LXII.

A HEBREW ADDRESS TO QUEEN VICTORIA (1849)

TRANSLATED Extract from an Address of Russian Jews in Safed on their coming under England’s protection, 1849.

(After compliments to the Consul in Jerusalem.)

“We acknowledge to the Lord and praise Him that He has put it into the heart of the Glory the Pity of the mighty Crowned Queen, the pious, the precious, the upright who reigns over the provinces of England and its dependencies, to do good to the people of Israel and to succour them with every kind of aid, for great and small, and to defend them from those that rise up against them.

“With a perfect heart Of mercy and loving kindness; And with the tips of the wings of Mercy And the grace of her Righteousness She has extended and caused to shine upon us, Who dwell in our own land, The holy (be it established in our days,) Us, who are burdened with troubles―― Sinking into distress, Poverty and calamity, But loving the land of our Fathers, The place of our honour. We here are those Who are the sons of the provinces of Russia, And this is the day we have looked for: We have found it, we have seen it―― For she has bent down her pity to receive us Under the shade of her wings of compassion, And to comfort us with shade of her mighty rule, For a name, for a praise, and for glory! Yea, our souls within us are bound To implore Him, who is fearful in mighty acts, With praises and prayers, That He may prolong her days In rest and satisfaction; That the Lord may hedge her in, And all that are hers: The princes around her, With her nobles, And all those comforted in her shadow May they rise on wings of elevation, of prosperity, In fulness of joy; And may her kingdom be established Like the Moon, for ever and ever, Until the coming of Messiah! May the Lord bless their lives and their substance, And increase their honour, And crown their praise! Amen, so be Thy will!”¹

¹ Stirring Times ... of 1853 to 1856, by the late James Finn ... vol. i. London ... 1878, _pp._ 130‒132.