I call out upon Your name

Elia bar Shemaiah of Bari

10th or 11th Century

I call upon Your name; I awake to hold on to You. With the wee-hour vigil I arrive early, I wake the dawn.

I approach the ark to speak choice words.

I formulate my thoughts precisely, moving the doors of my lips.

This is my sign that He hears me, that Shaddai will

answer me. Where is there a worthy petitioner, where a

ftting one, who can say, “I have purifed my heart, and my deeds are truth;

I am innocent of crime, and my hands have acted purely”?

Repay the guilty with goodness, not with extermination.

May prayer be considered as a sacrifice, supplication as a pleasing ofering.

Straighten your bent-over people, so their heads will rise.

Let no sins be found, whether hidden or open.

Be a fortress for those who trust in You, when there is distress.

Do not expose the wandering ones, like sheep gone ast ray.

Collect my tears in your wineskin; I moisten my bed with them.

My strength is in You, O my strength, my refuge.

Open up, let me out, release Your captives to freedom.

They cry to You, knock on Your door, call upon You in distress, with supplication.

Robbers have robbed them, and the wicked surround the righteous.

O great One, O Judge, why do You keep Your face hidden?

The mobs that arise against You—crush and exterminate them!

Always give wondrous kindness to those who know Your secrets.

Please restore the wandering ones, gather in the exiles,

raise the lowly to be high and bring up those that are down.

Let the nations say, “The Lord has acted so greatly,

for the destroyed place has become like paradise, the demolished built up with fortifications.”

Rescue those who trust in You, who fee to take refuge in Your shelter.

Take heed of their persecution—this is for You to do.

Listen to the crushed ones, look upon their spirit as it faints.

May their words be favorable, their spirit that they pour out.

Give strength and might to the faltering, bring them out of their weakness—

O maker of the mountains and creator of the wind, who tells people their speech (Amos 4:3)!¹

Translated by Gabriel Wasserman.

Notes

[God sees everything and therefore can report back to anyone everything that person had ever said.—Trans.]

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 3: Encountering Christianity and Islam.

I call out upon Your name

Notes

You may also like

Language:

Places:

Subjects:

You may also like

I call out upon Your name

Notes

You may also like

Language:

Places:

Subjects:

Creator Bio

You may also like