תהלים, פרק קי״ט, פסוק י״ז

A plea for life often stems from a basic human instinct to survive or a desire to enjoy the pleasures of the world. Yet, the psalmist's request for life is entirely different. It is driven by a deep, urgent desire to serve God and achieve spiritual perfection. He asks God to grant him goodness and initiate kindness, a request made entirely independent of any past actions that might deserve a reward [מאירי, שטיינזלץ]. Taking this further, this request for kindness can be seen as a plea for a loving response. Because the poet's soul deeply desires the Torah, he hopes God will respond to that love by granting him life [מלבי״ם].

The primary approach among commentators is that this request to live is absolutely conditional. Life is not sought for worldly enjoyment, but solely as a tool to fulfill a divine purpose. Human life is brief, and this shortage of time stands as a major obstacle to reaching spiritual perfection. Therefore, the poet begs that death not interrupt his ability to study and fulfill the Torah [מלבי״ם, מאירי].

This unique relationship is best understood through the dynamic between a master and a servant. Typically, a human master only cares about his servant's life so that the work gets done, while the servant simply wants to stay alive, often avoiding the work itself. The poet, however, presents himself as an extraordinary servant. His desire to live comes exclusively from his desire to serve His Maker [אלשיך].

His promise to actively keep God's word directly follows earlier commitments to never forget the Torah, as putting the teachings into practice is the ultimate completion of remembering them [אבן עזרא]. To achieve this, he specifically needs a natural life in this physical world. It is only in the material world, rather than in the afterlife, that a person can actively perform the Commandments and practically fulfill God's word [אלשיך].