Parshat Tetzaveh
Shabbat, 9 Adar, 5778
24 February, 2018
Shmoth 28.33 “And on its bottom hem you shall make pomegranates of blue, purple, and crimson wool, on its bottom hem all around, and golden bells in their midst all around. 34 A golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, on the bottom hem of the robe, all around. 35 It shall be on Aaron when he performs the service, and its sound shall be heard when he enters the Holy before the Lord and when he leaves, so that he will not die. ”
A golden bell and a pomegranate, a golden bell and a pomegranate, on the bottom hem of the robe, all around. פַּֽעֲמֹ֤ן זָהָב֙ וְרִמּ֔וֹן פַּֽעֲמֹ֥ן זָהָ֖ב וְרִמּ֑וֹן
It’s sound (pa’amon zahav v’rimon pa’amon zahav v’rimon) is essential and beneficial for the service going in and going out of the Holy of Holies.
This poses a question: Who shall hear the sound of the Golden Bells? HaShem or the Kohen HaGadol – (the High Priest)? Why not both?
Exodus Chapter 39
26 “A bell and a pomegranate, a bell and a pomegranate, all around on the bottom hem of the robe, to serve as the Lord had commanded Moses.” הַמְּעִ֖יל סָבִ֑יב לְשָׁרֵ֕ת כַּאֲשֶׁ֛ר צִוָּ֥ה
“to serve” – “it’s sound shall be heard” Exodus Chapter 28.35 “It shall be on Aaron when he performs the service, and its sound shall be heard when he enters the Holy before the Lord and when he leaves, so that he will not die.”
Yochanan:
what does this come to teach? we must pay close attention to performance of every detail of the Torah even to it’s smallest sound – viz, “minutest detail” even the smallest thing provides a service, in this case, the sound of pa’amon zahav (golden bells) provides to the Kohen a focal point when he moves about in the Tabernacle/Temple so that he does not leave out any detail of the service. it’s sound serves to enhance or “beautify” the service. sharet (service) is related to shirot – songs (of the Levites, Shir Shel Yom).
