And To Visit His Palace

The Importance of Being Generous:

Parashat Terumah opens with these words (Shemot 25:1-2): וַיְדַבֵּר יְיָ אֶל־מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר׃ דַּבֵּר אֶל־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְיִקְחוּ־לִי תְּרוּמָה מֵאֵת כׇּל־אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יִדְּבֶנּוּ לִבּוֹ תִּקְחוּ אֶת־תְּרוּמָתִי׃ (And Hashem spoke to Moshe saying, Speak to B'nei Yisrael, and they should take a terumah [contribution, donation] for Me, from every man whose is generous of heart, you shall take My terumah).

This is a very strange pasuk. First of all, Hashem commanded B'nei Yisrael to take a terumah, whereas we would have thought that He should have told them to give a terumah. Second, initially Hashem said that the terumah was for Him, whereas later on, He said that it was actually His. So what's going on here? Why were they told to take it instead of give it? And whose terumah was it anyway?

The first question is easy enough to address. This is how we may understand the first part of 25:2: 'they shall take a terumah [from themselves] for Me.' And the reason why Hashem commanded them to take rather than to give is because He wanted them to focus on the beginning of their action rather than on the end of their action. After all, all giving begins with taking from oneself in order to give to another. This explanation makes sense especially in light of the very next part of the pasuk where Hashem told Moshe that their terumah should come from a generous heart.

But how can we answer the second question? Why did Hashem say that the terumah was for Him – implying that it initially belonged to B'nei Yisrael – whereas later in the same pasuk, He said that it was His. Was it theirs or was it His? The answer is that there are two different contributions being addressed in the pasuk, the first one from B'nei Yisrael and the second one from Hashem. We understand the nature of B'nei Yisrael's contribution because Hashem listed it out – gold, silver, copper, etc. (see 25:3-7). But the nature of Hashem's contribution is not so obvious. So what was it?

The first answer is that Hashem's contribution was the two Tablets of Testimony – the luchot ha'brit – made directly by G-d (Shemot 31:18). The Midrash (Shemot Rabbah, Terumah 33:1) sees a connection between the words וְיִקְחוּ [and they shall take] and לֶקַח [teaching] in Mishlei 4:2: כִּי לֶקַח טוֹב נָתַתִּי לָכֶם תּוֹרָתִי אַל־תַּעֲזֹבוּ (For I have given you a good teaching, do not forsake My Torah). Not only does the Midrash derive this from the similarity in the words, but the pasuk itself says that Hashem gave this teaching to them, i.e. as His contribution to the building of the Mishkan. We can also see this by comparing the choicest item that B'nei Yisrael was commanded to contribute, i.e. gold, with what we are told about Hashem's contribution (Tehillim 19:11): הַנֶּחֱמָדִים מִזָּהָב וּמִפַּז רָב (They [the statutes of Hashem] are more desirable than gold, more than fine gold...). Applying this teaching to ourselves, what happens to us when we give tzedakah, i.e. the modern-day equivalent of terumah, to worthy causes from a generous heart? We are actually having the Torah engraved into our hearts, essentially transforming our hearts into living luchot ha-brit.

A second answer (Shemot Rabbah, Terumah 33:7) focuses on the parallel between Hashem creating the heavens and the earth and B'nei Yisrael creating the Mishkan. Just as Hashem looked into the Torah and created the world, using the Torah, so to speak, as a blueprint of creation (Zohar ha-Kadosh, Terumah 161b), so too the Mishkan was created using the Torah as its blueprint. In a fascinating analysis, R' Yehoshua Heller (Ohel Yehoshua, Derush 1:12) makes a detailed accounting of the components that went into the construction of the Mishkan – boards, sockets, hooks, loops, curtains, menorah, table, etc. – and he discovered that they numbered exactly 613. This parallels what we learn in the Gemara (Makkot 23b): דָּרַשׁ רַבִּי שִׂמְלַאי: שֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת וּשְׁלֹשׁ עֶשְׂרֵה מִצְוֹת נֶאֶמְרוּ לוֹ לְמֹשֶׁה שְׁלֹשׁ מֵאוֹת וְשִׁשִּׁים וְחָמֵשׁ לָאוִין כְּמִנְיַן יְמוֹת הַחַמָּה וּמָאתַיִם וְאַרְבָּעִים וּשְׁמוֹנָה עֲשֵׂה כְּנֶגֶד אֵיבָרָיו שֶׁל אָדָם (R' Simlai taught: 613 mitzvot were said over to Moshe, 365 prohibitions corresponding to the days of the year, and 248 positive mitzvot corresponding to the limbs of man). How did R' Simlai know that there are 613 mitzvot? It is based on a mesorah in which the gematria of תּוֹרָה, which is only 611, only corresponds to the mitzvot that Moshe taught to B'nei Yisrael (Devarim 33:4): תּוֹרָה צִוָּה־לָנוּ מֹשֶׁה מוֹרָשָׁה קְהִלַּת יַעֲקֹב (Moshe taught us Torah [i.e. 611], an inheritance of the congregation of Ya'akov). But we must add the two mitzvot that Hashem gave over directly to the people at Matan Torah (Shemot 20:2-3): אָנֹכִי יְיָ אֱלֹקֶיךָ אֲשֶׁר הוֹצֵאתִיךָ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם מִבֵּית עֲבָדִ͏ים׃ לֹא־יִהְיֶ͏ה־לְךָ אֱלֹהִים אֲחֵרִים עַל־פָּנָ͏ַי (I am Hashem your G-d who brought you out of the land of Egypt, from the house of slavery, [and] you shall not have other deities in My place).

A third answer is related to the very purpose for the Mishkan (25:8): וְעָשׂוּ לִי מִקְדָּשׁ וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹכָם (And they shall make for Me, a Sanctuary and I shall dwell in them). As we give tzedakah generously to those who dedicate themselves to 'building a Mishkan' today, i.e. to those individuals and groups who are moser nefesh in their avodah and in their limud Torah to help restore the Shechinah to Her place, then Hashem makes His attributes known to us so that we may emulate them. This is best exemplified by a teaching in the Gemara that expounds the meaning of the word וְאַנְוֵהוּ [v'anveihu] found in Shemot 15:2 at the beginning of the Song of the Sea (Shabbat 133b): אַבָּא שָׁאוּל אוֹמֵר: ״וְאַנְוֵהוּ״ הֱוֵי דּוֹמֶה לוֹ מָה הוּא חַנּוּן וְרַחוּם אַף אַתָּה הֱיֵה חַנּוּן וְרַחוּם (Abba Shaul says, 'And I will praise Him' [v'anveihu] – this means to be like Him. Just as He is gracious and compassionate, even you are to be gracious and compassionate). Now how does Abba Shaul derive this teaching from anveihu? He understands it as a contraction of the two words אֲנִי [ani, 'I'] and וָהוּא [va'hu, 'and He']. In other words, both of us, 'me and Hashem', are supposed to share the same attributes. Therefore, Hashem's contribution to the building of the Mishkan was the revelation of Himself, the revelation of His middot, of His character traits. He contributed them, so to speak, in order for us to mimic Him and learn from Him. After all, this is the very purpose of the Mishkan – to create a suitable 'place' in this lower world for Hashem (by way of the Shechinah) to reveal Himself to His people. And what or who is the Mishkan today? The answer is given in the Nevi'im (Yeshayahu 57:15): כִּי כֹה אָמַר רָם וְנִשָּׂא שֹׁכֵן עַד וְקָדוֹשׁ שְׁמוֹ מָרוֹם וְקָדוֹשׁ אֶשְׁכּוֹן וְאֶת־דַּכָּא וּשְׁפַל־רוּחַ לְהַחֲיוֹת רוּחַ שְׁפָלִים וּלְהַחֲיוֹת לֵב נִדְכָּאִים (For thus says the High and Elevated One, Who dwells forever, and His name is Holy; I dwell in loftiness and holiness, and with the one who is crushed and of lowly-spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly and to revive the heart of those who are crushed).

Let's return to what we said earlier, that the act of giving tzedakah with a generous heart creates in us a vessel to receive the Torah directly from Hashem. How is this to be understood?

To answer that question, we need a deeper understanding of what actually is the Torah? It is the majesty and honor, i.e. the kavod, of the Ribono shel Olam, as it is written (Tehillim 29:9): קוֹל יְיָ  יְחוֹלֵל אַיָּלוֹת וַיֶּחֱשֹׂף יְעָרוֹת וּבְהֵיכָלוֹ כֻּלּוֹ אֹמֵר כָּבוֹד (The voice of Hashem makes the gazelles give birth and strips the forests bare, and in His palace, everyone says, Kavod!). This kavod relates to the sefirah of keter, the 'crown' of Hashem, so to speak, from where emerges Torah and all of creation. Therefore, when a person is lowly and humble, what has he actually done? He has taken off his crown, so to speak, and cast it before Hashem, realizing that he is nothing and has no merits in and of himself. He has come to know that there is only One king, and that it's not him. As a result, such a person is truly worthy of receiving kavod from Hashem. This is explained by R' Nachman in Likutei Moharan 6:1: כִּי צָרִיךְ כָּל אָדָם לְמַעֵט בִּכְבוֹד עַצְמוֹ וּלְהַרְבּוֹת בִּכְבוֹד הַמָּקוֹם כִּי מִי שֶׁרוֹדֵף אַחַר הַכָּבוֹד אֵינוֹ זוֹכֶה לִכְבוֹד אֱלֹקִים אֶלָּא לְכָבוֹד שֶׁל מְלָכִים (For everyone must reduce his own kavod and increase the kavod of the Omnipresent One, for whoever chases after kavod will not merit G-d's kavod, but rather [only] the kavod of [physical] kings).

Therefore, when a person gives tzedakah from a generous heart to those who immerse themselves in the world of Torah for the sake of truth and not for receiving kavod to themselves, what are they really doing? They are diminishing their own kavod! And when that happens, that person merits a taste of Hashem's own kavod. Isn't that beautiful? That's why such a person merits making himself into an appropriate vessel for receiving the Holy Torah, otherwise known as שֵּׂכֶל אֱלֹקִי [Divine Intellect] or נֹעַם עֶלְיוֹן [Supernal Pleasantness], directly into his heart.

The entire purpose of Creation is for man to reveal Hashem's kavod (Likutei Moharan II:71): וְעִקָּר הַכָּבוֹד שֶׁל הַשֵּׁם יִתְבָּרַךְ נִתְגַּלֶּה רַק עַל־יְדֵי הָאָדָם כִּי הָאָדָם הוּא תַּכְלִית כָּל הַנִּבְרָאִים כִּי עִקָּר הַבְּרִיאָה הָיְתָה בִּשְׁבִיל הָאָדָם כִּי עִקָּר הִתְגַּלּוּת כְּבוֹדוֹ יִתְבָּרַךְ הוּא עַל־יְדֵי הָאָדָם (The essence of Hashem's kavod, may He be blessed, is revealed only through man, for man is the purpose of all created things, for the essence of the creation was for the sake of man, for the essence of the revelation of His kavod, may He be blessed, is through man). Therefore, when B'nei Yisrael built the Mishkan, the kavod of Hashem descended and dwelt in the Mishkan. This was the revelation of Hashem's kavod that the entire Creation was yearning for from the original six days. And the exact same thing happens to a Jew today, provided that he gives tzedakah generously from a willing heart. He becomes a mishkan for the Shechinah to dwell with him. And this is how one comes to experience the Supernal Pleasantness. What he is experiencing is the crown of Hashem, the kavod of Hashem, being placed over (actually, 'in') his head.

And then what happens to such a person? He will, literally, experience or feel 'flames of love' burning in his heart toward Hashem (L.M. II:71): כִּי מִנֹּעַם הָעֶלְיוֹן נִתְעוֹרְרִין שַׁלְהוֹבִין דִּרְחִימוּתָא (For the Supernal Pleasantness arouses flames of love). As it says in Shir ha-Shirim 8:7: מַיִם רַבִּים לֹא יוּכְלוּ לְכַבּוֹת אֶת־הָאַהֲבָה (Many waters are not able to extinguish the love).

In short, all of these beautiful, lofty, spiritual blessings (which may be difficult for some of us to grasp) are only achievable through the giving of tzedakah from a generous heart (L.M. II:71): וְנֹעַם הָעֶלְיוֹן שׁוֹפֵעַ תָּמִיד אֲבָל צְרִיכִין כְּלִי לְקַבֵּל עַל־יָדוֹ שֶׁפַע נֹעַם הָעֶלְיוֹן. וְדַע שֶׁעַל־יְדֵי צְדָקָה נַעֲשֶׂה הַכְּלִי לְקַבֵּל עַל־יָדָהּ מִנֹּעַם הָעֶלְיוֹן שַׁלְהוֹבִין דִּרְחִימוּתָא כִּי צְדָקָה הִיא נְדִיבוּת לֵב כְּמוֹ שֶׁכָּתוּב: מֵאֵת כָּל אִישׁ אֲשֶׁר יִדְּבֶנוּ לִבּוֹ תִּקְחוּ אֶת תְּרוּמָתִי (The Supernal Pleasantness flows constantly; however, we need a vessel to receive this abundant flow of Supernal Pleasantness. And know, that through the giving of tzedakah a vessel is made to receive from the Supernal Pleasantness, the flames of love, for tzedakah is generosity of heart, as it is written [Shemot 25:2]: 'From every man whose is generous of heart, you shall take My terumah'). And so we end where we began. Generosity is the key that unlocks and opens up the pathways of the heart, the pathways to experience and truly feel love for Hashem.

And now we can understand a beautiful revelation brought out by R' Nachman at the end of his teaching in L.M. II:71: וְזֶה אוֹתִיּוֹת תְּרוּמָה הֵם סוֹפֵי־תֵבוֹת: לַחֲזוֹת בְּנֹעַם ה' וּלְבַקֵּר בְּהֵיכָלוֹ (The letters of the word terumah are the final letters in the pasuk [Tehillim 27:4]: 'to behold [see, comprehend, understand, experience] the Pleasantness of Hashem and to visit His palace'). Such a person will be able to visit the Palace of Hashem – he'll have access to the Palace – because he will be able to participate in fulfilling the pasuk that we quoted earlier (Tehillim 29:9): וּבְהֵיכָלוֹ כֻּלּוֹ אֹמֵר כָּבוֹד (And in His palace, everyone says, Kavod!).

These are the things that the generous giving of terumah did for B'nei Yisrael, and they are also what the generous giving of terumah can do for us today.