<b>And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying: “See, I have called by name Bezalel” (Exod. 31:1).</b> Solomon said: <i>Whatsoever cometh into being, the name thereof was given long ago, and it is foreknown what man is</i> (Eccles. 6:10). Scripture also says elsewhere in reference to this: <i>Who hath wrought and done it? He that called the generations from the beginning</i> (Isa. 41:4). The Holy One, blessed be He, declared: When I determined at the very beginning of time to build the Sanctuary, I already announced his name, and made his name known. <i>And it is foreknown what man is</i>. Even when the first man was a lifeless mass, the Holy One, blessed be He, showed him all the righteous men who would descend from him. Some hung from his head, others were suspended from his hair, and still others from his neck, his two eyes, his nose, his mouth, his ears, and his arms. Proof of this is in the fact that when Job complained against his Creator, saying: <i>O that I knew where I might find Him, that I might come even unto His seat! I would order my cause before Him, and fill my mouth with arguments. I would know the words which He would answer me, and understand what He would say unto me</i> (Job 23:3–5). The Holy One, blessed be He, replied to him: <i>Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth?</i> (ibid. 38:4). R. Simeon the son of Lakish maintained: <i>Where wast thou</i> is written because the Holy One, blessed be He, was in fact asking Job: Where were you suspended from the first man? Was it from his head, his hair, his neck, his eyes, or from one of his limbs?
The Holy One, blessed be He, also revealed to Adam that Abraham would descend from him, and that his descendants would go down to Egypt and become enslaved. He revealed to him Moses appearing and redeeming them, Joseph feeding the tribes, Moses anointing the priests, the prophet Samuel anointing the king, Joshua leading them into their land, David laying the foundation of the Temple, and Solomon erecting it. He disclosed to him Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah, and her children removing the nails from the Temple, Jehoiada replacing them, Amon erecting idols, Josiah destroying them, Nebuchadnezzar demolishing the Temple, Darius rebuilding it, and Bezalel erecting the Tabernacle. Hence, <i>I have called by name Bezalel</i>; that is to say, his name was known previously, and He had called him at the time of Adam. Therefore, <i>Who hath wrought and done it? He that called the generations from the beginning</i> (Isa. 41:4).