R. Altschuler saw that the study of
Tanakh, Hebrew Bible, had become weak among European Jews and even among scholars. Believing that the reason for this was the lack of a sufficiently simple and clear commentary, he wrote his commentary "Metzudat David" to fit this need. The commentary covers all Neviim and Ketuvim except for Ruth, Lamentations, and Esther. It is principally based on the commentary of
Radak, but includes ideas from many other previous commentators. According to the
Hida, these sources include
Rashi,
Ibn Ezra,
Ralbag,
Moshe Alshich,
Saadiah Gaon and
Ramban. The commentary was published in
Zhovkva in 1753, and later published a second time before his death. David's son
Yechiel Hillel Altschuler also served as rabbi of Yavoriv, and finished his father's great work, and traveled extensively in Europe in order to publish and spread it. David published the commentary as one work, but Yechiel divided it into two works:
Metzudat David which explains the meaning of the verses, and
Metzudat Tzion which explains individual words and phrases. The two works are collectively known as the
Metzudot. In time the
Metzudot became one of the basic commentaries on Neviim and Ketuvim, printed in most editions of the Hebrew Bible with commentators. See . ==References==