Shemoneh Esrei 2
ה’ שפתי תפתח ופי יגיד תהלתיך – My Master, open my lips, that my mouth may declare Your praise.
We are in the middle of our tefilah and have been moving our lips for quite a while before reaching this point. Why do we need to make this request of Hashem before we begin our Shemoneh Esrei? The Saba from Slabodka teaches us that Shemoneh Esrei is a world unto itself even within the realm of tefilah, and therefore requires a separate request at this point.
The name in this pasuk is written and read as “My Master.” Why is this particular name of Hashem used? Avudraham and Reishis Chochmah write that this name indicates that, not only is Hashem the Master over all creations, but that He is my Master. This is indicated by the letter yud at the end of the title. The same Hashem who created the one to two hundred billion (current scientific estimate) galaxies, each of which contains hundreds of billions of stars (current estimates), each of which averages the size of our Sun (whose volume is large enough to contain over one million earths), is the same Hashem with whom I have a personal relationship and who watches over me with hashgachah pratis, Divine providence. This should also instill in us awe of Hashem’s exaltedness as well as fear and trepidation, and serve as an impetus to focus our minds as we begin the Shemoneh Esrei (Reishis Chochmah).
שפתי תפתח (open my lips) – We request that Hashem assist us in maintaining kavanah, which promotes the (focus) in our Shemoneh Esrei (Rabbeinu Yonah). Rav Tzadok HaKohen explains that this recognition – that everything, including my very ability to speak now (and have kavanah) – is in the hands of Hashem.
Another meaning is that, although we may think we know what is best for us, in fact, only Hashem really knows. We therefore ask Hashem to open our lips to ask for that which will be truly good for us (Pri M’gadim).
ופי יגיד תהלתיך (that my mouth may declare Your praise) – Based on a Zohar, Rav Chaim of Volozhin, in his sefer Nefesh HaChaim, teaches us that the language of הגדה (declaration) indicates something that is hidden. With this Zohar, he explains the pasuk in Amos 4:13 (ומגיד לאדם מה שחו–u’magid l’adam mah seicho) to mean that in the future, at the time of our judgment, Hashem will tell man how his words in this world impacted the upper worlds. This is something that is hidden from us in this world. Every word we speak can have an impact not only on others with whom we interact, but also on the upper worlds, and, ultimately, on everything in our world as well.
The sefer Yalkut Katan uses this Nefesh HaChaim to explain our pasuk. These words were enacted and arranged for us by the Anshei K’neses HaG’dolah (the Men of the Great Assembly: 120 great Elders that included Prophets, Sages, and Scribes) with ruach ha’kodesh. Every Shemoneh Esrei word has great hidden significance and meaning, far beyond what we can fathom. These words can have great impact on the upper worlds and on our world. We therefore ask that we merit that these words of Shemoneh Esrei, which we are about to recite, achieve their intended results in the upper worlds.
Next week we will look at some practical tips for helping us with the significant challenge of maintaining focus during the Shemoneh Esrei.