דברים, פרק כ״ח, פסוק ס״ז

The experience of exile and suffering creates a reality of constant distress, where time itself becomes a source of pain and a person loses every moment of peace. In this harsh physical and psychological state, the tormented individual constantly wishes to be in a different time.

A natural reaction to sickness or severe trouble is to despise the present and hope that time passes quickly [רשב״ם, ביאור יש״ר]. When morning arrives, a person might desperately wish for the evening, feeling that the current day is simply unbearable [ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Filled with anxiety over what the day might bring, they just want it to be over [רש ר הירש]. However, this hope for the future proves completely pointless. When evening finally falls, the situation does not improve, and the cycle repeats as the person begins wishing for the next morning [ביאור יש״ר].

While it is natural to look forward to the end of a hard day, the primary approach among commentators presents a much darker reality. Drawing from Talmudic tradition, they explain that this intense longing is not for the future, but actually for the past. In the morning, the person misses the evening before, and when evening comes, they long for the morning of that very same day [רש״י, תורה תמימה, בכור שור]. This happens because the troubles of exile constantly grow stronger. Every passing hour is worse than the one before it. In such a reality, a person cannot possibly wish for tomorrow, knowing it will likely bring new, unknown disasters. Instead, they desperately crave the past, a time when the suffering was at least slightly less severe [שפתי חכמים, משכיל לדוד, רלב״ג].

This deep despair is fueled by two different but connected sources, one internal and one external. On the inside, the person suffers from severe psychological terror. Even in places where there is no real danger, their heart imagines threats and is completely filled with anxiety [העמק דבר]. On the outside, they are confronted with a horrifying physical reality. They must face terrible sights and navigate actual, present dangers [העמק דבר, רש ר הירש].

Ultimately, all of this suffering is part of the painful reality of exile. The nation will be scattered among other nations, enduring these constantly growing troubles, until they finally return to God and are gathered back together [רלב״ג].