SHIR SHEL YOM ‫ִׁשיר שֶׁ ל יֹום‬

Day of the Week PSALM Corresponds to the day of Creation

the first day on which G-d acquired the universe,
1st 24 bequeathed it to mankind and ruled over His
"For G-d is the land and its fullness..." world by Himself.
the second day on which He separated the things
2nd 48 that he made (the heavens from the earth) and
"Great is G-d and much praised..." reigned over them.

3rd 82 the third day on which He exposed the land with

"G-d stands in the divine assembly...” His wisdom preparing the world for His assembly.
the fourth day on which He created the sun and
4th 94 the moon and how he will ultimately exact
"HaShem is a G-d of vengeance..." punishment from those who worship them.
81 the fifth day on which He created the birds and
5th "Sing joyously to the G-d of our the fish to give praise to his name.
might..."
93 the sixth day on which He completed his work and
6th "Hashem has reigned, he had donned reigned over his creations.
grandeur..."

Shabbos 92 the seventh day which is a day that is entirely

"A song, a hymn for the Sabbath day" Shabbos.
1. Shir Shel Yom (‫)שיר שֶׁ ל יֹום‬,
ִׁ meaning “‘song’ [i.e. Psalm] of [the] day [of the week]” consists of
one psalm recited daily at the end of the Jewish morning prayer services known as shacharit.
2. Each day of the week possesses a distinct psalm that is referred to by its Hebrew name as
the shir shel yom and each day’s shir shel yom is a different paragraph of Psalms.
3. Although fundamentally similar to the Levite’s song that was sung at the Holy
Temple in Jerusalem in ancient times, there are some differences between the two.
ORIGINS
1. The last Mishna in Tamid (7:4) enumerates the psalms which the Levites would recite each day in
the Beit Ha-mikdash (Temple), after offering the tamid shel shachar. The tamid was a lamb
offered twice daily in the Temple (Bamidbar 28:4), in the morning (shachar) and afternoon.
2. Each day’s shir shel yom was chosen for its ties to that day’s significance in the week of Creation,
as explained by Rosh HaShana 31 that quotes Rabbi Yehuda in the name of Rabbi Akiva.
3. The Zohar provides an alternative rationale linking the seven selected psalms to the seven 1000-
year periods in history (one day for G-d is like a thousand years to us).
4. Contemporary scholar Dr Rachel Reich finds logic in the style of the Psalms: the psalm for the
first day has "G-d" in its first (Hebrew) word, the psalm for the second day has "G-d" in its second
word, and so on. The Psalms of the Day, Jewish Bible Quarterly, vol. 42, no. 2, April–June 2014.
OTHER DAYS
1. On holidays, including Chol Hamoed and Rosh Chodesh, the Levites would replace the regular
song with one appropriate to the day.
2. However, it is customary to recite only the standard song after Shacharit. Only Rosh Chodesh,
most congregations recite the special song (Psalm 104) after the regular shir shel yom. Since in
the times of the Temple, the song for the Sabbath would override any other song, many do not
recite Psalm 104. if Rosh Chodesh falls out on the Sabbath, although many others do.
3. The Mishna (Rosh HaShaha 30b) describes a case when witnesses testified about the new moon
heralding Rosh HaShana so late that the wrong song had already been sung. (This is what
happened according to one opinion - another opinion maintains that because of the confusion they
sang no song, which also proves that the RH song is different).
4. The Vilna Gaon and others would recite each holiday song at the end of Shacharit, and the song
for the weekday earlier in the service.
HISTORY AND CUSTOMS
1. The earliest record of specific psalms being identified with certain days may be found in the Book
of Tehillim itself, as 92:1 introduces the psalm as a “song for the Sabbath day.”
2. Furthermore, the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Bible by seventy-two Jewish elders
(Megilla9a-b), introduces certain psalms with the day upon which they were recited by the Levites
in the Beit Ha-mikdash.
3. While originally only the Levites sang Shir shel Yom as the korban tamid was offered, Massekhet
Soferim (18:2), after citing the source from Tamid, adds, “one who mentions the verse in its proper
time is considered as if he has built a new altar and brought a sacrifice upon it.”
4. Furthermore, the Machzor Vitry (pg. 712) cites the Talmud Yerushalmi (Ta’anit4:5), which
questions whether Shir shel Yom may be recited “without libations,” i.e., outside the sacrificial
service, concluding that one may do so. We preface each psalm as that which “the Levites used
to say in the Beit Ha-mikdash.“
5. The Rambam, in his Nussach Ha-tefilla, found at the end of Sefer Ahava, writes that SOME are
accustomed to recite Shir shel Yom. However, the Siddur of Rav Amram Gaon simply instructs
that one should recite Shir shel Yom.
6. There are different customs regarding the recitation of Shir shel Yom. According to the
Ashkenazic custom (Rema OC 123:2), Shir shel Yom is recited AFTER Aleinu. According the
Sephardic custom, one recites Shir shel Yom immediately following the Kaddish of “U-va le-
Tziyyon,” and only afterwards does one recite Aleinu.
7. As Shir shel Yom corresponds to the song recited with the tamid shel shachar, one might question
why we do not recite it at Mincha as well, as the tamid shel bein ha-arbayim,
which Mincha reflects, was offered in the afternoon. Indeed, the Mishna (Rosh Ha-shana 4:4)
implies that Shir shel Yom was recited at Mincha too!
8. The Mishna Berura (122:16) explains that in the Beit Ha-mikdash they often omitted Shir shel
Yom at Mincha, as the libations brought with the tamid shel bein ha-arbayim often lasted until
after dark. Alternatively, the Arukh Ha-shulchan (123:2) explains simply that as reciting the song
of the day is merely a “remembrance” of the practices in the Beit Hamikdash, one suffices.
9. On days upon which Tefillat Mussaf is recited, some communities recite Shir shel
Yom after Shacharit and before the Torah reading, while some recite it after Mussaf (see Magen
Avraham 122:4).
10. Interestingly, the Ramban (Shemot 20:7) posits that whenever one refers to a weekday by its
ordinal (e.g., referring to Tuesday as “the third day,” counting toward Shabbat), he fulfils the
Biblical commandment to remember the Sabbath. Thus, we fulfil a mitzvah when we recite Shir
shel Yom with the introduction “Today is the _______ day of the week.”
11. On Wednesday Psalm 94, followed (in many communities) by the first three verses of Psalm 95.
This day as “mid-week” connects to the past Shabbos and to the forthcoming Shabbos. (Psalm 95
is the beginning of Kabbalos Shabbos).
12. In most siddurim, the shir shel yom starts with an introductory phrase from the mishna in Tamid:
"The song which the Leviim used to sing in the Mikdash: On Tuesday [or whatever day it is] they
would say ..." On Yom Tov the Leviim would NOT say the regular psalm, consequently, though
it is technically correct to say that on Tuesdays they would GENERALLY say "Mizmor leAsaf,"
saying this introduction on Yom Tov gives the false impression that we are really saying the
appropriate song for this day. Rav Menachem Azaria (siman 25) suggests eliminating this
introductory phrase altogether. If the psalm is the one we would be saying, so much the better; if
it is different, nothing wrong with reciting psalms! At any rate we avoid giving a false impression.
13. In Nusach Sephard, the Psalm “Tefillah L’David” (Psalm 86) is added before Shir Shel Yom, as
well as a collection of verses start with “Beit Yaakov” and “Shir HaMa’alot L’David” (Psalm 124).
14. Another difference between the nusachim is that in Nusach Ashkenaz, Aleinu L’Shabe’ach is
recited first, then Shir Shel Yom, and finally Pitum HaKetoret; whereas in Nusach Sephard, Shir
Shel Yom is recited first, then Pitum HaKetoret, and at the end, Aleinu L’Shabe’ach.