Shmot

All of life is a mystery and certainly the Jewish story remains in its base an inexplicable one.

In Sefer Bereishit, the struggle for leadership is between the half-brothers Yosef and Yehuda. Shemot starts with a new chapter in the national story, as Egypt goes from a king who was very close to Yosef to one who did not recall Yosef.

Anyone who has learned anything about using time efficiently and getting things done, knows that if you want to advance a certain matter, you must allocate a specific time for it. Important things can't be left for "in between," just by the by. This concept is found, fascinatingly, in the Torah portions of these weeks discussing the construction of the Tabernacle, the mishkan.

Why is the verse describing the commandments of God to Moses about the construction of the Tabernacle repeated so many times? What was Betzalel's argument with Moshe? And how did they actually build the temple in such detail when not everything was written in advance?

the sefer ends by discussing that the cloud stayed on top of the Mishkan until it was time for Bnei Yisrael to move. The movement of the cloud as a sign to travel is discussed at length, where it “should be” – in Sefer Bamidbar. So why does it conclude Sefer Shmot?

Most people view it as bordering on boring. Nevertheless, there is no commercial enterprise that can successfully exist without good and accurate accounting practices.

Our Parashah repeats the process of the building of the Mishkan a few times. What is the reason for this repetition?

We often refer to God as "He" - but God's presence on earth, the "Shechina" is a femine noun. "He" is "She."