## Rabbi Sacks on Siddur, Weekdays, Shema before Sleep at Night

###### Rabbi Sacks on Siddur, Weekdays, Shema before Sleep at Night 1
[Rabbi Sacks on Siddur, Weekdays, Shema before Sleep at Night 1](https://torahapp.org/share/book/Rabbi%20Sacks%20on%20Siddur/s/Weekdays,_Shema%20before%20Sleep%20at%20Night/r/1)

**English Edition; Koren Publishers Jerusalem, 2017:**
SHEMA BEFORE SLEEP AT NIGHT
Just as our first words in the morning should be words of prayer, so should our last at night. The night prayers consist of: (1) a prayer for peaceful sleep and a safe awakening, mentioned in the Talmud (*Berakhot*60b); (2) the first paragraph of the Shema, ensuring these words are with us **וּבְשָׁכְבְּךָ** “when we lie down”; (3) Psalm 91, a prayer for protection from danger; (4) Psalm 3, chosen because of its reference to night: “I lie down to sleep and I wake again, for the LORD supports me”; (5) **הַשְׁכִּיבֵֽנוּ** “Help us lie down” – three paragraphs from the evening service; (6) **הַמַּלְאָךְ הַגֹּאֵל אֹתִי** “May the angel who rescued me from all harm,” a series of biblical verses about safety and security; (7) A verse about angels, based on “The LORD’s angel encamps around those who fear Him, and He rescues them” (Psalm 34:8) and “He will command His angels about you, to guard you in all your ways” (Psalm 91:11); (8) Psalm 128, about work, recalling the phrase from Ecclesiastes (5:11), “Sweet is the sleep of one who labors”; (9) **רִגְזוּ וְאַל־תֶּחֱטָאוּ** “Tremble, and do not sin,” from Psalm 4:5, mentioned in the Talmud (*Berakhot* 4b) as an appropriate verse before sleep; and (10) Adon Olam*/*“LORD of the Universe,” said here because of its closing lines with their reference to entrusting our souls and bodies to God’s safekeeping at night.