Plural "Shabboses"
Moshe Ben-Chaim
Reader: What is the correlation between the 'plural' use of "My Sabbaths" in Exodus 31.13?
Mesora: Plural "shabbos"
means that we must keep them all. There are many shabboses in
one's life. It is not a "one-time" affair. Man must
keep all shabboses, as only then, does man "continually"
attest to creation. It is a good question you ask, as it brings
out a new point, which I have not yet realized. God's act of creation
demands a central focus - throughout our lives - not a one-time
activity. A constant cognizance of creation is taught to me by
your observation. It appears clear now; man must never lose sight
of God as the Creator. This is essential to all of the rest of
our learning, and our lives. We must therefore reiterate this
concept each and every week. In fact, God's entire creation was
performed in part, so that man may have that which he must duplicate
- shabbos. God fashioned creation as a formula for man's duplication
through his activities. "Sof b'maaseh, b'machashava techila",
"last in creation (shabbos) first in (God's) thought".
This means that shabbos was the central focus of creation.
There should be a creation of the physical world, but it is merely a means by which man may procure his needs, so he may eventually have a shabbos where no work may be performed for the exclusive dedication to studying God's creation and Torah.