Q&A: The Commandment of Preparing for the Sabbath and Honoring the Sabbath
The Commandment of Preparing for the Sabbath and Honoring the Sabbath
Question
Hello, honored Rabbi. Rabbi Eliezer Melamed writes in Peninei Halakha: It is said (Exodus 16:5), “And it shall be on the sixth day that they shall prepare what they bring,” from here we learn that there is a commandment to prepare the needs of the Sabbath on Friday.
Is this a Torah-level commandment or merely a scriptural support?
And likewise, is there a Torah commandment to honor the Sabbath, or is it only from the words of the prophets (“And call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the Lord honored”)?
Answer
The obligation to prepare is part of honoring the Sabbath, and straightforwardly this is not a Torah law. Rabbah’s preparation principle is Torah-level, but it seems to me that according to most halakhic decisors it was not ruled as practical Jewish law.