In an unusual speech in the British House of Lords, British politician, barrister, and life peer David Wolfson recited a Hebrew prayer to honor the late Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth.

“As mortal humans, we submit to God’s decree” Wolfson stated to a captive audience of British officials. He then announced a Hebrew phrase commonly used when someone honorable dies: “Baruch dayan emet” which translates to: blessed be the judge of truth.

He then stated the Hebrew prayer that one makes when encountering royalty: “Blessed is he who has shared his glory with mortals of flesh and blood.”

“Royalty on earth reflects royalty in heaven” he added.He then explained the Hebrew meaning of the word mitzvah which means “command, or order, or duty.”

“You do a mitzvah not just because it’s a good deed and not just because you feel like doing it. You do a mitzvah because it’s your duty.” Wolfson then related the Queen’s life to that of one executed with duty.

Wolfson noted that the numerical value (gematria) of the root of the word mitzvah, is tzav, which equals is 96 – the same amount of years Queen Elizabeth lived.