“And the tabernacle you shall make of ten curtains.” It should have said “And you shall make a tabernacle” as it says And you shall make a table and You shall make a menorah of gold. Since the tabernacle [mishkan] is named for I will dwell [v’shakhanti] among them, it is not appropriate to use the language of “making” regarding His divine presence, for this attribute belongs solely to God, as it is said And I will set My tabernacle among you (Leviticus 26:11). Therefore, He did not want to mention the term “making” except in reference to the 10 curtains and not to His tabernacle. Thus, the interpretation is: And the tabernacle — that which I have already said I will dwell among them — will be accomplished by you making 10 curtains, etc. Now regarding the pattern of its construction, all commentators agree that it was built according to the pattern of the three worlds, to indicate that the world exists on the foundation of this structure. Therefore, it was made of 10 curtains corresponding to the worlds in their entirety, which were created with 10 utterances. And all of them were suspended until the sixth day of Sivan, contingent upon Israel accepting the 10 Commandments. Those of the creation of the world were called “utterances” because all speech [amirah] is gentle, and likewise all the works of creation were created in their desired form without coercion. But the Commandments, the Lord of heaven and earth spoke to us harshly, saying: “If you accept the Torah, good, and if not, there shall be your burial place.” And this is what is meant by The voice of the Lord is in power (Psalms 29:4), for He forced them powerfully to accept the Torah. Therefore, the length of each curtain was 28 cubits, corresponding to the numerical value of the word “koach” (power, כח = 28), as it is said He has declared to His people the power of His works (Psalms 111:6), because the tablets were the work of God, and He told them harsh things like sinews — these being the punishments, as Rashi explained — and this is [the meaning of] “power” [koach]. And the curtains were five opposite five, corresponding to the 10 Commandments, which were five commandments opposite five. The first five commandments concern the relationship between man and God, blessed be He, and the latter five commandments concern the relationship between man and his fellow. And the Ba’al HaTurim also explained that they were corresponding to the 10 Commandments, five opposite five, and the 50 clasps corresponding to the 50 gates of understanding.

And I am adding my own material, to say that through them a person can connect to the higher realms, because all [50 gates of understanding] were given to Moses except one, as it is said You have made him slightly less than divine (Psalms 8:6), implying that if he had been complete in all of them, he would not have been lacking compared to the divine [angels]. To allude to this it is said 50 loops shall you make etc. and you shall make 50 gold clasps, etc. and the Tabernacle shall be one, because through the number 50, the higher and lower realms become unified. For those five curtains that correspond to the first commandments contain an allusion to the higher beings who sit first in the kingdom of heaven, and those five curtains that correspond to the latter commandments are for the lower beings, and the number 50 unites them as mentioned. And you should understand and comprehend that the partition curtain that separated between the Holy and the Holy of Holies was placed under the clasps, as it is said And you shall hang the partition curtain beneath the clasps (Exodus 26:33). The reason is that the partition and the clasps point to the same concept, for the partition separated between the place designated for His blessed Presence, called the Holy of Holies, and the tent where the holy vessels were placed, which symbolize the successes of human beings. For the Menorah was 18 handbreadths tall, like the height of an average person, and the Table is the place from which they are nourished. And so that you should not say that there is no way that a person can cleave to the Lord his God, therefore these clasps came in that place to connect them, to teach that through understanding the 50 gates of wisdom, a person can cleave to his God. From here you can also learn that the five curtains that covered the Holy of Holies correspond to the first five commandments, for they are for the honor of the Omnipresent, blessed be He, and the five curtains that covered the Tent of Meeting correspond to the latter five commandments that relate only to people, and the combining of 50 clasps teaches that the number 50 unites them. And these matters are clear, ancient, and correct.

And behold, I have a place to explain “five facing five,” corresponding to what our Sages of blessed memory said in Tractate Berakhot 10a regarding the five instances of Bless the Lord, O my soul that David said, corresponding to the soul which is likened in five ways to the Holy One, blessed be He, and their connection and attachment through the 50 gates of understanding as mentioned. Look to the right and see that everything the Holy One, blessed be He, created has within it some intermediary that connects the two extremes. And all the commentators agreed that man, by virtue of having a divine portion from above connected to the physical body, is the intermediary that unites the upper and lower realms and makes peace between the heavenly and earthly hosts, so that there not be opposition between them. And just as man is an intermediary, so is man’s creation from the place where it says, Make for Me an altar of earth. For the Holy Temple is also the center of the world and the place that unites the upper and lower realms, for there the Holy One, blessed be He, made for Himself a dwelling in the lower realms, like the vision that the Lord showed Jacob in the ladder that was set on the earth with its top reaching the heavens, and the middle of its incline was aligned with the Temple. For the ladder connected earth to heaven through the Temple in the middle, as that designated place is a dwelling for both the upper and lower realms, it is the intermediary that unites them. And therefore we find in this sacred structure elements that unite the extremes, which is the thing we spoke about: the 50 clasps that connected the curtains, with five of them placed over the Holy of Holies, the portion of the upper realms, and five of them placed over the Holy, which contains a portion of the lower realms, and the clasps unite them. And this is what our Sages of blessed memory said in the Jerusalem Talmud, Megillah 1:12, “The clasps in the Tabernacle appeared like stars in the firmament,” for the stars are the intermediate world between the upper world and the lower world. And just as the stars are intermediaries and also have a part in uniting the upper and lower realms, so too the clasps in the Tabernacle came for this purpose. And it is written, And those who lead many to righteousness will be like the stars forever and ever (Daniel 12:3). And those who lead many to righteousness are the righteous who are the foundation of the world, who establish peace between the heavenly and earthly hosts, namely the many, for they are intermediaries like these stars. This excludes one who does not engage in Torah study, who has no portion of the upper realms at all and is not an intermediary; therefore, he is not included among those who lead many to righteousness, for the term those who lead to righteousness refers to one who nullifies the opposition between the two extremes.

And for this reason, another miracle was performed here that demonstrates this concept, and it is the central bar that extended from one end to the other, holding both ends and connecting them. And why specifically the central bar? Certainly so that we might learn from this that everything central and in the middle connects the extremes, like the Temple, the righteous person, and the stars as mentioned. And in the Midrash (Tanchuma Terumah 9) they said that Jacob brought the central bar with him to Egypt, etc. And perhaps he learned this from the vision of the ladder, as explained above. Additionally, the Temple stands in the center of the world and sends forth abundance to the entire world from one end to the other; therefore, this miracle with the central bar was performed in it.

“And you shall make the boards for the Tabernacle, etc.” The boards with the definite article [letter hei], refers to those cedar trees that Jacob planted for them in Egypt. As a sign for this matter, the boards for the Tabernacle [הקרשים למשכן] has the same numerical value as “Jacob our father planted cedars for them in Egypt” [יעקב אבינו נטע להם ארזים במצרים], as both of them equal 1,095. For Jacob said to the Holy One, Blessed be He, “How will You be appeased for the sin of the Golden Calf?” And the Holy One, Blessed be He, answered him, “With acacia wood.” And so it states in the Midrash that “acacia [shitim] wood” is to atone for the folly [shetut] of the act of the Golden Calf, and it was accepted as atonement before God. And so it concludes in Tanchuma (Terumah 10) and in the Tractate Yoma (72a), they explained the phrase standing acacia wood to mean that they stand forever. However, according to the simple meaning that Jacob prepared them for the service of the House of our God, we can say that this is why it says standing — to indicate that they should take from those acacia trees that are standing ready for this purpose, as this is the meaning of the term “standing” in many places, referring to something that is prepared and ready for that purpose. And there is an allusion in these cedars to what is said The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon (Psalms 92:13). And since the body of the righteous is compared to this cedar, therefore the Holy One, Blessed be He, caused His Presence to dwell within partitions of cedar wood, to teach by an a fortiori argument that He dwells also among the children of Israel who are compared to cedars by the water, as it is written, And I will dwell among them — it does not say “within it” but among them, indicating that the main purpose of the Divine Presence is for the sake of Israel. And the Ba’al HaTurim explained that the 48 boards correspond to the 48 prophets and the 48 watches of priesthood and Levites, and what is their connection to the boards if not because the righteous are compared to a cedar as mentioned.

Rabbi Yaakov, the author of the Ba’al HaTurim, further wrote that in this Torah portion we find the word “shittim” [acacia wood] mentioned 24 times, corresponding to the 24,000 who fell in Shittim [during the plague]. The reason for this is that wherever you find a fence against immorality, there you will find holiness. Since in Shittim they were unbridled in sexual immorality and did not remember the holiness represented by these 24 mentions of “shittim,” therefore 24,000 fell. In Parashat Balak, God willing, a precious explanation about the number 24,000 will be explained in the verse and I will happen upon [God] here, which should be sought in its place.

And you shall make a partition curtain of blue, etc. This partition curtain that separates between the Holy and the Holy of Holies differs from the screen that separates between the Tent of Meeting and the courtyard of the Tabernacle in three ways:

1. The partition curtain was a “work of a skillful workman” with cherubs, while the screen was a work of an embroiderer.
2. The partition curtain was hung on four pillars, while the screen was on five pillars.
3. The partition curtain was on silver sockets, while the screen was on copper sockets. This is because in the Holy of Holies, the priest was not permitted to enter except on the Day of Atonement, when Israel is compared to ministering angels called cherubs, as on that day the physical body is afflicted and it is as if it does not exist, leaving only the intellectual, thinking power which is called the work of a skillful workman. Therefore, this partition curtain was made as the work of a skillful workman with cherubim, so that whoever sees this partition would understand and realize that one has no permission to enter there except at a time when one resembles the cherubs — a work of a skillful workman [chashav, which can also mean thought]. Similarly, the angel is called clothed in linen (Ezekiel 9:3), just as the High Priest on the Day of Atonement was clothed in linen and white garments. Therefore, it was on silver sockets, because all silver is white, indicating the forgiveness of the Day of Atonement, when sins will be made as white as snow. At that time, the priest would serve wearing the four white garments mentioned in the portion of Acharei Mot. This explanation is reasonable to consider — that the appearance and features of the partition curtain indicate what it separates, for whoever sees it understands through its symbolic hints what it represents.

But the screen of the Tabernacle, separates between the place of the altar which atones for every sin and transgression committed through the five senses, with the source of sin being from the primordial serpent, and between the sanctuary, the holy place. Therefore, the screen was on five pillars, with sockets of copper, and of embroidered work, corresponding to the formation of man, as it is written I was embroidered in the depths of the earth (Psalms 139:15). Thus, there are three causes for sin: First, from the side of matter that is embroidered in the depths of the earth. Second, from the counsel of the serpent. Third, from the variation in the operation of the five senses. Therefore, the design of the screen that was opposite the altar was of embroidered work, on five pillars, with sockets of copper. And whoever looks at the design of the screen will understand and know that because of sin, permission is not granted to every person to look upon the holy place, as it is said Your iniquities have been separating [between you and your God] (Isaiah 59:2). And Abarbanel explained this matter differently, as an allusion, though it is distant from the plain meaning.