Shabbat Prayers: Psalm of the Shabbat

“To relate Your kindness in the dawn and Your faith in the nights (Psalms 92:3).” It is the faith that we maintained during the long night of the exile that will earn us the merit of the dawn; the Redemption, and will empower us with Divine Inspiration to sing of the dawn as we should.

“As it states, ‘This gate is God’s, the righteous shall enter it (Psalms 118:20).’ Who are the righteous? They are the faithful ones, as it is stated, ‘Open the gates, so that the righteous nation, preserver of the faith, may enter (Isaiah 26:2).” In this gate the faithful ones will enter, as it is stated, ‘It is good to thank God and sing praise to Your Name, Most High. To relate Your kindness in the morning and Your faithfulness in the nights.’ It is written afterward, ‘For You have given me joy, God (Psalms 92:5).’ What caused us to have this joy? The faith, the belief that our forefathers had even in this world which is compared to the night, as it is written, ‘And Your faithfulness in the nights,’ and it is written, ‘But the righteous person shall live through his faith (Habakuk 2:4).’ (Midrash Tanchumah, Beshalach 10)”

We can recite this verse as the week being the night and Shabbat as the light. Our ability to maintain our faith during the week, despite its distractions, empowers us to sing with the full joy of Shabbat.