BETZALEL
וּבְצַלְאֵל בֶּן־אוּרִ י בֶּן־חוּר לְמַטֵה יְהוּדָה עָשָה אֵת כָל־אֲשֶּר־צִוָּה יְהוָה אֶּת־מֹשֶּה: (שמות לח:כב)
And Betzalel, son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Yehuda, did all that HaShem commanded Moshe.
Betzalel was born in the year 2436 (12 years prior to the Exodus). In the year 2449, when he was 13 years old, he assisted Moshe in building the Mishkan.
The Torah tells us that Betzalel built the Mishkan according to the word of HaShem. Rashi points out that the Pasuk doesn’t say that Betzalel did what Moshe had commanded him to do, rather, he did what HaShem commanded Moshe on Har Sinai. Betzalel had already figured it all out.
Moshe commanded Betzalel to first build the Kelim (vessels/furnishings) and then build the Mishkan afterwards. Betzalel says to Moshe that the custom of the world is to first build the house and then the furnishings. Moshe responds that he was right and HaShem had commanded him to first build the Mishkan and then the Kalim. Moshe then says ‘B’zal-al’ you were in HaShem’s shadow. (Berachos 55a)
All the Achronim ask, how could Moshe forget what was supposed to be done first? Moshe had just taught the Torah in its entirety (the day before, Yom Kippur, was the day he came down with the second Luchos and taught Kol Hatorah Kulah to Klal Yisroel except for the Parsha of the Mishkan since the Mishkan couldn’t be done on Yom Kippur) and now he forgets which was supposed to come first?
It would be very difficult to explain that Moshe forgot such a Pashut Din. We can’t say that HaShem never taught Moshe which one to build first because Moshe says clearly, ‘indeed HaShem commanded me to first build the Mishkan’. So, what in the world is going on with this Medrash?
The Ohr HaChayim answers this question back in Parshas Teruma. The Ohr HaChayim explains (using various Medrashim) that HaShem showed Moshe an image of the Mishkan first, and then all of its vessels afterwards. After showing Moshe the overall blueprint HaShem then explains each one individually starting with the Aron. So it is understandable that Moshe was a bit confused about which one should come first as HaShem had showed him the Mishkan first, but when showing him how to build everything, he showed him the Aron first.
What did HaShem want to be built first? Moshe wasn’t entirely clear until Betzalel explained the logic of how Man always builds the house first. With Betzalel’s answer Moshe was able to understand what HaShem wanted to be built first and thus Moshe called Betzalel ‘Bzal-al’. (When Moshe said, ‘indeed HaShem commanded me to first build the Mishkan’, he meant now I understand that HaShem truly wanted the Mishkan first)
The Levush Haorah explains this episode in a different way. (First, he says anyone who says Moshe didn’t know the Pshat is wrong and doesn’t know anything etc.) He says that Betzalel and all Klal Yisroel were confused in how Moshe was teaching them how to build the Mishkan. In Parshas Terumah, which Moshe taught first, Moshe started by saying the vessels are to be built first (25:9). However, in Parshas Vayakel (35:10) he first says that the Mishkan should be built first. All of Klal Yisroel were listening to Moshe and they were confused, which one did he want first?
At that time Betzalel gets up and asks, ‘Moshe which one do you want us to do first, for it makes sense to build the Mishkan first etc’. Moshe then responds by saying that Betzalel is a great Chacham, one who knew the answer before Moshe had told him. Moshe didn’t forget or was confused; before he taught which one was supposed to be built first Betzalel jumped up and answered. Moshe didn’t do it in a confusing way; rather he was telling Klal Yisroel that the Aron was really the first because the main reason for the existence of the Mishkan was to bring the Shechina down to this world. The Shechina began with the Aron, meaning the Torah.
Betzalel had five other names: Reaiah ("the seer"), Shobal ("the builder of the dovecote," a synonym for the Tabernacle), Yahat ("the dreadful"), Ahumai ("the unifier of Israel"), and Lahad ("one who beautified Israel," or "one who was near to the poor"; Ex. R. 40:4).
After this incident Betzalel is not mentioned in any other place. Tzepanas Peneach suggests that Betzalel was not a master craftsman, but was filled with prophetic spirit to build the Mishkan, which left him after the job was finished. Seder haDoros states that he was buried in the city of Eruv Tzlel but does not mention the year.
