4 Shabbat Meals – 4 Supports of the Merkavah
4 Shabbat Meals – 4 Supports of the Merkavah
Tehillim 39:5
הוֹדִ֘יעֵ֤נִי יְהוָ֨ה ׀ קִצִּ֗י וּמִדַּ֣ת יָמַ֣י מַה־הִ֑יא אֵ֝דְעָ֗ה מֶה־חָדֵ֥ל אָֽנִי׃
- “Hodi'eni Adonai kitzi u-middat yamai mah hi, eda meh-hadel ani” -
(I spoke with my tongue: Tell me, O L-rd, my end and the measure of my days—what it is, so that I may know when I will cease to live.)
King David asks the Almighty to reveal the exact date of his death, but the Almighty reveals to him only the day of the week—the eve of Shabbat—and only because David HaMelech was blessed.
In commemoration of this, every Motza'ei Shabbat David HaMelech would hold a meal at which he praised Hashem for remaining alive.
Observing the four Shabbat seudot (meals) serves to invoke Heavenly compassion through the four supports of the Merkavah—the Heavenly Chariot: Avraham, Yitzchak, Yaakov, and David HaMelech.
- In the merit of the first Shabbat meal, Avraham Avinu will save us (Klal Yisrael) from the suffering of Gehinnom;
- In the merit of the second meal, Yitzchak Avinu will save us from the birth pangs of Mashiach;
- In the merit of the Seudah Shlishit, Yaakov Avinu will save us from the dangers of the war of Gog and Magog;
- In the merit of the fourth meal—Melaveh Malkah—David HaMelech will save us from punishment in the grave (Chibut HaKever). Thus, the connection between Melaveh Malkah (escorting the Shabbat Queen) and the meal of David HaMelech is clear.
(Chief Rabbi of the synagogue on Bronnaya Street—Yitzchak Kogan, Yesod V'Shoresh HaAvodah, Sha'ar 8; Perek 13, citing Sifrei, HaMinhagim, Talmud (Shabbat 30a, Ta'amei)
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Tags: Segulot, The Hidden Meaning of Tehillim, Thanksgiving Meal, Food, Melaveh Malkah, The Seudah of David HaMelech, The Four Shabbat Meals Corresponding to the Four Legs of the Merkavah, The Four Shabbat Meals — the Four Supports of the Merkavah, Food — The Spiritual Dimension
