King Shlomo taught “There is gold and a multitude of pearls,
but lips of knowledge are a precious vessel” (Mishlei 20:15)
With the completed Mishkan, Moshe was saddened by the fact
that Hashem excluded him from contributing any donations to the Mishkan.
However, Hashem did not allow him to contribute anything because all of Bnai
Israel contributed donations to the Mishkan in order to atone for some aspect
of the sin of the golden calf. Moreover, had Moshe donated anything to the
Mishkan, it would have removed the need from Bnai Israel to provide it, thereby
lowering their ability to repent. Hashem told Moshe,
‘I know that you
were disturbed at being unable to contribute to the Mishkan like the rest of
the Jews. However, know that your task is a different one, greater than theirs.
Their work has ended- yours now
begins. I am calling you to the Mishkan to give you instructions concerning the
korbanot-sacrificial offerings- which you will then teach to the people. Your
teaching Torah is dearer to Me than their donations of gold and silver and the
jewels donated by the princes!”
From this we can see how much value Hashem places on
educating the Jewish nation. Rather than spending one’s life on accumulating
‘gold and a multitude of pearls’ (a.k.a. materialism) one’s life should be
aimed at increasing his knowledge of Torah and of Hashem. In the World of Truth, real value lies
in the acquisition of knowledge in Torah and Hashem. When Hashem calls only
Moshe up to the Mishkan, it is clear that He values Torah teaching over all the
gold and silver offered to Him by Bnai Israel; therefore, Moshe was the only
one He called to the Mishkan. In all, this should give us the incentive to
reassess what our true motives in life are, attaining continuous Knowledge of
Hashem, which will provide us with infinite rewards, versus attaining fleeting
riches. The chose is yours, what will it be?
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