תהלים, פרק פ׳, פסוק י״ב

The image of a thriving vine captures the magnificent expansion of the Israelites at the height of their power, illustrating both their geographical reach and spiritual influence. Like a flourishing plant extending far and wide [מצודת ציון], the nation grew in distinct stages. Its growth is compared to mature, hardened branches representing a solid, established presence [רד"ק, מאירי], or alternatively, to fresh new extensions [שטיינזלץ]. Beneath these are the tender, year-old shoots branching directly from the roots, drawing nourishment much like nursing infants [רד"ק, אבן עזרא, מצודת ציון, שטיינזלץ].

The primary approach among commentators is that this massive botanical growth serves as a metaphor for the physical borders of the Land of Israel. The western spread reaches the Great Sea, or the Sea of the Philistines, marking the length of the territory from the Red Sea [אבן עזרא, רד"ק, מאירי]. The eastern expansion stretches across the desert all the way to the Euphrates River [רש"י, רד"ק, אבן עזרא, מצודת דוד, שטיינזלץ]. This vast territory reflects the ancient promise of a nation ruling from sea to sea and from the river to the ends of the earth [מלבי"ם].

In contrast to this broad geographical view, another perspective limits the growth of the vine strictly to the inner borders of holiness. According to this view, the nation did not spread into foreign, impure lands, but remained safely within the Land of Israel. Consequently, the eastern boundary is not the distant Euphrates, but the closer Jordan River. The subtle direction of this eastern growth points to the two and a half tribes who settled across the Jordan. While they lived outside the central hub of holiness, they acted as the tender shoots of the vine, constantly drawing their spiritual life and nourishment directly from the heart of the land [אלשיך].