With Parashat Pekudei and the words Chazak, Chazak V’nitchazek חזק חזק ונתחזק, we end the book of Shemot, Exodus. Exodus began after Joseph’s eleven brothers and their families moved to Egypt, and Joseph, the twelfth brother, was already there. Together, these brothers formed a nation that would flourish and be protected in that foreign land until “a new Pharaoh who did not know Joseph” arose; that’s when their trouble began. We witness the emergence of another leader, Moshe, who was saved as a baby and raised in the high court of the Egyptians, where he was instructed to be of royal blood. He eventually stood up for his people who were suffering under the thumb of this Pharaoh and was forced to flee into the desert, to Midian, where he married and became a shepherd. At 80, the Creator called him to serve as the leader of Israel, albeit a leader who constantly struggled with his calling.
What qualities did Moshe have that the Creator chose him? Aren’t we all His creation and of equal value in His sight? Moshe had developed many leadership qualities in the court of the Pharaoh, as well as learning about desert life during his 40 years among the Midianites, however, one characteristic that is essential to the Creator is “humility”. Moshe never sought the position of leader, instead, he is known as “the reluctant leader.” Another principal quality for service to God is obedience, and Moshe was humble and obedient. One phrase is repeated eighteen times in this parashah about what the people did… “כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶת־מֹשֶֽׁה as the LORD had commanded Moshe.”
The book of Exodus shows us that the Creator would spend a lot of time weaning the people away from idolatry, or in other words, “adultery” against God. They had exchanged God’s truth for what was false. The Creator would have them build the Mishkan in the desert to direct their attention away from the gods of Egypt and turn their focus solely upon Him. The glue of the Mishkan was the Shabbat, where they would come together as a community. Moshe was given various materials: gold, silver, copper, textiles, skins, etc., all of which would be used to construct the Mishkan, and everything used in this process was accounted for in detail. They did not misuse anything.
At first, the Creator was not going to have them build a Mishkan because He would dwell among the people themselves, but after the sin of the golden calf, the purpose of the Mishkan was to cover their sin as well as being the focal point for the redirection of their attention toward Him. They were to regain their perspective of the true God and leave the false gods of Egypt behind. We no longer need a Mishkan today, even though some are eagerly working to build a third Temple and reinstate the sacrificial system. They have missed an essential teaching of the Torah – we are all part of God’s Mishkan and He dwells among us “Build me a sanctuary where I will dwell among them” – וְעָ֥שׂוּ לִ֖י מִקְדָּ֑שׁ וְשָׁכַנְתִּ֖י בְּתוֹכָֽם V’asu li Mikdash v’shachanti betocham. Ex. 25:8.
When studying the passages of the Torah, I cannot emphasize enough the importance of taking into account their historical periods, their contexts and to whom they were written. Next, we must take a step back to see how its “principles, its “essential oils” can be applied to our lives today. Just as the Israelites had so much difficulty understanding the GOD of Israel, Whom they could not see, we too struggle to have a relationship with the Creator. Why? Just as they were blinded by the grandiosity of the gods of Egypt, we too have been blinded by the religions of the world, which are so much more attractive than the invisible God. These ancient people had been assimilated into the life of Egypt and it would be an extremely arduous process to extract the idolatry from their minds. Just as they had to be slowly purged, we too need to have the religions and ideologies that have been implanted in our brains eliminated.
There are many payoffs to belonging to certain religious groups. Many years ago, a married couple attended our congregation. The husband was Jewish, and his wife was a Christian convert to Judaism. After three weeks of attending our services, he came to my office and told me that everyone here was poor, so he intended to find a synagogue where people had more money and where he could make some good business connections. He was not looking for GOD; he was looking for gold.
The last parashah of Exodus entreats us to be accountable for what the Creator has given us. Are we responsible enough to use the talents with which He has endowed us, or are we throwing them away, misusing or abusing them? Religion is big business today, selling their gods in a variety of packages which is why it is more important than ever to know in Whom we trust. The Torah teaches us beautiful moral principles to apply to our daily lives, but they are rapidly being lost in a society that is entrenched in immoral behavior. Anyone with moral values is ridiculed and stamped on. Those who want to abide by the moral code set down in the Torah are faced with a great challenge today.
Are we making an account of the materials in our personal Mishkan? We have each been given gifts and talents, so how are we utilizing these gifts to serve others? That is the meaning of true service. If we say, “What gifts has God given me? I am good for nothing”, we are saying He made a mistake creating us. That is practically cursing the Name of God. Can we say we are doing exactly what the LORD has commanded us to do as Moses did?
To make an account of our lives, we need to be responsible, and the first person to whom we are to be responsible is ourselves. Instead, we generally pass the buck and blame someone else for our circumstances. Do you blame your parents, your teachers or anyone who stopped you from doing what you want? It is time to stop making excuses and get on with your life. The Creator was telling Moshe at the end, “Well done, the people did it!” After having been confronted, they understood that the Creator was so merciful to them; they acknowledged their sin and were given a second chance. That’s when we see their willingness to work hard and be obedient to the task at hand.
The important message for us today is that “Our God is the God of Beginning Again”. The Holy of Holies contained the Aron, the Ark which held the Tablets, the Ten Commandments written by the finger of GOD. These Ten Commandments are the basic code of ethics for all humanity and are the only solution for the ailments of this world.
Shabbat Shalom
Ranebi Z” L