Overview:
The Three Weeks: Bein ha-Metzarim
A Time Marking Mourning for Our History of Being
"Between the Straits"
The Three Weeks or Bein ha-Metzarim in Hebrew, which means "Between the Straits", is a Jewish Holy Day that is a three week period of mourning. This mourning remembers the saddest days in Jewish History, namely the destruction of both of the two previous Holy Temples. The last 9 days of this three week period is called The 9 Days, in which mourning is intensified (chabad.org).
Throughout the Jewish history numerous disastrous events have befallen the Jewish people, and or the Jewish nation during this month, especially the culminating date, the 9th of Av.
Significance: Marks the period between the breach of Jerusalem's walls (in 586 BCE and 70 CE) and the final destruction of the Temples.
Mourning Customs:
The Nine Days (start of Av): Restrictions tighten; many refrain from eating meat and drinking wine (except on Shabbat), and avoid wearing freshly laundered clothes.
Tisha B'Av: A 24-hour fast, during which other restrictions apply, such as not wearing leather shoes or sitting on a regular chair until midday.
Entire Three Weeks: Generally, no weddings are held, live music is avoided, and haircuts/shaving are forbidden.
Spiritual Focus: It is a time for introspection, reflecting on the destruction, and mourning the ongoing spiritual exile.
References:
Torah.org
Chabad.org
rebbetzinunplugged.com
The Jewish Virtual Library
When is
The Three Weeks?
2 July 2026- 23 July 2026
(The Month of Av)
Holy Day Torah Portions:
On the Sabbaths of the Three Weeks ("The Three Sabbaths of Affliction," Telata de-Furanuta), special haftarot are read from:
in which the prophets announce the impending punishment of Israel (see Sabbaths, Special).
Evil spirits were thought to be active during this period, particularly from the first of Av to the ninth. A person is, therefore, advised not to enter into litigation and come before a non-Jewish court in this period, since the result is a matter of luck.