“These are the accounts of the Mishkan, the Tabernacle of Testimony as it was counted ….” (Shemot, 38:21) “The accounts” (pekudei in Hebrew) is a term denoting prominence, or standing out, as in (Shmuel 1, 20:25), “and David’s place was empty [pakad],” meaning that his place was prominent so that no one else would sit upon it. By means of the Mishkan, it was prominently recognized that the Holy One, blessed be He, exists also in the physical world, which all the idolaters of the stars and constellations deny. This is the meaning of the verse, “These are the accounts of the Mishkan, the Tabernacle of Testimony,” meaning the prominence of the Mishkan was that it was a Mishkan of Testimony. Testimony is something that is made quite clear, meaning that by means of the Mishkan it was made clear to the eyes of all the nations that the Holy One, blessed be He, rules, and exists in this lowly world. Who made this prominence? The verse states explicitly, “which was counted by the mouth of Moshe,” meaning that Moshe Rabeynu brought this prominence from the heavens to the earth in this world.

“And he erected the courtyard around the Mishkan ….” (Shemot, 40:33) With the establishment of all the vessels of the Mishkan it is said, “as God commanded Moshe,” yet with the establishment of the courtyard this is not said. For the whole matter of “as God commanded Moshe,” was to say that the matter was as clear and explicit to Moshe at the time each vessel was established in its function as it was when God first spoke of it. This is as it is written (Torat Cohanim, Tsav, 1), “everywhere it is said, ‘tsav,’ ‘commanded,’ it means requiring alacrity when it was commanded and for all generations,” and for this reason it is said individually for each vessel, “as God commanded.” It is written (Bamidbar Rabba, 1:3), “before the Mishkan was erected the whole desert was suitable for speaking with God, and after the Mishkan was erected the desert was no longer suitable.” Therefore after the courtyard was raised, and the erection of the Mishkan was completed in its perfection, it was no longer possible to say here, “as God commanded,” for “as God commanded” is said when the word is as clear and prominent as at the time when it was originally commanded from the mouth of God. This could not be so with the erection of the courtyard, for now the desert was not suitable for reception of the Divine word (only within the Mishkan itself), as now the Divine word was not explicit (in the desert). Therefore in the courtyard it is not said, “as God commanded.”