Rabbi David Etengoff
 
ה' יעזור וירחם על אחינו כל בני ישראל בארץ ישראל ובכל חלקי הארץ
 
Parshiot Vayakel and Pekudei are narrative Torah portions that exactingly describe the construction of the Mishkan and the creation of the bigdei Kohanim (garments of the Kohanim). The word, “va’ya’os— and he made,” is used 40 times throughout these passages, 39 of which are stated anonymously. The one exception is the Aron Luchot HaBrit (Ark of the Covenant): “Bezalel made the ark of acacia wood, two and a half cubits long, a cubit and a half wide, and a cubit and a half high.” (Sefer Shemot 37:1, this and all Bible and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach). 
 
Why was Bezalel’s name mentioned solely in regard to the Aron Luchot HaBrit when he was designated by Hashem to be the designer and architect of every aspect of the Mishkan? This is particularly of the moment, since the Torah informs us:

“See, I [Hashem] have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and I have imbued him with the spirit of God, with wisdom, with insight, with knowledge, and with [talent for] all manner of craftsmanship to do master weaving, to work with gold, with silver, and with copper, with the craft of stones for setting and with the craft of wood, to do every [manner of] work.” (Sefer Shemot 31:2-5)
 
In his Commentary on the Torah, Rashi (1040-1105) suggests, “Since he [Bezalel] devoted himself to the work more than the other wise men, it [the Aron Luchot HaBrit] was called by his name [that is, the work was attributed to him alone].” In his Commentary on the Torah, the Ibn Ezra (1089-1167) notes that although Bezalel joined others in creating all of the Miskan’s holy vessels, his name was associated, in particular, with the Aron Luchot HaBrit based upon its singular kedushah. While both Rashi and the Ibn Ezra help answer our question, I believe the most holistic response has been offered by Rabbi Meir Simcha of Dvinsk (1843-1926) in his Torah commentary entitled, “Meshech Chachma.”
 
Rav Meir Simcha begins his analysis by noting that “other people participated in the construction of the various kalim at the time of the first and second Beit HaMikdash and will do so in the future.” (Sefer Shemot 37:1, this and the following translations my own)  This, however, is not the case regarding the Aron Luchot HaBrit, whose purpose was to house the Luchot HaBrit, since “from the time it was hidden away [shortly before the destruction of the first Beit HaMikdash], no other one could be built, for another set of  HaLuchot could never be constructed.” As such, the Aron Luchot HaBrit is called:

...the Aron Bezalel, which will exist throughout all the generations — and there will never be another. This is perhaps the reason for our verse’s specificity [when it states, “and Bezalel made,”] to teach us that throughout the generations another Aron HaBrit, and set of Cherubim, may never be produced — but, rather, only those that Bezalel fashioned.
 
According to Rav Meir Simcha, Bezalel’s name is associated with the Aron Luchot HaBrit because there can never be another one, since there will never be another set of Luchot. Consequently, the Aron Luchot HaBrit is forever known as Aron Bezalel, the one and only Aron Luchot HaBrit that was created by Bezalel.
 
Rav Meir Simcha continues his discussion by addressing why Hashem chose Bezalel to build the Aron Luchot HaBrit. His position is based upon his view of the order of historical events surrounding the sin of the Egel HaZahav and the Mishkan, which is hotly debated among the Torah commentators. In Rav Meir Simcha’s view, Hashem initially designated Bezalel as the architect of the Mishkan. Shortly following his appointment, however, klal Yisrael participated in the heinous incident of the Egel HaZahav. At that point, Bezalel was specifically charged with the construction of the Aron Luchot HaBrit:

The Holy One blessed be He was concerned following the sin of the Egel HaZahav that perhaps when someone would build the Aron HaBrit, they would have forbidden thoughts during its construction that would be infused with various kinds of idol worship. Therefore, Bezalel was chosen to build the Aron HaBrit, since his grandfather [Chur] was murdered because of his refusal to participate in the creation of the Egel HaZahav.
 
Rav Meir Simcha concludes his trenchant analysis with a clear explanation as to why Bezalel’s name was explicitly mentioned regarding the Aron Luchot HaBrit:
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Therefore, based upon his [Bezalel’s] training and his natural orientation toward hating anything and everything associated with those who follow after foolishness, forms and images of all manner [of idol worship], he never would have embraced any of these foreign thoughts. Therefore, the Torah writes, “And Bezalel made,’ since he, and he alone, constructed the Aron HaLuchot without any [questionable] help whatsoever.
 
According to Rav Meir Simcha, Bezalel emerges as a true hero of the spirit who was blessed by Hashem with the unique talents and abilities not only to design and build the Mishkan in general, but to also construct the Aron Luchot HaBrit in particular. With Hashem’s help, may we be zocheh to follow in his footsteps b’taharah v’kedushah. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 
ה' יעזור וירחם על אחינו כל בני ישראל בארץ ישראל ובכל חלקי הארץ
 
The Tanach contains a number of instances when Hashem or His malach repeats an individual’s name within the same pasuk. One such example is Hashem’s command to Avraham to refrain from offering Yitzhak as a korban olah (completely burnt offering): “And an angel of God called to him from heaven and said, ‘Avraham! Avraham!’ And he said, ‘Here I am.’” (Sefer Bereishit 22:11, this and all Tanach and Rashi translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)   In his Commentary on the Torah, Rashi (1040-1105) explains that this, and other such cases, reflect Hashem’s love for the person that is so called.
 
In contrast, our parasha contains a pasuk that is different from the usual manner of name repetition: “And it came to pass when Moshe descended from Mount Sinai, and the two tablets of the testimony were in Moshe’s hand when he descended from the mountain, and Moshe did not know that the skin of his face had become radiant while He had spoken with him.” (Sefer Shemot 34:29)  This is not your classic case wherein Hashem summons people by repeating their names, since our verse is part of a narrative and not a dialogue. In addition, this is the only pasuk in Chamisha Chumshei Torah that I have found wherein a name is cited three times. As such, it seems that Moshe’s name is not repeated because of Hashem’s love for him, but rather, for some other reason.
 
In his Commentary on the Torah, Rabbi Don Yitzhak Abarbanel (1437-1508) addresses the issue of the three-fold repetition of Moshe’s name and suggests two complementary explanations. Both focus on the spiritual-physical change that Moshe underwent as depicted in the conclusion of our verse, “and Moshe did not know that the skin of his face had become radiant while He had spoken with him.” The Abarbanel maintains that under normal conditions, Moshe’s transformation would have rendered him unrecognizable by the Jewish people. This, however, was not the case:

One ought not to think that as a result of the emanation of the brilliant Divine light the Jewish people were no longer able to recognize Moshe’s face. [Although] this lack of recognition takes place regarding an individual when their friend’s face changes because of a variety of reasons, this was most assuredly not the case regarding Moshe. Instead, the Jewish people perceived Moshe’s face as they always had done, and recognized that this was, indeed his face—even with the brilliant Divine light coming forth from him. (This, and the following translation, my own.)
 
In my estimation, it was crucial for our ancestors to continue to identify Moshe’s face, since this would eliminate the possibility of their proclaiming once again, “Come on! Make us gods that will go before us, because this man Moshe who brought us up from the land of Egypt, we don’t know what has become of him,” as they did earlier in our parasha. (Sefer Shemot 32:1).  As such, our forebears continued to view Moshe as the Moshe they had always known.
 
The Abarbanel’s second reason focuses as well on the Divine light that emanated from Moshe’s countenance, and informs us about the singular nature of his prophetic experiences and unique manner of receiving Hashem’s Word:
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And the second matter that is made known to us regarding Moshe, and the [mystical] activity of the Divine light emanating from his face, is that he neither sequestered nor removed himself from his four senses—unlike the actions of all the other prophets at the time of their prophetic experiences. We know this to be the case, since he, himself, after receiving the Word from Hashem, returned his own veil to his face. This demonstrates that he never ceased to be aware of his senses, and that [during his prophetic communications] he was totally awake in the same exact fashion as he had been prior to receiving his prophecy.
 
Moshe’s prophetic encounters are unique in the annals of Jewish history. As the Torah teaches us, “And there was no other prophet who arose in Israel like Moshe, whom Hashem knew face to face.” (Sefer Devarim 34:10, underlining my own)  While none of us are capable of achieving this exalted level, may we have the zechut to establish a truly meaningful relationship with Hakadosh Baruch Hu. V’chane yihi ratzon.
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my blog-website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you have family or friends you would like to have added, please do not hesitate to contact me via email mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: http://tinyurl.com/8hsdpyd
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.

 
Rabbi David Etengoff
 
ה' יעזור וירחם על אחינו כל בני ישראל בארץ ישראל ובכל חלקי הארץ
 
There are two well-known pasukim in Sefer Shemot that express the concept of Hashem’s dwelling amongst the Jewish people. The first appears in Parashat Terumah: “And they shall make Me a sanctuary (Mikdash) and I will dwell (v’shachanti) in their midst.” The second is found in our Torah portion: “I will dwell (v’shachanti) in the midst of the children of Israel, and I will be their God (v’hayiti lahem l’Elokim).” (25:8 and 29:45, these and all Tanach translations, The Judaica Press Complete Tanach)  Whereas the first pasuk presents the idea of Hashem’s dwelling with us following the construction of the Mishkan, the second adds the notion that He will be our God. Taken in tandem, the following formula emerges: Construction of the Mishkan eventuates in v’shachanti in our midst, which leads to v’hayiti lahem l’Elokim.
 
Although the terms, v’shachanti, and v’hayiti lahem l’Elokim initially appear to convey similar content, v’shachanti, their differentiated phrasing indicates they differ conceptually. This approach was followed by both the Sforno zatzal (Rabbi Ovadiah ben Ya’akov,1475-1550) and the Ha’emek Davar zatzal (Rabbi Naftali Tzvi Yehudah Berlin, 1816-1893) in their respective Torah commentaries on Sefer Shemot 29:45.
 
According to the Sforno, v’shachanti refers to Hashem’s ready desire to accept our tefilot and avodah (korbanot in the Beit HaMikdash), while v’hayiti lahem l’Elokim, refers to that which He will do--bikvodo u’vatzmo, without any go-between. This parallels how He took us out from Egypt: “Not through the intermediary efforts of an angel (malach), not through the exertions of a ministering angel (saraf) and not as a result of a messenger but, rather, solely by the Holy One blessed be He, in His honor and glory.” (Haggadah, translation my own)
 
Ha’emek Davar pursues a different line of thought and suggests that “v’shachanti in our midst” denotes the everlasting connection that obtains between the Almighty and the Jewish people, even if no Mishkan or Beit HaMikdash is present:

Even in the absence of the Mishkan, wherein Hashem’s glory, may He be blessed, was explicitly manifest, [Hashem] will continue to ever be in the midst of the Jewish people. This means that His Schechinah (Divine Presence) will never depart from the community of Israel…even though it will not appear manifestly evident to all. (Translation my own)
 
Moreover, he maintains that the second phrase, “v’hayiti lahem l’Elokim,” describes Hashem as continually attuned to and “watchful of our needs and will fulfill them.” 
 
It is important to note that both the Sforno and the Ha’emek Davar conceptualize v’shachanti and v’hayiti lahem l’Elokim as referring to Hashem’s commitment to an eternal personal relationship with the Jewish people. In my view, this is the counterpoint to our passionate song at the Yam Suf: “This is my God, and I will ever praise Him; the God of my father, and I will exalt Him.” (Sefer Shemot 15:2)  Just as we were God-intoxicated at the Yam Suf and could not refrain from bursting out in a song of everlasting love to Hashem, in Parshiot Terumah and Tetzaveh, it is His turn to proclaim His everlasting love for our people. As we find so movingly expressed in Sefer Hoshea:
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And I will betroth you to Me forever, and I will betroth you to Me with righteousness and with justice and with loving-kindness and with mercy. And I will betroth you to Me with faith, and you shall know the Lord. (2:1-2)
 
Shabbat Shalom
 
Past drashot may be found at my website: http://reparashathashavuah.org
 
The email list, b’chasdei Hashem, has expanded to hundreds of people. I am always happy to add more members to the list. If you would like to be added, please contact me via email: mailto:[email protected].
 
*** My audio shiurim on the topics of Tefilah and Tanach may be found at: Tefilah and Tanach
 
*** I have posted 164 of Rabbi Soloveitchik’s English language audio shiurim (MP3 format) spanning the years 1958-1984. Please click on the highlighted link.