Lord, open thou my lips, and my mouth shall declare thy praise. 1 Blessed art thou, O Lord our God and God of our fathers, God of Abraham, God of Isaac, and God of Jacob, the great, mighty and revered God, the most high God, who bestowest lovingkindnesses, and possessest all things; who rememberest the pious deeds of the patriarchs, and in love wilt bring a redeemer to their children's children for thy name's sake.
During the Ten Days of Penitence say:–
Remember us unto life, O King, who delightest in life, and inscribe us in the book of life, for thine own sake, O living God.
O King, Helper, Saviour and Shield.(18/1- Blessed art thou, O Lord, the Shield of Abraham.) 2 Thou, O Lord, art mighty for ever, thou quickenest the dead, thou art mighty to save,
From the Eighth Day of Solemn Assembly until the First Day of Passover say:–
(18/2-Thou causest the wind to blow and the rain to fall )
Thou sustainest the living with lovingkindness, quickenest the dead with great mercy, supportest the falling, ( 18/2- healest the sick ), loosest the bound, and keepest thy faith to them that sleep in the dust. Who is like unto thee, Lord of mighty acts, and who resembleth thee, O King, who killest and quickenest, and causest salvation to spring forth?
During the Ten Days of Penitence say:–
Who is like unto thee, Father of mercy, who in mercy rememberest thy creatures unto life?
Yea, faithful art thou to quicken the dead. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who quickenest the dead. * 3 Thou art holy, and thy name is holy, and holy beings praise thee daily. (Selah.) Blessed art thou, O Lord, the holy God.
During the Ten Days of Penitence conclude the Blessing thus:–
the holy King.
4 Thou favorest man with knowledge, and teachest mortals understanding. O favor us with knowledge, understanding and discernment from thee. Blessed art thou, O Lord, gracious Giver of knowledge. 5 Cause us to return, O our. Father, unto thy Law; draw us near, O our King, unto thy service, and bring us back in perfect repentance unto thy presence. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who delightest in repentance. 6 Forgive us, O our Father, for we have sinned; pardon us, O our King, for we have transgressed;
On Fast Days Selichoth are inserted here.
for thou dost pardon and forgive. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who art gracious, and dost abundantly forgive. 7 Look upon our affliction and plead our cause, and redeem us speedily for thy name's sake; for thou art a mighty Redeemer. Blessed art thou, O Lord, the Redeemer of Israel.
On Fast Days the Reader here says “Answer us,” etc., page 61 , and concludes thus–
Blessed art thou, O Lord, who answerest in time of trouble. 8 Heal us, O Lord, and we shall be healed; save us and we shall be saved; for thou art our praise. Vouchsafe a perfect healing to all our wounds; [] for thou, almighty King, art a faithful and merciful Physician. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who healest the sick of thy people Israel. 9 Bless this year unto us, O Lord our God, together with every kind of the produce thereof, for our welfare; give a blessing During the Winter Season [*] substitute for the last sentence:
Give dew and rain for a blessing upon the face of the earth.
upon the face of the earth. O satisfy us with thy goodness, and bless our year like other good years. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who blessest the years. 10 Sound the great horn for our freedom; lift up the ensign to gather our exiles, and gather us from the four corners of the earth. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who gatherest the banished ones of thy people Israel. 11 Restore our judges as at the first, and our counsellors as at the beginning; remove from us grief and suffering; reign thou over us, O Lord, thou alone, in lovingkindness and tender mercy, and justify us in judgment. Blessed art thou, O Lord, the King who lovest righteousness and judgment.
During the Ten Days of Penitence conclude the Blessing thus:–
the King of Judgment. 12 And for slanderers let there be no hope, and let all wickedness perish as in a moment; let all thine enemies be speedily cut off, and the dominion of arrogance do thou uproot and crush, cast down and humble speedily in our days. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who breakest the enemies and humblest the arrogant. 13 Towards the righteous and the pious, towards the elders of thy people the house of Israel, towards the remnant of their scribes, towards . the proselytes of righteousness, and towards us also may thy tender mercies be stirred, O Lord our God; grant a good reward unto all who faithfully trust in thy name; set our portion with them for ever, so that we may not be put to shame; for we have trusted in thee. Blessed art thou, O Lord, the stay and trust of the righteous. 14 And to Jerusalem, thy city, return in mercy, and dwell therein as thou hast spoken; rebuild it soon in our days as an everlasting building, and speedily set up therein the throne of David. [] Blessed art thou, O Lord, who rebuildest Jerusalem. 15 Speedily cause the offspring of David, thy servant, to flourish, and let his horn be exalted by thy salvation, because we wait for thy salvation all the day. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who causest the horn of salvation to flourish. 16 Hear our voice, O Lord our God; spare us and have mercy upon us, and accept our prayer in mercy and favor; for thou art a God who hearkenest unto prayers and supplications: from thy presence, O our King, turn us not empty away; [] for thou hearkenest in mercy to the prayer of thy people Israel. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who hearkenest unto prayer. 17 Accept, O Lord our God, thy people Israel and their prayer; restore the service to the oracle of thy house; receive in love and favor both the fire-offerings of Israel and their prayer; and may the service of thy people Israel be ever acceptable unto thee.
On New Moon and the Intermediate Days of Passover and Tabernacles the following is added:–
Our God and God of our fathers! May our remembrance rise, come and be accepted before thee, with the remembrance of our fathers, of Messiah the son
of David thy servant, of Jerusalem thy holy city, and of all thy people the house of Israel, bringing deliverance and well-being, grace, lovingkindness and mercy, life and peace on this day of
On Passover–
the Feast of Unleavened Bread.
On New Moon say–
the New Moon.
On Tabernacles–
the Feast of Tabernacles.
Remember us, O Lord our God, thereon for our well-being; be mindful of us for blessing, and save us unto life: by thy promise of salvation and mercy, spare us and be gracious unto us; have mercy upon us and save us; for our eyes are bent upon thee, because thou art a gracious and merciful God and King.
And let our eyes behold thy return in mercy to Zion. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who restorest thy divine presence unto Zion. 18 We give thanks unto thee, for thou art the Lord our God and the God of our fathers for ever and ever; thou art the Rock of our lives, the Shield of our salvation through every generation. We will give thanks unto thee and declare thy praise for our lives which are committed unto thy hand, and for our souls which are in thy charge, and for thy miracles, which are daily with us, and for thy wonders and thy benefits, which are wrought at all times, evening, morn and noon. O thou who art all-good, whose mercies fail not; thou, merciful Being, whose lovingkindnesses never cease, we have ever hoped in thee.
On Chanukah and Purim the following is added:–
We thank thee also for the miracles, for the redemption, for the mighty deeds and saving acts, wrought by thee, as well as for the wars which thou didst wage for our fathers in days of old, at this season.
On Chanukah.
In the days of the Hasmonean, Mattathias son of Johanan, the High Priest, and his sons, when the iniquitous power of Greece rose up against thy people Israel to make them forgetful of thy Law, and to force them to transgress the statutes of thy will, then didst thou in thine abundant mercy rise up for them in the time of their trouble; thou didst plead their cause, thou didst judge their suit, thou didst avenge their wrong; thou deliveredst the strong into the hands of the weak, the many into the hands of the few, the impure into the hands of the pure, the wicked into the hands of the righteous, and the arrogant into the hands of them that occupied themselves with thy Law: for thyself thou didst make a great and holy name
[p. 64]
in thy world, and for thy people Israel thou didst work a great deliverance and redemption as at this day. And thereupon thy children came into the oracle of thy house, cleansed thy temple, purified thy sanctuary, kindled lights in thy holy courts, and appointed these eight days of Chanukah in order to give thanks and praises unto thy great name.
On Purim.
In the days of Mordecai and Esther, in Shushan the capital, when the wicked Haman rose up against them, and sought to destroy, to slay and make to perish all the Jews, both young and old, little children and women, on one day, on the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar, and to take the spoil of them for a prey,–then didst thou in thine abundant mercy bring his counsel to nought, didst frustrate his design, and return his recompense upon his own head; and they hanged him and his sons upon the gallows.
For all these things thy name, O our King, shall be continually blessed and exalted for ever and ever.
During the Ten Days of Penitence say:–
O inscribe all the children of thy covenant for a happy life.
And everything that liveth shall give thanks unto thee for ever, and shall praise thy name in truth, O God, our salvation and our help. Blessed art thou, O Lord, whose name is All-good, and unto whom it is becoming to give thanks. 19 Grant peace, welfare, blessing, grace, loving kindness and mercy unto us and unto all Israel, thy people. Bless us, O our Father, even all of us together, with the light of thy countenance for by the light of thy countenance thou hast given us, O Lord our God, the Law of life, lovingkindness and righteousness, blessing, mercy, life and peace; and may it be good in thy sight to bless thy people Israel at all times and in every hour with thy peace.
During the Ten Days of Penitence say:–
In the book of life, blessing, peace and good sustenance may we be remembered and inscribed before thee, we and all thy people the house of Israel, for a happy life and for peace. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who makest peace. Blessed art thou, O Lord, who blessest thy people Israel with peace.
O my God! guard my tongue from evil and my lips from speaking guile; and to such as curse me let my soul be silent, yea, let my soul. be unto all as the dust. Open my heart to thy Law, and let my soul pursue thy commandments. If any design evil against me, speedily make their counsel of none effect, and frustrate their designs. Do it for the sake of thy name, do it for the sake of thy right hand, do it for the sake of thy holiness, do it for the sake of thy Law. In order that thy beloved ones may be delivered, O save with thy right hand, and answer me. Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable before thee, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer. He who maketh peace in his high places, may he make peace for us and for all Israel, and say ye, Amen.
May it be thy will, O Lord our God and God of our fathers, that the temple be speedily rebuilt in our days, and grant our portion in thy Law. And there we will serve thee with awe, as in the days of old, and as in ancient years. Then shall the offering of Judah and Jerusalem be pleasant unto the Lord, as in the days of old, and as in ancient years.
