Our parsha deals with the assembling of the Mishkan. The midrash (Shemot Rabbah 51:1)commenting on the first verse of our parsha, quotes the verse in Mishlei where it states, “a man of faith,” and it teaches that this is a reference to Moshe Rabbeinu, as the verse (Bamidbar 12:7) states about Moshe, “He is the trusted one.”
The question may be asked: What connection does this have to our parsha which discusses the assembling of the Mishkan? Rav Elyah Svei explains that this midrash is coming to explain a phenomenon that occurred at the time of assembling the Mishkan. He quotes another midrash (Tanchuma, 11) on our parsha which teaches that the people tried to assemble the Mishkan but were unable to. Hashem told Moshe that if he tries, he will be successful. And he was, as it states, “Moshe assembled the Mishkan.” Now, why was it that only Moshe had the ability to assemble the Mishkan? Says Rav Svei, it’s this question that the first midrash is coming to explain: The reason why only Moshe was able to assemble the Mishkan was because he was “a man of faith” (see Ruach Eliyahu, Pekudei, maamar 76).
Yet, we may ask, even if we grant that the reason why Moshe was the only one who could assemble the Mishkan was because he was “a man of faith,” what is the connection between being “a man of faith” and being able to assemble the Mishkan? Why did that specific characteristic enable Moshe to be capable of assembling the Mishkan?
The midrash (Vayikra Rabbah 1:7) notes that in our parsha—which discusses the assembling of the Mishkan—it states [many times] the words, “as Hashem had commanded Moshe.” The midrash explains this with a parable: A king commanded his servant to build a palace for him. On every single thing that the servant would build he would write the name of the king. He would build walls and write on them the name of the king; he would set up pillars and write on them the name of the king; and he would build a roof over it with beams and write on them the name of the king. When the king saw that his name was written on every single thing he said, “My servant arranged all this honor for me…” Similarly, when Hashem said to Moshe, “Make for me a Mishkan,” on every single thing that Moshe would make he would write, “As Hashem had commanded Moshe.” Hashem said, “Moshe arranged all this honor for me…”
It can be asked that while Moshe indeed built everything “as Hashem had commanded” him, do we find that he ever wrote anything on the walls, vessels, etc?! As the Maharzu (on the midrash) points out, we find nowhere that Moshe was commanded to inscribe the vessels of the Mishkan! How, then, is the parable regarding the servant’s conduct comparable to Moshe’s conduct?
Rav Elazar Menachem Mann Shach seems to explain as follows (based on my limited understanding of his comments): In regards to the matter of emunah, it does not suffice to simply learn about emunah one time and then continue to live one’s life without ever reviewing the subject matter and growing in emunah; but rather, one needs to constantly review the subject and constantly delve deeper in it. When Moshe was assembling the Mishkan, Moshe was essentially assembling a place for Hashem’s Shechinah to dwell and where His glory would be revealed. Therefore, every action that he took in building the Mishkan was done with single-minded devotion for Hashem’s sake in order to increase the glory of Hashem. Hence, in every action he did in the building—even the most simple of them—it was recognizable that he was performing it for Hashem’s honor. Much like the servant wrote the king’s name on everything he built, Moshe, with his single-minded devotion to spreading Hashem’s name, honor and glory in every facet of assembling the Mishkan, it became apparent that everything he did was for Hashem’s honor, and it was thus as if he had inscribed Hashem’s name in every action he took in the construction. Thus, the midrash is essentially teaching us that when it comes to emunah and recognizing Hashem’s glory and providence, one should not be satisfied with the level of emunah one has, but should constantly strive to enhance it (see Merosh Amanah, Pekudei).
It would perhaps emerge from here that the many times that Moshe complied “as Hashem had commanded” him regarding the assembling of the Mishkan teach us that Moshe continuously “instilled” the entire construction with emunah, meaning, every step of the construction was built with Moshe’s focus of constant devotion towards spreading Hashem’s providence and glory and thus enhancing emunah in Hashem. Ultimately then, it perhaps seems from here that the Mishkan was an edifice that enhances emunah, and the way it was constructed by Moshe may teach us the necessity of constantly growing in our emunah in Hashem.
Based on this, we may suggest an explanation to our original question of why Moshe being “a man of faith” enabled only him to be capable of assembling the Mishkan. If we assume that the assembling of the Mishkan—and the Mishkan itself—would inspire people with emunah and to constantly grow in emunah, then perhaps it needed to be constructed specifically by someone, namely, Moshe, who was a “a man of faith,” a title which perhaps can mean that Moshe was a person who not only reached great level of faith in Hashem but also lived with—and demonstrated the importance of—growing in emunah, of constantly enhancing and deepening one’s level of faith in Hashem.
The midrash (Vayikra Rabbah 1:7) seems to imply that the 18 times that Hashem commanded Moshe in our parsha regarding the Mishkan correspond to the Shemoneh Esrei. We can ask: What’s the connection? Based on the midrash, as explained by Rav Shach, we can suggest: The prayer of Shemoneh Esrei, and the frequency that we engage in it, perhaps continuously reinforces and enhances our emunah in Hashem because by beseeching Hashem for our various needs so often we are essentially expressing our faith that He is the One who is the provider of our needs and ultimately governs our lives. Thus, if the many times it states in our parsha that Hashem commanded Moshe can teach us the idea of constantly enhancing our emunah, then the prayer of Shemoneh Esrei, and how often we engage in it, might also show the idea of constantly enhancing our emunah.
While we may learn from the above the importance of continuously deepening our faith in Hashem, this idea of constantly enhancing our level of emunah may also carry a unique emphasis and significance, as it might even be the very first matter one is questioned about when one enters heavenly judgement after death. The Gemara (Shabbat 31a) implies that when a person undergoes heavenly judgement after death, the first question he is asked is, “Nasata v’natata b’emunah?”—Did you conduct your business transactions faithfully”? Rav Gavriel Friedman observed that the words “nasata v’natata” literally mean “did you give and take,” and the next word is “b’emunah,” with emunah; and thus, as he seemed to have explained, the question could also be understood to mean, “Did you give and take in emunah,” i.e., did you learn, understand, deal with, toil in and grow in your emunah—did you raise and deepen your understanding of emunah more and more?
Binyamin is a graduate of Yeshivas Rabbeinu Yitzchak Elchanan, and Wurzweiler School of Social Work.
