SEDRAH SELECTIONS PARSHAS VA'YAKHEIL 5771 BS"D

Attitudes play a colossal role in people's behaviour. One who understands that his income comes from Hashem and not from his own skills or cunning finds it much easier to refrain from working on Shabbos. One who mistakenly thinks that "Kochi v'otzem yodi ossoh li es hachayil ha'zeh" (Dvorim 8:16) finds it very hard to refrain from working on Shabbos, worrying that he will suffer great losses.

Our verse tells us that our work/income (as in "asher lo sholach yodo bimleches chaveiro") "is done for us" by Hashem, "tei'o'seh."

We thus have a new insight into why the building of the Mishkan is juxtaposed to the verses of Shabbos. It is much easier to donate when one realizes that the income comes from Hashem. (Rabbi Shlomo Gantzfried in Apirion)

Ch. 35, v. 2: "Sheishes yomim tei'o'seh m'lochoh uva'yom hashvii yi'h'yeh lochem kodesh Shabbas Shabbosone" - Six days work will be done and on the seventh day there will be for you holy Shabbos Shabbosone - "Shabbos Shabbosone" is found here, in last week's parsha (31:15), and in parshas Emor (23:3). In the Ten Commandments both in parshas Yisro (20:9) and Vo'es'chanan (5:13) the word Shabbosone is omitted. To explain this the gemara Brochos 35b is cited. "When the bnei Yisroel do the will of Hashem their work is done through others." For these people even the weekdays have a Shabbos tone. Their Shabbos is elevated to a sort of Shabbos a la mode, "Shabbos Shabbosone." In all three places that "Shabbos Shabbosone" is mentioned the verse also says that work "will be done," either "tei'o'seh" or "yei'o'seh," indicating that the verses are addressing "osim r'tzono shel Mokome" people.

For others, since they are considered as "doing the work themselves" their Shabbos experience is only one of Shabbos and not "Shabbos Shabbosone." (Otzros Chaim)

Ch. 35, v. 2: "Sheishes yomim tei'o'seh m'lochoh uva'yom hashvii yi'h'yeh lochem kodesh Shabbas Shabbosone kol ho'o'seh vo m'lochoh yumos" - Six days work will be done and on the seventh day there will be for you holy Shabbos Shabbosone whoever does work on it will be put to death - If a person knowingly desecrates the holy Shabbos but is not warned by witnesses or does it with no two witnesses present, he is not put to death by the court. Instead Hashem administers death through "ko'reis." Note the two extremes of our verse. One who keeps the Shabbos properly can merit to have his work done, "tei'o'seh," through Hashem's intermediaries, while one who ch"v desecrates Shabbos and thinks he can get away with it as above, is punished through an intermediary, Hashem's varied forms of bringing about his untimely death. (n.l.)

Ch. 35, v. 2: "Sheishes yomim tei'o'seh m'lochoh uva'yom hashvii yi'h'yeh lochem kodesh Shabbas Shabbosone kol ho'o'seh vo m'lochoh yumos" - Six days work will be done and on the seventh day there will be for you holy Shabbos Shabbosone whoever does work on it will be put to death - Again the question is raised, "Why does our verse express the work being done during the six weekdays in the "nifal" form?" Yalkut Shimoni on parshas Ki Siso on the words "Lo saa'seh m'lochoh" comments: From these words we only know that actual work is prohibited. How do we know that "amiroh," saying to another to do the work, is also prohibited? We know this from the additional words "Es Shabsosai tishmoru" (31:13). HRH"G R' Shachne says that the theme of Shabbos is that Hashem "rested" from His creative work on Shabbos. His work was done through speech. Every item created was through a "maamar." We thus have a prohibition for "amiroh l'nochri," to not have work done through our speaking, as well. This is indicated by the word "Shabsosai," My Shabbosos, which means a cessation from creation through speaking.

Our verse therefore expresses itself in the "nifal" form, "tei'o'seh," to teach that even work done through our causing it, i.e. telling a nochri to do it, is also prohibited. One mioght then mistakenly believe that this also carries the death penalty, this is why our verse ends with, "kol ho'o'seh vo m'lochoh yumos," to teach us that "yumos" only applies for one who does the actual work. (Rabbi Moshe Feinstein in Dorash Moshe)

Ch. 35, v. 5: "K'chu mei'itchem trumoh laShem kol n'div libo y'vi'ehoh eis trumas Hashem" - Take from among you a tithe for Hashem everyone magnanimous of his heart shall bring it a tithe of Hashem - Three questions are raised:

1)Why is basically the same thing said twice?

2)Why in the first phrase do we have the command to take and in the second phrase to bring?

3)Why in the first phrase is it expressed as a tithe FOR Hashem and in the second phrase as a tithe OF Hashem?

The verse is addressing the contributions of two types of people, those who consider the items they own as totally theirs and those who realize that basically, they are safe-keepers of Hashem's possessions that are in their hands. Regarding the first group there is a command to take, as the owners believe that the objects are totally theirs, hence they give with the attitude that their donations are theirs that they are giving TO Hashem. The second group of people doesn't require an effort to extract and to take from them. They consider their belongings as Hashem's and all that is required is bringing. Likewise that which they give is considered Hashem's already, hence "trumas Hashem." (Kli Yokor)

Ch. 35, v. 26: "V'chol hanoshim asher noso libon osonoh b'chochmoh tovu es ho'izim" - And all women whose hearts elevated them with wisdom wove the goats - The gemara Shabbos 74b says that the weaving of the goat hair into cloth panels was done in a wondrous manner. The hairs were woven while still attached to the goats. The gemara goes on to ask that since we derive the rules of prohibited actions on Shabbos from the activities of creating the Mishkon, if one were to weave in this most unusual manner would he be culpable for Shabbos desecration? The gemara concludes that he is not even though this was done for the Mishkon, as there was extra abnormal wisdom in weaving in this manner.

We can explain the gemara's conclusion based on the words of the M.R. 48:3. in 36:1 it says, "Chochmoh usvunoh bo'heimoh." We can read this as "b'heimoh," an animal. Even if one attempted to weave the goat hairs while attached, surely the twitching and movements of the goats preclude the possibility of doing so. Hashem put wisdom and crafting skills not only into the people, but also into the animals. Thus we cannot derive from this that this manner of weaving is a "m'lochoh" on Shabbos. (Rabbi Shmuel Aharon Pardes in Kovetz Hapardes 18:10:58)

Ch. 37, v. 29: "Va'yaas es shemen hamish'choh kodesh v'es k'to'res hasamim tohor" - And he made the oil for anointing holy and the incense of spices pure - Why by the anointing oil is the word "kodesh" used and by the incense the word "tohor?" Paanei'ach Rozo answers that since the anointing oil is used to sanctify vessels and vestments it is called "kodesh." The incense does not sanctify another object. Rather, it is only an offering, hence "tohor."

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See also Oroh V'Simchoh - Meshech Chochmoh on the Weekly Parsha, Chasidic Insights and Chamisha Mi Yodei'a