Torah Portion: Exodus 35:1-38:20
Vayak’hel: ‘And he assembled’.
Bezalel is a hero of mine and it would be easy for me to get carried away with the intricacies of the Tabernacle design that suffuse this week’s Torah portion and overlook the bigger picture that is at play here. Earlier in Exodus, between chapters 25 and 31, God had (through Moses):
- Given a detailed brief for the Tabernacle, its related equipment and the clothing of the priests, together with a number of other instructions
- Singled out Bezalel, his assistant Oholiab and other craftsmen chosen for the task of creating these important things.
- Instructed the people of Israel that they were to observe his Shabbats as a sign between Him and them for all time.
Above all, God had stated the Tabernacle’s purpose, which was so that He might live among His people. It was time to build the tent of meeting, with its intricate design suffused with symbolism, for this glorious purpose.
Dangerous Detour
However, in chapters 32 and 33 there was a terrible detour in this unfolding journey: the golden calf incident. The people of Israel tried to set up their own version of a worship system for Adonai, putting their future relationship with God (and thereby the Tabernacle project) in jeopardy. God responded to Moses,
Leave, you and the people you brought up from the land of Egypt…you will go to a land flowing with milk and honey; but I myself will not go with you... (Ex 33:1-3)
It sounded like a fait accompli, but Moses did not accept it. Israel showed repentance and Moses pleaded with God, who listened and responded, “Set your mind at rest – my presence will go with you, after all” (Yeshua faced a not dissimilar situation in John 6:67. Many of His disciples had turned away from Him, not understanding or wanting to understand Yeshua’s words bringing full meaning to a way of worship they thought they knew inside-out. Yeshua said to His disciples “Don’t you want to leave too?” But like Moses, Simon Peter stubbornly stuck with Yeshua saying “Lord, to whom would we go? You have the word of eternal life”).
Then in Exodus 34, God restored the covenant on two new stone tablets. In this week’s passage, Israel are back on track (Ex 35-38).
- Moses reminds the whole community of God’s works programme: that during six days, work is to be done, but the seventh is to be a Shabbat, a holy day of complete rest.
- Moses also instructs the community to make a freewill offering for the Tabernacle work, calling forward the craftsmen to make everything Adonai had ordered. From all these, God singled out Bezalel for the work necessary to construct the Tabernacle: according to His holy brief, but with room left for the craftsman’s creativity and design ability, given and guided by God’s Spirit.
Chapters 36-38 describe the crafting and constructing of all the elements of the Tabernacle.
Lessons for Gentiles
In many ways, we Gentile believers of God’s continuing congregation have taken the ‘golden calf’ route and formed our own worship system. We have ignored that we should be grafted into the rich root of God’s holy nation, Israel, and instead have separated ourselves from them. We have moved Shabbat to Sunday, changed God’s designated feasts, failed to understand God’s covenant purposes, and so on. Like Israel, we run the danger of God not remaining with us.
I believe we have to cry out, with Moses and also Peter:
Show us your ways, Adonai so that we will understand you and find favour in your sight. See us as part of your people once again. If your presence doesn’t go with us, where on earth should we go from here? For how else is it to be known that we have found favour in your sight, other than by your going with us? That is what distinguishes us from everyone else on earth.
Then, and only then, might we look with hope that God will lead us into our fullness, not a temporary tabernacle but a permanent spiritual temple, constructed to God’s brief (Eph 2:19-22), making our unbelieving Jewish brothers and sisters envious so that the stoniness will be lifted from them and that all Israel together with us will be saved (Rom 11:25-26).
Author: John Quinlan
Bible quotes from the Complete Jewish Bible.