Agents of G-d
By: Rabbi Yitzchak Sprung, UOS Rabbi and US Judaic Studies Teacher
There is much discussion regarding commandedness in our Torah reading this week. Bezalel and the artisans did, quote, “all that Hashem commanded”, “And Bezalel, the son of Uri, son of Chur of the tribe of Judah did all that God commanded Moshe”, “And all the work of the Mishkan Tent of Meeting was completed and the Children of Israel did it; all that God had commanded Moses, they did.” What does the Torah seek to convey through this manifold repetition of people following instructions?
As we mentioned, the entirety of the Children of Israel received credit for the work of completing the Mishkan, the Tabernacle. Of course, they didn’t really work on the Mishkan; their representatives did.
As the great commentator Rabbi Chaim ben Attar writes in his classic torah commentary, the Ohr haChaim:
ויעשו בני ישראל וגו׳ – והגם שלא עשה אלא בצלאל וחכמי לב, שלוחו של אדם כמותו וכאילו כל ישראל עשו…
"Although it was completed only by Bezalel and the artisans, Shlucho shel adam kemoto, a man’s agent is like himself, and it was as though all of Israel performed the work."
Since Bezalel was chosen not only by God but also by the Children of Israel as a representative agent, it was as though they directly completed the work of the Mishkan themselves.
Though we take the notion of agents and agency for granted, finding it obvious that we might, for instance, appoint someone to sell our chametz in our place, there is something remarkable about the ability to simultaneously ask someone else to do something on our behalf and yet receive the credit.
All the more remarkable is that this seems to work on behalf of God as well. As the verse says:
(כב) וּבְצַלְאֵ֛ל בֶּן־אוּרִ֥י בֶן־ח֖וּר לְמַטֵּ֣ה יְהוּדָ֑ה עָשָׂ֕ה אֵ֛ת כׇּל־אֲשֶׁר־צִוָּ֥ה יְהֹוָ֖ה אֶת־מֹשֶֽׁה׃
“And Bezalel, son of Uri, son of Chur of the tribe of Judah did all that God commanded Moses.”
Bezalel works here not only on behalf of Moshe Rabbenu but, of course, on behalf of God. As we all do, when we perform the commandments.
We tend to forget that we are so very often- constantly, in fact!- performing work as the agents of God, doing His work, bringing His as of yet unrealized will into actualized being.
Without devaluing the importance of independence and individuality, we should also treasure the amazing fact that it is regarding ourselves that we say shlucho shel adam kemoto, that the agent of a person is like himself. We are God’s agents, an idea which is repeated and emphasized over and over to great effect in our Parashiyot. When we adopt this agency on behalf of God, we may bring Him into this world through our actions, bring His presence to all that we do, bring His will and instruction to our lives and all those around us. Because when we act on His behalf, it is like He Himself has so acted.
Shabbat Shalom!