Shabbat Pekudei 5782
In this final Torah portion of Sefer Shemot, the Book of Exodus, Moshe puts the finishing touches on the Mishkan. Parshat Pekudei has a common refrain: “As the LORD commanded Moses,” reminiscent of the refrain at the end of the first creation story in Genesis 1: “And it was evening, and it was morning, day x.” The Torah is being fully intentional; we are expected to associate orderliness in construction with the precision of creation. And it’s nice to see devoted fulfillment of one’s instructions celebrated so proudly in the words of this portion.
My goal in offering the weekly musical scavenger hunt is to entice people to read the Torah portion carefully, as well as to have some fun with music. Even if you don’t care for the video clips, it’s worthwhile to read the parshah anyway. For those who want to play along, why did I think of these songs?
Answers will be revealed after Shabbat minhah, which begins this week at 5:30 PM.
Wishing you a Shabbat Shalom and happy listening,
Rabbi David Wise
Candle lighting: 5:31 PM
Torah Reading: Exodus 38:21-40:38
Haftarah: I Kings 7:51-8:21
