פירוש על ברכות 9:4

שתים בכניסתו ושנים ביציאתו – When he is entering, he says, [“Praised are You, O LORD] that you will bring me into this city in peace” . When he has entered, he says, “I give thanks before You, that you have brought me into this city in peace.” Behold this is twice at his entrance. When he desires to leave, he says, “[Praised are You, O LORD] that you will take me out from this city in peace.” After he has left, he says, “I give thanks before You, that you have taken me out of this city in peace.” And so much [praise – before and after], why? Because a person must express gratitude before his Creator on what he has endured from the good, and he should pray about the future that should occur for good.

One who enters into a large city should say two prayers, one on entering and one on leaving. Ben Azzai says: four two on entering and two on leaving, he gives thanks for the past and cries out for the future. The following passage in Berakhot 60a explains our mishnah and gives the wording of the prayer. Some of this prayer might be familiar because it is part of the “tefillat haderekh,” the travelers’ prayer. Our Rabbis taught: What does he say on entering? 1. “May it be Your will, O Lord, my God, to bring me into this city in peace’. 2. When he is inside he says: “I thank You, O Lord, my God, that You have brought me into this city in peace.” 3. When he is about to leave he says: “May it be Your will, O Lord, my God, and God of my fathers, to bring me out of this city in peace.” 4. When he is outside he says: “I thank You, O Lord, my God, that You have brought me out of this city in peace, and just as You have brought me out in peace, so may You guide me in peace and support me in peace and make me proceed in peace and deliver me from the hands of all enemies and ambushers by the way.” This version has four prayers and hence it is the version of Ben Azzai (section two in the mishnah). According to the first opinion in the mishnah upon entering he would recite, “‘May it be Your will O Lord, my God, to bring me into this city in peace.” Upon leaving he would recite, “I thank You, O Lord, my God, that You have brought me out of this city in peace.” Ben Azzai also notes a general rule when referring to the past he uses the language of “thanking” and for the future he “cries out” which means he says, “May it be your will.”