לזכות אבי מורי ואמי מורתי שיחיו
The pasuk says in Parshas Ki Tisa [Shmos 31-13]:
The pasuk says in Parshas Ki Tisa [Shmos 31-13]:
וְאַתָּ֞ה דַּבֵּ֨ר אֶל־בְּנֵ֤י יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ לֵאמֹ֔ר אַ֥ךְ אֶת־שַׁבְּתֹתַ֖י תִּשְׁמֹ֑רוּ כִּי֩ א֨וֹת הִ֜וא בֵּינִ֤י וּבֵֽינֵיכֶם֙ לְדֹרֹ֣תֵיכֶ֔ם לָדַ֕עַת כִּ֛י אֲנִ֥י יְהֹוָ֖ה מְקַדִּשְׁכֶֽם׃
“Speak also to the children of Israel, saying, ‘But nevertheless you shall keep my Shabossos: for it is a sign between me and you throughout your generations; that you may know that I am Hashem who sanctifies you".
Rashi says:
BUT NEVERTHELESS YOU SHALL KEEP MY SHABOSSOS – Even though you be anxious and alert to do the work promptly, nevertheless you must not set aside Shabbos on its account. The words אך and רק wherever they occur in Tanach have limitative force (Rosh Hashanah 17b; cf. Rashi on Rosh Hashanah 17b on אכין ורקין). Here Scripture intends by the word אך to exclude the Shabbos from the days on which the work of the Mishkan may be done.
The Ramban asks:
ולא נתכון אצלי, כי לפי מדרש רבותינו באכין ורקין ימעט בשמירת השבת, כי המיעוטים אצלם בכל מקום ימעטו בדבר המצווה בו, ואם תדרוש המיעוט בענין מלאכת המשכן יהיה מותר לעשותה בשבת.
The exclusion is written in the context of Shabbos not the Mishkan. So if Rashi is correct that the word אך is exclusionary and relating to the Mishkan, then it should be excluding Shabbos from its normal איסורים when it comes to the Mishkan and it is thus PERMITTED to build the Mishkan on Shabbos [and not as Rashi says that it is forbidden to build the Mishkan on Shabbos]!
The Ramban continues:
אבל המיעוט הזה למילה או לפקוח נפש וכיוצא בהן שהן דוחין את השבת. [וכך אמרו במסכת יומא: ומנין שספק נפשות דוחה שבת, רבי אבהו אמר רבי יוחנן אך את שבתותי תשמורו, מיעוט (ירושלמי יומא ח׳:ה׳).]
The exclusion is that one may perform Bris Milah on Shabbos and that one may violate Shabbos to save a life - פיקוח נפש. He proves this from the Gemara in Yoma [פ"ה], the Yerushalmi and Tosefta [שבת פרק ט"ו] that derives from אך that one is allowed one to violate Shabbos for פיקוח נפש. So Shabbos is excluded when it comes to פיקוח נפש.
We have to answer the Ramban's question on Rashi especially in light of the Yerushalmi that bears out the Ramban's interpretation - and not Rashi's!
We also have to answer another question: Rashi later [Vayakhel 35-2] writes that the Parsha of Shabbos is juxtaposed to the Melachos of the Mishkan to teach us that the building of the Mishkan doesn't override Shabbos. But we ALREADY HAVE a source that the building of the Mishkan doesn't override Shabbos [earlier in Ki Tisa that we quoted]. Why then according to the Rashi does the Torah have to teach us what we already know?? It must be then that the word "אך" is telling us that פיקוח נפש overrides Shabbos and the אך is exclusionary vis a vis Shabbos, as the Ramban explains.
