Hebrew, then English. Open "What it means" under any line for the explanation.
Monday and Thursday only. This continues Vehu Rachum, part 2:
אֵין כָּמוֹךָ חַנּוּן וְרַחוּם יְיָ אֱלֺהֵינוּ אֵין כָּמוֹךָ אֵל אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד וֶאֱמֶת.
There is none like You gracious and compassionate Hashem our God There is none like You God slow to anger and rich in kindness and truth
What it means
The first words are Tehillim 86:8, "There is none like You." The rest describes God the way Shemot 34:6 does, in the Thirteen Attributes. The Torah says "compassionate and gracious." Yoel 2:13 and Yonah 4:2 reverse it to "gracious and compassionate," as here. The Thirteen Attributes page tells that story.
Tehillim 86:8; Shemot 34:6; Yoel 2:13; Yonah 4:2הוֹשִׁיעֵנוּ וְרַחֲמֵנוּ בְּרַחֲמֶיךָ הָרַבִּים מֵרַעַשׁ וּמֵרֺגֶז הַצִּילֵנוּ.
Save us and have mercy on us in Your great mercy from the quaking and the rage, rescue us
What it means
Rogez is also the word in Chavakuk 3:2: "In wrath, remember mercy." Radak (Rabbi David Kimchi, a commentator on Tanach from southern France about 800 years ago) says the wrath there is the time of exile, and asks God to remember the fathers' love. Here too, wrath and mercy sit side by side.
Chavakuk 3:2; Radak on Chavakuk 3:2זְכֺר לַעֲבָדֶיךָ לְאַבְרָהָם לְיִצְחָק וּלְיַעֲקֹב אַל תֵּפֶן אֶל קְשִׁי הָעָם הַזֶּה וְאֶל רִשְׁעוֹ וְאֶל חַטָּאתוֹ.
Remember Your servants Avraham, Yitzchak and Yaakov Do not look at the stubbornness of this people or at its wickedness or at its sin
What it means
These are Moshe's own words, from his prayer after the Golden Calf (Devarim 9:27), and the prayer quotes the verse word for word. Moshe does not say the people are good. He asks God to look past their faults to the fathers. Malbim (a 19th-century Torah commentator) says "remember" appeals to the promise God made to the fathers.
Devarim 9:27; Malbim on Devarim 9:27שׁוּב מֵחֲרוֹן אַפֶּךָ וְהִנָּחֵם עַל הָרָעָה לְעַמֶּךָ.
Turn back from Your burning anger and change Your mind about the harm to Your people
What it means
Turn back from Your burning anger, and change Your mind about the harm planned for Your people.
Moshe said this too at the Golden Calf, after asking, "Why should Egypt say He brought them out for evil?" (Shemot 32:12). The Thirteen Attributes page points to the same verse. Rashi (the main medieval Torah commentator, from France) says "change Your mind" means to take on a different thought, to do them good.
Shemot 32:12; Rashi on Shemot 32:12וְהָסֵר מִמֶּנּוּ מַכַּת הַמָּוֶת כִּי רַחוּם אָתָּה.
And remove from us the blow of death for You are merciful
What it means
Remove from us the blow of death, for You are merciful.
כִּי כֵן דַּרְכֶּךָ עֹשֶׂה חֶסֶד חִנָּם בְּכָל דּוֹר וָדוֹר.
For such is Your way to do kindness for free in every generation
What it means
Chinam means "for free." The Gemara (the rabbis' discussion of Jewish law) reads God's words to Moshe, "I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious," as "even if he is not worthy" (Rabbi Meir, a rabbi from about 1,800 years ago). Gracious and chinam share a root. The prayer calls this God's way in every generation.
Berakhot 7aחוּסָה יְיָ עַל עַמֶּךָ וְהַצִּילֵנוּ מִזַּעְמֶךָ.
Spare Hashem Your people and rescue us from Your fury
What it means
Spare Your people, Hashem, and rescue us from Your fury.
וְהָסֵר מִמֶּנּוּ מַכַּת הַמַּגֵּפָה וּגְזֵרָה קָשָׁה כִּי אַתָּה שׁוֹמֵר יִשְׂרָאֵל.
And remove from us the blow of the plague and the harsh decree for You are the Guardian of Israel
What it means
Remove from us the blow of the plague and the harsh decree, for You are the Guardian of Israel.
Magefah is the word the book of Shmuel uses when David's plague finally stopped (Shmuel II 24:25). The Nefilat Apayim page tells that story. "Guardian of Israel" comes from Tehillim 121:4, where He "neither slumbers nor sleeps." The short prayer Shomer Yisrael opens with the same two words.
Shmuel II 24:25; Tehillim 121:4; Siddur Sefard, Shomer Yisraelלְךָ אֲדֹנָי הַצְּדָקָה וְלָנוּ בּשֶׁת הַפָּנִים.
To You, my Master belongs the righteousness and to us shame of face
What it means
To You, my Master, belongs righteousness. To us belongs shame of face.
From Daniel's prayer (Daniel 9:7), which Vehu Rachum parts 1 and 2 also draw on. Part 2 has a line that starts the same way. Here is the rest: "and to us, shame of face." Metzudat David (an 18th-century commentary on the Prophets and Writings) says the shame is ours, not God's, since His hand is not too short to redeem. Our sins caused it.
Daniel 9:7; Metzudat David on Daniel 9:7מַה נִּתְאוֹנֵן וּמַה נֹּאמַר מַה נְּדַבֵּר וּמַה נִּצְטַּדָּק.
What can we complain about? And what can we say? What can we speak? And how can we prove ourselves right?
What it means
What can we complain about? What can we say? What can we speak? And how can we prove ourselves right?
נַחְפְּשָׂה דְרָכֵינוּ וְנַחְקֺרָה וְנָשׁוּבָה אֵלֶיךָ כִּי יְמִינְךָ פְשׁוּטָה לְקַבֵּל שָׁבִים.
Let us search our ways and examine them and return to You for Your right hand is stretched out to receive those who return
What it means
Eichah 3:40 reads, "Let us search our ways, and examine, and return until Hashem." The siddur says "to You." The Sifrei (an early collection of the rabbis' teachings on Devarim) has Moshe tell the people that even their leaders had bowed to the idol Peor, and still "His right hand is stretched out to receive those who return."
Eichah 3:40; Sifrei Devarim 30:2אָנָּא יְיָ הוֹשִׁיעָה נָּא אָנָּא יְיָ הַצְלִיחָה נָא. אָנָּא יְיָ עֲנֵנוּ בְיוֹם קָרְאֵנוּ.
Please, Hashem, save, please Please, Hashem, grant success, please Please, Hashem, answer us on the day we call
What it means
Please, Hashem, save us, please. Please, Hashem, grant us success, please. Please, Hashem, answer us on the day we call.
The first two pleas are one verse, Tehillim 118:25, from Hallel (psalms of praise said on holidays). The third is built on Tehillim 20:10, "May the King answer us on the day we call," which Vehu Rachum part 1 has. Radak reads the Hallel verse as Israel asking for salvation and success for all who come under God's shelter and return to His service.
Tehillim 118:25; Tehillim 20:10; Radak on Tehillim 118:25לְךָ יְיָ חִכִּינוּ לְךָ יְיָ קִוִּינוּ לְךָ יְיָ נְיַחֵל
For You, Hashem, we have waited For You, Hashem, we have hoped For You, Hashem, we will wait
What it means
Three words for waiting. Tehillim 130, the psalm Vehu Rachum part 1 quotes, has two of them: "I hope" (kiviti) and "I wait" (hochalti) in verse 5, and "Israel, wait" (yachel) in verse 7. Yeshayahu 30:18 has the third: "Happy are all who wait (chokhei) for Him."
Tehillim 130:5 and 130:7; Yeshayahu 30:18אַל תֶּחֱשֶׁה וּתְעַנֵּנוּ כִּי נָאֲמוּ גוֹיִם אָבְדָה תִקְוָתָם.
Do not stay silent and make us suffer for the nations have said their hope is lost
What it means
"Do not stay silent" is from Yeshayahu 64:11: "Will You be silent and make us suffer terribly?" Radak says "make us suffer" there means we are afflicted in exile by our enemies. "Their hope is lost" uses the words of Yechezkel 37:11, where Israel itself says "our hope is lost." That verse is in the vision of the dry bones.
Yeshayahu 64:11; Radak on Yeshayahu 64:11; Yechezkel 37:11כָּל בֶּרֶךְ לְךָ תִכְרַע וְכָל קוֹמָה לְפָנֶיךָ לְבַד תִּשְׁתַּחֲוֶה.
Every knee will bend to You and every standing figure before You alone will bow down
What it means
Every knee will bend to You, and every standing figure will bow down before You alone.
In Yeshayahu 45:23 God says, "To Me every knee will bend." Nishmat, the Shabbat and holiday prayer (it is also in the Pesach Haggadah), has almost this line: "every knee will bend to You, and every standing figure will bow before You." Vehu Rachum adds one word, "alone."
Yeshayahu 45:23; Nishmat, Siddur Sefardהַפּוֹתֵחַ יָד בִּתְשׁוּבָה לְקַבֵּל פּוֹשְׁעִים וְחַטָּאִים נִבְהֲלָה נַפְשֵׁנוּ מֵרוֹב עִצְּבוֹנֵנוּ אַל תִּשְׁכָּחֵנוּ נֶצַח קוּמָה וְהוֹשִׁיעֵנוּ.
The One who opens a hand for repentance to receive rebels and sinners our soul is shaken from so much sorrow Do not forget us forever Arise and save us
What it means
The One who opens a hand for repentance, to receive rebels and sinners: our soul is shaken by so much sorrow. Do not forget us forever. Arise and save us.
אַל תִּשְׁפּוֹךְ חֲרוֹנְךָ עָלֵינוּ כִּי אֲנַחְנוּ עַמְּךָ בְּנֵי בְרִיתֶךָ.
Do not pour out Your anger on us for we are Your people children of Your covenant
What it means
Do not pour out Your anger on us, for we are Your people, the children of Your covenant.
At the seder you say the opposite: "Pour out Your wrath on the nations" (Tehillim 79:6). Here we ask that the anger not be poured out on us, and we give a reason: we are Your people, the children of Your covenant.
Tehillim 79:6; Pesach Haggadahאֵל הַבִּיטָה דַּל כְּבוֹדֵנוּ בַּגּוֹיִם וְשִׁקְּצוּנוּ כְּטֻמְאַת הַנִּדָּה.
God, look: our honor has sunk low among the nations and they treat us as repulsive like the impurity of a niddah
What it means
The image comes from Eichah 1:17: "Jerusalem has become a niddah among them." A niddah is a woman during her period, who is ritually impure for a time under the Torah's laws (the word appears in Vayikra 12:2). Rashi explains the word in Eichah as being kept at a distance, treated with contempt. The prayer describes how the nations treat us.
Eichah 1:17; Rashi on Eichah 1:17; Vayikra 12:2עַד מָתַי עֻזְּךָ בַּשְּׁבִי וְתִפְאַרְתְּךָ בְּיַד צָר.
How long will Your strength be in captivity and Your splendor in the enemy's hand
What it means
How long will Your strength be in captivity and Your splendor in the hand of the enemy?
Tehillim 78:61 says God "gave His strength to captivity and His splendor into the enemy's hand." Rashi says "strength" is the Ark and the Tablets, which the Philistines (Israel's coastal enemies) captured. Hearing the Ark was taken, a woman in labor cried, "Glory has gone into exile from Israel" (Shmuel I 4:22). The prayer turns it into a question: how long?
Tehillim 78:61; Rashi on Tehillim 78:61; Shmuel I 4:22עוֹרְרָה גְבוּרָתְךָ וְהוֹשִׁעֵנוּ לְמַעַן שְׁמֶךָ.
Rouse Your might and save us for the sake of Your Name
What it means
Tehillim 80:3 says, "Rouse Your might and come save us." Rashi says this is asked even for people who may not deserve it, because saving "befits You," guilty or innocent. He compares God seeing Israel's suffering in Egypt, though He knew they would later anger Him: He acted because of the oath to Avraham.
Tehillim 80:3; Rashi on Tehillim 80:3אַל יִמְעֲטוּ לְפָנֶיךָ תְּלָאוֹתֵינוּ. מַהֵר יְקַדְּמוּנוּ רַחֲמֶיךָ בְּעֵת צָרוֹתֵינוּ,
Do not let our hardships seem small before You Quickly let Your mercies come to meet us in our time of trouble
What it means
"Do not let our hardships seem small before You" is Nehemiah 9:32, with the hardship made plural. Metzudat David says it means: let them count as many in Your eyes, and scrub away all Your people's sins. "Let Your mercies meet us" is Tehillim 79:8: "Hurry, let Your mercies meet us, for we have sunk so low."
Nehemiah 9:32; Metzudat David on Nehemiah 9:32; Tehillim 79:8לֺא לְמַעֲנֵנוּ אֶלָּא לְמַעַנְךָ פְעַל, וְאַל תַּשְׁחִית אֶת זֵכֶר שְׁאֵרִיתֵנוּ,
Not for our sake but for Your sake act and do not destroy the memory of our remnant
What it means
Not for our sake, but for Your own sake, act. And do not destroy the memory of what is left of us.
Yechezkel 36:22 has a close idea: "Not for your sake do I act, House of Israel, but for My holy Name, which you profaned among the nations." Verse 20 says how: the nations said of the exiles, "These are Hashem's people, and they had to leave His land." Yechezkel was a prophet who was himself in exile.
Yechezkel 36:20-22כִּי לְךָ מְיַחֲלוֹת עֵינֵינוּ כִּי אֵל מֶלֶךְ חַנוּן וְרַחוּם אָתָּה.
For to You our eyes are waiting for You are a gracious and compassionate God and King
What it means
For our eyes wait for You. For You are God and King, gracious and compassionate.
"For You are a gracious and compassionate God" is Nehemiah 9:31. The siddur adds one word, "King." Machzor Vitry has the same addition. "Our eyes wait" uses the same root as "we will wait" earlier in this prayer.
Nehemiah 9:31; Machzor Vitryוּזְכוֹר עֵדוּתֵנוּ בְּכָל יוֹם תָּמִיד אוֹמְרִים פַּעֲמַיִם בְּאַהֲבָה.
And remember our testimony every day always we say twice with love
שְׁמַע יִשְׂרָאֵל יְיָ אֱלֺהֵינוּ יְיָ אֶחָד.
Hear, Israel: Hashem our God, Hashem is one
What it means
Hear, Israel: Hashem is our God, Hashem is one.
Why "twice"? Devarim 6:7 says to speak these words "when you lie down and when you rise up." In the Mishnah (the earliest written book of the rabbis' teachings), Beit Hillel (the students of the sage Hillel) read that as the times when people lie down and get up (Berakhot 1:3). The verse after the Shema begins, "You shall love Hashem" (Devarim 6:5).
Devarim 6:5 and 6:7; Mishnah Berakhot 1:3