The Shekhinah Returns to Earth When the Tabernacle Was Raised

Pesikta Rabbati 5:1

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

"And it came to pass on the day that Moses finished setting up the Tabernacle" (Numbers 7:1). Let our master teach us: may the one who translates for the reader of the Torah look into the written text? Our masters taught: the translator is forbidden to look into the written text, and the reader is forbidden to take his eyes off the Torah, for the Torah was given only in writing, as it is said, "and I will write upon the tables" (Exodus 34:1); and the translator is forbidden to fix his eyes on the written text. Rabbi Yehuda ben Pazi said: it is a full verse — "write you these words" (Exodus 34:27), this is Scripture given in writing; "for according to these words" (Exodus 34:27), this is the translation given orally. Rabbi Yehuda son of Rabbi Shalom said: Moses asked that the Mishnah be put in writing, but the Holy One, blessed be He, foresaw that the nations were destined to translate the Torah and read it in Greek and say, "We are Israel." The Holy One, blessed be He, said: Moses, the nations are destined to say, "We are Israel, we are the children of God," and Israel will say, "We are the children of God," and the scales will be balanced. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to the nations: what do you mean, that you are My children? I know only that whoever holds My mysteries is My son. They said to Him: and what are Your mysteries? He said to them: this is the Mishnah. Therefore He said: "Should I write for him the great things of My Torah, they would be counted as a strange thing" (Hosea 8:12) — if I write it down, what difference would there be between Israel and the nations? "And it came to pass on the day" — thus Rabbi Tanchuma opened: "Who has ascended into heaven, and descended?" (Proverbs 30:4). This verse is expounded of God and of Moses. "Who has ascended into heaven" — this is the Holy One, blessed be He, "God is gone up with a shout" (Psalms 47:6); "and descended" — "and the LORD came down upon Mount Sinai" (Exodus 19:20). And of Moses: "who has ascended" — "and Moses went up to God" (Exodus 19:3); "and descended" — "the LORD said to Moses, Go, get down" (Exodus 32:7). Our masters taught: the world stands upon three things, upon the Torah, upon the Temple service, and upon acts of loving-kindness. You find twenty-six generations stood from the creation of the world until the Torah was given, and the Holy One, blessed be He, sustained them with loving-kindness; corresponding to them David said twenty-six times, "for His mercy endures forever." To what was the world like in that time? To a stool of two legs, which could not stand; once the Tabernacle was set up, the world stood firm. Another interpretation: Rabbi Shimon bar Yochai says, what is "and it came to pass" (vayehi)? A thing that had been and ceased and returned to be as it was. For you find that from the beginning of the world's creation the Divine Presence dwelt among those below, as it is written, "and they heard the voice of the LORD God walking in the garden" (Genesis 3:8). When Adam sinned, the Presence withdrew to the first firmament. Cain arose and killed his brother, and it withdrew to the second. The generation of Enosh sinned, and it withdrew to the third. The generation of the Flood, and to the fourth; the generation of the Dispersion, and to the fifth; the men of Sodom, and to the sixth; the Philistines, and to the seventh. Abraham came and stored up good deeds, and the Presence came down from the seventh firmament to the sixth. Isaac came and stretched out his neck upon the altar, and it came down from the sixth to the fifth. Jacob came and pitched tents for Torah, and it came down from the fifth to the fourth. Levi came and brought it down from the fourth to the third; Kohath from the third to the second; Amram from the second to the first. Moses came and brought it down below, as it is written, "the cloud covered the tent, and the glory of the LORD filled the Tabernacle" (Exodus 40:34). Happy are the righteous, who bring the Divine Presence to dwell on earth, as it is written, "for the upright shall dwell in the land" (Proverbs 2:21). Rabbi Abba said: as it were, the Holy One, blessed be He, cried "woe" (vayehi as a cry of "woe"). To what is the matter like? To a king who had a complaining queen and told her, make yourself a robe; all the days she was busy with it she did not complain. After days she finished the robe and brought it to the king, and when he saw it he began to cry, "woe." She said: my lord the king, your robe is made, and you cry "woe"? He said: lest you return to complaining. So you find Israel always murmured. The Holy One, blessed be He, demanded that they make the Tabernacle, and all the days they were busy with its work they did not murmur. Once they finished the Tabernacle, the Holy One, blessed be He, began to cry "woe" — lest they return and murmur as before.

Themes

ShekhinahOral TorahMoses

Continue Reading

Legends of the JewsA Vision At The Red SeaThe familiar story is this: Moses, the parting of the waters, a miraculous escape. But what if there was someone else there, seeing even more than meets the eyeLegends of the JewsNoah and the AngelsIn the year 1569 after creation, Noah himself, guided by an angel, divided the world among his three sons: Shem, Ham, and Japheth. Imagine the scene – a world fLegends of the JewsAbraham — Divine PresenceLegends of the Jews turns to Abraham — Divine Presence. The Shekhinah… that divine presence, the embodiment of God's immanence. To die with the Shekhinah is a pLegends of the JewsThe Egyptians Sank Joseph's Coffin in the Nile to Keep IsraelThat feeling of responsibility, that weight of expectation... it's woven deep into the fabric of Jewish history. And no story embodies that more poignantly thanLegends of the JewsGod Sent 30000 Angels to Escort Moses Through the HeavensMoses did not climb through heaven alone. God sent thirty thousand angels to escort him upward. Moses, our leader, the one who spoke to God on Mount Sinai, is aLegends of the JewsHow Doubt at Rephidim Opened the Door to AmalekIt’s a very human thing. And according to Jewish tradition, it’s a mistake the Israelites made, with some rather painful consequences. The Israelites are fresh