“And Betzalel the son of Uri, the son of Chur, of the tribe of Yehuda, made all that the Lord commanded Moshe.” (Shemos 38:22)

Both the Gemara (Berachos 55a) and the Midrash relate a fascinating conversation, though there are differences between the versions (see the commentary of the Tzeda Lederech). The Midrash (cited by Rashi) tells us that Moshe instructed Betzalel to make the vessels and then the mishkan. To which Betzalel said one normally builds a house and then brings the vessels in. To this Moshe said, “Indeed, you were in the shadow of G-d (=Betzalel) because that is what Hashem actually commanded.”

The difficulty that all of the commentators have is that if Moshe knew what Hashem wanted, why did he intentionally change the order when instructing Betzalel? And why was Moshe pleased by Betzalel’s correction?

A possible approach is, for example, when one comes home and asks his spouse, “Please give me supper and set the table.” If the spouse were to literally give the food on a bare table, and only afterwards set the table, it would simply be wrong. What was meant was that the main purpose is to provide the meal, and secondary to that is that the table should be set. This was not a list of sequential instructions. So too, when Hashem gave an order to build the Tabernacle and the vessels, there were two possibilities as to why the tabernacle was listed first: Either because it was more important or because it should be constructed first. It seems that it was regarding this point there was a difference of opinion as to how to interpret that which Hashem said.

Rav Baruch Mordechai Ezrachi (1929-2023) explains that when we are discussing building the structure and making the vessels, we may be referring to either the practical or the spiritual aspect. Moshe felt that the vessels were of greater spiritual importance, therefore he mentioned them first. Whereas he mentioned building the Tabernacle second since it is only the place where the vessels will be housed.

As an analogy, when a person builds a factory, before he decides what size building he needs, he first must consult with a mechanical engineer to determine how big the machinery will be, how will things get moved from one place to another, and what is needed for efficient shipping. Only after clarifying those issues should he look for suitable premises.

Moshe’s position was that Hashem must have meant for the Bnei Yisrael to fashion the vessels first. The problem of where the vessels would be stored until the Tabernacle was built could be solved, as we see in Nach that the Aron was temporarily placed in someone’s home.

On the other hand, Betzalel understood that as the Tabernacle would be the place where the Jews would serve Hashem, its construction should take priority, as it represented the way we would soon serve Hashem in this world. Only then should the vessels that belong inside be made.

Upon pondering this, I thought about our own avodas Hashem: When should the practical approach come first and when should the idealistic approach dictate our actions? I don’t believe that there is one answer for every situation.

As Purim approaches and we contemplate the miracles that occurred, it is clear that the story did not play out in a logical way. In fact, the whole idea of Purim is to rise above our intellect (e.g. by getting drunk), and just serve Hashem with pure joy. This is the directive as to how we should be serving Hashem during the Purim season.

A practical example of this is that when we think about who to give Michloach Manos to, we naturally think of our closest friends and neighbors. Our Rabbis tell us that the highest level of doing this mitzvah is to specifically give it to those who are outside of our regular social sphere.