Yearning All Week For Shabbos

מנוחה שלימה שאתה רוצה בה

"A complete rest in which You delight" (from the Shabbos Minchah tefillah).

The Sfas Emes opens with the phrase from the Minchah tefillah of Shabbos that describes Shabbos rest as something Hashem Himself desires.

פי' שבשבת יש מנוחה בכל הענינים הן בגשמיות הן בעבודת השי"ת לכן צוה הקב"ה להיות נוחין בה גם ממלאכת עבודה כדי שיהי' ניכר המנוחה בכל דבר

The explanation is that on Shabbos there is rest in all matters, both in physical things and in the avodah of Hashem; therefore the Holy One, Blessed is He, commanded us to be at rest on it even from the labor of avodah, so that the rest should be discernible in everything.

Shabbos rest is meant to be total, touching both the physical and the spiritual; even our avodah pauses so that the quality of rest is felt in every area of life.

והטעם שמתגלה בשבת רצון השי"ת שיש לו נייחא בשבת מהבריאה ע"י שומרי שבת

And the reason is that on Shabbos the ratzon of Hashem is revealed, that He has, as it were, a contentment on Shabbos from the Creation, through those who guard the Shabbos.

The deeper reason for this all-encompassing rest is that Shabbos reveals Hashem's ratzon and His contentment with Creation, a revelation brought about by those who keep Shabbos.

וכשמתגלה רצון השי"ת נמצא מנוחה בכל הנבראים כי כולם נבראו ממנו ית' שהוא שלימות הכל

And when the ratzon of Hashem is revealed, rest is then found in all created beings, for they were all created from Him, may He be blessed, who is the perfection of everything.

Once Hashem's ratzon is revealed, every created thing finds rest, because all of creation flows from Him, the source and perfection of everything.

וז"ש שאתה רוצה בה ועי"ז היא מנוחה שלימה בכל

And this is the meaning of "in which You delight" — and through this it is a complete rest in everything.

This is why the tefillah says Hashem delights in this rest — His delight is precisely what makes the rest complete throughout all of creation.

אבל המבוקש מבנ"י להתדבק בעיקר המנוחה

But what is asked of Bnei Yisrael is to cleave to the very essence of the rest.

The task of Bnei Yisrael is not merely to rest physically but to attach themselves to the inner core of that rest.

יכירו וידעו כו'

"They shall recognize and they shall know" (from the Shabbos tefillah).

He cites the tefillah's words about recognizing and knowing, pointing to the awareness Shabbos is meant to awaken.

<b>ואא"ז מו"ר ז"ל</b> אמר הגמ' המענג השבת נותנין לו משאלות לבו וצריך האדם להכין לו רצון אמת להיות משאלות לבו להשי"ת ולעבודתו כו'

And my grandfather, my master and teacher, of blessed memory, said: the Gemara states that one who delights in the Shabbos is granted the requests of his heart, and a person must prepare for himself a true ratzon, so that the requests of his heart should be for Hashem and for His avodah.

Quoting his grandfather, the Chiddushei HaRim, he brings the Gemara that one who delights in Shabbos receives his heart's requests — but a person must first refine his desires so that what his heart wants is Hashem and His avodah.

וזה המשאלות לב הוא כל ימי השבוע

And this readiness of the heart is throughout all the days of the week.

This preparation of one's true desires is not only on Shabbos itself but is a project that runs through every day of the week.

דכ' ושמרו בנ"י כו' השבת

For it is written, "And Bnei Yisrael shall keep the Shabbos" (Shemos 31:16).

He grounds this in the pasuk commanding Bnei Yisrael to keep, or guard, the Shabbos.

פי' לשון המתנה ששומרין ומצפין למנוחת השבת קודש שיוכלו להתקרב להאמת וליישר לבבם אליו ית' שזהו עיקר המנוחה בשבת

The explanation of the word "keep" is an expression of waiting — that they guard and look forward to the rest of the holy Shabbos, so that they will be able to draw close to the emes and to straighten their hearts toward Him, may He be blessed; for this is the essence of the rest on Shabbos.

He reads the word "keep" as "await" — meaning one looks forward all week to Shabbos, longing for the closeness to emes and the straightening of the heart toward Hashem that is the true essence of Shabbos rest.

כמ"ש בזוה"ק בפסוק שבו איש תחתיו כו'

As it is written in the Zohar HaKadosh on the pasuk "Let every man remain in his place" (Shemos 16:29).

He supports this from the Zohar's comment on the pasuk instructing each person to remain in his place on Shabbos, hinting at the inner settledness of Shabbos.

ועי"ז לעשות כו' השבת לדורותם ברית עולם

And through this, "to make the Shabbos throughout their generations an everlasting covenant" (Shemos 31:16).

This weeklong yearning is what enables the next phrase of the pasuk — making Shabbos an everlasting covenant across the generations.

פי' ע"י התשוקה בכל השבוע לש"ק

The explanation is: through the yearning all week long for the holy Shabbos,

The explanation: it is specifically through the desire and anticipation maintained all week for the holy Shabbos.

עי"ז מקבלין השבת כראוי להיות התקשרות כל המעשים בש"ק להמשיך הארת השבת לדורותם ברית עולם כנ"ל:

through this they receive the Shabbos as is fitting, so that there should be a binding of all one's deeds to the holy Shabbos — to draw down the illumination of Shabbos throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant, as explained above.

Through that yearning one receives Shabbos properly, binding all of one's weekday deeds to Shabbos and drawing its illumination into every generation as an eternal covenant.

Summary: The Sfas Emes explains that the "complete rest" of Shabbos is total because it flows from the revelation of Hashem's ratzon and His contentment with Creation, which spreads rest through every created being. Quoting the Gemara through his grandfather the Chiddushei HaRim, he teaches that one who delights in Shabbos is granted his heart's desires, but a person must first refine those desires so that they are aimed at Hashem and His avodah. He then reinterprets "v'shamru," to "keep" the Shabbos, as an expression of awaiting and yearning for Shabbos throughout the entire week. This weeklong longing for closeness to the emes is what allows one to receive Shabbos as is fitting, to bind all of one's weekday deeds to it, and to draw the illumination of Shabbos into every generation as an everlasting covenant.