PIKESVILLE, Maryland — The two words of the Friday night poem/song “Shalom Aleichem” are a traditional Jewish greeting, meaning “may you have peace.” The poem has the reciters and singers greet angels and ask them for blessings of peace and protection.
It was written by one or more unknown Kabbalist poets of Safed, Israel, in the late 16th or early 17th century. It is based on a legend in the Talmud Shabbat 119b. Two angels, one righteous and good and one bad-tempered and evil, accompany a person home from the synagogue on Friday night. The poem welcomes these angels and wishes them peace on Shabbat, a day of rest, when one is free from the burdens of daily work. It also gives thanks for all the benefits God has provided.
According to the talmudic legend, if the home is prepared for Shabbat with a beautiful table and peaceful atmosphere, the good angel says, “May it be the same next week,” and the evil angel has to agree. However, if the home is not prepared, the evil angel says, “Let it be the same next week,” and the good angel is forced to agree. The legend is designed to encourage Jews to have a perfect Shabbat. It is also practically true. It will continue to be joyful if you develop a habit of joy, but if you do the reverse, the result will be bad.
The well-known melody for Shalom Aleichem was composed by my grandmother’s family, my mother’s mother’s family, in 1918. The family lived in New York. My great-uncle, the composer, was Rabbi Israel Goldfarb, after whom I was named. It was published that year as “Sholom Aleichem” in “Friday Evening Melodies” by my great uncles, Rabbi Israel Goldfarb and his brother, Samuel.
A popular three-stanza English translation
Peace be with you, ministering angels
Angels of the Most High
From the King of Kings
The Holy One, blessed be He.
Come with peace, angels of peace
Angels of the Most High
From the King of Kings
The Holy One, blessed be He.
Bless me with peace, angels of peace
Angels of the Most High
From the King of Kings
The Holy One, blessed be He.
Go in peace, angels of peace
Angels of the Most High
From the King of Kings
The Holy One, blessed be He.
My translation
Greetings, helpers
Objects from the Magnificent,
From the world’s ruler,
Who is unique, inimitable,
And full of blessings.
Come with peace, helpers.
Objects from the Magnificent,
From the world’s ruler,
Who is unique, inimitable,
And full of blessings.
Bring blessings, helpers.
Objects from the Magnificent,
From the world’s ruler,
Who is unique, inimitable,
And full of blessings.
Go in peace, helpers.
Objects from the Magnificent,
From the world’s ruler,
Who is unique, inimitable,
And full of blessings.
Comments
Maimonides was convinced that God needed no helpers. He felt, and I agree, that there were no angels. We can still use the term to describe everything God provided to the earth and its inhabitants, such as rain, snow, and sun.Maimonides does not list the Shabbat and holidays. All four that I mentioned and thousands more are helpful items from God. Therefore, I translated “ministering angels” as “helpers” and “helpful objects.”
The original describes God as “the Most High.” This could refer to God dwelling in heaven. However, as mentioned in Exodus 33:21-23, humans cannot know the details about God. So, we do not know where God is located. Furthermore, we do not want to think God is restricted to a particular place. Therefore, I understood the term as a figure of speech referring to God being what is Magnificent.
I treated “king of kings” as a figure of speech denoting the world’s ruler.
“Holy” is not something supernatural. It means “separate” and “different.” God is “holy” because God is unlike any other thing. The Torah tells Jews to be a “holy people,” meaning different than people who misbehave. Accordingly, I translated “Holy One” as “unique, inimitable,” to reflect this understanding.
The mystic or mystics who wrote this poem may have believed in angels. I see the poem referring to the divine gift of the Shabbat and the other gifts that God gave the world. The poem expresses the joy and thankfulness Jews feel at the onset of Shabbat for the presents God gave us.
The mystics enjoyed Shabbat so much that they considered Shabbat a foretaste of the world to come. Rational Jews agree that Shabbat can be a wonderful and enjoyable time if properly observed.
*
Rabbi Dr. Israel Drazin is a retired brigadier general in the U.S. Army Chaplain Corps and the author of more than 50 books.
