Parasha Terumah - 2025 - Rabbi Yehudah

Heave Offering

תְּרוּמָה

The nineteenth reading from the Torah is named Terumah. In Exodus 25:2, the L-RD commanded Moses to “tell the sons of Israel to [take] a contribution for Me.” G-d was instructing Moshe to have all the sons of Israel, who just had come out of slavery and poverty to pool all of their finances to build a tabernacle. This seems like a very challenging request. After 400 years of slavery the Israelites had finally have gotten a taste of freedom. They were  allowed to own possessions once again. For the first time in 400 years they were allowed to own possessions. Now they were told to be selfless and give their possessions away. This must have been a difficult thing to do, yet it was a necessary exercise in their spiritual growth. They were provided with these essentials to build the tabernacle by the Egyptians. 

Exodus 12:35-36 CJB - 35 The people of Isra’el had done what Moshe had said — they had asked the Egyptians to give them silver and gold jewelry and clothing; 36 and Adonai had made the Egyptians so favorably disposed toward the people that they had let them have whatever they requested. Thus they plundered the Egyptians.

The contributions were to be used for the construction of the Mishkan. The tabernacle in the wilderness. While they were on their way to Mt. Sinai and the promise land, G-d did not wait until they had reached the promise land.  A permanent place that they could build a Temple. He gave them instructions to build a mobile sanctuary right away.  Why such a rush? Why so hasty?  Because these were G-d’s children whom He wanted to dwell with on their journey.  Like a family road trip:) Why was the mobile temporary sanctuary called a Mishkan? A miniature Gan Eden so to speak where G-d could once again dwell with His children. The root word or shoresh in the Hebrew of Mishkan is shakan, which means to “dwell.”  But G-d did not just want to dwell with the Israelites, He wanted to dwell “among” them or in them!

Shemot 25:8 (Orthodox Jewish Bible) And let them make Me a Mikdash; that I may dwell among them. The word Mikdash which typically is translated as sanctuary literally means “to dwell in.” Chasidism (the Chasidic movement) espouses that the meaning of the word Mishkan is that G-d had dwelled “in” the Israelites. Which corresponds directly to the teachings of Yeshua through Shaul.  

2 Corinthians 6:16 CJB - 16 What agreement can there be between the temple of G-d and idols? For we are the temple of the living G-d — as G-d said, “I will house myself “in” them, . . .and I will walk among you.I will be their G-d,and they will be my people.”

G-d will not live in any of us without our permission and desire to be with our G-d? That would not be a welcomed or loving act. Perhaps you have heard it said that the G-d of the “Old-Testament” was a mean and demanding G-d? But now through Yeshua we have a loving caring G-d, one that we approach through our own free will?  As my little Yiddisha momma used to say “well I’ve got a news flash for you!”  That is that our G-d does not change. He has always been a loving caring G-d that has allowed us to come to Him through free will.  

 Exodus 25:2 CJB - 2 “Tell the people of Isra’el to take up a collection for me — accept a contribution  from anyone who wholeheartedly wants to give.”

This contribution that the Israelites were to take up in the Hebrew  is terumah, which is the name of this Torah portion. The word Terumah has no real English equivalent. A “terumah” was a certain type of offering that was dedicated for use in the Temple.  A contribution for the building of a holy dwelling place for G-d. Today when fundraising is done we generally want to know for what reason will our money be used for?  We might be told “for cancer, for homeless children, for Holocaust survivors,” etc., etc.  Moshe was in effect saying that when we contribute the half-shekel we are remembering our G-d. The G-d that had just delivered you from the oppressive hands of the Egyptians. In addition He had just told me to ask if anyone sincerely wants to get to know Him and spend time with Him? If so we can contribute in finacing to build a Mishkan. A safe and holy space that He in His holiness can Mishkan (dwell) with us.  A Terumah was made up of three types of offerings. A multi-faceted offering. 

A Terumah was a contribution for sacred purposes.  A contribution for the building and maintenance of the Sanctuary;

The 3 types of Terumah

(i) Shekalim: The annual contribution of half-a-shekel that was to pay for the sacrifices;

(ii) The one one time contribution of a half-a-shekel to provide for the sockets (Adanim) of the sanctuary;

(iii) The provision of the materials and the coverings of the Sanctuary, which was again a once-only contribution These were used for the building of the Mishkan.

The first contribution (Shekalim) offering, was used to pay for sacrifices was a recurring offering that continued while the Mishkan and the Temple existed. This first type of Terumah offering was a continual offering. Today Judaism commemorates this type of offering on Purim.  An offering of half of a the common currency is donated  representing the half-shekel, just prior to Purim. When the third Temple is built donations will once again be taken up for the second and third types of Terumah.  While we wait for the third Temple to be built there is a deep spiritual application of these offerings that can be seen in our lives presently. The Torah is eternal and every detail has some relevant implication in our lives.  Corinthians tells us that we should offer our lives as sacrifices to G-d. And by doing so will be pleasing worship to G-d!

Romans 12:1 CJB - 12 I exhort you, therefore, brothers, in view of G-d’s mercies, to offer yourselves as a sacrifice, living and set apart for G-d. This will please him; it is the logical “Temple worship” for you.  A word that is used for Temple worship is Avodah. Avodah  can mean service or work. By offering our lives as a living sacrifices we are doing a service for our L-rd. In effect we are building the Temple of G-d!  Our bodies become a Temple that G-d’s Spirit comes and dwells “in” us, just as Moshe and Shaul stated that G-d would do. Just as the physical Temple was cleansed through the sacrifice of the red heifer, we cleanse our bodies through proper living. Can G-d’s Spirit dwell in a defiled temple? Through obedience and trust in Yeshua, G-d’s presence will not just rest in a physical Sanctuary, but also in the heart of each believer! 

Ephesians 3:17 CJB - so that the Messiah may live in your hearts through your trusting. Also I pray that you will be rooted and founded in love,…

Romans 5:5 CJB - and this hope does not let us down, because G-d’s love for us has already been poured out in our hearts through the Ruach HaKodesh who has been given to us.

Contributions for the Sanctuary

Shemot 25:1 The L-RD said to Moses, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel, that they take for me a contribution. From every man whose heart moves him you shall receive the contribution for me. 

The Tabernacle

Shemot 26:1 “Moreover, you shall make the tabernacle with ten curtains of fine twined linen and blue and purple and scarlet yarns;

Shemot 26:5 Fifty loops you shall make on the one curtain, and fifty loops you shall make on the edge of the curtain that is in the second set; the loops shall be opposite one another. 6 And you shall make fifty clasps of gold, and couple the curtains one to the other with the clasps, so that the tabernacle may be a single whole.

The Foundation and the Building of the Sanctuary

The terumat ha-adanim (the offering for the sockets) was obligatory, everyone had to give an equal amount (half-a-shekel), and was for the foundation of the sanctuary. The terumat ha-mishkan (provision of materials) was voluntary, of diverse kinds, and was for the structure itself, and its coverings. If we are to find their analogues in the inner life of the Jew, the adanim must be the original act of kabalat ol—the gesture of submission to G-d’s will, when one foregoes one’s independent existence and becomes a vehicle through which the Torah flows. For this act is one in which all men are equal—it does not depend on the particularized capacities of intellect or emotion; it is not the exercise of a power but a state of receptivity. And it is the foundation of all true service, for without it a man is always distant from G-d. If his thoughts and desires form a closed circle, there is no gap through which revelation can enter. The Mishkan, on the other hand, is that which is built on the foundation. It is the articulation of one’s faith and its suffusion through one’s mind and heart. In this each man is different, because intellectual powers and temperament are not evenly distributed, and the extent to which he can grasp in thought, or allow his emotions to be refashioned by, the awareness of G-d which he has achieved through kabbalat ol, will depend on his particular capacities.

Inward Forms

What are the forms in which these inner activities are expressed? The adanim correspond to prayer, for prayer is the foundation and initiation of a man’s daily service. The Mishkan, however, belongs to the realm of learning and action. Through learning, the molten energies aroused in prayer are shaped into thought and action, to be finally enacted in the practical world. Learning and action are the structure and outer covering of which prayer is the support and the animating spirit.

A Paradox

But in both the adanim and the Mishkan we can unearth a paradox, one that finds its way correspondingly into prayer on the one hand and learning and action on the other.

 The fact that the terumat ha-adanim had to be brought in equal amounts by everyone suggests at a deeper level that the inner powers which it summoned forth were equal amongst men, and this is what was suggested by relating it to kabbalat ol, the gesture of submission which each man can make in the same way. If so, why was it that it was commanded only of men;5 why did it exclude women and children who were no less able to make the gesture? Similarly why is regular prayer commanded only to men,6 while in prayer all are equal, for each reads the same words? On the other hand the provision for the Mishkan could be offered by anyone,7women and children included. Yet the Mishkan stands for learning and action, precisely those areas where individual differences count and where, if anywhere, we would expect to find discrimination as to who may or may not participate. And similarly, we find that learning and action themselves are demanded of all, albeit suited to the particular individual: Some men are required to spend more time learning, some less, according to their situation;8 women learn those laws which are applicable to their situation;9 men must perform all of the Mitzvot; while women are released from positive commands which are bound up with a specific time.

The Foundation of Prayer and Action

The answer is that kabbalat ol lies even deeper than prayer. Its place is in the simple words of recognition and thanks that every Jew must say when he wakes in the morning, the Modeh Ani (“I make acknowledgment before You, living and enduring King, who has restored to me my soul in mercy great is Your faithfulness”). We say this even before washing our hands, which is necessary before all other prayer, because it comes from so deeply-embedded a recognition that however unprepared we may be for prayer in general, we are always in a position to utter these words. When we turn later to prayer, we are transmitting this nascent awareness into something we can understand and feel. And because our intellectual and emotional capacities are finite, we must put it into a form of words. But because we pray in the aftermath of the act of kabbalat ol, we still stand as equals in submission, so each must use the same words. We are now using our particular powers, but in the light of the equality of souls. So likewise does the paradox resolve itself in the case of the Mishkan, which is for us the symbol of learning and action. In action, unlike prayer, there is no limitation of finitude: We must seek to enact G-d’s will everywhere. Hence it must devolve on all. But each in his own way. The scope of any individual’s involvement in the world is bounded by his capacities and his situation. So neither the offering for the Mishkan nor the parallel acts of learning and Mitzvot, have set limits, even though they are asked of everyone.

Building an Inner Sanctuary

So we can see that an apparent anachronism—the terumot of the adanim and the Mishkan—which has no physical application today, in fact describes the precise manner in which a man must seek to build his own sanctuary within himself, and thus create a space for G-d’s presence.

First, he must lay the foundation by the act of accepting G-d’s will as his own, which he does in the Modeh Ani with his first waking words;

Second, he must articulate this foundation into thought and feeling, in the fixed forms of prayer (the adanim);

Third, he must realize its implication for his actions, by learning, which is the discrimination between acts which are in accord with G-d’s will and those which are not;

Lastly, he must emerge into the world of action and embody there what has been transmitted to him in the prior stages of service (Mishkan).

These are the foundations, the walls and the coverings, of his personal sanctuary, ever recreated day by day, evolving as they do from what is most universal to what is most particular in his nature; and in this way he is able to admit G-d into the very depths of his being. (Source: Likkutei Sichot, Vol. XI pp. 109-122 (adapted))

In summary the above kabbalistic explanation of the Mishkan is this. We begin our day when we first open our eyes. We drop to our knees and recite the Modeh Ani.  Our first service to G-d is when we open our eyes and thank G-d for His faithfulness and for restoring our souls to us. This should be expressed in understanding that we can once again work with G-d in bettering ourselves, and in also by doing our part in the repairing of the world. (Tikkum Olam, repairing of the world). The half-shekel contribution represents that we are all equal in contributing to the Malchut/Kingdom of G-d. Every soul whether rich or poor all give the same amount. During Purim we celebrate and give gifts as a matter of tradition and in commemoration of our deliverance from the hand of Haman and from annihilation. Therefore, in remembering the one time offering (Terumah/Adonim), which occurred after our deliverance from slavery in Egypt, we make a similar contribution of a half shekel symbolically just prior to Purim.  

Next, we are directed to the inner fixtures of the Mishkan. The Adonim (silver sockets) that supported the wooden walls of the Mishkan represent our prayers. Prayers are what held up the walls of the Mishkan. They and are likened to the foundation of G-d’s Temple. The walls of the Mishkan are supported by prayers are likened to our learning of Torah and our service to G-d. This is how we build a world with G-d in it. This is how we build a Mishkan of our bodies were G-d’s Spirit dwells.  This is how we will build the 3rd Temple where G-d’ Skekinah will once again dwell with mankind on earth.  Through our prayers, faithfulness, dedication and service to G-d.

James 2:14 - CJB - What good is it, my brothers, if someone claims to have faith but has no actions to prove it? Is such “faith” able to save him? 

Our faith and our prayers are represented by the silver and gold sockets. The walls of the Mishkan and the curtains represent our service and study of Torah. What good is our faith and prayers (sockets), if they are not accompanied by our actions? If we have only sockets without walls hanging on them, have we prepared a place for G-d to dwell? Yeshua taught us a similar way to dedicate ourselves to G-d. A way to build our Temples which is pleasing to G-d. We must love G-d with all of our hearts, souls, and strength/resources/half shekel (Deut 6:4-9). We start our day with Modeh-ani prayer and thank G-d for souls and His faithfulness. We are being faithful to Him from the get- go, as we are giving G-d our hearts.  Matthew 22:36-40 ESV - “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And he said to him, “You shall love the L-rd your G-d with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. 40 On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

May we enter into this Purim season with building the kingdom of G-d on our hearts, minds, and actions!

FOOTNOTES

1. Jerusalem Talmud, Shekalim, 1:1.

2. Rambam, beg. Hilchot Shekalim.

3. Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim, ch. 694.

4. Shemot 25:8.

5. Ibid., 38:26-7.

6. Berachot, 20a; Rambam, Hilchot Kriat Shema, 4:1; Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chaim, ch. 70.

7. Cf. Shemot 35:22.

8. Shulchan Aruch Harav, Hilchot Talmud Torah, 3:5.

9. Ibid., end ch. 1.