“All the wise-hearted craftsmen among them made the Tabernacle out of ten tapestries of twisted linen, together with sky-blue, dark red and crimson wool, brocaded with cherubs.” (Exodus 36:8)
Why does the Torah describe making the Tabernacle’s tapestries first? The original instruction was to make the vessels, and then to make the tapestries and clothes. Bezaleel, the head overseer of the construction of the Tabernacle, however, switched around the order. First, they made the tapestries and then the other objects. This was done so that he could construct an area where he could store the other parts of the Tabernacle (Berachos 55a). Why was this necessary? The overall construction of the various components of the Tabernacle took a few months. Another few months elapsed between the time it was finished and when it was assembled. It would have been disrespectful to the sanctity of the objects of the Tabernacle for them to remain lying out and uncovered for all to see. Accordingly, in order to keep them safe and treat them with respect, the tapestries were made first and assembled into an appropriate storage area (Netziv).
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Author: Zev S. Itzkowitz
Keywords: Tabernacle, Tapestry, Tapestries, Craftsmen, Constructing the tabernacle, Curtain, Tabernacle curtain
Bible reference(s): Exodus 36:8
Source: Zev S. Itzkowitz (ed.), A Byte of Torah, Volume IV, Issue XXII.
Page indexed by: inWORD Bible Software.