Vayakhel
ויקהל משה את כל עדת בני ישראל... ויאמר משה אל כל עדת בני ישראל לאמר זה הדבר אשר צוה ה’ לאמר (לה, א-ד)
Moshe assembled the entire assembly of the Children of Israel… Moshe said to the entire assembly of the Children of Israel, saying: “This is the matter that Hashem has commanded, saying:”
Typically, the word לאמר, saying, is a preface to an ensuing quotation, indicating the actual language used. As such, we would have assumed that the end of the above citation reads: “This is the matter that Hashem has commanded you, the Nation, to do, saying, i.e., the following is the content of the command.” Yet, Rashi does not read it in this manner. His parsing of the text is: “This is the matter that Hashem has commanded me, Moshe, to say to you, the Nation.” (אשר צוה ה’ לי לאמר לכם) Why this departure? *
I heard the following thought in the name of the maggid Reb Menachem Mendel. ** The Talmud states that this world is comparable to a wedding. He explained that making a wedding involves a vast amount of preparation and effort, yet the purpose of it all is but a simple sentence: the words הרי את מקודשת לי, you are betrothed to me, with which the groom designates the bride as his own, thus effecting the relationship of marriage. Without this, the entire commotion of the wedding is pointless. The same is true of life. The human experience is one of endless preoccupation, effort, and struggle. And its ultimate purpose, as well, boils down to one simple idea: to sanctify oneself to the degree that he achieves a relationship with Hashem. In both weddings and life, the goal is Deveikus, the uniting of two parties.
With this we can offer an explanation of Rashi’s comment. The sidra is set immediately after Moshe’s descent from his second stay on Sinai. He came laden with the new set of Tablets, which contained in the micro the entirety of the Torah in all of its infinite depth. This was a lot for the Jewish People to now learn and internalize. Yet in the above, pithy statement, Moshe summed up the totality of this new engagement: זה הדבר אשר צוה ה’ לי לאמר לכם, this is the essence of all that which Hashem has commanded to relate to you – לי, that you are to be unto Me. The purpose of all of the Torah and its myriad mitzvos is to achieve Deveikus, just as the groom achieves with his bride through his enunciation of the word לי.
Another possible approach to explaining Rashi’s language is as follows. There is one other passage in the Torah that was communicated to the Nation at a special assembly, that of קדושים ***תהיו. Why is that so?
We find that Moshe was a firm believer that the lofty level of prophecy that he achieved was not unique to him; any Jew who sufficiently developed himself could merit it. As he indignantly told Yehoshua, מי יתן והיה כל עם ה’ נביאים, If only all of the nation of Hashem would be prophets! **** This is true of all of his prophetic accomplishments, including that found by him alone – to serve as Hashem’s direct mouthpiece, שכינה מדברת מתוך גרונו. That is, all other prophets would relay their messages with ‘כה אמר ה, Thus said Hashem, while Moshe also made use of זה הדבר, this is the matter, which implied not merely a conveyance of the Divine Will but its essential manifestation as well. ***** Even that identification with the Shechinah was up for grabs. To borrow an idea from the Alshich’s commentary to that passage, ****** it is for this reason that Kedoshim was presented to the people en masse, to drive home the message that kedushah, holiness, and the spiritual levels that it engenders are accessible to one and all.
The same can be said as to why our passage was also delivered in this manner. For this was the crux of Moshe’s preamble: זה הדבר, regarding the level of prophecy which this term signifies, ‘צוה ה, Hashem has commanded me to tell you, לי, that despite its seeming uniqueness to me, לאמר לכם, it is, in fact, available for you to achieve as well.
With this background, we can offer a new interpretation of the opening verse of Parashas Terumah, דבר אל בני ישראל ויקחו לי תרומה מאת כל איש אשר ידבנו לבו תקחו את תרומתי, Speak to the Children of Israel and they shall take unto Me donations, from every man whose heart inspires him shall you take My donations. ******* As the Alshich points out, wouldn’t “they shall give” be more appropriate than they shall take? And how does the term תרומה, which Rashi renders הפרשה, a separation, fit with “taking”?
Being that לי alludes to Deveikus, the command here is ויקחו לי, they shall take – acquire for themselves – unification with the Shechinah. As such, Rashi there translates לי – לשמי, for My sake, for the ultimate objective in life is to achieve Deveikus purely for the sake of Heaven; even the lofty goal of achieving life in the World to Come is tainted with self-interest.
What task can Man do for Hashem’s sake? As the Zohar teaches, it is to redeem the Shechinah from its exiled state, which will bring the world to its perfection. As this mission was relegated to Man alone, it is, so to speak, an act of kindness which he performs for Hashem. It is this lofty accomplishment which confers the title of chassid, one who is מתחסד עם קונו, is altruistic with his Creator. ******** As defined in the writings of the Arizal, this process of redemption is the sum total of the restoration of the sparks of holiness which are cast afield throughout the lower realms. It is this elevation of those sparks which is alluded to with the use of the term תרומה, literally, an elevation.
Being that this goal is potentially attainable by every Jew, the term דבר is used, as it has a connotation of “ease,” as we find in the Talmud. ********* In practice, it demands the resources of a tzaddik, in the sense that his focus is completely on the plight of the Shechinah. Hence, מאת כל איש, the word כל a reference to the tzaddik, אשר ידבנו לבו, whose mind is directed solely to this objective.
This is also the intention of the Sages’ adjuration, במקום שאין אנשים השתדל להיות איש, ********** in the absence of men, i.e., tzaddikim who can attend to the needs of the Shechinah which is depicted as a righteous woman, you should strive to be that tzaddik.
And finally, this theme is also the common motif that lies behind the mishnah’s *********** threefold instruction: עשה לך רב, make a teacher for yourself, which can be rendered “make a quarrel” ************ for the sake of the Shechinah, through prayer on its behalf; and as a result, וקנה לך חבר, acquire a friend for yourself, i.e., cleaving with the Shechinah; והוי דן את כל האדם לכף זכות, and judge every person favorably, that is, wield a positive influence over every person so as to redeem the Divine spark that lies within him, thus contributing to the ultimate restoration of the Shechinah.
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1 See Mizrachi, Gur Aryeh, Maskil le-Dovid, Be’er ba-Sadeh.
2 A student of the Baal Shem, d. 1765. He is frequently quoted by the Toldos.
3 Vayikra 19.
4 Bamidbar 11:29.
5 Sifrei, Mattos 1.
6 Vayikra 19:2.
7 Shemos 25:2.
8 Teitzei, 281a.
9 Shabbos 63a.
10 Avos 2:5.
11 Ibid., 1:16.
12 The word רב punctuated רִב means quarrel.