← Siddur Tehillat Hashem, Weiss Edition / Contents

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pp. 674-675

The Month of Nissan

The Shabbat Before Pesach

HaShabbat Shelifnei Pesach

הַשַּׁבָּת שֶׁלִּפְנֵי פֶּסַח

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Hebrew

רַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר אוֹמֵר: מִנַּיִן שֶׁכָּל
מַכָּה וּמַכָּה שֶׁהֵבִיא
הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא עַל הַמִּצְרִים
בְּמִצְרַיִם הָיְתָה שֶׁל אַרְבַּע
מַכּוֹת,1 שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: יְשַׁלַּח בָּם
חֲרוֹן אַפּוֹ, עֶבְרָה, וָזַעַם, וְצָרָה,
מִשְׁלַחַת מַלְאֲכֵי רָעִים. עֶבְרָה
אַחַת, וָזַעַם שְׁתַּיִם, וְצָרָה
שָׁלֹשׁ, מִשְׁלַחַת מַלְאֲכֵי רָעִים
אַרְבַּע, אֱמֹר מֵעַתָּה: בְּמִצְרַיִם
לָקוּ אַרְבָּעִים מַכּוֹת, וְעַל הַיָּם
לָקוּ מָאתַיִם מַכּוֹת.

Sephardi

Rabbi Eliezer omer: Minayin shekol
makah umakah sheheivi
haKadosh Baruch Hu al haMitzrim
b'Mitzrayim hayetah shel arba
makot,1 shene'emar: Y'shalach bam
charon apo, evrah, vaza'am, v'tzarah,
mishlachat malachei ra'im. Evrah
achat, vaza'am shtayim, v'tzarah
shalosh, mishlachat malachei ra'im
arba, emor me'atah: b'Mitzrayim
laku arba'im makot, ve'al hayam
laku matayim makot.

English

Rabbi Eliezer says: From where do we know that each individual plague that the Holy One, blessed be He, brought upon the Egyptians in Egypt and at the sea consisted of four sub-plagues?1 We learn it from Psalms, where it says regarding the plagues: God sent forth against the Egyptians His fierce anger, fury, rage, misfortune, and a group of messengers of evil. The word "fury" tells us about one sub-plague; the word "rage" makes two; "misfortune" makes three; and "a group of messengers of evil" makes four. Now that you see from the verse that each plague consisted of four sub-plagues, you must say that in Egypt, where the Egyptians were struck by a single finger, they were struck by ten plagues consisting of four each, totaling forty plagues, and at the sea, where they were struck five times that amount by "God's great hand," they were struck by two hundred plagues.

Hebrew

רַבִּי עֲקִיבָא אוֹמֵר: מִנַּיִן שֶׁכָּל
מַכָּה וּמַכָּה שֶׁהֵבִיא
הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא עַל
הַמִּצְרִים בְּמִצְרַיִם הָיְתָה שֶׁל
חָמֵשׁ מַכּוֹת, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: יְשַׁלַּח
בָּם חֲרוֹן אַפּוֹ, עֶבְרָה, וָזַעַם,
וְצָרָה, מִשְׁלַחַת מַלְאֲכֵי רָעִים.
חֲרוֹן אַפּוֹ אַחַת, עֶבְרָה שְׁתַּיִם,
וָזַעַם שָׁלֹשׁ, וְצָרָה אַרְבַּע,
מִשְׁלַחַת מַלְאֲכֵי רָעִים חָמֵשׁ,
אֱמֹר מֵעַתָּה: בְּמִצְרַיִם לָקוּ
חֲמִשִּׁים מַכּוֹת, וְעַל הַיָּם לָקוּ
חֲמִשִּׁים וּמָאתַיִם מַכּוֹת.

Sephardi

Rabbi Akiva omer: Minayin shekol
makah umakah sheheivi
haKadosh Baruch Hu al
haMitzrim b'Mitzrayim hayetah shel
chamesh makot, shene'emar: Y'shalach
bam charon apo, evrah, vaza'am,
v'tzarah, mishlachat malachei ra'im.
Charon apo achat, evrah shtayim,
vaza'am shalosh, v'tzarah arba,
mishlachat malachei ra'im chamesh,
emor me'atah: b'Mitzrayim laku
chamishim makot, ve'al hayam laku
chamishim umatayim makot.

English

Rabbi Akiva says: From where do we know that each individual plague that the Holy One, blessed be He, brought upon the Egyptians in Egypt and at the sea consisted of five sub-plagues? We learn it from Psalms, where it says regarding the plagues: God sent forth against the Egyptians His fierce anger, fury, rage, misfortune, and a group of messengers of evil. The words "His fierce anger" tells us about one sub-plague; the word "fury" makes two; the word "rage" makes three; "misfortune" makes four; and "a group of messengers of evil" makes five. Now that you see from the verse that each plague consisted of five sub-plagues, you must say that in Egypt, where the Egyptians were struck by a single finger, they were struck by ten plagues consisting of five each, totaling fifty plagues, and at the sea, where they were struck five times that amount by "God's great hand," they were struck by two hundred and fifty plagues.

Hebrew

כַּמָּה מַעֲלוֹת טוֹבוֹת לַמָּקוֹם
עָלֵינוּ:

Sephardi

Kamah ma'alot tovot lamakom
aleinu:

English

God has showered upon us so many good things!

Hebrew

אִלּוּ הוֹצִיאָנוּ מִמִּצְרַיִם וְלֹא
עָשָׂה בָהֶם שְׁפָטִים... דַּיֵּנוּ.

Sephardi

Ilu hotzi'anu miMitzrayim v'lo
asah vahem shefatim... Dayeinu.

English

If God had taken us out of Egypt, but had not carried out judgments against the Egyptians and punished them — it would have been reason enough for us to thank Him.

Hebrew

אִלּוּ עָשָׂה בָהֶם שְׁפָטִים וְלֹא
עָשָׂה בֵּאלֹהֵיהֶם... דַּיֵּנוּ.

Sephardi

Ilu asah vahem shefatim v'lo
asah beiloheihem... Dayeinu.

English

If He had carried out judgments against the Egyptians and punished them, but had not destroyed their gods — it would have been reason enough for us to thank Him.

Hebrew

אִלּוּ עָשָׂה בֵּאלֹהֵיהֶם וְלֹא הָרַג
אֶת בְּכוֹרֵיהֶם... דַּיֵּנוּ.

Sephardi

Ilu asah beiloheihem v'lo harag
et b'choreihem... Dayeinu.

English

If He had destroyed their gods, but had not killed their firstborn — it would have been reason enough for us to thank Him.

Hebrew

אִלּוּ הָרַג אֶת בְּכוֹרֵיהֶם וְלֹא נָתַן
לָנוּ אֶת מָמוֹנָם... דַּיֵּנוּ.

Sephardi

Ilu harag et b'choreihem v'lo natan
lanu et mamonam... Dayeinu.

English

If He had killed their firstborn, but had not given us their wealth — it would have been reason enough for us to thank Him.

Hebrew

אִלּוּ נָתַן לָנוּ אֶת מָמוֹנָם וְלֹא
קָרַע לָנוּ אֶת הַיָּם... דַּיֵּנוּ.

Sephardi

Ilu natan lanu et mamonam v'lo
kara lanu et hayam... Dayeinu.

English

If He had given us their wealth during the plague of Darkness, but had not hardened Pharaoh's heart so that he gave chase, leading God to split the sea for us — it would have been reason enough for us to thank Him.

Hebrew

אִלּוּ קָרַע לָנוּ אֶת
הַיָּם וְלֹא הֶעֱבִירָנוּ בְּתוֹכוֹ
בֶּחָרָבָה... דַּיֵּנוּ.

Sephardi

Ilu kara lanu et
hayam v'lo he'eviranu b'tocho
becharavah... Dayeinu.

English

If He had split the sea for us, but had not taken us through it on completely dry land — it would have been reason enough for us to thank Him.

Hebrew

אִלּוּ הֶעֱבִירָנוּ בְּתוֹכוֹ בֶּחָרָבָה
וְלֹא שִׁקַּע צָרֵינוּ בְּתוֹכוֹ... דַּיֵּנוּ.

Sephardi

Ilu he'eviranu b'tocho becharavah
v'lo shika tzareinu b'tocho... Dayeinu.

English

If He had taken us through the sea on completely dry land, but had not drowned our enemies in it — it would have been reason enough for us to thank Him.

Hebrew

אִלּוּ שִׁקַּע צָרֵינוּ בְּתוֹכוֹ וְלֹא
סִפֵּק צָרְכֵּנוּ בַּמִּדְבָּר אַרְבָּעִים
שָׁנָה... דַּיֵּנוּ.

Sephardi

Ilu shika tzareinu b'tocho v'lo
sipek tzarcheinu bamidbar arba'im
shanah... Dayeinu.

English

If He had drowned our enemies in the sea, but had not supplied our needs in the desert for forty years, and we would have had to buy from local merchants — it would have been reason enough for us to thank Him.

Hebrew

אִלּוּ סִפֵּק צָרְכֵּנוּ בַּמִּדְבָּר
אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה וְלֹא הֶאֱכִילָנוּ
אֶת הַמָּן... דַּיֵּנוּ.

Sephardi

Ilu sipek tzarcheinu bamidbar
arba'im shanah v'lo he'echilanu
et haman... Dayeinu.

English

If He had supplied our needs in the desert for forty years, but had not fed us the manna — it would have been reason enough for us to thank Him.