Shabbos in thought, speech, and deed

וכתיב כאן ג"פ שמירת שבת רמז למחשבה דיבור ומעשה.

And it is written here three times [the command of] keeping Shabbos — a hint to machshavah (thought), dibbur (speech), and ma'aseh (deed).

The threefold mention of guarding Shabbos corresponds to the three modes of human expression: thought, speech, and action.

שהשביתה בשלשתן.

For the "resting" (shevisah) applies in all three of them.

Shabbos demands a cessation and stillness on every level — in mind, in word, and in deed.

והם בחי' נשמה ורוח ונפש.

And these are the aspects of neshamah, ruach, and nefesh.

Thought, speech, and deed map onto the three levels of the soul: neshamah (the highest), ruach (the middle), and nefesh (the level nearest the body).

אך כו' שבתותי תשמורו הוא בחי' המחשבה בכח הנשמה.

"Ach (however)… My Shabbosos you shall keep" (Shemos 31:13) is the aspect of machshavah, in the power of the neshamah.

The first phrasing, with "ach," points to the inner level of thought, rooted in the neshamah.

לכן כתיב אך שיש לנו חלק קטן בזו השביתה לכן כתיב שבתותי [א"ך גי' אהי"ה בחי' נשמה ומחשבה] ושמרתם את השבת הוא בחי' הדיבור רוח ממללא כמ"ש חז"ל בכ"מ ושמרתם ועשיתם ושמרתם זו משנה.

Therefore it is written "ach," [implying a limitation] — that we have [only] a small portion in this [highest] resting; therefore it is written "My Shabbosos" [as belonging to Hashem]. (The word "ach" has the gematria of the Name Eh-yeh — the aspect of neshamah and machshavah.) "And you shall keep (u'shmartem) the Shabbos" is the aspect of dibbur, the "speaking spirit" (ruach memalela), as Chazal said in many places [that] "u'shmartem" [refers to learning], as in "u'shmartem va'asisem" — "u'shmartem, this refers to Mishnah."

The word "ach" both limits ("only") and, by its gematria equaling the Name Eh-yeh, points to the lofty neshamah/thought level in which we have only a small share. The next term, "u'shmartem," shifts to the level of speech — the "speaking spirit" — which Chazal connect to the oral study of Mishnah.

לכן כתיב בי' קדש הוא לכם כי זה עיקר חלק בנ"י בפה ודיבור.

Therefore it is written regarding it, "it is holy for you (lachem)," for this is the essential portion of Bnei Yisrael — in mouth and speech.

Here Shabbos is "for you," because the level of speech (Torah spoken and learned) is the special, essential portion belonging to Bnei Yisrael.

ושמרו כו' לעשות כו' השבת הוא בעשי'.

"And they shall keep… to do (la'asos)… the Shabbos" (Shemos 31:16) is in the realm of deed (asiyah).

The third phrasing, "to do," addresses the level of action — keeping Shabbos in practical deed.

לכן כתיב וינפש בחי' נפש:

Therefore it is written "vayinafash" (and He rested/was refreshed) — the aspect of the nefesh.

The word "vayinafash," sharing the root of nefesh, corresponds to the lowest soul-level, that of deed and the body.

Summary: The threefold command to guard Shabbos parallels thought, speech, and deed — corresponding to neshamah, ruach, and nefesh. "Ach… My Shabbosos" (gematria of Eh-yeh) is thought/neshamah, in which we have only a small share; "u'shmartem… holy for you" is speech/ruach, the essential portion of Bnei Yisrael; and "to do… vayinafash" is deed/nefesh. Shabbos thus calls for a complete shevisah across every level of a person.