Parashat Vayekhel

Ok so when you look at this Parasha, let's be honest- it appears to be boring. 

Let's look into this. 

So when building the משכן , בני ישראל is given like tons of details. We hear them twice; Hashem's instructions and human carrying it out. In both cases we also get the command of keeping Shabbat. Shabbat overrides building the משכן. The 39 מלכות that we can't do on Shabbat come from the activity done to build the משכן. 

The difference between Hashem's instructions and Moshe telling the people can be seen from פרשת כי תשא and this weeks. Last time- the commandment of Shabbat is at the end - after the detailed instructions. This week however we see Shabbat first. Why??

There's a מחלוקת in the Gemara . One guy says if someone is traveling in the wilderness and gets lost and he doesn't know when Shabbat is he has to count six days since he forgot and observe one. The other guy says: no, he has to keep one and then count 6 days. What's the difference? One holds that it's like the worlds creation and one is like the case of Adam.

This blows my mind- from Hashem's point of view Shabbat is the seventh day. From a human beings, it's the first day. So which perspective do we adopt? 

Ok so clearly Shabbat comes last when Hashem gives instructions and first when Moshe ( a human being) gives it. 

But listen- when it comes to Hashem there no gap between intention and execution. ברוך שאמר והיה העולם. ברוך. הוא ברוך אומר ועושה. Hashem knows how things will turn out In advance. Humans don't. A novelist doesn't know how a story will turn out until it's done, nor a composer a symphony or an artist with a painting. You can't plan human behavior. You can let things happen as they will ( don't do this) or you could reveal the end at the beginning. Shabbat isn't just a day of rest. It's anticipation of how the works will be when yes, Mashiach comes. We don't strive to do, we are content to be. We don't manipulate the world, we celebrate it as Hashem's work of art. 

The ultimate utopia is עולם הבא and we do a dress rehearsal of it every week, one day in seven. We try to act like a social that hasn't come Into being yet but we know what were aiming for because we've experienced it at the beginning. 

The symbolism of the משכן is a miniature universe. It's a prototype of a society. It's a home on Earth for Hashem. 

He wants us to know what were aiming for when we lose our way in the wilderness. That's why when it came to the actual building of the משכן by humans - Shabbat came first. For Hashem it came last. He made the end known at the beginning so could catch a glimpse of the destination before beginning. Only those who know where they are traveling will get there, however how fast or slow they go.

Shabbat shalom

Props to rabbi j sacks