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What did Jews pray before the Great Assembly standardized the Shemoneh Esreh? The shiur distinguishes three historical layers: the Avot created prayer for atonement, Moshe established obligatory personal prayer and prayers to establish God's presence, and the Great Assembly combined these into our current format. A remarkable Midrash traces each blessing to angels' praises at key moments in Jewish history.
This shiur addresses a fundamental question about Jewish prayer: what did Jews pray before the Men of the Great Assembly instituted the Shemoneh Esreh as we know it today? Rabbi Zweig begins by noting the apparent contradictions in our sources. The Gemara (גמרא) teaches that Avrohom instituted Shacharis, Yitzchok instituted Mincha, and Yaakov instituted Maariv. Yet the Rambam (רמב"ם) and Rabbeinu Bachya (Devarim 11:13) explain that from Moshe's time until the Great Assembly, prayer was not uniformly organized - each person would pray according to his own syntax, knowledge, and wisdom. Additionally, the Midrash Tanchuma states that Moshe Rabbeinu himself instituted three daily prayers, foreseeing the Temple's destruction. To resolve these contradictions, Rabbi Zweig proposes three distinct purposes for prayer that developed over time. First, the Avot (Patriarchs) established prayer as a mechanism for achieving atonement. This began with Avrohom's question at the Brit Bein Habesarim about how the Jewish people would merit keeping the Land of Israel despite their sins. The answer involved the covenant of sacrifices, but Avrohom, Yitzchok, and Yaakov created a prayer-based system for atonement that didn't require formal obligation - they provided the mechanism (tikkun) for their descendants to achieve forgiveness through prayer.
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Midrash Tanchuma Kisavo, Rambam Hilchos Tefillah, Rabbeinu Bachya Devarim 11:13
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