Parshas VaYakhel-Pekudei

This week's Torah portion is a combined Sidra, Parshas VaYakhel-Pekudei, meaning respectively "And he assembled" and "Accounts". This Sidra is primarily a summary of previous information from the Book of Shemot (Exodus), in which the Torah describes the actual buildling of the Mishkan (Tabernacle in the Desert), according the the instructions which Moshe had received, and the anointing of the structure with all its utensils, as well as Aaron and his sons to serve there as Cohanim (priests). Perhaps because of the seeming redundancy, there is one particular change in the two accounts which many commentaries bring out, and this is the order in which G-d Almighty commanded Moshe and then how Moshe commanded the Children of Israel to build the Tabernacle. Specifically, in the commandment received on Mt. Sinai, Moshe was commandment to first build the Ark of Testimony and then the physical structure of the Tabernacle. In our Sidra, however, the order is reversed, and the Children of Israel, led by Bezalel son of Uri, first build the structure of the Tabernacle and then the Ark. To understand the significance of this change first we should explain what the Ark and the Tabernacle (structure) represent, specifically by way of their contents. The Ark was built to hold the tablets of the 10 Commandments received at Mt. Sinai, physical "testimonies" of G-d's encounter with mankind. On the other hand, the Tabernacle was built to house the particlar services of the priests, including animal sacrifices and incense offerings. The Ark serves a "passive" and hidden role; by simply resting in the chamber of the Holy of Holies it serves its purpose. The Tabernacle, however, is "active" and revealed, defined by the services performed there for all to see.
Based on this distinction, we can now understand the difference in the order of construction. The simple explantion frequently given is that when Moshe received the instructions on Mt. Sinai, this was before the Sin of the Golden Calf, but when he passed the instructions on to Israel, it was after he had spent his second and third 40 day periods on the Mt. to gain forgiveness. According to our explanation, therefore, somehow at the time of the Revelation at Sinai "passivity" preceeded "action"; but later "action" came to proceed "passivity". It is explained in Chassidic philosophy that at Mt. Sinai Israel was on the level of a perfect saint, meaning they could clearly perceive the unity of G-d and then bring themselves to proper action; while later they were on the level of the penitant, who in order to return to his original status (and in fact reach even higher) must first take action and "change direction", and through this experience he can come to comprehension. This order more acurately parralels the actual service of the Tabernacle, where the Holy of Holies (containing the Ark) was entered only once each year after an entire years worth of service, at which point the High Priest would make a short blessing for health and physical sustanance, so that the Priests could continue their service for the next year. Similarly it should be in our lives, that much hard word is rewarded by peak moments of "passivity" or "rest", which then give us the stength to continue until we reach the next peak. From strength to strength!