Exodus 31: Shabbat and the Mishkan

After the detailed description of the design of the Mishkan and the chief architects and builders, God reminds the people to keep Shabbat:“And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘Surely you shall keep My Sabbaths, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, that you may know that I am the Lord who sanctifies you.’”וַיֹּאמֶר ה׳ אֶל־מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר׃ וְאַתָּה דַּבֵּר אֶל־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר אַךְ אֶת־שַׁבְּתֹתַי תִּשְׁמֹרוּ כִּי אוֹת הִוא בֵּינִי וּבֵינֵיכֶם לְדֹרֹתֵיכֶם לָדַעַת כִּי אֲנִי ה׳ מְקַדִּשְׁכֶם׃ (שמות ל״א:י״ב–י״ג)What is the connection between Shabbat and the Mishkan? This is the first of a few times that the Mishkan is connected to Shabbat. The Gemara famously uses this connection to explain two points. The first is specific to the time period of the building of the Mishkan. As important as building the Mishkan was for God, it was not more important than the Sabbath. Therefore, the building of the Mishkan needed to cease on Shabbat.The second is that the prohibitions of Shabbat are derived from the actual building of the Mishkan. The Mishnah in Tractate Shabbat chapter 7 lists 39 major categories of prohibitions on Shabbat:• Sowing – הזורע• Plowing – החורש• Reaping – הקוצר• Gathering sheaves – המעמר• Threshing – הדש• Winnowing – הזורה• Selecting (sorting) – הבורר• Grinding – הטוחן• Sifting – המרקד• Kneading – הלש• Baking (or cooking) – האופה• Shearing wool – הגוזז את הצמר• Bleaching/whitening – המלבנו• Combing – המנפצו• Dyeing – הצובעו• Spinning – הטווה• Stretching threads (warp) – המסך את הנימין• Making two meshes – העושה שתי בתי נירין• Weaving two threads – האורג שני חוטין• Separating two threads – הפוצע שני חוטין• Tying – הקושר• Untying – המתיר• Sewing two stitches – התופר שתי תפירות• Tearing for sewing – הקורע על מנת לתפור שתי תפירות• Trapping – הצד צבי• Slaughtering – השוחטו• Flaying – המפשיטו• Salting hide – המולחו• Tanning hide – המעבד את עורו• Smoothing hide – הממחקו• Cutting to shape – המחתכו• Writing two letters – הכותב שתי אותיות• Erasing to write two letters – המוחק על מנת לכתוב שתי אותיות• Building – הבונה• Demolishing – הסותר• Extinguishing – המכבה• Kindling – המבעיר• Striking the final hammer blow – המכה בפטיש• Carrying from domain to domain – המוציא מרשות לרשו. (משנה שבת ז׳:ב׳)Each of these was an essential element of the building of the Mishkan. Symbolically, the connection also reminds the people that the relationship with God is not just a physical place in the camp. A relationship to God is also available to each person in their home when they set aside time every week to remember God by keeping Shabbat. That can happen wherever a person is in the world.This contrast highlights two forms of holiness: Kedushat Makom—the sanctity of place, embodied by the Mishkan—and Kedushat Zman—the sanctity of time, embodied by Shabbat. While the Mishkan creates a holy space, Shabbat creates a holy moment that transcends geography. In Jewish thought, Kedushat Zman is often considered even more accessible, because every Jew can enter sacred time no matter where they are.