Dayenu! // !דַּיֵּנוּ‎

Dayenu!

Are you familiar with this phrase? 

“Dayenu” is the title of a song in the Passover Haggadah that has been around for over 1,000 years. “Dayenu” in Hebrew means “It would have been enough” or “It would have been sufficient for us.” The song in its entirety has 15 short stanzas and is about being grateful to God for everything He has done for the Jewish people. He brought them out of Egypt, split the Red Sea, fed them manna, gave them the Torah… yet the point of the song is that even if God had only given the Jewish people one of these gifts . . . dayenu! (It would have been enough!)

The song’s stanzas fall into three categories of “gifts from God”:

Leaving Slavery

1. If He had brought us out of Egypt.

2. If He had executed justice upon the Egyptians.

3. If He had executed justice upon their gods.

4. If He had slain their first-born.

5. If He had given to us their wealth.

Miracles

1. If He had split the sea for us.

2. If He had led us through on dry land.

3. If He had drowned our oppressors.

4. If He had provided for our needs in the wilderness for 40 years.

5. If He had fed us manna.

Being With God

1. If He had given us Shabbat.

2. If He had led us to Mount Sinai.

3. If He had given us the Torah.

4. If He had brought us into the Land of Israel.

5. If He built the Temple for us.

To learn more about Passover, its traditions, and importance to believers, click HERE.

To learn a modern-day (and entertaining!) rendition of Dayenu, check out this version by the Maccabeats!