Rabbi Simeon’s allegory bridges the gap between a people and a time through the anthropomorphization of the Sabbath and exegesis of Exodus 20:8. The Sabbath’s dialog with God anthropomorphizes the day. The Sabbath’s character has one statement with which to judge it, a plea for companionship: “All [of the other six days] have a partner, while I have no partner!” This desire implies that the Sabbath is a spiritual entity. With God as proof, nothing quite inspires people to connect like anthropomorphization. Describing Israel’s spiritual relationship with the Sabbath through the metaphor of betrothal solidifies the connection. Rabbi Simeon’s exegesis of Exodus 20:8, “Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy.” founds his interpretation of the Sabbath as the Community of Israel’s bride. This was one of the timeless Ten Commandments given to the Israelites at Sinai. “To keep it holy” is a translation of the Hebrew word ????? (l’kadeshu), which in the context of the Talmud meant the consecration of a…
The sages proclaimed the Sabbath is special because God blessed it as a day of joy, since it is the culmination of creation. They proceed to justify Israel’s lifestyle as a function of creation through the identifying the blessings the Sabbath brings. The Sages do this by transitioning from Israel’s Sabbath observances to the creation of man through the consideration of light both literally and metaphorically. This is followed by aggadah which illustrate how the Sabbath made Israel distinct from other peoples. Finally the sages illustrate how the Sabbath commemorates Israel’s salvation. Thus the sages have made apparent Israel’s inherent need for the Sabbath. However, Israel’s perception of its relationship with the Sabbath is considerably stronger when the dependence is mutual as expressed by both…
