Parashat Ki Tisa, A Reflection
The Torah in Parashat Ki Tisa states (Exodus 31:16):
“וְשָׁמְרוּ בְנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת-הַשַּׁבָּת לַעֲשׂוֹת אֶת-הַשַּׁבָּת לְדֹרֹתָם בְּרִית עוֹלָם, בֵּינִי וּבֵין בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אוֹת הִיא לְעוֹלָם”
“And the children of Israel shall guard Shabbat, to establish Shabbat for their generations, an everlasting covenant; between Me and the children of Israel, it is a sign forever.”
“יִשְׂמַח משֶׁה בְּמַתְּנַת חֶלְקוֹ כִּי עֶבֶד נֶאֱמָן קָרָאתָ לוֹ כְּלִיל תִּפְאֶרֶת בְּראשׁוֹ נָתַתָּ לוֹ בְּעָמְדוֹ לְפָנֶיךָ עַל הַר סִינִי וּשְׁנֵי לוּחוֹת אֲבָנִים הוֹרִיד בְּיָדוֹ וְכָתוּב בָּהֶם שְׁמִירַת שַׁבָּת וְכֵן כָּתוּב בְּתוֹרָתֶךָ, וְשָׁמְרוּ בְנֵי-יִשְׂרָאֵל אֶת-הַשַּׁבָּת”
“Moshe rejoiced in the gift of his portion, for a faithful servant You called him, a crown of glory You placed on his head when he stood before You on Mount Sinai, and two tablets of stone he brought down in his hand, and the observance of Shabbat is written on them; and thus it is written in Your Torah: ‘And the children of Israel shall guard Shabbat…’”
This convergence prompts four questions:
- Why does Moshe rejoice?
- What is meant by chelko—his lot or portion?
- What is the connection to klil tiferet—his crown of glory?
- Why is V’shamru cited as Shabbat’s example, when the luchot state (Exodus 20:8): “זָכוֹר אֶת-יוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת לְקַדְּשׁוֹ”—“Remember the Sabbath day to sanctify it”?
The Tur: Moshe’s Pre-Sinai Choice
The Tur (Orach Chayim 285) states:
“פירוש ישמח משה כשהיו אבותינו במצרים וראה משה כובד השעבוד שהכבידו עליהם בקש מפרעה שיתן להם יום אחד בשבוע שינוחו בו ונתנו לו ובחר ביום השביעי וכאשר נצטוו על יום השבת שמח משה שבחר בו וזהו ישמח משה במתנת חלקו”
“Yismach Moshe—when our ancestors were in Egypt; seeing the weight of their bondage, he (Moshe) requested from Pharaoh one day a week for rest, and it was granted, and he chose the seventh day; when they were commanded regarding Shabbat, Moshe rejoiced that he had chosen it, and this is ‘Moshe rejoiced in the gift of his portion.’” His chelko is this choice, addressing why he rejoices (question 1) through divine affirmation.
Chesed L’Avraham and Ohr Hachaim: Crowns Restored
The Chesed L’Avraham (R’ Avraham Azulai) expands:
“אמנם שרש הנשמה יתירה… כאשר עלה משה להר סיני לקבל התורה ניתנו לו אלף חלקים אורה שהוא סוד אלף רבתי… וכשעשו ישראל העגל נאבדו ממנו בעון ישראל, ואז נשאר לו חלק אחד לבד… ובכל ערב שבת בלילה חוזר משה לקבל אותם האלף חלקים של אורה שאבד ולוקחם בסוד תוספות שבת ואז הוא מחזיר הכתרים של ישראל להם… וזהו סוד ישמח משה במתנת חלקו פירוש כי ביום שבת ניתנים למשה במתנה אותו החלק שניטל ממנו… והכליל תפארת ניטל ממנו וזו היא מתנת חלקו שלוקח עתה ביום השבת”
“The root of the extra soul… when Moshe ascended Sinai to receive the Torah, he was given a thousand portions of light, the secret of the great aleph… when Israel made the Calf, they were lost due to their sin, leaving him one portion… every Shabbat eve, Moshe regains those thousand portions of light via tosefet Shabbat, returning Israel’s crowns to them… this is the secret of ‘Moshe rejoiced in the gift of his portion,’ for on Shabbat, that portion taken from him is given back… the klil tiferet was removed, and this is his matnat chelko he takes on Shabbat.”
The Ohr Hachaim (via Ari z”l) refines:
“ואמרו עוד רז”ל… שביום שבת חוזרים העטרות לראש ישראל ולא נשאר למשה אלא חלקו המגיע לו, ולזה הוא שאנו אומרים ביום שבת ישמח משה במתנת חלקו פירוש ישמח הגם שאין לו אלא מתנת חלקו שכבר החזיר לישראל חלקם בחיים”
“And our sages further said… on Shabbat, the crowns return to Israel’s heads, and only his portion remains to Moshe, and thus we say on Shabbat ‘Moshe rejoiced in the gift of his portion,’ meaning he rejoices even though he has only the gift of his portion, having returned Israel’s share in life.” His chelko is his alone (question 2), tied to klil tiferet (question 3).
Synthesizing the Views
Perhaps these two interpretations—from the Tur’s pre-Sinai act to Chesed L’Avraham and Ohr Hachaim’s post-Sinai restoration—contain a single, shared, underlying principle.
Brit Milah: Joy Beyond Merit
The Talmud (Shabbat 130a) states:
“תַּנְיָא, רַבָּן שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן גַּמְלִיאֵל אוֹמֵר: כׇּל מִצְוָה שֶׁקִּיבְּלוּ עֲלֵיהֶם בְּשִׂמְחָה, כְּגוֹן מִילָה, דִּכְתִיב: ״שָׂשׂ אָנֹכִי עַל אִמְרָתֶךָ כְּמוֹצֵא שָׁלָל רָב״ — עֲדַיִין עוֹשִׂין אוֹתָהּ בְּשִׂמְחָה”
“It was taught: Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: Any mitzvah they accepted with joy, such as milah, as it is written: ‘I rejoice over Your word like one who finds great spoil’ (Tehillim 119:162)—they still perform it with joy.”
What is the reason for this joy at the mitzvah of milah? Perhaps it is because of the following. Eruvin 19a states:
“הָא דִּכְתִיב: ״עוֹבְרֵי בְּעֵמֶק הַבָּכָא״, הָהוּא דִּמְחַיְּיבִי הָהִיא שַׁעְתָּא בְּגֵיהִנָּם, וְאָתֵי אַבְרָהָם אָבִינוּ וּמַסֵּיק לְהוּ וּמְקַבֵּל לְהוּ”
“That which is written: ‘Passing through the valley of Baka’ (Tehillim 84:7), refers to those liable at that moment to Gehinnom, and Avraham our father comes, lifts them out, and receives them.” Avraham Avinu extracts from Gehinnom his descendants who are destined to be sentenced there. How, why? If they are to be sent to Gehinnom, they are obviously not the most meritorious. But just by the fact that they carry the mark of the bris, they deserve benefit! This is something to celebrate and be joyful of—a gift of being, irrespective of our ‘doing.’ Perhaps we can now understand ot in ot brit anew: an ot (אות) is a sign, an imprint, a physical state of being—a gift, not a reward earned by merit, evoking joy in essence, not action.
Shabbat’s Essential Gift
Shabbat mirrors this gift. Shabbat 10b states:
“אמר רב יהודה אמר רב שבת מתנה טובה יש לי בבית גנזי ושבת שמה”
“R’ Yehuda said: Rav said: Shabbat is a good gift I have in My treasury, and Shabbat is its name.”
Chullin 101b states:
“שבת קביעא וקיימא”
“Shabbat is fixed and enduring.” A gift is not a reward, a gift is not transactional.
The Zohar (Emor 94a) states:
“תְּלָתָא אִינּוּן זַמִּינִין מְקוּדָשׁ חַג הַמַּצּוֹת וְחַג הַשָּׁבוּעוֹת וְחַג הַסֻּכּוֹת אָמַר לֵיהּ רַבִּי אַבָּא וְכִי שַׁבָּת לָאו מְקוּדָשׁ הוּא זַמִּין אָמַר לֵיהּ לָאו… דְּשַׁבָּת לָאו זַמִּין הִיא דְּהָא דִּילֵיהּ הוּא יְרוּתָא”
“Three are appointed as holy: Chag HaMatzot, Chag HaShavuot, and Chag HaSukkot. Rabbi Abba said: ‘Is Shabbat not holy, appointed?’ He said: ‘No… for Shabbat is not appointed; it is His inheritance.’” Shabbat is called an ot, because it is essential and beyond merit! This should naturally elicit joy!
When Moshe interceded with Pharaoh for a rest day, this was pre-Sinai—before we had the merit of Torah and mitzvot. When the same Shabbat was confirmed post-Sinai, Moshe knew that he was right about the special day indicating benefit above and beyond merit. The Chesed L’Avraham states:
“ומאלו הכתרים יורשים ישראל תוספות השבת בכל ערב שבת”
“And from these crowns, Israel inherits Shabbat’s addition every eve.”
The Ohr Hachaim adds:
“ולא נשאר למשה אלא חלקו”
“And only his portion remains to Moshe.” After the Golden Calf, the crowns lost at Sinai return on Shabbat—not as crowns of merit earned by deeds, but as crowns of essence, a gift of being. Devarim 32:9 states:
“כִּי חֵלֶק ה’ עַמּוֹ”
“For God’s portion is His people”—our essence as His chelek endures.
Why V’shamru?
That is why we specifically reference V’shamru here, for it states (Exodus 31:17):
“בֵּינִי וּבֵין בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אוֹת הִיא לְעוֹלָם”
“Between Me and the children of Israel, it is a sign forever.” It marks Shabbat as an ot—the essence of being—and this is the underlying message of the joy in “Yismach Moshe”: a joy of Shabbat restoring our crowns of essence, a celebration of our being, affirmed on the luchot by Shabbat 10b’s “מתנה טובה” and Chullin 101b’s “קביעא וקיימא.”
Conclusion
“Yismach Moshe b’matnat chelko” reveals Shabbat’s essential gift—an ot like bris, bestowed beyond merit, joyous in essence. Moshe’s chelko, his portion alone, reflects this pre-Sinai truth, confirmed post-Sinai, restoring our crowns of essence as God’s chelek each Shabbat.
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