The Three Weeks or Bein ha-Metzarim (Hebrew: בין המצרים, "Between the Straits") (cf "dire straits") is a period of mourning commemorating the destruction of the first and second Jewish Temples. The Three Weeks start on the seventeenth day of the Jewish month of Tammuz — the fast of Shiva Asar B'Tammuz — and end on the ninth day of the Jewish month of Av — the fast of Tisha B'Av, which occurs exactly three weeks later. Both of these fasts commemorate events surrounding the destruction of the Jewish Temples and the subsequent exile of the Jews from the land of Israel. According to conventional chronology, the destruction of the first Temple, by Nebuchadnezzar II, occurred in 586 BCE, and the second, by the Romans, in 70 CE. Jewish chronology, however, traditionally places the first destruction at about 421 BCE. (See Missing years (Hebrew calendar) for more information.)
The mourning observances during the Three Weeks are divided into four levels, increasing in intensity:
Well, it's been
3 weeks since we said goodbye
And now how am I hard, as I try
Supposed to last a whole lifetime
The days are fine
I keep my mind
Occupied and satisfied
I keep my eyes on the consolation prize
But in the night
I lose the fight
I toss and turn
While my fears unite
My teeth grind every time
The visions come, I wish I was blind
They're teasing me, endlessly
With a dream that was, but can never be
I was never meant to be without you
I was never meant to be without you
I supposed in time, I will get by
But I was never meant to be without you
Well, now it's been
3 weeks since I wrote this song
Now the future's wrong seems way too long
I thank the stars you taught me to be strong
And now I walk the line
Your hand in mine
Your still my guide, side by side
I tell myself it's just a matter of time
And now my life keeps movin' by
And now I hear your voice in mine
I still smile most of the time
At memories, our lives intertwined
You're keeping me company
With a love that was, and will always be
I was never meant to be without you
I was never meant to be without you
I supposed in time, I will get by
But I was never meant to be without you
I was never meant to be without you
I was never meant to be without you
I supposed in time, I will get by
But I was never meant to be without you
I was never meant to be without you
I was never meant to be without you
I supposed in time, I will get by
Belfast Telegraph | 23 Jun 2018