Servitude Leading To Sonship

בענין זכור ושמור דכתיב וזכרת כי עבד כו'

Regarding 'Zachor' (Remember) and 'Shamor' (Guard) of Shabbos, for it is written, 'And you shall remember that you were a slave [in Mitzrayim]' (Devarim 5:15).

The Sfas Emes opens with the two terms for Shabbos, 'Zachor' and 'Shamor,' noting that the second luchos attach the reason of having been a slave in Mitzrayim.

ובזכור לא כ' טעם זה

Yet by 'Zachor' this reason is not written.

He points out that this reason of the Exodus is given only by 'Shamor,' not by 'Zachor.'

כי יצ"מ היא טעם ע"כ צוך כו' לעשות כו' השבת כי כמו שהמצוה ניתנה לנו אתה ובנך כו' עבדך כו' בהמתך כו' כך הוא בשורש המצוה למעלה

For Yetzias Mitzrayim (the Exodus from Mitzrayim) is the reason: 'therefore Hashem commanded you... to keep... the Shabbos' (Devarim 5:15) — for just as the mitzvah was given to us, 'you and your son... your slave... your animal' (Devarim 5:14), so too it is in the root of the mitzvah Above.

The Exodus is the very reason we keep Shabbos: just as the mitzvah on our level extends to son, servant, and animal, so too does the root of the mitzvah Above contain these same gradations.

ולכן כיון שביצ"מ נכנסנו להיות עבדי ה' כמ"ש עבדי הם אשר הוצאתי כו' לכן יש לנו חלק בשביתת האדון ית"ש

Therefore, since through Yetzias Mitzrayim we entered into being servants of Hashem, as it is written, 'For unto Me are Bnei Yisrael servants, whom I brought out [of the land of Mitzrayim]' (Vayikra 25:55), we therefore have a portion in the resting of the Master, Yisbarach Shemo (may His Name be blessed).

Because Yetzias Mitzrayim made us servants of Hashem, we thereby gain a share in the rest of our Master Himself.

ולכן יש בקבלת שבת ונשמה יתירה כמה חילוקים כדאיתא בזוה"ק שיש מקבל בבחי' בן ועבד ואפי' אם אנו כחמורים אעפ"כ הוא בכלל חמורך אנחנו

And therefore in the receiving of Shabbos and the neshamah yeseirah (the extra soul) there are several distinctions, as is brought in the Zohar HaKadosh, that there is one who receives in the aspect of a son and one in the aspect of a servant — and even if we are like donkeys, nevertheless we are included in 'your donkey' (the animal mentioned in the mitzvah).

The Zohar teaches that the neshamah yeseirah is received in different ways — as a son or as a servant — and even one who is on the lowest, animal-like level is still included in the Shabbos as 'your donkey.'

ובשעת קבלת התורה לא היו צריכין לשום טעם למה צוה לנו השבת שהיו אז במעלה עליונה כדכתי' אני אמרתי אלקים אתם

And at the time of Kabbalas HaTorah (the receiving of the Torah) they had no need for any reason as to why He commanded us the Shabbos, for they were then in an exalted level, as it is written, 'I said, you are angels' (Tehillim 82:6).

At Har Sinai Bnei Yisrael needed no reason for Shabbos, because they stood on so lofty a level that they were called angels.

אבל עתה אחר החטא התחיל אלה שינוים בכמה מדרגות עבדך אמתך בהמתך

But now, after the cheit (the sin), these distinctions began across several levels: 'your slave, your maidservant, your animal.'

Only after the sin did the lower gradations of servant, maidservant, and animal emerge.

ומ"מ בכלל שייך לנו השבת מצד העבדות עכ"פ

And nevertheless, in general the Shabbos still belongs to us at least from the side of the servitude.

Even so, Shabbos still belongs to every Jew, if only by virtue of being a servant of Hashem.

וגם בבחי' בהמה כתי' בהמות הייתי עמך שאפי' במדרגה השפלה אעפ"כ כתי' עמך

And even in the aspect of an animal it is written, 'I was as a beast before You' (Tehillim 73:22) — that even on the lowly level, nevertheless it is written 'before You' (with You).

Even one on the lowest, beast-like rung is still 'with You' before Hashem, as Dovid HaMelech said of himself.

וזה החילוק בין זכור שהוא בעצם

And this is the distinction: that 'Zachor' is in essence,

'Zachor' represents the intrinsic, essential bond with Shabbos.

ושמור הוא שצריכין לשמור שלא להתרחק מקדושת השבת

while 'Shamor' is that we must guard ourselves not to distance ourselves from the kedushah of Shabbos.

'Shamor' represents the active guarding required so that one does not drift away from the kedushah of Shabbos.

ומ"מ אחז"ל שנאמרו בדיבור א' כל שישנו בשמירה ישנו בזכירה שע"י בחי' העבדות באין אח"כ לבחי' בנים

And nevertheless, Chazal said that they were both spoken in a single utterance — 'whoever is included in guarding is included in remembering' (Berachos 20b) — for through the aspect of servitude one afterward comes to the aspect of sons.

Though distinct, both were spoken in one utterance, teaching that whoever keeps 'Shamor' through servitude eventually rises to the level of 'Zachor,' the level of sons.

וכמ"ש עבד משכיל כו' ובתוך אחים יחלק נחלה

And as it is written, 'a wise servant... and among the brothers he shall share the inheritance' (Mishlei 17:2).

This is the verse of the wise servant who ultimately shares the inheritance among the brothers — servitude leading to sonship.

ולכן אומרים ישמחו במלכותך שומרי שבת שע"י שאנחנו עבדי ה' יש לנו חלק בשביתת המלך כנ"ל:

And therefore we say, 'They shall rejoice in Your kingship, those who guard the Shabbos' — for through our being servants of Hashem we have a portion in the resting of the King, as above.

Hence the Shabbos tefillah praises 'those who guard the Shabbos,' for through serving Hashem we share in the King's own rest.

Summary: The Sfas Emes examines why the second luchos tie 'Shamor' to Yetzias Mitzrayim while 'Zachor' is left without that reason. Because the Exodus transformed Bnei Yisrael into servants of Hashem, we gain a portion in the rest of our Master Himself, and the mitzvah of Shabbos — like its root Above — embraces every level, from son down to servant and even to the animal-like, lowliest rung. At Har Sinai, before the cheit, Bnei Yisrael stood as angels and needed no such reason; only afterward did these gradations of servant, maidservant, and animal arise, yet even then Shabbos still belongs to every Jew by virtue of being Hashem's servant. 'Zachor' is the intrinsic, essential bond, while 'Shamor' is the guarding that keeps one from drifting from the kedushah of Shabbos — and since both were spoken in one utterance, faithful servitude under 'Shamor' ultimately elevates a person to the sonship of 'Zachor.' Thus 'those who guard the Shabbos' come to share in the very rest of the King.