In Kol Mekadesh that is sung Friday night it says המאחרים לצאת מן השבת וממהרים לבא which seems out of order. Do we not first rush into Shabbos and then delay its departure? Then why do we sing it in the opposite order?
Answer
I once heard an answer as follows: The Torah was given on Shabbos, so the first extension of Shabbos was the מאחרים לצאת they did that evening. It was only the following week that they fulfilled ממהרים לבא.
A similar answer is that at the time the song is being sung, it is already Shabbos, so the next event that will occur is מאחרים לצאת, not ממהרים לבא.
Another approach is that one may have ulterior motives for beginning Shabbos early (e.g., he is tired, hungry, had a long week, etc.). But to extend the ending of Shabbos truly shows one's respect of the day. Thus, we first say מאחרים לצאת to prove that yidden truly value Shabbos, and then the ממהרים לבא is understood to be for Shabbos' sake, rather than for one's own benefit.
[However, let me also point out the obvious: לבא rhymes with אוהבו and the other words at the end of those stanzas; לצאת would mess up the poetry. Just saying!]
No comments:
Post a Comment