Among the great commentators of Jewish tradition, a fascinating debate unfolds regarding the timing of God’s command to build the Tabernacle, the portable sanctuary that accompanied the Israelites during their desert wanderings. This debate centers on a crucial question: Was the Tabernacle always part of God’s plan, or was it a divine response to human failure?
Some commentators, including Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, 1040-1105), argue that even though the command to build the Tabernacle appears in the Bible before the sin of the golden calf, it was really given afterwards. According to this view, the Tabernacle was essentially a remedial measureāa concession to human weakness that demonstrated the need for a physical manifestation of God’s presence.
The perspective suggests that after witnessing the Israelites’ inability to maintain their spiritual connection without tangible symbols, God provided the Tabernacle as a controlled outlet for their desire to experience divine presence in a physical form. This interpretation sees the Tabernacle as a divine accommodation to human limitation.
Nachmanides (Rabbi Moshe ben Nachman, 1194-1270), known in Hebrew as the Ramban, offers a profoundly different understanding. In his commentary on Exodus, he argues that the command to build the Tabernacle preceded the sin of the golden calf and was part of God’s original plan for Israel.
In his own words, Nachmanides explains:
“When God spoke to Israel face to face the Ten Commandments, and commanded them through Moses some commandments which are like the foundations of the Torah’s commandments… and Israel accepted upon themselves to do all that He would command through Moses, and He made a covenant with them concerning all thisāfrom that point on, they are His people and He is their God… And therefore, He first commanded regarding the matter of the Tabernacle, so that He would have a house among them dedicated to His name, and there He would speak with Moses and command the children of Israel.”
This perspective revolutionizes our understanding of the Tabernacle’s purpose. Rather than a response to sin, it was intended from the beginning as the next phase in God’s unfolding relationship with Israel. After the dramatic revelation at Mount Sinai, the Tabernacle would serve as a portable Sinaiāallowing God’s presence to accompany the people as they journeyed toward the Promised Land.
Nachmanides sees a hint to this approach in the parallel language used to describe God’s presence at Sinai and later in the Tabernacle. He notes that just as Scripture says, “The glory of the Lord dwelt on Mount Sinai” (Exodus 24:16), it similarly states regarding the Tabernacle, “The glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle” (Exodus 40:34).
Through this linguistic connection and others, we see that the Tabernacle transformed the temporary encounter at Sinai into an enduring relationship between God and His people throughout their wilderness journey and beyond. When the Temple was built in Jerusalem, it became the permanent structure that housed God’s glory and through which we could continue to maintain a relationship with the Divine.
The debate over the Tabernacle’s timing speaks to a universal human condition. We all seek tangible manifestations of the divine in our livesāphysical spaces, symbols, and practices that help us connect with transcendence.
Whether the Tabernacle was a response to human failing or part of the original divine blueprint, its creation reveals a profound truth: God desires to dwell among His people. As the prophet Ezekiel would later proclaim:
The Tabernacle represents God’s willingness to enter into a relationship with humanity on terms we can comprehend. Rather than remaining distant and abstract, God chooses to manifest His presence in ways that engage our physical senses while elevating our spiritual consciousness.
In the absence of the Temple today, Jewish tradition teaches that we create our own sacred spacesāour synagogues, our study halls, and even our homes become miniature sanctuaries where divine presence can dwell. As the sages state, after the destruction of the Temple, God’s presence resides wherever the Bible is studied and lived.
Yet Judaism maintains an unwavering hope for the restoration of the Temple in Jerusalemāthe Third Temple that will fulfill the prophetic vision of Isaiah: “My house shall be called a house of prayer for all nations” (Isaiah 56:7). This future Temple will not be merely a Jewish sanctuary but will fulfill its universal purpose as a spiritual center for all humanity.
The ancient words of the Psalmist still resonate:
In our modern world of distraction and disconnection, we continue to create sacred spaces in our communities and homes while maintaining our fervent hope and prayer that the Third Temple will be built speedily in our days, restoring that perfect dwelling place where God’s presence will once again be manifest for all.
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