יִגְדַּל (אשכנז)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (rhyming translation by Ben Zion Bokser, 1957)

Contributor(s):

Aharon N. Varady (transcription), Ben-Zion Bokser and Daniel ben Yehudah Dayyan

Shared on:

12 March 2021 under the Creative Commons Zero (CC 0) Universal license a Public Domain dedication

Categories:

Arvit l'Shabbat, Morning Baqashot

Tags:

doctrinal, יגדל yigdal, rhyming translation, statements of belief, זמירות zemirot, פיוטים piyyutim, 15th century C.E., 53rd century A.M.

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Source (Hebrew)	Translation (English)
יִגְדַּל אֱלֹהִים חַי וְיִשְׁתַּבַּח נִמְצָא וְאֵין עֵת אֶל מְצִיאוּתוֹ.‏	O let us come, the living God adore, He is, He was, He will be ever more.
אֶחָד וְאֵין יָחִיד כְּיִחוּדוֹ נֶעְלָם וְגַם אֵין סוֹף לְאַחְדּוּתוֹ.‏	His Oneness is a thing of mystery, No man can fathom his true unity.
אֵין לוֹ דְמוּת הַגּוּף וְאֵינוֹ גּוּף לֹא נַעֲרֹךְ אֵלָיו קְדֻשָּׁתוֹ.‏	He is without a body’s form or frame, No mortal lips His essence can proclaim.
קַדְמוֹן לְכָל דָּבָר אֲשֶׁר נִבְרָא רִאשׁוֹן וְאֵין רֵאשִׁית לְרֵאשִׁיתוֹ.‏	He reigned before this teeming world was wrought, He was when all this world as yet was naught.
הִנּוֹ אֲדוֹן עוֹלָם לְכָל נוֹצָר יוֹרֶה גְּדֻלָּתוֹ וּמַלְכוּתוֹ.‏	Our God created every living thing, All creatures owe their love to Him, their King.
שֶׁפַע נְבוּאָתוֹ נְתָנוֹ אֶל אַנְשֵׁי סְגֻלָּתוֹ וְתִפְאַרְתּוֹ.‏ לֹא קָם בְּיִשְׂרָאֵל כְּמֹשֶׁה עוֹד נָבִיא וּמַבִּיט אֶת תְּמוּנָתוֹ.‏	He pours on men His prophecies sublime, But none have seen like Moses in his time.
תּוֹרַת אֱמֶת נָתַן לְעַמּוֹ אֵל עַל יַד נְבִיאוֹ נֶאֱמַן בֵּיתוֹ.‏ לֹא יַחֲלִיף הָאֵל וְלֹא יָמִיר דָּתוֹ לְעוֹלָמִים לְזוּלָתוֹ.‏	The Law that God ordained is ever true, It needs no changing; it is ever new.
צוֹפֶה וְיוֹדֵעַ סְתָרֵינוּ מַבִּיט לְסוֹף דָּבָר בְּקַדְמָתוֹ.‏	Our God discerns the promptings of the heart, He knows the deeds we do before they start.
גּוֹמֵל לְאִישׁ חָסִיד כְּמִפְעָלוֹ נוֹתֵן לְרָשָׁע רָע כְּרִשְׁעָתוֹ.‏	The noble man is blessed by a noble life, The fruit of evil is unending strife.
יִשְׁלַח לְקֵץ יָמִים מְשִׁיחֵנוּ לִפְדּוֹת מְחַכֵּי קֵץ יְשׁוּעָתוֹ.‏	Our God will grant our deepest hope for peace, Messiah’s reign will make all hatreds cease.
מֵתִים יְחַיֶּה אֵל בְּרֹב חַסְדּוֹ בָּרוּךְ עֲדֵי עַד שֵׁם תְּהִלָּתוֹ׃	The soul of man is an immortal flame, Let us forever praise God’s eternal name.

This is the philosophical-creed-as-piyyut, Yigdal, by Daniel ben Judah Dayyan. Yigdal means “Magnify [O Living God]” and is based on the 13 Articles of Faith formulated by Maimonides (1135-1204). Daniel ben Judah spent eight years improving his piyyut, completing Yigdal in 1404. This was not the only metrical presentment of the 13 Articles of Faith; but it has outlived all others, whether in Hebrew or in the vernacular.

The translation appearing here is as found on page 205 of the HaSiddur (“The Prayer Book,” 1957), compiled by Ben Zion Bokser. He adds the following commentary:

The Yigdal hymn is a versified summation of the thirteen principals of the creed of Judaism, as enunciated by Moses Maimonides. These are: God‘s eternity; His unity; His incorporeality; that He created the universe in time; that it is incumbent upon us to worship Him; that He revealed His truth to certain chosen spirits, the prophets; that the primacy of Moses among the prophets; that the Torah is true; that it will not be abrogated in favor of another faith; that God knows the future; that He rewards and punishes those who transgress His will; the belief in the coming of the Messiah; immortality for the departed.

Source(s)

. Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication . 1.0 . Universal .

“יִגְדַּל (אשכנז)‏ | Yigdal, by Daniel ben Yehudah (rhyming translation by Ben Zion Bokser, 1957)” is shared through the Open Siddur Project with a Creative Commons Public Domain Dedication 1.0 Universal license.

Aharon N. Varady (transcription)

Aharon Varady (M.A.J.Ed./JTSA Davidson) is a volunteer transcriber for the Open Siddur Project. If you find any mistakes in his transcriptions, please let him know. Shgiyot mi yavin; Ministarot naqeni שְׁגִיאוֹת מִי־יָבִין; מִנִּסְתָּרוֹת נַקֵּנִי "Who can know all one's flaws? From hidden errors, correct me" (Psalms 19:13). If you'd like to directly support his work, please consider donating via his Patreon account. (Varady also translates prayers and contributes his own original work besides serving as the primary shammes of the Open Siddur Project and its website, opensiddur.org.)

Ben-Zion Bokser

Ben Zion-Bokser was born in Lubomi, Poland, and emigrated to the United States at the age of 13 in 1920. Bokser heard Rabbi Abraham Isaac Kook speak in New York in 1924 and became an avid student and great proponent of his teachings. Bokser attended City College of New York (BA, 1928) and Rabbi Isaac Elhanan Theological Seminary (Yeshiva University), followed by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America (ordained, 1931) and Columbia University (PhD, 1935). He taught for many years as an Adjunct Professor of Political Science, Queens College, City University of New York. His first pulpit was Congregation Beth Israel in Vancouver. He served as the rabbi of Forest Hills Jewish Center in Queens, New York starting in 1933 and remained in that position for the balance of his career, more than fifty years. He served a two-year period as a United States Army chaplain during World War Two, stationed at Camp Miles Standish in Massachusetts. During WWII, he organized aid for Jewish soldiers. Bokser was an advocate of social justice, taking a position in favor of the construction of a housing project for the poor in the middle class community of Forest Hills. He fought against the death penalty in NY state.

Daniel ben Yehudah Dayyan

Daniel ben Yehudah Dayyan was a Jewish liturgical poet, who lived at Rome in the middle of the fourteenth century CE. He was the grandfather of Daniel ben Samuel ha-Rofe, rabbi at Tivoli. According to Samuel David Luzzatto, Daniel ben Yehudah was the author of the well-known piyyut "Yigdal" containing a doxology based upon the thirteen articles of belief of Maimonides. This piyyut, which forms part of the morning prayer among the Ashkenazim, and is sung by the Sephardim on the eve of Sabbaths and holy days, is included in the Romaniote ritual for Saturday evening. (adapted from wikipedia)

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Melody of Yigdal hymn as per Myer Lyon

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ויהי נעם אדני אלהינו עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננה עלינו ומעשה ידינו כוננהו "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