Shabbat Parashat Vayakhel - 5783

Shabbat Parashat Vayakhel - 5783

Rabbi Hal Miller

You shall not kindle fire in any of your dwellings on the Shabbat day. [Shemot 35:3]

The verse prior to this states clearly that we are not to do work on Shabbat. In Shemot

20:10 (the Ten Statements) it specifies "You shall not do any work" on Shabbat, adding

the word "any". In various places, the word work is defined, and it includes kindling fire.

Certainly then, kindling would be prohibited under the "any" clause. Why does the Torah

see a need to give us a second commandment here?

There are those who say that it gives us the opportunity for double merit, getting two

mitzvas for the price of one, but that seems a catch-all answer when nobody can see

any better answer.

Rashi points out that the prior verse could be read as a positive commandment, "On

six days work shall be done", and that our verse is the corresponding negative one,

"You shall not kindle". From this we see that working is actually a requirement, and one

is supposed to support himself and his family by his own efforts. By derivation we see

that one is not entitled to a life of leisure the rest of the week, only on Shabbat. Nachshoni

adds that to not work during the week is to diminish the specialness of Shabbat.

Netziv, noting the reflexive form of "work shall be done" says that verse 2 could be read

to allow work begun during the six days to carry over onto Shabbat, and verse 3 comes to

make clear that even that work may not occur on the seventh day.

Talelei Oros explains that our verse is to make clear that God runs the world. For six days

it appears that our sustenance comes from our own hands. By giving up that seventh day

we are trusting that God will provide. Our not working on Shabbat does not make us less

wealthy, and working that day would not make us more wealthy. Rav Hirsch writes on a

similar theme, that creating fire is what gives man mastery over the world. By forbidding

that creation on Shabbat, we are reminded that in fact it is God who is Master.

But there are the 39 primary categories of forbidden labor on Shabbat. Why was this one

specifically chosen to show these things?

Rav Soloveitchik says that fire, in addition to what comes as the sun, did not appear until

after the first Shabbat since it was not needed during that first week. Light already existed

and no food needed to be cooked. This is why we light a candle for havdalah Saturday night.

Rashbam and Ramban understand that our verse is necessary to prevent people from

falling into a mistake, that Moshe had allowed food preparation on the holidays, so they

might come to cook on Shabbat as well.

According to Ba'al HaTurim, God's 'fire', Gehinnom, does not burn on Shabbat, so ours

should not either.

The Gemora [Shabbos 70a] gives another reason. This is the classic example of taking

one item out to teach laws about an entire set. We learn from this treatment of fire the

laws applying to all 39 forbidden labors. By separating it for discussion, we see that all

39 are in fact separate commandments, not run together.

Our verse teaches many things, but they all point to our accepting God as Master of the

world rather than mankind.