for Thursday, was likely used as a prayer and hymn on Rosh Hashanah, or perhaps even more broadly, on every Rosh Chodesh. The opening of the psalm calls the people to raise a shout, sing, play music, and sound the ram's horn in honor of God on the Rosh Chodesh. The psalm continues and describes how God saved Israel from Egypt, followed by a warning that echoes the Ten Commandments: “Let there be no strange god among you; do not bow to an alien god. I am the Lord your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt.” (81:10-11) Then comes the conditional promise – if the people heed God’s voice, He will subdue our enemies and send us abundance. If not, “So I left them to their stubborn hearts.” (81:13)

We might understand this psalm as being recited in a time of hardship, when the people struggled to offer praise to God even on Rosh Chodesh. The poet pleads with them: “If only My people would listen to Me, if Israel would walk in My ways” (81:14) — everything depends on us. If we would only serve God, we would merit salvation. Alternatively, it may have been recited in a time of salvation, in which case the poet calls on the people to correct the mistakes of the Exodus from Egypt, back then too, they were redeemed, but they quickly forgot what redemption required from them. This time, the poet pleads, let the people remain faithful to God.