תהלים, פרק י״ג, פסוק א׳

A desperate cry from the depths of distress opens the prayer, an urgent plea for God not to forget the sufferer or hide His face. Such divine abandonment is typically experienced as a punishment for those who sin [מלבי״ם].

There are two main ways to understand the background of this plea. On a personal level, these are the words of King David during a time of intense hardship while being hunted by his enemies [רד״ק]. In this vulnerable state, there is a deep concern that if he is not rescued from these enemies, onlookers might mistakenly conclude that God has forgotten him or is unaware of his situation [אבן עזרא].

Beyond the personal struggle, the primary approach views this prayer through a national lens, serving as the collective voice of the people enduring the bitter reality of exile [רד״ק]. This suffering and the resulting cries to God are part of a historical cycle of measure for measure. Because God previously called out twice that the people anger Him and lack faith in Him, the nation is destined to cry out four times throughout their oppression under foreign empires. Yet, this specific division into four cries, corresponding to the four exiles of Babylon, Media, Greece, and Edom, was actually done out of kindness. Recognizing that the people could not bear the full severity of two destructions at once, God mercifully divided the two great hardships into four different periods of oppression, which form the foundation of this heartfelt prayer [אלשיך].