When the Waiting Feels Endless
The ache of wanting a child and waiting for one lives in a place words can barely reach. Month after month, hope and heartbreak share the same breath. You cry in private. You smile in public. And the question sits heavy on your heart: when will it be my turn?
Hashem sees those tears. He counts every single one. And He gave us a tefillah for exactly this moment. Kapitel 113 is part of Hallel, and its final passuk addresses the reality of a woman waiting for a child: “Moishivi akeres habayis, eim habonim s’meichah” — He seats the barren woman of the house as a joyful mother of children. Dovid HaMelech placed these words at the close of a song of praise because the greatest praise of Hashem is when He turns emptiness into life.
This prayer for fertility has been said by Jewish women for generations. You are not the first to stand here, and b’ezras Hashem, you will not stand here forever.
Before You Say This Tefillah
Find a quiet moment. Let the noise fall away. You do not need perfect words. Just bring your heart before Hashem, the way it is right now. He already knows what you are asking for.
Master of the Universe, You settle the barren woman as a joyful mother of children — and I am still waiting. My arms are empty, the house is quiet, and my heart cries for what has not yet come. Just as You remembered Sarah, Rivkah, Rachel, and Leah — remember me with enduring offspring. God of Meir, answer me.
If giving tzedakah, add:
In the merit of the tzedakah I give to the poor of Eretz Yisrael in the merit of Rabbi Meir, may You illuminate my home with the sound of a baby. Ribbono Shel Olam, I care for Your children — please care for me.
Kapitel 113 (Hallel): The Full Prayer
הַלְלוּ־יָהּ הַלְלוּ עַבְדֵי יְהֹוָה הַלְלוּ אֶת־שֵׁם יְהֹוָה׃
יְהִי שֵׁם יְהֹוָה מְבֹרָךְ מֵעַתָּה וְעַד־עוֹלָם׃
מִמִּזְרַח־שֶׁמֶשׁ עַד־מְבוֹאוֹ מְהֻלָּל שֵׁם יְהֹוָה׃
רָם עַל־כּל־גּוֹיִם יְהֹוָה עַל הַשָּׁמַיִם כְּבוֹדוֹ׃
מִי כַּיהֹוָה אֱלֹהֵינוּ הַמַּגְבִּיהִי לָשָׁבֶת׃
הַמַּשְׁפִּילִי לִרְאוֹת בַּשָּׁמַיִם וּבָאָרֶץ׃
מְקִימִי מֵעָפָר דָּל מֵאַשְׁפֹּת יָרִים אֶבְיוֹן׃
לְהוֹשִׁיבִי עִם־נְדִיבִים עִם נְדִיבֵי עַמּוֹ׃
מוֹשִׁיבִי עֲקֶרֶת הַבַּיִת אֵם־הַבָּנִים שְׂמֵחָה הַלְלוּ־יָהּ׃
Hallelu-Yoh hallelu avdei Hashem hallelu es-sheim Hashem.
Y’hi sheim Hashem m’voiroch mei’atto v’ad-oilom.
Mimizrach-shemesh ad-m’voioi m’hullol sheim Hashem.
Rom al-kol-goiyim Hashem al hashomayim k’voidoi.
Mi kaHashem Eloiheinu hamagbihi loshoves.
Hamashpili lir’ois bashomayim uvo’oretz.
M’kimi mei’ofor dol mei’ashpois yorim evyoin.
L’hoishivi im-n’divim im n’divei ammoi.
Moishivi akeres habayis eim-habonim s’meicho hallelu-Yoh.
Hallelu-Yah hallelu avdei Hashem hallelu et-shem Hashem.
Y’hi shem Hashem m’vorach me’ata v’ad-olam.
Mimizrach-shemesh ad-m’vo’o m’hullal shem Hashem.
Ram al-kol-goyim Hashem al hashamayim k’vodo.
Mi kaHashem Eloheinu hamagbihi lashevet.
Hamashpili lir’ot bashamayim uva’aretz.
M’kimi me’afar dal me’ashpot yarim evyon.
L’hoshivi im-n’divim im n’divei amo.
Moshivi akeret habayit em-habanim s’mecha hallelu-Yah.
Halleluyah. Praise, you servants of Hashem, praise the name of Hashem.
Let the name of Hashem be blessed, from now and forever.
From the rising of the sun to its setting, the name of Hashem is praised.
Hashem is high above all nations; His glory is above the heavens.
Who is like Hashem our God, who is enthroned on high,
who looks down upon the heavens and the earth?
He raises the poor from the dust, He lifts the needy from the refuse heap,
to seat them with nobles, with the nobles of His people.
He seats the barren woman of the house as a joyful mother of children. Halleluyah.
Kapitel 113 opens every Hallel. It begins with servants of Hashem calling out in praise, and it ends with the image of a woman who waited and waited, and finally holds her child. The Gemara in Taanit (2a) teaches that the key of childbirth is one of the keys Hashem holds Himself, requiring direct divine intervention. Both require direct intervention from Hashem.
What These Words Mean for You
Moishivi akeres habayis eim habonim s’meicho “He seats the barren woman of the house as a joyful mother of children.”
This is the passuk that generations of women have held onto. The word moishivi comes from the root meaning to sit, to settle, to dwell.
Hashem does not just give her a child. He gives her a place. A settled, permanent belonging. The Midrash (Bereishis Rabbah 45:4) explains that Hashem sometimes delays a blessing specifically because the tefillah itself is precious to Him. The waiting does not mean you are forgotten. It may mean your tefillah is deeply wanted.
M’kimi mei’ofor dol “He raises the poor from the dust.”
The word means to rise, to stand up from the lowest place. Dovid is describing what Hashem does.
He takes someone in the dust, at their lowest, and lifts them. This speaks to every woman who has sat in a doctor’s office, heard difficult news, and felt the ground drop out beneath her. Hashem lifts from the dust. That is who He is. And giving tzedakah to those in need echoes this same middah: you lift someone else, and Hashem lifts you. Mi kaHashem Eloiheinu hamagbihi loshoves “Who is like Hashem our God, who is enthroned on high.”
Dovid asks a question that has only one answer: no one. Hashem is above everything, beyond everything.
And yet the very next line says He looks down, He sees, He pays attention to what happens here on earth. The One who runs the entire universe sees you. He sees the quiet tears, the empty room, the ache that no one else fully understands. This is the emunah at the heart of this prayer for fertility: Hashem is both infinitely great and infinitely close.
Hamashpili lir’ois bashomayim uvo’oretz “Who looks down upon the heavens and the earth.”
The word mashpili comes from the root meaning to lower, to bring down. Hashem lowers Himself, so to speak, to see what is happening below.
The Gemara in Megillah (31a) teaches: wherever you find the greatness of Hashem, there you find His humility. He does not stay far above. He comes close. He bends down to hear. When you open your mouth to say this kapitel, know that Hashem is already leaning in to listen.
How to Say This Prayer
There is no single right time to say Kapitel 113. Some women say it in the morning, before the world gets loud. Others wait until night, after everything is quiet, when they can pour their heart out without interruption. Some say it before a doctor’s appointment. Some say it standing at the Kosel. Say it whenever the pull in your heart is strongest.
Sitting or standing, at home or on the go. If you cannot get through the Hebrew without breaking down, say it in English. Use the transliteration. Hashem does not need perfect pronunciation. He needs your heart.
Before you begin, set your kavanah. You might say quietly: “Hashem, my heart aches with the quietness of my home and the emptiness of my arms. I have been waiting for a child, and the journey is long. Please, just as You remembered Sarah, Rivkah, Rachel, and Leah, remember me too. I trust in Your timing, even when it is so hard to wait.”
Tefillah and tzedakah have a deep connection. Chazal teach (see Gemara) that tefillah is the heart reaching up to Hashem, and tzedakah is the hand reaching out to another Yid in need. When you say this kapitel and give tzedakah in the zechus of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness, both rise together. Your davening and your ma’asim tovim, joined as one. After the kapitel, you may add: Elokah d’Meir aneni!
Give Tzedakah in the Zechus of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness
The Gemara in Avodah Zarah (18a-b) tells how Bruria asked Rabbi Meir to rescue her sister, who had been condemned by the Romans to a house of shame. Rabbi Meir approached the guard, teaching him to say “Eloka d’Meir aneni!” — “God of Meir, answer me!” — if he was ever in danger. When the guard asked for proof, Rabbi Meir threw a clod of earth at nearby man-eating dogs. They lunged to devour him, and he called out the words — the dogs turned away. The guard was convinced and released her, later on relying on these words to miraculously save his life.
When it comes to fertility, so many women feel exactly that: stuck. Giving tzedakah in the zechus of Rabbi Meir is not davening to him. It is asking Hashem to hear your tefillah in the combined merit of this great tzaddik and your own act of chesed.
Rabbi Meir Baal Haness Charities, founded 1799, supports talmidei chachamim and families in need in Eretz Yisrael. Talmidei chachamim in Tiberias daven at the kever of Rabbi Meir for those who reach out to them. Give tzedakah for the poor of Eretz Yisrael in the zechus of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness, and let your chesed rise together with your tefillah.
Give Tzedakah in the Zechus of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness Kapitel 113, part of Hallel, ends with the passuk “Moishivi akeres habayis, eim habonim s’meicho” — He seats the barren woman of the house as a joyful mother of children. This Jewish prayer for fertility has been said for generations when asking Hashem for the brachah of a child. The full Hebrew text, transliteration, and English translation are included above. Yes. Kapitel 113 can be said as a personal tefillah at any time, not only during Hallel on Yom Tov or Rosh Chodesh. It is a chapter from Tehillim, which can be said anytime. You are saying it as a prayer from the heart, and Hashem hears tefillah every day of the year. Rabbi Meir was a great Tanna whose tefillah rescued Bruria’s sister from captivity when there seemed to be no way out ( Avodah Zarah 18a-18b ). Giving tzedakah in his zechus is asking Hashem to hear your prayer in the combined merit of this tzaddik and your act of chesed. Rabbi Meir Baal Haness Charities supports talmidei chachamim and the needy in Eretz Yisrael. You might also draw comfort from the prayer before brit milah . Say Kapitel 113 whenever your heart is full, whether in the morning, at night, or before a medical appointment. Sit or stand, at home or away. Set your kavanah before beginning. If you cannot manage the Hebrew, say it in English or use the transliteration provided above. God of Meir, answer me.” These are the words Rabbi Meir said to the guard, and Hashem answered. Saying them alongside Kapitel 113 and giving tzedakah is an expression of emunah that Hashem hears the tefillah of a woman waiting for a child.
A Tefillah for You
The kind of heaviness that no one else can fully see. You have been waiting, davening, hoping, and aching. Hashem sees all of it.
May Hashem remember you the way He remembered Sarah, Rivkah, Rachel, and Leah. May the silence in your home be filled with the sound of a child. May the arms that have been empty be full, and may the heart that has been broken be healed with a simchah so deep it washes everything else away. May you hold your baby and know, in that moment, that every tear was counted and every tefillah was heard.
You can submit a name to the talmidei chachamim in Tiberias to daven at the kever of Rabbi Meir at no cost. They will daven for you by name. If you would like to give tzedakah in Rabbi Meir’s zechus as well, your chesed will rise together with your tefillah.
