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Names 1 to 9

The 72 Names · article 2 of 9

The first nine names, from the very first, והו, which Rashi works out letter by letter, to the ninth, with the Psalm verse of each.

These first nine names take their first letter from the beginning of the first verse, in "vayissa malakh haElohim," "the angel of G-d moved"; their second letter from the very end of the second verse, read backwards, in "zeh el zeh kol halaylah"; their third letter from the beginning of the third, "vayet Moshe et yado," "Moses stretched out his hand." The first name, והו, is the one Rashi reconstructs on Sukkah 45a. For each name you have its number, its letters and the verse of Psalms that Sha'arei Tziyon associates with it, in a prayer attributed to the Ari.

1. והו (Vav, Heh, Vav). Psalm 3:4: "But You, Lord, are a shield for me, my glory, the One who lifts up my head."

2. ילי (Yod, Lamed, Yod). Psalm 22:20: "But You, Lord, be not far off; my strength, hasten to help me."

3. סיט (Samekh, Yod, Tet). Psalm 91:2: "I say of the Lord: my refuge and my fortress, my G-d in whom I trust."

4. עלם (Ayin, Lamed, Mem). Psalm 34:16: "The eyes of the Lord are toward the righteous, and His ears toward their cry."

5. מהש (Mem, Heh, Shin). Psalm 80:20: "Lord, G-d of hosts, restore us; make Your face shine and we shall be saved."

6. ללה (Lamed, Lamed, Heh). Psalm 86:3: "Be gracious to me, my Lord, for to You I call all day long."

7. אכא (Alef, Kaf, Alef). Psalm 3:6: "I lay down and slept; I awoke, for the Lord sustains me."

8. כהת (Kaf, Heh, Tav). Psalm 119:75: "I know, Lord, that Your judgments are righteous, and that in faithfulness You afflicted me."

9. הזי (Heh, Zayin, Yod). Psalm 88:15: "Why, Lord, do You cast off my soul, why do You hide Your face from me?"

Sha'arei Tziyon places a warning at the head of this list: do not let these names leave your lips, keep them in thought. What is said is the verse. One may notice that each verse contains the Name of the Lord; the sixth, Psalm 86:3, has Adonai, "my Lord," in its place. Sha'arei Tziyon presents this sequence of seventy-two verses as a prayer of Rabbi Yitzchak Luria, the Ari.

Source text

וְאַתָּה יְהוָה מָגֵן בַּעֲדִי כְּבוֹדִי וּמֵרִים רֹאשִׁי

But You, Lord, are a shield for me, my glory, the One who lifts up my head.

Psalms 3:4, Tanach with Nikkud, Public Domain.

Key terms

HebrewTransliterationMeaning
שם בן ע״בChem ben Ayin Betthe Name of seventy-two
תהליםTehilimthe book of Psalms
במחשבהbemahchavain thought, without uttering

Sources

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In the same section

Where the 72 Names come fromThree verses of 72 letters, read forwards, backwards, then forwards: so 72 names are born, which the tradition keeps for prayer.Names 1 to 9The first nine names, from the very first, והו, which Rashi works out letter by letter, to the ninth, with the Psalm verse of each.Names 10 to 18Names 10 to 18. Two of them share the same letters, לאו, at places 11 and 17: the list counts the place, not only the letters.Names 19 to 27Names 19 to 27. Four of them take their last letter from the Name of the Lord written in the third verse.Names 28 to 36Names 28 to 36: the camp of Israel moves on, cloud and darkness come between, the east wind blows, and each name receives its verse.Names 37 to 45Names 37 to 45. The first, אני, is the one Rabbi Yehudah said around the altar, together with והו, according to the Mishnah and Rashi.Names 46 to 54Names 46 to 54. Name 49 repeats the letters of the very first, והו, with a verse of praise: "Great is the Lord."Names 55 to 63Names 55 to 63: the pillar stands behind Israel, the sea becomes dry land, and the verses speak of the throne, salvation and blessing.Names 64 to 72The last nine names, up to מום, formed from the last letter of the first verse, the first of the second and the last of the third.

And also

Weekly parashaText, Rashi and the Zohar's topics.TehilimThe 150 Psalms in Hebrew and English.Shabbat timesCity by city, through 2027.