Audio Summaries of the daily Chumash portions In loving memory of Ousher Zelig ben Myer HaLevi Z”L

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The Robe. The Showplate. The Regular Cohanim’s Clothing.

The Robe (The Me’il)

The Ephod was to be worn on top of a robe made completely out of blue wool.

The collar of this robe should be folded inwards, similar to a coat of arms which has a collar that is folded inwards.

It is forbidden to tear this robe.

The bottom hem of the robe was lined with a row of alternating pomegranates (made out of blue, purple and scarlet wool) and gold bells.

The Cohen Gadol must wear these garments. If he does not, he is worthy of death by the hands of heaven.

The Showplate (The Tzitz)

A showplate should be made out of pure gold with an engraving upon it it saying “Holy to G-d”. This showplate should be worn around the Cohen Gadol’s forehead.

The showplate had three holes in it – one on each end and one in the center. Through these holes were to be thread blue cords made out of blue wool so that 6 strands of this wool hung out (one on each side from being pulled through). The two side cords were tied together and then the middle cords tied from on top to the strands now in the back, creating a sort of cap that encircled the entire crown of the head, with the show plate on the forehead in front.

The Cohen Gadol was to wear this showplate as a way to appease G-d for Him to accept sacrifices that were offered from someone “unclean”.*

*Side note: It did not appease for the inequity of someone who intended to eat from the sacrifice outside of the designated area (termed פִּגּוּל, lit. “abominable thing”). Nor did it appease for someone who wished to eat from the sacrifice after its allotted time (termed נוֹתָר). Nor did it appease for the Cohen himself if he were to be unclean. It only served to appease for the sake of the person who brought the sacrifice.

According to most opinions, this showplate served to appease such sacrifices at all times, even if it wasn’t being worn by the Cohen Gadol at a specific time. There are some opinions however that say that it only served as an appeasement whilst the Cohen Gadol was wearing it, in which case he needed to touch it to remind himself of its significance for it to have that effect.

Both the Kutonet (inner checkered tunic), and the Mitznefes (cap) (both mentioned in the first Aliyah) should be made out of linen.

The Clothing of the Regular Cohanim.

While the Cohen Gadol (Aaron) needed to have all of the garments mentioned, his sons (i.e. regular Cohanim), were only to wear these four garments: The Kutonet (inner tunic), the Avnet (a sash), the Migba’at (cap) and Michnasaim (linen pants – reaching from the waist to the thighs).

Aaron and his sons are to wear their respective clothings and are then to be anointed as Cohanim with anointing oil.

Aaron and his sons must wear their appointed clothing whenever they are to enter the Ohel Moed (Tent of Meeting), the Mishkan or approach the altar to serve G-d. If they do not wear these clothing when they are meant to, they will be liable to be put to death by the hands of heaven.

Audio Summaries of the daily Chumash portions In loving memory of Ousher Zelig ben Myer HaLevi Z”L

To sponsor an episode please visit: https://itistaught.com/support-this-project/To get the daily chumash summaries in your email click here https://substack.com/profile/182692001-sarede-rachel-switzer?utm_source=profile-page.Subscribe on SpotifySubscribe on Apple PodcastsPlease consider leaving a review on the platform of your choice! For comments and inquiries, email itistaught@gmail.com

The Choshen. How it attached to the Ephod. The Urim V'Tumim.

The Choshen should have two braided golden chains attached to rings that were at its outer edges. These attached the Choshen to the Ephod's straps above (see below).

The Choshen also had two chains hanging from its bottom two corners but from the inside. These attached the Choshen to the belt of the Ephod (see below).

The Choshen should be made out of the same 5 materials as the Ephod: Blue, purple and scarlet wool, gold and twisted linen and similarly made from an expert weaver.

The Choshen was called "Choshen Mishpat" (i.e "of judgement") as it:

* atoned for justice being perverted or

* clarified the words of justice and promised that these words would come true.

The choshen should be made from material that is 1 amah x 1/2 an amah. It is then to be folded over so that it is square shaped, 1/2 an amah x 1/2 an amah (1/2 an amah is also known as a "zereth").

Is should hang from settings in the straps of the Ephod by the golden chains described above and fall right on the Cohen Gadol's chest.

The Choshen should have four rows of different stones, placed into the golden settings. The stones varied in size and the settings were made to fit them exactly.

The stones in each row should be as such:

Row one stones: odem, pitdah, and bareketh.

Row two: nofech, sappir, and yahalom.

Row three: leshem, shevo, and achlamah.

Row four: tarshish, shoham, and yashpheh.

These 12 stones corresponded to the 12 tribes in order of their birth*.

*Side note: It was not in literal order of their birth but rather in order of the women who gave birth and then their respective birth orders. Leah was the first to give birth, so the first six stones correspond to her 6 sons, followed by Bilhah, hence the 7th stone, the "leshem" corresponds to Bilhah's first son Dan.

The reason for these tribes to be commemorated in this way is for them to serve as a constant rememberance to G-d.

While the settings of the Ephod's straps hit right above the Choshen and attached to it via the golden chains there, the straps continued behind the Choshen, falling right above the belt of the Ephod. The shoulder straps was attached to the front side of the Ephid via a blue string that was threaded though 2 rings that were at the bottom of the shoulder straps and then through the bottom 2 rings of the Choshen. This set the Choshen in place so it wouldn't move around.

Moshe placed an inscription of the ineffable name* of G-d into the folds of the Choshen. This was referred to as the Urim VeTumim.

*Side note: There is a dispute as to whether this was the Tetragrammaton, the 42 letter name or the 72 letter name.

Aaron (the Cohen Gadol/high priest) wore the Choshen and was in charge of judging the people. When there was a question concerning a certain judgement, the words to the answer would light up on the Urim V'Tumim.

During the 2nd Beis HaMikdash, while the Cohen Gadol did wear the Choshen, there was no name inside of it so it didn't work in this same way as it did in the Mishkan.

Audio Summaries of the daily Chumash portions In loving memory of Ousher Zelig ben Myer HaLevi Z”L

To sponsor an episode please visit: https://itistaught.com/support-this-project/To get the daily chumash summaries in your email click here https://substack.com/profile/182692001-sarede-rachel-switzer?utm_source=profile-page.Subscribe on SpotifySubscribe on Apple PodcastsPlease consider leaving a review on the platform of your choice! For comments and inquiries, email itistaught@gmail.com

The Courtyard of the Mishkan

G-d now instructs how how to construct the courtyard of the Mishkan:

Both the southern and northern sides of the courtyard were to have 100 amos of curtains each, made out of twisted linen, loosely braided, rather than tightly weaved, so as to to be filled with holes.

Each side should have 20 pillars placed at a distance of 5 amos from one another (the width of each pillar is to be included in this distance). The pillars had silver hooks attached to them and silver threads wrapped around them, either only at their top, middle or all around them (Rashi isn't sure). These pillars were placed into 20 copper sockets.

Then poles were made (measuring 6 tefachim long and 3 tefachim wide) with a copper ring at the center of each. These rings were attached to the poles' hooks.

The edge of the above mentioned curtains were wrapped around these poles with cords and hung down - being the same height of the courtyard's partition.

On the west side, a similar structure should be made, but with only 50 amos of curtains and 10 pillars placed into 10 sockets.

For the eastern side, since this was the entrance, 15 amos of curtain was to be hung on either side, leaving 20 amos of empty space in the middle which was to be covered by a screen. As with the western side, there were to be 10 pillars wedged into 10 sockets, 5 amos apart (including the width of the pillars in this distance) (3 on either side for the curtains and then 4 in the middle, in the area of the screen).

The screen at the entrance (covering the middle 20 amos) was to be made out of turquoise, purple and scarlet wool and twisted linen. This screen had copper sockets as well.

As with the northern and southern sides, the pillars of the western and eastern courtyard similarly had silver rings around them, had silver hooks and were wedged into copper sockets.

The courtyard was 100 amos in length (from east to west).

The east side of the courtyard was 50x50 amos. Moving westward, then came the Mishkan which was 30 amos in length and 10 amos in width and then another 20 amos of the western outer area of the courtyard.

The courtyard was 50 amos in width (from north to south). The Mishkan was 10 amos in the middle of this, leaving 20 amos of courtyard on both the northern and southern sides.

The curtains which served as partitions to the courtyard were 5 amos high.

All of the pegs used in the construction of the Mishkan and its courtyard as well as all of the tools used to construct these (eg. hammers etc) were to be made out of copper.

Audio Summaries of the daily Chumash portions In loving memory of Ousher Zelig ben Myer HaLevi Z”L

To sponsor an episode please visit: https://itistaught.com/support-this-project/To get the daily chumash summaries in your email click here https://substack.com/profile/182692001-sarede-rachel-switzer?utm_source=profile-page.Subscribe on SpotifySubscribe on Apple PodcastsPlease consider leaving a review on the platform of your choice! For comments and inquiries, email itistaught@gmail.com

The Copper Altar

G-d instructs that a copper altar be made out of shittim wood. It should be square in shape, 5x5 amos. According to Rabbi Yehudah, it should be 3 amos tall. According to Rabbi Yosei, 3 amos should merely be its height from the edge of it's band and upwards, whereas its actual height should be double it's length, just like the interior altar (to be discussed later), i.e 10 amos.

This altar was filled with earth, which is why it is elsewhere referred to as the earthern altar.

The altar should have 4 horns carved into it. The altar should be covered with copper to atone for insolence. Copper is given as a metaphor for insolence in Isaiah 48:4.

All of the utensils of this altar should be made out of copper. These utensils are:

* Kettle pots and thin shovels (in the shape of a metal pot's lid) - used to remove ashes from the altar

* Sprinkling basins to catch the blood from sacrifices

* Prongs to dig into the meat on the altar and rotate it on the coals of the altar's fire and fire pans

* Fire pans - Convex pans to carry the coals for incense from the altar to the inner altar.

A copper grate should be made, to serve as a sieve for altar. This grate should have four copper rings placed on each of its four corners. The grating was 1 cubit wide and was situated at the halfway point of the altar from the ground, which was demarcated by a red line. This halfway point served as a designation point between the "upper and lower bloods" (some blood from the sacrifices was required to be sprinkled above the altar and some below).

The altar had two rounded grooves, one on top of the other. The top one was 3 cubits down from the top of the altar (this is according to the opinion that the altar was 10 cubits tall, not 3 cubits - see first paragraph above) and was to protect the Kohanim from slipping off the alter.

The one below that was 1 cubit wide and was for decorative purposes.

A hairsbreath away from the altar, to its south was a ramp. The base of this ramp reached till a cubit away from the hangings of the courtyard on the Mishkan's south side. According to the opinion that the altar was only 3 cubits tall, this ramp was 10 cubits long.

There should be poles made to carry the altar out of shittim wood, covered in copper. These poles were placed into and kept in the above mentioned rings so that there was one pole on either side.