“Then Yehoshua spoke to God … the sun and moon shall stand still in Givon ….” (Yehoshua, 10:12) It is written in the tractate Avoda Zara (25a) “that day was the length of two days.” Moshe Rabeynu’s task was the Torah, and Yehoshua’s task was action, as our sages have said (Midrash Sochar Tov, 21), “He gave majesty [hod] to Moshe and beauty [hadar] to Yehoshua.” Hod represents the internal aspect and hadar represents the appearance from the outside, as is explained in the Mei HaShiloach, Parshat Vayaqhel (second piece). Moshe Rabeynu was in the desert, and he experienced Shabbat through refraining from action, for Shabbat represents knowing the name of God in everything, as is explained. Yehoshua was among those who entered the land, and he experienced Shabbat through active performance. Therefore the sun stood still in order to include one of the days of the week in his Shabbat, and this hints that the very action was the day of Shabbat. (Shabbat thus included Sunday, the first day of action. This demonstrated that Yehoshua’s Shabbat experience involved action.)
אָז יְדַבֵּר יְהוֹשֻׁעַ כוּ׳ שֶׁמֶשׁ בְּגִבְעוֹן דּוֹם וְיָרֵחַ כוּ׳. וְאִיתָא בְּמַסֶּכֶת עֲבוֹדָה זָרָה [כ"ה.] שֶׁהָיָה אוֹתוֹ הַיּוֹם כִּשְׁנֵי יָמִים, כִּי מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ עָלָיו הַשָּׁלוֹם הָיָה עִסְקוֹ תּוֹרָה וִיהוֹשֻׁעַ הָיָה עִסְקוֹ מַעֲשֶׂה וּכְמוֹ שֶׁאָמְרוּ חֲזַ"ל [שוחר טוב פ' כ"א] נִיתָּן הַהוֹד לְמֹשֶׁה וְהֶהָדָר לִיהוֹשֻׁעַ. כִּי הוֹד הוּא הַפְּנִימִיּוּת וְהָדָר הוּא עַל הַלְּבוּשׁ כְּמוֹ שֶׁנִּתְבָּאֵר בִּמְקוֹמוֹ, וּמֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ עָלָיו הַשָּׁלוֹם הָיָה בַּמִּדְבָּר וְיוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת שֶׁלּוֹ הָיָה שֵׁב וְאַל תַּעֲשֶׂה, כִּי שַׁבָּת הַיְינוּ הַכָּרַת שֵׁם ה' עַל כָּל דָּבָר כְּמוֹ שֶׁנִּתְבָּאֵר, וִיהוֹשֻׁעַ הָיָה מִבָּאֵי הָאָרֶץ וְיוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת שֶׁלּוֹ הָיָה קוּם וַעֲשֵׂה, לְכָךְ נִידַּם הַשֶּׁמֶשׁ, בִּכְדֵי שֶׁמִּיּוֹם אֶחָד שֶׁל חוֹל יֵעָשֶׂה שַׁבָּת וְהוּא רוֹמֵז כִּי הַמַּעֲשֶׂה הוּא יוֹם הַשַּׁבָּת.
“Then Yehoshua spoke to God … the sun and moon shall stand still in Givon ….” (Yehoshua, 10:12)
It is written in the tractate Avoda Zara (25a) “that day was the length of two days.” Moshe Rabeynu’s task was the Torah, and Yehoshua’s task was action, as our sages have said (Midrash Sochar Tov, 21), “He gave majesty [hod] to Moshe and beauty [hadar] to Yehoshua.” Hod represents the internal aspect and hadar represents the appearance from the outside, as is explained in the Mei HaShiloach, Parshat Vayaqhel (second piece). Moshe Rabeynu was in the desert, and he experienced Shabbat through refraining from action, for Shabbat represents knowing the name of God in everything, as is explained. Yehoshua was among those who entered the land, and he experienced Shabbat through active performance. Therefore the sun stood still in order to include one of the days of the week in his Shabbat, and this hints that the very action was the day of Shabbat. (Shabbat thus included Sunday, the first day of action. This demonstrated that Yehoshua’s Shabbat experience involved action.)