Parashat Va’etchanan 5786
Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, Rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Sites
At the Giving of the Torah, we received the Ten Commandments. In many synagogues, the Tablets of the Ten Commandments are displayed above the Holy Ark, leading many to assume that they constitute the very foundation of Judaism, while the rest of the commandments were added only at a later stage. Our Sages, however, taught that the entire Torah was given to Moses at Sinai and during the forty days that followed that momentous revelation. Accordingly, the Ten Commandments are not an independent list of fundamental principles, but rather the nucleus from which the entire Torah unfolds – its genetic code.
This idea was articulated explicitly by Rabbi Saadia Gaon, who devoted an entire work to demonstrating how all 613 commandments are encompassed within the Ten Commandments. Likewise, Rashi, one of the greatest commentators on the Torah, wrote:
“All six hundred and thirteen commandments are included within the Ten Commandments.”
(Exodus 24:12)
This understanding also influenced Jewish law. The Talmud relates that during the Temple period, the kohanim would recite the passage of the Ten Commandments as part of the daily Temple service. When the Sages later considered incorporating this reading into the public prayers, they ultimately abolished the practice out of concern that heretics would claim that only the Ten Commandments were divinely revealed, while the rest of the Torah consisted merely of later rabbinic enactments.
Rashi explains:
“So that the unlearned should not say: ‘The rest of the Torah is not true. You see, they recite only what the Holy One, blessed be He, spoke and they heard directly from Him at Sinai.'”
(Berachot 12a)
From this, we can appreciate how important it was to the Sages to emphasize that the Torah is a single, indivisible whole, rather than a collection of commandments of varying significance.
This concept becomes especially clear when we compare the two places in the Torah where the Ten Commandments appear: first in Parashat Yitro in the Book of Exodus, and again here in Parashat Va’etchanan. At first glance, the second version appears to be a simple repetition. Yet the Torah commentators point to numerous differences between the two texts. These are not different commandments; rather, Moses reveals additional layers that were already embedded within the revelation at Sinai. One striking example concerns the commandment of Shabbat.
In Parashat Yitro, the Torah commands:
“Remember the Sabbath day to keep it holy.”
(Exodus 20:8)
In Parashat Vaetchanan, however, it states:
“Observe the Sabbath day to keep it holy.”
(Deuteronomy 5:12)
In the language of the Sages, remember refers to the positive obligations of Shabbat – honoring it, delighting in it, and making it a day of joy, rest, and spiritual elevation. Observe, by contrast, refers to the prohibitions of Shabbat – refraining from all forms of labor defined by Jewish law.
The Sages therefore taught:
“‘Remember’ and ‘Observe’ were spoken in a single utterance – something that the mouth cannot speak and the ear cannot hear.”
(Rosh Hashanah 27a)
In other words, at Mount Sinai both commands were delivered simultaneously – both the obligation to remember Shabbat and the obligation to observe it. The people heard them in a miraculous manner that transcended the limitations of human language.
This raises an important question: Why was it necessary for these commandments to be delivered in such an extraordinary way? Why were they not stated separately, as so many other commandments were?
This question speaks directly to the modern human experience.
Many people today are naturally drawn to the idea of Shabbat as a day of rest – a pause from life’s relentless pace, a time for family, friends, and emotional renewal. In that sense, they readily embrace the concept of remember. But when it comes to observe – the system of restrictions that limits what one may do – resistance often arises. Why shouldn’t each person simply decide for themselves what constitutes rest?
The answer lies in the fact that the Jewish people were commanded through a single divine utterance that contained both ideas together. This teaches us that remember and observe are not two alternative approaches, but one inseparable system. Refraining from labor is not an end in itself; it is the condition that enables a person to truly step away from the demands of ordinary life.
According to the Torah’s perspective, the Creator, who knows human nature, understands that genuine inner rest cannot be achieved merely by stopping work. It requires creating a sacred space in which the practical concerns of everyday life no longer demand our attention. Shabbat is not merely a day for physical recovery; it is also intended for spiritual renewal – and that dimension can be attained only when both aspects are observed together.
For this reason, remember and observe were spoken in one utterance. In the Torah’s vision, Shabbat is not a coincidental combination of rest and restrictions. Rather, it is a unified reality in which delight and boundaries, freedom and discipline, come together to create a complete human experience. The true essence of Shabbat cannot be understood when these two dimensions are separated.
