Blessing After Meals

Deuteronomy 8:10-18 (KJV)
¹⁰ When thou hast eaten and art full, then thou shalt bless the LORD thy God for the good land which he hath given thee.
¹¹ Beware that thou forget not the LORD thy God, in not keeping his commandments, and his judgments, and his statutes, which I command thee this day:
¹² Lest when thou hast eaten and art full, and hast built goodly houses, and dwelt therein;
¹³ And when thy herds and thy flocks multiply, and thy silver and thy gold is multiplied, and all that thou hast is multiplied;
¹⁴ Then thine heart be lifted up, and thou forget the LORD thy God, which brought thee forth out of the land of Egypt, from the house of bondage;
¹⁵ Who led thee through that great and terrible wilderness, wherein were fiery serpents, and scorpions, and drought, where there was no water; who brought thee forth water out of the rock of flint;
¹⁶ Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end;
¹⁷ And thou say in thine heart, My power and the might of mine hand hath gotten me this wealth.
¹⁸ But thou shalt remember the LORD thy God: for it is he that giveth thee power to get wealth, that he may establish his covenant which he sware unto thy fathers, as it is this day.

When I was a little girl, my family faithfully prayed before every meal. Although it was a rote prayer, it established in my heart, the need for thanksgiving to God. In that prayer we asked God to bless us and our food. We also stated our recognition that it came from Him. However, God's commands in this area are a little different. Deuteronomy 8:10 says that we are to bless God after we have eaten and that we are to thank Him for the good land which He has given. Consequently, the Jews have traditionally blessed God before eating, but have ended meals by praying a significantly longer prayer called the "HaMazon."

From Deuteronomy 8 we also see the reason for this command. It is so that we do not forget where our many blessings come from and assume our blessings are the product of our own means (verses 11 & 17). You see, once we forget to bless God and thank Him for the land, our food, and all our blessings, not only do we forget that God is the responsible party, but we begin to forget God in all the other areas of our lives. God is removed from the throne of our hearts, and God is no longer our first love. May this never be!

First Blessing of HaMazon

Blessed are You, YHVH, our God, King of the universe, Who nourishes the entire world, in His goodness -- with grace, with kindness, and with mercy. He gives nourishment to all flesh, for His kindness is eternal. And through His great goodness, we have never lacked, and may we never lack nourishment, for all eternity. For the sake of His Great Name, because He is God Who nourishes and sustains all, and benefits all, and He prepares food for all of His creatures which He has created. Blessed are You, YHVH, Who nourishes all.  (Artscroll translation - Women's Siddur)