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A divine voice sings through all creation
#1
Hi!

I recently came across a beautiful prayer, but cannot find a Hebrew version or origin of this prayer. Can anyone please point me to any information about the origin of this prayer and a Hebrew or Aramaic (original?) version?

Here is the prayer (perhaps not the best translation):

How wonderful, O Lord, are the works of your hands!
The heavens declare Your glory,
the arch of the sky displays Your handiwork
In Your love You have given us the power
to behold the beauty of Your world
robed in all its splendor.
The sun and the stars, the valleys and the hills,
the rivers and the lakes all disclose Your presence.
The roaring breakers of the sea tell of Your awesome might,
the beast of the field and the birds of the air
bespeak Your wondrous will.
In Your goodness You have made us able to hear
the music of the world.
The voices of the loved ones
reveal to us that You are in our midst.
A divine voice sings through all creation.

I especially love the last two lines!

Thank you!
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#2
It's a responsive reading from Gates of Prayer: The New Union Prayer Book page 651. There is no Hebrew on the page (see attachment), so I would imagine that it's an amalgam of several verses given interpretive flair.

Many times the English prayers are basically paraphrases of the Hebrew at best.


Attached Files Thumbnail(s)
   
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#3
Thank you, Jason. I had found that in Google books here, and I do prefer this antiphonal version.

Is it possible this prayer was originally composed in English for this specific Reformed prayer book?

If anyone knows anything more about the origin or history of this prayer, I would greatly appreciate it.
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#4
Sorry if this is a double-post. I'm new here so my posts still need to be moderated. I tried to respond to this a couple of days ago, but either I didn't do it right or my post is still waiting in a queue to be moderated.

Anyway, thank you, Jason, for your reply. I like this responsive version even more.

If anyone else knows about the origin or history of this prayer, I would appreciate hearing about it. 

Is it possible that this prayer originated in English for this Reform siddur in 1975? 

Obviously it reflects biblical themes (eg, Psalm 96,11-13), but some aspects of the prayer do seem rather modern. I would love to know more about the history of this prayer. Thank you.
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#5
(05-02-2020, 07:09 PM)robrecht Wrote: Thank you, Jason. I had found that in Google books here, and I do prefer this antiphonal version.

Is it possible this prayer was originally composed in English for this specific Reformed prayer book?

If anyone knows anything more about the origin or history of this prayer, I would greatly appreciate it.

Yes, I'm rather certain it was composed in English specifically for this siddur.
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#6
(05-04-2020, 10:01 PM)robrecht Wrote: Sorry if this is a double-post. I'm new here so my posts still need to be moderated. I tried to respond to this a couple of days ago, but either I didn't do it right or my post is still waiting in a queue to be moderated.

Apologies, we were having forum issues and unable to approve posts for a couple of days. Now that you have three, you should be good to go.
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