Derasha 1 on Behaalosecha 8:4

Parashas Behaalosecha · Aliyah 1 · Passuk 4

The Complete Passuk

וְזֶ֨ה מַעֲשֵׂ֤ה הַמְּנֹרָה֙ מִקְשָׁ֣ה זָהָ֔ב עַד־יְרֵכָ֥הּ עַד־פִּרְחָ֖הּ מִקְשָׁ֣ה הִ֑וא כַּמַּרְאֶ֗ה אֲשֶׁ֨ר הֶרְאָ֤ה יְהֹוָה֙ אֶת־מֹשֶׁ֔ה כֵּ֥ן עָשָׂ֖ה אֶת־הַמְּנֹרָֽה׃

Chabad.org — English translation + Rashi

Source Citation

Torah Temimah cites Menachos 29b: the construction of the Menorah was difficult for Moshe until the Holy One showed it to him with the finger (“וזה מעשה המנורה”).

Core Text of Chazal

Core Text
תָּנָא דְּבֵי רַבִּי יִשְׁמָעֵאל: שְׁלֹשָׁה דְּבָרִים הָיוּ קָשִׁין לוֹ לְמֹשֶׁה, עַד שֶׁהֶרְאָה לוֹ הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא בְּאֶצְבָּעוֹ, וְאֵלּוּ הֵן: מְנוֹרָה, וְרֹאשׁ חֹדֶשׁ, וּשְׁרָצִים. מְנוֹרָה – דִּכְתִיב: ״וְזֶה מַעֲשֵׂה הַמְּנֹרָה״.

English: A teaching of the school of Rabbi Yishmael: the making of the Menorah was difficult for Moshe until the Holy One, Blessed be He, showed it to him with His finger, as it is written “And this is the work of the Menorah.”

Type of Learning

Gezerah / word “זה” — the demonstrative “this” indicates pointing with the finger, as elsewhere in Scripture.

What Is Learned

Even for Moshe, certain mitzvot required direct Divine demonstration. The Menorah’s intricate details could not be grasped from verbal description alone.