Tehillim · A Psalm for the moment
Which Tehillim do we say during childbirth?
For a birth to come safely, it is a cherished custom to say Tehillim 20 and 100, joined with tzedakah (charity), as the family gathers to pray for the mother and the child.
The custom and its psalms
This is a matter of custom rather than a fixed law, and the psalms it names are 20 and 100. Psalm 20 is a prayer that calls out for help in a day of distress and asks that the heart's request be answered; Psalm 100 is a psalm of thanksgiving, giving voice already to the gratitude a new life brings. Said together, they hold both the asking and the thanks of such an hour.
Prayer joined to giving
It is customary to accompany these psalms with tzedakah (charity), so that the prayer is not words alone but words joined to an act of kindness. And it is a moment for the whole family: parents, grandparents, friends, each adding their voice, so that the mother and the child about to be born are carried by more than one pair of hands.
What to do
As the birth draws near, say Psalms 20 and 100 for the mother and the child, and set aside something for tzedakah as you do. Gather whoever is near to say them with you. For anything touching the medical moment itself, follow the doctors and your own rabbi.
Source: Custom; Tehillim 20 and 100.
When the hour arrives and you want the right psalms at hand without searching, let Kolí (the Tehillim for the moment you are living) open to them for you.
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