אֲזַי בְּבׇגְדִי | Azai b-Vagdi — a seliḥah for 17 Tammuz (translation by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer)

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1 July 2026 under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) 4.0 International copyleft license

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11th century C.E., 49th century A.M., acrostic, phonetic alphabetic acrostic translation, Alphabetic Acrostic, פיוטים piyyuṭim, סליחות səliḥot, Three Weeks of Mourning

Recited in many Sefaradi and other non-Ashkenazi rites for the seventeenth of Tammuz, this piyyuṭ, like many 17 Tammuz seliḥot, has a stanza for each of the five tragedies discussed in the mishnah. It is here included alongside an acrostic translation.

Note: “The CAUSE” is used to translate the Divine Name YHVH, based on the philosophical idea of God as the Prime Mover and on the interpretation of the Name as a causative form of the copula – “causes to be.” This translation also uses the plural pronouns They/Their/Them to refer to God as a pluralis majestatis, and to avoid the implications of God being assigned a gender. (Find Ibn Ezra’s commentary on Genesis 1:1 for a discussion of the pluralis majestatis when referring to God.) All divine referents (pronouns, epithets, names) are rendered in unicase.

Source (Hebrew)	Translation (English)
אֲזַי בְּבׇגְדִי אִמְרֵי דָּר מְעוֹנִי בְּהִשְׂתָּרֵג עֲוֺנִי הִכְבִּיד עֻלִּי מוֹנִי גָּבַר עָלַי צָר בְּמַהֲלֹם לְהׇלְמֵֽנִי אַפּ֤וֹ טָרַ֨ף ׀ וַֽיִּשְׂטְמֵ֗נִי׃	As I betrayed the words of my Dweller on High, Bent in iniquity, my yoke from my rebuker heavied. Gloating over me, the foe shocked me in a shock. His wrath tore me and opposed me. (Job 16:9)
דְּרָכָיו זָנַֽחְתִּי אֲשֶׁר לִי הוֹרָה הֵן עַל־כֵּן הֵעִיר בִּי אַף וְזַֽעַם וְעֶבְרָה זַעְמוֹ בִּי הֵרִיק וְחִצָּיו בִּי יָרָה וַיְקִימֵ֥נִי ל֗֝וֹ לְמַטָּרָֽה׃	Deserting Their paths which were taught me, Earned that Their roused at me wrath, rage, and anger. Zealously, Their rage drawn, Their arrows shot at me. And Their set me up to be Their target. (Job 16:12)
חָלְפוּ עָלַי בְּיוֹם זֶה חָמֵשׁ תְּלָאוֹת טָרְפוּ חַיָּתִי וַיְשִׂימֽוּנִי לְמַשּׁוּאוֹת יָגְעָה נַפְשִׁי יָגֹֽעַ וְהַלְאוֹת נַעֲוֵ֣יתִי מִשְּׁמֹ֔עַ נִבְהַ֖לְתִּי מֵרְאֽוֹת׃	Hardships fivefold passed by me on this day, Tearing my flesh, they set me as wastes. Jaded and weary is my wearied soul, Too knotted to hear, too disturbed to see. (Isaiah 21:3)
כׇּל־אֵֽלֶּה בְּזׇכְרִי יְעוֹרְרֽוּנִי אֲנָחוֹת לֶהָבָה הֱשִׂיקַֽתְנִי מְלַהֶֽטֶת כֶּֽסֶל וְטוּחוֹת מִסְפֵּד מַר אַגְדִּיל וְאַרְחִיק שְׂמָחוֹת כִּי בְיוֹם זֶה נִשְׁתַּבְּרוּ הַלּוּחוֹת׃	Cognizant of all these, I am awakened by groans. Lapping flames burning my loins and kidneys. Mourning I bitterly increase, distancing from joys. For on this day, the tablets were shattered.
נוֹעַד עָלַי צָר וַהֲמוֹנָיו הִצְמִיד סַבּֽוּנִי כַמַּֽיִם וְטָבַֽעְתִּי וְאֵין מַעֲמִיד עַל כֵּן אֲיֵלִיל בְּמוֹ־פִי וְנֶֽהִי אַתְמִיד כִּי בְיוֹם זֶה בֻּטַּל הַתָּמִיד׃	Nemesis mine, joined with his crowds, aimed at me, Surrounding me like water, I drowned and none raised me. On that, I wail in my mouth and persist in weeping, For on this day, the daily-offering ceased.
פּוֹשְׁחַי הָֽמוּ כַּהֲמוֹת זֶֽרֶם מִיכַל צָמְתוּ בַבּוֹר חַיַּי וַיִּתְּנֽוּנִי לְמַאֲכָל קָרָא עָלַי מוֹעֵד וַהֲמוֹנַי שָׁכֹל שִׁכַּל כִּי בְיוֹם זֶה הׇעֳמָד צֶֽלֶם בַּהֵיכָל׃	Perforators overwhelmed me with a flowing stream’s force, Exterminating me in a pit, giving me over as carrion, Quoting a festival over me; my crowds were sore bereaved, For on this day, an idol was set up in the Temple.
רַבָּֽתִי עָם צַר הֵצַר וּפְתָחֶֽיהָ פֶּֽתַח הֶעֱרָה שָׁת גַּפְנִי לְשַׁמָּה בְּיוֹם זַֽעַם וְעֶבְרָה תַּאֲוָתוֹ רָאָה צָר וְיָדוֹ בְּעֹז גָּבְרָה כִּי בְיוֹם זֶה שָׂרַף אַפּוֹסְטְמוֹס אֶת־הַתּוֹרָה׃	Rife-With-People^[1] Jerusalem. Find Lamentations 1:1 the foe besieged, her entrances open wide. Shot to waste was my vine^[2] A poetic term for the people Israel on the day of rage and anger. The foe saw their desire and his hand strongly overpowered. For on this day Apostomus burned the Torah.
חָרְקוּ שֵׁן רְשָׁעִים בְּיוֹם אַף יְהֹוָה בִּי הֵעִיר לֹא־חָמַל צַר וְאוֹיֵב עַל־יָשִׁישׁ וְצָעִיר אַפּוֹ בִּי חָרָה וּרְשָׁפָיו בִּי הִבְעִיר כִּי בְיוֹם זֶה הׇבְקְעָה הָעִיר׃	Evil gnashed teeth on the day the Cause’s wrath rose at me. The foe and enemy had no mercy on elder or youth. Their wrath burned at me, Their fires set me aflame. For on this day, the city was breached.
רַחֵם יְהֹוָה וְדַבֵּר עַל־לֵב עֲגוּמִים בְּשִׁבְעָה עָשָׂר לַחֹֽדֶשׁ יוֹשְׁבִים מִשְׁתּוֹמְמִים יָהּ גַּלְגֵּל עֲלֵיהֶם הֲמוֹן רַחֲמֶֽיךָ מִמְּרוֹמִים אֵל מֶֽלֶךְ יוֹשֵׁב עַל כִּסֵּא רַחֲמִים׃	Have mercy, Cause, and speak to the forlorn hearts, On the seventeenth of the month sitting astonished. Yah! Roll upon them Your many mercies from on high! Deity, Sovereign, dwelling on the throne of compassion!^[3] The opening line of the post-seliḥot recitation of the thirteen attributes of God.

Notes

Notes
1	Jerusalem. Find Lamentations 1:1
2	A poetic term for the people Israel
3	The opening line of the post-seliḥot recitation of the thirteen attributes of God.

Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (transcription & naqdanut)

From a family of musicians, Isaac Gantwerk Mayer believes that creative art is one of the most powerful ways to get in touch with the divine. He composes music and poetry in Hebrew and English. (He also translates and authors his own original works.) Isaac runs a Jewish music transcription service, which will transcribe and set any Jewish music in any language, recorded or written. Contact his service on Facebook or via his music blog.

Isaac Gantwerk Mayer (translation)

From a family of musicians, Isaac Gantwerk Mayer believes that creative art is one of the most powerful ways to get in touch with the divine. He composes music and poetry in Hebrew and English. (He also authors his own original works and transcribes Hebrew and Aramaic text, adding niqqud and t'amim as needed.) Isaac runs a Jewish music transcription service, which will transcribe and set any Jewish music in any language, recorded or written. Contact his service on Facebook or via his music blog.

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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו׃ (תהלים צ:יז) · "May the pleasantness of אדֹני our elo’ah be upon us; may our handiwork be established for us — our handiwork, may it be established." (Psalms 90:17)

אֲזַי בְּבׇגְדִי | Azai b-Vagdi — a seliḥah for 17 Tammuz (translation by Isaac Gantwerk Mayer)

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