Date: Fri, 28 May 1999 16:37:59 +0300 From: Menachem Leibtag Subject: PARSHAT NASO - new shiur To: all@tanach.org, parsha@tanach.org, par-new@tanach.org Cc: yhe-parsha.ml@vbm-torah.org Reply-to: tsc@bezeqint.net Priority: normal Reply To: Menachem Leibtag Error-To: Listproc Error X-ListMember: cypess@ymail.yu.edu [all@tanach.org] *************************************************************** THE TANACH STUDY CENTER [http://www.tanach.org] In Memory of Rabbi Abraham Leibtag *************************************************************** PARSHAT NASO - [new shiur] Did you ever notice the last pasuk in Parshat Naso? Probably not, but if you did - it most certainly would have bothered you! We'll begin this week's shiur by explaining why that pasuk 'should have bothered you'. Then we will suggest a solution that will not only help us understand Parshat Naso, but will also provide some 'guidance' for anyone who may be working on forming a unity government. INTRODUCTION In the second half of Parshat Naso, the Torah describes how each of the twelve NSIIM [the tribal leaders] offered a special KORBAN for the dedication of Mishkan. Not only does the Torah describe the precise (and identical) korban that each NASI offered (see 7:12-83), but also tallies them in 7:84-88 as well. Clearly, 7:88 should be the final pasuk of this unit (it is recommended that you take a look in your Chumash to verify this)! But to our surprise, after this summary is complete, the TORAH 'adds on' an additional pasuk that appears to be totally unrelated. Let's take a look: ["... this was the dedication offering for the MIZBAYACH on the day that it was consecrated." (7:88)] "And when Moshe would come into the OHEL MOED to speak to Him, he would hear God's voice speak to him from above the KAPORET above the ARON between the two keruvim, and then He would speak to him." (see 7:89 and end of Parshat Naso) [Note also how 7:88 'closes' 7:84 as well as 7:1!] NOTHING NEW To complicate matters, not only does the pasuk appear to be 'out of place', it also appears to be superfluous for it doesn't teach us anything new. Let's explain why. In regard to this description of HOW God speaks to Moshe from the KAPORET etc., this very same detail was already recorded in Parshat Terumah in God's commandment to Moshe concerning how to build the Mishkan: "and in the ARON put the EYDUT... And I will meet you there and speak to you from above the KAPORET between the two KERUVIM that are on the ARON HA'EYDUT..." (Shmot 25:21-22) Furthermore, the first pasuk of Sefer Vayikra already informed us that indeed God had already spoken to Moshe Rabeinu from the Ohel Moed (see Vayikra 1:1). Therefore, not only is 7:89 'out of place', it also appears to be superfluous. To uncover the importance of this 'add on' pasuk, we must consider the other events that took place of this same day, i.e. the day of the dedication of the Mishkan; and their purpose. YOM HA'SHMINI Recall that in addition to Parshat Naso, story of the Mishkan's dedication is described in two other places in Chumash: Parshat Pekudei describes its assembly (Shmot chapter 40); Parshat Shmini describes the special korbanot (Vayikra 9). Recall as well that at the conclusion of both of these parshiot, the Torah also describes how God's SHCHINA returned to Am Yisrael on that day, [See Shmot 40:34-38 and Vayikra 9:5- 6,24.] We will now show how the final pasuk of Parshat Naso may serve a similar purpose; and for an important thematic reason! Let's explain. BACK TO CHET HA'EGEL Recall that in the aftermath of chet ha'egel [the sin of the Golden Calf /see Shmot 32], God punished Bnei Yisrael by taking away His SHCHINA from their midst (see Shmot 33:1-4), for they were no longer deserving of His Presence. As a consequence of this punishment, God instructed Moshe to re-locate his own tent from within the camp of Bnei Yisrael to OUTSIDE the camp: "And Moshe took the tent, and set it up OUTSIDE the camp, FAR AWAY from the camp, and called it the OHEL MOED, then anyone who would seek God would need to go to the tent OUTSIDE the camp (see Shmot 33:7). Hence, the location of Moshe's tent OUTSIDE the camp, and the fact that God would now only speak to him at this location, reflected Bnei Yisrael's 'rejected' status. Note as well that Moshe's tent outside the camp is now named the OHEL MOED - the tent of meeting (between God and Moshe) - a name that will later be used to describe the Mishkan itself! With this background, we can better appreciate the thematic importance of God's commandment to build the Mishkan: "And you shall build for Me a MIKDASH, so that I can dwell in THEIR MIDST..." (see Shmot 25:8) [In regard to whether this commandment was given before [Ramban] or after [Rashi] chet ha'egel - see TSC shiur on Parshat Terumah.] The location of the Mishkan at the center of the camp, and God speaking to Moshe from its innermost sanctuary (see Shmot 25:21-22) would certainly symbolize that Bnei Yisrael have returned to their [pre-"chet ha'egel" status of Ma'amad Har Sinai. Recall as well that even though Moshe had descended with the Second Luchot and God's thirteen attributes of Mercy on Yom Kippur, the SHCHINA did not immediately return to the camp. Indeed Bnei Yisrael were forgiven for chet ha'egel, but in order for the SHCHINA to return, Bnei Yisrael must first build the Mishkan. Therefore, for the entire time period between Moshe's descent on Yom Kippur until the Mishkan's dedication in Rosh Chodesh Nisan, any conversation between God and Moshe took place in the OHEL MOED located OUTSIDE the camp. [See Ibn Ezra, Ramban, and Chizkuni on 33:7!] Hence, until the Mishkan was assembled, the existence of Moshe's special OHEL MOED outside the camp served as constant reminder to Bnei Yisrael that were still not worthy enough for God's SHCHINA to dwell in their midst. THE BIG DAY! With this background, it becomes clear that the highlight of YOM HA'SHMINI for Bnei Yisrael would be the return of God's SHCHINA to the camp, a sign of their divine pardon, as well as a sign that they could now continue on their journey to Eretz Canaan. Therefore, the FIRST time that God will speak to Moshe from the Mishkan (in contrast to his OHEL MOED outside the camp) will certainly be a major event in the eyes of the nation - it will indicate that the Mishkan has achieved its goal! Hence, our 'add on' pasuk - describing how God spoke to Moshe from the KAPORET in the OHEL MOED (see 7:89) - becomes the HIGHLIGHT of the entire chapter. The fact that God now speaks to Moshe from the Mishkan is a sign that the SHCHINA has indeed returned. Note how this completes our parallel to the other two descriptions of the dedication ceremony in Chumash: * In Sefer Shmot, the Torah describes the return of the SHCHINA (i.e the KAVOD and ANAN /see 40:34) at the conclusion of MOSHE RABEINU's assembly of the Mishkan. [B'zchut Moshe] * In Sefer Vayikra, the Torah describes the return of the SHCHINA by fire consuming the korbanot offered by Aharon on the Mizbayach (i.e. AISH /see 9:24). [B'zchut Aharon] * In Sefer Bamidbar, the Torah describes the return of the SHCHINA by the DIBUR returning to Moshe within the camp. [B'zchut ha'NSIIM!] But why are these korbanot of the NSIIM so thematically important? How do they facilitate the return of God's SHCHINA? To answer this question, we must return to our analysis of Sefer Bamidbar. A SHOW OF UNITY Recall how the first ten chapters of Sefer Bamidbar describe Bnei Yisrael's preparation for their journey from Har Sinai to Eretz Canaan. During this journey it was the job of the Leviim to carry the Mishkan. The tribes would surround the Mishkan and travel with the Mishkan at their center in royal fashion (see Bamidbar 10:11-24). On the day of the Mishkan's dedication, the leaders of the twelve tribes - i.e the NSIIM - all joined together to present the Leviim with a present of six wagons to help them carry the Mishkan during their journey (see 7:1-9). At that same, each one of these twelve NSIIM also presented Moshe Rabeinu with a special korban for the dedication of the Mishkan (see 7:10). Instead of each NASI trying to outdo the other [ever hear of such a thing?], each NASI offered the exact same korban, and they all presented their korbanot to Moshe Rabeinu on that day. Instead of offering all of these korbanot on one day, God instructed Moshe to set aside a special day for each NASI (see 7:11!). The Torah continues by informing us of how each NASI brought his korban over the next twelve days. This show of unity was so important, that the Torah finds it necessary to detail each and every korban, even though they were identical! But note carefully how the summary psukim in 7:84-88 return to the very first day, when the Mishkan was first dedicated: "This was the dedication of the MIZBAYACH, on THE DAY that it was anointed, by the NSIIM of Israel... (7:84) This explains why the Torah summarizes all of the korbanot together. The Torah is not teaching us addition (or multiplication), rather it is emphasizing once again how ALL of these korbanot were presented to Moshe by ALL of the NSIIM on the very first day! These psukim return us to the very first day of the Mishkan's dedication and conclude with the highlight of that day in 7:89 - that God spoke once again to Moshe from the OHEL MOED within the camp of Bnei Yisrael! One could suggest that it was this show of tribal unity that made Bnei Yisrael worthy once again of the SHCHINA. As we know, unity of Am Yisrael, a nation whose destiny is to represent God before other nations, is a prerequisite for the dwelling of God's SHCHINA in our midst. [See also Rashi on Shmot 19:2 "va'yichan" everyone as one person with one heart...", describing how Bnei Yisrael first encamped at Har Sinai.] It is this nature of a collective effort, where everyone must be alike and work together towards a common goal, yet at the same time keep his own identity and shine as an individual, that makes room for God to 'join along' as well! shabbat shalom, menachem ********************************************************* To SUBSCRIBE or to UNSUBSCRIBE to this shiur: send e-mail to: lists@tanach.org with the following message in first line of TEXT: join all or leave all ********************************************************* Previous shiurim are available on the TSC WEBSITE: http://www.tanach.org *********************************************************** If you would like to support the TSC Project or dedicate a shiur, please e-mail: ml@tanach.org *********************************************************** Internet & e-mail list hosting for the TSC provided courtesy of: The Yerushalayim Network (http://www.yerushalayim.net) a Centennial Project of the Orthodox Union (http://www.ou.org) *********************************************************** Copyright (c) 1999 Menachem Leibtag. 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