The third meal is the “doorknob moment” of Shabbos – the moment we realize that the access to the deepest, most intimate places is about to close, and this sparks a burst of revelation and disclosure.

For Sforno, this verse is a call to organize the week to make room for Shabbos, to make Shabbos feasible. It takes careful planning and thoughtful organization to ensure that what needs to be accomplished is done in six days rather than seven, that by Friday afternoon one can reasonably and responsibly call the workweek finished.

“Seize the day,” is reframed as a call to unite bodily action with conscious awareness and intentional presence.

When God “blesses” the seventh day, God is bestowing personhood on Shabbos, affirming that this day has a personality that deserves to be recognized, honored, and cherished.

This understanding of Shabbos as the gift of place

Shabbos is the generative kernel at the center of the Jewish spiritual universe.

Look at the world with fresh eyes, eyes bathed in grace and gazing with benevolence.

Shabbos is cessation, stopping that is directed; it is a vector of intentionality focused on God, aimed and lovingly handed up to God as offering, as gift.

the problem with gossip is that it is talk that remains on the surface, and the antidote is the endless quest for deeper layers of meaning in ourselves and in others. As the Sefat Emet assures us, the deeper we dive, the higher we soar.