As God Commanded Moses
Towards the end of this week’s Torah reading, the Torah records the completion of the building of the Mishkan (the Tabernacle – center of worship), as well as the placement of its essential vessels.
When reading through these verses, one cannot help but notice an interesting repetition. As the Torah describes the assembly of the Mishkan, the Torah concludes each stage by stating, “As God commanded Moses.” Why is it that the Torah found it necessary to make this statement at the conclusion of every stage? Wouldn’t it suffice to just mention at the end that it was all done, “As God commanded Moses?”
Every Detail Counts
The Ohr Hachaim addresses this and says as follows: One could have considered the Mishkan project as one order from God, which happened to include numerous details. The Torah wants to emphasize that each detail of building the Mishkan was an individual fulfilment of God’s commandment. This is why the Torah says, “As God commanded Moses,” at the conclusion of each stage. This was to stress that every single element had the importance of fulfilling God’s word on its own.
Why Does This Matter to Us Today?
One could further ask, since the building of the Mishkan was a one-time project, why is it important for us to know that every part of the assembly of the Mishkan had the significance of the fulfillment of an individual commandment?
Upon a deeper look, we can see that the Torah is hereby teaching us the proper attitude that we should have towards all the mitzvot (God’s commandments).
The Power of One Good Deed
Throughout life, we are constantly making decisions, trying to do what is right. However, we do not generally appreciate properly just how great our deeds really are. From the way the Torah describes the final stages of completing the Mishkan, we learn new way to view our good deeds: Every mitzvah that we do, including every wrong which we refrain from is an individual fulfillment of God’s word! Could there be anything greater than an act of fulfilling a single order from God?!
Each Opportunity Is a Gift
If we were to be sent to this world for an entire lifetime to perform such an act just once, it would be well worth it! Yet, God in His great kindness has granted us boundless opportunities to do so. Although not every single detail is always considered a Mitzvah on its own, every step of a good deed is an individual fulfillment of God’s word (see Ma’alot HaTorah by the brother of the Gra, towards the beginning).
An Everyday Example: Rivka’s Breakfast Routine
For example: A mother named Rivka serves cereal to four of her children on a typical morning. She takes four bowls and spoons and places them around the table. Then she pours cereal and milk into each of the bowls. Cereal by itself is nutritious, but tastes better with milk. The bowl and spoon each allow this combination to be eaten more easily. Each act of retrieving a bowl and a spoon, as well as each act of pouring cereal and milk for each child is an independent act of kindness. Since being kind is a commandment from God, in the span of two minutes, Rivka fulfills the word of God sixteen times! That’s sixteen individual actions fulfilling God’s will in just one routine breakfast meal, “As God commanded Rivka.”
Buckets and Bravery: Torah in the Soviet Labor Camp
Rabbi Yitzchok Zilber was a pious individual who lived in Communist Russia. At one point, he was arrested and sentenced to a couple of years in a labor camp (for a crime he didn’t do). In the camp, he got the job of being the water carrier (since there was no plumbing). This was very hard work. As Rabbi Zilber describes, it was fit to be carried out by five strong men. He had to drag water from 5:30 AM until 7:30 PM, and by the end, he was completely exhausted.
Despite this, Rabbi Zilber wasn’t going to give up Torah study. He figured that an average round trip with the buckets from the river took about an hour. So he decided to do his job running instead of walking, which then took only 45 minutes, and after every trip he spent the final fifteen minutes studying Torah in a hiding place.
Appreciating Our Mitzvot – One at a Time
Such a story seems almost impossible to comprehend. One thing we could be sure of is that Rabbi Zilber knew very well how to value the study of every word of Torah as a great act of fulfilling God’s will. We too can take a few moments to focus on this point, once a day, once a week or even once a month. Every mitzvah or good deed that we perform is an individual fulfillment of God’s word. By doing so we will surely develop a greater appreciation of our mitzvot, and thereby elevate our good deeds to a higher level.
By Rabbi Yitzchok Aryeh Strimber torah4every1@gmail.com
