The zemer that ends the Friday night meal, sung immediately before the grace after meals — and in fact it is a compressed version of that grace, saying the same four things in four stanzas. Everyone at the table knows the refrain, which returns after each stanza and is the same nine words every time. That is not laziness: the refrain is what lets a table of people who do not read Hebrew sing along for five minutes, and it is why this is the first zemer most guests learn.
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♪ TuningE A D G B E
Key: Am · 3 chords used ·Am · Dm · E
92 BPM · 4/4 · sung at the end of the Friday night meal, immediately before the grace after meals · four stanzas, each answered by the same refrain · to reset the chord panel:
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The Rock, of whose food we have eaten — bless Him, my faithful ones!
שָׂבַעְנוּ
sa-va-NU
we are satisfied
וְהוֹתַרְנוּ
ve-ho-tar-NU
and we have left over
כִּדְבַר
kid-VAR
as the word of
יְהֹוָה
a-do-NAY
the LORD
|E|Am|
We are satisfied and we have food to spare, as the LORD said.
Two lines that will come back four times. מִשֶּׁלּוֹ (mi-she-lo) literally means "of that which is His": what was eaten was never the host's. And וְהוֹתַרְנוּ (ve-ho-tar-nu) — leaving food over — is not politeness but a quotation, from the story of Elisha and the twenty loaves in Kings, where the miracle is the leftovers.
Therefore we give thanks to His name and praise Him with our mouths,
אָמַרְנוּ
a-mar-NU
we said
וְעָנִינוּ
ve-a-ni-NU
and we answered
אֵין
ein
there is none
קָדוֹשׁ
ka-DOSH
holy
כַּיהֹוָה
ka-do-NAY
like the LORD
|E|Am|
saying and answering: there is none holy like the LORD.
צוּר
tzur
rock
מִשֶּׁלּוֹ
mi-she-LO
of that which is His
אָכַלְנוּ
a-chal-NU
we have eaten
בָּרְכוּ
bar-CHU
bless! (2mp)
אֱמוּנַי
e-mu-NAI
my faithful ones
שָׂבַעְנוּ
sa-va-NU
we are satisfied
וְהוֹתַרְנוּ
ve-ho-tar-NU
and we have left over
כִּדְבַר
kid-VAR
as the word of
יְהֹוָה
a-do-NAY
the LORD
|AmDm|EAm|
The Rock, of whose food we have eaten — bless Him, my faithful ones! We are satisfied and we have food to spare, as the LORD said.
The first of the four blessings of the grace after meals, in four lines: the one who feeds. רוֹעֵנוּ (ro-e-nu) and אָבִינוּ (a-vi-nu) sit side by side — shepherd and father — and the poem does not choose between them. כַּיהֹוָה (ka-do-nay) is a phrase from Hannah's prayer in Samuel, dropped in without introduction, which is how these poems work.
With song and the sound of thanksgiving we will bless our God,
עַל
al
for
אֶרֶץ
E-retz
a land
חֶמְדָּה
chem-DA
desirable
טוֹבָה
to-VA
good
שֶׁהִנְחִיל
she-hin-CHIL
that He gave as inheritance
לַאֲבוֹתֵינוּ
la-a-vo-tei-NU
to our ancestors
|Am|E|
for a desirable land, a good one, that He gave our ancestors to inherit;
מָזוֹן
ma-ZON
food
וְצֵדָה
ve-tze-DA
and provision
הִשְׂבִּיעַ
his-BI-a
He has satisfied
לְנַפְשֵׁנוּ
le-naf-she-NU
our soul
|Dm|Am|
food and provision He has given our soul its fill,
חַסְדּוֹ
chas-DO
His kindness
גָּבַר
ga-VAR
prevailed
עָלֵינוּ
a-lei-NU
over us
וֶאֱמֶת
ve-E-met
and the truth of
יְהֹוָה
a-do-NAY
the LORD
|E|Am|
His kindness has prevailed over us, and the LORD's truth.
צוּר
tzur
rock
מִשֶּׁלּוֹ
mi-she-LO
of that which is His
אָכַלְנוּ
a-chal-NU
we have eaten
בָּרְכוּ
bar-CHU
bless! (2mp)
אֱמוּנַי
e-mu-NAI
my faithful ones
שָׂבַעְנוּ
sa-va-NU
we are satisfied
וְהוֹתַרְנוּ
ve-ho-tar-NU
and we have left over
כִּדְבַר
kid-VAR
as the word of
יְהֹוָה
a-do-NAY
the LORD
|AmDm|EAm|
The Rock, of whose food we have eaten — bless Him, my faithful ones! We are satisfied and we have food to spare, as the LORD said.
The second blessing: for the land. חַסְדּוֹ (chas-do) and וֶאֱמֶת (ve-e-met) are the pair that runs through the psalms, kindness and truth, and the last line is Psalm 117 almost word for word — the shortest psalm in the book, folded into a table song.
Have mercy in Your kindness on Your people, our Rock,
עַל
al
upon
צִיּוֹן
tzi-YON
Zion
מִשְׁכַּן
mish-KAN
the dwelling of
כְּבוֹדֶךָ
ke-vo-de-CHA
Your glory
זְבוּל
ze-VUL
the abode of
בֵּית
beit
the house of
תִּפְאַרְתֵּנוּ
tif-ar-te-NU
our splendour
|Am|E|
on Zion, the dwelling of Your glory, the abode of our house of splendour;
בֶּן
ben
the son of
דָּוִד
da-VID
David
עַבְדֶּךָ
av-de-CHA
Your servant
יָבֹא
ya-VO
may he come
וְיִגְאָלֵנוּ
ve-yig-a-le-NU
and redeem us
|Dm|Am|
may the son of David Your servant come and redeem us,
רוּחַ
RU-ach
the breath of
אַפֵּינוּ
a-pei-NU
our nostrils
מְשִׁיחַ
me-SHI-ach
the anointed of
יְהֹוָה
a-do-NAY
the LORD
|E|Am|
the breath of our nostrils, the anointed of the LORD.
צוּר
tzur
rock
מִשֶּׁלּוֹ
mi-she-LO
of that which is His
אָכַלְנוּ
a-chal-NU
we have eaten
בָּרְכוּ
bar-CHU
bless! (2mp)
אֱמוּנַי
e-mu-NAI
my faithful ones
שָׂבַעְנוּ
sa-va-NU
we are satisfied
וְהוֹתַרְנוּ
ve-ho-tar-NU
and we have left over
כִּדְבַר
kid-VAR
as the word of
יְהֹוָה
a-do-NAY
the LORD
|AmDm|EAm|
The Rock, of whose food we have eaten — bless Him, my faithful ones! We are satisfied and we have food to spare, as the LORD said.
The third blessing: for Jerusalem. רוּחַ (ru-ach) and אַפֵּינוּ (a-pei-nu) — the breath of our nostrils — is from Lamentations, where it describes the captured king, and here it is turned toward a king not yet come. A phrase written in defeat, reused as a hope.
May the Temple be rebuilt, may the city of Zion be filled,
וְשָׁם
ve-SHAM
and there
נָשִׁיר
na-SHIR
we will sing
שִׁיר
shir
a song
חָדָשׁ
cha-DASH
new
וּבִרְנָנָה
u-vir-na-NA
and with rejoicing
נַעֲלֶה
na-a-LE
we will go up
|Am|E|
and there we will sing a new song, and go up with rejoicing;
הָרַחֲמָן
ha-ra-cha-MAN
the merciful one
הַנִּקְדָּשׁ
ha-nik-DASH
the holy one
יִתְבָּרַךְ
yit-ba-RACH
may He be blessed
וְיִתְעַלֶּה
ve-yit-a-LE
and be exalted
|Dm|Am|
may the Merciful One, the Holy One, be blessed and exalted,
עַל
al
over
כּוֹס
kos
a cup of
יַיִן
YA-yin
wine
מָלֵא
ma-LE
full
כְּבִרְכַּת
ke-vir-KAT
as the blessing of
יְהֹוָה
a-do-NAY
the LORD
|E|Am|
over a full cup of wine, according to the blessing of the LORD.
צוּר
tzur
rock
מִשֶּׁלּוֹ
mi-she-LO
of that which is His
אָכַלְנוּ
a-chal-NU
we have eaten
בָּרְכוּ
bar-CHU
bless! (2mp)
אֱמוּנַי
e-mu-NAI
my faithful ones
שָׂבַעְנוּ
sa-va-NU
we are satisfied
וְהוֹתַרְנוּ
ve-ho-tar-NU
and we have left over
כִּדְבַר
kid-VAR
as the word of
יְהֹוָה
a-do-NAY
the LORD
|AmDm|EAm|
The Rock, of whose food we have eaten — bless Him, my faithful ones! We are satisfied and we have food to spare, as the LORD said.
The last stanza brings the poem back to the table it is being sung at: כּוֹס (kos), יַיִן (ya-yin), מָלֵא (ma-le) — a full cup of wine, which is the cup of the grace after meals, sitting in front of whoever is leading. The poem ends by pointing at the object in the room.
♫ Singing notes
The refrain is everything. If you learn nine words of this song, learn צוּר (tzur) through יְהֹוָה (a-do-nay), and you can join any Friday night table in the country.
The verses are usually taken by one or two people who know them; the whole table comes in on the refrain. Leave a clear breath before it so people know it is coming.
Around 92 BPM, and it does not accelerate. This one is sung sitting down, at the end of a long meal.
Three chords carry it. Am for the openings, Dm and E for the turns, back to Am for every refrain.
♦ About this song
It is the grace after meals in miniature
The four stanzas match the four blessings of Birkat HaMazon in order: the one who feeds, the land, Jerusalem, and the closing blessing. It is sung immediately before the real thing, which makes it a rehearsal and a summary at once.
Anonymous
The poem carries no acrostic naming its author and no attribution in the manuscripts, which is unusual for a zemer of this period — Dror Yikra names Dunash, Yah Ribon names Najara. This one arrived without a signature and is generally dated to the fourteenth century or thereabouts.
Quotation as method
Almost every line closes on a phrase from the Tanakh, and the phrases are not marked as quotations. Elisha's leftovers, Hannah's prayer, Psalm 117, Lamentations. A listener who knows the sources hears a second poem underneath the first, and a listener who does not still gets a complete one.
Hebrew: Siddur Ashkenaz, Shabbat, Shabbat Evening, Zemirot for Shabbat Evening, Tzur Mishelo · The Metsudah siddur, 1981 · CC-BY, via Sefaria, pinned in this repo at content/songs/source/012.json.
English gloss lines authored for this site; the source translation is used as raw material only. Transliteration generated by this site's own engine (assets/translit.js).