The Internal Division of the Mishkan (II)

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In loving memory of Channa Schreiber (Channa Rivka bat Yosef v' Yocheved) z"l,
with wishes for consolation and comfort to her dear children
Yossi and Mona, Yitzchak and Carmit, and their families,
along with all who mourn for Tzion and Yerushalayim.

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 The Structure of the Mishkan and Its Internal Division (II)

 

 

“WHICH WAS SHOWN YOU IN THE MOUNTAIN” – WHAT DID MOSHE SEE ON THE MOUNTAIN?

 

            There is room to discuss whether the expressions that describe how God showed the Mishkan to Moshe on the mountain relate to specific vessels or to the structure of the Mishkan in general.

 

            On the one hand, the first verse that serves as an introduction to the entire command regarding the Mishkan states: "According to all that I show you, the pattern of the Tabernacle, and the pattern of all its vessels, even so shall you make it" (Shemot 25:9). It seems that the reference is to the entire structure and all its vessels.

 

            On the other hand, in the last verse relating to this matter – "Hollow with boards shall you make it; as it was shown you in the mountain, so shall they make it" (Shemot 27:8) – the reference is specifically to the outer altar. Moreover, if the reference is to the pattern of all the vessels, why is there a detailed and emphatic repetition regarding the outer altar?

 

            Similarly, at the end of the command regarding the menora, we read: "And see that you make them after their pattern, which was shown you in the mountain" (Shemot 25:40). Is the reference to the menora with its shaft, its branches, its bowls, its bulbs, and its flowers, or is the reference to all the vessels, the commands regarding which had appeared earlier (i.e., the ark, the kaporet and the keruvim, the table and the menora)? And does the command, "And you shall rear up the Tabernacle according to its fashion which was shown you in the mountain" (Shemot 26:30) relate to the structure as a whole, the boards, or the boards together with the curtains?

 

            When the Torah says that Moshe saw on the mountain the pattern of the Mishkan and the pattern of all its vessels, does that also include the courtyard and the screen of the gate of the courtyard? Is the command regarding the incense altar (Shemot 30:1-10), which appears after the account of the resting of the Shekhina following the offering of the daily sacrifice, included in the pattern of all its vessels, or not?

 

            The Rashbam explains:

 

"According to all that I show you" – According to all the images of the vessels and the structures that the Holy One, blessed be He, actually showed to Moshe. We find in Yechezkel regarding the Second Temple that He showed him divine visions in Babylonia and He also showed him through speech and explained to him, as it is written. And so it is proven before us: "As was shown you on the mountain." If through speech alone, it should have said, "As was shown you." Why did it need to say "on the mountain"? (Shemot 25:9)

 

The Netziv adds the following explanation:

 

What this means is that all the details of the Mishkan correspond to the details of the world that the Maker, blessed be He, created, and He dwells in the world as a whole, and He commanded that they should make an image of the entire world in the building of the Mishkan and its vessels, and the Holy One, blessed be He, showed Moshe an image of the entire world, as will be explained in the coming passages. And because the Mishkan follows the pattern of the world as a whole it was possible for God's Shekhina to rest there. Several matters spelled out by Scripture seem to us to be no more than a good way to build, such as the fifty loops of the curtains, which might seem to be nothing but a way to join the curtains; accordingly, if one would not be connected to its clasp it would not harm and nullify the Mishkan. But this is not so, but rather it is of necessity, in accordance with the structure of the world, that there be fifty loops. And if one were missing, it would not have the pattern of the world, and the Shekhina would be unable to rest within it.

 

The Netziv says that in addition to the fact that the Mishkan must be identical with the Mishkan that God showed Moshe at Sinai, in order for the Shekhina to rest in this world, the Mishkan and its vessels must resemble the world as a whole. In other words, there is a similarity in the fine details between the Mishkan and the world, and therefore the Shekhina can rest in it.

 

            Thus, for example, the Netziv writes regarding the four corners that are on the four legs of the table (Shemot 25:26) that "the Torah only mentions those details that correspond to something in the creation of the heaven and the earth."

 

            The Netziv goes on to argue that it was not for naught that it was specifically Betzalel who was chosen to fashion the Mishkan, for he knew how to put together the letters with which the world had been created - with wisdom, knowledge and understanding – so that the Mishkan would indeed reflect and embody the structure of the world. Not all of the details regarding the menora and the altar were explained, and there were uncertainties, and therefore God taught him all the details in accordance with the pattern of the world corresponding to the details of the menorah. In this way, the Shekhina was able to rest in the world.[1]

 

THE MISHKAN AND THE CREATION OF THE WORLD

 

            This fundamental connection between the Mishkan and the structure of the world is related to various connections between the Mikdash and the creation of the world.

 

This is emphasized with respect to the location of the permanent Mikdash at the site of the creation of the world, as Chazal say in the midrash:

 

There was a stone there [in the Holy of Holies] from the days of the early prophets, called "Shetiya," raised three fingers from the ground, upon which the ark had originally rested. After the ark was removed, they would burn upon it the incense brought into the innermost chamber. R. Yose says: From it was the world founded, as it says: "Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God has shone forth" (Tehillim 50:2). (Tosefta, Yoma 2:14)

 

Furthermore, many midrashim note the significance of the fact that the erection of the Mishkan was a completion of the creation of the world. Thus, for example, we find in the Tanchuma on Parashat Naso (as well as Pesikta De-Rav Kahana 1:1):

 

"Who has established all the ends of the earth" (Mishlei 30:4). Did Moshe establish all the ends of the earth? Rather, he established the Ohel Mo'ed, with which the world was established. It is not written here "le-hakim Mishkan" ("setting up the Mishkan), but rather "le-hakim et ha-Mishkan" (Bamidbar 7:1) – another Mishkan was set up with it, which was called a tent, just as the Mishkan is called the Tent of Meeting, as it is written: "That spreads them out as a tent to dwell in" (Yeshayahu 40:22). For until the Mishkan was set up, the world quivered, but once the Mishkan was set up, the world became firmly established. Therefore, it says: "Le-hakim et ha-Mishkan." (Naso 24)

 

            There are several parallels between the creation of the world and the building of the Mishkan:

 

• Both involved wisdom, understanding, and knowledge:

 

The Lord by wisdom founded the earth; by understanding he established the heavens. By his knowledge the depths were broken up. (Mishlei 3:19-20)

 

And I have filled him with the spirit of God, in wisdom, and in understanding, and in knowledge, and in all manner of workmanship. (Shemot 31:3)

 

• When the work was completed, it was seen as good:

 

And God saw everything that He had made, and, behold, it was very good. (Bereishit 1:31)

 

And Moshe saw all the work, and, behold, they had done it as the Lord had commanded, even so had they done it… (Shemot 39:43)

 

• The conclusion of the work:

 

Thus the heavens and the earth were finished and all of their hosts. And by the seventh day, God ended His work which He had done. (Bereishit 2:1-2)

 

Thus was all the work of the Mishkan of the Tent of Meeting finished: and the children of Israel did according to all that the Lord commanded Moshe, so they did. (Shemot 39:32)

 

• A blessing at the conclusion of the work:

 

And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it; because in it He rested from all His work which God had created and performed. (Bereishit 2:3)

 

And Moshe saw all the work, and, behold, they had done it as the Lord commanded, even so had they done it: and Moshe blessed them. (Shemot 39:43)

   

• Creation and the Mishkan
  • Both are called work – "melakha."
  • Both end with the sanctity of Shabbat (Bereishit 2:1-3, Shemot 31:12-17).

 

The parallel in the order and in the details of the creation and the Mishkan are spelled out in the following midrash:

 

R. Yaakov bar Asi said: Why does he say: "Lord, I love the habitation of Your house, and the place where Your glory dwells" (Tehillim 26:8)? Because it corresponds to the creation of the world. How so?

On the first day it says: "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" (Bereishit 1:1). And regarding the Mishkan, it says: "And you shall make curtains" (Shemot 26:7), and it says: "Who stretches out the heavens like a curtain" (Tehillim 104:2).

On the second day it says: "Let there be a firmament" (Bereishit 1:6), and it mentions division, as it says: "And let it divide water from water" (ibid.) And regarding the Mishkan it says: "And the veil be for you as a division between the holy place and the most holy" (Shemot 26:33).

On the third day it mentions water, as it says: "Let the waters be gathered" (Bereishit 1:9). And in Shemot it says: "You shall also make a laver of brass, and its pedestal also of brass… and you shall put water in it" (Shemot 30:18).

On the fourth day, He created the lights, as it says: "Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven" (Bereishit 1:14). And regarding the Mishkan it says: "And you shall make a candlestick of gold" (Shemot 25:31).

On the fifth day He created the birds, as it says: "Let the waters swarm abundantly with moving creatures that have life, and let birds fly above the earth" (Bereishit 1:20). And regarding the Mishkan: "And the keruvim shall stretch out their wings on high" (Shemot 25:20).

On the sixth day, man was created, as it says: "So God created man in His own image" (Bereishit 1:27). And regarding the Mishkan it mentions a man who is the High Priest who is anointed to serve and attend before Him.

On the seventh day: "Thus the heavens and the earth were finished" (Bereishit 2:1). And regarding the Mishkan it says: "Thus was all the work of the Mishkan of the Tent of Meeting finished" (Shemot 39:32).

Regarding the creation of the world it says: "And God blessed" (Bereishit 2:3), and regarding the Mishkan it says: "And Moshe blessed them" (Shemot 39:43).

Regarding the creation of the world it says: "And God ended" (Bereishit 1:2), and regarding the Mishkan it says: "And it came to pass on the day that Moshe had finished" (Bamidbar 7:1).

Regarding the creation of the world it says: "And He sanctified it" (Bereishit 2:3), and regarding the Mishkan it says: "And he anointed it and sanctified it" (Bamidbar 7:1).

And why does the Mishkan correspond to the heavens and the earth? Just as the heavens and the earth testify to Israel, as it is written: "I call heaven and earth to witness this day against you" (Devarim 30:19), so too the Mishkan is testimony for Israel, as it says: "These are the accounts of the Mishkan, the Mishkan of the Testimony" (Shemot 38:21). Therefore, it says: "Lord, I love the habitation of Your house, and the place where Your glory dwells." (Midrash Tanchuma, Shemot 38:21)

 

THE READINGS OF THE MEN OF THE MA’AMAD AND THE DAILY PSALM

 

            There are two elements in the Temple service that emphasize the deep connection between the creation and the Temple: the readings of the men of the ma'amad and the recitation of the daily psalm in the Mikdash.

 

            Regarding the ma’amadot, the mishna states:

 

On Sunday [they read], "In the beginning," and, "Let there be a firmament"; on Monday, "Let there be a firmament," and, "Let the waters be gathered together"; on Tuesday, "Let the waters be gathered together," and "Let there be lights"; on Wednesday, "Let there be lights," and, "Let the waters swarm"; on Thursday, "Let the waters swarm," and, "Let the earth bring forth"; on Friday, "Let the earth bring forth," and, "And the heavens [and the earth] were finished." (Ta'anit 4:3)

 

            Regarding the recitation of the daily psalm, the gemara states:

 

R. Yehuda said in the name of R. Akiva: On the first day [of the week], what [psalm] did they [the Levites] say? [The one commencing,] "The earth is the Lord's and the fullness thereof," because He took possession and gave possession and was [sole] ruler in His universe. On the second day, what did they say? [The one commencing,] "Great is the Lord and highly to be praised," because he divided His works and reigned over them like a king. On the third day they said, "God stands in the congregation of God," because He revealed the earth in His wisdom and established the world for His community. On the fourth day they said, "O Lord, God, to whom vengeance belongs," because He created the sun and the moon and will one day punish those who serve them. On the fifth day they said, "Sing aloud to the God of our strength," because He created fishes and birds to praise His name. On the sixth day they said, "The Lord reigns, He is clothed in majesty," because He completed His work and reigned over His creatures. On the seventh day they said, "A psalm a song for the Sabbath day," for the day which will be all Sabbath. (Rosh Ha-Shana 31b)

 

            Like the Netziv, the gemara understands that the significance of the fact that God showed the Mishkan to Moshe at Sinai is that the Mishkan corresponds to the structure of the world.

 

“WHICH WAS SHOWN YOU IN THE MOUNTAIN” – LATER APPEARANCES OF THIS EXPRESSION

 

The next appearance of this expression is after the description of the menora, the table, and the other inner vessels (the ark, the cover of the ark, and the keruvim) in Shemot 25:40.

 

Rashi explains (Shemot 25:40, s.v. u-re'eh ve-aseh: "See here, in the mountain, the pattern which I show you. This teaches you that Moshe was puzzled about the workmanship of the menora until the Holy One, blessed be He, showed him the pattern of it in a menora of fire."

 

The Maharal, in his commentary Gur Aryeh (ad loc.), notes the apparent contradiction between Rashi's understanding that Moshe had difficulty with the fashioning of the menora and the fact that the Torah says here, "And look that you make them after the pattern, which was shown you in the mountain," which refers not only to the menora, but also to the table and the ark. The Maharal explains that according to Rashi, all of the vessels were shown to Moshe.

 

Accordingly, it may be suggested that the Torah mentions the fact that Moshe fashioned all the inner utensils because God showed him their pattern on the mountain.

 

The third instance of this expression is in Shemot 26:30, at the end of the description of the Mishkan and its boards. The location of this expression implies that God showed Moshe not only the complete Mishkan and its vessels, but also the order in which it was to be set up.

 

Amos Chakham in his Da'at Mikra commentary notes an interesting difference between the three instances of this expression. The first time it says: "According to all that I will show you (mar'eh)" (Shemot 25:9), that is, that I am about to show you. The second time, the expression appears in the middle of the discussion of the Mishkan and its vessels: "And look that you may make them after the pattern, which you are being shown (mor'eh) in the mountain" (Shemot 25:40) – a participle bearing the present tense. And the third time, at the end of the story, it says, "And you shall rear up the Mishkan according to its fashion which was shown to you (hor'eita) in the mountain," in past tense. Based on these verses, Chakham suggests that Scripture may be alluding that Moshe saw at Mount Sinai the heavenly Mikdash with all its details, and he was commanded to build the earthly Mikdash according to that pattern.[2]

 

What is the practical significance of the fact that the Torah relates to the Mishkan as a copy of what God showed Moshe on the mountain? Why does it mention this in very specific contexts: at the beginning of the entire command relating to the Mishkan, after the account of the candlestick, and after the description of the boards and the Mishkan, and after the whole-burnt-offering altar?

 

It is possible that because the menora and the whole-burnt-offering altar have a very detailed structure, they therefore required a detailed illustration. But it may also be that the Torah is alluding to an internal division of the Mishkan.

 

Following the general statement regarding the pattern of the Mishkan and the pattern of all its vessels, the first mention of the fact that the Mishkan was shown to Moshe on the mountain is after the description of the menora. It is possible that this relates to the vessels of the Mishkan as a whole – the ark, the kaporet, the keruvim, the table and the menora.[3]

 

The second mention appears after the description of the structure of the boards and the curtains, and it relates to the structure in which the aforementioned vessels are found.

 

The third mention appears after the description of the whole-burnt-offering altar, and it relates to the altar in the courtyard.

 

In light of this, the basic division in the structure of the Mishkan is between the structure itself, in which the inner vessels are found (the ark, the kaporet, the keruvim, the table and the menora), on the one hand, and the courtyard and its main vessel, the whole-burnt-offering altar, on the other.

 

THE INCENSE ALTAR

 

To conclude this discussion, it should be noted that one question remains - namely, the nature of those parts of the Mishkan that God did not show Moshe on the mountain. What is the meaning of the absence of these vessels from the overall list of the Mishkan? Assuming that God did not show Moshe the incense altar on the mountain, what can this mean? In order to understand this matter, we must first consider the spiritual meaning of the incense altar.[4]

 

            God's command to Moshe regarding the incense altar appears after the Shekhina rests in the Mishkan following the offering of the daily sacrifice. The location of the command may teach that in general there is no direct connection between the incense altar and the resting of the Shekhina. The Shekhina can rest in the Mishkan even when there is no incense altar.

 

            What, then, is the role of the incense altar? It may be argued that the primary role of the altar is to create a barrier between man and the revelation of the Shekhina, and thus enable man's very entry into the sanctified place. This also follows from the location of the altar:

 

And you shall put it before the veil that is by the ark of the Testimony, before the covering that is over the Testimony, where I will meet with you. (Shemot 30:6)

 

            The main proof in support of this understanding is from the manner in which the plague was stopped in Parashat Korach, when the incense was offered by Aharon the priest:

 

And Aharon took as Moshe commanded and ran into the midst of the congregation; and, behold, the plague had begun among the people. And he put on incense, and made atonement for the people. And he stood between the dead and the living, and the plague was stayed. (Bamidbar 16:12-13)

 

            Based on this, it is understandable that the first time that the High Priest entered to the Holy of Holies on Yom Kippur was in order to bring in the incense, and the last time he entered was in order to remove it.

 

            If indeed the role of the altar was to create a barrier between man and the revelation of the Shekhina, it is clear why God did not show the pattern of the altar to Moshe on the mountain.

 

THE COURTYARD AND THE GATE OF THE COURTYARD

 

            According to the Torah's account, the last mention of anything that God showed to Moshe on the mountain is the outer altar. After this, the Torah describes the courtyard of the Mishkan and the gate of the courtyard (Shemot 27:9:19), and this is followed by the priestly garments that are described in Shemot 28.

 

            The materials used in building the courtyard are the simplest. The assumption is that they are more representative of the people of Israel and less representative of the resting of the Shekhina. At the revelation at Mount Sinai, the people of Israel were found at the foot of the mountain and did not ascend the mountain. The Mishkan is a continuation of the revelation at Mount Sinai, and since the people of Israel did not ascend the mountain itself, R. Meir Shpiegelman proposes,[5] there is no mention of the courtyard or the gate of the courtyard. Since the people of Israel were not partners in the giving of the Torah, the courtyard was also not part of what was shown on the mountain.

 

            According to this approach, it would not have been possible to show Moshe the courtyard and the screen of the gate of the courtyard because the people of Israel were not permitted to ascend the mountain.

 

            Perhaps the matter depends on the question of whether the laver and its pedestal are vessels of service, like all the other vessels, or whether they are preparatory vessels. If these vessels were used to prepare for the mitzva, and not for a mitzva themselves, perhaps this is the reason that the command relating them does not appear in the main command regarding the structure of the Mishkan in Parashat Teruma, but rather in Parashat Ki-Tisa.

 

            According to this explanation, we can also understand why the priestly garments were not shown to Moshe on the mountain. Since the priests were also not permitted to ascend the mountain, the priestly garments that were used in the Mishkan were not shown on the mountain. (R. Shpiegelman[6] suggests two additional explanations of the fact that the priestly garments were not included among those things that God showed Moshe on the mountain.)

 

            It is interesting that despite the fact that the courtyard itself was not shown to Moshe on the mountain, the whole-burnt-offering altar was indeed shown there to Moshe. This is because the altar itself is also connected to the revelation of the Shekhina. This point is clearly evident in the dedication of the Mishkan described in the framework of the eighth day, following the seven days of milu'im:

 

And Moshe and Aharon went into the Tent of Meeting and came out and blessed the people; and the glory of the Lord appeared to all the people. And there came a fire out from before the Lord, and consumed upon the altar the burnt offering and the fat, which, when all the people saw, they shouted, and fell on their faces. (Vayikra 9:23-24)

 

            The glory of God appeared to all the people, and it was revealed in the issuing forth of fire from before God and in the consumption of the sacrifices on the altar.

 

            The Mishkan is the house of God, and therefore God gives the most precise instructions as to its construction. The priests serve in the Mishkan, but they are not a part of it. The priestly garments must also represent the priests, and therefore the guidelines are general, rather than precise (and clearly the garments must be made in sizes that fit each individual priest).

 

            Furthermore, the Mishkan and its vessels are a direct continuation of the revelation at Mount Sinai, the Written Law, and therefore God showed Moshe their precise patterns on Mount Sinai, whereas the priestly garments are the Oral Law. Moshe only received the framework, the precise interpretation of which was given to his judgment. It is for this reason that the Torah emphasizes that the garments were made "as God commanded Moshe" regarding the basics, while the execution in practice depended on the interpretations of Moshe and Betzalel.

 

In light of what we have said, it seems that the verses that note what God showed Moshe on the mountain are meant to help us understand the meaning of the structure of the Mishkan. In light of this understanding, it is possible to speak about the following division: the vessels, the structure, and the outer altar.

 

It is possible to understand that the vessels and the structure were two components of the same structure, but we relate independently to the framework, on the one hand, and its contents, on the other.[7] The outer altar, however, constitutes a separate section. This understanding supports seeing the Mishkan as comprised of two parts:

 

1) The inner structure and its vessels.

2) The outer altar.

 

            In the next shiur, we shall bring additional proofs to this basic division.

 

(Translated by David Strauss)