Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi said:
Whoever is engrossed in Perek Shirah in this world,
will merit to learn, teach, observe, perform, and fulfill;
and his Torah learning will remain with him,
he will be rescued from the Evil Inclination,
from an evil occurance, from jostling in the grave,
from the judgment of Gehenna, and from the birthpangs of Mashiach.
And he will live long and merit to live
in the days of Mashiach and to the life of the World to Come.
Chapter One
Song of Heaven, Earth, and their Legions
Rabbi Eliezer said, "If man's hearts were not stopped up and their eyes sealed, they would be unable to bear the sound of the melodies coming from the solar sphere when it glorifies and praises HaShem!"
שָׁמַיִם אוֹמְרִים - Heavens Say...
Tehillim 19:2
הַשָּׁמַיִם מְסַפְּרִים כְּבוֹד-אֵל וּמַעֲשֵׂה יָדָיו מַגִּיד הָרָקִיעַ
hashamayim mesaprim kevod-Kel umaase yadav magid harakia
The heavens declare the glory of G-d, and the firmament proclaims His handiwork.
King David declares that the glory of G-d is revealed in His world in two ways:
1. by looking closely at the wonders of the world that He created.
2. and through Torah.
He makes it known, in fact, that the glory of G-d can be discerned more by reading through the Torah than by peering at the sun and the moon and the host of heaven.
Chazal teach that when at the Creation of the sun was first established in its orbit, it raised is voice in sweet melody and sang, "Give thanks to HaShem, proclaim His Name, declare His doings among the peoples" (Yeshayahu 12:4).
To what can this be compared?
Similarly, "The heavens declare the glory of G-d; and the firmament proclaims His handwork."
A man was passing through a forest and beheld a house. He went inside and found a table set with beautiful dishes that were arranged in a most orderly pattern. He spent a few moments in the house and expressed a great desire to dine. But he departed in the meantime, and when he returned, he found the table covered with a great variety of foods. So he was certain that someone lived in that house, although he could not be seen.
Similarly, "The heavens declare the glory of G-d; and the firmament proclaims His handwork."
"Raise your eyes on high and see Who created these!"
(Yeshayahu 40:26)
