When You Need Both Healing and the Strength to Get Through
Illness takes more than health. It takes strength. The strength to face another day of uncertainty. The strength to sit in a waiting room and not fall apart. The strength to smile at someone you love when they need you to be brave, even though you are not feeling brave at all.
The person you are davening for needs more than medicine. They need a refuah from Shamayim that reaches the places no treatment can touch.
The Mi Shebeirach is the tefillah Klal Yisrael has turned to for centuries when someone is ill. It asks Hashem for a complete healing, refuas hanefesh u’refuas haguf — and it asks Him to restore, to strengthen, and to give life. It covers the body, the soul, and the will to keep going.
Before You Say This Tefillah
Before saying the Mi Shebeirach, take a moment to focus your thoughts on the person who needs a refuah, and then turn to Hashem:
Ribono Shel Olam, the one I love is suffering, and I feel helpless. I cannot heal them. I cannot take away their pain. But You can. Please, Hashem, send them a refuah sheleimah. Heal their body. Strengthen their spirit. Give them the koach to face what is ahead. I am asking You in the zechus of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness — please hear me. Elokah d’Meir aneni.
If giving tzedakah, add:
In the zechus of the tzedakah I am giving to Rabbi Meir Baal Haness Charities, please grant healing and strength to the one I carry in my heart. Let this act of chesed be a merit for their recovery.
Mi Shebeirach: The Full Prayer
מִי שֶׁבֵּרַךְ אֲבוֹתֵינוּ אַבְרָהָם יִצְחָק וְיַעֲקֹב מֹשֶׁה וְאַהֲרֹן דָּוִד וּשְׁלֹמֹה הוּא יְבָרֵךְ וִירַפֵּא אֶת הַחוֹלֶה [שֵׁם] בֶּן/בַּת [שֵׁם הָאֵם]
הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא יִמָּלֵא רַחֲמִים עָלָיו/עָלֶיהָ לְהַחֲלִימוֹ/לְהַחֲלִימָהּ וּלְרַפְּאוֹתוֹ/וּלְרַפְּאוֹתָהּ וּלְהַחֲזִיקוֹ/וּלְהַחֲזִיקָהּ וּלְהַחֲיוֹתוֹ/וּלְהַחֲיוֹתָהּ
וְיִשְׁלַח לוֹ/לָהּ מְהֵרָה רְפוּאָה שְׁלֵמָה מִן הַשָּׁמַיִם רְפוּאַת הַנֶּפֶשׁ וּרְפוּאַת הַגּוּף בְּתוֹךְ שְׁאָר חוֹלֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל
הַשְׁתָּא בַּעֲגָלָא וּבִזְמַן קָרִיב וְנֹאמַר אָמֵן
Mi shebeirach avoiseinu Avrohom Yitzchok v'Yaakov Moishe v'Aharon Dovid u'Shloimoi, hu y'voreich virapei es hachoileh [Name] ben/bas your mother's Hebrew name.
HaKodosh Boruch Hu yimalei rachamim olov/olehoh l'hachlimoi/l'hachlimoh ul'raposoi/ul'raposoh ul'hachzikoi/ul'hachzikoh ul'hachayoisoi/ul'hachayoisoh.
V'yishlach loi/loh m'heiroh r'fuoh sh'leimoh min hashomayim, r'fuas hanefesh ur'fuas haguf, b'soich sh'or choilei Yisroel.
Hashtoh ba'agoloh uvizman koriv, v'nomar Omein.
Mi sheberach avotenu Avraham Yitzchak ve-Ya'akov Moshe ve-Aharon David u-Shelomo, hu yevarech virapei et hacholeh [Name] ben/bat your mother's Hebrew name.
HaKadosh Baruch Hu yimalei rachamim alav/aleha lehachalimo/lehachalimah ulerapoto/ulerapotah ulehachaziko/ulehachazikah ulehachayoto/ulehachayotah.
Ve-yishlach lo/lah meherah refuah shelemah min hashamayim, refuat hanefesh u-refuat haguf, betoch she'ar cholei Yisrael.
Hashta ba'agala u-vizman kariv, venomar Amen.
May the One who blessed our forefathers Avraham, Yitzchak, and Yaakov, Moshe and Aharon, David and Shlomo, bless and heal the one who is ill, [Name] son/daughter of your mother's Hebrew name. May the Holy One, blessed is He, be filled with compassion for him/her, to restore him/her to health, to heal him/her, to strengthen him/her, and to give him/her life. And may He send him/her speedily a complete healing from heaven, a healing of the soul and a healing of the body, among the other sick of the Jewish people. Swiftly and soon, and let us say Amen.
The Mi Shebeirach is a universally-known tefillos in Jewish life. Its language is deliberate: it does not only ask for healing. It asks for recovery (l’hachlimoi), for healing (ul’raposoi), for strengthening (ul’hachzikoi), and for life itself (ul’hachayoisoi). This tefillah covers every aspect of what a sick person needs.
Where These Words Meet Your Situation
L’hachlimoi ul’raposoi “To restore to health and to heal.”
These two words sit side by side, but they are not the same. L’hachlimoi means to bring back to full health, to recover. Ul’raposoi means to heal what is broken. One is about returning the person to how they were before, while the other is about mending the illness itself. The tefillah asks for both: to repair the damage and restore the person to health.
Ul’hachzikoi “To strengthen.”
This is where the tefillah asks directly for strength. Ul’hachzikoi — to make strong. Anyone who has been through a serious illness knows that even after the worst passes, the body and spirit need to rebuild. This word asks Hashem for the koach to recover, the inner strength that makes a person get out of bed and face the day.
Ul’hachayoisoi “To give life.”
The tefillah does not stop at healing and strength. It asks for chaim, life itself. This is the boldest request in the Mi Shebeirach. We are not asking Hashem to simply make the illness bearable. We are asking for life. Full life. The kind of life where a person can learn Torah, do mitzvos, love their family, and serve Hashem with simchah.
Hashtoh ba’agoloh uvizman koriv “Swiftly and soon.”
The tefillah closes with urgency. Hashtoh means now. Ba’agoloh means quickly. Uvizman koriv means in the near time. Three expressions of speed, stacked on top of each other. Because when someone you love is suffering, “soon” is not soon enough. The Mi Shebeirach does not ask Hashem to heal at some point in the future. It asks for now.
How to Say This Tefillah
The Mi Shebeirach is traditionally said in shul when the sefer Torah is out, but you do not have to wait for that. Say it whenever the heaviness sits on your heart. Some people say it every morning in their own quiet tefillah. Others say it before going to sleep, holding the sick person in their thoughts as the day ends.
You can stand or sit. You can say it in Hebrew, use the transliteration, or say it in English. What matters most is the kavanah, the focus of your heart. Before you begin, say the name of the person you are davening for. Hold an image of them healthy and whole in your mind. This focus is part of your kavanah.
Tefillah and tzedakah are deeply connected. You are lifting your voice to Hashem while reaching out your hand to help another Yid. The Gemara (Rosh Hashanah 16b) teaches that tzedakah has the power to overturn harsh decrees. When you give in the zechus of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness, your plea is carried by both — your tefillah and your chesed, rising together. After the Mi Shebeirach, say: Elokah d’Meir aneni.
Give Tzedakah in the Zechus of Rabbi Meir Baal Haness
Rabbi Meir was one of the greatest Tannaim. When Bruria’s sister was held captive by the Romans and there seemed to be no way out, Rabbi Meir bribed 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 using these words to miraculously save his life when he was caught.
When someone you love is battling illness, you understand what it means to feel trapped. Trapped in fear, in helplessness, in the slow grind of waiting. Giving tzedakah in his zechus is asking Hashem to hear your tefillah in the combined merit of Rabbi Meir, who merited miracles at a desperate time, and your own chesed.
Rabbi Meir Baal Haness Charities was founded in 1799 and supports Torah scholars and the poor in Eretz Yisrael. Talmidei chachamim will daven at the kever of Rabbi Meir in Tiberias on behalf of those who turn to them. Your tzedakah goes to sustain families in the Holy Land, and your name rises together with the tefillos of the scholars there.
What Comes Next
Tefillah and hishtadlus go together. We daven to Hashem and we do what we can in the physical world.
Do your hishtadlus. If someone you love is sick, learn about their condition. Understand the treatment options. Go with them to appointments if you can. Ask the doctor to explain things clearly, and do not be afraid to seek a second opinion. Hashem sends refuah through the hands of skilled physicians. Working with doctors is part of hishtadlus, not a contradiction to emunah.
Offer your presence. Bring a meal. Send a text that says nothing more than “I am thinking of you.” Sometimes the greatest chizuk comes not from what you say, but from the fact that you showed up. The sick person needs to know they are not forgotten.
And if you are the one who is ill, let people help you. It is not weakness to lean on others. It is what Klal Yisrael does. We carry each other.
The Mi Shebeirach is the traditional tefillah for a refuah. It begins by invoking the merit of the Avos and asks Hashem to send a complete healing, body and soul — to the person who is ill. It has been recited in shuls and homes for centuries.
Any time. The Mi Shebeirach is said in shul during the Torah reading, but you can also say it at home, at a hospital, or wherever you are when the worry hits. There is no wrong time to ask Hashem for healing.
“G-d of Meir, answer me.” These are the words Rabbi Meir Baal Haness called out when only a miracle could help, and Hashem answered. Saying them alongside the Mi Shebeirach is an expression of our emunah that Hashem can bring salvation even in desperate times, combined with a tefillah asking for salvation in the merit of Rabbi Meir.
Because illness affects the whole person. Pain brings fear, loneliness, and spiritual heaviness. The Mi Shebeirach asks Hashem to heal everything, not just the body, but the nefesh of the person who is suffering.
A Blessing for Strength
Whether you are davening for someone else or for yourself, turning to Hashem is the most important thing you can do.
May Hashem send a refuah sheleimah to the one you are davening for. May He heal what is broken, strengthen what is weak, and breathe new life into the days ahead. May the person you love feel Hashem’s presence even in the hardest moments. And may you, who daven with such devotion, find the strength you need too, the strength to wait, to hope, and to keep asking Hashem until the answer comes.
You can submit a prayer request to the scholars at the tomb of Rabbi Meir in Tiberias at no cost. They will daven for your loved one’s healing by name through Rabbi Meir Baal Haness Charities. And if you would like to give tzedakah in Rabbi Meir’s zechus as well, your kindness will rise together with your prayer.
