Ka Keli

Yah Eili

יה אלי

Visible layers

Most congregations omit the following on days that Yizkor is said. Some also omit on Shabbat.

Hebrew

יָהּ אֵלִי וְגוֹאֲלִי, אֶתְיַצְּבָה לִקְרָאתֶךָ
הָיָה וְיִהְיֶה, הָיָה וְהֹוֶה, כָּל גּוֹי אַדְמָתֶךָ.
וְתוֹדָה וְלְעוֹלָה וְלַמִּנְחָה וְלַחַטָּאת וְלָאָשָׁם
וְלִשְׁלָמִים וְלַמִּלּוּאִים כָּל קָרְבָּנֶךָ.
זְכֹר נִלְאָה אֲשֶׁר נָשְׂאָה וַהֲשִׁיבָה לְאַדְמָתֶךָ
סֶלָה אֲהַלֶּלְךָ בְּאַשְׁרֵי יוֹשְׁבֵי בֵיתֶךָ.

Sephardi

Yah Eili vego'ali, etyatzvah likratecha
hayah veyihyeh, hayah vehoveh, kol goy admatecha.
Vetodah vele'olah velaminchah velachatat vela'asham
velishlamim velamilu'im kol korbanecha.
Zechor nil'ah asher nas'ah vahashivah le'admatecha
selah ahalelcha be'ashrei yoshvei beitecha.

English

LORD my God and Redeemer, I will stand to greet You, [God] who was and will be, was and is, the land of every nation is Yours. The thanksgiving-offering, burnt-offering, meal-offering, sin-offering, guilt-offering, peace-offering and inauguration-offering are all offerings to You. Remember the weary nation that has borne much, and bring it back to Your land. I will always praise You with “Happy are those who dwell in Your House.”

Hebrew

דַּק עַל דַּק, עַד אֵין נִבְדָּק, וְלִתְבוּנָתוֹ אֵין חֵקֶר
הָאֵל נוֹרָא, בְּאַחַת סְקִירָה, בֵּין טוֹב לְרַע יְבַקֵּר.
וְתוֹדָה וְלְעוֹלָה וְלַמִּנְחָה וְלַחַטָּאת וְלָאָשָׁם
וְלִשְׁלָמִים וְלַמִּלּוּאִים כָּל קָרְבָּנֶךָ.
זְכֹר נִלְאָה אֲשֶׁר נָשְׂאָה וַהֲשִׁיבָה לְאַדְמָתֶךָ
סֶלָה אֲהַלֶּלְךָ בְּאַשְׁרֵי יוֹשְׁבֵי בֵיתֶךָ.

Sephardi

Dak al dak, ad ein nivdak, velitvunato ein cheiker
ha'El nora, be'achat sekirah, bein tov lera yevaker.
Vetodah vele'olah velaminchah velachatat vela'asham
velishlamim velamilu'im kol korbanecha.
Zechor nil'ah asher nas'ah vahashivah le'admatecha
selah ahalelcha be'ashrei yoshvei beitecha.

English

Fine beyond fine, undecipherable, His understanding is unfathomable, Awesome God who distinguishes between good and evil with a single glance. The thanksgiving-offering, burnt-offering, meal-offering, sin-offering, guilt-offering, peace-offering and inauguration-offering are all offerings to You. Remember the weary nation that has borne much, and bring it back to Your land. I will always praise You with “Happy are those who dwell in Your House.”

Hebrew

אֲדוֹן צְבָאוֹת, בְּרֹב פְּלָאוֹת, חִבֵּר כָּל אָהֳלוֹ
בִּנְתִיבוֹת לֵב לְבַלְבֵּב, הַצּוּר תָּמִים פָּעֳלוֹ.
וְתוֹדָה וְלְעוֹלָה וְלַמִּנְחָה וְלַחַטָּאת וְלָאָשָׁם
וְלִשְׁלָמִים וְלַמִּלּוּאִים כָּל קָרְבָּנֶךָ.
זְכֹר נִלְאָה אֲשֶׁר נָשְׂאָה וַהֲשִׁיבָה לְאַדְמָתֶךָ
סֶלָה אֲהַלֶּלְךָ בְּאַשְׁרֵי יוֹשְׁבֵי בֵיתֶךָ.

Sephardi

Adon tzeva'ot, berov pela'ot, chiber kol oholo
bintivot lev levalbev, hatzur tamim po'olo.
Vetodah vele'olah velaminchah velachatat vela'asham
velishlamim velamilu'im kol korbanecha.
Zechor nil'ah asher nas'ah vahashivah le'admatecha
selah ahalelcha be'ashrei yoshvei beitecha.

English

Lord of hosts, with many wonders, He joined all His tent, making all blossom in the ways of the heart: the Rock, perfect is His work. The thanksgiving-offering, burnt-offering, meal-offering, sin-offering, guilt-offering, peace-offering and inauguration-offering are all offerings to You. Remember the weary nation that has borne much, and bring it back to Your land. I will always praise You with “Happy are those who dwell in Your House.”

Commentary

יָהּ אֵלִי LORD my God: A poem written as a prelude to Ashrei (“Happy are those who dwell in Your House”), which first appeared in the siddur Sha’ar Hashamayim of R. Isaiah Horowitz (first published by his grandson in Amsterdam, 1717). Those who say it do so on festivals before the Ashrei that precedes Musaf; it is usually omitted on days on which Yizkor is said; some omit it on festivals that fall on Shabbat.

The land of every nation, that is, the whole world, is Yours. The thanksgiving-offering: a list of sacrifices we are commanded to bring, but cannot, since the Temple no longer stands. זְכֹר נִלְאָה Remember the weary nation: a poignant reminder that the Jewish people, suffering and in exile, cannot yet be among those who “dwell in Your House,” that is, the Temple.

דַּק עַל דַּק Fine beyond fine: beyond the reach of our human senses and understanding. בֵּין טוֹב לְרַע יְבַקֵּר Who distinguishes between good and evil: we cannot see God but He sees us; we cannot understand God but He understands us, instantly knowing our devices and desires.

חִבֵּר כָּל אָהֳלוֹ He joined all His tent: God constructed and connected all that exists under the canopy of the heavens. בִּנְתִיבוֹת לֵב לְבַלְבֵּב The ways of the heart: the Hebrew word for heart, lev, also stands for the number thirty-two, which according to the mystical Sefer Yetzira, represents the “thirty-two paths of wisdom” by which the universe was created (the word Elohim appears thirty-two times in the first chapter of the Torah).