Baruch El Elyon is a piyyut attributed to Baruch ben Samuel of Mainz (– 1221).[1] The poem is acrostically signed "BaRUCH HaZaQ".[2] Among Ashkenazic communities, it is a traditional zemer for Shabbat lunch. Though one manuscript lists it at the end of the order for the Sabbath, Israel Isserlein (1390-1460) already sang it on Sabbath morning.[3] [4]
The poem's theme is singing praises to God, who gave complete physical and mental rest to his people. The payytan describes the joy of Shabbat and its dignity, which is glorified with delicious food and festive clothes, the enormous reward that the keeper of the Sabbath will receive both now and in heaven, the powerful human experience of the Sabbath, the feelings it evokes, and the importance of Shabbat to God.
According to the piyyut, the Sabbath breaks the natural routine of the weekdays and in the process elevates the Jew to another level. The piyyut also recalls that God will redeem his people because of the Sabbath: "Yohanan said that Shimon ben Yochai said, 'If Israel kept two Shabbats appropriately, we would immediately be redeemed'".[5]
The piyyut contains seven verses, each four lines with 12 syllables per line.[6] The first and last verses rhyme on an ABABABAB pattern, while the middle five verses follow an ABABABCD pattern, where C rhymes with A (4x) or B (1x) and D rhymes with the first verse.[7] One 13th-century manuscript of Machzor Vitry contains verses 1, 2, and 4, spelling ברך.[8] One 14th-century fragment includes verses 6-7.[9] Another manuscript of Machzor Vitry contains all seven verses.[10] MS Schocken 22, a machzor for the Jews of Corfu, also includes the piyyut.[11]
| Hebrew Original | English translation | |
|---|---|---|
| Blessed be El Elyon, who gave rest To our bodies, release, relief, and uplift. He seeks Zion, the abandoned city, How long will you aggrieve this sad soul? The Sabbath observer, male or female, is pleasing to god like meal on the pan. | ||
| Rider on the eves, eternal king, His people to rest, he seeks delicacies. With sweet foods, variety of dishes, With glorious clothing, a family feast. The Sabbath observer . . . | ||
| Happy are all who wait for doubled reward From the all-seeing cloud dweller. He will inherit mountain and valley, Inheritance and rest like the sun rises just for him! The Sabbath observer . . . | ||
| All who protect the Sabbath properly from desecrators, Preparation by reverence for the Holy is their lot. And if he completes the day's obligations, praise him, To God who made him, a meal-offering is sent. The Sabbath observer . . . | ||
| My god, my Rock, called it the best of days, And praised be the pure ones if it is protected. A jeweled crown he'll set on their heads, The spirit of the Eternal Rock will rest on them. The Sabbath observer . . . | ||
| Recall the Sabbath day and sanctify it, His pride raised, a diadem on his head. Therefore does man give to his body, joy and happiness, by which to be anointed. The Sabbath observer . . . | ||
| Holy to you is the Sabbath queen, Into your houses, to grant blessing. In all your dwellings, do not do melakha, Even your children and your servants. The Sabbath observer . . . |
An early alternative version of the last verse is found in NLI Ms. Heb. 8°844, a 15th-century Sephardic siddur, where it is marked as a "pizmon for Shabbat Hagadol". The piyyut mentions the commandment to eat matza and the Exodus.