Ma Tovu
Ma Tovu (Hebrew for "O How Good" or "How Goodly") is a prayer in Judaism, expressing reverence and awe for synagogues and other places of worship.
The prayer begins with Numbers 24:5, where Balaam, sent to curse the Israelites, is instead overcome with awe at God and the Israelites' houses of worship. Its first line of praise is a quote of Balaam's blessing and is thus the only prayer commonly used in Jewish services that was written by a non-Jew. The remainder of the text is derived from passages in Psalms relating to entering the house of worship and preparation for further prayer (Psalms 5:8; 26:8; 95:6; and 69:14). In this vein is the prayer recited by Jews upon entering the synagogue; in the Western Ashkenzic rite, it is usually sung before beginning Maariv on Festivals, especially the second night of Yom Tov.
Text
[edit]| Hebrew מַה טֹּבוּ אֹהָלֶיךָ, יַעֲקֹב; מִשְׁכְּנֹתֶיךָ, יִשְׂרָאֵל | Romanization Ma tovu ohalekha Ya'akov, mishk'notekha Yisra'el. | English translation How lovely are your tents, O Jacob; your encampments, O Israel! |
Musical settings
[edit]In modern times various composers have developed musical settings for Ma Tovu including:
References
[edit]- ^ Samuel Adler - Works" Ma Tovu on samuelhadler.com
- ^ "Strassburg, Robert". WorldCat. Retrieved 10 November 2022.
- ^ Ma Tovu (2018)