IN HONOUR OF THE MARRIAGE OF OUR SON SHOLO-M NR"U ON 29 ADOR

SEDRAH SELECTIONS PARSHIOS VAYAKHEIL-PIKUDEI 5769 BS"D

PARSHAS VAYAKHEIL

Ch. 35, v. 5: "Y'vi'eho eis trumas Hashem" - He should bring it the separated item for Hashem - The Ramban explains that "he should bring HER/IT" and the words "trumas Hashem" refer to the same item. However, the Sforno says that "he should bring it" refers to the item that he donates voluntarily, and "eis trumas Hashem" refers to the obligatory half-shekel per capita.

Ch. 35, v. 11: "Es haMishkon" - In this verse and the following verses the components of the Mishkon to be created are mentioned. There is a glaring omission, the creation of the "kruvim" on the "kaporres." The Tzror Hamor answers that there were some "eirev rav" still alive, and by spelling out the creation of these figures the "eirev rav" would likely have thoughts of them being a sort of deity or a human form representation of a deity, so they were omitted overtly. The mention of the "kaporres," which had the "kruvim" formed out of one piece of gold sufficed.

Ch. 35, v. 16: "Es hakior v'es kano" - The washing bowl and its base - The were no rings and carrying staves for this vessel. It was moved from place to place on a wagon. (Chizkuni) The Ibn Ezra on parshas bmidbar suggests this as a possibility.

Ch. 35, v. 21: "Kol ish asher n'so'o libo v'chol asher nodvoh rucho oso" - Each man whose heart has lifted him and each whose spirit had moved him to donate - There are two attitudes when one gives willingly. One is that the person does not naturally want to give but his mind tells him that this is the proper thing to do. This is called "nodvoh rucho oso." The other is that the person's default is to readily give, with no resistance in his nature at all. This is the heart lifting him to give, "n'so'o libo." (Haksav V'hakaboloh)

Ch. 35, v. 22: "Va'yovo'u ho'anoshim al hanoshim - And the men came along with the women - Targum Yonoson ben Uziel, Rashi, and the Ibn Ezra translate these words as above. Rabbeinu Bachyei and the Ramban say that it means that the men came secondary to the women. It seems that Pirkei d'Rebbi Eliezer chapter #45 agrees with this latter group, and enumerates the benefits women received and will receive in the world-to-come for their alacrity.

The Holy Zohar has a totally different explanation of "al hanoshim." He writes that when the sin of the golden calf was perpetrated, and the angel of death came and claimed numerous lives, he stayed on in the encampment, but specifically among the women. When Moshe saw this he assembled all the men in an area away from the women. This is the intention of the first words of our parsha, "Vayakheil Moshe es kol adas BNEI Yisroel." Even when the women brought their donations the angel of death was still among them. Moshe therefore told the men to bring their donations without joining the women, to avoid being in the proximity of the angel of death. He told the men to allow the women to come first with their donations and walk at a distance from the women when bringing their donations, in essence walking behind them and not to see them face to face. With this explanation he says that it is well understood why the verse does not say, "Va'yovI'u," and they brought, but rather, "va'yovO'u," and they came, to accentuate that not only did they bring their offerings second, but also that they CAME second, not along with the women.

Ch. 35, v. 22: "Choch" - Arm band - This is Rashi's translation, and it seems that Targum Onkelos says the same, "sheirin," as we find in the mishnoh Shabbos, "V'chol baalei sheir yotzim b'sheir," a sort of band. The Ibn Ezra says that it is a piece of jewellery that is placed on the ear. Rabbeinu Myuchos says that it is a nose ring, basing this on a verse in Yeshayohu 37. The Rada"k says that it is a sort of pin that is used to hold together the edges of two pieces of material that meet below the throat. Rabbi Shimshon R'foel Hirsch bolsters this last opinion by citing verses in Shir Hashirim 2, Iyov 40, and Divrei Hayomim 2:33, which indicate that "choch" is something pointy, something that is thrust through another item, and something that joins and holds together.

PARSHAS PIKUDEI

Ch. 39, v. 1: "Kaasher tzivoh Hashem es Moshe" - As Hashem commanded Moshe - In a previous issue of Sedrah Selections as well as in Oroh V'simchoh (Meshech Chochmoh) four explanations were offered for this phrase appearing specifically by the creation of the priestly garments and not by the creation of the Mishkon building or the vessels to be used at the Mishkon. The N'tzi"v in Haameik Dovor offers that we find numerous nuances of difference in the commands to create the priestly garments and their creation, as found in our parsha. One might mistakenly believe that Betzal'eil took creative license and did things slightly different from how he was commanded. The verse therefore repeatedly says that he did exactly "kaasher tzivoh Hashem es Moshe."

I have some difficulty comprehending this. The phrase "kaasher tzivoh Hashem es Moshe" appears 18 times in our parsha, including places where there is absolutely no difference in wordage between the command and its execution. B'docheik, one might say that once it was necessary to state this a number of times specifically by the creation of the priestly garments, it became a sort of mantra and is stated by each item. Any help would be appreciated.

Ch. 39, v. 3: "Va'y'raku es pachei hazohov v'kitzeitz p'silim" - And they thinned the plates of gold and he sliced threads - The verse begins in the plural and then changes to the singular. The Sforno explains that the donours flattened the plates of gold, hence the plural. However, the skilled work of slicing the now flattened paper-thin plates was done by a special craftsman.

The N'tzi"v offers that the flattening was done by numerous craftsmen, but the slicing into threads was done by Betzaleil only. He says that we now understand why by the command in 28:6 to make the "eifode" we find "maa'sei chosheiv," special craftsman's work, but not here by the making of the "eifode," as it was already given the status of "maa'sei chosheiv" earlier, but we do have it in the next verse. This is because the verse tells us that the golden threads were intertwined with the others, and this in and of itself was another "maa'sei chosheiv."

Ch.40, v. 18,19: "Va'yokem Moshe es hamishkon va'yitein es odonov, Va'yifros es ho'ohel al hamishkon" - And Moshe set up the mishkon and he placed its foundation blocks, And he spread its covering on the mishkon - The Sforno says that the word "mishkon" mentioned in these two verses refers not to the Sanctuary as a whole, but rather, specifically to the bottom-most ceiling, called "mishkon" back in 26:1. Moshe first set in place the ceiling and then set the wall beams into their sockets, etc. How can one place a ceiling without walls first being in place? The Sforno answers that either people held them in place at a height sufficient to maneuver the wall beams into place, or that they placed the bottom-most covering in its position and let go, and miraculously it stayed in place. The Sforno goes on to say that the reason the bottom-most covering in called "mishkon," which is also the general name for the whole Sanctuary, is because this covering is in the main the most important component of the building, and it creates the resting place for the Holy Sh'chinoh, hence the name "mishkon." The verse goes on to say that then, and only then, were the beams placed into their foundation blocks, etc.

The next verse goes on to say that then the second covering, called "ohel," was spread over the lower covering, then the third (possibly fourth as well) was placed on top.

Based on these words of the Sforno, it is now well understood why the verses in parshas Trumoh deal with the coverings (26:1-14) ahead of the walls (26:15-30).

40:20: "Va'yikach va'yitein es ho'eidus el ho'orone va'yosem es habadim al ho'orone" - And he took and he placed the Testimony into the Ark and he placed the poles onto the Ark - Here we find that Moshe first placed the Holy Tablets into the Holy Ark before placing the carrying poles into their rings. In parshas Trumoh 24:14,15 we find the command to place the carrying poles into their rings, to leave them there, and to not remove them, ahead of the command to place the Holy Tablets into the Holy Ark. Why the change?

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