Rabbi Roodyn

ב) ה’ אֲדֹנֵינוּ מָה אַדִּיר שִׁמְךָ בְּכָל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר תְּנָה הוֹדְךָ עַל הַשָּׁמָיִם:

Hashem, our Master, how mighty is Your name in all the earth, for which You should bestow Your majesty upon the heavens.

The Malbim therefore reads the posuk as saying,  Your mighty Name on earth is that which bestows Your majesty in the Heavens. Through His wisdom and capability that is clearly seen through His deeds in this world (namely the complexity and intricacy of all that exists) His majesty can be seen in heaven too.

This can be understood from two perspectives. Firstly it is clear from the Torah that everything that happens in the heavens is a direct result of that which takes place on earth. Even a cursory reading of the second paragraph of the Shema will tell us that rainfall and other resources depend on our actions. It is therefore the earth that gives majesty to the heavens and then receives Hashem’s bounty in return.

Secondly, those who say that the heavens are greater than the earth only do so from a vert narrow perspective, merely by looking at their relative size. Of course we know that the universe is incomprehensibly vast compared to the earth, but there is another way of looking at things. But, says the Malbim, we know from our own human experience that size is not necessarily a determining factor in establishing the value of something. He gives the example of a big clock compared to a minute watch. Of course the big clock or watch is impressive, but when one sees the intricacies  of a minute watch we are far more impressive. We marvel at the watchmaker’s ability to create something so small and intricate, yet so perfect that it functions just as well as something far larger. It takes a far greater level of craftsmanship to fashion a minute item than something far larger.

To bring an example of this idea from just after the Malbim’s lifetime. In 1929, at a time when demand for luxury objects had dwindled because of the international economic crisis, the Manufacture’s watchmakers set themselves the challenge of creating the world’s smallest watch movement. They miniaturised the Duoplan calibre to the limit. The Calibre 101 weighed barely one gram and had 74 parts. Crafted in extremely small quantities, but in continuous production, its record is still unmatched to date. For her coronation in 1953, Queen Elizabeth II of England wore a watch that used this superlative mechanism.

The Malbim applies this principle to the earth as well, as we shall see, G-d willing tomorrow.