Halakhah su I Re 18:71

The patriarch Avraham stood in prayer and begged that Sodom not be destroyed. God answered him that if there were ten righteous people in Sodom the city would be saved. But ten righteous people were not to be found there, and Sodom was demolished (Bereishit 18). Childless for many years, the patriarch Yitzḥak and matriarch Rivka prayerfully pleaded with God and were answered with the birth of Yaakov and Esav (Bereishit 25). The patriarch Yaakov prayed for God to save him from his brother, Esav, who set out against him with four hundred warriors, and he was answered and saved (Bereishit 32). Following the sin of the Golden Calf, God’s wrath was kindled against the people of Israel, and our teacher Moshe prayed intensely until God canceled the terrible decree that He had threatened to visit on His people (Shemot 32). When Miriam, Moshe’s sister, fell ill with leprosy, Moshe stood and prayed, “Kel na refa na la” (“O God, please heal her!”), and she was healed (Bamidbar 12). To turn back a heaven-sent plague, Aharon used the incense to pray, and the plague ceased (Bamidbar 17). After the army of Israel was defeated by Ai, God heard Yehoshua’s prayers and guided him to rectify the sin of Akhan, after which they won their next battles (Yehoshua 7). When the Philistines waged war against Israel, Shmuel cried out to God for help on behalf of the nation. God answered his prayer, and Israel struck and vanquished the Philistines (1 Shmuel 7). King David of Israel would often pray to God; his prayers eventually became the book of Tehilim. After King Shlomo finished building the Temple, he prayed that the Divine Presence (Shekhina) dwell therein, and that all people who pray there would be answered; God acceded to his prayer (1 Melakhim 8-9). When Eliyahu the Prophet fought against the false prophets of Ba’al on Mount Carmel, he prayed that fire would descend from the sky and so it transpired (1 Melakhim 18). Likewise, Elisha the Prophet prayed to God that He revive the son of the Shunamite woman, and the boy came back to life (2 Melakhim 4). When King Ḥizkiyahu faced death from his disease, he too prayed to God and was cured (2 Melakhim 20).

Rabbi Yirmiyah bar Abba said,¹⁶Sotah 42a. "[The following] four categories [of people] will not see the Divine Presence [in the Hereafter]: scorners, flatterers, liars, and those who speak lashon hara (slanderers). Scorners [can be inferred], from the verse; 'He withdraws His hand from scorners."¹⁷Hosea 7:5. (Rashi explains [mashach yado] the Holy One, blessed is He, pulls away His hand, [rejecting] the company of scorners). Flatterers, [can be inferred], from the verse, "A flatterer cannot come before Him."¹⁸Job 13:6. Liars [may be inferred], from the verse, "He who tells lies will have no place before My eyes."¹⁹Psalms 101:7. Those who speak lashon hara, from the verse, "You are not a God Who desires wickedness, evil will not abide with You."²⁰Psalms 5:5. (Rashi explains [that the phrase] "Evil will not abide with You" refers to those who speak lashon hara, because it is written in this psalm²¹Psalms 5:10. "For there is no sincerity in their mouth…") [The Gemara concludes:] "Since you are a righteous God, no evil can abide in Your dwelling."²²Sotah 42a. Our Rabbis of blessed memory said furthermore,²³Sanhedrin 63b. "All ridicule is forbidden except for ridiculing idol worship,²⁴It is considered a great mitzvah to ridicule idol worship and deride an evil and immoral way of life. (Siddur Arizal) for it is written, "And it happened at noon that Eliyahu mocked them…"²⁵I Kings 18:27.

That He prohibited us from making a laceration for the dead in our flesh, like the idol worshippers do. And this is His, may He be exalted, saying, "you shall not gash yourselves (titgodedu)" (Deuteronomy 14:1). And the prohibition about this was already repeated with His saying, "You shall not make any lacerations in your flesh for the dead" (Leviticus 19:28). And it has already been explained in the Gemara, Yevamot (Yevamot 13b), that the essence of the verse, "you shall not gash yourselves," is, you shall not make a wound. And there it also says, "'You shall not gash yourselves,' is required for itself, as [the Torah] is saying, 'Do not make a wound for a corpse." And in the Gemara, Makkot (Makkot 21a), they said, "A laceration and a gash are the same." And there it is explained [that] one who makes a gash for a corpse is liable whether it was [done] with the hand or with a tool; but for idolatry, one is liable with a tool, but by hand, one is exempt - as appears explicitly in prophecy, "and they gashed themselves according to their practice with knives" (I Kings 18:28). And they have already said (Yevamot 13b) that included in this is the prohibition of disunity in the religious practices of a city and division [into] groups. And they said, "'You shall not titgodedu' - you shall not make agudot, agudot (many groups)." But the essence of the verse is as we explained - do not make a wound for a corpse - whereas this is like a homily (drash). And likewise that which they said in Sanhedrin (Sanhedrin 110a) - "One who maintains a disagreement transgresses a negative commandment, as it is stated, 'and not be like Korach and his congregation' (Number 17:5)" - is also from a homiletic angle. However the essence of [that] verse is [simply] to deter [from this]. And according to what the Sages explained, it is surely a negation, not a prohibition. For they explained that the content of this statement is that God, may He be exalted, is saying that one who will disagree and challenge the priesthood at some future time will not be punished with that which Korach was punished. Indeed he will be [punished], "Like the Lord spoke through Moshe to him" - meaning, tzaraat - as that which He said to Moshe, "Place your hand in your bosom," (Exodus 4:6) and as is made clear with King Uzziah (II Chronicles 26). And I will [now] return to the [primary] intention of the commandment and say that the regulations of this commandment have already been explained at the end of Makkot and that one who transgresses this negative commandment is lashed. (See Parashat Re'eh; Mishneh Torah, Foreign Worship and Customs of the Nations 12.)

And there it explains that one who gashes in response to a death, whether by hand or with a utensil, is liable; [one who gashes] for idolatry, with a utensil is liable but by hand is exempt [from punishment], as comes from the explanation in the Navi, "And they gashed themselves like their manner with swords." (Melachim I 18:28).

To not gash ourselves, like the worshipers of idolatry: To not gash our bodies, like the worshipers of idolatry. And about this is it stated (Deuteronomy 14:1), "you shall not gash yourselves." And this negative commandment is repeated with another word, as it is stated (Leviticus 19:28), "And a marking for a soul, you shall not put onto your flesh, etc." And in Tractate Yevamot 13b, they, may their memory be blessed said, "'You shall not gash yourselves' is required for itself, as [the Torah] said that that you shall not make a wound." And it is also said there that "You shall not gash yourselves" is for the dead. And in Tractate Makkot 21a, they, may their memory be blessed, said that marking and gashing are one thing. And there it is said that one who makes a mark for the dead is liable whether it is with the hand or with a tool; but for idolatry, with a tool, [one is] liable, with the hand, [one is] exempt. As such was their custom to gash themselves in front of the idolatry with a tool, and like the matter that is written (I Kings 18:28), "and they gashed themselves like their statute with swords and spears." And regardless, according to that which appears [to come out] from the words of our Rabbis, may their memory be blessed, (Makkot 22) the liability of the negative commandment is only about one who gashes himself for the dead or for idolatry. But for one who gashes himself without a reason or from anger about his house that has fallen or his ship that has sunk - even though it is something extremely disgusting and ugly and forbidden - there is no liability of the negative commandment for it.

And this prohibition is practiced in every place and at all times by males and females. And one who transgresses it and makes himself a clairvoyant in one of the ways from all the matters we have mentioned or in another matter, and tells people things that he sees through his clairvoyance, is liable for lashes - and that is when he does some act in the thing, as we do not administer lashes without an act. But one who asks [something] from a clairvoyant is not under the liability of lashes. Nonetheless, very disgusting is anyone who fixes his thoughts or expends his time on these vanities. As it is not appropriate for one whom God has graced with knowledge and given the true religion as an inheritance to think about these vanities. Rather, he should fix his thoughts on the service of the Creator, may He be elevated, and not fear the words of the clairvoyant; since God, in His kindnesses will change the system of the stars, and nullify the power of the constellations, [so] as to do good to His pious ones. And it is known that we are the holy people, such that we are not under [the power of] a star or constellation - 'the Lord is our inheritance, as He spoke to us.' And [it is] like the matter that we found with the forefathers, that God placed their stature above the ministers above: Like that which is written about Yaakov, "but rather Yisrael will be your name" (Genesis 35:10), "for you have dominated (sarita) with powers, etc." (Genesis 32:29); meaning that God made him a minister (sar) over the [celestial] ministers. And so [too,] is Yitschak called Yisrael, as it is stated (Genesis 46:8), "these are the Children of Israel that were coming to Egypt, Yaakov and his children." And so [too,] Avraham is called Yisrael, as we wrote in the Introduction of the book. And this is [the meaning of] what is written about the matter of the disagreement of the prophet, Eliyahu, with the prophets of Baal, as it stated (I Kings 18:31), "like the number of tribes of the children of Yaakov," whose name was called Yisrael: As he was rebuking them [about] why they were leaving the service of the Master, the Lord of Hosts, who has in His hand to nullify all the actions of the powers and the constellations; and like the matter that He did with the forefathers, such that He put the constellations under their hand. And that is [the meaning] of its stating in that place (I Kings 18:31), "like the number of tribes of the children of Yaakov, to whom was the word of the Lord, saying, 'Yisrael will be your name,'" - meaning to say, that He made him a minister over the [celestial] ministers, to change their system and their power with his merit. [This is] meaning to say, Israel, who are the children of Yaakov, are also ministers over the celestial ministers; and hence it would be fitting for them to not worship anything besides God alone. And so did we find with Yehoshua, who decreed to the sun and the moon to stand - as it is written in Joshua 10:12, "Sun, be still in Giveon, moon in the Ayalon Valley" - and they stood. And so [too,] several pious ones of Israel who changed the system of the constellations [and their power] with their merit. The matter would [take too] long, to bring [the] several stories that happened in Israel about this matter.

“The order of the Afternoon Service¹⁸⁵Minḥah, מנחה, Afternoon Service; see footnote 40. on Yom Kippur” - Containing four paragraphs.
In the Afternoon Service one says “אשרי¹⁸⁶Ashrei, אשרי; see footnote 175.”, and “ובא לציון¹⁸⁷U-Va Le-Ẓiyyon, ובא לציון, is a prayer found near the beginning of the Minḥah Service on Shabbat as well as on festivals. It is of biblical origin coming from Isaiah 59:20-21. It usually follows the Ashrei (see footnote 175). It is also found in additional prayers often recited after the daily Shaḥarit, Morning Service. The prayer speaks of a Redeemer coming to Zion, Jerusalem, and helping Israel who eternally shares in God's covenant.
Hertz, op. cit., p. 571.”, but one does not say “ואני תפלתי¹⁸⁸Ve'ani Tefilati, ואני תפלתי, is a prayer recited on the Sabbath during the Minḥah Service. It closes the prayers immediately preceding the Torah reading done during the Afternoon Sabbath Service. It is only recited on the Sabbath. If a festival occurs on a weekday the prayer is omitted. On Yom Kippur the prayer is omitted even if Yom Kippur falls on the Sabbath because it is not in keeping with the spirit of the Day of Atonement. The prayer is from Psalms 69:14, "And as for me, may my prayer unto Thee, O Lord, be in an acceptable time: O God, in the abundance of Thy lovingkindness, answer me with thy sure salvation."
ibid., p. 572.” even if it (Yom Kippur) falls on the Sabbath.
Hagah : We are not used to saying “אשרי¹⁸⁹Ashrei, אשרי; see footnote 175.” and “ובא לציון¹⁹⁰U-Va Le-Ẓiyyon, ובא לציון; see footnote 187.” before the Afternoon Service, only before the Closing Service, Ne’ilah¹⁹¹Ne'ilah, נעילה, is a worship service which concludes the prayer service recited on Yom Kippur. The name Ne'ilah was derived from a ritual during the time of the Second Temple. Even though the service is now only recited at the conclusion of the Day of Atonement, it was originally recited on all public fast days including Yom Kippur.
The full name of the service is Ne'ilat She'arim which means the "Closing of the Gates". This referred to the daily closing of the Temple gates at night. On Yom Kippur this terminology is symbolically associated with the closing of the heavenly gates which are open until sunset to receive the atonement of a person who truly repents.
According to the Talmud, during Temple times Ne'ilah was recited daily one hour before sunset at which time the Temple Gates were closed as there was no evening sacrifice only an Afternoon Minḥah Sacrifice (see footnote 22). On Yom Kippur Ne'ilah, because of the length of the Temple Service and the special rituals involved, could not begin until close to sunset. After the destruction of the Temple and when Ne'ilah became only associated with Yom Kippur, it became the practice for the service to begin close to sunset, before twilight and to end at nightfall.
In the third century the Ne'ilah Service consisted of an Amidah of seven benedictions which were parallel to the other Amidot of the day (see footnote 43) and a confession of sins, the Al Ḥet (see footnote 45). The confession of sins though was later replaced by two prayers that are unique to the confession made during the Ne'ilah Service: Attah noten yad le-foshe'im, "Thou stretchest forth Thy hand (in forgiveness) to sinners," and Attah hivdalta enosh, "Thou has distinguished man (from the beast)." These prayers remind man that God eagerly forgives one who is genuinely penitent. There is a basic rabbinic idea that divine judgment is inscribed in the "Book of Life" on Rosh HaShanah, but it is not sealed until the end of the Day of Atonement. Therefore at the end of the Amidah in the Ne'ilah Service the root for the word inscribe, ktv, כתב, is replaced by the root for the word seal, ḥtm, חתם, when reference is made to the "Book of Life". To help set off the Ne'ilah Service and its uniqueness on Yom Kippur, the Ashrei (see footnote 175) and the U-Va Le-Ẓiyyon Go-el (see footnote 187) prayer which normally come at the beginning of the Minḥah Service on Sabbaths and festivals, come at this time before the Ne'ilah Service.
Beautiful liturgical poetry has become associated with the Ne'ilah Service especially prayers of forgiveness, seliḥot (see footnote 14). The central theme of the Service is to give one a final chance and effort to seek forgiveness before the heavenly gates symbolically close at sunset. The Service ends with a feeling of confidence.
The Ne'ilah Service contains piyyutim (see footnote 149), an Amidah and a reader's repetition of it, seliḥot, Ashamnu (see footnote 45), Avinu Malkenu (see footnote 15), and the Kaddish (see footnote 177). The entire ritual culminates with a responsive proclamation of the Shema once (see footnote 173, but only the one line "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is One") followed by its response three times, Barukh shem kavod malkhuto le'olam va'ed, "Praised be His glorious Kingdom forever and ever", and Adonai Hu ha-Elohim", "The Lord He is God" (I Kings 18:39) seven times. Finally in the Ashkenazi rite a final single shofar blast (see footnote 221) marks the end of the Day of Atonement, the Sabbath of Sabbaths.
Herman Kieval, E. J., v. 12, pp. 943-44., and so wrote a few of our rabbis, (מרדכי והגהות מיימוני סוף ספר אהבה, וסוף הלכות יו״כ, כל בו ומנהגים).¹⁹²Mordekhai and Hagahot Maimuniyyot at the end of the book Ahavah, Love, (which is the name of the second book of Maimonides' Mishneh Torah, see footnote 59) and the end (of the section) of the Laws of Yom Kippur, and Kol Bo and Minhagim, ומנהגים מרדכי והגהות מיימוני סו ״ס״ אהבה וסוף הלכות יו״כ וכל בו.
For Mordekhai, מרדכי; see footnote 24.
For Hagahot Maimuniyyot, הגהות מיימוני; see footnote 27.
For Kol Bo, כל בו; see footnote 34.
For Minhagim, מנהגים; see footnote 13. We do not say “אין כאלהינו¹⁹³En Kh'Elohenu, אין כאלהינו, is one of the most popular chants connected with the Jewish liturgy. The Sephardim sing it everyday while the Ashkenazi rite has usually limited its singing to the end of the Musaf Service (see footnote 166) on Sabbaths and festivals shortly before the Aleinu Prayer (see footnote 182). During the geonic period (see footnote 19) it was also chanted during the Evening Services.
The prayer expresses God four ways: God, Lord, King, and Savior and that there is none like Him, who is like Him?, we will give thanks to Him, we will bless Him, and proclaim that He is God who our fathers worshipped. Each statement expresses the same thoughts repeated four times, once for each name of God. The first three letters of the first three expressions spells, אמן, Amen.
Hertz, op. cit., p. 544.”, (“there is none like our God”) on Yom Kippur, (מנהגים).¹⁹⁴Minhagim, מנהגים; see footnote 13.