ויקחו לי תרומה, “they shall take for Me a contribution;” some commentators believe that this paragraph was revealed to Moses during the forty days that he had been on the Mountain immediately following the revelation, and that already at that time, before the sin of the golden calf, he had been instructed to build the Tabernacle, in which the Holy Ark was to be placed that would contain the Tablets.תקחו

את תרומתי, “you are to take (accept) My contribution.” Rashi explains that this contribution consisted of 13 different types of materials. They are the following: gold, silver, copper; blue, purple and crimson yarns; fine linen, goat’s hair, ram skins, skins of techashim, acacia wood; oil for incense and oil for lighting; and the princes were to supply the gemstones for the High Priest’s garments.

ועזים, “and goats’ hair,” according to Rashi. He bases himself on Onkelos who translates: ומעזי, “something derived from goats;” anyone translating the word ועזים, as “and goats,” is in error therefore.

ועצי שטים, “and (boards of) acacia trees.” There were forests in the desert in which these trees grew. This is why the Israelites were described as dwelling at Shittim, (Numbers 25,1) The wood of these trees is light in weight and pleasant to look at. The 48 boards of the Tabernacle, as well as the pillars at the entrance and between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies were constructed of that wood and transported on the wagons donated by the princes as per Numbers 3,3634 and 4,3132. So were the bolts that were attached to link the boards to one another. They were all transported on these four wagons which were pulled by eight oxen under the supervision of the Levites from the family of Merari. (Numbers 7,8) Seeing that the boards were ten cubits (six meters) long each and one and a half cubits thick, it is extremely likely that the wood from which they were cut was light in weight.

שמן למאור, “oil for lighting;” since it is not customary for a king to enter his palace until the palace is complete and its furnishings are in place, as well as the illumination having been lit, this is mentioned already here. The same oil was also used for anointing all the sacred vessels.

בשמים, ‘fragrant spices;” these were mixed with the oil for anointing; Kings are in the habit of providing their palaces with aromatic fragrances before they take up residence in them.

ולקטורת הסמים, “and for the aromatic incense;” this verse has been inverted. We must understand it as if the Torah had written: והסמים לקטורת, “and the spices for the aromatic incense.” It does not mean: “spices needed for the aromatic incense, seeing that the aromatic incense consisted only of these aromatic spices.” Verses 30,34-35 in Exodus make this quite clear.

אבני שוהם, “gemstones called shoham.” These two were affixed to the apronlike garment of the High Priest known as Ephod,” as well as the gemstones to be inserted in the High Priest’s breastplate, choshen, (12 in number).

ועשו לי מקדש, “they will construct a Holy Temple for Me.” A building designated for meetings at appointed times. Compare: בית מועד. (Rash’bam) Compare also Numbers 11,18: התקדשו למחר, “be prepared for tomorrow.” We also have an announcement by G-d in Exodus 29,43: ונועדתי לבני ישראל, “I will keep my appointment with the Children of Israel.”

וכן תעשו, “and this is how you shall do it.” The letter ו at the beginning of the word וכן, is not necessary in this context; some commentators understand it as referring to what follows about the construction of the individual items of furniture for the Temple. The idea of the connective letter ו then would be: ”just as I instructed you first to build the structure, I will now instruct you to construct the furnishings to be housed in that structure.”

ועשו ארון, “they shall construct an ark;” the introductory letter ו in the word ועשו tells us that, of course, the building housing this ark had by that time already been constructed. As long as the building had not been constructed there was no place where to put the ark. We find a similar problem in Deuteronomy 10,1, when Moses recalls that G-d had told him to carve out the tablets on which the Ten Commandments would be inscribed a second time, and he constructed the ark first as he said himself in verse 3 in that chapter where he said: “I made an ark and then I carved out the Tablets.” This was not in accordance in which G-d had instructed him to proceed in verse 9 of our chapter. He had even reminded him that He had shown him an illustration of how to proceed, in that verse. If the Torah nonetheless reports matters in the reverse order, it is because we must remember to put first things first, i.e. that the structure would have been meaningless if not for the furnishings which it was to provide a home for.[Our author does not apparently accept the view of the commentators who claim that Moses had forgotten the right order and that Betzalel had to remind him when he received instructions he did not consider logical. Ed.]

וצפית אותו זהב, “you are to cover it with gold.” The ark was actually designed to be constructed completely of pure gold, but it would have been too heavy to carry, especially since the Torah had commanded the sons of Kehat to carry it on their shoulders. Compare Numbers 7,9. We find that the altar was also hollow and filled with earth, presumably for the same consideration. (Exodus 27,8)

טהור, “pure;” not containing any foreign particles.

זר זהב סביב, “surrounded by crown like golden molding.” The purpose of this was to cover the wooden center part at the top completely. The wooden interior was to remain invisible.

ויצקת לו ארבע טבעות זהב, “you shall pour four golden rings for it.” According to the plain meaning these were small rings which were actually an integral part of the outer wall of the ark.

על ארבע פעמותיו, “on its four sides. There is another explanation which understands the word פעמון, as leg, in the sense of feet taking steps. Compare Song of Songs 7,2: מה יפו פעמיך בנעלים, “how lovely are your feet in sandals?, or Isaiah 26,6: רגלי עני פעמי דלים, “by the feet of the needy, the soles of the poor.” According to this view it would not be appropriate for the Holy Ark to stand directly on the floor. There would be also two large rings as housings for the staves by which the Ark would be carried on the shoulders of the Kehatites while the people were wandering. These were lowered with the small rings permanently attached to the walls of the ark, as G-d did not wish for the carriers of the Ark to come into direct contact with the Ark while inserting the staves through the rings. [Once inserted, the staves were never to be removed from the Ark. Ed.] (verse 15)

על צלעו האחת, ושתי טבעות על צלעו השנית, “on one of its sides and two rings on its opposite side.” In other words, seeing that there were four sides, on the four corners. The ark was positioned inside the Holy of Holies with its longer side facing north. so that the carriers would walk on its eastern and western side.

לא יסורו ממנו, “they shall not be removed from it.” In the Talmud tractate Yuma, folio 72, the question is raised that seeing the Torah had already written: “the staves for carrying the Ark are to be affixed to the Ark,” and it had instructed its craftsmen to insert the staves through these rings, its appears that the purpose was to insert these staves only when the need arose to carry the Ark. This could only be done if they were to be inserted from time to time when the occasion demanded this? The staves in the process of lifting the Ark or lowering it would slip out of the rings! How could the commandment never to remove them be possible to be observed? Answer: The staves were thicker at their respective ends so that they could only just fit through the rings, whereas in the middle they were thinner. [The reader who is interested in the mechanics of this is referred to the commentary by Or Hachayim on this verse, or on my translation of it on pages 775-776. Ed.] This is also how Rashi explains the problem in his commentary on Talmud Yoma 72a. An alternate explanation: both in this instance and again in Exodus 40,18, it was Moses who had to insert the staves through the rings. In the Book of Numbers 4,56 however, we read that Aaron and his sons were to position the ark inside the Tabernacle as well as to position its staves in the proper places. The commandment for the staves not to be moved only came into force at that time. Alternately, although Moses had placed the staves through the rings (without having been instructed to so), G-d wished for this to be done by Aaron and his sons who were priests. It was at that point that the Holy Ark attained the pinnacle of its holiness. The fact is that even during the Israelites march through the desert there were only a few days during which the people were on the march, whereas during more than 99% of the time the people and the Tabernacle remained stationary in a part of the Tabernacle that even the High Priest only entered one single day during the year. (four times during that day). During all this time, there was no need for the staves to be attached to the Ark This is why the Torah wrote with regard to the copper altar (in Exodus 27,7) בשאת אותו, “when it is being carried.” Since this altar was located in the Temple courtyard where people were constantly around, the staves if permanently attached would interfere with the people coming and going. Therefore, for the altar the staves were attached only during the time that they were travelling from one location to the next.

ונתת אל הארון וגו, “you are to deposit inside the Ark, etc;” this verse provides the justification for the words written earlier that the Ark be treated with the utmost reverence. This was because it contained the Tablets upon which the words of the covenant between G-d and the Jewish people had been written by G-d himself.

The word אל here has been chosen instead of the prefix letter ב, which means “in,” or “into.” This is not a unique construction as we have found it also in Exodus 15,25: וישלך אל המים, “he threw it into the water,” as well as in Numbers 19,6: אל תוך שרפת הפרה, “into the fire consuming the cow;” or Numbers 19,17: מים חיים אל כלי, “fresh water from a well into a vessel.”

ועשית כפרת, “you are to construct a lid;” the Torah did not give measurements for the thickness of this lid, seeing that only the surface of it would be visible. The height of the outer golden wall of the Ark would completely enclose its depth.

שנים כרובים, “two cherubs.” Compare Ezekiel28,14, את כרוב ממשח הסוכך, “like a cherub with outstretched wings;” they are a certain type of bird. Seeing that birds are both clean animals and move in a clean atmosphere most of the time; even though the Torah in the second of the Ten Commandments had expressly forbidden us to make anything that is like creatures on earth or in the sky, the reason why the making of the cherubs is exempt from this was that it was not made to be worshipped, but to remain hidden inside the most inaccessible part of the Temple. We have a parallel of this in Isaiah 6,12 where the prophet described having had a vision of the Lord seated on His throne surrounded by such creatures each having six wings. Even in the Torah we find exceptions to overriding commands, such as “anyone who performs forbidden work on the Sabbath being guilty of legal execution,” (Exodus 35,2) while the priests performed such work in the Temple every Sabbath when offering the daily communal sacrifices. Not only that, even individuals, when becoming fathers of a boy baby born on the Sabbath circumcised him on the following Sabbath. (Leviticus 18,16) The Torah strictly forbade marrying the wife of a brother, but made an exception if said brother had died without children, and encouraged a surviving brother to marry the widow who had been his brother’s wife in order to provide him with issue. Similar exceptions are in place for wearing wool garments with tzitzit, ritual fringes, including wool and linen. There is a positive commandment to this effect (Compare Deuteronomy 22,12)

מן הכפרת תעשו, “you shall make them integral parts of the Ark’s lid.” Incidentally, the cherubs constructed in Solomon’s Temple were not mounted on the Ark’s lid. (Kings I 6, 23-27)

פורשי כנפים, “spreading wings;” to make them look like birds; the reason for this was that birds are viewed as the cleanest creatures (compare what we wrote on verse 18),

למעלה, “upwards;” above their head; in a posture of modesty and humility. This is matched by the way Isaiah describes his vision of these seraphim covering their bodies with their wings including their faces, (Isaiah 6,2)

ופניהם איש אל אחיו, “and they are to face one another;” these details all prove that these cherubs were not intended to be deities to be worshipped, else they would have faced their onlookers so that these could prostrate themselves in front of them. How is this proof? Supposing there had been only one cherub on the lid of the Holy Ark, or if the face of one of them (if there were two) had been turned toward the people, one could have perhaps understood the symbolism as meaning that their purpose was to inspire awe of them in their onlookers. Seeing, however, that they faced each other, is clear proof that they had no interest in any onlooker. Furthermore, though their wings were pointing upwards, their faces were looking down at the lid, i.e. the space from which G-d’s words would emanate to Moses, and the area in which the Torah was kept. The most important proof that they were not meant to be worshipped by anyone, is the fact that they were in a place that was inaccessible to the people on pain of death. Their function therefore was merely to be servants of G-d rather than His competitors, just as the cherubs (seraphim) in Isaiah 6,2 were perceived as G-d’s servants standing in attendance before G-d’s throne.

ונתת את הכפרת על הארון מלמעלה, “you are to position the lid on top of the Ark.” This is followed by the instruction to place the Tablets inside the Ark after G-d would give these to Moses. How is this to be understood? As of the previous month of Ellul, when Moses had received the second set of Tablets they had rested in the ark which Moses had constructed prior to ascending the Mountain in order to receive them, as pointed out in Deuteronomy 10,3, when he said: “I made an Ark of shittim wood, and then I proceeded to carve out the two stone Tablets.” On the 25th day of Kislev following, when the construction of the Tabernacle and all its furnishings had been completed, he put the lid on the ark for the first time. This is what the commandment: “place the lid on the Ark,” (in our verse) refers to. The Tablets remained in the ark which Moses had constructed until the first day of Nissan when the Tabernacle together with all its furnishings was anointed. Concerning that Ark, the Torah said that Moses was to place the Tablets inside the Holy Ark. This was the Ark constructed by Betzalel. Of this Ark the Torah wrote: ואל הארון תתן את העדות, “and put the Testimony inside the Ark.”According to the plain meaning of the text (according to Ibn Ezra), Moses had already placed the Tablets inside, and after that he placed the lid on the Ark. Seeing that the lid had been mentioned already several times it states once more that once the lid had been put on the Ark the entire Tabernacle could be considered as having been completed.

ואל הארון תתן את העדות, “and into the Ark you are to place the Testimony.” At this point this was a commandment. Previously when the Torah wrote: ונתת אל הארון, “you will place into the Ark, etc,” we would do well to understand these words as a prediction, or explanation for the purpose of the lid. According to one opinion it would also be an explanation for why the Ark, i.e. with the staves attached to it, were never to be moved.

אשר אתן אליך, “which I am going to give you.” This was a reference to the second set of Tablets, seeing that G-d knew that the first set would never get there in one piece. Not only that, but these words were spoken to Moses on the fortieth day of his last stay on the Mountain. (The first set of Tablets had been smashed on the 17th day of Tammuz)

ודברתי אתך מעל הכפרת, “when I speak to you it will be from above the lid;” you may ask that we read in Leviticus that “G-d spoke to Moses from the Tent of Meeting,” not from above the lid of the Ark which was inside the Holy of Holies? We must understand the Torah as follows: whenever Moses was standing outside the Tabernacle, he perceived the voice of G-d as emanating from inside the Tabernacle. When he was being addressed by G-d while he was inside the Tabernacle G-d’s voice emanated from above the lid of the Ark. This is the meaning of (Numbers 7,89) “when Moses had entered the Tent of Meeting he heard the voice speaking to him from above the lid of the Ark.”

ואת כל אשר אצוה, “and all that I shall command;” in other words: all that G-d plans to command He will communicate to Moses from there.

ועשית שלחן, “you are to construct a table;” it is no more than elementary courtesy that the king’s servants and members of his household should eat at his table.

וצפית אותו זהב, “you are to cover its surface with gold.” The surface of the table was to be covered by a sheet of gold both on top and underneath it. This would still leave the wood of its legs visible. This is why the Torah added: ועשית זר זהב סביב, “you are to construct a golden molding around it.” This would cover all the exposed wooden parts of the table.

ועשית לו מסגרת טפח, “you are to construct for it a rim one handbreadth wide all around.”

ועשית זר זהב למסגרתו, “you are to make a golden rim as an overlay all the way around the rim.” The first ring the Torah speaks of here was made of wood, just as the table itself. Its golden rim would look like a hollow tube cut open lengthwise, so that the wooden rim would fit inside that golden rim, and its outside would be completely invisible. After completing the instructions no onlooker would be able to see any of the table’s wooden parts. We read in Exodus37,11, that Betzalel made both the wooden rim and a golden molding all around it.

על ארבע הפאות אשר לארבע רגליו, “(to be fastened) to the four corners of its legs.” Seeing that the dimensions of the table were about 1,2 meters in length and 60 centimeters in width there was enough room for the carriers of the table to position themselves, two in front next to one another and two behind them near the rear end do carry it comfortably, just as they did with the Holy Ark, [although the Ark fully loaded weighed over 78000 lbs, which accounts for the fact that the Rabbis say that the Ark had to carry its bearers. This calculation is according to Rabbi Eliyahu ki tov, to the best of this Editor’s memory. Ed.]

לעומת המסגרת תהיינה, “they (the rings) were attached to the rim at the of the table as holders for the staves, i.e. on the outer edges of the table.

ועשית קערותיו, “you are to make its bowls, etc.;” in which to knead the dough for the showbreads which would be displayed on it (the table).

כפותיו, “its ladles,” within which to place the frankincense, between the two rows of the showbreads.

וקשותיו, “and its jars;” in which the water for preparing the dough for the showbreads would be kept. קשוה is a vessel as we know from the Talmud in Sanhedrin folio 81 where the stealing of it is described as so serious a sin that if the thief is caught and killed on the spot by someone incensed at this sin, this is considered as an acceptable punishment, and the person administering it is not considered as having committed murder.

ומנקיותיו, “and its cleansing tools, bowlshaped used to clean out the oven as well as the surface of the table.”According to Rashi these were multiple shelflike structures on each of which one of the showbreads would be placed in a manner that allowed fresh air to circulate around each and thus prevent it from becoming moldy, as they were on display from one Sabbath to the next. They would also protect these thin breads from break into crumbs due to their weight if each had rested on the one beneath it. All this is discussed in the Talmud in minute detail. (Menachot, folio 94) Our author quotes all these details. As the Torah did not, and alas in our time we do not possess a Temple, I have decided to omit translating this and refer the interested reader to the Talmud.

אשר יוסך בהן, “wherewith to pour them (the libations).”

לחם פנים, breads to be on display, (showbread(s).) They were called thus as the table was always displaying them. In the Talmud quoted, folio 96, the word פנים is understood as partitions. Another explanation, these are called לחם פנים because they are always before me.

ועשית מנורת זהב טהור, “you are to construct a candlestick of pure gold;” the function of this candlestick was to provide light for what was on the table. This is why the Torah reports in Exodus 40,24 that Moses positioned the menorah opposite the table.

מקשה תיעשה, “it shall be made of hammered work.” According to Rashi the reason why the word תיעשה here is spelled with an extra letter י in the middle, was in response to difficulties Moses had in understanding how Betzalel would be able to comply with the detailed instructions concerning the candlestick. What puzzled him most of all was that as opposed to all the other furnishings he had not been given a measurement for the height of this candlestick.

גביעיה, its cups; all these adornments were to be an integral part of the center shaft, so that if any oil spilled from the top it could be absorbed by the decorations each of which was shaped in, the shape of a receptacle. If the highest one of these became full, the excess could be absorbed by the next lower one, etc.

ועשית את נרותיה, “and you are to make its lamps etc.;” the reason why the word: ועשית is repeated here is that these lamps were separate vessels, not part of the shaft and its six arms. Proof of this is provided by the wording: כפתוריהם וקנותם ממנה היו, “its knobs and shaft (only) were all of the same chunk (of gold).” In addition, the Torah uses a separate verse in 37,23 to tell us that Betzalel made these seven lamps. This proves that they were separate vessels.

נרותיה שבעה, “its lamps seven.” This was to symbolise the seven days of the week, as well as the seven zodiac constellations that provide illumination in the universe; the Sun, Venus, Mercury, Moon, Saturn, Jupiter, and Mars.

והעלה, “he shall light;” [the priest, as no one else was allowed in there. Ed.] את נרותיה, “its lamps.” Seven lamps on the seven arms of the candlestick. והאיר, “it will illuminate,” על ער פניה, “on its front side;” it will give light so that all its shafts/arms will be visible. [The wicks were so arranged that they were directed at the center shaft. Ed.] והאיר, “it will illuminate,”

ככר זהב, “one talent of gold.“ (3000 holy shekels in weight, i.e. 6000 shekels, according to the weight of ordinary profane shekels.)

.וראה ועשה בתבניתם, “note well, and follow their patterns,” (as have been shown to you while on the Mountain.)