The Western Wall, or Kotel, is Judaism’s holiest site
“For Zion’s sake I will not be silent and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not be still, until her righteousness emanates like bright light, and her salvation blazes like a torch.”
ISAIAH (62:6)
לְמַעַן צִיּוֹן לֹא אֶחֱשֶׁה וּלְמַעַן יְרוּשָׁלִַם לֹא אֶשְׁקוֹט עַד יֵצֵא כַנֹּגַהּ צִדְקָהּ וִישׁוּעָתָהּ כְּלַפִּיד יִבְעָר
(Transliteration of Hebrew below)
Hebrew Lesson and About the Photo
Liman tzeeon lo echeshe uliman Yerushalayim lo eshkote ad yetzeh kanogah tzeedkah vi’yishoo’ata kilapeed yeevar.
Isaiah uses strong language to describe his persistent concern for Jerusalem. A Hebrew expression that means, roughly, peace of mind is שֶׁקֶט נַפְשִׁי (SHEH-ket nahf-SHEE). It means, literally, quiet of the soul – where the י (yod) ending on the word נֶפֶש (NEH-fesh) turns the noun into an adjective. Here, the Prophet is saying not only will he not be silent, but he wont have peace of mind until righteousness and salvation emanates from Jerusalem. Today’s Hebrew lesson is from Ulpan LaInyan at http://ktzat-ivrit.ulpan.com
About Today’s Photo
Photograph of the Western Wall by Nachman Hellman. The Western Wall, or Kotel, is Judaism’s holiest site. “Jerusalem, the spiritual center and ancient capital of Israel, is mentioned by name some 640 times in the Bible.” According to Jewish tradition, “The Land of Israel is in the center of the world; Jerusalem is in the center of the Land of Israel.” From “The Jerusalem Book of Quotations” by Jack Friedman. http://gefenpublishing.com
Today in Israel’s History
On January 2, 2007, longtime Jerusalem mayor Theodor “Teddy” Kollek passed away at the age of 95. Born near Budapest, Hungary, Kollek’s parents named him after Theodore Herzl. Kollek was mayor of Jerusalem from 1965 to 1993, re-elected five times. During his tenure, Jerusalem went from a divided war-torn city and developed into the bustling, modern city it is today. For his role in building up the Holy City, Kollek was once called, “the greatest builder of Jerusalem since Herod.” In one of his classic quotes on his beloved city, Teddy said, “This beautiful golden city is the heart and soul of the Jewish people. You cannot live without a heart and soul. If you want one simple word to symbolize all of Jewish history, that word would be Jerusalem.” From “The Jerusalem Book of Quotations” by Jack Friedman and “Teddy Kollek. The Man, His Life and His Jerusalem” by Ruth Bachi-Kolodny, http://gefenpublishing.com.