Welcome to Embrace Shabbat.
The Gemara relates the famous story of Yosef Mokir Shabbat:
Yosef was a man who cherished Shabbat and lovingly spent enormous amounts of money to honor it with delicious foods and delicacies. In his neighborhood, there was a gentile who was extremely wealthy. A stargazer warned the gentile that Yosef would come to steal all of his money in the future, and as a result, the man sold all of his investments and used the money to purchase a jewel. He placed the jewel in his turban, so that he could watch and protect it at all times.
One day, the gentile was walking across a bridge, when the wind blew off his turban and landed it in the water, where a fish swallowed it. A fisherman caught the fish and removed it from the water, but it was too close to Erev Shabbat to sell. Who would buy such a fish?
The fisherman knew to bring it to Yosef, who cherished Shabbat and would always purchase delicacies to honor the day. Sure enough, Yosef purchased it, later finding the jewel inside. Of course, Yosef now inherited all of the gentile’s money, as the stargazer had predicted. He sold the jewel for thirteen attics filled with gold.
The Olot Efraim, commonly known as Kli Yakar on Chumash, extrapolates a beautiful message from this story. In Judaism, the number thirteen symbolizes the thirteen ikariam, principles of faith. The Sefer Ikarim teaches that principles can be divided into three basic categories of our faith:
- G-d created the world in six days and rested on the seventh, which is symbolized through Shabbat.
- G-d gave us the Torah on Shabbat.
- There will be reward and punishment in Olam Habah, which is called יום שכולו שבת, the day that is completely Shabbat. Olam Haba comes in the 7,000th year, after 6,000 years of the world.
Shabbat contains messages of these three fundamentals of faith, as seen in the Shabbat prayers. Friday night discusses faith of creation, as in זכר למעשה בראשית. On Shabbat Day, the prayers mention ישמח משה במתנת חלקו, which refers to the giving of the Torah. Finally, mincha includes אתה אחד ושמך אחד, G-d’s Name is One, which refers to the future when G-d’s Name will be One in Olam Haba.
The Olot Efraim says that the “jewel” that Yosef found is symbolic of each one of these principles of faith. Each one is its own gem:
- The Gemara teaches that Avraham Avinu wore a gem around his neck that everyone would gaze at. This “jewel” was the fundamental of faith- that G-d created the world- that Avraham Avinu spread throughout the world.
- The Gemara frequently refers to a chiddush of Torah as a gem. For example, when a Rabbi would say a chiddush, another Rabbi would respond, “You had this gem and you didn’t want to share it with me?”
- Olam Haba is referred to as a gem, because it says that it is built as a house made of gems.
These fundamentals of faith are our true assets; a person can lose everything, but their faith will remain intact. The gift of Shabbat gives us those “gems” of faith.
The number thirteen is also featured in all three fundamentals of faith, explaining why Yosef sold the stone for thirteen attics full of gold. Through his gem:
- G-d created the world. Avodah Zara maintains that there are twelve mazalot, horoscopes. However, Hashem is above these concepts, and is represented by the number thirteen. When we appreciate the “number thirteen,” that G-d is the 13th force above the 12 constellations, He will reveal His thirteen attributes of mercy to the Jewish people.
- The Torah has שלוש עשרה מידות שהתורה נדרשת בהן, ithirteen principles that it is approached through.
- There were ithirteen rivers of perfume in Olam Habah.
The numerical value of echad, thirteen, is symbolized in all three of these gems. This is the meaning behind Yosef receiving the gem for Shabbat and selling it for thirteen attics full of gems. The gem was “the gem of Emunah,” which brings along thirteen “subcategories” of Emunah and, with it, thirteen attics full of gold. The true inheritance that we have is our emunah.
Have a Shabbat Shalom.