― Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath
― Abraham Joshua Heschel, The Sabbath
(ח) זָכ֛וֹר֩ אֶת־י֥֨וֹם הַשַּׁבָּ֖֜ת לְקַדְּשֽׁ֗וֹ׃ (ט) שֵׁ֤֣שֶׁת יָמִ֣ים֙ תַּֽעֲבֹ֔ד֮ וְעָשִׂ֖֣יתָ כׇּֿל־מְלַאכְתֶּֽךָ֒׃ (י) וְי֨וֹם֙ הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔֜י שַׁבָּ֖֣ת ׀ לַה' אֱלֹקֶ֑֗יךָ לֹֽ֣א־תַעֲשֶׂ֣֨ה כׇל־מְלָאכָ֜֡ה... (יא) כִּ֣י שֵֽׁשֶׁת־יָמִים֩ עָשָׂ֨ה ה' אֶת־הַשָּׁמַ֣יִם וְאֶת־הָאָ֗רֶץ אֶת־הַיָּם֙ וְאֶת־כׇּל־אֲשֶׁר־בָּ֔ם וַיָּ֖נַח בַּיּ֣וֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִ֑י עַל־כֵּ֗ן בֵּרַ֧ךְ ה' אֶת־י֥וֹם הַשַּׁבָּ֖ת וַֽיְקַדְּשֵֽׁהוּ׃ {ס}
(8) Remember the sabbath day and keep it holy. (9) Six days you shall labor and do all your melachah, (10) but the seventh day is a sabbath of your God ה': you shall not do any melachah.... (11) For in six days God made heaven and earth and sea—and all that is in them—and then rested on the seventh day; therefore God blessed the sabbath day and hallowed it.
(יב) שָׁמ֛֣וֹר אֶת־י֥וֹם֩ הַשַּׁבָּ֖֨ת לְקַדְּשׁ֑֜וֹ כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר צִוְּךָ֖֣ ׀ ה' אֱלֹקֶֽ֗יךָ׃ (יג) שֵׁ֤֣שֶׁת יָמִ֣ים֙ תַּֽעֲבֹ֔ד֮ וְעָשִׂ֖֣יתָ כׇּֿל־מְלַאכְתֶּֽךָ֒׃ (יד) וְי֨וֹם֙ הַשְּׁבִיעִ֔֜י שַׁבָּ֖֣ת ׀ לַה' אֱלֹקֶ֑֗יךָ לֹ֣א תַעֲשֶׂ֣ה כׇל־מְלָאכָ֡ה... (טו) וְזָכַרְתָּ֗֞ כִּ֣י־עֶ֤֥בֶד הָיִ֣֙יתָ֙ ׀ בְּאֶ֣רֶץ מִצְרַ֔֗יִם וַיֹּצִ֨אֲךָ֜֩ ה' אֱלֹקֶ֤֙יךָ֙ מִשָּׁ֔ם֙ בְּיָ֥֤ד חֲזָקָ֖ה֙ וּבִזְרֹ֣עַ נְטוּיָ֑֔ה עַל־כֵּ֗ן צִוְּךָ֙ ה' אֱלֹקֶ֔יךָ לַעֲשׂ֖וֹת אֶת־י֥וֹם הַשַּׁבָּֽת׃ {ס}
(12) Observe the sabbath day and keep it holy, as your God ה' has commanded you. (13) Six days you shall labor and do all your melachah, (14) but the seventh day is a sabbath of your God ה'; you shall not do any melachah...(15) Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt and your God ה' freed you from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore your God ה' has commanded you to observe the sabbath day.
(א) וַיַּקְהֵ֣ל מֹשֶׁ֗ה אֶֽת־כׇּל־עֲדַ֛ת בְּנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל וַיֹּ֣אמֶר אֲלֵהֶ֑ם אֵ֚לֶּה הַדְּבָרִ֔ים אֲשֶׁר־צִוָּ֥ה ה' לַעֲשֹׂ֥ת אֹתָֽם׃
(ב) שֵׁ֣שֶׁת יָמִים֮ תֵּעָשֶׂ֣ה מְלָאכָה֒ וּבַיּ֣וֹם הַשְּׁבִיעִ֗י יִהְיֶ֨ה לָכֶ֥ם קֹ֛דֶשׁ שַׁבַּ֥ת שַׁבָּת֖וֹן לַה' כׇּל־הָעֹשֶׂ֥ה ב֛וֹ מְלָאכָ֖ה יוּמָֽת׃ (ג) לֹא־תְבַעֲר֣וּ אֵ֔שׁ בְּכֹ֖ל מֹשְׁבֹֽתֵיכֶ֑ם בְּי֖וֹם הַשַּׁבָּֽת׃ {פ}
(ד) וַיֹּ֣אמֶר מֹשֶׁ֔ה אֶל־כׇּל־עֲדַ֥ת בְּנֵֽי־יִשְׂרָאֵ֖ל לֵאמֹ֑ר זֶ֣ה הַדָּבָ֔ר אֲשֶׁר־צִוָּ֥ה ה' לֵאמֹֽר׃...
(י) וְכׇל־חֲכַם־לֵ֖ב בָּכֶ֑ם יָבֹ֣אוּ וְיַעֲשׂ֔וּ אֵ֛ת כׇּל־אֲשֶׁ֥ר צִוָּ֖ה ה'׃
(1) Moses then gathered the whole B'nai Yisrael community and said to them: These are the things that ה' has commanded you to do them:
(2) Six days melachah may be done, but on the seventh day, you shall have a Shabbat Shabbaton, holy to ה'; whoever does any melachah on it shall be put to death. (3) You shall kindle no fire throughout your settlements on the day of Shabbat.
(4) Moses said further to the whole B'nai Yisrael community: This is what ה' has commanded....[insert list of raw materials for the Mishkan] (10) And let all among you who are skilled come and make all that ה' has commanded [for the making of the Mishkan]...
Rabbi Elazar bar Prata provides us with another dimension of this wording "to do them" in the Mechilta on Ki Tissa. He queries: "Whence do we know that everyone who observes the Sabbath is accounted as if he had created the Sabbath? He quotes the line in Exodus 31:16 where Moses also spoke of לעשות את השבת, "to make the Sabbath." According to Rabbi Elazar, observing the Sabbath is equivalent to creating it. Moses repeats the same thought in our verse when he speaks of לעשות אותם, "to make them."
God intentionally mentioned to [Israel] the warning about Shabbat before the command about the craftwork (melachah) of the Mishkan implying that it does not push aside the Sabbath. [Even though it is commanded craftwork - Sforno.]
(32) Thus was completed all the work of the Tabernacle of the Tent of Meeting. The Israelites did so; just as ה' had commanded Moses, so they did.
The copper basin = The oceans and seas
The menorah = the sun, moon, stars, and planets
The cherubim = The birds
The High Priest = Adam Rishon / The First Human
The primary categories of craftwork prohibited on Shabbat, which number forty-less-one. They are grouped in accordance with their function:
[Baking] One who sows, and one who plows, and one who reaps, and one who gathers, and one who threshes, and one who winnows, one who sorts, one who grinds, and one who sifts, and one who kneads, and one who bakes.
[Weaving] One who shears wool, one who whitens it, and one who combs it, and one who dyes it, and one who spins, and one who stretches, and one who constructs two meshes, and one who weaves two threads, and one who severs two threads , one who knots, and one who unknots, and one who sews two stitches, one who tears in order to sew two stitches.
[Tanning] One who traps a deer, one who slaughters it, and one who flays it, one who salts it, and one who tans its hide, and one who smooths it, and one who cuts it.
[Construction, etc.] One who writes two letters and one who erases in order to write two letters. One who builds, and one who dismantles, one who extinguishes, and one who kindles. One who strikes with a hammer, one who carries out from domain to domain.
All these are primary categories of labor, and they number forty-less-one.
When we look at the Sabbath from this vantage point, we can understand the phrase:
"On six days melachah may be done, but on the seventh day you shall have a sabbath of complete rest, holy to ה..."
If the meaning of this verse had been that the seventh day should serve as Shabbat, the Torah should have written: "Six days, work shall be performed and the seventh day shall be holy, etc.," instead of "and on the seventh day, etc."
As it is the Torah wishes to tell us that "on the seventh day everything, including unfinished tasks from the sixth day should be considered as completed."
The repetition of the words "Shabbat Shabbaton" together with the emphasis on the word "Yom"/Day also suggests that even if work is being performed, the holy character of the day of Shabbat itself does not cease...