THE SEVEN BLESSINGS

“And it was, in the morning, that behold it was Leah! So he [Yaakov] said to Lavan: “What is this you have done to me? Was it not for Rachel that I worked for you? Why have you deceived me?” Lavan said, “Such is not done in our place, to give the younger before the elder. Complete the week of this one and we will give you the other one too, for the work you will perform for me yet another seven years.” So Yaakov did so and he completed the week for her [Leah]; and he [Lavan] gave him Rachel his daughter to him as a wife.” (Bereishit 29:25-28)

Yaakov was scandalised by his maltreatment at the hands of Lavan. After working faithfully for seven years for Rachel’s hand in marriage, Lavan substituted Leah for his younger daughter. In the morning following the nuptials, Yaakov confronted his father-in-law and demanded that he give him Rachel. Lavan agreed, on two conditions. Firstly, Yaakov was to wait a week before marrying Rachel. Secondly, he was to work for another seven years for Lavan. Yaakov agreed to both. Why did Lavan demand that Yaakov wait a week before marrying Rachel? Why could he not marry her immediately?

Rashi addresses this question: “Complete the week of this one – The word is in the construct state for it is punctuated with a sheva, so that the meaning is “the seven days of this woman”, referring to the seven days of the marriage feast. Such is the statement in the Talmud Yerushalmi (Moed Katan 1:7).” A couple must celebrate their marriage for seven days following the wedding. During that time they do not work or engage in extraneous activities. Instead, they focus upon one another and the joy of their new union. The Code of Jewish Law  (Even Ha’Ezer 63:1) rules: “A man who marries a maiden must rejoice with her for seven days, during which time he may not do any work nor engage in commerce, but rather he must eat, drink and be happy with her.” It would seem that even in the ancient world, prior to the giving of the Torah, that this was the custom in some places.

Colloquially this week is referred to as sheva brochos, “the seven blessings”, a reference to the benedictions that are recited under the chuppah and at celebratory feasts in the week following the wedding. The Talmud (Ketubot 7b) dates the origin of these blessings to the days of the Judges: “Rabbi Nachman said: Huna bar Natan said to me: How do we derive that the wedding blessings are to be recited in the presence of a minyan? For it states (Ruth 4:2), “And he gathered ten men from the elders of the place and he said: Sit here etc.” The context of that verse is the arranging of the marriage of Boaz to Ruth.  

There is a Midrash (Pirkei D’Rebbi Eliezer chapter 12) that dates the seven blessings to an even earlier event: “The Holy One, blessed be He, made ten wedding canopies for Adam in the garden of Eden. They were all (made) of precious stones, pearls, and gold… The ministering angels were going to and fro and walking before him like friends who guard the wedding canopies, as it is said, “For he shall give his angels charge over you, to keep you in all your ways” (Tehillim 91:11). (The word) “way” here means only the way of bridegrooms. The Holy One, blessed be He, was like a cantor. What is the custom observed by the cantor? He stands and blesses the bride in the midst of her wedding chamber. Likewise the Holy One, blessed be He, stood and blessed Adam and his help-mate, as it is said, “And God blessed them” (Bereishit 1:28).”

The Talmud (Ketubot 7b-8a) provides the exact text for the blessings. There are actually only six in the set.  The seventh is the blessing over the wine. Here are the blessings, with the explanation of Rashi: “What blessings does one recite? Rav Yehuda said: (i) “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, who has created all for His glory”. And (ii) “Blessed are You…Creator of mankind.” And (iii) “Blessed are You…Who made humanity in His image, in the image of the likeness of His form, and out of His very self He formed a building for eternity. Blessed are You, Lord, Creator of mankind.” And (iv) “May the barren city of Jerusalem greatly rejoice and delight with the ingathering of her children within her in joy. Blessed are You, Lord, Who gladdens Zion through her children.” And (v) “Bring great joy to these loving friends, as You gave joy to Your creations in Eden in ancient times. Blessed are You, Lord, Who brings joy to the groom and bride.” And (vi) “Blessed are You, Lord our God, King of the universe, Who has created joy and gladness, groom and bride, delight, exultation, happiness, jubilation, love and brotherhood, and peace and friendship. Soon, Lord our God, may there be heard in the cities of Judea and in the streets of Jerusalem the sound of joy and the sound of gladness, the sound of the groom and the sound of the bride, the joyous sound of grooms from their wedding canopy and of young people from their feast of song (see Jeremiah 33:11). Blessed are You, Lord, Who makes the groom rejoice with the bride.”

Rashi notes that the actual blessings referring to the couple only begin with number three. Blessing two, “Creator of Mankind”, refers to the male alone, whereas blessing three, “and out of His very self He formed a building for eternity” refers to the creation of woman. In Bereishit there are two passages that speak of the creation of mankind. The first speaks of only a single being whereas in the second, a part of the body of the man is removed to form a woman. There the word “build” is used rather than the word “create” or “form.” The fourth blessing, which speaks of Jerusalem, is a fulfillment of the imperative (Tehillim 137), “If I forget you, Jerusalem, may my right hand forget its skill. May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth if I do not remember you, if I do not set Jerusalem above my highest joy.” The fifth blessing is where we pray that the bride and groom will be successful in joy and fullness of heart. The first blessing, “who has created all for His glory”, is “in praise of the assembly of the people gathered there [at the chuppah] to show kindness in remembrance of the kindness of the Omnipresent with Adam the First, who acted as a wedding companion and saw to his nuptials. This assembly is an honor to the Omnipresent, and this blessing was established for that reason”. Rashi notes the subtle difference in endings between blessing five, “who brings joy to the groom and bride” and blessing six, “who makes the groom rejoice with the bride.” He explains: “Since the joy of the fifth blessing is not referring to the joy of marriage, rather it is a prayer, as we pray and bless that they should be happy with success all their days. Therefore, one should not conclude with “May the groom and bride be happy,” as it implies “man with woman,” but rather “Blessed is the Lord who makes both happy forever with provision and all good.” In the final blessing, praise is given to the Holy One, blessed be He, for creating the bond of a man with a woman through joy and happiness. Therefore, it is appropriate to conclude with joy for the groom with the bride, which expresses the happiness of a man with a woman.”

Lee, Chani Merryl & Naomi join me in wishing you Shabbat Shalom!

Rabbi Liebenberg.

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ADDITION TO DAILY PRAYERS FROM THURSDAY NIGHT 4^th DECEMBER:

From Thursday night, 4 December, we begin to recite the phrase, “v’tein tal u’matar l’vracha”, “grant dew and rain as a blessing” in the ninth blessing of the daily Amidah. Although our rainy season has passed, in the Northern Hemisphere where the major Jewish Diaspora was situated in Talmudic times, the winter rains fall at this time of the year.