Parshat Ki Sisa 5782
Rabbi Jablinowitz
We read in this week’s parsha the mitzvah of Shabbos. Hashem commands Moshe to teach Bnei Yisrael the mitzvah of Shabbos with the words (Chapter 31, Pasuk 13), אך את שבתותי תשמרו. Rashi comments that we learn from here that the holiness of Shabbos overrides the building of the Mishkan. This is because the mitzvah of Shabbos follows the mitzvah of building of the Mishkan, and is introduced with the word אך which implies a limitation, a מיעוט. The Torah is teaching us that even though Bnei Yisrael were actively involved in the significant mitzvah of building the Mishkan, this building was halted on Shabbos.
The Ramban disagrees with Rashi’s understanding of the מיעוט. Though it’s true that Shabbos overrides the building of the Mishkan, it’s not learned from this pasuk (see the Ramban at the beginning of parshat Vayakhel). Since the word אך appears by the mitzvah of Shabbos, it is coming to minimize and limit Shabbos, but not the building of the Mishkan. The Ramban learns that the word אך is teaching that sometimes the mitzvah of Shabbos is overridden. And this occurs in the case of a Bris Milah on the eighth day or in the case of פיקוח נפש. When these situations arise on Shabbos, the restrictions of Shabbos are pushed aside.
The Sfas Emes quotes the words of Rashi, למעט שבת ממלאכת המשכן, and gives it a deeper perspective which also helps defend Rashi against the powerful question of the Ramban.
The end of the pasuk quoted above states, לדעת כי אני ד' מקדישכם. The Gemara in Beitzah 16A teaches on those words the following statement. אמר לו הקב"ה למשה משה מתנה טובה יש לי בבית גנזי ושבת שמה, ואני מבקש ליתנה לישראל. לך והודיע אותם. Hashem is telling Moshe He has a very special present for Clal Yisrael, and the present is called Shabbos. But why does He use the term בית גנזי which means a treasure house, and what is the significance of specifically telling Moshe to inform Clal Yisrael?
The Sfas Emes teaches that the term בית גנזי is to be understood in a similar manner to the words of Rashi from the Gemara in Chagigah 12A which he brings in the beginning of Bereishis about the אור הגנוז. Hashem saw that the light He created was not fit for the wicked and He hid it for the use of the Tzadikim in the future; גנזו לצדיקים לעתיד לבא. Similarly, Shabbos is from בית גנזיו; it’s from a place which is higher than this world and therefore, not suitable for this world.
The Torah tells us regarding the Mahn, שבת לא יהיה בו. The Mahn didn’t fall on Shabbos. But since the Mahn was a blessing from heaven and the source for blessing for the whole week, wasn’t it appropriate for it to fall on the holy day of Shabbos?
The Zohar on parshat Yisro teaches that the Mahn didn’t fall on Shabbos because even though it came from heaven, it came to this world in physical form. Shabbos is a day which is devoid of physical expressions of the Divine. When Hashem created the world in six days, the handiwork of Hashem is presented to us in physical form. But on Shabbos, Hashem rested and there was no physical creation. As Rashi teaches on the words ויכל אלוקים ביום השביעי, באת שבת באת מנוחה. On Shabbos there is an awareness that the whole physical world comes from Hashem. But this awareness isn’t in physical form; it’s a spiritual inspiration we feel of being connected to Hashem.
The building of the Mishkan is meant to parallel the creation of the world. It is also a physical expression of Hashem’s presence in our world. And just as after creation there was Shabbos, Hashem’s presence without a clear physical expression, so too there needs to be a Shabbos where there there is no building of the Mishkan. This is what Rashi means when he says למעט שבת ממלאכת המשכן; Shabbos is inherently excluded from the building of the Mishkan. This is why the word אך appears by Shabbos. Shabbos is necessarily devoid of any physical expressions of Gdliness.
This explains why Shabbos was given by Moshe Rabbeinu. Moshe’s function in the world was to serve as a conduit between Hashem and man and bring us the Torah. The Torah is the word of Gd and as the pasuk in Mishlei teaches (Chapter 6, Pasuk 23), כי נר מצוה ותורה אור; though the mitzvos are physical acts like a candle is light connected to physical fuel, the Torah itself is infinite light. And just as only Moshe Rabbeinu could give us the Torah, only Moshe could be the conduit between Hashem and man and give us Shabbos. This is why the Gemara says, לך והודיע אותם.
This is the meaning of the words in the pasuk a few pasukim later (Chapter 31, Pasuk 17), ביני ובין בני ישראל אות היא לעולם. Shabbos is an intimate experience between Hashem and Bnei Yisrael. There are no intermediaries or physical expressions of this special relationship on Shabbos. And now that we have understood this, we can add another teaching of the Sfas Emes. When the pasuk says אך את שבתותי תשמרו, we can understand the word אך the same way it’s used in parshat Matos in the parsha of koshering the vessels of Midian. The pasuk says (Bamidbar, Chapter 31, Pasuk 22), אך את הזהב ואת הכסף. We learn from the word אך which is a מיעוט, that all dirt and rust be removed from the gold and silver vessels when we do Hag’alah. There can be nothing separating between the material and the boiling water, or whatever means is being used to Kasher.
The same thing applies to Shabbos. אך את שבתותי teaches there is no separation between Hashem and Bnei Yisrael. On Shabbos we do not need the Mishkan or any other physical object to experience Hashem. There is a close, intimate embrace between Hashem and Bnei Yisrael without anything separating between us. And this is beautifully expressed with the words of the pasuk, ביני ובין בני ישראל.
Good Shabbos
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