The Expansion of God Dwelling Among the Jewish People

And let them make Me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them. (Shemot 25:8)

שמות פרק כט פסוק מג - מו (פרשת תצוה)

(מג) וְנֹעַדְתִּ֥י שָׁ֖מָּה לִבְנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וְנִקְדַּ֖שׁ בִּכְבֹדִֽי: (מד) וְקִדַּשְׁתִּ֛י אֶת־אֹ֥הֶל מוֹעֵ֖ד וְאֶת־הַמִּזְבֵּ֑חַ וְאֶת־אַהֲרֹ֧ן וְאֶת־בָּנָ֛יו אֲקַדֵּ֖שׁ לְכַהֵ֥ן לִֽי: (מה) וְשָׁ֣כַנְתִּ֔י בְּת֖וֹךְ בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וְהָיִ֥יתִי לָהֶ֖ם לֵאלֹהִֽים: (מו) וְיָדְע֗וּ כִּ֣י אֲנִ֤י יְקֹוָק֙ אֱלֹ֣הֵיהֶ֔ם אֲשֶׁ֨ר הוֹצֵ֧אתִי אֹתָ֛ם מֵאֶ֥רֶץ מִצְרַ֖יִם לְשָׁכְנִ֣י בְתוֹכָ֑ם אֲנִ֖י יְקֹוָ֥ק אֱלֹהֵיהֶֽם: פ

and there I will meet with the Israelites, and it shall be sanctified by My Presence. I will sanctify the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and I will consecrate Aaron and his sons to serve Me as priests. I will abide among the Israelites, and I will be their God. And they shall know that I ה' am their God, who brought them out from the land of Egypt that I might abide among them—I, their God ה'. (Shemot 29:43-6)

The instructions to build the Mishkan are bracketed by these expressions of intent – that the Mishkan is built so that God can dwell among the Jewish people. The closing verses are more elaborate, adding that the dwelling among them indicates, or perhaps helps create, the unique relationship that the Jews have with God, justifying the possessive construction of the words. Furthermore, a teleology is presented – that achieving this moment was the purpose of the Exodus and its attendant miracles.

The commentaries divide on the interpretation of these final verses. Rashi and Rashbam, for example, understand that the purpose of the Exodus was to enable God to dwell among the Jewish people, seemingly in the Mishkan (as seen in Ibn Ezra commentary #1). Ibn Ezra (commentary #2) and Chizkuni claim the purpose was fulfilled at Har Sinai, noting that God had justified Moshe’s mission to Pharaoh by noting that once the Jews left Egypt, they would serve God on Har Sinai (Shemot 3:12). Thus, either the purpose of the Exodus was not uniquely expressed in the Mishkan but in multiple ways, or, like Ramban claims in general, the Mishkan was meant to continue the experience of Sinai. Ramban claims that the purpose is not simply that God dwell among them, but that He do so with the Jewish people having consciousness of the miracles of the Exodus. Thus, the Exodus did not just enable the relationship with God, but it continued to inform its nature. Rabbenu Bechaye notes that these interpretations suggest, radically, the Exodus was not exclusively or perhaps even primarily for the sake of the Jewish people, but for God!

Netziv, on the other hand, derives from the לשכני, that God continuously dwelled with the Jewish people. Thus, he claims that God was among the Jewish people in Egypt and it was that relationship that demanded the Exodus. Rabbi Gideon Weitzman (His Words, Their Voices: Essays on the Haftarot [Renana Publishers, Urim Publications, 2015),  notes that the Haftara for Tetzaveh (in years when it is not Zachor) is taken from Yechezkel 43. Yechezkel is the prophet to those who were sent to Babylonia in the first round of the exile. Those who remained in Israel believed that God was with them, and those who had been sent early had been abandoned by God. Yechezkel relates that the opposite is the case. Those in Babylonia were the better ones, and God was with them. They would rebuild the Jewish people. Those in Jerusalem were living in a spiritual shell and were those left behind, as it were. In the chapter chosen as the Haftara, Yechezkel outlines his vision for the future Beit HaMikdash, specifically while he is situated in the Exile. Rabbi Weitzman notes that this connects to Netziv – that the Mishkan/Mikdash are necessary because God is always with the Jewish people, even within Galut, and thus in ideal situations that is reflected by the physical reminders of that relationship. However, the truth of the connection remains wherever the Jews are, and whether or not the physical structure actually exists.

Professor Yehuda Brandeis notes that Tetzaveh seems to reflect a higher level of connection with God than Terumah. Terumah discusses the building of the Mishkan, a one-time event. Tetzaveh focuses on the garments of the Kohanim, used during the service. Thus, it reflects the ongoing service of God. Considering this, it may be that the more expansive promise of God dwelling among the Jews in Tetzaveh is not just because it is the end of the unit. Rather, it highlights that what it means to have God among us is not simply to have a structure where God dwells. As King Shlomo makes clear in his inauguration of the Mikdash, God does not dwell anywhere. More critical is that the Mishkan and Mikdash help focus on our connection and commitment to God. As such, Tetzaveh, which focuses not on the physical space but on the effort human beings put continually into the relationship, justifies the expansive declaration of God’s connection with the Jews. That continued effort is the purpose of the Exodus, not the mere creation of a structure.

And that relationship does not end with the destruction of the physical buildings. Many Midrashim note that with the cessation of the Mishkan and Mikdash, we can continue that service with Torah study (perhaps uniquely of the korbanot), acts of kindness, and other mitzvot. It is that constancy and consistency of our mitzvot that are the truest testament to God’s presence in our midst.