A Version of the Kedushah from the Land of Israel

The Kedushah, which is recited as part of the daily Tefillah, is an embellished dramatic recitation of two scriptural verses that represent the angelic praise of God as heard by the prophets Isaiah and Ezekiel in their consecration visions: Holy! Holy! Holy! Adonai of hosts! His glory fills all the earth! (Isaiah 6:3) and Blessed be the glory of Adonai from his place! (Ezekiel 3:12). Psalm 146:10, which proclaims God’s eternal reign, is joined to these verses in all versions. In the rite of the land of Israel, the first and last verses of the daily Shema‘ recitation (Deuteronomy 6:4; Numbers 15:41), as well as (usually) Psalm 8:10 and Zechariah 14:9, which also acclaim God’s universal sovereignty, are added before Psalm 146:10.

In the land of Israel, by at least the fifth century, when it was embellished by liturgical poets (paytanim), the Kedushah was recited only in the morning service on Sabbaths and festivals; in Babylonia, it was recited daily in the morning and afternoon services and, on Sabbaths, festivals, and new moons, in the additional (Musaf) service as well. The separate recitation of the Kedushah was outfitted with a brief introduction setting the scene and transitional phrases between the several verses. The prose versions of the introduction and transitions are barely represented in the Cairo Geniza materials, where they are mostly replaced by more elaborate poetic versions. This version from the land of Israel is a hypothetical reconstruction of a prose version based on these Geniza materials as well as allusions to and abbreviations of the prose traditions in the poetic versions.