Exodus 36: Who Knows Fifty?

“They made fifty copper clasps to couple the tent together so that it might become one whole.” (Exodus 36:18)וַיַּעַשׂ קַרְסֵי נְחֹשֶׁת חֲמִשִּׁים לְחַבֵּר אֶת־הָאֹהֶל לִהְיוֹת אֶחָד׃Why were there fifty rings? The number fifty does not appear often in the Torah—certainly not as often as some of the other repeated numbers like 3, 7, 10, and 40. The width of Noah’s Ark was fifty cubits (Genesis 6:15). When a man seduces a young woman and sleeps with her, he must pay her fifty shekels if the father will not consent to the couple getting married (Deuteronomy 22:29). There are also fifty days between Passover and Shavuot (Leviticus 23:16). The connection between the Ark and the Mishkan seems straightforward. The Ark was a place of refuge for Noah within the swirling destruction around him. The Mishkan acts as a safe haven for the Israelites to connect to God.What about the case of the man who seduces a young woman? The connection has nothing to do with the seduction part, but more about the fifty shekels. The Gemara in Ketubot derives from this verse that the money required as part of a marriage document is 200 dinars, which is equal to the fifty shekels that are required as part of this arrangement. The idea of the marriage contract connects with the fifty days between Passover and Shavuot. Passover was the time that the Israelites were saved from Egypt and then fifty days later, God gave them the Ten Commandments. Although the giving of the Torah was not the original reason for Shavuot, the time frame matches the giving of the Torah and the consummation of the relationship between God and His people. The Midrash also explains that there are fifty level of tuma/uncleanliness and the Israelites were at level 49 in Egypt. They needed the 50 days to ascend to the highest level to receive the torah.In this way, the Mishkan also represents the nation entering into a covenantal “marriage” with God—fifty clasps symbolizing the fifty shekels for a dowery and the fifty days bridging redemption and revelation.