As the second half of Sefer Shemot focuses primarily on the construction of the Mishkan, the tragic eigel tale sticks out, seemingly unrelated to its neighboring perakim. Rashi, however (Shemos 31:18), sees a response to the chet haeigel in the Tabernacle construction, explaining that the Mishkan helped Israel achieve a kapparah for their sin. Interestingly, in Bamidbar (19:2), Rashi understands the mitzvah of the parah adumah as fulfilling a similar function. How did these two apparently different mitzvot serve as a kapparah for the same cheit?
If we are to understand how a mitzvah can serve as a kapparah, we must comprehend the sin for which it atones. What was Israel’s motivation in creating the Golden Calf? In his Kuzari, Rabbi Yehuda haLevi explains that the Bnei Yisrael had no initial intent to worship avodah zarah. Rather, they sought a this-worldly manifestation of G-d’s presence. This desire, not intrinsically wrong, was satisfied by the binyan haMishkan. What differentiated the eigel from the Mishkan?
The answer can be found in the last several pesukim of Sefer Shemot. Concerning every act involved in the binyan haMishkan, the Torah takes pains to assure us that it was performed “ka’asher tziva Hashem es Moshe.” The emphasis of this recurring phrase contains the simple yet fundamental difference between the eigel and the Mishkan. Both were intended to serve as vehicles with which to relate to the Divine, yet one became avodah zarah, and the other became the dwelling place of the Shekhina. The Mishkan was built because Hashem had commanded it; each detail was adhered to precisely as G-d had instructed. Only in such a manner can a physical entity serve as a makom for the hashra’as haShekhina. A plan devised by man without the Almighty’s specific instruction will ultimately result in avodah zarah. The lesson to be learned after the eigel incident was that G-d’s presence would rest in Israel only if His specific commanded methods of attaining this goal were adhered to. As such, the Mishkan was the ultimate kapparah for the chet ha’eigel. Klal Yisrael would ultimately merit an Earthly manifestation of Hashem’s glory, but only “ka’asher tziva Hashem es Moshe.”
With this understanding of the root of the chet haeigel, the parah adumah’s role in the kapparah is equally apparent. The red heifer could be called the “chok par excellence.” As a chok, it reinforces to us the message that our avodat Hashem must be dictated by G-d. We cannot rationalize the meaning of a chok, yet we perform it nonetheless. This is the antithesis of the mistake that led to the eigel. Rather than relying on our human perception of what is spiritually appropriate, we subjugate ourselves totally to the retzon Hashem, and only in this manner will we attain hashra’as haShekhina. Furthermore, the parah adumah serves not merely as an atonement for the eigel but as a prerequisite for entering the Mishkan. Only when these mitzvos work in tandem, when we learn from both that avodas Hashem is dictated by “ka’asher tziva Hashem es Moshe,” can the chet haeigel be eradicated.
The concept of the Mishkan being the ultimate expression of “ka’asher tziva Hashem es Moshe” was endangered by Nadav and Avihu offering ketores “asher lo tziva osam,” which they were not commanded to offer. A dedication of the Mishkan that did not follow G-d’s precise instructions would undermine its entire message. Such actions were therefore punished severely.
May we be zoche to learn the message of the Mishkan and the parah adumah, and may we live our lives “ka’asher tziva Hashem es Moshe.”
RABBI ZEV LEFF
RABBI ZVI SOBOLOFSKY
