28 Nov REVITALIZING OUR DAVENING – PART NINETEEN

In the fourteenth blessing
of the Shemone Esrei,
we focus on the city of
Yerushalayim. We must
know as Jews that the most
beautiful and important
city in the world is not New
York City, Los Angeles,
Dubai, Paris, Boca Raton,
or even the Bahamas. It is
unequivocally the glorious
city of Yerushalayim. This is the meaning of
what the posuk testifies in Yechezkeil [5:5], that
Yerushalayim is the center of the earth.
The Yaros Devash teaches us that Yerushalayim
is called Kisei Hashem, the Throne of Hashem.
Thus, the Gemora teaches us, Yerushalayim
lo nishalka lashevatim, Yerushalayim was not
given as a portion to any of the tribes, for it is
the city of Hashem. It is a miraculous city, as
the Mishna testifies in the fifth perek of Pirkei
Avos: When all of Yisroel came up for the
three festivals, not one of the myriads of guests
ever said, ‘It was too cramped for me to stay in
Yerushalayim during those jam-packed days.’
This bracha is one of the few in Shemone Esrei
that starts with the letter vav. Vli’Yerushalayim
Iracha – And to Yerushalayim Your City.” The
Otzar HaTefilos explains that it is connected
to the previous blessing about the tzadikim.
It indicates that the ultimate success of the
righteous is reached only when Yerushalayim

will be reestablished. As the posuk in
Tehillim testifies, [122:6], “Sha’alu sh’lom
Yerushalayim, yishlayu ohavo’yich – Ask for
the peace of Yerushalayim and then your loved
ones will find tranquility.”
The Eitz Yosef has another thought about the
vav. The Gemora teaches us vav l’rabos, a vav
comes to include, and this vav comes to include
Yerushalayim shel maalah, the Yerushalayim in
the Heavens, and that it too should be rebuilt.
We then ask b’rachamim tashuv, that Hashem
should return to Yerushalayim in His mercy.
This request is based on the pasuk in Zechariah,
[1:16], “Shavti l’Yerushalayim b’rachamim –
I (Hashem) will return to Yerushalayim with
mercy.” The Siddur Mefuresh elaborates that
the Gemora in Sanhedrin [98a] teaches us, “Ein
ben Dovid ba ela b’dor she’kulo zakai, o kulo
chayav – The descendant of Dovid will not
come except to a generation that is completely
meritorious or to a generation that is all
guilty.” We therefore beseech Hashem that it
should be the former, that everyone should do
teshuva, repent, as it says, “Bonei Yerushalayim
Hashem, nidchei Yisroel yichaneis – Hashem
will rebuild Yerushalayim, and those that were
cast away will come back.” Hashem should
rebuild Yerushalayim in a state of mercy rather
than in a state of anger because everyone is
guilty.
Then we say, “V’sishkon b’sochah ka’asher
dibarta – And You should dwell in it as You have

foretold.” The Eitz Yosef explains it means to
dwell in Yerushalayim as Hashem promised in
Zechariah , “Veshochanti b’soch Yerushalem,
The prayer contimues, u’venei osah b’karov
byameinu banyan olam – And You should build
it soon in our days, an everlasting building.”
It is interesting that in the past, Hashem said,
V’asu li mikdash v’shochanti b’socham, first
make me a sanctuary, and then I will dwell in
your midst. Here, we ask the reverse. First,
v’sishkon b’socha, Hashem should dwell among
us and then u’venei, and only then He should
build. I believe the explanation is as follows. In
the past, we did the building. Therefore, first
we made the residence for Hashem and only
then did Hashem come to reside there. But
hopefully soon, Hashem is going to rebuild
Yerushalayim, so therefore we ask that He
should come, and then rebuild. It also follows
that since Hashem will be doing the building,
that’s why we say binyan olam, an everlasting
building, for, as the Zohar testifies [in Vayeirah
14], when Hashem builds it Himself, it will
never be destroyed. As the Kad HaKemach
quotes form Yirmiyah [31:39], when Hashem
does the building, lo yinateish v’lo yehareis,
it will never be uprooted and it will never be
overturned.
We next beseech b’karov b’yameinu, soon
in our days, that we should merit to live to
see this glorious time. The Arugas HaBosem
gives another beautiful meaning to the word

b’yameinu, with our days. He explains that
we are asking Hashem that He should build
Yerushalayim and the Beis HaMikdash with
the merit of the mitzvos and good deeds of our
days. As we teach our children in Beis Yaakov,
every mitzvah is a brick which will help to
rebuild the Beis HaMikdash.
We conclude the blessing, V’chisei Dovid
m’heirah l’socha tachin – And then the throne of
the Davidic king should speedily be established
(in Yerushalayim). For once the Throne of
Hashem is reinstituted, we can then pray for the
throne of Dovid to be founded.
In the merit for our hoping and praying for this
glorious time, may Hashem bless us with long
life, good health, happiness, and the coming of
Moshiach speedily in our days.