Biblical Parallels Index – Shemot 25-27/0
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Biblical Parallels Index – Shemot 25-27
The Tabernacle and Creation
Classical and modern commentators note many parallels between the Torah’s descriptions of the construction of the Tabernacle and the creation of the world.
Primary Sources
Many sources connect the Tabernacle's construction with the creation of the world, either explicitly or implicitly:
- See Tanchuma Pekudei 2 which notes many linguistic parallels between the two accounts.
- Bavli Shabbat 87b and Bereshit Rabbah 3:9 note that the Tabernacle was built on the first day of Creation, while Bavli Megillah 10b compared the joy of building the Tabernacle with the joy of Creation.
- See also Shabbat 49b, which implicitly associates creation and the Tabernacle by ruling that work done to build the Tabernacle is the kind that may not be done on Shabbat, when we commemorate Hashem’s cessation of the work of creation.
Articles
- See The Architecture of Holiness, by R. Jonathan Sacks, which suggests that the parallels impart the idea that precision and order are essential both in the natural world God created and the moral and spiritual lives human beings create.
- See Making Space, by R. Jonathan Sacks, which develops the idea that the creation of the world represents God’s creation of a home for mankind by making space for the mundane, while the construction of the Tabernacle represents man’s creation of a home for God by making space for holiness.
- Listen to: The Mishkan - A Reflection of Revelation, or of Creation?, by R. Menachem Leibtag, which develops connections between the Tabernacle and the uniqueness of man as conveyed by the narrative of the creation of the world.
- Listen to: What is the Goal of the Mishkan? Two Understandings of the Connection between the Mishkan and the World’s Creation, by R. Yehuda Turetsky, for an analysis of the many parallels between the two stories, discussing the distinction between God’s creation and man’s creation.
- Listen to: Creation and Mishkan: The Shabbos Aspiration, by R. Reuven Brand, for comparison and contrast of the two narratives with attention to its relevance to the laws and meaning of Shabbat.
The Tabernacle and the Garden of Eden
Some commentators identify parallels between the Tabernacle and the Garden of Eden, interpreting the building of the Tabernacle as a repair of Adam’s sin.
Articles
- See A Return to the Garden of Eden, by R. Amnon Bazak, which draws a parallel between the construction of the Tabernacle and man’s role of dominion as described in Bereshit 1, and the service of the Tabernacle and man’s role of stewardship as described in Bereshit 2. Taken together, the construction and service of the Tabernacle serve as a means of repairing Adam’s sin.
- See פרשת ויקהל מול פרשת תרומה, by R. Menachem Leibtag, which suggests that the building of the Tabernacle serves as atonement both for the sin of the golden calf and the sin of Adam. Parallels between the stories include the image of cherubs which appear in both.
Terumah-Tetzaveh vs. Vayakhel-Pekudei
The pericopes of Vayakhel and Pekudei describe the fulfillment of commandments relating to the Tabernacle that are set forth in Terumah, Tetzaveh, and the beginning of Ki Tisa. Commentators seek to understand the need for the seeming repetition of details.
Tools
- Use the Tanakh Lab to compare the two sets of chapters. The table highlights how the language used to describe construction of the Tabernacle is almost identical to that used when issuing the original command.
Primary Sources
- See Ramban who suggests that the repetition is an expression of love, and betrays Hashem's great desire for the Tabernacle and its workers.
- R. Hirsch posits that the Tabernacle's construction is mentioned with so many details to highlight the the worker's recognition of their holy task and how they undertook it with this constantly in mind.
