Vayakhel תר”ס 1
במדרש ואל מי תדמיוני כו’ א”כ יאמר קדוש שאו מרום עיניכם כו’.
In the Midrash it says: “And to whom will you liken Me…?” Therefore it says: “Holy—lift your eyes on high…”
The Sefat Emet opens by explaining that since God cannot be compared to anything, the verse directs us to lift our perception upward toward the holy.
כי הקב”ה רחוק מכל רחוק ואי אפשר להשיגו רק ע”י פעולותיו כמ”ש מי ברא אלה.
For the Holy One is more distant than any distance, and can only be apprehended through His actions, as it is written: “Who created these.”
God’s essence is completely beyond human grasp; we reach Him only through the works of creation that reveal Him.
ומצד הבריאה הוא קרוב מכל קרוב.
Yet from the aspect of creation He is nearer than any nearness.
Although God transcends creation, He is simultaneously intimately present within it.
ובאמת מעשה המשכן הוא רמז למעשה בראשית והוא המשכת השראת השכינה ע”י אלה הכלים הכלולים בסוד מעשה בראשית.
And truly, the construction of the Mishkan hints at the creation of the world, for it draws down the Divine Presence through vessels that are rooted in the mystery of creation.
The Mishkan mirrors creation itself, enabling the Shekhinah to rest through structures patterned after cosmic principles.
כמ”ש חז”ל יודע הי’ בצלאל לצרף אותיות שנבראו בהם שמים וארץ.
As the Sages said: Bezalel knew how to combine the letters through which the heavens and earth were created.
Bezalel’s craftsmanship reflects a profound knowledge of creation’s spiritual building blocks.
אך זאת מעלת בנ”י אשר יש להם דביקות בהקב”ה גם בבחי’ הריחוק כמ”ש מרחוק ה’ נראה לי דייקא.
But this is the greatness of Israel: they have attachment to God even in the aspect of distance, as it says, “From afar Hashem appeared to me.”
Israel can cleave to God even when He seems distant; distance does not sever their bond.
וזה עדות השבת דכתיב ביני ובין בני ישראל אות הוא בלי שום אמצעות הבריאה.
And this is the testimony of Shabbat, as it is written: “Between Me and the children of Israel it is a sign,” without any mediation of creation.
Shabbat manifests a direct relationship between God and Israel that transcends creation entirely.
דכ’ ביום השביעי שבת לכן הוא קודש.
For it is written: “On the seventh day He rested; therefore it is holy.”
Its holiness arises from God’s own cessation, not from anything within creation.
ובנ”י יש להם חלק בקדושה כמ”ש קדש ישראל לה’ ראשית תבואתו הוא מקדם לבריאת עולם.
And Israel has a share in this holiness, as it is written: “Israel is holy to Hashem, the first of His produce,” which precedes the creation of the world.
Israel’s holiness is primordial, rooted in a level higher than creation itself.
וכן אמרו האל הקדוש שאין כמוהו המניח לעמו ביום שבת קדשו.
And so they said: “The Holy God, none is like Him, Who grants rest to His people on His holy Shabbat.”
Shabbat connects Israel to God’s own holiness, the holiness beyond likeness or comparison.
שגם במדריגה זו דכ’ אל מי תדמיוני כו’ אעפ”כ יש לבנ”י חלק בו.
For even on that level of “To whom will you liken Me,” still Israel has a share in Him.
Even the plane of absolute divine transcendence remains accessible to Israel in some participatory way.
וכמ”ש בזוה”ק בפסוק ואתה ה’ אל תרחק שהגם שהעולמות מתעלין בש”ק אעפ”כ נמשכין בנ”י אחר אלה המעלות.
As the Zohar says on the verse “Do not be distant, Hashem”: even though the worlds ascend on Shabbat, Israel is drawn after these ascents.
Israel rises together with the upper worlds on Shabbat, participating in their elevation.
והנה קודם החטא כתיב אלקים אתם ונתדבקו באלקות וע”ז כתיב מי יעלה בהר ה’.
Before the sin it was written, “You are divine beings,” and they cleaved to divinity; about this it says: “Who may ascend the mountain of Hashem?”
Originally humanity stood in a state of direct divine attachment, enabling ascent to the highest spiritual levels.
אך כשירדו ממעלה זו כמ”ש ומי יקום במקום קדשו בקביעות.
But when they fell from this level, as it says, “And who may stand in His holy place”—as a constant state.
After the fall, continuous residence in divine spaces became impossible.
אף על פי כן יש עתים וזמנים אשר חוזרין למעלתם הראשונה.
Nevertheless there are times and seasons when they return to their original level.
Certain moments allow a temporary restoration of primordial spiritual stature.
ולכן אחר החטא ניתן להם מלאכת המשכן בבחי’ מי ברא אלה.
Therefore, after the sin, the work of the Mishkan was given to them, on the level of “Who created these.”
The Mishkan provides a mediated pathway back toward God, rooted in creation’s structure.
אבל הקדים השבת שהוא מדריגה גבוה מזה כנ”ל.
But Shabbat was placed before it, for it is a level higher than this, as stated above.
Shabbat surpasses the Mishkan because it restores a direct, pre‑creation bond with God.
Summary: The Sefat Emet teaches that while God is utterly transcendent, He becomes accessible through creation—and the Mishkan embodies this. Yet Israel possesses a bond that transcends creation, revealed most fully in Shabbat. Shabbat returns them to a pre‑creation level of holiness, higher even than the Mishkan’s mediated connection.
