Unlike the morning Shacharis and afternoon Mincha services which correspond to the two daily communal sacrifices (Tamid), offered in the Temple, one in the morning and one in the afternoon, the evening Maariv service has no counterpart in the Temple service, since sacrifices were never brought at night in the Temple. The Maariv service was instituted to correspond to the Temple ritual of keeping on the altar the unconsumed parts of sacrifices that had been offered earlier in the day. These parts were kept on the altar at night so that they could be completely consumed by its fire. This ritual was applicable only if there actually were uncon- sumed parts of offerings. Although the Maariv service was instituted to correspond to this ritual, and may therefore seem to be non-obligatory (see Maseches Berachos 27b), Rabbeinu Yitzchak Alfasi and all the other codifiers have ruled that Maariv has been accepted and hallowed by custom, and is therefore an obligatory service. The Shema is preceded by two blessings and followed by two other blessings.

And He, the Merciful One, atones iniquity; and does not destroy. He frequently withdraws His anger and does not arouse all His rage.¹ Midrash Tanchuma (Pinchos 13) notes that the morning sacrifice (תמיד של שחר) atoned for sins committed during the night, while the afternoon sacrifice (תמיד של בין הערבים) atoned for sins committed during the day. Since the evening service does not represent Temple sacrifice, it became customary to recite this verse because it mentions that God “atones iniquity.”—Avudraham Adonoy, deliver [us!] The King will answer us on the day we call.²

footnotes: ¹ Psalms 78:38. This verse consists of thirteen Hebrew words. It recalls the “thirteen attributes of Divine mercy” (Exodus 34:67). In the evening when man pauses from the rush of his daily activities, he is conscious of having sinned during the day, and thus begins his prayer with this appeal for Divine mercy.—Machzor Vitry ² Psalms 20:10.

The Chazzan says:

Bless Adonoy Who is blessed.

The congregation responds and the Chazzan repeats:

Blessed is Adonoy, Who is blessed forever and ever.

Blessed are You, Adonoy, our God, King of the Universe, With His word He brings on evenings, with wisdom He opens the gates³ (of heaven); and with understanding changes⁴ the times and alternates the seasons, and arranges the stars in their watches,⁵ in the sky, according to His will. He creates day and night, He rolls the light away from before darkness, and darkness from before light; He causes day to pass and brings night, and separates between day and night; Adonoy of Hosts⁶ is His Name. The Almighty, [Who is] living and enduring will always reign over us forever and ever. Blessed are You, Adonoy, Who brings on evening.

footnotes: ³ These are the gates of sunrise and sunset through which God, in His infinite wisdom, has divided life on earth into two complementary halves.—Rabbi S.R. Hirsch ⁴ He alternates the three daily periods—evening, morning, and afternoon.—Avudraham ⁵ The stars appear as watchmen appointed by God to stand guard over the sleeping world below. He also appointed them their places in definite orbits, according to His will, and for purposes known to Him alone.—S.R. Hirsch ⁶ His Name, ה’ צבאות, means “He Who takes all the infinite variety of hosts and creatures and unites them to act and interact as parts of one unified Universe.”—S.R. Hirsch

[With] An everlasting love⁷ You loved the House of Israel, Your people. Torah and commandments, statutes and laws, You taught us. Therefore, Adonoy, our God, when we lie down and when we rise, we will discuss Your statutes, and rejoice in the words of the teachings of Your Torah and in Your commandments forever. For they are our life and they lengthen our days, and on them we will meditate day and night. [May] Your love never be removed from us Blessed are You, Adonoy, Who loves His people Israel.

footnotes: ⁷ This prayer is an abbreviated form of the אהבה רבה prayer in the morning service. It thanks God for the sacred gift of Divine Revelation that He granted Israel. It declares that Torah alone is the eternal heritage of the Jewish people and that all other goods and gifts of life are transitory.—S.R. Hirsch

The following three words should be said when praying without a minyan:

(Almighty, faithful King)

Hear, Israel: Adonoy is our God, Adonoy is One.

The following three lines are to be said silently:

Blessed [is His] Name, Whose glorious kingdom is forever and ever.

And you shall love Adonoy your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your possessions. And these words which I command you today, shall be upon your heart. And you shall teach them sharply to your children. And you shall discuss them when you sit in your house, and when you travel on the road, and when you lie down and when you rise. And you shall bind them for a sign upon your hand, and they shall be for totafos between your eyes. And you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gateways.

And it will be— if you vigilantly obey My commandments which I command you this day, to love Adonoy your God, and serve Him with your entire hearts and with your entire souls— that I will give rain for your land in its proper time, the early (autumn) rain and the late (spring) rain; and you will harvest your grain and your wine and your oil. And I will put grass in your fields for your cattle, and you will eat and be satisfied. Beware lest your hearts be swayed and you turn astray, and you worship alien gods and bow to them. And Adonoy's fury will blaze among you, and He will close off the heavens and there will be no rain and the earth will not yield its produce; and you will perish swiftly from the good land which Adonoy gives you. Place these words of Mine upon your hearts and upon your souls,— and bind them for a sign upon your hands, and they shall be for totafos between your eyes. And you shall teach them to your sons, to speak them when you sit in your house, and when you travel on the road, and when you lie down and when you rise. And you shall write them upon the doorposts of your house and upon your gateways. In order that your days be prolonged, and the days of your children, upon the land which Adonoy swore to your fathers to give them [for as long] as the heavens are above the earth.

And Adonoy spoke to Moses saying: Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them to make for themselves fringes on the corners of their garments throughout their generations; and they will place with the fringes of each corner a thread of blue. And it will be to you for fringes, and you will look upon it and you will remember all the commandments of Adonoy, and you will perform them; and you will not turn aside after your hearts and after your eyes which cause you to go astray. In order that you will remember and perform all My commandments; and you will be holy unto your God. I am Adonoy, your God, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God: I am Adonoy, your God—

You must be careful to connect the last words of Shema, ה' אֱלֹקֵיכֶם (Adonoy, your God), with the word אֶמֶת (is true) without pause or interruption so that these three words form one sentence, meaning “Adonoy your God is true” (Maseches Berachos 13a).

—is true—

The chazan repeats:

Adonoy, your God, is true.

This is the first of the two berachos that follow the Shema.

—and faithful is all this,¹ and it is permanently established with us that he is Adonoy, our God, and there is nothing besides Him, and that we, Israel, are His people. [He] Who liberated us from the hand of kings,² [is] our King, Who redeemed us from the grasp of all the tyrants.³ [He is] the Almighty Who exacts payment [punishment] from our oppressors,⁴ says that “oppressors” (צרינו) refers to those who actively persecute us whereas “enemies” (אויבינו) refers to those who would rejoice over our misfortune without necessarily contributing to our downfall in an outright manner. and brings retribution on all those who are enemies of our soul. He does great things⁵ beyond comprehension, miracles and wonders without number. He sustains our soul in life⁶ and does not allow our feet to slip. He makes us tread upon the high places of our enemies, and exalts our strength over all who hate us. He performed miracles for us and vengeance upon Pharaoh, signs and wonders in the land of the Hamites. He slew in His wrath, all the firstborn of Egypt, and brought out His people, Israel, from their midst to everlasting⁷ freedom. He led His children through the divided parts of the Sea of Reeds, their pursuers and their enemies He drowned in its depths. And His children saw His mighty power— they praised and gave thanks to His Name, His sovereignty they willingly accepted; Moses and the children of Israel sang unto You with great joy, and they all said:

footnotes: ¹ All that we have affirmed in the Shema. is true and trustworthy.—Etz Yosef ² He redeemed us from Pharaoh, and saved us from Sichon and Og in the days of Moses and from the thirty-one kings in the days of Joshua.—Etz Yosef ³ “Tyrants” include Amalek and others who wanted to destroy us.—Etz Yosef ⁴ The Malbim ⁵ “Great things” refers to the way God rules according to the laws of nature and “wonders” refers to those things that are classified as miracles.—Siach Yitzchak ⁶ Not only does God sustain our souls in exile, but He also sustains our physical well-being.—Siach Yitzchak ⁷ The redemption from Egypt is the source for all later redemptions; it is the source from which our final and total salvation will spring. We became free, never again to taste the bitterness of spiritual or physical bondage.—Sfas Emes

“Who is like You among the mighty, Adonoy! Who is like You? [You are] adorned in holiness, awesome in praise, performing wonders”⁸ Your children beheld Your sovereignty when You divided the sea before Moses. “This is my God,”⁹ they exclaimed, and declared,

footnotes: ⁸ Exodus 15:11. ⁹ Exodus 15:2.

“Adonoy will reign forever and ever.”¹⁰ And it is said, “For Adonoy has liberated Jacob and redeemed him from a hand, mightier than his.”¹¹ Blessed are You, Adonoy Who has redeemed Israel.

footnotes: ¹⁰ Exodus 15:18. ¹¹ Jeremiah 31:10.

This is the second of the benedictions that follow the Sh'ma.

Adonoy our God; make us lie down in peace, our King, raise us again to good life, and peace¹² Spread over us the shelter of Your peace, and direct us to better ourselves through Your good counsel;¹³ and Siach Yitzchak and deliver us speedily for Your Name's sake. Shield us, and remove from us¹⁴ enemies, pestilence, sword, famine and sorrow. Remove the adversary¹⁵ and others from before us and from behind us, and shelter us in the shadow of Your wings. For, Almighty, You are our Protector and Rescuer, For, Almighty You are a gracious and merciful King. Guard our going out and our coming in for life and peace for now forever. Blessed are You, Adonoy, Who guards His people Israel forever.

footnotes: ¹² Undisturbed peace, and strength for a new day of vigorous living, are the gifts that night brings and for which we pray to God.—S.R. Hirsch ¹³ We particularly ask of Him at night to bless us with wise counsel. Daytime is the time for achievement, but the rest that comes with nightfall is made to allow man to compose his thoughts. By virtue of the complete relaxation It affords, sleep endows the mind and spirit with renewed vigor. We pray therefore for Divine aid so that our nightly rest will help us take wise counsel and affirm worthy resolution for future days.—Avudraham ¹⁴ Shield us from trouble before it comes, and remove it from us if it has already come.—Siach Yitzchak ¹⁵ The Hebrew word שטן (Satan) used in the Prayer Book refers to the Evil Impulse, the lower passions which are a hindrance to man's pursuit of the nobler aims in life. It is against the dominance of this impulse that the Jew prays. The “adversary,” therefore, is any person, spirit, or Evil Impulse that seduces us to do wrong.—Dover Sholom

The following prayer was originally a compilation of eighteen verses instituted during the Gaonic era as a substitute for the Shemoneh Esrei. According to Avudraham, the Shemoneh Esrei was omitted because of decrees issued against the Jews that banned them from participating in the Evening Service. These eighteen verses, adopted in place of the Shemoneh Esrei, have remained a part of the Maariv service. Some Halachic commentaries maintain that these verses should not be included in Maariv, because they constitute an interruption between the final blessing after Shema and the Shemoneh Esrei.

Blessed is Adonoy forever, Amein and Amein!¹⁶ Blessed is Adonoy from Zion Who dwells in Jerusalem, Praise God.¹⁷ Blessed is Adonoy, God, God of Israel Who alone performs wonders.¹⁸ Blessed is the Name of His glory forever and may His glory fill the whole earth; Amein and Amein!¹⁹ The Glory of Adonoy will endure forever; Adonoy will rejoice in His works.²⁰ The Name of Adonoy will be blessed from now forever.²¹ For Adonoy will not cast off His people, for the sake of His great Name, because Adonoy has determined to make you His people.²² And all the people saw it and they fell on their faces, and proclaimed, “Adonoy, He is God!²³ Adonoy, He is God!” And Adonoy will be King over the whole earth; on that day Adonoy will be One and His Name One.²⁴ Adonoy, may Your kindness be upon us as we have hoped for You.²⁵ Deliver us, Adonoy, our God, gather us from the nations to give thanks to Your Holy Name, to be extolled in Your praise.²⁶ All the nations which You have made will come and bow down before You, my Master, and they will give honor to Your Name.²⁷ For You are great and do wondrous things, You alone are God.²⁸ And we, Your people, the sheep of Your pasture, will give thanks to You forever, from generation to generation we will recount Your praise.²⁹ Blessed is Adonoy by day, Blessed is Adonoy by night, Blessed is Adonoy when we lie down, Blessed is Adonoy when we rise. For in Your hand are the souls of the living and the dead: [as it is written]: for in His hand is the soul of every living thing, and the spirit of every human being.³⁰ In Your hand, I commit my spirit; You have liberated me Adonoy, Almighty of truth.³¹ Our God in heaven, reveal the unity of Your Name, preserve Your kingdom always and reign over us forever and ever.

footnotes: ¹⁶ Psalms 89:53. ¹⁷ Psalms 135:21. ¹⁸ Psalms 72:18. ¹⁹ Psalms 72:19. ²⁰ Psalms 104:31. ²¹ Psalms 113:2. ²² I Samuel 12:22. ²³ I Kings 18:39. This verse describes the reaction of the people when they saw the miracle performed by God on behalf of Elijah on Mount Carmel when he disproved and ridiculed the false prophets of Baal. ²⁴ Zecharyah 14:9. ²⁵ Psalms 33:22. ²⁶ I Chronicles 16:35. ²⁷ Psalms 86:9. ²⁸ Psalms 86:10. ²⁹ Psalms 79:13. ³⁰ Job 12:10. ³¹ Psalms 31:6.

May our eyes behold, our heart rejoice, and our soul exalt in Your true deliverance, when it will be said to Zion: “Your God has begun His reign.” “Adonoy is King, Adonoy was King Adonoy will reign for ever and ever” For the kingdom is Yours and to all eternity, You will reign in glory; for we have no king except You. Blessed are You, the King in His glory, will always reign over us forever and ever, and over all His creation.

The Chazzan recites the following half-Kaddish

Exalted and sanctified be His great Name in the world which He created according to His will and may He rule His kingdom bring forth His redemption and hasten the coming of His Mashiach. In your lifetime and in your days, and in the lifetime of the entire House of Israel, speedily and in the near future— and say Amein.

May His great Name be blessed forever and for all eternity.

Blessed and praised, glorified, and exalted and uplifted, honored and elevated and extolled be the Name of the Holy One, blessed is He; above (Ten Days of Penitence: far above) all the blessings and hymns, praises and consolations which we utter in the world—and say Amein.