Terumah

In this parsha

God calls upon Israel to bring freewill offerings so that a Sanctuary may be built and the Divine Presence dwell among them. The Torah details the materials and the sacred vessels: the gold-covered Ark holding the tablets, crowned by the cherubim; the table for the showbread; the golden menorah beaten from a single piece; the tapestries and beams of the Mishkan itself; and the courtyard with its copper altar. Every element is fashioned according to the pattern shown to Moses on the mountain.

Themes

• Torah acquired through will and faith
• The Mishkan built within the heart
• Elevating the hidden good in creation
• Israel as dwelling for the Shechinah
• The generous inner point
• Sanctifying everyday deeds

Must-read teachings

1. 1Receiving Torah through emunah and ratzonIn the Midrash on "And they shall take for Me" — this is the meaning of "For I have given you a good acquisition (lekach tov)" — there is in it silver, there is in it gold; from the broker (sarsur) it became known what the buy was; the sell…תרל"א
2. 2Acquiring Torah by elevating all deeds to HashemIn the Midrash: "A good acquisition (lekach tov)… do not abandon the purchase… it contains gold, silver, fields, vineyards… is there any [other] purchase where the seller is sold along with it?…" — see there. The Midrash plays on the pasuk …תרל"ב
3. 3Torah elevates the hidden good in creationThe Midrash on "I have given you a good purchase (lekach tov); do not abandon the merchandise," etc. — "it contains gold, silver," etc. The Midrash compares the Torah to a precious "purchase" containing gold and silver — a treasury one must…תרמ"ד
4. 4Three modes of receiving the TorahIn the Midrash on "You ascended on high…" The Sefas Emes opens from the verse "You ascended on high, you took a captive, you received gifts," which speaks of Moshe receiving the Torah. See there, for it expounds three aspects in the Torah: …תרנ"ד
5. 5Bnei Yisrael themselves as the dwelling of the ShechinahIn the Midrash: "You ascended on high… You took gifts among men… even the rebellious, that Hashem may dwell…" The Midrash on the posuk speaks of the Torah being "taken as gifts among men" so that the Shechinah could dwell — the theme of bri…תרמ"ח
6. 6The Mishkan as a vessel for the soul's lightIn the Midrash: "I sleep [but my heart is awake]..." (Shir HaShirim 5:2) — "Until when shall I go about outside? Make for Me a Mishkan." The Sefas Emes opens with the Midrash in which Hashem, as it were, asks to no longer "go about outside"…תרמ"ט
7. 7Torah uncovers the soul's hidden desireIn the Midrash: "A good teaching (lekach tov) I have given you..." regarding what is written: "[from every man] whose heart prompts him to give (asher yidvenu libo)." The Sefas Emes links the Torah, called "lekach tov" (a good acquisition/t…תרס"ב
8. 8The soul-root that yearns to reuniteAnd in the Midrash: "I am asleep but my heart is awake" — she is asleep in galus, but her heart is awake to redeem her. The Sefas Emes reads the verse from Shir HaShirim as describing Bnei Yisrael in exile: outwardly dormant, yet an inner p…תרמ"ב