Ki Tisa: Is Shabbos a Day of Simchah?

If so, why isn't it presented this way in the Torah and in halacha? And if not, then why are there so many references to Shabbos joy in the songs we sing on Shabbos?

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Ki Tisa: Is Shabbos a Day of Simchah?

Shabbos is undoubtedly a day of oneg (enjoyment), as the navi states: “you shall proclaim Shabbos an oneg” (Yeshayahu 58:13). Oneg isn’t merely a theme of Shabbos, but a halachic institution. On Shabbos there is an obligation to have three lavish meals throughout the day, and for couples to have marital relations – all for oneg.

But is Shabbos also a day of simchah (joy)? According to the zemiros we sing on Shabbos, the answer is a resounding “Yes!” The opening stanza of Menuchah v’Simchah declares: “Rest and joy, light for the Jews, on this day of Shabbos, day of delights.” Kol Mekadeish states: “on Shabbos day be glad and rejoice” and “Hashem made this day; we will be glad and rejoice on it.” In Baruch El Elyon we sing: “Therefore let each man give himself enjoyment and also joy.” In Ki Eshmera Shabbos, we say that Shabbos “is a day of joy and will bring me joy.”

And yet, this theme of simchah is not mentioned in the Written Torah. There are pesukim which associate simchah with Yom Tov, such as: “you shall rejoice before Hashem for seven days” (Vayikra 23:40) and “you shall rejoice on your festival” (Devarim 16:14), but there are no pesukim which explicitly associate Shabbos with simchah.

Likewise, there are numerous halachic guidelines for simchah on Yom Tov. For example, the Rambam writes: “How [does one fulfill the mitzvah of simchah on Yom Tov]? He distributes roasted grains, nuts, and seeds to the children. He buys beautiful clothes and jewelry for the women, according to his financial means. The men eat meat and drink wine, for there is no simchah without meat and there is no simchah without wine, etc.” (Hilchos Shevisas Yom Tov 6:17). There are no parallel halachos of simchah on Shabbos – only oneg. True, there are a few allusions to Shabbos simchah in halachic literature, such as Chazal’s comment that “on your days of rejoicing” refers to Shabbosos (Sifre on Bamidbar 10:10), and the Talmud Yerushalmi’s statement (Megilah 1:4) that when Purim falls out on Shabbos, the seudah must be pushed off because of Shabbos’s unique simchah character. But at the end of the day, the simchah character of Shabbos does not express itself in any positive halachic obligations.

What are we to make of this? A clue can be found in the reference to simchah in the Song of the Day for Shabbos:

A psalm, a song for the Shabbos day. It is good to thank Hashem and to sing to Your Name, O Exalted One; to recount Your kindness in the morning, and Your faithfulness in the nights. Upon a ten-stringed instrument and upon lyre, with singing [accompanied] by harp. For You have caused me to rejoice (simachtani), Hashem, with Your deed; about Your handiwork I will sing joyously (aranein). How great are Your works, Hashem; [how] very deep are Your thoughts! A boorish man doesn’t know, and a fool doesn’t understand this. (Tehilim 92:1-7)

Radak (ibid. 92:5) provides a clear and beautiful explanation of what this Shabbos simchah is:

for you have caused me to rejoice: On the Shabbos day You have brought me simchah in my contemplation of Your deed and Your handiwork, which is the universe and everything in it. On the Shabbos day, when I have [time] to contemplate [the universe], I will rejoice – this is [a reference] to scientific knowledge (chochmas ha’teva) – and when I contemplate it and apprehend from it whatever I can apprehend, I will rejoice and I will sing with my heart/mind. This [refers to] the matter which each and every wise person contemplates in the work of God; therefore, he said “I will rejoice” and “I will sing” in the singular.

The oneg of Shabbos and the simchah of Yom Tov involve physical delights which can be experienced by everyone. The simchah of Shabbos, however, results from contemplating the wisdom of the Creator that is manifest in His universe. This type of simchah is not accessible to the average individual, but only to chachamim (the wise) in accordance with their knowledge. Perhaps this is why simchah is not uniformly mandated on Shabbos as it is on Yom Tov, but is relegated to the status of a philosophical theme to be tapped into by individuals on their level.

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