Beit Midrash

  • Torah Portion and Tanach
  • Vayakhel
קטגוריה משנית
To dedicate this lesson
undefined
One of the main questions that all of the commentators to this week's parsha raise is why the Torah again discusses the prohibitions of the Sabbath. The Torah has done so a number of times in the previous parshiyot of Shemot so one might question this seemingly unwarranted repetition. One of the ideas presented in their comments I feel to be especially relevant to our world. We do not find that at the time of creation the Torah sanctified any given place or location on the face of the earth. The entire idea of the uniqueness of the Land of Israel does not appear in the Torah until the time of our father Abraham. And there it appears as a promise of a homeland to Abraham's descendants without any mention of holiness or sanctification.

Holiness only appears regarding a place and location in the story of our father Jacob and his heavenly dream at Beit El. However, already in the first section of the Bible, in the story of creation itself, we read that the Lord sanctified time. "Therefore did the Lord bless the seventh day and sanctify it." Time is the holiest of all factors in human life. It is the one thing that since creation has been blessed, sanctified and made very special. It is no wonder therefore that the holiness of the Sabbath is emphasized over and over again in the Torah. In human behavior and thought time is not as important as wealth or location or the accomplishment of any human ends. The Torah comes to warn us not to succumb to such a viewpoint or behavior pattern.

The holy Tabernacle according to most commentators was ordered and built after Israel sinned in the desert by worshiping a golden calf. These commentators saw this Tabernacle as an accommodation, so to speak, of Heaven to the human condition. People somehow require a tangible place of worship, a holiness of space and locality, something solid that can represent to them the invisible and eternal. So the Tabernacle in a sense came to replace the necessity for a golden calf created by human beings.

The Lord, gave Israel detailed instructions how this Tabernacle and its artifacts should be constructed and designed. Even though holiness of space, location and of actual structure is necessary for human service of God, it must be done solely under God's conditions. There can be many designs to build a golden calf. To build a Tabernacle to God there can only be one ordained and holy design and plan. Even when building a Tabernacle according to God's plan, the Jewish people were instructed and inspired to remember that holiness of time is always greater than holiness of place and of structure.

The Sabbath, which has accompanied us from the time of creation, takes precedence over all else except for human life itself. The Tabernacle and its succeeding Temples were all temporary and subject to the events of time. Even the holy Land of Israel disappeared from Jewish history for millennia. But the Sabbath never stopped accompanying the Jews wherever they lived and whatever their circumstances were. And this is why this lesson is drummed into us over and over again in the narrative of the Torah. How pertinent this lesson is in our time and in our environment.
fast navigation
Lessons
  • Rabbi Zalman Baruch Melamed
    Rabbi Zalman Baruch Melamed
  • Rabbi Haggai Lundin
    Rabbi Haggai Lundin
  • Rabbi Chaim Drukman
    Rabbi Chaim Drukman
  • Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
  • Rabbi Mordechai Greenberg
    Rabbi Mordechai Greenberg
  • Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu
    Rabbi Shmuel Eliyahu
  • Rabbi Hershel Schachter
    Rabbi Hershel Schachter
  • Rabbi Nachshon Rubinstein
    Rabbi Nachshon Rubinstein
  • Rabbi Shaul Yisraeli zt"l
    Rabbi Shaul Yisraeli zt"l
  • Rabbi Eliyahu Brin
    Rabbi Eliyahu Brin
    undefined
    Beha'alotcha

    The Consolation of Lighting the Menora - Rav Kook at the Third Shabbat Meal

    15 Sivan 5784
    undefined
    Beha'alotcha

    Why Was Miriam Punished?

    Rabbi Yosef Tzvi Rimon | 5777
    undefined
    Prayer

    ?How we should dress for Prayer

    Chapter five-part two

    Chapter five-part two

    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | 5775
    undefined
    Prayer

    Who Can Be Counted in a Minyan?

    Chapter Two-part three

    Can every ten men be a Minyan or are there other conditions?

    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
    undefined
    P'ninat Mishpat

    Historical View of Rav Mordechai Yaakov Breish (Chelkat Yaakov)

    Various Rabbis | 5775
    undefined
    Happy Occasions

    Fasting and Feasting on a Yahrzeit

    “My father’s yahrzeit falls during the week of sheva brachos for my grandson. May I attend the sheva brachos?” "My yahrzeit falls on Shabbos this year. Do I fast on Friday or Sunday instead?" "I usually fast on my father’s yahrzeit, but someone is honoring me with sandaka’us on that day. Do I fast, and do I need to be matir neder in the event that it is permitted to eat?"

    Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff
    undefined
    Revivim

    Halakha on Abortion of Fetuses with Severe Abormalities

    A fetus is considered a living entity in regards to certain laws, but there is no penalty of death for taking its life. What do the rabbinical decisors say?

    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed
    undefined
    The Haggadah

    Shir Hashirim

    Deeper meaning of Shir Hashirim, The Song Of Songs.

    Various Rabbis | 5770
    undefined
    The Giving of the Torah

    The Day of the Rains and the Giving of the Torah

    According to our Sages, The Day of the Rain is as great as, or even greater than the day of the Giving of the Torah. The basis for this comparison is discussed in depth, as well as additional aspects of the connection between the rains and the Torah.

    Rabbi Uzi Kalchaim zt"l | 5770
    undefined
    The Torah Perspective

    Secular Zionism in the Eyes of Rav Kook.

    How can we understand the rebellion against religion over the past century? What does the world gain spiritually from this rebellion which was foreseen in the mishna 1,800 years ago as part of the period preceding the mashiach? Only after we understand the rebellion can we glean the benefit and relate to our brothers properly.

    Rabbi Ari Shvat | 5769
    undefined
    Redemption - Geula

    When Moshiach Comes

    A summary of the different Brachot we will bless when the Moshiach will walk through the door.

    Rabbi Yirmiyohu Kaganoff | Iyar 5768
    undefined
    Marriage and Relationships

    The Role of Parents in Marriage

    Today, parents can fulfill the commandment of marrying off their children by providing them with a good education at prestigious schools, supporting them so that they be able to learn a profession, and clothing them in attractive attire.

    Rabbi Eliezer Melamed | 5764
את המידע הדפסתי באמצעות אתר yeshiva.org.il