13 Jun PARASHAT SHELAH: SHABBAT – OUR COLLECTIVE OBLIGATION

The Torah in
Parashat Shelah
tells the story of the
Mekoshesh Esim – a
man who publicly
desecrated Shabbat while Beneh
Yisrael were in the wilderness. The
people who found him committing
the act of Shabbat desecration brought
him to Moshe, and G-d commanded
that the man should be punished.
Rashi, commenting on this episode
(15:32, writes, “Bi’gnutan Shel
Yisrael Diber Ha’katub” – “The verse
speaks in criticism of Yisrael.” This
story was told as criticism of Beneh
Yisrael, noting that they failed to
observe Shabbat.
The question arises, why is the
entire nation criticized for one man’s
Shabbat desecration? We might
have thought that to the contrary, the
“Mekosheh Esim” was the exception
that proved the rule – the fact that he
was found violating Shabbat, and was

punished, shows that the rest of the
nation properly observed Shabbat.
Why, then, is this story seen as an
indictment of all Beneh Yisrael?
Rav Yosef Salant (Jerusalem, 1885-
1981), in his Be’er Yosef, explains
that there are two aspects to Shabbat
observance – an individual obligation
to observe Shabbat, and a collective
obligation to ensure that Shabbat
is properly respected. These two
obligations are expressed by the
two commands of “Zachor Et Yom
Ha’Shabbat” (“Remember the day
of Shabbat” – Shemot 20:7), and
“Shamor Et Yom Ha’Shabbat”
(“Guard the day of Shabbat” –
Debarim 5:11). The command of
“Zachor” refers to our individual
obligation to observe Shabbat,
whereas the command of “Shamor,”
which requires us to “guard” Shabbat,
refers to our collective obligation to
ensure that Shabbat is observed.
Rav Salant cites the comment of the

Chizkuni (Hizkiya Ben Manoah,
France, late 13th century) that Moshe
had appointed people to “patrol”
the camp on Shabbat and ensure
that Shabbat was not violated, and
this is how the “Mekoshesh Esim”
was found. However, Rav Salant
writes, it appears that there were not
enough patrols, because although the
“Mekoshesh Esim” was discovered,
the patrols did not see him in time to
prevent him from violating Shabbat.
Apparently, not enough people
volunteered for this job – to ensure the
observance of Shabbat. And for this
reason, Rav Salant explains, Rashi
writes that this story is an indictment
of Beneh Yisrael for failing to
observe Shabbat. Although all but
one member of the nation properly
fulfilled the individual obligation of
Shabbat observance, the nation as a
whole failed in regard to its collective
obligation.
We must be mindful of both our

personal obligation towards Shabbat,
and also our collective responsibility.
Although we obviously cannot
enforce Shabbat observance today the
way this was done in ancient times, we
need to do what we can to contribute
to the collective observance of
Shabbat, to each do our share to create
a special, joyous, sacred environment
which can inspire and encourage our
fellow Jews to observe Shabbat and
reap the incalculable benefits of this
sacred day.