paragraph is wanting, and the passage, including only the words from Blessed art thou (page 1 6 third line from end) till the end of the first paragraph on p. 17, comes immediately after before your eyes, saith the Lord (p. 9) and immediately before Let the glory of the Lord (p. 28). The whole passage, much as we have it, is, apparently, at least as old as Moses Gaon (about 820) and in germ is much older. (See Vitry, p. 5, and commentaries on Shulḥan Aruch, Oraḥ Ḥayyim, §51, I.) Several of its most characteristic phrases are already cited in the Mishnah and Talmud. It is a solemn invocation which is followed by a formal benediction. The praise of God must precede petition for his favours (Berachoth 32), and the recital of Psalms with this majestic introduction carries out the rule.
Blessed be he who spake... blessed be he. It is thought by some that the words blessed be he were a responsive refrain repeated by the congregation after every clause. This idea was derived by Rapoport (Bikkure ha-Ittim x. 117) from an account of the ceremony at the installa tion of the Exilarch, or Prince of the Captivity, in Bagdad. We are told that when this head of the community was installed the Ḥazzan sang Blessed... existed and the young people present responded blessed is he, and then the Ḥazzan sang Blessed... world... beginning and the youths responded blessed is he.
Blessed... beginning. The word בְּרֵאשִׁית, being the first word of Genesis, comes to be used to mean not "in the beginning," but "the beginning." the creation. We know from the Mishnah (Taanith iv. 2) that while the daily sacrifices were being offered in the Temple at Jerusalem, the first chapter of Genesis was read in the Provinces. Corresponding to the 24 divisions of the Priests, each of which went in succession to perform the Temple duties for a week, there were 24 divisions of the laity. Some of the latter accompanied the priests, but others remained at home, and read the account of the Creation, spreading the reading over the week during which the corresponding division of the priests were
