Between “Zachor” and “Shamor” lies a profound lesson: never take nature for granted, and never stop believing in miracles that can still happen at any moment, even today.
A Miracle in Cleveland
The Cavaliers beat the Detroit Pistons and advanced to the playoffs. How do I know it was a miracle? Because on Sunday, before the game, I asked all the sports experts in my Chabad House if anyone was willing to bet that Cleveland would win. Today people can place bets online on any game, predicting which team will win and which will lose. I asked if anyone would put even one dollar on the Cavs. Not a single person stood up.
I understood from this that Cleveland’s situation was extremely difficult. Everyone had already lost hope. No one believed they had a chance. And yet, the miracle happened. They defeated the Detroit team, a team that by all natural calculations should have won.
The clearest proof that it was a miracle came two days later. After the Cleveland Cavaliers achieved that unbelievable victory, they went on to play the New York Knicks and suffered a crushing loss. It showed that the earlier victory was not simply a matter of natural ability, but something completely out of the ordinary.
The world we live in operates on two levels. One level is nature, and the other is miracles. Usually, what we experience is nature. Every morning the sun rises, and every evening it sets. People are born and, sadly, others pass away. In every area of life, we expect things to continue according to the natural order.
No one wakes up in the morning, sees the sun rise, and cries out, “A miracle! G-d!” It seems normal and expected.
Alongside this, however, there are miracles that break through the framework of nature.
The Double Challenge
But this creates a double challenge.
Nature feels so natural that we forget that the Creator of the world runs it. No one thinks they need to wake up and pray that the sun should rise. We simply take it for granted.
The same is true in personal life. During the High Holidays, on Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, people often tell me:
“Rabbi, I don’t need to pray or ask G-d for anything. Baruch Hashem, I already have enough. Let Hashem fulfill the requests of others. I’m fine.”
Where does that attitude come from? It comes from the feeling that what a person already has belongs to him permanently. His health is “secure.” His money is “secure.” His children are “secure.” He forgets how quickly things can change, how suddenly a person can lose savings or stability.
That is why he does not worry, pray, or ask for more.
He does not realize that even for what he already has, he must pray. Everything comes from the G-d. Every breath requires prayer and gratitude.
On the other hand, the problem with miracles is that no one expects them.
Most people believe that if they go to a doctor, try to build a business, or work through any challenge, they must rely only on the natural path. And if things fail, they despair. They conclude there is nothing more to do.
Of course, people know that G-d performed miracles in the Torah. He took the Jewish people out of Egypt, brought the Ten Plagues, split the sea, and sent manna from heaven. But many think that was long ago. Today, they believe only in what can be counted and measured.
And so people stop praying for miracles and stop expecting them.
Both mistakes come from the same root: forgetting G-d. Forgetting that there is One Who controls everything, both nature and miracles. He runs nature, and He can also break nature.
That is why the Torah gives us two kinds of mitzvos. Some remind us that nature itself is directed by G-d, while others remind us that He performs miracles.
Mitzvos for Nature and Mitzvos for Miracles
For example, at the beginning of every Jewish month we go outside under the open sky and recite Kiddush Levana, the blessing on the moon. At first glance, why make a blessing? The moon appears every month regardless of our prayers. For thousands of years it has waxed and waned according to a perfect cycle.
The same is true regarding Birchas Hachamah, recited once every twenty eight years. The sun rises every day without fail. So why make a blessing? To remember that the sun, the moon, and all creation are not operating on their own. There is a Creator Who runs the entire system.
We recently completed the mitzvah of Sefiras HaOmer. Why count the days? The days pass whether we count them or not. But the mitzvah reminds us that every day is a gift from the Holy One, blessed be He. A day that passes never returns, and therefore it must be used for Torah, mitzvos, and good deeds.
Similarly, before eating bread, a Jew recites “Hamotzi lechem min ha’aretz.” Why? Because bread does not come by itself. Yes, wheat grows from the ground, but there can also be famine and drought. When a person has bread on the table, he must thank the Holy One, blessed be He, and remember where it truly comes from.
There are many mitzvos whose entire purpose is to remind us that nature itself is created and directed by G-d. At the same time, there are mitzvos that remind us of miracles, that G-d can change nature and act beyond it.
Pesach commemorates the Exodus from Egypt. The Jewish people were in Egypt for 210 years, and there seemed to be no possibility of escape. Then Moshe appeared and led the Jewish people out. An open miracle.
The same is true of Chanukah and Purim, and of countless miracles throughout Jewish history. And if a person reflects honestly on his own life, he will see miracles there as well.
Zachor and Shamor
Today, on Shavuos, we read the Ten Commandments. The Aseres Hadibros appear twice in the Torah: once in Parshas Yisro and again in Parshas Va’eschanan.
Most of the commandments are nearly identical in both places, but regarding Shabbos there is a striking difference.
In Parshas Yisro, the Torah says: “Zachor es yom haShabbos lekadsho.” “Remember the Shabbos day to sanctify it.”
“Zachor” means to honor and elevate Shabbos through candles, Kiddush, prayers, special clothing, and delighting in Shabbos.
Why must we remember Shabbos? “Because in six days Hashem made the heavens and the earth… and on the seventh day He rested.”
Shabbos reminds us that G-d, created the world in six days and rested on the seventh. The entire natural cycle of existence follows this weekly pattern. After Shabbos comes Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and the cycle repeats.
Shabbos teaches us that G-d created nature, sustains it, and gives it life every moment.
But in Parshas Va’eschanan, the Torah says: “Shamor es yom haShabbos lekadsho” “Guard the Shabbos day to sanctify it.”
“Shamor” refers to protecting Shabbos and refraining from desecrating it. There, however, the Torah gives a completely different reason for Shabbos: “And you shall remember that you were slaves in Egypt, and Hashem your G-d took you out with a mighty hand and an outstretched arm.”
Here Shabbos reminds us not of creation, but of miracles. G-d sometimes changes nature entirely. The Rebbe explains something remarkable. Most mitzvos either remind us of nature or remind us of miracles. But Shabbos contains both together.
Shabbos reminds us that nature itself is directed by G-d, and therefore we must never become numb to it or take it for granted. But at the same time, Shabbos teaches us never to despair, because G-d also performs miracles. Miracles can happen in our own personal lives.
That is the uniqueness of Shabbos. This is why, in Friday night Kiddush, we mention both themes: “Zikaron lemaaseh Bereishis” “A remembrance of Creation”
and then: “Zecher l’Yetzias Mitzrayim” “A remembrance of the Exodus from Egypt.” Shabbos contains both nature and miracle intertwined together. The One Who runs nature is the same One Who performs miracles.
The Message
The Rebbe explains that Shabbos must instill within a Jew the awareness that even the ordinary workings of the world are in truth Divine Providence, with G-d constantly creating and sustaining every detail of existence.
At the same time, Shabbos must remind a Jew that miracles did not end with the Exodus from Egypt. A Jew is never trapped by the limitations of the world around him. When there is a conflict between the demands of society and the Torah, a Jew remembers that only the rulership of G-d, truly governs his life.
Human nature is to become inspired by miracles, and that is understandable. Miracles awaken people because nature lulls us to sleep spiritually. But the truth is that every sunrise is a miracle. Every breath is a miracle. Every morning that we wake up and can serve G-d as Jews, is a miracle.
And on one point there can be no disagreement: The continued existence of the Jewish people is one enormous miracle, lasting already for 3338 years. And it will continue until we merit the greatest miracle of all, the true and complete Redemption with the coming of Moshiach speedily in our days.