Malkhuyyot

MALKHUYYOT (Heb. מַלְכֻיּוֹת; verses describing God's "sovereignty"), name of the first part of the central section of the *Musaf prayer for *Rosh Ha-Shanah. It consists of 10 verses, four from the Pentateuch, three from Psalms, and three from the Prophets; all of them proclaim God as King and anticipate the realization of His kingdom on earth. According to the Talmud (RH 32a), the number ten symbolized the ten praises sung by David (Ps. 150), or the Ten Commandments, or the "ten sayings" by which God created the world (cf. Avot 5:1). The Malkhuyyot prayer and two similar sections, *Zikhronot and *Shofarot, form the Teki'ata de-Vei Rav. At the end of each section during the Reader's repetition (and in some rites during the congregation's silent reading), the shofar is sounded. The recital of Malkhuyyot-Zikhronot-Shofarot verses dates back to mishnaic times (cf. RH 4:5, 6) and was, most probably, part of the prayer service in the Temple. The Talmud, however, does not specify which verses had to be chosen for this purpose (RH 32a–b). The present selection and order of the verses are ascribed to the Babylonian scholar *Rav (175–247 C.E.), as are the introductory and concluding passages.

Sources: Encyclopaedia Judaica. © 2007 The Gale Group. All Rights Reserved.