Welcoming the Sabbath
Each of the following stanzas is recited first by the Congregation and then by the Reader:
“Observe” and “Remember,” in a single command, the One God announced to us. The Lord is One, and his name is One, for fame, for glory and for praise.
Come, my friend, to meet the bride; let us welcome the Sabbath.
Come, let us go to meet the Sabbath, for it is a source of blessing. From the very beginning it was ordained; last in creation, first in God’s plan.
Come, my friend, to meet the bride; let us welcome the Sabbath.
Shrine of the King, royal city, arise! Come forth from thy ruins. Long enough have you dwelt in the vale of tears! He will show you abundant mercy.
Come, my friend, to meet the bride; let us welcome the Sabbath.
Shake off your dust, arise! Put on your glorious garments, my people, and pray: “Be near to my soul, and redeem it through the son of Jesse, the Bethlehemite.”
Come, my friend, to meet the bride; let us welcome the Sabbath.
Bestir yourself, bestir yourself, for your light has come; arise and shine! Awake, awake, utter a song; the Lord’s glory is revealed upon you.
Come, my friend, to meet the bride; let us welcome the Sabbath.
Be not ashamed nor confounded. Why are you downcast? Why do you moan? The afflicted of my people will be sheltered within you; the city shall be rebuilt on its ancient site.
Come, my friend, to meet the bride; let us welcome the Sabbath.
Those who despoiled you shall become a spoil, and all who would devour you shall be far away. Your God will rejoice over you as a bridegroom rejoices over his bride.
Come, my friend, to meet the bride; let us weleome the Sabbath.
Shamor v'Zachor refers to the talmudic explanation of the discrepancy between the two versions of the fourth commandment. In Exodus 20:8 the text reads: “Remember the Sabbath day,” and in Deuteronomy 5:12: “Observe the Sabbath day.” According to the Talmud (Shebuoth 20b), both words, Zachor and Shamor, were miraculously pronounced by God simultaneously.
