תהלים, פרק פ״ה, פסוק ה׳

Following an expression of gratitude for past redemptions, the focus shifts from looking backward to pleading for the future. The speaker steps forward as the voice of a nation enduring the hardships of exile. The primary approach among commentators is that this plea is directed at the final and ongoing exile. Just as God performed miracles to redeem the Israelites in the past, such as the historic return to build the Second Temple, He is now asked to provide relief and rest from the current turmoil [אבן עזרא, מצודת דוד, מאירי].

This request for restoration carries a dual meaning. The people ask both that God return His presence to them and that He physically bring them back from their scattered exile [רש״י, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. By addressing God specifically as the source of their salvation, the nation highlights a core belief. They recognize that their rescue depends entirely on Him, for He alone has the power to save them and no one else can take His place [רד״ק].

The prayer concludes with a request for a complete and absolute end to divine anger [רד״ק, ביאור שטיינזלץ, מאירי]. It is a plea to wipe away the wrath that has clung to the Israelites for so many years [רד״ק, מאירי]. This request for a total cancellation of anger serves as a mirror to how God withdrew His fury in the past, expressing the hope that He will do so once again [אבן עזרא].