The Ballad of the Four Sons
~ To the tune of “Clementine” ~
Said the father to his children
At the seder you will dine
You will eat your fill of matzah
You will drink four cups of wine
Now this father had no daughters
But his sons they numbered four
One was wise and one was wicked
One was simple and a bore
And the fourth was sweet and winsome
He was young and he was small
While his brother asked the questions
He could scarcely speak at all
Said the wise one to his father
“Would you please explain the laws?
Of the customs of the seder
Will you please explain the cause”
And the father proudly answered
“As our fathers ate in speed,
Ate the paschal lamb ‘ere midnight
And from slavery we were freed
“So we follow their example
And ‘ere midnight must complete
All the seder and we should not
After 12 remain to eat”
Then did sneer the son so wicked
“What does all this mean to you?”
And his father’s voice was bitter
As his grief and anger grew
“If yourself you don’t consider
As a son of Israel,
Then for you this has no meaning
You could be a slave as well.”
Then the simple son said simply
“What is this,” and quietly
The good father told his offspring
“We were freed from slavery”
But the youngest son was silent
For he could not ask at all
His eyes were bright with wonder
As his father told him all
My dear children, heed the lesson
And remember evermore
What the father told his children
Told his sons that numbered four
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