Parashat Pekudei 5784 / פָּרָשַׁת פְקוּדֵיTorah Portion: Exodus 38:21-40:38 Triennial Year 2: Ex. 38:21-39:21

(21) These are the records of the Tabernacle, the Tabernacle of the Pact, which were drawn up at Moses’ bidding—the work of the Levites under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest. (22) Now Bezalel, son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, had made all that יהוה had commanded Moses; (23) at his side was Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, carver and designer, and embroiderer in blue, purple, and crimson yarns and in fine linen.

(24) All the gold that was used for the work, in all the work of the sanctuary—the elevation offering of gold—came to 29 talents and 730 shekels by the sanctuary weight. (25) The silver of those of the community who were recorded came to 100 talents and 1,775 shekels by the sanctuary weight: (26) a half-shekel a head, half a shekel by the sanctuary weight, for each one who was entered in the records, from the age of twenty years up, 603,550 men. (27) The 100 talents of silver were for casting the sockets of the sanctuary and the sockets for the curtain, 100 sockets to the 100 talents, a talent a socket.

(28) And of the 1,775 shekels he made hooks for the posts, overlay for their tops, and bands around them. (29) The copper from the elevation offering came to 70 talents and 2,400 shekels. (30) Of it he made the sockets for the entrance of the Tent of Meeting; the copper altar and its copper grating and all the utensils of the altar; (31) the sockets of the enclosure round about and the sockets of the gate of the enclosure; and all the pegs of the Tabernacle and all the pegs of the enclosure round about. (1) Of the blue, purple, and crimson yarns they also made the service vestments for officiating in the sanctuary; they made Aaron’s sacral vestments—as יהוה had commanded Moses.

(2) The ephod was made of gold, blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and fine twisted linen. (3) They hammered out sheets of gold and cut threads to be worked into designs among the blue, the purple, and the crimson yarns, and the fine linen. (4) They made for it attaching shoulder-pieces; they were attached at its two ends. (5) The decorated band that was upon it was made like it, of one piece with it; of gold, blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and fine twisted linen—as יהוה had commanded Moses. (6) They bordered the lazuli stones with frames of gold, engraved with seal engravings of the names of the sons of Israel. (7) They were set on the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, as stones of remembrance for the Israelites—as יהוה had commanded Moses.

(8) The breastpiece was made in the style of the ephod: of gold, blue, purple, and crimson yarns, and fine twisted linen. (9) It was square; they made the breastpiece doubled—a span in length and a span in width, doubled. (10) They set in it four rows of stones. The first row was a row of carnelian, chrysolite, and emerald; (11) the second row: a turquoise, a sapphire, and an amethyst; (12) the third row: a jacinth, an agate, and a crystal; (13) and the fourth row: a beryl, a lapis lazuli, and a jasper. They were encircled in their mountings with frames of gold. (14) The stones corresponded [in number] to the names of the sons of Israel: twelve, corresponding to their names; engraved like seals, each with its name, for the twelve tribes.

(15) On the breastpiece they made braided chains of corded work in pure gold. (16) They made two frames of gold and two rings of gold, and fastened the two rings at the two ends of the breastpiece, (17) attaching the two golden cords to the two rings at the ends of the breastpiece. (18) They then fastened the two ends of the cords to the two frames, attaching them to the shoulder-pieces of the ephod, at the front.

(19) They made two rings of gold and attached them to the two ends of the breastpiece, at its inner edge, which faced the ephod. (20) They made two other rings of gold and fastened them on the front of the ephod, low on the two shoulder-pieces, close to its seam above the decorated band. (21) The breastpiece was held in place by a cord of blue from its rings to the rings of the ephod, so that the breastpiece rested on the decorated band and did not come loose from the ephod—as יהוה had commanded Moses.

(51) When all the work that King Solomon had done in the House of GOD was completed, Solomon brought in the sacred donations of his father David—the silver, the gold, and the vessels—and deposited them in the treasury of the House of GOD. (1) Then Solomon convoked the elders of Israel—all the heads of the tribes and the ancestral chieftains of the Israelites—before King Solomon in Jerusalem, to bring up the Ark of the Covenant of GOD from the City of David, that is, Zion. (2) The entire body of Israel gathered before King Solomon at the Feast [of Booths], in the month of Ethanim—that is, the seventh month. (3) When all the elders of Israel had come, the priests lifted the Ark (4) and carried up the Ark of GOD. Then the priests and the Levites brought the Tent of Meeting and all the holy vessels that were in the Tent. (5) Meanwhile, King Solomon and the whole community of Israel, who were assembled with him before the Ark, were sacrificing sheep and oxen in such abundance that they could not be numbered or counted. (6) The priests brought the Ark of GOD’s Covenant to its place underneath the wings of the cherubim, in the Shrine of the House, in the Holy of Holies; (7) for the cherubim had their wings spread out over the place of the Ark, so that the cherubim shielded the Ark and its poles from above. (8) The poles projected so that the ends of the poles were visible in the sanctuary in front of the Shrine, but they could not be seen outside; and there they remain to this day. (9) There was nothing inside the Ark but the two tablets of stone that Moses placed there at Horeb, when GOD made [a covenant] with the Israelites after their departure from the land of Egypt. (10) When the priests came out of the sanctuary—for the cloud had filled the House of GOD (11) and the priests were not able to remain and perform the service because of the cloud, for the Presence of the ETERNAL filled the House of GOD — (12) then Solomon declared:“ GOD has chosenTo abide in a thick cloud: (13) I have now built for YouA stately House,A place where YouMay dwell forever.” (14) Then, with the whole congregation of Israel standing, the king faced about and blessed the whole congregation of Israel. (15) He said:“Praised be the ETERNAL, the God of Israel, who has fulfilled with deeds the promise made to my father David. For [God] said, (16) ‘Ever since I brought My people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city among all the tribes of Israel for building a House where My name might abide; but I have chosen David to rule My people Israel.’ (17) “Now my father David had intended to build a House for the name of the ETERNAL One, the God of Israel. (18) But GOD said to my father David, ‘As regards your intention to build a House for My name, you did right to have that intention. (19) However, you shall not build the House yourself; instead, your son, the issue of your loins, shall build the House for My name.’ (20) “And GOD has fulfilled the promise that was made: I have succeeded my father David and have ascended the throne of Israel, as GOD promised. I have built the House for the name of the ETERNAL One, the God of Israel; (21) and I have set a place there for the Ark, containing the covenant that GOD made with our ancestors upon bringing them out from the land of Egypt.”

(40) Hiram also made the lavers, the scrapers, and the sprinkling bowls.So Hiram finished all the work that he had been doing for King Solomon on the House of GOD: (41) the two columns, the two globes of the capitals upon the columns; and the two pieces of network to cover the two globes of the capitals upon the columns; (42) the four hundred pomegranates for the two pieces of network, two rows of pomegranates for each network, to cover the two globes of the capitals upon the columns; (43) the ten stands and the ten lavers upon the stands; (44) the one tank with the twelve oxen underneath the tank; (45) the pails, the scrapers, and the sprinkling bowls. All those vessels in the House of GOD that Hiram made for King Solomon were of burnished bronze. (46) The king had them cast in earthen molds, in the plain of the Jordan between Succoth and Zarethan. (47) Solomon left all the vessels [unweighed] because of their very great quantity; the weight of the bronze was not reckoned. (48) And Solomon made all the furnishings that were in the House of GOD: the altar, of gold; the table for the bread of display, of gold; (49) the lampstands—five on the right side and five on the left—in front of the Shrine, of solid gold; and the petals, lamps, and tongs, of gold; (50) the basins, snuffers, sprinkling bowls, ladles, and fire pans, of solid gold; and the hinge sockets for the doors of the innermost part of the House, the Holy of Holies, and for the doors of the Great Hall of the House, of gold.

(10) When the priests came out of the sanctuary—for the cloud had filled the House of GOD (11) and the priests were not able to remain and perform the service because of the cloud, for the Presence of the ETERNAL filled the House of GOD — (12) then Solomon declared:“ GOD has chosenTo abide in a thick cloud: (13) I have now built for YouA stately House,A place where YouMay dwell forever.” (14) Then, with the whole congregation of Israel standing, the king faced about and blessed the whole congregation of Israel. (15) He said:“Praised be the ETERNAL, the God of Israel, who has fulfilled with deeds the promise made to my father David. For [God] said, (16) ‘Ever since I brought My people Israel out of Egypt, I have not chosen a city among all the tribes of Israel for building a House where My name might abide; but I have chosen David to rule My people Israel.’ (17) “Now my father David had intended to build a House for the name of the ETERNAL One, the God of Israel. (18) But GOD said to my father David, ‘As regards your intention to build a House for My name, you did right to have that intention. (19) However, you shall not build the House yourself; instead, your son, the issue of your loins, shall build the House for My name.’ (20) “And GOD has fulfilled the promise that was made: I have succeeded my father David and have ascended the throne of Israel, as GOD promised. I have built the House for the name of the ETERNAL One, the God of Israel; (21) and I have set a place there for the Ark, containing the covenant that GOD made with our ancestors upon bringing them out from the land of Egypt.”