This week’s Torah portion of Vayakhel singles out one of the thirty-nine melachos, [prohibitions of Shabbos], of mav’ir [burning]; “You shall not kindle a fire in any of your dwellings on the Shabbos day” (Shemos 35:3). Rabboseinu Baalei Tosfos (Daas Zekeinim) suggests why this specific prohibition was singled out: “The Torah warns us about kindling a fire more than all the other melachos because it doesn’t really look like work (melacha). And perhaps they will say I am not doing a melacha but I will light a fire and prepare everything so I can do things with gold and silver immediately after Shabbos, (for the building of the Mishkan) therefore it says ‘You shall not kindle’. And in Maseches Shabbos 70a, Chaza”l argue if this melacha is singled out to teach us that just as if one does this alone he transgresses Shabbos, so to if one does any other melacha by themselves he transgresses Shabbos and he does not need to transgress all 39 melachos at once to be liable. The other opinion holds this was singled out to teach us that only this melacha is liable for lashes but all others are a punishment of kares and stoning.” (Click here for Hebrew text.)
What does the Daas Zekeinim mean when he says that kindling a fire doesn’t really look like a melacha, because it’s too easy to do so people will say it’s not really a thing and do it? What about the melacha of borer [separating what you don’t want from what you do want]; that’s pretty easy, it doesn’t take too much effort, and might even be easier than what is permissible, the act of taking what’s good from the bad with your hand for immediate use?
Rather, it must be that kindling a fire is the only melacha that does not look like a job. Think about it; if you go through the different kinds of melachos, they can each be attached to job categories like planting, cooking, sewing, hunting, etc. Even borer, one can choose things by separating merchandise to sell. But kindling a fire is just turning on a light, giving light to a room, or warming it up, heating up an oven; the molding of the silver and gold is many steps later. It could have nothing to do with any job or work, so one might misconstrue it as not a melacha and come to easily do it on Shabbos. But why is that true? If it’s listed as one of the thirty-nine melachos, then it is clearly forbidden, like any other melacha, with the severe consequence of either being cut off from the nation (kares) and potentially stoning, or even, according to the other opinion, getting up to thirty-nine lashes. So why would anyone misconstrue this melacha in particular as something permissible, if it’s clear that it’s forbidden like any other melacha? Why also would the person only light a fire towards the end of Shabbos and not beforehand if it’s not a real melacha?
Therefore, we must say that any knowledgeable, G-D fearing Jew would never think you can transgress anymelacha on purpose, no matter what it is. But, Hashem who created the Yetzer Hara, the evil inclination, with His infinite knowledge emphasizes, out of all the melachos, the prohibition of kindling a fire, in His Holy Torah, because He knows how the Yetzer Hara works. One of the ways the Yetzer Hara gets a person to sin is to make excuses, to confuse a person and in their state of confusion they will rationalize that it is no big deal to do. It might take a whole Shabbos to make a person rationalize away reality, but the evil inclination can get it done.
Excuses, excuses, excuses, the Torah warns us don’t fall for them, be on guard and ready to battle the weaponized Yetzer Hara!
Good Shabbos Para,
Rabbi Dovid Shmuel Milder