Class 15 - Ki Eshmerah Shabbat - Ibn Ezra's Defense of Shabbat Against the Karaites

...Those who comment on the Torah do so in one of five ways...The second approach is the one chosen by the distorters, even though they are Israelites...This is the way of the Sadducees, such as Anan, Benjamin, Ben Mashiach, Joshua, and of all heretics who do not believe the words of the transmitters of tradition...Each one interprets verses as he sees fit, as well as the commandments and laws. They are ignorant of the form of Hebrew and therefore err even in grammar. How can people rely on their opinion regarding the mitzvot when they are always flip from one extreme to the other based on their (faulty) reasoning since there isn't a single mitzvah that the (written) Torah explains sufficiently?!...(Rather,) Moses relied in these matters on the oral Torah...because there is no difference between the two Torot. They were both handed down to us by our ancestors...

(1) It was mid Friday night, the fourteenth day of the month of Tevet, in the year 4919, I, Abraham the Spaniard, known as “Ibn Ezra,” was in one of the cities of the island that is called “Edge of the Earth,”...I was asleep and...I dreamt that what appeared to be a man stood before me with a sealed letter in his hand. He spoke up and said to me: “Take this letter that the Sabbath sends you.” I prostrated myself and bowed before God and I blessed the God who gave us the Sabbath for honoring me so...I read the letter and it was sweet as honey to my mouth. However, as I read the last lines my heart became agitated and my soul almost failed me. I asked the one who stood before me: “What is my iniquity and what is my sin? From the day that I knew the revered God who created me, and I learned his commandments, I have always loved the Sabbath...Who among her servants is as faithful as I? Why did she send me this letter?” It read as follows:

The messenger of the Sabbath responded and said to me: “She was told that yesterday your students brought books of Biblical exegesis into your house in which is written to violate the Sabbath. Therefore, gird yourself on behalf of the Sabbath’s honor to fight the Torah’s battle with Sabbath’s enemies. Do not favor any person.”

I awoke with my spirit pounding within me and my soul very troubled. I arose and my anger burned within me. I dressed, washed my hands, and took the books outside to the moonlight. There was written the following interpretation for the verse “there was evening and there was morning” (Genesis 1:5): “With dawn of the second day one full day ended, for nighttime follows daytime.” I almost tore my garment and also that commentary, saying: “It is better to violate one Sabbath so that Israel will not violate many Sabbaths, if they should see this evil interpretation. We would also all be a mockery and a scorn in the eyes of the uncircumcised (Christians).” However, due to the honor of the Sabbath I restrained myself.

I vowed that I would not allow sleep for my eyes after the conclusion of the holy day until I wrote a lengthy letter explaining when the Torah’s day begins, thereby removing a stumbling block, a snare and a trap. For all of Israel, both the Pharisees (followers of the Rabbis) and the Sadducees (Karites), know that the only reason for writing the portion of Creation relating God’s actions each day is so that adherents of the Torah will know how to observe the Sabbath. They should rest as revered God rested, counting the days of the week. Now, if the sixth day ended with the morning of the seventh day, we should observe the following night (Saturday night). This interpretation will mislead all of Israel, those in the east and those in the west, those near and those far, both the living and the dead. God should avenge the Sabbath from one who believes this disturbing interpretation. The tongue of one who reads it aloud should cleave to his palate. Also the arm of the scribe who writes this commentary to Scripture should wither and his right eye weaken.

ויהי ערב ויהי בקר. It is noteworthy that the Torah here did not write ויהי לילה, ויהי יום, but it wrote ערב. This is the period when G’d made the light of the first day fade. The subsequent expression ויהי בקר refers to the morning after the night when dawn rose. At this point the first of the 6 “days” of G’d’s creative activity of which He spoke in the Ten Commandments had come to an end. After that the second “day” began and is introduced with the words ויאמר אלוקים יהי רקיע בתוך המים. The purpose of our verse here was not to tell us that that evening and morning were part of the same day. The verse was needed only to tell us how the 6 “days” are accounted for, i.e. that the morning completed the night, which was the end of that day and the beginning of the second day.

“I am Sabbath, the crowned law for the dear ones,

fourth of the Decalogue...

...I protected you all the days

so that you would carefully observe me from the days of your youth.

Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: With regard to anyone who observes Shabbat in accordance with its halakhot, even if he worships idolatry as in the generation of Enosh, God forgives him his sins...

Speak to the Israelite people and say: Nevertheless, you must keep My sabbaths, for this is a sign between Me and you throughout the ages, that you may know that I ה׳ have consecrated you.

it shall be a sign for all time between Me and the people of Israel. For in six days ה׳ made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day [God] ceased from work and was refreshed.

IT IS A SIGN BETWEEN ME AND THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL. Scripture employs the terms covenant and sign with regard to circumcision. It does the same with regard to the Sabbath. Rabbi Saadiah Gaon says: When people find a male circumcised...then they will know that he is an Israelite. Similarly when a person refrains from doing any work or engaging in business on the Sabbath. However, I believe that the meaning of It is a sign is, for in six days the Lord made heaven and earth. Thus the one who does work on the Sabbath denies the work of creation.

If you refrain from trampling the sabbath, from pursuing your affairs on My holy day; if you call the sabbath “delight,” GOD ’s holy day “honored”; and if you honor it and go not your ways nor look to your affairs, nor strike bargains—

...ודבר דבר Nor speaking a word, concerning any future act, or concerning worldly affairs; thou shalt only speak of the words of the Law. As a general rule observe, that we require tradition for understanding this.

With regard to all sacred writings, one may rescue them from the fire on Shabbat, whether they are read in public, e.g., Torah or Prophets scrolls, or whether they are not read in public, e.g., Writings scrolls...And why does one not read the Writings on Shabbat? Due to suspension of Torah study in the study hall. People came to the study hall at specific times on Shabbat to hear words of halakha, and other texts were not allowed at those times.

(3) בין שאין קורין בהן – such as the Writings, for even individuals should not read them on Shabbat because [it would lead to] being idle from the Bet Midrash/House of study as above when they would preach sermons to the people on the Sabbath where they teach them the laws of prohibitions and what is permitted, because on all of the weekdays, the people are engaged in their labors/work and they (i.e., the Rabbis) forbade the reading of the Writings on Shabbat at the time of the Bet Midrash/House of Study they pull at the hearts and come to prevent them to ear the sermon.

(22) On the sixth day they gathered double the amount of food, two omers for each; and when all the chieftains of the community came and told Moses, (23) he said to them, “This is what ה׳ meant: Tomorrow is a day of rest, a holy sabbath of ה׳. Bake what you would bake and boil what you would boil; and all that is left put aside to be kept until morning.”

(7) With each row you shall place pure frankincense, which is to be a token offering for the bread, as an offering by fire to ה׳. (8) He shall arrange them before ה׳ regularly every sabbath day—it is a commitment for all time on the part of the Israelites.

Rebbi Aḥa, Rebbi Abbahu, in the name of Rebbi Yose ben Ḥanina: One is forbidden to fast until the sixth hour on the Sabbath...

...Rabbi Elazar said in the name of Rabbi Yosei ben Zimra: Anyone who sits in observance of a fast on Shabbat, his merit is great and they tear up and repeal his sentence of seventy years; because everyone is enjoying himself and a feast is prepared, it is more difficult to fast on Shabbat than on any other day. Nevertheless, they then hold him accountable for failing to fulfill the halakha of delight of Shabbat. The Gemara asks: What is his remedy to atone and avoid punishment? Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said: He must sit in observance of another fast on a weekday to atone for the fast on Shabbat.

Why do I see them dismayed, yielding ground? Their fighters are crushed, they flee in haste and do not turn back—Terror all around!—declares GOD.

And on your joyous occasions—your fixed festivals and new moon days—you shall sound the trumpets over your burnt offerings and your sacrifices of well-being. They shall be a reminder of you before your God: I, ה׳, am your God.

ALSO IN THE DAY OF YOUR GLADNESS, AND IN YOUR APPOINTED SEASONS. When you return from the land of your enemies, or you defeat the enemy who attacks you and you establish a day of rejoicing, such as the days of Purim or the seven days of rejoicing in the days of Hezekiah. However, our transmitters of tradition explained that the day of your gladness refers to the Sabbath...

(Bamidbar 10:10) "And on the day of your rejoicing (and on your appointed times)": Sabbaths...

When is the ideal time for Torah scholars to fulfill their conjugal obligations? Rav Yehuda said that Shmuel said: The appropriate time for them is from Shabbat eve to Shabbat eve, i.e., on Friday nights...It is related further that Yehuda, son of Rabbi Ḥiyya and son-in-law of Rabbi Yannai, would go and sit in the study hall, and every Shabbat eve at twilight he would come to his house. When he would come, Rabbi Yannai would see a pillar of fire preceding him due to his sanctity. One day he was engrossed in the halakha he was studying, and he stayed in the study hall and did not return home. When Rabbi Yannai did not see that sign preceding him, he said to the family: Turn his bed over, as one does at times of mourning, since he must have died, reasoning that if Yehuda were alive he would not have missed his set interval for conjugal relations and would certainly have come home...

When the daughter of a priest defiles herself through harlotry, it is her father whom she defiles; she shall be put to the fire.

(1) IF SHE PROFANE. Many believe that techel (profane) is related to techillah (beginning). However, I believe that it is related to the word chillul (profane)...

You shall keep the sabbath, for it is holy for you. One who profanes it shall be put to death: whoever does work on it, that person shall be cut off from among kin.

Though you wash with natron and use much lye, your guilt is ingrained before Me—declares my Sovereign GOD.

Wash your heart clean of wickedness, O Jerusalem, that you may be rescued. How long will you harbor within you your evil designs?