Page:Philip Birnbaum - ha-Siddur ha-Shalem (The Daily Prayer Book,1949).pdf/727

702 Remember the Temple-priest who bathed five times in water;

He removed sins when he washed his hands with sanctified water;

He read from the Scriptures when he sprinkled purifying water;

He was kept at a distance from a people as turbulent as water.

Remember the twelve tribes thou didst bring across the water;

Thou didst sweeten for them the bitterness of the water;

For thy sake was the blood of their descendants spilt like water;

Turn to us, for our life is encircled by foes like water.

For thou art the Lord our God, who causest the wind to blow and the rain to fall.

feature was the procession which accompanied the priest who had been allotted the duty of drawing the water for the libation ceremony from the pool of Siloam at Jerusalem. According to tradition, "whoever has not witnessed this celebration has never seen real rejoicing" (Sukkah 5:1). It was called ("the joyous procession to and from the well") because from there they drew inspiration. Compare Isaiah 12:3 ("With joy shall you draw water from the fountains of deliverance’’).

... is referred to in the Mishnah as (“the power of rain”), presumably because the reference to rain is inserted in the second benediction of the Shemoneh Esreh, beginning with the words  (“thou art mighty"). This benediction is called  since it recounts the omnipotence of God. According to a talmudic statement, the term  is used because rain comes down by the power of God (Ta‘anith 2a).