I hope to God, let the redeemer come

Aaron Ḥazan

11th to 13th Century

I hope to God, let the redeemer come—
from the tribe of Judah, the stem of Jesse, O God.
Awesome One, please send the angel Michael.
Please fulfll, my Creator, Malachi’s prophecy.
The desired time waits, my soul.
My Rock, remove me from this net
to Mount Moriah, site of the Akedah,
and let Abraham’s ofspring fourish there like a lily.
Plead for mercy, renew repentance,
noble one from above, seek out your King.
My perfect dove, hurry, make haste—
perhaps your Rock will rebuild Ariel.
Most High, hear the cry of the poor.
Reviver of the dead, build your palanquin.
God, described as “living,” will return to Zion
His honored presence, the shoot of his anointed.
Translated by Abigail Denemark Ossip.

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

Engage with this Source

“I hope to God” is the only poem of the otherwise unknown Karaite Aaron Ḥazan. The poem asks for God’s redemption, for both the individual soul and the nation of Israel. The poet plays with the common Neoplatonic imagery of the soul, whose source is the divine, asking to return to God, but instead of seeing this as a reunification with the higher realm, here the soul’s desire is the restoration of the nation and its Temple in the land of Israel. The poem, therefore, deftly blends the individual and national experiences. The poem has an acrostic of the author’s name in the first letters of each stanza. The stanzas are rhymed aaab bbbc, and so on.

Read more

Related Guide

Early Medieval Liturgical Poetry (Piyyut)

7th to 12th Century

Creator Bio

Aaron Ḥazan

11th to 13th Century

Nothing is known about the life or activity of the Karaite poet Aaron Ḥazan (the cantor).

You may also like

Hasten, my Beloved

Hasten, my Beloved, to the tranquil site. If we have wearied You by making our way perverse, Then see, we have been smitten by every painful hurt. But You, O Lord, are our refuge and our hope. In You…
View Source

Bless the Lord, O my soul

Bless the Lord, O my soul, And all my inner being bless His holy name! My soul, move in strength, And bless your Rock. Lay your prayer before Him, Pour out your thoughts in His presence. Awake from…
View Source

To you I will reveal

And the Lord said to Moses: To you I will reveal God’s hidden wonders.  Prepare well to meet your God and be pleased in the third month after the Israelites left. My nation will shine with the…
View Source

Remember the covenant of Abraham

Remember the covenant of Abraham, and the binding of Isaac, and restore the captivity of Jacob’s tents, and rescue us, for Your own sake! We perished from the good Land, hastily. The days have…
View Source

To You I call out

To You I call out, O formidable and awesome One. Do not hide Your face, such that You not see our distress, when cursed people attack us, when they come together to take foolish counsel. They…
View Source