Introduction to Judaism - Shabbat 1

(1) The heaven and the earth were finished, and all their array. (2) On the seventh day God finished the work that God had been doing, and God ceased on the seventh day from all the work that God had done. (3) And God blessed the seventh day and declared it holy, because on it God ceased from all the work of creation that God had done.

R. Hanina would cover himself [in a cloak] and stand towards the beginning of Shabbat and say: Come, let us go out to greet the Sabbath Queen.

R. Yannai would wear a [special] garment on Sabbath eve and say Come, Bride; Come, Bride.

(16) The Israelite people shall keep the sabbath, observing the Sabbath throughout the ages as a covenant for all time: (17) it shall be a sign for all time between Me and the people of Israel. For in six days Adonai made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day God ceased from work and was refreshed (va-yi-nafash).

(1) Adonai spoke to Moses, saying: (2) Speak to the Israelite people and say to them: These are My fixed times, the fixed times of Adonai, which you shall proclaim as sacred occasions. (3) On six days work may be done, but on the seventh day there shall be a Sabbath of complete rest, a sacred occasion. You shall do no work; it shall be a Sabbath of Adonai throughout your settlements.

(12) Observe the Sabbath day and keep it holy, as Adonai your God has commanded you. (13) Six days you shall labor and do all your work, (14) but the seventh day is a Sabbath of Adonai your God; you shall not do any work—you, your son or your daughter, your male or female slave, your ox or your ass, or any of your cattle, or the stranger in your settlements, so that your male and female slave may rest as you do. (15) Remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt and Adonai your God freed you from there with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm; therefore Adonai your God has commanded you to observe the Sabbath day.

(13) If you refrain from trampling the Sabbath, from pursuing your affairs on My holy day; If you call the Sabbath “delight,” Adonai’s holy day “honored”; And if you honor it and go not your ways nor look to your [own] affairs, nor strike bargains— (14) Then you can seek the favor of Adonai. I will set you astride the heights of the earth, and let you enjoy the heritage of your father Jacob— For the mouth of Adonai has spoken.

R. Hanina would cover himself [in a cloak] and stand towards the beginning of Shabbat and say: Come, let us go out to greet the Sabbath Queen.

R. Yannai would wear a [special] garment on Sabbath eve and say Come, Bride; Come, Bride.

(8) Why did God bless Shabbat? Rabbi Berekiah says: "Because it has no partner. The first day of the week has the second, the third has the fourth, the fifth has the sixth, but Shabbat has no partner... Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai taught: Shabbat pleaded with the Holy One, Blessed be God saying: "Everyone else has a partner, but I have nothing!" God answered saying: "The community of Israel will be your partner." God continued: "And when you stood before Sinai [to receive the Torah], God said to the Israelites: "Remember what I said to Shabbat, that the community of Israel is your partner, [in the words of scripture] 'Remember Shabbat and keep it holy...'" (Exodus 20:8)

The Sabbath [is] a sixtieth of the world to come.

One must not work on Shabbat. What is "work?" The rabbis define thirty-nine categories of work as follows:

The main categories of work are forty minus one: Seeding, plowing, harvesting, bundling, threshing, winnowing, selecting, grinding, sifting, kneading, and baking. Shearing wool, bleaching it, carding it, dying it, spinning, warping, setting up two loops, weaving two threads, undoing two threads, tying, untying, sewing two stitches, and tearing in order to sew [two stitches]. Trapping a deer, slaughtering it, skinning it, salting it, tanning its hide, scraping it, and cutting it. Writing two letters and erasing in order to write two letters. Building and destroying. Extinguishing and kindling. Hitting with a hammer. Transporting from one domain to another.

(1) Four things have been enjoined regarding the Sabbath: two on biblical authority, and two on the authority of the sages and clearly expressed by the Prophets. The Torah says: Remember (Exodus 20:8) and Observe (Deuteronomy 5:12); the Prophets clearly speak of Honor and Delight, as it is written: "Call the Sabbath a delight, and the Lord's sacred day an honor." (Isaiah 58:13).

(2) What is meant by honor? The sages explained this by declaring that each person should wash his [or her] face, hands and feet with hot water on Friday in honor of the Sabbath, and then wrap him- [or her]self in a fringed garment and be seated with dignity in expectation of the Sabbath, receiving it as if he were coming out to meet a sovereign. The ancient sages used to assemble their disciples on Friday, put on their best clothes, and say: "Come, let us go out to meet the Sabbath Queen."

(3) We honor the Sabbath by wearing clean clothes. One must not wear weekday apparel on the Sabbath.

(4) ... In deference to the Sabbath, one should refrain from having a regular meal the entire afternoon, that s/he may enter the Sabbath with a desire to eat.

(5) One should spread his Sabbath table on Friday, even if he requires no more than an olive's bulk of food; so too, he should set his table at the end of the Sabbath, even if s/he requires only a minute amount of food, in order to honor the Sabbath both at its entrance and departure. One should also set the house in order on Friday before sunset in honor of the Sabbath. A lamp should be lit, a table spread, and a bed properly arranged. All these are marks of honor for the Sabbath.

(6) Even a person of high rank, who does not as a rule buy things at the market or engage in household chores, should himself perform what is necessary for the Sabbath, for this is the way of showing honor. Some of the ancient sages used to chop wood for the cooking; others used to cook or salt meat or twine wicks or light lamps; others used to go out and buy food and drinks for the Sabbath, although none of them would usually do such things on weekdays. The more one honors the Sabbath in this manner, the more praise s/he deserves.

(7) What is meant by Sabbath delight? The sages explained this by declaring that one should prepare rich food and fragrant beverages for the Sabbath as much as he can afford. The more one spends for the Sabbath and the preparation of varied tasty food, the more praise s/he deserves. If, however, s/he cannot afford this, s/he may fulfill the Sabbath-delight requirement by preparing anything like a vegetable stew in honor of the Sabbath. S/he is not obligated to strain him- [or herself], begging from others, in order to eat much on the Sabbath. The ancient sages said: "Rather make your Sabbath a weekday [with regard to festive meals] than be dependent on people."

(1) Like all other precepts, the Sabbath is set aside where human life is in danger. For a person who is dangerously ill everything may be done on the Sabbath at the bidding of a local competent physician.

We must save an endangered life on the Sabbath without first asking for permission from a religious authority. The more speedily a man saves a life, the more praise he deserves. If, for example, he sees a child falling into the lake on the Sabbath, he may cast a net and pull him out, even though he is likely to catch some fish along with him.

(1) It is written in the Torah "you shall rest," implying that one must rest from doing things that are not even actual work. There are many things which the sages prohibited on the ground that they do not harmonize with the idea of rest. Some things are forbidden because they resemble prohibited kinds of work; others are forbidden as a preventive measure lest they may result in doing work that is forbidden under the penalty of stoning.

(1) It is a positive duty to express the sanctity of the Sabbath day in words, for it is written: "Remember to sanctify the Sabbath day" (Exodus 20:8); that is to say, remember it in terms of praise and sanctification. One should remember it at its beginning and its conclusion by reciting the Kiddush when the Sabbath begins and the Havdalah when it ends.