Gan HaTorah
“ונתת על השלחן לחם פנים לפני תמיד”
“You shall place the lechem hapanim upon the Table before Me at all times.”
These loaves were called the lechem hapanim and were on the Shulchan at all times. Hakodosh Boruch Hu said that the lechem hapanim should be “before Me at all times.” What is the significance of the lechem hapanim being before Hashem at all times?
“ועשית שלחן עצי שטים” – “You shall make a table of acacia wood, two amos its length, an amah its width, and an amah and a half its height.” Why is the parsha of the Shulchan near the parsha of the Menorah? It is a remez to what Chazal say that if three people eat at the table, and they say divrei Torah, it is as if they ate from the table of Hashem. “שלחן” is the gematria of “משמח,” to make happy. One who treats the table properly, makes brochos and says divrei Torah, makes Hashem happy. “שלחן” is the same gematria as “זה שלום.” This refers to being in perfect harmony with Hashem. (חומת אנך)
Menachos 29a – “נס גדול נעשה בלחם הפנים, סילוקו כסידורו” – “There was a great miracle by the lechem hapanim; it was taken off as it was put on.”
The lechem hapanim were placed on the Shulchan with steam coming out of them. They stayed on the Shulchan for a week. When they were taken off, they were still hot and steaming. Why did Hashem make this great miracle? There is great mussar to learn from this. Mishlei 9:5 “לכו לחמו בלחמי” – The bread is referring to the Torah Hakdoshah. Torah always has to be fresh. The lechem hapanim stayed hot and fresh all week for us to know how to learn the Torah Hakdoshah. One must always have a bren and a freshness in his learning of the Torah Hakdoshah. (בן יהוידע)
There were two stacks on the Shulchan, with six loaves of bread in each stack. The number six is meramez to the ששה סדרי משנה. It represents the Torah Sheba’al Peh, and the six words in the first parsha of Kriyas Shema, which represents accepting ohl malchus Shamayim. The letter ‘ו' can be spelled three ways. וו is 12, which represents the Shivtei Koh. ואו is 13, which is the same gematria as דחא, which represents the Oneness of Hakodosh Boruch Hu. ויו is 22, which represents the 22 letters of the aleph bais that are in the Torah Hakdoshah. The letter ‘ו' is meramez that Hashem, the Torah, and Klal Yisroel are all one. (באר משה)
If one davens or learns Torah, those are actions that are clearly ruchniyos. Then there are actions that may or may not be ruchniyos. The higher level of Torah is taking gashmiyos and turning it into ruchniyos. By learning Torah when one eats and making brachos thanking Hashem for his food, he is raising the level of his eating, a mundane action, to a great level of ruchniyos. We must eat to sustain ourselves and to be able to be a true eved Hashem. The Menorah represents the Torah. Certainly, one needs to learn Torah for the right purposes; that is somewhat obvious. The Torah is telling us a great chiddush that even our eating and other mundane actions must always be “before Hashem,” for the sake of Hashem.
RABBI YAKOV YOSEF SCHECHTER
