It wasn't just a matter of unfolding some tents and calling it a day. The Torah tells us, in (Exodus 40:17), that it was "in the first month during the second year, on the first of the month, the Tabernacle was erected." But what kind of erection are we talking about?
The Rabbis of the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) delve deep into the details, asking a seemingly simple question: "It was on the day that Moses concluded" – what day was it? Bamidbar Rabbah explores this verse, and the answers they come up with are fascinating.
Rabbi Zeira raises an interesting point, suggesting that if the Tabernacle was erected at night, it couldn't be used for service during the day. Then it gets even more intricate. We have different opinions on just how much erecting and dismantling Moses was doing. Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Yosef suggests Moses erected and dismantled it twice daily, once in the morning and once in the evening. But Rabbi Ḥanina the Great ups the ante, saying it happened three times a day! According to him, it was once for the daily morning offering, once for the inauguration itself, and once for the daily evening offering. Talk about a workout!
Where does the idea of dismantling come from, anyway? Rabbi Zeira cleverly points out: "The day that Moses concluded" – the day that his erections [of it] concluded. If there were multiple instances of erecting, there must have been multiple instances of dismantling too.
So, picture this: on the New Moon of Nisan, the Tabernacle goes up. Then, on the second of Nisan, the red heifer is burned – a crucial step for purification. The next day, the third of Nisan, the water containing the ashes of the red heifer is sprinkled upon the Levites, as (Numbers 8:7) instructs: "Sprinkle upon them purification water."
But here's where it gets even more interesting. Remember the Golden Calf incident? Because the Levites took action against the idol worshippers, as we read in (Exodus 32:27)–28 ("Each slay his brother.… The sons of Levi acted in accordance with the word of Moses…"), they were considered ritually impure, defiled by contact with the dead. Normally, they'd require two sprinklings with the purification water. But, instead of the second sprinkling, God commanded them to shave, a fascinating substitution!
And it wasn't just the Tabernacle and the Levites getting prepped. Moses himself was sanctified in the cloud for seven days, as (Exodus 24:16) describes: "The glory of the Lord rested upon Mount Sinai." Aaron and his sons? They were sanctified with oil and blood, as (Leviticus 8:30) details: "Moses took from the anointing oil, and from the blood that was on the altar, and he sprinkled it on Aaron [and on his vestments, and on his sons, and on the vestments of his sons with him, and he sanctified Aaron and his vestments, and his sons and the vestments of his sons with him]." Aaron, being the High Priest, got the extra special treatment of having the anointing oil poured directly on his head.
The Midrash goes on to meticulously describe how the Levites were sanctified – with sprinkling, shaving, offerings, and a wave offering. And, of course, the Tabernacle itself was sanctified through erecting, dismantling, and anointing.
There's a debate about the order and method of anointing. Rabbi Aivu asks, if it says "He anointed it and sanctified it," why does it also say "He anointed them and sanctified them?" Rabbi Aivu brings in opinions from Rabbi Taḥlifa of Caesarea and Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish. One suggests that after each individual anointing, there was a collective anointing. The other proposes that "He anointed them" refers to an anointing in this world and another in the World to Come, signifying that the vessels were sanctified for all time.
Similarly, the Midrash explores the verse "And attached the sheets one to another with the hooks" (Exodus 36:13), questioning why the verse then states "And the Tabernacle was one." Again, Rabbi Aivu cites Rabbi Taḥlifa of Caesarea and Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish. One says that after attaching each sheet individually, they were all attached together. The other suggests that "the Tabernacle was one" signifies both uniformity in size and a unified anointing.
The discussion even delves into the specifics of which vessels were anointed and how. Rabbi Yoshiya believes liquid measures were anointed inside and out, while dry measures were only anointed inside. Rabbi Yonatan disagrees, saying liquid measures were only anointed inside, and dry measures weren't anointed at all.
The key takeaway? Vessels that weren't anointed couldn't sanctify their contents. As (Leviticus 23:17) states, referring to the two loaves of waving, "From your dwellings you shall bring two loaves of waving…[they shall be baked as leavened bread, a first offering to the Lord]." They only become holy after they're baked.
So, what does all this meticulous detail tell us? It highlights the immense care and precision that went into preparing the Tabernacle, the Levites, and the people for service to God. It wasn't a haphazard affair. Every step was deliberate, every detail significant. And perhaps, it also reminds us that holiness isn't just about grand gestures, but also about the small, seemingly insignificant acts of preparation and dedication. Just something to think about.
“It was on the day that Moses concluded” – what day was it? It was the New Moon of Nisan, as it is stated: “It was in the first month during the second year, on the first of the month, the Tabernacle was erected” (Exodus 40:17). Rabbi Zeira said: What is “on the day”? From here, that being erected at night disqualified for service during the day. All seven days of inauguration, Moses would erect the Tabernacle each and every morning, anoint it, sacrifice, and dismantle it. That day, he erected it, anointed it, but did not dismantle it. Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Yosef said: Twice each day Moses would erect it and dismantle it, once in the morning and once in the evening. Rabbi Ḥanina the Great says: Three times each day, as it is stated: “Was erected,” “erected” (Exodus 40:18), “erecting”; once for the daily morning offering, once for the inauguration, and once for the daily evening offering. We find that on the twenty-third of Adar the days of inauguration began, and the anointment of Aaron, his sons, the Tabernacle, and all the vessels. From where is the dismantling derived? Rabbi Zeira said: “The day that Moses concluded” – the day that his erections [of it] concluded.48Since there were several instances of erecting there were also several instances of dismantling. On the New Moon of Nisan, the Tabernacle was erected. On the second, the red heifer was burned. On the third, he sprinkled from it49Water containing ashes of the red heifer. upon the Levites, just as it says: “Sprinkle upon them purification water” (Numbers 8:7). Instead of the second sprinkling that the Levites were obligated to be sprinkled because they were all impure with impurity imparted by a corpse because they killed the worshippers of the calf, just as it says: “Each slay his brother.… The sons of Levi acted in accordance with the word of Moses…” (Exodus 32:27–28), the Omnipresent commanded to shave them instead of the sprinkling of the seventh day. Moses was sanctified in the cloud all seven days, as it is stated: “The glory of the Lord rested upon Mount Sinai” (Exodus 24:16).50The continuation of the verse states that Moses was covered by the cloud for six days and that on the seventh day God called Moses. Aaron and his sons were sanctified with oil and blood, as it is stated: “Moses took from the anointing oil, and from the blood that was on the altar, and he sprinkled it on Aaron [and on his vestments, and on his sons, and on the vestments of his sons with him, and he sanctified Aaron and his vestments, and his sons and the vestments of his sons with him]” (Leviticus 8:30). Aaron was granted greater status than his sons because he was the High Priest, that he51Moses poured anointing oil on his head, which he did not do to his sons. How was the anointing of Aaron performed? All seven days of inauguration, Moses would disrobe Aaron of his garments, wash him, and anoint him between his eyes. Israel were sanctified with the purification heifer, as it is stated: “Speak to the children of Israel, and they shall take you an [unflawed] red heifer” (Numbers 19:2). The Levites were sanctified with sprinkling and with a shave, with an offering and with a wave. With sprinkling, from where is it derived? It is as it is stated: “They shall take a young bull…[and a second young bull you shall take as a sin offering]” (Numbers 8:8).52These are the offerings. It states in the previous verse: “And so shall you do to them to purify them: Sprinkle upon them purification water, and they shall pass a razor over all their flesh” (Numbers 8:7). This is the sprinkling and the shave. With a wave, from where is it derived? It is as it is stated: “Aaron shall wave the Levites as a wave offering” (Numbers 8:11). The Tabernacle was sanctified with erecting, and dismantling, and with anointing. With erecting, from where is it derived? It is as it is stated: “Erecting the Tabernacle.” With dismantling, from where is it derived? It is as it is stated: “They shall not come to see the covering of the sacred” (Numbers 4:20).53This verse appears in the context of dismantling the Tabernacle. With anointing, from where is it derived? It is as it is stated: “He anointed the Tabernacle and all that was in it, [and he sanctified them]” (Leviticus 8:10). Do I derive from this54This could be the understanding of the phrase: “He anointed it and sanctified it” (Numbers 7:1). that the first that was anointed was sanctified? The verse states: “He anointed them and sanctified them.” This tells that none of them was sanctified until they were all anointed. Rabbi Aivu said: Since it is written: “He anointed it and sanctified it,” for what purpose is it stated: “He anointed them and sanctified them”? Rabbi Aivu said: Rabbi Taḥlifa of Caesarea and Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish: One said: After he would anoint each and every one of them, he would then anoint all of them together. And one said: “He anointed them” – one anointing in this world and one anointing in the World to Come. This tells that with the anointing of these, all the vessels were sanctified for the future. Similarly, “And attached the sheets one to another with the hooks” (Exodus 36:13) – why does the verse state: “And the Tabernacle was one” (Exodus 36:13)? Rabbi Aivu said: Rabbi Taḥlifa of Caesarea and Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish: One said: After he would attach each one to another, he would attach all of them together. And one said: What is, “and the Tabernacle was one”? It was one for the size and one for anointing.55The phrase "one to another" teaches that all of the sheets were the same size, and the phrase "and the Tabernacle was one" teaches that they were anointed after they were attached. “He anointed them” – he anointed them from without and from within. Rabbi Yoshiya said: The liquid measures were anointed from within and without, and the dry measures were anointed from within but not from without. Rabbi Yonatan says: The liquid measures were anointed from within but were not anointed from without, and the dry measures were anointed neither from within nor from without. Know that they do not sanctify,56Vessels which were not anointed do not sanctify their contents. as it is stated: “From your dwellings you shall bring two loaves of waving…[they shall be baked as leavened bread, a first offering to the Lord]” (Leviticus 23:17). When are they to the Lord? It is after they were baked.57Even though the flour was measured in a dry measure before the bread was baked, it became sanctified only after it was baked.
