וְאִם־לֹ֨א תִשְׁמְע֜וּ אֵלַ֗י לְקַדֵּשׁ֙ אֶת־י֣וֹם הַשַּׁבָּ֔ת וּלְבִלְתִּ֣י ׀ שְׂאֵ֣ת מַשָּׂ֗א וּבֹ֛א בְּשַׁעֲרֵ֥י יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖ם בְּי֣וֹם הַשַּׁבָּ֑ת וְהִצַּ֧תִּי אֵ֣שׁ בִּשְׁעָרֶ֗יהָ וְאָֽכְלָ֛ה אַרְמְנ֥וֹת יְרוּשָׁלִַ֖ם וְלֹ֥א תִכְבֶּֽה׃ (פ)
Mas si no me oyereis para santificar el día del sábado, y para no traer carga ni meterla por las puertas de Jerusalem en día de sábado, yo haré encender fuego en sus puertas, y consumirá los palacios de Jerusalem, y no se apagará.
Kli Yakar
And by way of allusion, it alludes here to the punishment of Sabbath desecrators, as it states (in Shabbat 119b): Rav said, “Fire is only found in a place where the Sabbath is desecrated,” as it is said (Jeremiah 17:27), But if you do not listen to Me to sanctify the Sabbath day, etc., then I will kindle a fire in its gates, and it will consume the palaces of Jerusalem and not be extinguished. Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak said, “At a time when people are not available to extinguish it.” Rashi explains this is referring to the Sabbath. And this is what is said here, Whoever performs work on it [the Sabbath] shall be put to death. And it says, You shall not kindle fire — meaning, do not cause for yourselves, through not properly observing the Sabbath, that fire should burn in all your dwellings, in your luxurious houses, on the Sabbath day, at a time when people are not available to extinguish it. See all of this in Olelot Ephraim, discourse 269.
Rabbeinu Bahya
Sabbath is the first commandment given to Israel before the Torah was given. It is the basis of our faith and is equated with all other commandments combined. The Sabbath affirms our belief that G'd created the world in six days and rested on the seventh.
Our sages (Shabbat 119) state that Jerusalem was destroyed only on account of desecration of the Sabbath. They derive this from Ezekiel 22,26: ”they have closed their eyes to My Sabbaths so that I became profaned in their midst.” Jeremiah 17,27 warned the Jewish people concerning the observance of the Sabbath telling them that both Jerusalem and the dynasty of the house of David would survive only by merit of Sabbath observance. Failing such observance, the prophet warns that the city would be burned and that the fire would not be extinguished.
Concerning the positive value of Sabbath observance, we are told in Shabbat 118 that if the Israelites (all of them) were to observe only two Sabbaths they would be redeemed from exile immediately. They base this on the wording in Isaiah 56,4אשר ישמרו את שבתותי , “who will observe My Sabbath days.” Even as few as two such Sabbaths qualify for the plural used by the prophet in describing the result of such observance as being: “I will give them My house and within My walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name, etc.” The passage concludes with the words: “I will bring them to My sacred mount and let them rejoice in My house of prayer.”
On the subject of Sabbath observance our sages in Shabbat 118 continue that if someone observes the laws of the Sabbath meticulously he will be forgiven such sins as the type of idolatry committed by the first generation of idolaters, the people at the time of Enosh, seeing that the prophet said אשרי אנוש יעשה זאת...שומר שבת מחללו, “hail to (even someone like Enosh) who does this and makes sure not to desecrate the Sabbath” (Isaiah 56,2). The sages substitute the word מחול לו, for the word מחללו, in the verse, i.e. he who does not desecrate it (מחללו), will be forgiven (מחול לו) for his sins.
The plain meaning of the text, i.e. why the Torah here speaks about the Sabbath in the plural, is simply because there are many Sabbath days in the course of a year as distinct from the other festivals which occur only once a year.
Our sages (Shabbat 119) state that Jerusalem was destroyed only on account of desecration of the Sabbath. They derive this from Ezekiel 22,26: ”they have closed their eyes to My Sabbaths so that I became profaned in their midst.” Jeremiah 17,27 warned the Jewish people concerning the observance of the Sabbath telling them that both Jerusalem and the dynasty of the house of David would survive only by merit of Sabbath observance. Failing such observance, the prophet warns that the city would be burned and that the fire would not be extinguished.
Concerning the positive value of Sabbath observance, we are told in Shabbat 118 that if the Israelites (all of them) were to observe only two Sabbaths they would be redeemed from exile immediately. They base this on the wording in Isaiah 56,4אשר ישמרו את שבתותי , “who will observe My Sabbath days.” Even as few as two such Sabbaths qualify for the plural used by the prophet in describing the result of such observance as being: “I will give them My house and within My walls a monument and a name better than sons and daughters; I will give them an everlasting name, etc.” The passage concludes with the words: “I will bring them to My sacred mount and let them rejoice in My house of prayer.”
On the subject of Sabbath observance our sages in Shabbat 118 continue that if someone observes the laws of the Sabbath meticulously he will be forgiven such sins as the type of idolatry committed by the first generation of idolaters, the people at the time of Enosh, seeing that the prophet said אשרי אנוש יעשה זאת...שומר שבת מחללו, “hail to (even someone like Enosh) who does this and makes sure not to desecrate the Sabbath” (Isaiah 56,2). The sages substitute the word מחול לו, for the word מחללו, in the verse, i.e. he who does not desecrate it (מחללו), will be forgiven (מחול לו) for his sins.
The plain meaning of the text, i.e. why the Torah here speaks about the Sabbath in the plural, is simply because there are many Sabbath days in the course of a year as distinct from the other festivals which occur only once a year.