Moreover you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains: of fine twined linen, and blue, and purple, and scarlet, with cherubim the work of the skillful workman you shall make them.
verse value 8639
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 64 letters. Verse gematria: 8639 = 53 × 163. The shortest word is "fine·linen" (שֵׁ֣שׁ, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·the·Tabernacle" (וְאֶת־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֥ן, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 775: make, you·shall·make. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·the·Tabernacle" (וְאֶת־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֥ן), "and·crimson·thread" (וְתֹלַ֣עַת). The root עשה appears 2 times in this verse. 14 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "and·the·Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus); "fine·linen" (root שש, 58x in Exodus). First appearance of the root יריעה ("cloths") in Exodus. First appearance of the root שזר ("twisted") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'cloths', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 11 words.
Onkelos
And the Tabernacle you shall make of ten curtains of twisted linen, and blue, and purple, and crimson thread — with a design of cherubim, the work of a skilled craftsman you shall make them.
Rashi
ואת המשכן תעשה עשר יריעת MOREOVER THOU SHALT MAKE THE DWELLING OF TEN CURTAINS — that they should serve it as a roof and at the same time as wall-coverings for the outside of the boards; — for the curtains hung behind them so as to cover them. שש משזר ותכלת וארגמן ותלעת שני OF FINE TWINED LINEN AND BLUE PURPLE, AND RED PURPLE, AND CRIMSON — Thus there were four different materials in every thread, one of linen and three of wool, each of the strands of which a thread was composed being sixfold (the word is taken here in the double sense of שש “linen” and of שש “six”). Consequently the four materials intertwined into one thread gave a twenty-four-fold thread (Yoma 71b; Baraita DeMelekhet HaMishkan ch. 2). כרבים מעשה חשב WITH CHERUBIM, THE WORK OF AN ARTIST — Cherubim were figured on them (on the curtains) in the process of weaving them, not afterwards by embroidery which is needlework — but by weaving it on its two surfaces, one design on one side, a different design on the other; e. g., a lion on one side and an eagle on the other side, just as the silken girdles are woven which are called in old French faisee (Yoma 72b, Jerusalem Talmud Shekalim 8:4).
Ibn Ezra
"And the Tabernacle" — as He had already informed him at the outset of the Tabernacle's design. "Woven work" (ma'aseh ḥoshev): the Sages said that ma'aseh ḥoshev produces two faces [images on both sides], whereas embroidery (rokem) produces only one face — and this is correct. But according to the plain meaning, ma'aseh ḥoshev (the work of a skilled designer) is neither embroidery nor simple weaving, but rather is done in the manner of silk garments produced today: for the pattern conceived in the heart is a plan (ḥeshbon) and its design; one draws it out on a tablet and sets two threads in calculated measure to draw [the image] from a distance.
Sforno
ואת המשכן תעשה, the reason why these curtains are referred to by the Torah as משכן, “a residence,” is because in the space covered by them there were the kinds of furnishings normally found in a dwelling, i.e. table, cupboard (Ark), and a lamp stand. The dwelling was designed to house the presence of G’d more commonly referred to as the Shechinah. כרובים, the curtains were made with the patterns of cherubs woven into them, as we know from the description of Isaiah’s vision (Isaiah 6,2) that he perceived G’d surrounded by angels described as Seraphim. We also find another description of a similar type in Kings I 22,19 where the prophet Michayah describes his vision of G’d in these words: “I saw the Lord seated on His throne with all the host of heaven standing in attendance to the right and to the left of Him.”
Or HaChaim
ואת המשכן תעשה עשר יריעות, "And you shall construct the Tabernacle out of ten strips of cloth, etc. This number is an allusion to the ten directives G'd used when creating the universe. The Torah wants to tell us that construction of the Tabernacle was as important to G'd as creation of the universe itself. Constructing the Tabernacle would also confer as much merit on the Israelites as if they had personally brought about the creation of the universe which was created by means of ten directives. There are still other considerations behind the requirement to use such materials as twisted linen of specific colours, goats' hair, etc. It is not accidental that G'd commanded ten strips of cloth to be made of linen whereas He commanded eleven strips of cloth made of goats' hair (verse 7) to be constructed and to be placed on top of the ten inner strips of cloth. Also the commandment to join five each of the linen strips of cloth together to form one unit, or in the case of the strips of cloth made of goats' hair, to combine two units of five or six strips together, this too was not arbitrary. The reason for all this was that G'd thereby symbolically impressed the three basic letters of His Ineffable Name on these four sections of strips of cloth joined in units of 10+5+6. (י+ה+ו). G'd commanded that all of these strips of cloth be four cubits wide, regardless of whether they were made of linen or of goats' hair. The number four symbolises that G'd's name contains four letters. You will find that our sages in Shabbat 6 state that a minimum of 4 handbreadths square and ten handbreadths height is required to qualify as a private domain. This is an allusion to the four letters in the Ineffable Name of G'd adding up to the number 26. Similarly, 4 by 4 plus 10 adds up to 26, i.e י+ה+ו+ה. Seeing that the letter י is relatively holier than the other letters in G'd's name, the unit of ten strips of cloth made of linen formed the inner cover of the Tabernacle, being closest to (directly exposed to) the Holy Ark. The reason the strips had to be joined in units of five is an allusion to the thought that the first letter ה in G'd's name is always associated with the letter י. This is part of the mystique of the reading of the letter י. When you read (look at the spelling of) that letter as if it were a word, i.e. י־ו־ד, you are combining the י with the letters ו and ד, which between them make up the shape of the letter ה, although you actually read only a single letter. This is part of the mystical dimension חכמה and some of these mystical apects are alluded to in the details of the coverings of the Tabernacle. The first two letters of the word חכמה add up to 28, corresponding to the length of these various strips of cloth the Torah commands as coverings for the Tabernacle. The third letter of the word חכמה, i.e. the letter מ whose numerical value is 40, is represented by the width of 40 cubits which the two units of linen strips amount to when joined together ...
Chizkuni
ואת המשכן תעשה עשר יריאות, “and as for theTabernacle itself, make it of ten strips of cloth;” here the Torah speaks of the lower coverings which serves as roof of the structure. They are the ones that are really called משכן, “Tabernacle,” not the skins that were on top and served as protective coverings. These “carpet like” strips of expensive cloth were immediately above the furnishings, the Holy Ark, Menorah, table and golden altar. שש משזר, a linen fabric, each yarn contained 6 threads that had been twisted, (according to Rashi) The Talmud in tractate Yuma folio 71 cites proof of this based on Biblical texts. מעשה חושב, work of a weaver. The root of the word חושב shows that it requires extreme thought, i.e. skill, not just dexterity with one’s hands, but planning. When the Torah speaks of מעשה רוקם, however, this refers to needlework only, and is something less sophisticated, not requiring the kind of planning ahead that does weaving.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ואת המשכן תעשה עשר יריעות, “you shall construct the Tabernacle out of ten curtains, etc.” The word משכן is spelled with the letter ה in front, indicating that it was a building we had heard about previously. This shows that the מקדש mentioned in 25,8 and the משכן mentioned here are one and the same thing. By rights the details of the construction of the Tabernacle should have preceded that of its furnishings; however, due to the lofty nature of the Ark the Torah decided to first mention its construction, and, having commenced with one of the interior furnishings it also listed details of the table and the Menorah. When you will examine the report of the actual construction (36,8) you will notice that Betzalel constructed the Tabernacle before he constructed the furnishings it was to house.
Kli Yakar
“And the tabernacle you shall make of ten curtains.” It should have said “And you shall make a tabernacle” as it says And you shall make a table and You shall make a menorah of gold. Since the tabernacle [mishkan] is named for I will dwell [v’shakhanti] among them, it is not appropriate to use the language of “making” regarding His divine presence, for this attribute belongs solely to God, as it is said And I will set My tabernacle among you (Leviticus 26:11). Therefore, He did not want to mention the term “making” except in reference to the 10 curtains and not to His tabernacle. Thus, the interpretation is: And the tabernacle — that which I have already said I will dwell among them — will be accomplished by you making 10 curtains, etc. Now regarding the pattern of its construction, all commentators agree that it was built according to the pattern of the three worlds, to indicate that the world exists on the foundation of this structure. Therefore, it was made of 10 curtains corresponding to the worlds in their entirety, which were created with 10 utterances. And all of them were suspended until the sixth day of Sivan, contingent upon Israel accepting the 10 Commandments. Those of the creation of the world were called “utterances” because all speech [amirah] is gentle, and likewise all the works of creation were created in their desired form without coercion. But the Commandments, the Lord of heaven and earth spoke to us harshly, saying: “If you accept the Torah, good, and if not, there shall be your burial place.” And this is what is meant by The voice of the Lord is in power (Psalms 29:4), for He forced them powerfully to accept the Torah. Therefore, the length of each curtain was 28 cubits, corresponding to the numerical value of the word “koach” (power, כח = 28), as it is said He has declared to His people the power of His works (Psalms 111:6), because the tablets were the work of God, and He told them harsh things like sinews — these being the punishments, as Rashi explained — and this is [the meaning of] “power” [koach]. And the curtains were five opposite five, corresponding to the 10 Commandments, which were five commandments opposite five. The first five commandments concern the relationship between man and God, blessed be He, and the latter five commandments concern the relationship between man and his fellow. And the Ba’al HaTurim also explained that they were corresponding to the 10 Commandments, five opposite five, and the 50 clasps corresponding to the 50 gates of understanding. And I am adding my own material, to say that through them a person can connect to the higher realms, because all [50 gates of understanding] were given to Moses except one, as it is said You have made him slightly less than divine (Psalms 8:6), implying that if he had been complete in all of them, he would not have been lacking compared to the divine [angels]. To allude to this it is said 50 loops shall you make etc. and you shall make 50 gold clasps, etc. and the Tabernacle shall be one, because through the number 50, the higher and lower realms become unified. For those five curtains that correspond to the first commandments contain an allusion to the higher beings who sit first in the kingdom of heaven, and those five curtains that correspond to the latter commandments are for the lower beings, and the number 50 unites them as mentioned. And you should understand and comprehend that the partition curtain that separated between the Holy and the Holy of Holies was placed under the clasps, as it is said And you shall hang the partition curtain beneath the clasps (Exodus 26:33). The reason is that the partition and the clasps point to the same concept, for the partition separated between the place designated for His blessed Presence, called the Holy of Holies, and the tent where the holy vessels were placed, which symbolize the successes of human beings. For the Menorah was 18 handbreadths tall, like the height of an average person, and the Table is the place from which they are nourished. And so that you should not say that there is no way that a person can cleave to the Lord his God, therefore these clasps came in that place to connect them, to teach that through understanding the 50 gates of wisdom, a person can cleave to his God. From here you can also learn that the five curtains that covered the Holy of Holies correspond to the first five commandments, for they are for the honor of the Omnipresent, blessed be He, and the five curtains that covered the Tent of Meeting correspond to the latter five commandments that relate only to people, and the combining of 50 clasps teaches that the number 50 unites them. And these matters are clear, ancient, and correct. And behold, I have a place to explain “five facing five,” corresponding to what our Sages of blessed memory said in Tractate Berakhot 10a regarding the five instances of Bless the Lord, O my soul that David said, corresponding to the soul which is likened in five ways to the Holy One, blessed be He, and their connection and attachment through the 50 gates of understanding as mentioned. Look to the right and see that everything the Holy One, blessed be He, created has within it some intermediary that connects the two extremes. And all the commentators agreed that man, by virtue of having a divine portion from above connected to the physical body, is the intermediary that unites the upper and lower realms and makes peace between the heavenly and earthly hosts, so that there not be opposition between them. And just as man is an intermediary, so is man’s creation from the place where it says, Make for Me an altar of earth. For the Holy Temple is also the center of the world and the place that unites the upper and lower realms, for there the Holy One, blessed be He, made for Himself a dwelling in the lower realms, like the vision that the Lord showed Jacob in the ladder that was set on the earth with its top reaching the heavens, and the middle of its incline was aligned with the Temple. For the ladder connected earth to heaven through the Temple in the middle, as that designated place is a dwelling for both the upper and lower realms, it is the intermediary that unites them. And therefore we find in this sacred structure elements that unite the extremes, which is the thing we spoke about: the 50 clasps that connected the curtains, with five of them placed over the Holy of Holies, the portion of the upper realms, and five of them placed over the Holy, which contains a portion of the lower realms, and the clasps unite them. And this is what our Sages of blessed memory said in the Jerusalem Talmud, Megillah 1:12, “The clasps in the Tabernacle appeared like stars in the firmament,” for the stars are the intermediate world between the upper world and the lower world. And just as the stars are intermediaries and also have a part in uniting the upper and lower realms, so too the clasps in the Tabernacle came for this purpose. And it is written, And those who lead many to righteousness will be like the stars forever and ever (Daniel 12:3). And those who lead many to righteousness are the righteous who are the foundation of the world, who establish peace between the heavenly and earthly hosts, namely the many, for they are intermediaries like these stars. This excludes one who does not engage in Torah study, who has no portion of the upper realms at all and is not an intermediary; therefore, he is not included among those who lead many to righteousness, for the term those who lead to righteousness refers to one who nullifies the opposition between the two extremes. And for this reason, another miracle was performed here that demonstrates this concept, and it is the central bar that extended from one end to the other, holding both ends and connecting them. And why specifically the central bar? Certainly so that we might learn from this that everything central and in the middle connects the extremes, like the Temple, the righteous person, and the stars as mentioned. And in the Midrash (Tanchuma Terumah 9) they said that Jacob brought the central bar with him to Egypt, etc. And perhaps he learned this from the vision of the ladder, as explained above. Additionally, the Temple stands in the center of the world and sends forth abundance to the entire world from one end to the other; therefore, this miracle with the central bar was performed in it.
Rashbam
ואת המשכן, the lowest 10 curtains (the ones visible from the inside of the structure) are called משכן. The reason is that immediately below them was the Ark, i.e. they provided the home for the Ark.
The length of each curtain shall be eight and twenty cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits; all the curtains shall have one measure.
verse value 4488
Insights
Verse structure: 14 words, 64 letters. The shortest word is "length" (אֹ֣רֶךְ, 3 letters) and the longest is "all·the·cloths" (לְכׇל־הַיְרִיעֹֽת, 9 letters). Words sharing gematria 414: one, one. The root אחד appears 3 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "all·the·cloths" (root כל, 121x in Exodus); "one" (root אחד, 95x in Exodus); "in·the·cubit" (root אמה, 66x in Exodus). First appearance of the root מדה ("measure") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'one', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 3 words. Full calculation: אֹ֣רֶךְ [length] (221) + הַיְרִיעָ֣ה [the·cloth] (300) + הָֽאַחַ֗ת [one] (414) + שְׁמֹנֶ֤ה [eight] (395) + וְעֶשְׂרִים֙ [twenty] (626) + בָּֽאַמָּ֔ה [in·the·cubit] (48) + וְרֹ֙חַב֙ [breadth] (216) + אַרְבַּ֣ע [four] (273) + בָּאַמָּ֔ה [in·the·cubit] (48) + הַיְרִיעָ֖ה [the·cloth] (300) + הָאֶחָ֑ת [one] (414) + מִדָּ֥ה [measure] (49) + אַחַ֖ת [one] (409) + לְכׇל־הַיְרִיעֹֽת [all·the·cloths] (775) = 4488.
Onkelos
The length of each curtain shall be twenty-eight cubits, and the width four cubits for each curtain — one measure for all the curtains.
Ibn Ezra
"Length" — those lacking in knowledge said that the measure of twenty-eight [cubits] corresponds to the twenty-eight encampments of the moon. The correct view, however, is that there were ten curtains, in the manner of "[He who] stretches out the heavens like a curtain" (Ps. 104), and therefore the space of the Holy of Holies was a perfect cube in its reckoning.
Chizkuni
אורך היריעה האחת, “the length of each strip of cloth, etc.;” the letter א at the beginning of the word ,האחת, has the vowel patach, whereas the second time it has the vowel segol, and the third time it occurs it again has the vowel segol. When the Torah speaks of the goats’ skins, we find the same pattern. The rule is that when the letter א in the word אחת had the vowel patach, and is followed by a word with the separating cantillation mark etnachta, the next time the word אחת occurs it has the vowel segol if the cantillation marks are either zakef katan, or sof passuk.
Rabbeinu Bahya
אורך היריעה האחת שמונה ועשרים באמה, “the length of a single curtain was approximately 28 cubits.” It is common knowledge that the entire Tabernacle and its components were meant to be sort of a replica of what exists in the heavens (primarily the parts we can see). Seeing that the luminaries are fixed in the sky, and all their activities inasmuch as they have impact on our terrestrial world are decreed to occur at predetermined times, the Torah called the Tabernacle, i.e. the covering, the ceiling of the structure, by the name יריעה, “curtain.” David uses the same expression to describe the heaven in psalm 104,2 where he speaks about G’d as נוטה שמים כיריעה, “spreading the heaven like a tent (curtain).” There were a total of ten such curtains corresponding to ten different גלגלים, i.e. the seven fixed stars, plus what is known as the גלגל השכל, גלגל המקיף, and the גלגל המזלות, the domain (orbit) of ‘intelligence,’ a domain which surrounds all the planetary systems, near the domain of the sign of the zodiac. The reason that the length of each curtain was to be 28 cubits was that it was to correspond to the 28 times Solomon mentions the word עת in Kohelet chapter three. With regard to the significance of that word עת, we read in Chronicles I 12,32 that the men whom the tribe of Issachar dispatched to participate in the crowning of King David were all יודעי בינה לעתים, “conversant with the meaning of these different periods described as עת.” David himself said concerning the significance of each different time period: אברכה את ה' בכל עת, “let me bless the Lord in each one of these time periods” (Psalms 34,2). Another occasion when David mentions the word עת specifically is in Psalm 31,16 בידך עתתי, “my times are in Your hands.” Another reason for the number 28 may be connected to the lunar cycle, i.e. the number of days the moon either gains or loses size (according to our observation). Midrash Tanchuma (Terumah 9) in referring to the length of 28 cubits of each of these curtains claims that there was a basic miracle involved here as we never find curtains of this length (about 56 feet). According to Rabbi Nechemyah this was a miracle that occurred only in connection with the weaving of these special יריעות. Actually, miraculous occurrences took place not only in connection with these curtains but also in connection with the קרשים, the upright beams forming the walls of the Tabernacle.
Five curtains shall be coupled together one to another; and the other five curtains shall be coupled one to another.
verse value 5284
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 49 letters. The shortest word is "five" (חֲמֵ֣שׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·cloths" (הַיְרִיעֹ֗ת, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 610: joined, joined. The root חמש appears 2 times in this verse. 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "shall·be" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "five" (root חמש, 55x in Exodus); "woman" (root אשה, 42x in Exodus). First appearance of the root חבר ("joined") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·her·sister', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 5 words. Full calculation: חֲמֵ֣שׁ [five] (348) + הַיְרִיעֹ֗ת [the·cloths] (695) + תִּֽהְיֶ֙יןָ֙ [shall·be] (475) + חֹֽבְרֹ֔ת [joined] (610) + אִשָּׁ֖ה [woman] (306) + אֶל־אֲחֹתָ֑הּ [to·her·sister] (445) + וְחָמֵ֤שׁ [and·five] (354) + יְרִיעֹת֙ [cloths] (690) + חֹֽבְרֹ֔ת [joined] (610) + אִשָּׁ֖ה [woman] (306) + אֶל־אֲחֹתָֽהּ [to·her·sister] (445) = 5284.
Onkelos
Five curtains shall be joined one to another, and five curtains joined one to another.
Rashi
תהיין חברת SHALL JOIN TOGETHER — They sewed them together with a needle, each five separately. אשה אל אחתה ONE TO ANOTHER (lit., a woman to her sister) — This is the idiom of Biblical Hebrew — to speak thus about a thing that is of the feminine gender when it correlates it with a thing of the same kind. In the case of a thing that is masculine it uses the expression איש אל אחיו, lit., a man to his brother, as it is said, e. g. of the cherubim (Exodus 25:20) “and their faces were turned איש אל אחיו”.
Ibn Ezra
"Joined" (ḥoveret): [this may be] in the form of a descriptive adjective, or it may be in the form of a verb, meaning: this [set] is joined to this [set]. The proof is [the word] ḥavur in "Ephraim is joined (ḥavur) to idols, let him alone" (Hos. 4:17), which is a passive form.
Sforno
חמש היריעות תהיין חוברות, the decorative weaving patterns of these curtains should match each curtain to its counterpart. This was the difference between the curtains covering the sanctuary and those covering the Holy of Holies. Even though in both instances, the presence of such angel-like shapes woven into the material of the curtains, suggested an extra terrestrial dimension, there was a difference between the way these figures were woven into the five curtains covering the Holy of Holies and the patterns woven into the curtains covering the sanctuary. The difference alluded to the different degree of sanctity of these two sections of the Tabernacle. [I do not know the author’s source for this assertion. Possibly, he derives this from the apparently unnecessary repetition of the words חמש היריעות and חמש יריעות without the prefix letter ה the second time. Ed.]
Chizkuni
חוברות אשה אל אחותה, “shall be joined to one another.” According to Rashi, the “joining” is done my means of needle and thread (not clasps or loops). It was not practical to make these coverings out of a single piece of cloth.
Rashbam
חוברות, joined to one another with needle and thread.
And you shall make loops of blue upon the edge of the one curtain that is outmost in the first set; and likewise shall you make in the edge of the curtain that is outmost in the second set.
verse value 8154
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 72 letters. The shortest word is "upon" (עַ֣ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·outermost" (הַקִּ֣יצוֹנָ֔ה, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 300: the·cloth, the·cloth. The root עשה appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "upon" (root על, 114x in Exodus); "one" (root אחד, 95x in Exodus). First appearance of the root ללאת ("loops") in Exodus. First appearance of the root חברת ("in·the·drapery") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·drapery', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 7 words.
Onkelos
And you shall make loops of blue on the edge of the one curtain at the joining side, and likewise you shall make on the edge of the curtain on the side of the second joining.
Rashi
ללאת are lacels in old French Similarly Onkelos translates it by ענובין, which has the meaning of “looping.” מקצה בחברת FROM THE EXTREMITY IN THE JOINING — i. e. the loops shall be made on that curtain which is the last in the section. The combination of five curtains is here termed חוברת. וכן תעשה בשפת היריעה הקיצונה במחברה השנית— AND LIKEWISE SHALT THOU MAKE IN THE OUTERMOST EDGE OF ANOTHER CURTAIN IN THE JOINING OF THE SECOND — i. e. on that curtain which is the end-most — קיצונה is connected in meaning with קצה, end; — it is as much as to say: “at the end of the section.”
Ibn Ezra
"Loops" (lela'ot): some say it is analogous to "and they would go up by winding stairs to the middle [story]" (I Kgs. 6:8), where the beit is a prepositional particle [and the lamed in lela'ot is similarly prepositional]. "Outermost" (ha-qitsonah): a descriptive adjective, like "the uppermost" (ha-elyonah).
Chizkuni
ועשית לולאות תכלת, you shall make loops of blue wool; G-d commanded that these carpet like coverings be made of two sections in order not to make it too heave and cumbersome to handle. The same method was followed with the carpets made of goats’ hair.
Rashbam
מקצה בחוברת, at the edge of the fifth curtain.
Targum Yonatan
And thou shalt make loops of hyacinth upon the edge of one curtain at the side in the place of coupling, and so shalt thou do in the edge of the second curtain in the place of conjoinment.
Fifty loops shall you make in the one curtain, and fifty loops shall you make in the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be opposite one to another.
verse value 8199
Insights
Verse structure: 17 words, 81 letters. The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֖ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "in·the·cloth" (בַּיְרִיעָ֣ה, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 775: make, make. The root ללאת appears 3 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "which" (root אשר, 245x in Exodus); "one" (root אחד, 95x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'second', dividing the verse into phrases of 13 and 4 words.
Onkelos
Fifty loops you shall make on the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make on the edge of the curtain that is at the side of the second joining — the loops corresponding one opposite the other.
Rashi
מקבילת הללאת אשה אל אחתה — Be careful that you make the loops (place them on the curtains) to one measurement: that the spaces between one loop and the other be exactly the same, and further, as their measurement is on the one so shall it be on the other, so that when you lay out one section next to the other the loops of the one shall come exactly opposite those of the other. That is what is meant by the expression מקבילות, viz., “one opposite the other”. In the Targum the translation of נֶגֶד “opposite” is לקבל (hence the term מקבילות from קבל). The curtains were twenty-eight cubits long and four cubits wide, so when they joined five curtains together along their lengths it followed that their width was twenty cubits. The same was the case with the other section. The Tabernacle was thirty cubits in length from East to West, for it is said, (Exodus 36:23) “twenty boards for the south side (which was the long side of the Tabernacle) southward,” and the same is stated with reference to the north side; and as each board was one cubit and a half in breadth you have thirty cubits from East to West. The width of the Tabernacle from North to South was ten cubits, for it is said, (Exodus 36:27, 28) “and for the side of the dwelling westward he made six boards … and two boards … for the corners of the dwelling,” so you have ten cubits (this appears to give a breadth of twelve cubits, but each of the corner boards stood partly behind the thickness of the adjoining board that stood at right angles with it, and as the thickness was one cubit it took off a cubit on each side from the inside measurement). — I shall explain these verses each on its place. — They spread the curtains with their length over the breadth of the Tabernacle, whereby the ten middle cubits served as a roofing for the inside over the width of the Tabernacle and a cubit on each side of these ten cubits went to cover the thickness of the boards which were one cubit thick, so that there remained altogether sixteen cubits — eight hanging over on the north side and eight on the south side, covering the vertical boards which were ten cubits in height; consequently the two lowest cubits of the boards were left showing. The breadth of the curtains after having been joined together was forty cubits, twenty cubits for each section. Thirty cubits of these served as a roofing for the inside of the Tabernacle over its length, and one cubit for the thickness of the tops of the boards of the westside and one more cubit to cover the thickness of the columns in the east side — for there were no boards in the east side but there were five columns on the hooks of which the screen was spread and hung as a kind of curtain (cf. Exodus 27:10). Thus there remained eight cubits which hung on the back of the Tabernacle on the west side, leaving the two lowest cubits showing. This I have found in the Boraitha מ"ט מדות. But in Treatise Shabbat 98b it is stated that the curtains did not cover the thickness of th...
Ibn Ezra
"Fifty" — here Scripture states the number of the loops. The word "corresponding" (meqabilot): [meaning] this [set] facing this [set]. Some say it is analogous to "and they struck him before the people" (II Kgs. 15:10) and "and his battering-rams struck against it" (Ezek. 26:9), with the sense of facing and meeting. The explanation of [the word] 'ishah is [that it denotes] the very thing itself — and likewise 'ish [denotes] the thing itself — hence [the phrase] "the man Gabriel" (Dan. 9:21).
Chizkuni
חמשים לולאות, fifty loops. The total amount of space for these 50 loops was three and a half cubits. How is this arrived at? When you allow a half cubit of air space to separate the 49 airspaces needed to separate one loop from the next, this amounts to twenty four and a half cubits. This leaves three and a half cubits for the boards to complete the 28 cubits in length occupied by them when fastened to one another snugly by the bolts we shall hear about still. Seeing that the eleven carpets made of goats’ hair were a total of thirty cubits in length, you were left with five and a half cubits for the loops, as those were thicker than the loops made of a mixture of wool and linen as described for the previous carpets. [There the Torah had specified that the loops were of the same materials as the carpets; seeing that for the goats’ wool carpets the material for the loops is not specified it is logical that these too were made of the same material as the carpets that they were meant to join. Ed.] מקבילות הלולאות, “the loops shall be opposite one another;” this is the way Rashi understands it and he is supported by the text of the Torah. The Torah writes in verse 33: ונתת את הפרכת תחת הקרסים, “you are to place (hang) the dividing curtain under the clasps;” if we follow the text of the Baraitha, the position of the dividing curtain was about one cubit beyond (westward) of these clasps. Some commentators explain and answer the difficulty in that Baraitha by saying that the pillars supporting the dividing curtain were attached to the end of the twentieth cubit of the length (interior) of the sanctuary part, as opposed to the Holy of Holies part of the Tabernacle. The dividing curtain hung facing the eastern entrance of the Tabernacle. In this way it was beneath the 50 golden clasps described as connecting the primarily blue woolen carpets. The curtain at the eastern entrance of the Tabernacle called מסך, was similarly suspended in a manner that its thickness completed the twenty cubit long sanctuary part of the Tabernacle. According to the Talmud, Shabbat folio 98, where it is stated that none of the carpets covered the pillars at the eastern end of the Tabernacle, the dividing curtain would have been hung towards the western part of the Sanctuary, or Holy of Holies respectively.
And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains one to another with the clasps, that the tabernacle may be one whole.
verse value 4897 — וְהָיָ֥ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 57 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 4897 = 59 × 83. The shortest word is "gold" (זָהָ֑ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·cloths" (אֶת־הַיְרִיעֹ֜ת, 8 letters). The root קרס appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "gold" (root זהב, 105x in Exodus). First appearance of the root קרס ("clasps·of") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'gold', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 8 words. Full calculation: וְעָשִׂ֕יתָ [and·make] (786) + חֲמִשִּׁ֖ים [fifty] (398) + קַרְסֵ֣י [clasps·of] (370) + זָהָ֑ב [gold] (14) + וְחִבַּרְתָּ֨ [and·couple] (616) + אֶת־הַיְרִיעֹ֜ת [the·cloths] (1096) + אִשָּׁ֤ה [woman] (306) + אֶל־אֲחֹתָהּ֙ [to·her·sister] (445) + בַּקְּרָסִ֔ים [with·the·clasps] (412) + וְהָיָ֥ה [and·it·shall·be] (26) + הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן [Tabernacle] (415) + אֶחָֽד [one] (13) = 4897.
Onkelos
And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and you shall join the curtains one to another with the clasps, so that the Tabernacle shall be one.
Rashi
קרסי זהב CATCHES OF GOLD — Fermels in old French They put one end of them into the loops on one section and the other end into the loops on the other section and they thus joined them (these sections) together by means of them.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make clasps" (qarsei): analogous to "Bel crouches (kara'), Nebo stoops (qores)" (Isa. 46:1). Now the ten curtains constitute the Mishkan, and Scripture calls the Mishkan "one" (eḥad) — a designation encompassing all of them, for no single entity is truly one thing; it is composed of individual units. Likewise, Hashem the Glorious, Who is One, encompasses all — and is called One. So too the lesser world [man] and the greater world [the universe].
Sforno
והיה המשכן אחד. Even though the respective level of sanctity of the two parts of the structure was not uniform, what they had in common was that both reflected the fact that the will of their Creator had been carried out. It reminds us of Isaiah describing different groups of angels calling to each other in mutual encouragement to proclaim the Holiness of G’d (Isaiah 6,3).
Rashbam
וחברת, by means of hooks and loops you will join these two sections containing 5 curtains each. והיה המשכן אחד. The ten curtains which together are called משכן now became one, i.e. entitled to that description.
And you shall make curtains of goats' hair for a tent over the tabernacle; eleven curtains shall you make them.
verse value 5445
Insights
Verse structure: 9 words, 45 letters. The shortest word is "them" (אֹתָֽם, 3 letters) and the longest is "eleven" (עַשְׁתֵּי־עֶשְׂרֵ֥ה, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 690: cloths, cloths. The root עשה appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "over·the·Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus); "for·the·tent·of" (root אהל, 56x in Exodus). First appearance of the root עשתי ("eleven") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'over·the·Tabernacle', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְעָשִׂ֙יתָ֙ [and·make] (786) + יְרִיעֹ֣ת [cloths] (690) + עִזִּ֔ים [goats] (127) + לְאֹ֖הֶל [for·the·tent·of] (66) + עַל־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֑ן [over·the·Tabernacle] (515) + עַשְׁתֵּי־עֶשְׂרֵ֥ה [eleven] (1355) + יְרִיעֹ֖ת [cloths] (690) + תַּעֲשֶׂ֥ה [you·shall·make] (775) + אֹתָֽם [them] (441) = 5445.
Onkelos
And you shall make curtains of goat hair for a covering over the Tabernacle — eleven curtains you shall make them.
Rashi
יריעת עזים CURTAINS OF עזים — i. e. GOATS HAIR (cf. Rashi on Exodus 25:4). לאהל על המשכן TO BE A COVERING UPON THE DWELLING — i. e. to spread them over the lower curtains (over those which had been already placed over the Tabernacle).
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make curtains of goats' [hair] for the tent" — to serve as a tent [covering]. The word "them" (otam) is an added clarification, since it refers back to the curtains of goats' [hair].
Sforno
לאהל על המשכן. The purpose of what was called משכן had not been to serve as a tent, but to assure that the cherubs would be surrounding the Shechinah.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ועשית יריעות עזים לאהל על המשכן, “and you are to construct curtains of goats’ hair above the Mishkan.” The Torah had first commanded: “construct the Tabernacle out of ten curtains of twisted linen and blue and red-colored wool.” Concerning these curtains the Torah instructed that they were to be approximately 28 cubits long each. Now with the curtains made of goats’ hair, the instructions were that they were to be approximately 30 cubits long each. There were to be 10 curtains called משכן, whereas this second layer of curtains consisted of a total of 11. I will now give you an explanation of a general nature: Remember that the Tabernacle was 30 cubits long and 10 cubits wide. Its height was also 10 cubits. We know that it was 30 cubits long as in connection with the upright beams, קרשים, which formed the walls, the Torah wrote that 20 such beams be constructed for the wall for the south side (verse 18). Each beam was 11/2 cubits wide (verse 16) and its height was 10 cubits (verse 16). There were 20 such beams for the north wall and 20 for the south wall. The combined width of these 20 beams was 30 cubits, giving the Tabernacle an overall length of 30 cubits. We know that the Tabernacle’s width was 10 cubits as the Torah writes (verse 22) that for the back of the Tabernacle 6 beams were to be constructed. Add to this the fact that the Torah describes the western wall as comprising 8 beams (verse 25), plus the fact that two beams had been constructed to form the corners (verse 23) and you know that the two corner beams were positioned so that their width was facing west whereas their thickness was facing north and south respectively making the outside width of the Tabernacle 12 cubits. In other words, the inside measurement of the Tabernacle was 30 by 10, whereas the outside measurement was 31 by 12 cubits. Onkelos translates the word ולירכתי, in verse 22 as ולסיפי, “and for the end of.” The reason he does so is that the western wall is the “end” of a process which began in the east, with the pillars and the curtain at the entrance to the Tabernacle. There were no beams at the eastern end of the Tabernacle. The five pillars which supported the מסך, “screening curtain,” formed the entrance to the Tabernacle on the eastern side (compare verse 36). It is well to remember that the length of the various curtains mentioned by the Torah was placed across the top of the Tabernacle. This meant that if the beams were ten cubits high and the width of the Tabernacle from the outside was 12 cubits (the inside being ten cubits), the 28 cubits of the inner curtains most certainly did not extend all the way down the beams, not even to the level of the silver sockets the beams were encased in. Approximately 2 cubits of the lower ends of the beams including the sockets remained exposed after the inner curtains which had been joined together were placed across the top of these beams. This explains why a second set of curtains made from goats’ hair was necessary in order to cover the one cubit left exposed on each side above the silver sockets of the beams. Our sages (quoted by Rashi) used the fact that the lower cubit of the beams remained exposed as a lesson in good manners. The costly curtains were not to touch the earth and become soiled. The elevation would protect them also against being splashed by raindrops, etc. Seeing that the materials used for the second layer of curtains was less expensive, it did not matter that these would be more exposed to dirt and splashing by rain drops. There were a total of eleven curtains of those made of goats’ hair. When the Torah comments that there was an ”overhang” (verse 23) on either side of the curtains of one cubit on either side after they had been stretched out, this means in the direction of north and south. The “overhang” was relative, i.e. it covered areas previously left exposed by the curtains made of blue and red wool and twisted linen. The curtains did not drag on the ground, as did the ones trailing down on the western side of the Tabernacle. When verse 9 speaks of “the sixth” curtain being “folded over,” the reference is to the sixth out of the eleven goats’ hair curtains which had been joined together in two lots, one of five and one of six curtains joined lengthwise side by side to cover a total area of 30 by 44 cubits. The so-called sixth, is really the “eleventh.” It was called “sixth” as it is the last of the second carpet formed by five and six curtains respectively. Half of that curtain was folded over at the entrance of the Tabernacle covering the upper cubit of the מסך, “screening curtain,” there. Our sages described this as a sign of chastity comparable to the bride who veils her face under the wedding canopy. The other half of that curtain which was also excess was at the western end extending 2 cubits on the ground like the train of a bridal gown.
The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the breadth of each curtain four cubits; the eleven curtains shall have one measure.
verse value 5447
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 64 letters. Verse gematria: 5447 = 13 × 419. The shortest word is "length" (אֹ֣רֶךְ, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·cloth" (הַיְרִיעָ֣ה, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 414: one, one. The root יריעה appears 3 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "one" (root אחד, 95x in Exodus); "by·the·cubit" (root אמה, 66x in Exodus); "four" (root ארבע, 47x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'one', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 5 words.
Onkelos
The length of each curtain shall be thirty cubits, and the width four cubits for each curtain — one measure for the eleven curtains.
Rashi
שלשים באמה [THE LENGTH OF ONE CURTAIN SHALL BE] THIRTY CUBITS — so that when they place them with their length over the breadth of the Tabernacle in the same way as they put the first curtains (the length of which was 28 cubits) it follows that they are in excess by one cubit on this side and one cubit on that side, thus covering one of the two cubits of the boards left showing. The lowest cubit of the boards which no curtain covered was that cubit which was inserted in the hole of the socket, for the sockets themselves were one cubit high.
Ibn Ezra
"Length of each" (ha-'aḥat): the word "each" ('aḥat) is anomalous, for it ought to have been 'aḥadat, since the dalet is not one of the servile letters. But because two letters of the same articulation — dalet and tav — came together [at the end of the word], it became heavy on the tongue, as in "she was serving the king" (I Kgs. 1:15) [mesharetah et ha-melekh, where a similar phonetic shift occurred], and so the dalet was dropped.
And you shall couple five curtains by themselves, and six curtains by themselves, and shall double over the sixth curtain in the forefront of the tent.
verse value 6374 — לְבָ֔ד = 36 (double-Chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 63 letters. Notable word values: "by·themselves" (לְבָ֔ד) = 36, double chai. Verse gematria: 6374 = 2 × 3187. The shortest word is "by·themselves" (לְבָ֔ד, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·cloth" (אֶת־הַיְרִיעָ֣ה, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 695: the·cloths, the·cloths. 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·fold" (וְכָפַלְתָּ֙), "the·cloth" (אֶת־הַיְרִיעָ֣ה), "the·sixth" (הַשִּׁשִּׁ֔ית). The root יריעה appears 3 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "face" (root פנים, 116x in Exodus); "and·six" (root שש, 58x in Exodus); "the·tent" (root אהל, 56x in Exodus). First appearance of the root כפל ("and·fold") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'by·themselves', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 6 words. Full calculation: וְחִבַּרְתָּ֞ [and·join] (616) + אֶת־חֲמֵ֤שׁ [five] (749) + הַיְרִיעֹת֙ [the·cloths] (695) + לְבָ֔ד [by·themselves] (36) + וְאֶת־שֵׁ֥שׁ [and·six] (1007) + הַיְרִיעֹ֖ת [the·cloths] (695) + לְבָ֑ד [by·themselves] (36) + וְכָפַלְתָּ֙ [and·fold] (536) + אֶת־הַיְרִיעָ֣ה [the·cloth] (701) + הַשִּׁשִּׁ֔ית [the·sixth] (1015) + אֶל־מ֖וּל [to·the·front·of] (107) + פְּנֵ֥י [face] (140) + הָאֹֽהֶל [the·tent] (41) = 6374.
Onkelos
And you shall join five curtains by themselves and six curtains by themselves, and you shall fold over the sixth curtain opposite the front face of the Tabernacle.
Rashi
וכפלת את היריעה הששית AND THOU SHALT DOUBLE THE SIXTH CURTAIN which was additional in these upper curtains over and above the lower curtains, אל מול פני האהל OPPOSITE THE FRONT OF THE TENT; half of its breadth (two cubits) hung down, being doubled, over the screen which was on the east side before the entrance, whereby the Tabernacle gained the appearance of a modest bride who has her face covered by a veil.
Ibn Ezra
"Five" (ḥamesh): [vocalized] with a sheva and a pataḥ, the shorter form, like "three se'ah [of fine flour]" (Gen. 18:6). Now when the sixth curtain was folded back, half of it remained at the front — therefore it is written "the half of the curtain that remains over" (v. 12). There is no need to state the length of the curtains as matching the width of the Tabernacle: the width of the Tabernacle was ten cubits, and nine cubits was the height of each of the two sides of the Tabernacle — therefore it is written "a cubit on each side" (v. 13), to cover the Tabernacle.
Sforno
וחברת את חמש היריעות לבד, even within the Tabernacle there was a difference between levels of sanctity. It is reminiscent of what David said in Psalms 19,5 where the subjects are the different planetary forces and their orbits, each of them closer or further from the center, the sun. All of them represent forces created by G’d to help run an orderly universe, and all of them, in David’s own words, proclaim G’d’s handiwork; yet at the end, David reminds us that G’d appointed the sun as a “tent” to “cover” them all, i.e. their diversity.
Chizkuni
וכפלת את היריעה השישית, “you are to fold over the sixth carpet;” when the word כפל occurs without further adjective, it means: “double.” This is what Rashi meant when he wrote: “half its width was hanging and was folded over the curtain at the eastern entrance.”
Rashbam
וכפלת את היריעה השישית, so that half of it would be hanging down from the top facing the tent, whereas the other half would be trailing down behind the Tabernacle (on the ground) to a length of 2 cubits. (the overall length of the Tabernacle was 30 cubits, its height 10 cubits. The curtains under discussion were 4 cubits wide and 30 cubits long. This gives us a total area of 44 square cubits. Draping the curtains across the structure meant that the thirty cubits reached exactly down to the silver socket of the upright beams. Seeing that the entrance to the Tabernacle would not be covered, the length of the joined curtains really needed to total only 40 cubits. By allowing 2 cubits to hang down at the entrance, only 2 cubits were left to trail on the ground behind the structure (I condensed what the author explains. Ed.)
And you shall make fifty loops on the edge of the one curtain that is outmost in the first set, and fifty loops upon the edge of the curtain which is outmost in the second set.
verse value 7536
Insights
Verse structure: 16 words, 71 letters. The shortest word is "upon" (עַ֣ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·cloth" (הַיְרִיעָה֙, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 780: edge, edge. The root חמש appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "upon" (root על, 114x in Exodus); "one" (root אחד, 95x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'in·the·drapery', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 7 words.
Onkelos
And you shall make fifty loops on the edge of the one curtain at the joining side, and fifty loops on the edge of the curtain at the side of the second joining.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make" — the number of loops of the tent curtains matches the number of loops of the Tabernacle curtains, and likewise the clasps. However, the loops of the tent and its clasps were not directly opposite the loops of the Tabernacle and its clasps; rather, they were set behind them, toward the western side, by two cubits.
Targum Yonatan
And thou shalt make fifty loops upon the edge of one curtain at the side of the place of coupling; and fifty loops in the edge of the second curtain at the place of coupling.
And you shall make fifty clasps of brass, and put the clasps into the loops, and couple the tent together, that it may be one.
verse value 5102 — וְהָיָ֥ה = 26 (Hashem)
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 54 letters. Notable word values: "and·it·shall·be" (וְהָיָ֥ה) = 26, the value of the divine name Hashem. Verse gematria: 5102 = 2 × 2551. The shortest word is "one" (אֶחָֽד, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·clasps" (אֶת־הַקְּרָסִים֙, 8 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "the·clasps" (אֶת־הַקְּרָסִים֙), "in·the·loops" (בַּלֻּ֣לָאֹ֔ת). The root קרס appears 2 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "and·it·shall·be" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "and·you·shall·bring·in" (root בוא, 124x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'fifty', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְעָשִׂ֛יתָ [and·you·shall·make] (786) + קַרְסֵ֥י [clasps·of] (370) + נְחֹ֖שֶׁת [bronze] (758) + חֲמִשִּׁ֑ים [fifty] (398) + וְהֵבֵאתָ֤ [and·you·shall·bring·in] (414) + אֶת־הַקְּרָסִים֙ [the·clasps] (816) + בַּלֻּ֣לָאֹ֔ת [in·the·loops] (463) + וְחִבַּרְתָּ֥ [and·you·shall·couple] (616) + אֶת־הָאֹ֖הֶל [the·tent] (442) + וְהָיָ֥ה [and·it·shall·be] (26) + אֶחָֽד [one] (13) = 5102.
Onkelos
And you shall make fifty clasps of copper, and you shall insert the clasps into the loops, and you shall join the Tabernacle so that it shall be one.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make" — the clasps of the Tabernacle [were made of] gold, since it is the more honored [material]. The tent, however, serves as a covering; therefore its clasps are of bronze and they are not visible, for the two covers are on top of the tent.
And as for the overhanging part that remains of the curtains of the tent, the half curtain that remains over shall hang over the back of the tabernacle.
verse value 3535
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 47 letters. The shortest word is "upon" (עַ֖ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "of·the·cloths·of" (בִּירִיעֹ֖ת, 6 letters). 5 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·the·excess·of" (וְסֶ֙רַח֙), "the·overlapping" (הָעֹדֵ֔ף), "of·the·cloths·of" (בִּירִיעֹ֖ת). The root סרח appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "upon" (root על, 114x in Exodus); "Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus); "the·tent" (root אהל, 56x in Exodus). First appearance of the root סרח ("and·the·excess·of") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·tent', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 7 words. Full calculation: וְסֶ֙רַח֙ [and·the·excess·of] (274) + הָעֹדֵ֔ף [the·overlapping] (159) + בִּירִיעֹ֖ת [of·the·cloths·of] (692) + הָאֹ֑הֶל [the·tent] (41) + חֲצִ֤י [half] (108) + הַיְרִיעָה֙ [the·cloth] (300) + הָעֹדֶ֔פֶת [the·extra] (559) + תִּסְרַ֕ח [overhang] (668) + עַ֖ל [upon] (100) + אֲחֹרֵ֥י [behind] (219) + הַמִּשְׁכָּֽן [Tabernacle] (415) = 3535.
Onkelos
And the excess that remains of the tent curtains — the half curtain that remains shall hang over the back of the Tabernacle.
Rashi
וסרח העדף ביריעת האהל AND THE SURPLUS OF THE CURTAINS OF THE TENT over and above the lower curtains of the Tabernacle [SHALL HANG OVER etc.]. “The curtains of the אהל” were the upper ones made of goats’ hair which Scripture calls אהל, as it states about them, (v. 7) “they shall be an אהל over the dwelling.” The word אהל used in connection with them means only a covering (the word has not its usual meaning of “tent“) because they formed a cover and a screen over the lower ones. They exceeded the lower ones by one half curtain on the west side. For the other half of the eleventh curtain which was in excess of the number of the lower ones was folded over to hang in front of the tent (the Tabernacle) (cf. v. 9). There therefore remained two cubits, — the breadth of the half of it — in excess of the width of the lower curtains (it is this which is here described as חצי היריעה העדפת “the half curtain that exceeded”). תסרח על אחרי המשכן SHALL HANG OVER THE BACK OF THE TABERNACLE — to cover the two cubits of the boards that were left bare. אחרי המשכן THE BACK OF THE TABERNACLE — i. e. the west side. This is called “the back” because the entrance was on the east side which was therefore its front. The north and the south are accordingly called the “sides” in the right and the left directions.
Ibn Ezra
"And the overhang" (ve-saraḥ): there is a half that is approximate in meaning, as in "and the half-tribe of Manasseh" (Josh. 22:9). Through the account of the boards you will understand the need to elaborate on this.
Chizkuni
תסרח על אחורי המשכן, “it will overlap the rear end of the Tabernacle.” Rashi explains that it was necessary because the lowest 2 boards at the Western side of Tabernacle which had been left exposed.” Actually, there were no 2 cubits exposed, as the lowest cubit had been inserted into the silver sockets of the Tabernacle. This is in accordance with the view expressed in the Baraitha. However, according to the opinion we quoted from the Talmud, exposed parts of the boards on the outside of the Western wall of The Tabernacle had been covered by the curtains so that only the sockets had remained exposed and needed to be covered. All the scholars are agreed however, that the carpets made of goats’ hair covered the outside of the Tabernacle all the way to the ground. This was necessary already for the sake of the honour of the Presence of the Lord in the Tabernacle. The sockets of the Tabernacle to the south and the north remained exposed. Rabbi Yishmael, quoted by the Talmud, compared the Tabernacle to an elegant lady, walking in the marketplace and the train of her dress dragging behind her on the ground. If she were truly elegant, she would make sure that that train is either held up by a servant, or somehow tied to her dress so that it will not be dirtied being dragged along a dusty street. It is reasonable to assume that the corners of the curtains were attached to the fabric in a way preventing them from trailing on the ground.
And the cubit on the one side, and the cubit on the other side, of that which remains over in the length of the curtains of the tent, shall hang over the sides of the tabernacle on this side and on that side, to cover it.
verse value 2877
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 63 letters. The shortest word is "on·the·one·side" (מִזֶּ֜ה, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·the·cubit" (וְהָאַמָּ֨ה, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 57: and·the·cubit, and·the·cubit. 4 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "the·extra" (בָּעֹדֵ֔ף), "hanging" (סָר֜וּחַ), "on·the·sides·of" (עַל־צִדֵּ֧י). The root מזה appears 4 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "shall·be" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "and·the·cubit" (root אמה, 66x in Exodus); "Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·tent', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 7 words.
Onkelos
And a cubit on this side and a cubit on that side of what remains in the length of the tent curtains shall hang over the sides of the Tabernacle, on this side and on that side, to cover it.
Rashi
והאמה מזה והאמה מזה AND A CUBIT ON THE ONE SIDE AND A CUBIT ON THE OTHER SIDE — i. e. on the north and on the south, בעדף בארך יריעת האהל OF THE SURPLUS OF THE LENGTH OF THE CURTAINS OF THE TABERNACLE — i. e. which were in excess over the curtains of “the Tabernacle” (the woollen ones) by two cubits, יהיה מרוח על צדי המשכן SHALL HANG OVER THE SIDES OF THE TABERNACLE — on the north and on the south as I have explained above. The Torah here teaches you a rule of life — that a man should take care of his artistic objects (this the Torah does by commanding that the beautiful lower curtains should be protected by coarse upper ones) (Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 422).
Ibn Ezra
"And the cubit, of the surplus" (ba-'odef): [the word 'odef is] like 'oved ["lost/passing"], and it is a descriptive adjective [participle], since it bears a [milra'] accent on the final syllable.
Rashbam
והאמה מזה, whereas the silver sockets along the sides of the Tabernacle were left exposed by the inner curtains, they were covered by the outer curtains, these being 2 cubits longer than the inner curtains. This is the reference to the “extra cubit on either side” in our verse.
And you shall make a covering for the tent of rams' skins dyed red and a covering of tachash skins above.
verse value 3637
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 45 letters. Verse gematria: 3637 is prime. The shortest word is "skins" (עֹרֹ֥ת, 3 letters) and the longest is "dyed·red" (מְאׇדָּמִ֑ים, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 670: skins, skins. The root מכסה appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "rams" (root איל, 73x in Exodus); "for·the·tent" (root אהל, 56x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'dyed·red', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְעָשִׂ֤יתָ [and·you·shall·make] (786) + מִכְסֶה֙ [a·covering] (125) + לָאֹ֔הֶל [for·the·tent] (66) + עֹרֹ֥ת [skins] (670) + אֵילִ֖ם [rams] (81) + מְאׇדָּמִ֑ים [dyed·red] (135) + וּמִכְסֵ֛ה [and·a·covering·of] (131) + עֹרֹ֥ת [skins] (670) + תְּחָשִׁ֖ים [tachash] (758) + מִלְמָֽעְלָה [on·top] (215) = 3637.
Onkelos
And you shall make a covering for the tent of reddened rams' skins, and a covering of tachash skins above.
Rashi
מכסה לאהל [AND THOU SHALT MAKE] A COVERING FOR THE אהל — For that roofing of goats’ hair (which is termed אהל in this section) make still another covering of rams’ skins dyed red, and above this also a covering of Tachash skins. These uppermost covers however covered the roof only (were not hanging over the sides), their length being 30 cubits and their width 10. This is the opinion of R. Nehemia (that the goats’ skins and the layer of rams’ and Tachash skins formed two different covers one above the other); according to R. Jehudah, however, there was only one cover, half of it being of rams’ skins dyed red and half of it of Tachash skins (cf. Shabbat 28a).
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make a covering" — a covering upon [the outer] covering, on account of the rain.
Rashbam
ומכסה עורות תחשים מלמעלה, above the skins made into coverings out of ram skins dyed red. This is the plain meaning of the text, and at least one opinion expressed in the Talmud agrees with this. (Shabbat 28)
And you shall make the boards for the tabernacle of acacia-wood, standing up.
verse value 2975
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 30 letters. The shortest word is "wood" (עֲצֵ֥י, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·planks" (אֶת־הַקְּרָשִׁ֖ים, 8 letters). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus); "the·planks" (root קרש, 44x in Exodus). First appearance of the root קרש ("the·planks") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Tabernacle', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְעָשִׂ֥יתָ [and·you·shall·make] (786) + אֶת־הַקְּרָשִׁ֖ים [the·planks] (1056) + לַמִּשְׁכָּ֑ן [Tabernacle] (440) + עֲצֵ֥י [wood] (170) + שִׁטִּ֖ים [acacia] (359) + עֹמְדִֽים [upright] (164) = 2975.
Onkelos
And you shall make the planks for the Tabernacle of acacia wood, standing upright.
Rashi
ועשית את הקרשים AND THOU SHALT MAKE THE BOARDS — It should be said: “Thou shalt make boards” (without the definite article), the same form which is used of each of the other things (parts of the Tabernacle)! What is the force of the term, “the boards?” It speaks of those boards that already existed as being designated for that purpose. For our father Jacob had planted cedars (shittim-trees) in Egypt and when he died be bade his sons carry them up with them when they would leave Egypt. He told them that God would once command them to erect a dwelling of shittim-trees in the wilderness. “See” — added he — “that they be ready in your possession!” (cf. Rashi on Exodus 25:5). That is what the Babylonian embodied in his liturgical composition: The plant of those who had been admonished by their father Jacob grew up rapidly to become the cedars for the beams of our House (the Tabernacle), which refers to the fact that they had been admonished that they (the cedars) should be ready in their possession in advance (before they were needed). עצי שטים עמדים OF SHITTIM-WOOD STANDING UP — Estantivs in old French; Engl, perpendicular. — This means that the length of the boards shall be placed perpendicular in the walls of the Tabernacle and that you shall not make the walls of the boards placed horizontally so that the breadth of the boards should be along the height of the walls, one board upon the other.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make" — the Tabernacle consists of nothing other than the curtains and the boards; and having described the Tabernacle [curtains], He likewise describes the boards. The word "standing" ('omdim): [this refers to the boards] as trees stand by nature, for the length [of a tree] is its height, just as a person when standing [is measured by height] — the opposite of when he lies down. Or, the word "standing" refers to [the boards being set at] right angles [to the ground].
Sforno
עצי שטים עומדים. Not arranged horizontally as such boards are normally arranged in buildings of a secular nature.
Or HaChaim
ועשית את הקרשים למשכן. "You shall construct the boards for the Tabernacle." The word למשכן indicates that only the coverings qualified for the term "Tabernacle," not the boards supporting the tent. עצי שטים עומדים, "of acacia wood, standing up." Our sages in Yuma 72 say that they were standing up the way they grew. Apparently they derived this from the fact that the Torah did not write the word עומדים prior to the words "acacia wood" but afterwards. Alternatively, the word עומדים, "standing up" could have been written after the word למשכן. Had the Torah written the word in that order I would have considered it as part of the directive, i.e. that these boards were not to be used lying down. As it is, the word only describes the condition of the boards, i.e. that they were in the same position as when they still grew in the earth. The moral-ethical significance of the word קרשים becomes evident if one transposes two letters of the word so that it reads קשרים, "forming connections." By means of these boards the celestial forces and the terrestrial forces were to unite. The need for them to be ten cubits high alludes to the number ten which is essential whenever matters of sanctity are at issue. When the Torah requires that the width of these boards be one and a half cubits, this is an allusion to the way we celebrate the redemption from Egypt by eating both a whole מצה and a half מצה; the former symbolises freedom, the latter slavery. This is the mystical dimension of the letter ה and the letter ד. Passover reminds us of both our status as slaves and our new-found status as free men. The total number of boards, i.e. 48, alludes to the mystical dimension of Isaiah 54,12: ושמתי כדכד שמשותיך, "I will make your "windows" [inlets for spiritual input from the celestial spheres, Ed.] of rubies." The word כדכד=48. The mystical meaning of the sockets, i.e. אדנים, is self-explanatory by the fact that their very name alludes to G'd the Master. Perhaps we can best phrase this as "when The Master (G'd) is your foundation (read socket), then the Tabernacle has a chance to fulfil its purpose." The reason that these sockets number 100 is that the square root of 100 is ten, and we have already mentioned that the number 10 appears whenever spiritual values are involved. The number 100 is also the tenth in a graduated levels of "steps" in Kabbalistic literature.
Chizkuni
עצי שטים עומדים, “made of acacia wood, upright.” The reason why he Torah added the word: “upright,” was to forbid planks that had already fallen off the tree after the branch having been sawed off. This comes to teach you that it is proper to build a building only from wood that came from a tree that did not produce any fruit.
Rabbeinu Bahya
ועשית את הקרשים, “you are to construct the beams, etc.” The Torah really should have written ועשית קרשים, “you are to construct beams,” just as the Torah had written ועשית יריעות, not היריעות. The letter ה in front of the word קרשים, suggesting that we had heard about these beams previously seems quite unjustified. Our sages therefore found support in the letter ה for the tradition that Yaakov had already brought acacia trees to Egypt with him and had told his sons to take the trunks with them out of Egypt when the time would come as they would be needed by the Israelites in the desert. עצי שטים עומדים, “of acacia wood standing upright.” According to the plain meaning of the text the word עומדים, “upright,” indicates that contrary to common practice these beams were to be used in the same way they had grown, facing upwards, not like boards which are usually used horizontally. A Midrashic approach (based on Tanchuma Terumah 9): the word עומדים, describes a particular kind of acacia tree. There are many varieties of trees called “acacia,” so that the adjective עומדים helps in defining which sub-species of acacia wood was meant. The reason the Torah specified precisely what kind of wood to take may be connected with the sin the Israelites committed during the last year of their wanderings in a place by the same name, Shittim (Numbers 25,1). Seeing their sin was bound up with Shittim, G’d wanted that a different kind of shittim should become instrumental in their atoning for their sin. In Numbers 25,9 we have been told that no fewer than 24.000 Israelites died in a pestilence G’d sent against the people who had sinned on that occasion. The whole idea of Yaakov bringing the shittim trees to Egypt already foreshadowed the time-honored principle that G’d arranges for the cure before the onset of the disease as we know from Jeremiah 30,17: “but I will bring healing to you and cure you of your wounds.” The prophet speaks about the cure before he even spoke about any wounds which need healing. A Kabbalistic approach: the words עצי שטים עומדים parallel the words שרפים עומדים ממעל לו “Seraphim stood in attendance on Him” (Isaiah 6,2). The word עומדים was mentioned as an allusion to the celestial forces. There is nothing in the Tabernacle which does not somehow reflect concepts and beings of the celestial realms. To quote just a few verses from the Bible in which this thought has been expressed, even though obliquely at times. 1) (Exodus 25,9) את תבנית המשכן ואת תבנית כל כליו, “the pattern of the Tabernacle and the pattern of all its vessels.” The matching verse is found in Chronicles I 28,19 הכל בכתב מיד ה' עלי השכיל כל מלאכות התבנית, “All this the Lord has made me understand by His hand on me, the works according to all its pattern.” 2) (Chronicles I 28,12) ותבנית כל אשר היה ברוח, “and the pattern of all that he had by the spirit.” The point of all this is that although the Tabernacle, the Temple, and all the holy vessels would be destroyed or lost, we must never believe that the destruction of physical symbols meant that their counterpart in the celestial regions also ceased to exist. Rather, they remain in an upright standing position. This is the thrust of what we have been taught in Sukkah 45 and Yuma 72 that the mystical dimension of the words עצי שטים עומדים is מעמידין את צפוין, שמא תאמר אבד סברן, בטול סכוין, תלמוד לומר עצי שטים עומדים, שעומדים לעולם ולעלמי עולמים’ The meaning of the words: “upright standing acacia wood,” is that these woods lend hope and spiritual fortitude to those who look upon them. If you perchance would think that after all they have now been lost to us and just as they have been lost so has our hope faded, the Torah described them as “standing,” i.e. in the present tense, to reassure you that the concept they represent will endure forever and ever.” The word צפוין in the Talmud there means “the power which is expected of them by those looking at them with hope.” The meaning of the words מעמידין אותו הכוח is תלה גדול בקטן, “that the great was made dependent on the small,” The wood of the shittim trees held the gold overlay in place instead of vice versa.
Kli Yakar
“And you shall make the boards for the Tabernacle, etc.” The boards with the definite article [letter hei], refers to those cedar trees that Jacob planted for them in Egypt. As a sign for this matter, the boards for the Tabernacle [הקרשים למשכן] has the same numerical value as “Jacob our father planted cedars for them in Egypt” [יעקב אבינו נטע להם ארזים במצרים], as both of them equal 1,095. For Jacob said to the Holy One, Blessed be He, “How will You be appeased for the sin of the Golden Calf?” And the Holy One, Blessed be He, answered him, “With acacia wood.” And so it states in the Midrash that “acacia [shitim] wood” is to atone for the folly [shetut] of the act of the Golden Calf, and it was accepted as atonement before God. And so it concludes in Tanchuma (Terumah 10) and in the Tractate Yoma (72a), they explained the phrase standing acacia wood to mean that they stand forever. However, according to the simple meaning that Jacob prepared them for the service of the House of our God, we can say that this is why it says standing — to indicate that they should take from those acacia trees that are standing ready for this purpose, as this is the meaning of the term “standing” in many places, referring to something that is prepared and ready for that purpose. And there is an allusion in these cedars to what is said The righteous shall flourish like the palm tree; he shall grow like a cedar in Lebanon (Psalms 92:13). And since the body of the righteous is compared to this cedar, therefore the Holy One, Blessed be He, caused His Presence to dwell within partitions of cedar wood, to teach by an a fortiori argument that He dwells also among the children of Israel who are compared to cedars by the water, as it is written, And I will dwell among them — it does not say “within it” but among them, indicating that the main purpose of the Divine Presence is for the sake of Israel. And the Ba’al HaTurim explained that the 48 boards correspond to the 48 prophets and the 48 watches of priesthood and Levites, and what is their connection to the boards if not because the righteous are compared to a cedar as mentioned. Rabbi Yaakov, the author of the Ba’al HaTurim, further wrote that in this Torah portion we find the word “shittim” [acacia wood] mentioned 24 times, corresponding to the 24,000 who fell in Shittim [during the plague]. The reason for this is that wherever you find a fence against immorality, there you will find holiness. Since in Shittim they were unbridled in sexual immorality and did not remember the holiness represented by these 24 mentions of “shittim,” therefore 24,000 fell. In Parashat Balak, God willing, a precious explanation about the number 24,000 will be explained in the verse and I will happen upon [God] here, which should be sought in its place.
Rashbam
עצי שטים עומדים. They must be standing upright, not laid on top of each other.
Daat Zkenim
עצי שטים עומדים, “made of acacia wood standing upright.” One interpretation of the word עומדים, is that they were taken from trees which up to that time had been standing rooted in the earth, i.e. they had not had time to dry out or to begin to rot. An alternate explanation for the word עומדים would be that the boards remained in their prime condition forever.
Ten cubits shall be the length of a board, and a cubit and a half the breadth of each board.
verse value 2893 — הָאֶחָֽד = 18 (chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 10 words, 37 letters. Notable word values: "one" (הָאֶחָֽד) = 18, chai, 'life'. Verse gematria: 2893 = 11 × 263. The shortest word is "ten" (עֶ֥שֶׂר, 3 letters) and the longest is "cubits" (אַמּ֖וֹת, 4 letters). Words sharing gematria 605: the·plank, the·plank. The root אמה appears 3 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "one" (root אחד, 95x in Exodus); "cubits" (root אמה, 66x in Exodus); "the·plank" (root קרש, 44x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·plank', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 6 words. Full calculation: עֶ֥שֶׂר [ten] (570) + אַמּ֖וֹת [cubits] (447) + אֹ֣רֶךְ [length] (221) + הַקָּ֑רֶשׁ [the·plank] (605) + וְאַמָּה֙ [and·a·cubit] (52) + וַחֲצִ֣י [and·a·half] (114) + הָֽאַמָּ֔ה [the·cubit] (51) + רֹ֖חַב [breadth] (210) + הַקֶּ֥רֶשׁ [the·plank] (605) + הָאֶחָֽד [one] (18) = 2893.
Onkelos
Ten cubits shall be the length of each plank, and a cubit and a half cubit the width of each plank.
Rashi
עשר אמות ארך הקדש TEN CUBITS SHALL BE THE LENGTH OF A BOARD — This tells us that the height of the Tabernacle was ten cubits (since the boards were standing vertically). ואמה וחצי האמה רחב AND A CUBIT AND A HALF SHALL BE THE BREADTH — This teaches us that the length of the Tabernacle corresponding to the twenty boards which were on the north and on the south was 30 cubits from east to west.
Ibn Ezra
"Ten cubits" — we do not know whether the cubits of the Tabernacle are equivalent to the cubits of Ezekiel, which are measured from the armpit [to the fingertip]; but by reasonable inference, the cubits of the First Temple were the same [as those of the Tabernacle], since we find the word "last measure" written in Chronicles.
Two tenons shall there be in each board, joined one to another; thus shall you make for all the boards of the tabernacle.
verse value 5251 — הָאֶחָ֔ד = 18 (chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 47 letters. Notable word values: "one" (הָאֶחָ֔ד) = 18, chai, 'life'. Verse gematria: 5251 = 59 × 89. The shortest word is "so" (כֵּ֣ן, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·its·sister" (אֶל־אֲחֹתָ֑הּ, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "tenons" (יָד֗וֹת). The root קרש appears 2 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "to·all" (root כל, 121x in Exodus); "two" (root שנים, 101x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'to·its·sister', dividing the verse into phrases of 7 and 5 words. Full calculation: שְׁתֵּ֣י [two] (710) + יָד֗וֹת [tenons] (420) + לַקֶּ֙רֶשׁ֙ [for·the·plank] (630) + הָאֶחָ֔ד [one] (18) + מְשֻׁ֨לָּבֹ֔ת [interlocked] (772) + אִשָּׁ֖ה [one] (306) + אֶל־אֲחֹתָ֑הּ [to·its·sister] (445) + כֵּ֣ן [so] (70) + תַּעֲשֶׂ֔ה [make] (775) + לְכֹ֖ל [to·all] (80) + קַרְשֵׁ֥י [the·planks·of] (610) + הַמִּשְׁכָּֽן [Tabernacle] (415) = 5251.
Onkelos
Two tenons for each plank, fitted one opposite the other — so you shall make for all the planks of the Tabernacle.
Rashi
שתי ידות לקרש האחד TWO TENONS THERE SHALL BE IN ONE BOARD — They cut out the lower part of the boards in the middle to a height of one cubit leaving one fourth of its width on the one side and one fourth of it on the other side. These pieces on each side of the boards were the ידות, the tenons. Thus the part cut out was one half of the breadth of the board (¾ cubit) in its centre. Now these tenons they fixed into the sockets which were made hollow. The sockets were one cubit in height and they lay in a line forty of them, one close against the other. The tenons of the boards that were fixed into the sockets were then cut away on three sides, the depth of the portions thus cut away being equal to the thickness of the rim of the sockets, so that when the boards were fixed in the sockets the wood of the board would cover the entire top of the socket. For if this were not so (if the tenons were not cut away on their outside edge) there would have been a space between one board and the next equal to the thickness of the rims of two sockets which would have separated them. That is what is meant when it says, (v. 24) “and they shall be coupled together beneath” — that they should cut away the sides of the tenons in order that the boards should join closely one to the other. משלבת means made like the rungs (שליבה) of a ladder and separated from each other and planed at their ends in order that they could be inserted into the hollow of the sockets like a rung which is fixed in the hole in the ladder’s uprights. אשה אל אחתה ONE TO THE OTHER — i. e. the tenons should correspond exactly one to the other; the meaning is that the portions cut away from the fronts and backs shall be precisely equal, one portion cut away having the same measurement as another portion cut away in order that of two tenons one should not diverge from a straight line towards the front and the other diverge towards the outside (the back) in reference to the thickness of the board which was one cubit. The Targum renders ידות by צירין, pivots, because they resembled, in one respect, the pivots of a door which are inserted in the hole in the threshold.
Ramban
TWO TENONS SHALL THERE BE IN EACH BOARD. Rashi wrote: “He cut out the lower part of the board in the middle to a height of one cubit, and he left one quarter of its width on the one side and one quarter of it on the other side. These [pieces on each side] are the yadoth (the tenons). The part cut out between the tenons was one half of the breadth of the board, and these tenons they fixed into the sockets which were hollowed out. The sockets were one cubit in height, forty of them fitting closely one to the other. The tenons of the boards which were fixed into the sockets were cut away on three sides, the width of the portions cut away being equal to the thickness of the rim of the sockets, so that when the boards [were fitted into the sockets, the wood of the board] would cover the entire top of the socket. For if this were not so [if the same thickness were not cut away from the tenons], there would have been a space between one board and the other equal to the thickness of the rims of the two sockets which would have separated them. This is what is meant when it is said, And they shall be coupled together beneath, meaning, that they should cut away the sides of the tenons so that the boards should fit closely one to the other.” So I found the language of the Rabbi. But I wonder! If the part cut away in the middle was half of the breadth of the board [as Rashi has it] — measuring four and a half handbreadths — it follows that the thickness of the rim of each socket must be the same as a fourth of the breadth of the board, which is two handbreadths and a thumb, in order that the thickness [of the rims] of the two sockets should cover the part cut away in the middle, which is half of the breadth of the board, and thus there would be no space between one socket and the other. But if so, if you cut away the boards on three sides in that way, there would be nothing left [for the tenons], since the rims of the sockets were alike on all sides! Moreover, the Rabbi [Rashi] brought proof further on in Verse 20, stating: “Thus it is taught in the Mishnah of ‘The structure of the Tabernacle:' The order of arranging the boards for making the Tabernacle was as follows: He made the sockets hollow and cut away from the board at the bottom a quarter of its width on one side and a quarter on the other, and the cut-away portion in the middle totalled one half of its width. Thus they made for each board two tenons like two rungs of a ladder, and these they fixed into the two sockets.” But if one takes this Beraitha too in its ordinary sense, it would result in something exceedingly astonishing. For if he cuts away from the board a quarter on each side, and in the middle he cuts away half of the breadth of the board, then the whole bottom part [to the height of a cubit] is cut away, and nothing is left of it at all [to serve as a tenon]! In my opinion, however, this Beraitha did not specify the size of the amount cut away, since the Torah also gave no measurement...
Ibn Ezra
"Two tenons" (yedot): from the root yad [hand]. "Parallel" (meshullabot): this [word] has no sibling [i.e., is nearly unique], except for "between the panels" (bein ha-shlabim) (I Kgs. 7:29).
Chizkuni
.שתי ידוה לקרש אחד, “two square pegs, rung like, for each plank.” Each peg was indented from all four sides so that the “lips” of the plank could fit over each side and be level front and back. When Rashi wrote (on Shabbat 98) that the pegs were cut out on three sides, he meant that these cut outs faced front and two sides of the next adjoining plank, the one in the middle not being called a “cut out of the peg,” but “a cut out of the plank.” אשה אל אחותה, parallel to one another. Rashi understands this as applying to the thickness of each plank which was one cubit (60 cm. approx). He arrived at this conclusion by basing himself on the two planks at the northwestern end of the Holy of Holies and the southwestern corner. [If his opinion would not be correct, we could not account for the measurements given by the Torah for the overall length and width of the Tabernacle. Ed.]
Tur HaArokh
שתי ידות לקרש האחד, “two tenons per beam.” Nachmanides, in commenting on the baraitha (Shabbat 98) quoted by Rashi, according to which each of these tenons had been left exposed after a quarter of its width had been removed on either side, so that the combined width of the two parallel tenons would be zero, and there would not have remained any part of the tenon to insert into the silver sockets. one cannot understand the baraitha at face value. There was no specific measurement prescribed for the lowest cubit of the beams to be made to fit into the silver sockets. The meaning of the word רביע in the baraitha, is that enough of the sides of both tenons had to be shaved off to enable them to fit inside the silver sockets, but at the same time forming a continuous line, flush with the outside of these sockets. The same amount of wood had to be shaved off in between the two tenons, seeing that each beam was fitted into two sockets. Personally, I think that apart from the baraitha, there is no problem, seeing that the words רביע מכאן ורביע מכאן, “a quarter from one side and a quarter from the other side,” do not refer to the thickness of the beams, but to the thickness of the hollow walls of the silver sockets. Seeing that the thickness of these was minimal, the baraitha describes this as רביע to describe an insignificant amount. משלבות אשה אל אחותה, “parallel to one another.” Rashi explains that the two tenons at the bottom of each beam were parallel and matching one another, the Torah mentioning that they were not one protruding further than the other from their respective outer parameters, i.e 6x9. tefachim. Nachmanides explains the word שליבה, as “projection,” as the tenons of the rungs of the ladder which fit into the mortise of the sides of the ladder’s frame. The adjoining beam would have a similarly shaped projection so that they could dovetail into one another and make a solid joint. Each beam at the top would have two such projections.
Rashbam
שתי ידות לקרש האחד, the boards were incised in the bottom cubit in order to accommodate the hollow dual sockets that these tenons would fit into. משולבות, parallel to one another. There were also incisions around the bottom cubit of each board.
And you shall make the boards for the tabernacle, twenty boards for the south side southward:
verse value 4578
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 39 letters. The shortest word is "planks" (קֶ֔רֶשׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·planks" (אֶת־הַקְּרָשִׁ֖ים, 8 letters). The root קרש appears 2 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus); "the·planks" (root קרש, 44x in Exodus). First appearance of the root נגב ("southward") in Exodus. First appearance of the root תימן ("south") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Tabernacle', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְעָשִׂ֥יתָ [and·you·shall·make] (786) + אֶת־הַקְּרָשִׁ֖ים [the·planks] (1056) + לַמִּשְׁכָּ֑ן [Tabernacle] (440) + עֶשְׂרִ֣ים [twenty] (620) + קֶ֔רֶשׁ [planks] (600) + לִפְאַ֖ת [for·the·side] (511) + נֶ֥גְבָּה [southward] (60) + תֵימָֽנָה [south] (505) = 4578.
Onkelos
And you shall make the planks for the Tabernacle: twenty planks for the south side.
Rashi
לפאת נגבה תימנה ON THE SOUTH SIDE SOUTHWARD — The word פאה here has not the meaning of “corner” (as e. g., Leviticus 19:9, פאת שדך) but the whole side is called פאה, as the Targum has it: לרוח עבר דרומא.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make" — the thickness of the board is nowhere stated. The early authorities said it was one cubit; if so, the southern wall was thirty cubits [long], and likewise the northern, while the western wall had a width of only eight cubits — meaning eight boards must be placed there, perhaps requiring one cubit [of thickness per board]. The thickness being one cubit is [consistent] with the middle bar entering inside the board. In the view of our master Solomon [Rashi], [the boards] stood by miracle, for on the plain meaning three bars on each side would be the middle bars, and so it is written "from end to end" — not "to the ends" [in the plural]. If it is an oral tradition that the thickness was as stated, we accept it. If it is a matter of reasoning, there is another resolution: the two bars are the upper ones, as well as the lower ones, running to mid-wall; while the middle bar inserted within the boards runs from end to end. A parallel [for 'within'] is "within the blue and within the purple" (below, 39:3), and likewise "the bells within the pomegranates" (ibid., v. 25). Were it not so, the middle bars would not have been overlaid with gold. And if we say we do not know the thickness of the board, we must still determine how the western side was arranged. At the outset the western side was set in place, for the two boards that are at the corners of the Tabernacle — meaning the angles, as with "the corner of the court" — were like a rectangular [corner formation]. We thus have corners, and these two corner boards alone are not of the same dimensions as the other boards mentioned, which is why Scripture distinguishes them, saying: "so shall it be for both of them" — not [like] the other boards. And with these two boards the Tabernacle is erected, while the six boards [stand] in the middle; the width of the Tabernacle [on the western side] is ten cubits. We do not know whether the corner boards were square or rounded, since we have only one cubit [to account for them]. According to the view of our master Solomon [Rashi], these corner boards would not stand in an even row: half a cubit would be [set] inside, for it is a board and not a cloth. Then the boards of the north and south would be placed, and they would project beyond the Tabernacle by the thickness of the board — thereby aligning with the post of the entrance to the Tabernacle. And the arrangement would be completed by half the curtains of goats' [hair].
And you shall make forty sockets of silver under the twenty boards: two sockets under one board for its two tenons, and two sockets under another board for its two tenons;
verse value 9500 — הָאֶחָד֙ = 18 (chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 87 letters. Notable word values: "one" (הָאֶחָד֙) = 18, chai, 'life'. The shortest word is "under" (תַּ֖חַת, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·forty" (וְאַרְבָּעִים֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 1413: under·the·plank, under·the·plank. The root שנים appears 4 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "two" (root שנים, 101x in Exodus); "its·tenons" (root יד, 100x in Exodus). First appearance of the root אדן ("sockets") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·plank', dividing the verse into phrases of 6 and 12 words.
Onkelos
And forty silver sockets you shall make beneath the twenty planks — two sockets beneath each plank for its two tenons, and two sockets beneath each plank for its two tenons.
Chizkuni
שני אדנם תחת הקרש האחד, “two sockets under one (each) plank.” The dimensions of each of these sockets were one cubit in length matching the thickness of each plank and their width was three quarters of a cubit so that two together were the width of each plank, one and a half cubits. Each socket was hollowed out so that it could accommodate the pegs described in detail above. The author proceeds to give further details which in the absence of an illustration are not easy for the reader to follow. [This editor hopes to supply illustrations at the end of the last volume of this Torah commentary. Ed.] There is no unanimity on some of these details, but seeing that regardless of whose opinion is right there will not be another Tabernacle in the future, the dispute will never be resolved satisfactorily.
and for the second side of the tabernacle, on the north side, twenty boards.
verse value 3363
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 31 letters. The shortest word is "planks" (קָֽרֶשׁ, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·for·the·side·of" (וּלְצֶ֧לַע, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 226: and·for·the·side·of, north. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus); "second" (root שני, 52x in Exodus); "planks" (root קרש, 44x in Exodus). First appearance of the root צפון ("north") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'north', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 2 words. Full calculation: וּלְצֶ֧לַע [and·for·the·side·of] (226) + הַמִּשְׁכָּ֛ן [Tabernacle] (415) + הַשֵּׁנִ֖ית [second] (765) + לִפְאַ֣ת [for·the·side] (511) + צָפ֑וֹן [north] (226) + עֶשְׂרִ֖ים [twenty] (620) + קָֽרֶשׁ [planks] (600) = 3363.
Onkelos
And for the second side of the Tabernacle, on the north side — twenty planks.
And for the hinder part of the tabernacle westward you shall make six boards.
verse value 3176
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 27 letters. The shortest word is "westward" (יָ֑מָּה, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·for·the·rear·of" (וּֽלְיַרְכְּתֵ֥י, 7 letters). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus); "six" (root שש, 58x in Exodus). First appearance of the root ירכה ("and·for·the·rear·of") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'westward', dividing the verse into phrases of 3 and 3 words. Full calculation: וּֽלְיַרְכְּתֵ֥י [and·for·the·rear·of] (676) + הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן [Tabernacle] (415) + יָ֑מָּה [westward] (55) + תַּעֲשֶׂ֖ה [make] (775) + שִׁשָּׁ֥ה [six] (605) + קְרָשִֽׁים [planks] (650) = 3176.
Onkelos
And for the rear of the Tabernacle to the west you shall make six planks.
Rashi
ולירכתי AND FOR THE BACKPART — This is a term for “end”, as the Targum renders it, ולסיפי, “for the ends.” Because the entrance was on the east the east-side is called the front and the west-side the back. And this is why it is described here by a word denoting end, because the front is the head (the beginning) of a thing. תעשה ששה קרשים THOU SHALT MAKE SIX BOARDS — thus you have 9 cubits in the breadth.
Rashbam
ולירכתי המשכן תעשה ששה קרשים. Seeing that each board was one and a half cubits wide, this would cover nine cubits in width. This left one half cubit at the north west corner and at the south west corner unaccounted for, seeing the width of the Tabernacle was ten cubits. The area left exposed would be taken up by the boards arranged in the east-westerly (long) sides of the Tabernacle, the last half cubit of each filling these two voids. This left the inside dimensions of the Tabernacle ten cubits wide with the problematic corners being enclosed in the manner we described. The view from the outside of the Tabernacle would show 90 degree corners without any indentations whatsoever.
And two boards shall you make for the corners of the tabernacle in the hinder part.
verse value 3618
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 31 letters. The shortest word is "and·two" (וּשְׁנֵ֤י, 4 letters) and the longest is "in·the·rear" (בַּיַּרְכָתָֽיִם, 7 letters). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "and·two" (root שנים, 101x in Exodus); "Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'Tabernacle', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 1 words. Full calculation: וּשְׁנֵ֤י [and·two] (366) + קְרָשִׁים֙ [planks] (650) + תַּעֲשֶׂ֔ה [make] (775) + לִמְקֻצְעֹ֖ת [for·the·corners] (730) + הַמִּשְׁכָּ֑ן [Tabernacle] (415) + בַּיַּרְכָתָֽיִם [in·the·rear] (682) = 3618.
Onkelos
And two planks you shall make for the corners of the Tabernacle at the rear.
Rashi
ושני קרשים תעשה למקצעת AND TWO BOARDS SHALT THOU MAKE FOR THE CORNERS — one for the north-west corner and one for the south-west corner. All the eight boards were set in a row, only that the entire width of these two did not show in the interior of the Tabernacle, but only a half cubit on the one side and a half cubit on the other side could be seen in the interior, thus making up the breadth to ten cubits. The remaining cubit of one board and the remaining cubit of the other board came against the cubit thickness of the boards of the Tabernacle on the north and the south sides, so that the outside should be even.
And they shall be double beneath, and in like manner they shall be complete to the top of it to the first ring; thus shall it be for them both; they shall be for the two corners.
verse value 4396
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 70 letters. The shortest word is "so" (כֵּ֚ן, 2 letters) and the longest is "to·the·ring" (אֶל־הַטַּבַּ֖עַת, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 31: they·shall·be, they·shall·be. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "matched" (תֹֽאֲמִם֮). The root היה appears 4 times in this verse. 11 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·they·shall·be" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "for·both·of·them" (root שנים, 101x in Exodus); "one" (root אחד, 95x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'one', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 6 words.
Onkelos
And they shall be aligned from below, and together they shall be aligned at its top to one ring — so shall it be for both of them; they shall be for the two corners.
Rashi
ויהיו AND THEY SHALL BE — all the boards shall be —תאמים COUPLED TOGETHER with each other, מלמטה BENEATH, so that the thickness of the edges of two adjacent sockets should not form a space between them, keeping them apart. That is what I meant when I explained (v. 17) that the pivot-like tenons of a board should be cut away on all sides, in order that the breadth of the board shall project at the sides beyond the tenons of the boards that it may cover the rim of the socket. In like manner was the adjacent board treated. The result was that they coupled together (stood one close against the other). Each end-board in the western row was cut away along its width into its thickness over against the portion cut away from the adjacent boards of the northern and southern wall, so that the sockets standing between should not part them (the end-board and that standing next to it on the north side or south side). ויחדו יהיו תמים AND THEY SHALL BE COUPLED TOGETHER — תמים has the same meaning here as תאמים in the phrase immedialely preceding. על ראשו ABOVE THE HEAD OF IT — i. e. of each board. אל הטבעת האחת INTO ONE RING — Each board had on the top two semi-circular incisions, one on each end of its breadth, tallying with the thickness of the ring which was to be inserted into it. They passed it (the board) into the same ring into which the next board had been passed (see illustration); Thus it (one board) joined close to the board next to it. I do not know however whether these rings were fixed to the boards or whether they were loose (not screwed down). In the case of the end-board the ring was inserted into the incisions made in the thickness of the north and south board respectively, and the top of the board which was in the west row adjacent to it was passed into it also. Thus the two pairs of walls (the western with the southern and northern respectively) were held together. כן יהיה לשניהם THUS SHALL IT BE FOR THEM BOTH — for the two end-boards; e. g., for the board at the end of the north side and for the adjacent board in the western wall; and thus shall it be at both corners.
Ramban
AND THEY SHALL BE COUPLED TOGETHER ABOVE THE HEAD OF IT UNTO THE ONE RING. According to Rashi’s interpretation this verse goes back to explain that all the boards should be coupled together beneath, where the boards were cut away on their sides, and they all should be coupled together about the head of it, meaning “of each board.” Or it may be that rosho (the head of it) refers to the top of the Tabernacle. Similarly, [according to Rashi] the expression unto the one ring means of each of the boards. Likewise he explained, thus shall it be for them both, for the two end boards [for the board at the end of the north side and for the adjacent board in the western wall].But if this is so, I do not know why Scripture does not explicitly tell us about these rings, saying “and you shall make twenty gold rings” [instead of saying, unto the one ring, which means of each board], seeing that it mentions the cut which he is to make in all the boards. Moreover, how could Scripture say unto the one ring with the definite article [when it has not mentioned it previously]? Perhaps because it is the customary manner with all houses made of boards to attach them at the top with one ring, Scripture shortened the explanation and said the ring — meaning the one which is known to him and customary. Similarly it said of the bars, and thou shalt make their rings of gold for places for the bolts, which means the customary [rings] being known to them. A similar case is the expression, their hooks shall be of gold. I have found in the Beraitha on the work of the Tabernacle [the following text]: “He cut away the board at the top, a fingerbreadth on one side and a fingerbreadth on the other side, and he placed them [i.e., the two adjacent boards] inside one gold ring in order that they should not move apart from each other, for it is said, And they shall be coupled together beneath, and they shall be coupled together above the head of it unto the one ring. Now it need not have said, unto the one ring; and what does it teach us by saying it? It is to teach us that this is the place where the bolts were inserted.” Accordingly, the verse stating: and they shall be coupled together above the head of it, refers to the head of the board where it was cut away until the place of the upper ring of the bolts, for the incision in the board was to extend as far as the place of the ring. Now Scripture was not particular [concerning these upper parts of the boards] how they should be attached, whether with rings of silver or gold, fixed ones or moveable, or with connecting rods. But the Beraitha states that Moses made rings for that purpose. However, in line with the plain meaning of Scripture this verse refers only to the endboards.
Sforno
אל הטבעת האחת, to the ring at the thickest point of the board forming the corner post. [we referred to this in verse 23 where these two boards are described as serving with one cubit in a westerly direction, completing the length of the structure and with the half cubit constituting its thickness closing the gap left on either side of the six boards forming the western wall of the Tabernacle. (compare Rash’bam there) Ed.] The bolts (bars) running alongside the walls were also inserted both in the lower level and the higher level (above the center bar) through the rings attached to these corner boards at the south-west and south-east of the Tabernacle respectively, ensuring that the structure was solid.
Chizkuni
ויהיו תואמים מלמטה, “they shall be matching at the bottom” Rashi writes as follows on this phrase; “all the planks shall be flush at the bottom, so that the thickness of the edges of the two sockets should not form a gap to distance them from one another” (the planks). The corner planks of the southwestern part of the Tabernacle as well as the one at the northeastern corner had to be worked in such a way that they did not protrude into the interior space of the Tabernacle. According to our author, the words: “northern and southern,” belong further down in his commentary, and he meant to say that the top of the corner plank in the western row was inserted into the ring. When Rashi wrote that the ring was in the thickness of the plank, he means: in the thickness of the western plank. When you give this some thought, you will realise that that ring was also inserted at the same time into the top of the plank at a ninety degree angle to it.אל הטבעת האחד, “into the one ring.” According to Rashi, every plank was cut away a little at the top along its width, two cuts on its two sides to contain the thickness of a ring.
Tur HaArokh
ויחדיו יהיו תמים אל ראשו, “and together shall they match at the top.” To the ring which linked two beams each together after an incision the thickness of the ring was grooved near the outer rim of each beam. Nachmanides adds that he does not understand why the Torah did not mention that there were a total number of 20 such golden rings just as there were 20 beams, and why the making of these grooves to accommodate the rings was not mentioned either. Perhaps, the expression אל הטבעת האחת, “into the one ring, with the definitive article ה in front of the word טבעת, ring, is a reference to the accepted method of builders to fit adjoining beams with such rings. The Torah uses a similar definite article when describing the bolts, בריחים, when it speaks about הבריח התיכון, “the central bolt.” Normally, seeing that we had not heard about such a bolt before, it would not qualify for the description: “the central bold.” The fact that people were familiar with how such structures were joined together, especially, portable ones such as the Tabernacle, enabled the Torah to condense its description of the details. The baraitha in Shabbat quoted above appears to understand the rings mentioned here as the ones affixed to the sides of the beams, the ones through which the בדים, staves were inserted to insure that the beams did not move in any direction. The same applies to the manner in which the hooks of the curtains in the courtyard of the Tabernacle are described, where we also would not be able to account for the use of the definitive article ה otherwise. [compare 27,10] According to this interpretation the Torah would not have mentioned the bolts affixed to the exterior sides of the beams at all.
Thus there shall be eight boards, and their sockets of silver, sixteen sockets: two sockets under one board, and two sockets under another board.
verse value 6426 — הָאֶחָ֔ד = 18 (chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 73 letters. Notable word values: "one" (הָאֶחָ֔ד) = 18, chai, 'life'. The shortest word is "silver" (כֶּ֔סֶף, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·their·sockets" (וְאַדְנֵיהֶ֣ם, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 808: under, under. The root אדן appears 4 times in this verse. 10 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·there·shall·be" (root היה, 235x in Exodus); "two" (root שנים, 101x in Exodus); "one" (root אחד, 95x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'sockets', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 10 words.
Onkelos
And there shall be eight planks with their sockets of silver — sixteen sockets: two sockets beneath each plank, and two sockets beneath each plank.
Rashi
והיו שמנה קרשים AND THEY SHALL BE EIGHT BOARDS — These are the same boards mentioned above (vv. 22—23): “Thou shalt make six boards” … “and two boards shalt thou make for the corners”; consequently there were eight boards in the western row. The following is stated in that Mishna (paragraph) in the Boraitha dealing with “The structure of the Tabernacle” which treats of the method of arranging the boards of the Tabernacle: they made the sockets hollow, and cut away the board at the bottom, a quarter of its width being left on one side and a quarter on the other side, the portion cut away in the middle being one half its width. Thus they made for it (the board) two tenons like two חמוקין — I think the correct reading is, “like two חווקין” i. e. like two rungs of a ladder set at some distance one from the other. These were planed down so as to fix into the hollow of the socket just as a rung which is fixed into the hole in the ladder’s upright. This is the meaning of משלבות, viz., made like a rung (שליבה). They fixed them (the two tenons) into the two sockets as it says, (v. 19) “two sockets [under one board for its two tenons] and two sockets [under another board for its two tenons]”. They cut out the board at the top a finger breadth on this side and a finger breadth on that side and put them (two semicircular projecting pieces on two adjacent boards) into one golden ring in order that they (the boards) should not fall apart, as it says, “and they shall be coupled together beneath, [and they shall be coupled together above].” Thus the Mishna; its explanation I have set forth above following the order of the verses.
Rabbeinu Bahya
והיו שמונה קרשים, “there shall be eight beams, etc.” Two of the eight beams overlapped with the beams forming the long sides of the Tabernacle, one at the southern end and one at the northern end. There were therefore six beams left which formed the western wall without any part of them serving as extensions of the long walls. This is what was meant by verse 22 ולירכתי המשכן תעשה ששה קרשים, “and for the end of the Tabernacle you are to construct 6 beams. This verse reveals a mystical dimension. Seeing that the Shechinah which is situated in the west is composed of 6 extremities, the west is referred to as ים in order to allude to this fact. The west is known as ים, “ocean” because the ocean is a collection point for all the waters just as the Shechinah is a collection point for all the directions of the globe from the farthest extremities. The order of the four geographical directions of the world in the celestial entourage, מרכבה, are: the three patriarchs of the world (Avraham Yitzchak and Yaakov), and David. South ranks first as Avraham was the first of the patriarchs, and it is written of him that Avraham journeyed southwards to the land of the south (Genesis 20,1). This is followed by north, as Yitzchak made a supreme effort at the time he was bound on the altar. This is followed by east seeing it is written of Yaakov that the sun shone for him (Genesis 32,32), and his son Joseph has also been compared to the sun (Genesis 37,9). Our sages (Bereshit Rabbah 84,11) have said quoting Yaakov: “who told this one (Joseph) that my name is “sun?” West is the סוף, the end; it is the harp on which David played which used to play all by itself on occasion (Berachot 3). This direction was called ים, i.e. the sea known as ים האחרון, the westernmost sea. In order to allude to these four great men the directions of the earth have been identified with these people through their names.
And you shall make bars of acacia-wood: five for the boards of the one side of the tabernacle,
verse value 3191 — הָאֶחָֽד = 18 (chai)
Insights
Verse structure: 8 words, 38 letters. Notable word values: "one" (הָאֶחָֽד) = 18, chai, 'life'. Verse gematria: 3191 is prime. The shortest word is "wood" (עֲצֵ֣י, 3 letters) and the longest is "side·of·the·tabernacle" (צֶֽלַע־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן, 8 letters). 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "one" (root אחד, 95x in Exodus); "side·of·the·tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus). First appearance of the root בריח ("bars") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'acacia', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 4 words. Full calculation: וְעָשִׂ֥יתָ [and·you·shall·make] (786) + בְרִיחִ֖ם [bars] (260) + עֲצֵ֣י [wood] (170) + שִׁטִּ֑ים [acacia] (359) + חֲמִשָּׁ֕ה [five] (353) + לְקַרְשֵׁ֥י [for·the·planks·of] (640) + צֶֽלַע־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן [side·of·the·tabernacle] (605) + הָאֶחָֽד [one] (18) = 3191.
Onkelos
And you shall make crossbars of acacia wood — five for the planks of the one side of the Tabernacle.
Rashi
בריחים are BOLTS, as the Targum translates it: עברין; in old French esparres. חמשה לקרשי צלע המשכן FIVE FOR THE BOARDS OF THE ONE SIDE OF THE TABERNACLE — The five were really only three, but the upper and the lower bolts were each composed of two pieces, the one reaching to the middle of the wall from one side and the other reaching to the middle of the wall from the other side, the one passing through the outermost ring from one side and the other passing through the outermost ring from the other side, until, passing through all the intermediate rings, they met one against each other. Thus the upper and lower bolts were two which were made up of four. As to the middle bolt its length was equal to that of the entire wall passing from one end of the wall to the other end, for it is said, “And the middle bolt etc. shall reach from extremity to extremity.” This was therefore in one piece, and so we have the five of which this passage speaks. For the upper and lower bolts had rings on the boards into which were to be inserted two rings for each board. The bolts were משלשים i. e. placed at three equidistant points along the ten cubits that formed the height of the board, thus dividing the height into four equal portions, — one portion extending from the upper ring to the top of the board, another from the lower ring to the bottom, each portion being a quarter of the board’s height, and the other two portions were between the rings (from one ring to the central bolt and from there to the other ring). This was done in order that all the rings in one row should be exactly opposite one another so that the bolt could be easily inserted. The middle bolt, however, had no rings, but the) wards were grooved right through their thickness and it (the middle bolt) passed through them by way of these grooves which were exactly opposite one another (all in one straight line). This is the meaning of what is stated, “[and the middle bolt] in the midst of the boards.” The upper two and the lower two bolts on the north and south side were each 15 cubits long, whilst the middle bolt was 30 cubits long. That is what Scripture means by saying of this bolt that it shall reach “from extremity to extremity” — from east to west. Of the five bolts on the west side the length of the two upper and the two lower ones was each six cubits whilst the middle one hade its length twelve cubits corresponding to the aggregate width of the eight boards (each of which was one cubit and a half). This is how it is explained in the Boraitha treating of the construction of the Tabernacle.
Chizkuni
ועשית בריחים, “you shall make bolts;” according to Rashi, these bolts were to be attached to the outside of the planks in three rows spread over the height of ten cubits which was their height. Seeing that the Torah had spoken of 5 plus five plus five bolts, Rashi means that they were not each as long as the entire combined length of the planks in each direction, but were inserted through the rings holding the bolts from each end, being 15 cubits long each. There were therefore 4 bolts along the upper half of the long wall, and 4 bolts along the lower part of that wall, and 4 bolts along the western wall (which was 12 cubits wide on the outside.) The bolt in the middle, described as הבריח התיכון, “the bolt running centrally all around was long enough to traverse the holes drilled in each plank so that it could go in at the eastern end of the northern wall and come out at the eastern end of the southern wall, (describing a u shaped path.) Since the latter was about 70 cubits plus long, it was equivalent to three of the other bolts. We have examples of how to fasten sections of parchment to one another in a Torah scroll, where the length of the section from top to bottom is sewn at intervals of approximately one third from the top three times, or when the land of Israel is divided into three parts for the purpose of where to position the cities of refuge for people who had killed unintentionally and were afraid of a family member of the deceased wishing to kill him as an act of retribution. (Compare Talmud, Megillah folio 19, or Makkot 9)
Rashbam
בריחים חמשה, there would be five rings attached to each of the boards (planks) from the outside in order to slip the bolts or bars through them. In addition, in order to accommodate the בריח התיכון, the central bolt, each plank had to be hollowed where the hole was drilled to insert the central bolt therein.. As a result of all this the silver sockets at the bottom, the outside and interior bolts higher up and the clasps joining the planks together at the top, made for a solid structure once it had been assembled. According to the plain meaning of the text there were actually three bolts which qualify for the description בריח התיכון, “the central bolt.” One of them ran from north to south, and the other two ran from east to west parallel to each other on the two long walls of the Tabernacle. Seen in such a way, the Tabernacle was kept solid by the manner in which the corner planks were fitted to each other. This was achieved by the fact that the central bolts entered holes drilled from two directions in these two corner planks. According to the view of our sages (Shabbat 98) there was only one “central” bolt, and it described two turns when negotiating the two 90 degree turns at the northwest and southwest corners of the structure.
and five bars for the boards of the other side of the tabernacle, and five bars for the boards of the side of the tabernacle, for the hinder part westward;
verse value 5258
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 61 letters. The shortest word is "side" (צֶ֣לַע, 3 letters) and the longest is "side·of·the·tabernacle" (צֶֽלַע־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן, 8 letters). Words sharing gematria 640: for·the·planks·of, for·the·planks·of. The root חמש appears 2 times in this verse. 8 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "side·of·the·tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus); "and·five" (root חמש, 55x in Exodus); "second" (root שני, 52x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'second', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 7 words. Full calculation: וַחֲמִשָּׁ֣ה [and·five] (359) + בְרִיחִ֔ם [bars] (260) + לְקַרְשֵׁ֥י [for·the·planks·of] (640) + צֶֽלַע־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֖ן [side·of·the·tabernacle] (605) + הַשֵּׁנִ֑ית [second] (765) + וַחֲמִשָּׁ֣ה [and·five] (359) + בְרִיחִ֗ם [bars] (260) + לְקַרְשֵׁי֙ [for·the·planks·of] (640) + צֶ֣לַע [side] (190) + הַמִּשְׁכָּ֔ן [Tabernacle] (415) + לַיַּרְכָתַ֖יִם [for·the·rear] (710) + יָֽמָּה [westward] (55) = 5258.
Onkelos
And five crossbars for the planks of the second side of the Tabernacle, and five crossbars for the planks of the rear side of the Tabernacle to the west.
and the middle bar in the midst of the boards, which shall pass through from end to end.
verse value 2570
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 37 letters. The shortest word is "in·the·midst·of" (בְּת֣וֹךְ, 4 letters) and the longest is "and·the·bar" (וְהַבְּרִ֥יחַ, 6 letters). Words sharing gematria 231: and·the·bar, to·end. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·the·bar" (וְהַבְּרִ֥יחַ), "passing·through" (מַבְרִ֕חַ). The root קצה appears 2 times in this verse. 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "the·planks" (root קרש, 44x in Exodus); "in·the·midst·of" (root תוך, 32x in Exodus); "from·one·end" (root קצה, 30x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·planks', dividing the verse into phrases of 4 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְהַבְּרִ֥יחַ [and·the·bar] (231) + הַתִּיכֹ֖ן [middle] (485) + בְּת֣וֹךְ [in·the·midst·of] (428) + הַקְּרָשִׁ֑ים [the·planks] (655) + מַבְרִ֕חַ [passing·through] (250) + מִן־הַקָּצֶ֖ה [from·one·end] (290) + אֶל־הַקָּצֶֽה [to·end] (231) = 2570.
Onkelos
And the middle crossbar, within the planks, shall pass from end to end.
Chizkuni
בתוך הקרשים, within the planks. Seeing that the other bolts were fastened to the golden outside of the planks and therefore were visible to the eye, the centre bolt which was fastened to the wood underneath the golden overlay, and therefore invisible to the naked eye, was described as “inside the planks.”
Rabbeinu Bahya
והבריח התיכון בתוך הקרשים מן הקצה אל הקצה, “and the middle bar inside the beams shall extend from end to end.” Rashi explains on this verse that five of the bars were on the northern wall, five on the southern wall, and five on the western wall. These “five” were in reality only three, as the upper and lower bars respectively consisted of two bars each (on the same level), whereas the middle one was a single bar joining all the beams on its respective side. It was thirty cubits long. This is the meaning of the words: “from one end to the other end.” The western wall’s middle bar then was 12 cubits long, from east to west. [Our version of Rashi differs from that quoted by the author. Ed.] According to Shabbat 98 the middle bar stood miraculously. Tosafot on that folio say that the middle bar extended through all three directions, i.e. one bar which made two 90 degree turns and must have been 70 cubits long. The two corner beams which overlapped detracted from what otherwise would have been 72 cubits. It is well to remember that this middle bar which joined every one of the beams to one another in the manner of a belt symbolized the קו האמצעי, the “center line” we have often mentioned as part of the diagram of the ten emanations. In this instance it stabilized and supported all the extremities of the Tabernacle providing input from earth into the celestial Sanctuary by symbolizing the spiritual force generated on earth by Yaakov and his 70 family members (descendants) who emigrated to Egypt. This is why it was Yaakov who was chosen (by history under G’d’s guidance) to be the one to bring all these people down to Egypt. In fact we have a Midrash Tanchuma (Terumah 9) according to which the בריח התיכון this “middle bar” descended to Egypt with Yaakov at the time. He told his sons that when the time would come to leave Egypt they should make sure to take it with them.
And you shall overlay the boards with gold, and make their rings of gold for holders for the bars; and you shall overlay the bars with gold.
verse value 5391
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 59 letters. The shortest word is "gold" (זָהָ֗ב, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·their·rings" (וְאֶת־טַבְּעֹֽתֵיהֶם֙, 10 letters). Words sharing gematria 14: gold, gold, gold. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "overlay" (תְּצַפֶּ֣ה), "and·their·rings" (וְאֶת־טַבְּעֹֽתֵיהֶם֙). The root זהב appears 3 times in this verse. 7 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "gold" (root זהב, 105x in Exodus); "holders" (root בית, 56x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'for·the·bars', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 3 words. Full calculation: וְֽאֶת־הַקְּרָשִׁ֞ים [and·the·planks] (1062) + תְּצַפֶּ֣ה [overlay] (575) + זָהָ֗ב [gold] (14) + וְאֶת־טַבְּעֹֽתֵיהֶם֙ [and·their·rings] (943) + תַּעֲשֶׂ֣ה [make] (775) + זָהָ֔ב [gold] (14) + בָּתִּ֖ים [holders] (452) + לַבְּרִיחִ֑ם [for·the·bars] (290) + וְצִפִּיתָ֥ [and·you·shall·overlay] (586) + אֶת־הַבְּרִיחִ֖ם [the·bars] (666) + זָהָֽב [gold] (14) = 5391.
Onkelos
And the planks you shall overlay with gold, and their rings you shall make of gold — holders for the crossbars — and you shall overlay the crossbars with gold.
Rashi
בתים לבריחם FOR PLACES FOR THE BOLTS — The rings which you shall make on them (the boards) shall serve as receptacles into which the bolts shall be inserted. וצפית את הבריחם זהב AND THOU SHALT OVERLAY THE BOLTS WITH GOLD —This does not mean that the gold should be attached to the bolts for there was no overlay on them, but on the boards there were fixed a kind of two gold staples something like the two longitudinal sections of a hollow cane. These were fixed close to each ring on both sides of it. The length of the two staples filled up the space along the width of the board, one extending from the ring in this direction, the other from it (the ring) again in the other direction. Thus the bolts appeared to be covered with gold when they were lying on the boards. These bolts formed a projection on the walls outside. Thus neither the rings nor the staples were visible within the interior of the Tabernacle, but the entire surface of the wall within was unbroken.
Sforno
ואת טבעותיהם, it is customary for bolts to be inserted through rings unless the Torah would explain that it was not so, as in the case of the central bolt which was not fastened to the outside of the boards at all but inside of them as explained in verse 28.
You shall erect the Tabernacle according to its ordinance, as you were shown on the mountain.
verse value 3146
Insights
Verse structure: 6 words, 29 letters. Verse gematria: 3146 = 26 × 121; 26 is the value of the divine name Hashem. The shortest word is "which" (אֲשֶׁ֥ר, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·Tabernacle" (אֶת־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֑ן, 7 letters). 3 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·set·up" (וַהֲקֵמֹתָ֖), "as·its·ordinance" (כְּמִ֨שְׁפָּט֔וֹ), "you·were·shown" (הׇרְאֵ֖יתָ). 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "which" (root אשר, 245x in Exodus); "you·were·shown" (root ראה, 89x in Exodus); "the·Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·Tabernacle', dividing the verse into phrases of 2 and 4 words. Full calculation: וַהֲקֵמֹתָ֖ [and·set·up] (551) + אֶת־הַמִּשְׁכָּ֑ן [the·Tabernacle] (816) + כְּמִ֨שְׁפָּט֔וֹ [as·its·ordinance] (455) + אֲשֶׁ֥ר [which] (501) + הׇרְאֵ֖יתָ [you·were·shown] (616) + בָּהָֽר [the·mountain] (207) = 3146.
Onkelos
And you shall erect the Tabernacle according to its ordinance, as you were shown on the mountain.
Rashi
והקמת את המשכן AND THOU SHALT SET UP THE TABERNACLE — after it is completed set it up. ... הראית בהר This must be translated: WHICH THOU WILT before then HAVE BEEN SHOWN IN THE MOUTAIN — (The verb is future perfect). For later on I shall instruct thee and show thee the way to erect it.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall erect" — [this means] that he should say so to the craftsmen of skilled heart, or, because he would be the one to erect it first, with others assisting him — for many hands are required.
Or HaChaim
והקמתה את המשכן, "And you shall erect the Tabernacle, etc." According to Rabbi Avraham ibn Ezra, Moses was to relay these instructions to the people described earlier as חכמי לב. Rabbi ibn Ezra considered the totality of the commandment to construct (and erect) the Tabernacle and concluded that just as all the directives which had been given to Moses in direct speech did not mean that Moses personally was to carry them out, so this commandment too was addressed to the people who were to perform the work of construction. I do not agree with Rabbi ibn Ezra's premise. All the directives given to Moses in direct speech meant that only he himself was to carry them out unless G'd repeated the instructions and said specifically that others should execute the directive. In those instances the reason G'd addressed Moses himself in the first instance was that inasmuch as Moses would delegate the work he himself would receive credit for it as if he himself had perfomed all the details personally. Although in our portion the directive about all the details of the building of the Tabernacle were addressed to Moses, the Torah repeats them in פרשת כי תשא when Betzalel, Oholiov, and all the חכמי לב, men of understanding heart, were put in charge of supervising the execution of all these plans. In 31,6 the Torah specifically charges these people with carrying out "all that I have commanded you (Moses)." This is the Torah's way of making clear that Moses personally was not involved in the construction of any of these parts. Seeing that G'd's instructions to Moses to erect the Tabernacle were not repeated, however, means that only he himself was charged with that task. In fact it was Moses who personally erected the Tabernacle as we know from 40,18 where the Torah reports Moses as personally erecting the Tabernacle. This is what our sages say in Shemot Rabbah 52. Any other interpretation is to be disregarded.
And you shall make a veil of blue, and purple, and scarlet, and fine twined linen; with cherubim the work of the skillful workman shall it be made.
verse value 6849
Insights
Verse structure: 13 words, 54 letters. The shortest word is "crimson" (שָׁנִ֖י, 3 letters) and the longest is "purple" (וְאַרְגָּמָ֛ן, 6 letters). 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "a·curtain" (פָרֹ֗כֶת). The root עשה appears 2 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "fine·linen" (root שש, 58x in Exodus); "crimson" (root שני, 52x in Exodus). First appearance of the root פרכת ("a·curtain") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'twisted', dividing the verse into phrases of 8 and 5 words. Full calculation: וְעָשִׂ֣יתָ [and·you·shall·make] (786) + פָרֹ֗כֶת [a·curtain] (700) + תְּכֵ֧לֶת [blue] (850) + וְאַרְגָּמָ֛ן [purple] (300) + וְתוֹלַ֥עַת [and·crimson] (912) + שָׁנִ֖י [crimson] (360) + וְשֵׁ֣שׁ [fine·linen] (606) + מׇשְׁזָ֑ר [twisted] (547) + מַעֲשֵׂ֥ה [work·of] (415) + חֹשֵׁ֛ב [designer] (310) + יַעֲשֶׂ֥ה [make] (385) + אֹתָ֖הּ [it] (406) + כְּרֻבִֽים [cherubim] (272) = 6849.
Onkelos
And you shall make a curtain-partition of blue, and purple, and crimson thread, and twisted linen — a skilled craftsman shall make it, with a design of cherubim.
Rashi
פרכת is a term denoting a partition; in the language of the Sages (in Rabbinical Hebrew) פרגוד is something which separates the king from the people (Berakhot 18b). תכלת וארגמן BLUE PURPLE, AND RED PURPLE — every material was intertwined in each strand by six threads (Yoma 71b). מעשה חשב THE WORK OF AN ARTIST — I have already explained (v. 9) that this is a weaving on the two surfaces, the designs on the two sides not being similar to one another. כרבים CHERUBIM — i. e. he shall make on it figures of different creatures.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make the parokhet" — similarly we find that Solomon made [a veil] for the entrance to the Sanctuary; perhaps the wall was of wood, since it is mentioned that the full measure of the Temple was sixty [cubits]. Rashi, z"l, explained: forty [cubits] for the Heikhal and twenty for the Devir, with silver sockets on account of the honor of the Ark. The Devir was thus twice the size of the Holy of Holies in length, width, and height. Do not be puzzled by the fact that it is written that the height of the Temple was thirty cubits, while the Devir was a third of the Temple — for there were upper chambers above the kapporet (the Ark-cover), which is [within] the Devir, and it is written in Chronicles: "and the upper chambers he overlaid with gold" (II Chr. 3:9).
Kli Yakar
And you shall make a partition curtain of blue, etc. This partition curtain that separates between the Holy and the Holy of Holies differs from the screen that separates between the Tent of Meeting and the courtyard of the Tabernacle in three ways:1. The partition curtain was a “work of a skillful workman” with cherubs, while the screen was a work of an embroiderer.2. The partition curtain was hung on four pillars, while the screen was on five pillars.3. The partition curtain was on silver sockets, while the screen was on copper sockets. This is because in the Holy of Holies, the priest was not permitted to enter except on the Day of Atonement, when Israel is compared to ministering angels called cherubs, as on that day the physical body is afflicted and it is as if it does not exist, leaving only the intellectual, thinking power which is called the work of a skillful workman. Therefore, this partition curtain was made as the work of a skillful workman with cherubim, so that whoever sees this partition would understand and realize that one has no permission to enter there except at a time when one resembles the cherubs — a work of a skillful workman [chashav, which can also mean thought]. Similarly, the angel is called clothed in linen (Ezekiel 9:3), just as the High Priest on the Day of Atonement was clothed in linen and white garments. Therefore, it was on silver sockets, because all silver is white, indicating the forgiveness of the Day of Atonement, when sins will be made as white as snow. At that time, the priest would serve wearing the four white garments mentioned in the portion of Acharei Mot. This explanation is reasonable to consider — that the appearance and features of the partition curtain indicate what it separates, for whoever sees it understands through its symbolic hints what it represents. But the screen of the Tabernacle, separates between the place of the altar which atones for every sin and transgression committed through the five senses, with the source of sin being from the primordial serpent, and between the sanctuary, the holy place. Therefore, the screen was on five pillars, with sockets of copper, and of embroidered work, corresponding to the formation of man, as it is written I was embroidered in the depths of the earth (Psalms 139:15). Thus, there are three causes for sin: First, from the side of matter that is embroidered in the depths of the earth. Second, from the counsel of the serpent. Third, from the variation in the operation of the five senses. Therefore, the design of the screen that was opposite the altar was of embroidered work, on five pillars, with sockets of copper. And whoever looks at the design of the screen will understand and know that because of sin, permission is not granted to every person to look upon the holy place, as it is said Your iniquities have been separating [between you and your God] (Isaiah 59:2). And Abarbanel explained this matter differently, as an allusion, though it is distant from the plain meaning.
Rashbam
פרכת, according to the context this was a divider between the two interior sections. מעשה חושב, the work of an artisan known as a weaver. This is similar to the word אורג in verse 27,9, which, according to Rashi, means embroiderer. The difference is that weaving is part of the cloth, whereas embroidering is decorating the cloth with pictures, etc., on top of the cloth. The work is done with a needle.
And you shall hang it upon four pillars of acacia overlaid with gold, their hooks being of gold, upon four sockets of silver.
verse value 3092
Insights
Verse structure: 11 words, 54 letters. The shortest word is "it" (אֹתָ֗הּ, 3 letters) and the longest is "upon·four" (עַל־אַרְבָּעָה֙, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 378: upon·four, upon·four. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "overlaid" (מְצֻפִּ֣ים). The root ארבע appears 2 times in this verse. 9 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·hang" (root נתן, 115x in Exodus); "gold" (root זהב, 105x in Exodus); "it" (root אתה, 52x in Exodus). First appearance of the root וו ("their·hooks") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'gold', dividing the verse into phrases of 9 and 2 words. Full calculation: וְנָתַתָּ֣ה [and·hang] (861) + אֹתָ֗הּ [it] (406) + עַל־אַרְבָּעָה֙ [upon·four] (378) + עַמּוּדֵ֣י [the·posts·of] (130) + שִׁטִּ֔ים [acacia] (359) + מְצֻפִּ֣ים [overlaid] (260) + זָהָ֔ב [gold] (14) + וָוֵיהֶ֖ם [their·hooks] (67) + זָהָ֑ב [gold] (14) + עַל־אַרְבָּעָ֖ה [upon·four] (378) + אַדְנֵי־כָֽסֶף [sockets·of·silver] (225) = 3092.
Onkelos
And you shall place it upon four pillars of acacia wood overlaid with gold, with their hooks of gold, upon four sockets of silver.
Rashi
ארבעה עמודי FOUR COLUMNS inserted into four sockets. Hooks were fixed upon them, bent upward, upon each of which to hang a pole round which the top of the partition veil was wrappped. The hooks are the ווים mentioned in the text, for they were made in the form of the letter וי"ו. The partition veil was ten cubits long corresponding to the breadth of the Tabernacle and ten cubits wide as was the height of the boards. It was hung at one-third of the length of the Tabernacle from the western side so that from it there should be inward (i. e. to that side) ten cubits and from it outward (to the entrance) twenty cubits. It follows therefore that the Holy of Holies was ten by ten cubits, and this agrees with what is said, (v. 33) “and thou shalt hang up the partition veil under the catches” that coupled the two sections of the curtaining of the Tabernacle together. For the breadth of one section was twenty cubits and when it was laid over the top of the Tabernacle from the entrance to the west, its end with the catches came at two-thirds of the length of the Tabernacle (20 cubits), exactly where we have stated that the veil was hanging. The second section covered the other third of the length of the Tabornacle (10 cubits) and what was left over (10 cubits) hung behind to cover the boards (which were 10 cubits in height; cf. Rashi on v. 5).
Chizkuni
על ארבעה עמודי שטים, “on four pillars made of acacia wood.” These pillars were freestanding, across the width of the Tabernacle they did not bother anyone seeing that only the High Priest one day of the year, the Day of Atonement would walk past them four times. The five pillars at the eastern entrance of the Tabernacle, however, were positioned differently, two each near the northern and southern side, and the fifth in the centre, so that there was plenty of room to walk on either side of the pillar in the middle, as the priests would enter and leave the Sanctuary frequently. If all these pillars had been spaced at equal distances from one another this would have been inconvenient for the priests. An alternate interpretation, (source unknown) the reason why there were only four pillars supporting the dividing curtain, whereas there were five such pillars supporting the curtain at the entrance of the Tabernacle, is that they were positioned between the planks of the Tabernacle on either side, so that these planks could be used as additional supports for the staves from which the curtain was suspended. These staves rested (also) on top of the plank to the north and south side respectively, so that actually the dividing curtain was supported by six pillars. The curtain at the entrance did not have parts of the planks supporting it. [According to the opinion that the dividing curtain was actually a double curtain so that the High Priest had to walk between it, it would have been much heavier, and therefore in need of stronger support. Ed.] The two outer pillars at the entrance, actually functioned as if an addition to the planks, but not joined to them. Our author prefers the first interpretation. Our author queries that if that interpretation were correct what was the purpose of the pillars that Rashi speaks about? The planks would have been sufficient to support the staves for the curtain.
Rashbam
וויהם, something such as a fork supported by pillars at the bottom. They were attached in such a way that the edge of the dividing curtain could be inserted in them from above.
And you shall hang the curtain under the clasps, and bring the Ark of the Testimony there, within the curtain; and the curtain shall separate for you between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies.
verse value 8533
Insights
Verse structure: 18 words, 84 letters. The shortest word is "under" (תַּ֣חַת, 3 letters) and the longest is "the·curtain" (אֶת־הַפָּרֹ֘כֶת֮, 7 letters). Words sharing gematria 62: and·shall·divide, between. 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "the·clasps" (הַקְּרָסִים֒), "and·shall·divide" (וְהִבְדִּילָ֤ה). The root פרכת appears 3 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·bring" (root בוא, 124x in Exodus); "and·hang" (root נתן, 115x in Exodus); "the·sanctuary" (root קדש, 82x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·Testimony', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 8 words.
Onkelos
And you shall place the curtain-partition beneath the clasps, and you shall bring there, within the curtain-partition, the Ark of the Testimony; and the curtain-partition shall separate for you between the Sanctuary and the Holy of Holies.
Ramban
AND THOU SHALT BRING IN THITHER WITHIN THE VEIL THE ARK OF THE TESTIMONY. He did not now command Moses to do it in this particular order, to hang up the veil under the clasps and only afterwards to bring in the ark inside the veil, for the commandment now does not refer to the erection of the Tabernacle but to the making thereof. Similarly, And thou shalt put the ark-cover upon the ark of the Testimony in the most holy place, does not mean that he is to put the ark-cover upon the ark of the Testimony when the ark has already been brought into the Holy of Holies [screened by the veil]. But the purport of the verse is to command Moses to hang up the veil under the clasps in order that the ark be there within the veil, and the veil will thus divide between the holy place and the most holy. Similarly He says, And thou shalt put the ark-cover upon the ark of the Testimony in the most holy place, in order to inform us that the ark-cover with its cherubim on the ark should all be there in the Holy of Holies mentioned, which means within the veil. But when He came to command the erection of the Tabernacle He said, And thou shalt put therein the ark of the Testimony, and afterwards, thou shalt screen the ark with the veil. Similarly, at the actual construction it is said, and he put the ark-cover above the ark. And he brought the ark into the Tabernacle, and afterwards, he set up the veil of the screen. Tetzaveh.
Ibn Ezra
The phrase "and the parokhet shall separate" (ve-hivdelah ha-parokhet) is anomalous in that it bears a [milra'] accent on the final syllable [when one would expect milel]. Similarly [anomalous is] "and you shall strike the rock" (ve-hikita ba-tsur) (above, 17:6).
Or HaChaim
ונתתה את הפרכת…והבאת שמה מבית לפרכת, "You shall hang up the curtain…and bring it within the curtain, etc." This appears to teach that the dividing curtain was to be hung prior to the Holy Ark being brought inside the Holy of Holies. In 40,3 G'd said to Moses: "You shall place the ark of testimony there and you shall cover the ark with the curtain." This appears to mean that the ark was already inside the Holy of Holies when the curtain would separate it from the Sanctuary proper. Moses also appears to have acted in accordance with the instructions in chapter 40 seeing that we read in 40,20: "And he took and put the testimony in the ark and set the staves on the ark and put the ark cover above, upon the ark." Apparently we must resolve this contradiction by understanding our verse here as meaning that the curtain should be completed before the ark was to be placed inside the Holy of Holies. The curtain was not to be hung, however, before Moses had placed the ark of testimony inside the square provided for the Holy of Holies. In our verse no mention is made at all of the ark being introduced into the Holy of Holies. Our verse deals only with the eventual function of the dividing curtain, namely to separate the Sanctuary from the Holy of Holies. This is why there was no need to speak about the order in which these furnishings were arranged inside the Tabernacle.
Rabbeinu Bahya
והבדילה הפרוכת לכם בין הקדש ובין קדש הקדשים , “and the dividing curtain shall separate for you between the Holy and between the Holy of Holies.” The Ark and the kapporet were beyond the dividing curtain in the Holy of Holies. During the period of the second Temple, the אבן השתיה, the stone covering the “navel of the earth” (Yuma 45) stood there in its place in the westernmost part of the Sanctuary. Beyond the dividing curtain but in front of the Ark (during most of the years of the first Temple) was kept the bottle of manna which had been filled by Aaron in the desert. They also kept a bottle of the anointing oil there as well as the staff of Aaron which had sprouted almonds after the suppression of the revolt of Korach (compare Yuma 37). The author claims that the garments of the High Priest were also stored there. The other furnishings of the tabernacle/Temple such as the table, the lampstand, and the golden altar, were kept in front of the dividing curtain in the part known as היכל. The table stood in the north, the lampstand in the south, and the golden altar of incense was between the two, slightly closer to the entrance of the Tabernacle (Yuma 33).
Tur HaArokh
והבאת שמה מבית לפרוכת את ארון העדות, “and you shall bring there, beyond the dividing curtain, the ark housing the Tablets of Testimony.” Moses was not commanded at this time to do this, i.e. to place the dividing curtain underneath the golden clasps, קרסים, and only subsequently to bring the Ark into the Holy of Holies, beyond where the dividing curtain had been hung. This is not the time and place when the Torah would issue directives for matters other than the ones that concerned the construction of the Tabernacle and its furnishings. In light of this, also the words ונתת את הכפורת על ארון העדות בקודש הקדשים, (verse 34) “you are to place the lid on the ark of Testimony in the Holy of Holies,” are not to be understood as to the order in which the Tabernacle would be assembled. On the contrary, when the directives for assembling the Tabernacle were issued, the Torah specifically directs that the lid be placed on the Ark only after it had already been placed in the Holy of Holies. (Exodus 40,3) This is also repeated when the assembly of the dividing curtain is described in 39,33-38 clearly shows that the furnishings were installed in the Tabernacle before the respective curtains were hung. Therefore, the meaning of the words in our verse is that it is mandatory to arrange for the dividing curtain to be beneath the clasps holding it in place so that at all times the Holy Ark would be within the Holy of Holies. The sole function of the dividing curtain was to separate two domains of differing degrees of holiness, i.e. the Sanctuary, היכל, and the קדשי קדשים, the Holy of Holies. It was important for us to know that the lid of the Ark, כפורת, with its cherubs mounted on it, the source from which G’d’s voice would address Moses, be completely within this Holy of Holies all times.
Rashbam
ונתתה את הפרכת תחת הקרשים, under the golden clasps. They were attached at the end of the 20 cubits of the curtains which had been spread out over the entrance of the Tabernacle. The length of the Tabernacle was 30 cubits so that the location of these clasps joining two sections of curtain totaling 40 cubits would be exactly 20 cubits from the entrance, at the point where the sanctuary and the Holy of Holies would be divided. From this point westward till the rear wall of the Tabernacle there would be ten cubits, the other 10 cubits of these curtains hanging down behind the western wall. [We must not forget that the curtains were sewn together lengthwise, whereas they were draped across the interior of the Tabernacle width-wise. Ed.]
And you shall put the ark-cover upon the ark of the testimony in the most holy place.
verse value 3663
Insights
Verse structure: 7 words, 31 letters. The shortest word is "upon" (עַ֖ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "the·cover" (אֶת־הַכַּפֹּ֔רֶת, 7 letters). The root קדש appears 2 times in this verse. 6 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·place" (root נתן, 115x in Exodus); "upon" (root על, 114x in Exodus); "in·the·Holy·of" (root קדש, 82x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'the·Testimony', dividing the verse into phrases of 5 and 2 words. Full calculation: וְנָתַתָּ֙ [and·place] (856) + אֶת־הַכַּפֹּ֔רֶת [the·cover] (1106) + עַ֖ל [upon] (100) + אֲר֣וֹן [ark] (257) + הָעֵדֻ֑ת [the·Testimony] (479) + בְּקֹ֖דֶשׁ [in·the·Holy·of] (406) + הַקֳּדָשִֽׁים [the·Holies] (459) = 3663.
Onkelos
And you shall place the Ark cover upon the Ark of the Testimony in the Holy of Holies.
And you shall set the table without the veil, and the candlestick over against the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south; and you shall put the table on the north side.
verse value 6567
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 69 letters. The shortest word is "upon" (עַ֛ל, 2 letters) and the longest is "and·the·lampstand" (וְאֶת־הַמְּנֹרָה֙, 8 letters). 2 words in this verse appear nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "and·the·table" (וְהַ֨שֻּׁלְחָ֔ן), "upon·the·side" (עַל־צֶ֥לַע). The root שלחן appears 3 times in this verse. 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "place" (root נתן, 115x in Exodus); "upon" (root על, 114x in Exodus); "Tabernacle" (root משכן, 58x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'south', dividing the verse into phrases of 11 and 4 words.
Onkelos
And you shall set the table outside the curtain-partition, and the menorah opposite the table on the south side of the Tabernacle; and the table you shall place on the north side.
Rashi
ושמת את השלחן AND THOU SHALT PUT THE TABLE [WITHOUT THE PARTITION VEIL] — The table was in the north, distant from the north wall two cubits and a half. The candelabrum was in the south, distant from the south wall two cubits and a half. The golden altar was opposite the space which was between the table and candelabrum drawn back slightly towards the east (cf. Rashi on Exodus 30:6). All these three were placed in that part which extended from one-half the length of the Tabcrnacle (not including the Holy of Holies) inward. How so? The length of the Tabernacle from the entrance to the partition veil was 20 cubits, and the altar, the table and the candelabrum were distant from the entrance in a western direction 10 cubits(Yoma 33b).
Sforno
ושמת את השלחן מחוץ לפרכת, after the Ark had been placed inside the Tabernacle. Betzalel arranged that the dividing curtain would be between the Holy of Holies containing the Ark and the other furnishings, i.e. the Table and the Menorah. The Table would be on the right side and the Menorah on the left [viewed from the perspective of someone entering the sanctuary. Ed.] Proverbs 3,16 refers to this when writing אורך ימים בימינה בשמאולה עושר וכבוד, “length of days is in her right hand, in her left hands riches and honour.”
Chizkuni
ושמת את השולחן, “you shall place the table, etc.;” in the middle; seeing that the Torah had written that the candlestick should be positioned opposite the table, the golden altar had to be positioned in the centre of the Sanctuary part of the Tabernacle. Both the Candlestick and the table were slightly to the north and south of the centre and at the same time further west, closer to the dividing curtain. Compare Talmud Yuma folio 33. ואת המנורה נוכח השולחן, “and the candlestick was facing the table.” This was in order to illuminate the surface of the table. This has been spelled out in Numbers 8,2. על צלע המשכן תימנה, “on the southern side of the Tabernacle near the southern wall.” Light always emanates from the south, as does the light of the sun whose orbit proceeds in a southerly direction after it rises in the morning.
And you shall make a screen for the entrance of the Tent, of blue, and purple, and crimson, and fine twisted linen — the work of an embroiderer.
verse value 5795
Insights
Verse structure: 12 words, 49 letters. The shortest word is "a·screen" (מָסָךְ֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "purple" (וְאַרְגָּמָ֛ן, 6 letters). 12 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "fine·linen" (root שש, 58x in Exodus); "the·tent" (root אהל, 56x in Exodus). First appearance of the root מסך ("a·screen") in Exodus. First appearance of the root רקם ("an·embroiderer") in Exodus. The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'twisted', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 2 words. Full calculation: וְעָשִׂ֤יתָ [and·you·shall·make] (786) + מָסָךְ֙ [a·screen] (120) + לְפֶ֣תַח [for·the·entrance·of] (518) + הָאֹ֔הֶל [the·tent] (41) + תְּכֵ֧לֶת [blue] (850) + וְאַרְגָּמָ֛ן [purple] (300) + וְתוֹלַ֥עַת [and·crimson] (912) + שָׁנִ֖י [crimson] (360) + וְשֵׁ֣שׁ [fine·linen] (606) + מׇשְׁזָ֑ר [twisted] (547) + מַעֲשֵׂ֖ה [work·of] (415) + רֹקֵֽם [an·embroiderer] (340) = 5795.
Onkelos
And you shall make a screen for the entrance of the Tabernacle — blue, and purple, and crimson thread, and twisted linen — the work of an embroiderer.
Rashi
ועשית מסך AND THOU SHALT MAKE A SCREEN — a curtain which formed a protecting screen in front of the entrance. the word מסך being of the same meaning as the verb in (Job 1. 10) “Hast Thou not hedged (שכת) him about?” It is an expression denoting protecting. מעשה רקם THE WORK OF AN EMBROIDERER — The designs were made on it by needle-work; as were the figures on one side so were the figures on the other side. רקם — This word is the name of the workman (an embroiderer), not the name of the trade (embroidery). The Targum therefore should be עובד צַיָּר “work of an embroiderer,” not עובד צִיּוּר “work of embroidery.” The size of the screen was the same as the size of the partition veil, viz., 10 cubits by 10 cubits.
Ibn Ezra
"And you shall make, embroidered work" (ma'aseh rokem): this is a lesser grade than woven work (ma'aseh ḥoshev). The pillars were overlaid with gold, and their hooks too were gold, on account of the sanctity of the place; but the sockets for the pillars were of bronze, since it is an intermediate [less sacred] material.
Rashbam
מסך לפתח האהל, a place where there is no curtain, i.e. only half a curtain of 2 cubits which has been folded over hangs down from above. מסך, the construction of this word which means “screen” relative to the word מסיך, “something which screens,” (verbal mode), is similar to the word מגין, “something which protects,” to the word מגן (noun) “shield.” As a result of this consideration, even when this noun is used in the construct mode when we would expect the vowel kametz to be replaced by a chataf patach, i.e. masach, it does not change as the noun is really a derivative of the verb. This is not so in nouns such as דבר, or בקר, where the construct mode changes the vowel kametz to devar and bekar, respectively, seeing that both these words are nouns in their own right, are not derivatives of verbs. Examples are found in Numbers 4,25, as well as in Samuel II 1,21. Compare also Numbers 7,88 as well as Deuteronomy 15,2.
And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia, and overlay them with gold; their hooks shall be of gold; and you shall cast five sockets of brass for them.
verse value 4757
Insights
Verse structure: 15 words, 61 letters. Verse gematria: 4757 = 67 × 71. The shortest word is "them" (אֹתָם֙, 3 letters) and the longest is "and·you·shall·make" (וְעָשִׂ֣יתָ, 5 letters). Words sharing gematria 353: five, five. 1 word in this verse appears nowhere else in Exodus. Unique to this verse in Exodus (hapax): "for·the·screen" (לַמָּסָ֗ךְ). The root חמש appears 2 times in this verse. 13 unique roots are used. Frequent roots: "and·you·shall·make" (root עשה, 322x in Exodus); "gold" (root זהב, 105x in Exodus); "five" (root חמש, 55x in Exodus). The etnachta (major mid-verse pause) falls on 'gold', dividing the verse into phrases of 10 and 5 words.
Onkelos
And you shall make for the screen five pillars of acacia wood, and you shall overlay them with gold — their hooks of gold — and you shall cast for them five sockets of copper.
Onkelos
Rashi
Ibn Ezra
Sforno
Or HaChaim
Chizkuni
Rabbeinu Bahya
Kli Yakar
Rashbam