Translation:Mishnah/Seder Zeraim/Tractate Berakhot/Chapter 9/3


 * When one builds a new house, and acquires new vessels, he says,
 * “Blessed is he that kept us alive (and sustained us and brought us to this time).”
 * Bless upon the bad which contains good, and upon the good which contains bad.


 * He who prays over what has already happened, this prayer is in vain.
 * How? If his wife was pregnant and he said,
 * “May it be your will that my wife give birth to a boy."
 * This prayer is in vain.
 * If he came on the way and heard the sound of screaming in the city, and he said,
 * “May it be your will that these are not the children of my house.”
 * This is a prayer in vain.



Blessed is he that kept us alive.  As in previous mishnah sections, although the full formula of the blessing [Blessed are you, YHVH, our God and ruler of the universe, who...) is meant, only the first word is used.  Here, the ending is similarly abridged; the full blessing is "who has kept us alive, and sustained us, and brought us to this season."

Bless upon the bad When an event is bad, even if it will ultimately turn out for the good, the appropriate blessing is the one for bad news. [For example, if a flood comes, even if it will enrich the soil]

upon the good When an event is good, even if it will ultimately cause harm, the appropriate blessing is the one for good news. [For example, one's child graduates from college but becomes subject to the draft.]

His wife was pregnant Since the child's sex is determined at conception, prayers afterwards cannot change it.

the sound of screaming The sound indicates that a calamity has happened already. Prayers cannot change what has already happened, or to whom.