B"H
Tuesday, Adar1 28, 5782 / March 1, 2022
Last week’s Parsha, Vayakhel and this week’s Parsha, Pekudei, tell in detail about the items which the people donated and the actual construction of the Mishkan and all of its contents. These two Parshiot are a repeat of the two Parshiot, Terumah and Tetzaveh, which we read a few weeks ago.
Q. Every word, indeed every letter, in the Torah is precise. Why is the story of the building of the Mishkan, G-d’s sanctuary and dwelling place, repeated in such great length in the Torah?
A. The building of the Mishkan was a sign of G-d’s forgiveness for the gravest sin committed by the Jewish people, the sin of worshipping the Golden Calf. The Mishkan is called, “Mishkan Ha’eidut” – “The Mishkan of Testimony.” It served as testimony that G-d forgave them for the sin of the Golden Calf.
In order to prove that this sin was forgiven and His love for the Jewish people did not waver, G-d wrote about the Mishkan, which was testimony to his forgiveness, in such great length.
Q. The Torah, in this week’s Parsha, Pekudei, tells us that Betzalel was in charge of the building of the Mishkan; “And Betzalel, son of Uri, son of Chur of the tribe of Yehuda, had made all that G-d had commanded Moshe.” How old was Betzalel when he took charge of building the Mishkan?
A. Betzalel was only thirteen years old when he built the Mishkan!
Q. The Mishkan was extremely heavy. How many people did it take to erect the Mishkan?
A. Moshe put up the Mishkan by himself! This was a miracle in itself, for the weight of each of the beams of the Mishkan was beyond the capability of a person to lift. In fact, the first seven days after the completion of the Mishkan, Moshe assembled and took apart the Mishkan each day.
Q. Why did G-d perform this special miracle that Moshe should erect the Mishkan all by himself?
A. The Midrash says: Each one of the Jewish people contributed or was involved in the construction of the Mishkan, except for Moshe. G-d wanted Moshe to have a part in the Mishkan so he left the erection of the Mishkan to Moshe.
However, Moshe said to G-d, “How could a human possibly erect it? G-d said to Moshe, ‘You work with your hands and it will appear as if you are erecting it, but it will actually go up by itself’”
Q. Throughout the Parsha, the Torah describes the work of the Mishkan, and adds that they did it, “As G-d has commanded Moshe.” This phrase appears 18 times! What is the significance of this number?
A. The Midrash says that when the Rabbis of the Great Assembly instituted the Shmone Esrei prayer (Amida), which is comprised of 18 benedictions and recited three times daily, they based it on the 18 times in which it says, “As G-d has commanded Moshe,” in this Parsha.
HAVE A VERY GOOD, HAPPY, HEALTHY AND SUCCESSFUL DAY