Before I was, your kindness came to me

Scholars remain uncertain as to the nature of this poem; is it a formal petitionary prayer, a devotional introduction to the Nishmat (“May the soul [breath] of every living being”) prayer recited on the Sabbath and festivals, or a novel combination of both? The phrase in the second line of the poem, “when You made nothing be,” presents an ambiguity, denoting either creation ex nihilo or the creation of nothingness. The latter interpretation may be supported by the fact that the individual is the subject of this line, and the poem underscores his lowliness.