Leading Up To The New Year: A First-Time Blend of Hebrew & English – Ishay Ribo & Zusha In A New Song: “Derech HaOsim MeAhava”

Singer Ishay Ribo is releasing a new song ahead of Rosh Hashanah titled “Derech HaOsim MeAhava” in collaboration with the Jewish-American duo Zusha. This marks Ribo‘s first musical fusion of Hebrew and English.

Ishay reveals that the song was inspired by a passage in the Talmud (Tractate Shabbat, 88a–b) and Rashi’s commentary on it. “The Talmud describes an encounter between a min—a type of heretic—and Rava. Rava was sitting cross-legged with his hands tucked beneath his feet; he was so deeply engrossed in Torah study that he didn’t notice his hands were bleeding. The heretic then addressed him, calling him one of the ‘hasty people’ (ama paziza), noting that back at Matan Torah, the people had declared ‘We will do’ (na’aseh) before ‘We will hear’ (nishma)—meaning, they accepted the Torah without knowing if they would be able to uphold it.” Rava replied without hesitation: “The people of Israel walk with God in simple faith.”

Regarding this response, Rashi writes: “We walked with Him in good faith, like those who act out of love, trusting that He would not burden us with something we could not bear.” This answer deeply moved Ribo—”the story itself, the touching reply, and above all, Rashi’s precise phrasing, which pierced straight to the heart like an arrow. I felt an intense need to set it to music.”

However, the journey to the finished song took time. “It took some time for Hashem to bring the lyrics and melody together, but something was missing,” he recounts. “I reached out to Zach and Shlomo—the amazing duo ‘Zusha,’ who had previously collaborated with me on a song—and they wrote verses in English. Now, the song felt complete.” Each of the creators brings their own language and perspective to the track, yet all three are anchored in the same roots and the same faith.

At the heart of the song lies a message about walking in faith, even when the path ahead is unclear. “As individuals and as a people, we are all on a journey,” says Ribo. “But even when the way isn’t always clear—and even if it isn’t always visible to our physical eyes—we walk with Him in simple sincerity, like a beloved child trusting his father. It is the path of those who act out of love.”

Lyrics: Ishay Ribo, Zacharia Goldschmidt, Shlomo Gissen, Philip Reichman
Chorus lyrics: Based on Rashi (Tractate Shabbat)
Composition: Ishay Ribo, David Ichilevitch, Zacharia Goldschmidt, Shlomo Gissen Musical Production: Ishay Ribo, Liad Grushka, Gavriel (EKEV), Zacharia Goldschmidt, Shlomo Gissen

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