Zeh, You are the God of my praise

Zevadiah

9th Century

Zeh, You are the God of my praise,
my shield and shield of my ancestors.
   Blessed are You, O Lord, shield of Abraham.
Those who trust in You will live by the rains1 of Your heaven.
You bring death and life, and none is like You.
   Blessed are You, O God, who brings life to the dead.
O Prominent One among myriads of gem-likeangels,2
to You the holy ones recite, “Holy!”
   Blessed are You, O Lord, the Holy God.
You gave a day of delight to the nation You acquired, and You commanded its additional [musaf] sacrifices to Moses.
   May we perform and ofer our obligatory sacrifices–the continual daily sacrifices, and the additional sacrifice for the Sabbath.
   Blessed are You, O Lord, who sanctifes the Sabbath.
Bring us double consolation, and may we merit to serve You soon, in accordance with Your will, in Jerusalem.
   Blessed are You, O Lord, whom we serve alone.
Hasten, O Living One, to dwell in our midst, and we will acknowledge You with song, for You are good to us.
   Blessed are You, O Lord, whose name is good, and to whom it is ftting to give acknowledgment.
Erect Your chosen Temple, and give us Your peace, Your goodness, and Your blessing.
   Blessed are You, O Lord, who blesses His people Israel with peace.
Translated by Gabriel Wasserman.

Notes

In summer months, replace with “dew.”

[See Daniel 10:6.–Trans.]

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

Engage with this Source

This is a poem written for the blessings of the Sabbath Amidah (here, in italics). The initial word zeh is literally “this”; here, as frequently in other Hebrew poems, it serves as an epithet for God, based on verses such as Exodus 15:2: “This [zeh] is my God, and I will glorify Him.”

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Creator Bio

Zevadiah

Zevadiah was an Italian paytan (liturgical poet) about whom almost nothing is known. His poems refect early Italian practices and achieved some popularity in Italian rites, though only about ten of them survive. Zevadiah almost always followed the Palestinian, rather than Babylonian, liturgy. In addition to composing poems for the liturgy and festive occasions, Zevadiah also wrote seven penitential poems. Many of the ideas found in his poetry are based on midrashic literature. Scholars have found similarities between the writings of Zevadiah and the writings of his Italian near contemporary, Amittai ben Shefatiah.

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