שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם שַׁבַּת חֲזוֹן אָמֵן ♡  הַלְלוּיָה

שַׁבָּת שָׁלוֹם שַׁבַּת חֲזוֹן אָמֵן ♡  הַלְלוּיָה
Shabbat Shalom SHABBAT CHAZON.
This Shabbat is שַׁבַּת חֲזוֹן, Shabbat Chazon, “Shabbat of vision”, it is a special Shabbat that precedes Tisha B’Av and known as the saddest of all Shabbats. This day’s portion reading from the Torah is always Parashat Devarim, Deuteronomy 1:1-3:22. 

חֲזוֹן יְשַׁעְיָהוּ בֶן־אָמוֹץ אֲשֶׁר חָזָה עַל־יְהוּדָה וִירוּשָׁלִָם
On Shabbat Chazon, the Haftarah portion is read from יְשַׁעְיָהוּ  the Book of Isaiah (Isaiah 1:1-27). Hazon is scripted in the Bible in the “Vision of Isaiah”, inscribed in the opening chapter of the Book of Isaiah. Chazon is a ‘vision’ and refers to‎ prophet Isaiah’s vision where he sees the destruction of Jerusalem and Judea, and calls on Am Yisrael to repent and return to God. The themes of introspection, repentance, and the desire for spiritual renewal and faith in God are central to the symbolism of Shabbat Chazon.

Shabbat Chazon is the Shabbat preceding Tisha B’Av during the times of “yemey bein ha-meitzarim” יְמֵי בֵּין הַמְּצָרִים, which form the three-week mourning and repentance period leading to the 9th of the month of Av, known as Tisha B’Av. The Nine Days of the month of Av are a time of spiritual observance and remembrance in Judaism, that begin on Rosh Chodesh Av (Alef of Av) and end on the fast day of Tisha B’Av, that grant peace among the tribalhood, unify the tribal alliance, and facilitate a will to draw closer to God and serve God.

Tisha B’Av is observed as a fast day and the saddest day for Jews on the Jewish calendar. It is practiced with mourning rituals and prayers for unity within Am Yisrael, reflecting tribal collective suffering and tragedies, commemorating the destruction of the First and Second Jewish Temples at the Holy City of Jerusalem, and symbolizing the subsequent exile of the Jews from the Holy Land of Israel to Babylon.