Parsha Q&A - Vayakhel / Pekudei
Parshas Vayakhel / Pekudei
Parshas Parah
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Explanation of these symbols
Parsha Questions
VAYAKHEL
- What three different words in this week's Parsha are spelled with the same four letters?
- Why is the prohibition against doing work on Shabbos written prior to the instruction for building the Mishkan?
- In verse 35:11, what is the Mishkan, the tent of the Mishkan and the covering of the Mishkan?
- What function did the bigdei hasrad serve?
- What was unusual about the way the women spun the goat's hair?
- Why were the Princes the last to contribute to the building of the Mishkan? How does the Torah show dissatisfaction with their actions?
- Who does the Torah identify as the primary builders of the Mishkan? From which tribes were they?
- What image was woven into the Paroches?
- Why does the Torah attribute the building of the Aron to Betzalel?
- Of what materials was the Mizbach HaOlah (Burnt-Offering Altar) composed?
PEKUDEI
- Why is the word Mishkan stated twice in verse 38:21?
- Who was appointed to carry the vessels of the Mishkan in the Midbar?
- What is the meaning of the name Betzalel?
- How many people contributed a half-shekel to the Mishkan? Who contributed?
- Which material used in the bigdei kehuna was not used in the coverings of the sacred vessels?
- How were the gold threads made?
- What was on the hem of the me'il?
- Which date was the first time that the Mishkan was erected and not dismantled?
- Where was the Menorah placed in the Mishkan?
- On which day did both Moshe and Aharon serve as Kohanim?
"What’s Bothering Rashi?"
Rashi: "Because he gave himself over to the work more wholeheartedly than the other wise people, it is called after his name."
Why does Rashi draw such a conclusion? The Torah simply tells us that Betzalel made these objects.Answer
I Did Not Know That!
Why were donations of gold called "wavings?" Because when people gave gold, they waved it due to its great value.
Ramban
Recommended Reading List
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Answers to this Week's Questions
All references are to the verses and Rashi's commentary, unless otherwise stated
VAYAKHEL
- 36:35, 37:6,19 - Paroches, Kapores and Kaftor
- 35:2 - To emphasize that the building of the Mishkan doesn't supersede the laws of Shabbos.
- 35:11 - The lower curtains that were visible in the structure, the covering of goat skins, the coverings of ram and tachash skins, respectively.
- 35:19 - They covered the Aron, Shulchan, Menorah, and the Mizbechos during transport.
- 35:26 - It was spun directly from off of the backs of the goats.
- 35:27 - The princes reasoned that they would first let the people contribute materials needed for the Mishkan and then they would contribute what was lacking. The Torah shows its dissatisfaction by deleting a letter from their title.
- 35:30, 35:34 - Betzalel ben Uri from the tribe of Yehuda; Oholiav ben Achisamach from the tribe of Dan.
- 36:35 - Charuvim. (See Rashi 26:31).
- 37:1 - Because he dedicated himself to its building more than anyone else.
- 38:1-2 - Wood overlaid with copper.
PEKUDEI
- 38:21 - To allude to the Beis Hamikdash that would twice be taken as a "mashkon" (pledge) for the sins of the Jewish People until the nation repents.
- 38:21 - The levi'im.
- 38:22 - The name means "in the shadow of G-d."
- 38:26 - 603,550. Every man that was counted from twenty years of age and up (excluding the levi'im).
- 39:1 - Linen. (See Rashi 31:10).
- 39:3 The gold was beaten into thin plates from which threads were cut. (See Rashi 28:6).
- 39:24,25 - Woven pomegranates and golden bells.
- 40:17 - Rosh Chodesh Nissan of the second year in the Midbar. For seven days before this, during the consecration of Aharon and his sons, Moshe erected and dismantled the Mishkan. (Rashi 39:29)
- 40:24 - On the southern side of the Ohel Mo'ed opposite the Shulchan.
- 40:31 - On the eighth day of the consecration of the Mishkan.
Answer to "What’s Bothering Rashi?"
Betzalel certainly didn't make these things alone. Oholiav and all the wise men helped. (See 36:1). But because he took full responsibility and gave himself over completely, it is as if he made them alone.
(Based on Dr. Avigdor Bonchek's book "What's
Bothering Rashi?" Feldheim Publishers)
Written and Compiled by Rabbi Eliyahu Kane & Rabbi Reuven Subar
General Editor: Rabbi Moshe Newman
Production Design: Lev Seltzer
HTML Design: Eli Ballon
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