The Dwelling of the Shechinah in the Batei Knessios

Peninei Emunim

Pearls of Tefillah in the Parashah

(ח כה) "בתוכם ושכנתי מקדש לי ועשו"

Doesn’t this passuk discuss the building of the Mishkan? Why then does it say "v’asu Li mikdash"?

Rav Mordechai Hakohein of Tzefas explained:

The Zohar (Naso 126a) explains that building a beis knesses is included in this commandment, as it says there, "every beis knesses is called a Mikdash. We also find in the Gemara that a beis knesses is called a "mikdash" and as Chazal explain (Megillah 29a) the passuk (Yechezkel ואהי להם למקדש" :)11:16 – "these מעט בארצות אשר באו שם" are the batei knessios and batei medrashos in Bavel." In light of this we can say that it says "V’asu Li mikdash" in order to include a commandment for all the generations to build batei knessios, which are called "mikdash me’at."

Based on this, the Tzemach Tzeddek explained the words of Chazal (Vayikra Rabbah 2 2) that everything for which HaKodash Baruch Hu used the term "Li", for Me, like the passuk "v’asu Li mikdash," is never nullified. As such, when we are in galus, we fulfill this mitzvah by building batei knessios and batei medrashos, and we find that a mikdash can never be batel.

The Zohar (ibid) continues that the promise regarding the Mikdash – "veshachanti besocham" – is fulfilled in the batei knessios. Rav Dovid Abuchatzeira from Tafilalt brought an allusion to that from the passuk: בתוכם is an acronym בתי כנסיות ובתי מדרשות for.

Sifsei Kohein; Ohr HaTorah Terumah p. 1442; Pesach Ha’Ohel