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Amidah: Avodah: Finding Favor |
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Written by Machberes Avodas Hashem
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 “Be favorable, God, our Lord, toward Your people Israel, turn to their prayer and restore the service to the Holy of Holies of Your Temple.” The Sages turned to the prophet Ezekiel when composing this prayer: “When
you have finished cleansing, you shall offer and unblemished young bull, and an unblemished ram from the flock; you shall offer them before God. The Kohanim shall throw salt upon them and offer them up as a burnt offering to God. For seven days you shall prepare a he goat as a sin offering for each day, and they shall prepare an unblemished young bull and ran from the flock. For seven days they shall purify the Altar, and they shall cleanse it and inaugurated. When these days have passed, it shall be that from the eighth day on word the Kohanim may prepare on the Altar your burnt offerings and your peace offerings, and I will accept you with favor. The word of the Master, God, the Lord (Ezekiel 47:23–27).”
Our phrase, “Be favorable,” is based on the conclusion of those verses, a description of what will happen only after seven days of preparation, cleansing, and inauguration. We are not simply requesting that God be favorable toward us and our prayers; we are requesting that God be as favorable to us and our service as if our prayer counted as this complex seven day process of preparation.
We must appreciate the intensity of our request as we make it. We must stop and reflect on what we have accomplished at this point of the Amidah, and view it as intense preparation for this request.
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