Questions for Titzaveh

 1.   In this week’s parsha we see for the first time that tribesmen should stick together.

2.  Two of the Shivas Haminim are mentioned in the parsha.

3.    What in the parsha is described as "constant," tamid? (5 answers)

4.    We find that Pinchas became a Kohen much later. Why wasn’t Pinchas automatically a Kohen.

5.    Which bigdei kahuna were Shatnez.  

6.     Each of the Choshen stones symbolized one Shevet and had  their name written on it. In what order were they placed? 

7.     What is a good nickname for Reuven. 

8.     Ephraim and Menashe should be entitled to separate billing, but only Yosef's name is on the Choshen. But the symbol of Yosef is doubled. Where?

9.     Show me that you cannot assume that an equilateral four-sided object is a square.

1. In this parsha, the word shevet is used for the first time for a tribe (28:21).  From  Rav Reuven Chaim Klein.

 

2. Olives and pomegranates are mentioned in the parsha. Olive oil is used to light the Menorah (Exodus 27:20), and woolen pomegranates are attached to the bottom of the Me'il of the Kohen Gadol (28:34).

 

3. The following five things are described as being tamid: (1) The Menorah is lit tamid – this is the lamp called the Ner Maaravi (Exodus 27:20). (2) The choshen of the Kohen Gadol is always on the heart of the Kohen Gadol (28:29). (3) The tzitz is constantly on the forehead of the Kohen Gadol (28:38). (4) The Tamid is brought twice each day - morning and afternoon - on behalf of the entire congregation (29:38). (5) The Ketores is brought every day (30:8).

Side discussion:  The word תמיד appears in the Torah exactly 24 times, either as תמיד  or as התמיד. How many of those times are in dinim of Kodshim?  Twenty three.

Of the twenty four in Chumash, twenty three are in dinim of Kodshim.  "HaTamid" appears seven times, every single one in kodshim.  Of the seventeen 'Tamids' in the Torah, sixteen are Kodshim and one is not.  The single, the solitary, the sole exception is in Devarim 11:12.

אֶ֕רֶץ אֲשֶׁר־יְהוָ֥ה אֱלֹהֶ֖יךָ דֹּרֵ֣שׁ אֹתָ֑הּ תָּמִ֗יד עֵינֵ֨י יְהוָ֤ה אֱלֹהֶ֙יךָ֙ בָּ֔הּ מֵֽרֵשִׁית֙ הַשָּׁנָ֔ה וְעַ֖ד אַחֲרִ֥ית שָׁנָֽה׃

 

4. It was only on this day that people were made Kohanim, and the Torah specifies that they were Aharon and his four sons. Nobody else became a Kohen that day. Ony those born to these five afterwards were automatically Kohanim. Any children they had prior to that investiture were not automatically Kohanim.  Pinchas had been born earlier, so he was not automatically a kohen.

 

5. Efod: כח, ו.

Choshen:    כח טו.

(Avneit: שמות לט, כט   in parshas Pekudei. It is mentioned in Tetzaveh but the material is not specified.))

 

6.  Birth order.

 

7.   Since we know the stones were in birth order, Reuven's stone was the Odem.

 

8. Again, since we know the stones were by birth order, Yosef was the next to last, the Shoham. Besides the twelve stones of the Choshen, there were two additional stones on the shoulders of the Kohen Gadol, on the Eiphod - Shoham stones.

 

9. The Choshen is described in 28:16 as being square, a zeres by a zeres.

 רבוע יהיה כפול זרת ארכו וזרת רחבו.

Once we have been told that all the sides are equal length, to be told that it should be square seems unnecessary and repetitive.  It is redundant.

The same is true in the instructions for the Mizbei'ach Hazahav,

ועשית מזבח מקטר קטרת עצי שטים תעשה אתו.  ב אמה ארכו ואמה רחבו רבוע יהיה ואמתים קמתו ממנו קרנתיו.

Side discussion: Answers:

1.        Shina alav hakasuv l’akeiv.

2.        Reb Chaim- two separate requirements. The specified size, and square.

3.        Malkie- don’t make it a rhombus.

            4.        Gary- don’t make it a cylinder that contains x by x, disregarding the chords.