Observe versus Remember

(א) ארבעה דברים נאמרו בשבת שנים מן התורה ושנים מדברי סופרים והן מפורשין על ידי הנביאים. שבתורה זכור ושמור. ושנתפרשו על ידי הנביאים כבוד ועונג שנאמר וקראת לשבת עונג ולקדוש ה' מכובד.

Mishneh Torah, Sabbath 30:1

(1) There are four aspects of the observance of Shabbat: Two originating in the Torah and two originated from our Sages which are presented in the works of the prophets. In the Torah, they are: "Remember the Sabbath Day" (Exodus 20:8) and "Observe the Sabbath Day" (Deuteronomy 5:12. In the prophets they are honor and pleasure, as it is written in the book of Isaiah (58:13): "And you shall call the Sabbath a delight, sanctified unto God and honored."

דברים ה׳:י״ב

(יב) שָׁמ֣֛וֹר אֶת־י֥וֹם֩ הַשַׁבָּ֖֨ת לְקַדְּשׁ֑֜וֹ כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר צִוְּךָ֖֣ ׀ יְהוָ֥֣ה אֱלֹהֶֽ֗יךָ

Deuteronomy 5:12

(12) Observe the sabbath day and keep it holy, as the LORD your God has commanded you.

שמות כ׳:ח׳

(ח) זָכ֛וֹר֩ אֶת־י֥֨וֹם הַשַּׁבָּ֖֜ת לְקַדְּשֽׁ֗וֹ

Exodus 20:8

(8) Remember the sabbath day and keep it holy.

רש"י על דברים ה׳:י״ב:א׳

שמור. וּבָרִאשׁוֹנוֹת הוּא אוֹמֵר "זָכוֹר", שְׁנֵיהֶם בְּדִבּוּר אֶחָד וּבְתֵבָה אַחַת נֶאֶמְרוּ, וּבִשְׁמִיעָה אַחַת נִשְׁמְעוּ (מכילתא):

Rashi on Deuteronomy 5:12:1

שמור OBSERVE [THE SABBATH DAY] — But in the former Ten Commandments (i.e. where they were first promulgated, in Exodus XX.), it states, “Remember [the Sabbath day]"! The explanation is: Both of them (זכור and שמור) were spoken in one utterance and as one word, and were heard in one hearing (i.e. were heard simultaneously) (Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael 20:8:1).

רש"י על שמות כ׳:ח׳:א׳

זכור. לְשׁוֹן פָּעוֹל הוּא, כְּמוֹ אָכוֹל וְשָׁתוֹ (ישעיהו כ"ב), הָלוֹךְ וּבָכֹה (שמואל ב ג'), וְכֵן פִּתְרוֹנוֹ: תְּנוּ לֵב לִזְכֹּר תָּמִיד אֶת יוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת, שֶׁאִם נִזְדַּמֵּן לְךָ חֵפֶץ יָפֶה תְּהֵא מַזְמִינוֹ לְשַׁבָּת (מכילתא):

Rashi on Exodus 20:8:1

זכור — This word expresses the verbal action without any reference to a particular time (the infinitive), similar to, (Isaiah 22:13) אכול ושתו “to eat and to drink”; (II Samuel 3:16) הלוך ובכה “to go and to weep”; and the following is its meaning: take care to remember always the Sabbath day — that if, for example, you come across a nice article of food during the week, put it by for the Sabbath (Beitzah 16a).

שבת ל״ג ב:ח׳

בהדי פניא דמעלי שבתא חזו ההוא סבא דהוה נקיט תרי מדאני אסא ורהיט בין השמשות אמרו ליה הני למה לך אמר להו לכבוד שבת ותיסגי לך בחד חד כנגד זכור וחד כנגד שמור אמר ליה לבריה חזי כמה חביבין מצות על ישראל יתיב דעתייהו

Shabbat 33b:8

As the sun was setting on Shabbat eve, they saw an elderly man who was holding two bundles of myrtle branches and running at twilight. They said to him: Why do you have these? He said to them: In honor of Shabbat. They said to him: And let one suffice. He answered them: One is corresponding to: “Remember the Shabbat day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8), and one is corresponding to: “Observe the Shabbat day, to keep it holy” (Deuteronomy 5:12). Rabbi Shimon said to his son: See how beloved the mitzvot are to Israel. Their minds were put at ease and they were no longer as upset that people were not engaged in Torah study.

ספורנו על שמות כ׳:ח׳:א׳

זכור את יום השבת היה תמיד זוכר את יום השבת בעסקיך בימי המעשה, כמו זכור את אשר עשה לך עמלק, שמור את חדש האביב:

Sforno on Exodus 20:8:1

זכור את יום השבת, the infinitive mode tells us that we are to be aware of the Sabbath every day of the week, even while involved in our daily routines. This is also the same mode chosen by the Torah for demanding that we be forever mindful of what Amalek our arch enemy did to our forefathers after they had crossed the Sea on dry land. (Deuteronomy 25,17) The same is true of the infinitive mode chosen by the Torah when urging us to remember the legislation pertaining to the “month of spring,” i.e. the month of the redemption from Egypt. Compare Deuteronomy 16,1 שמור את חודש האביב ועשית פסח.

רשב"ם על שמות כ׳:ח׳:א׳

(א) זכור את יום השבת - כל זכירה הכונה על ימים שעברו, כמו: זכור ימות עולם וגו' בהנחל עליון גוים. זכור את היום הזה. לעולם כי לשעבר ביום הזה יצאתם ממצרים. זכור אל תשכח את אשר הקצפת את ה' אלהיך במדבר. זכור רחמיך ה' וחסדיך כי מעולם המה. אף כאן זכור את יום השבת - של ששת ימי בראשית, כמו שמפרש והולך כי ששת ימים עשה ה' וגו' - כמ"ש כאן. ולפיכך נכתב כאן זכור, כדי לקדשו להיות שובת ממלאכה.

Rashbam on Exodus 20:8:1

(1) זכור את יום השבת, remembering something always refers to past events. We have numerous such verses as in Deuteronomy 32,7-8 “remember past history, etc.” Exodus 13,3, as well as Deuteronomy 9,7-8 plus numerous other verses exhort the Jewish people to remember events in the past. Usually, the command to do so is phrased as an imperative. In the Ten Commandments, the expressions zachor here and shamor in the parallel legislation in Deuteronomy are in the infinitive mode. Seeing that both are followed immediately by the command לקדשו “to sanctify it,” (the Sabbath) this makes an imperative of the whole paragraph. The Torah, in a way, commands us to “commemorate” something which G’d had done long before there was a legislation to observe the Sabbath as a day of rest. Already when creating the “day” He had blessed it, i.e. made provisions for those who would observe it not to be deprived by their observance but to find that G’d in His generosity had provided the needs for the people in question. Observing, emulating something G’d had done, is a way of honouring Him. He “ worked” for 6 days before “resting,” so do we as a way of honouring Him.

פסחים ק״ו א:ה׳

תנו רבנן זכור את יום השבת לקדשו זוכרהו על היין אין לי אלא ביום בלילה מנין תלמוד לומר זכור את יום השבת לקדשו

Pesachim 106a:5

The Sages taught in a baraita with regard to the verse: “Remember the day of Shabbat to sanctify it” (Exodus 20:7): Remember it over wine, through the recitation of kiddush. I have only derived that there is a mitzva to recite kiddush during the day, as the verse is referring to the day of Shabbat. From where do I derive that one must also recite kiddush at night? The verse states: “Remember the day of Shabbat to sanctify it,” which indicates that one should also remember Shabbat as soon as it is sanctified.

ברכות כ׳ ב:ח׳-י׳

אמר רב אדא בר אהבה נשים חייבות בקדוש היום דבר תורה אמאי מצות עשה שהזמן גרמא הוא וכל מצות עשה שהזמן גרמא נשים פטורות אמר אביי מדרבנן א"ל רבא והא דבר תורה קאמר ועוד כל מצות עשה נחייבינהו מדרבנן אלא אמר רבא אמר קרא (שמות כ, ז) זכור (דברים ה, יא) ושמור כל שישנו בשמירה ישנו בזכירה והני נשי הואיל ואיתנהו בשמירה איתנהו בזכירה

Berakhot 20b:8-10

Rav Adda bar Ahava said: Women are obligated to recite the sanctification of the Shabbat day [kiddush] by Torah law. The Gemara asks: Why? Kiddush is a time-bound, positive mitzva, and women are exempt from all time-bound, positive mitzvot. Abaye said: Indeed, women are obligated to recite kiddush by rabbinic, but not by Torah law. Rava said to Abaye: There are two refutations to your explanation. First, Rav Adda bar Ahava said that women are obligated to recite kiddush by Torah law, and, furthermore, the very explanation is difficult to understand. If the Sages do indeed institute ordinances in these circumstances, let us obligate them to fulfill all time-bound, positive mitzvot by rabbinic law, even though they are exempt by Torah law. Rather, Rava said: This has a unique explanation. In the Ten Commandments in the book of Exodus, the verse said: “Remember Shabbat and sanctify it” (Exodus 20:8), while in the book of Deuteronomy it is said: “Observe Shabbat and sanctify it” (Deuteronomy 5:12). From these two variants we can deduce that anyone included in the obligation to observe Shabbat by avoiding its desecration, is also included in the mitzva to remember Shabbat by reciting kiddush. Since these women are included in the mitzva to observe Shabbat, as there is no distinction between men and women in the obligation to observe prohibitions in general and to refrain from the desecration of Shabbat in particular, so too are they included in the mitzva of remembering Shabbat.

שבת קי״ט ב:ג׳

תניא ר' יוסי בר יהודה אומר שני מלאכי השרת מלוין לו לאדם בע"ש מבית הכנסת לביתו אחד טוב ואחד רע וכשבא לביתו ומצא נר דלוק ושלחן ערוך ומטתו מוצעת מלאך טוב אומר יהי רצון שתהא לשבת אחרת כך ומלאך רע עונה אמן בעל כרחו ואם לאו מלאך רע אומר יהי רצון שתהא לשבת אחרת כך ומלאך טוב עונה אמן בעל כרחו

Shabbat 119b:3

(1) A Baraisa (Talmudic Text) taught: Rabbi Yose son of Yehudah says: Two ministering angels escort a person from the Synagogue to his (her) home on the eve of the Sabbath, one a good angel and one a bad angel. And when he comes to his home and finds the lamp burning, the table set, and his bed made, the good angel says, "May it be the will of God that it should be this way the next Sabbath as well." And the Bad Angel is forced to answer Amen against his will. But if the table is not set, the Bad Angel says "May it be the will of God that is should be THIS way the next Sabbath as well." And the Good Angel is forced to say Amen against his will.

ראש השנה כ״ז א:ב׳

ושתי חצוצרות מן הצדדים: ותרי קלי מי משתמעי והתניא זכור ושמור בדיבור אחד נאמרו מה שאין הפה יכולה לדבר ואין האוזן יכולה לשמוע לכך מאריך בשופר

Rosh Hashanah 27a:2

§ It was taught in the mishna: And there were two trumpets, one on each of the two sides of the person sounding the shofar. The Gemara asks: But is it really possible to properly discern two different sounds, that of the shofar and that of the trumpets, at the same time? Isn’t it taught in a baraita: The two versions of the fifth of the Ten Commandments, “Remember the Shabbat day” (Exodus 20:8) and “Keep the Shabbat day” (Deuteronomy 5:12), were spoken by God simultaneously in a single utterance, something that the human mouth cannot speak and the human ear cannot hear? This indicates that it is impossible to take in two sounds at once, and so, due to the sound of the trumpets, it should be impossible to hear the blast of the shofar. The Gemara answers: For this reason they would sound a long blast with the shofar, to make it possible to hear the sound of the shofar on its own.