פירוש על במדבר 24:5

מה טבו אהליך HOW GOODLY ARE THY TENTS — He said this because he saw that the entrances of their tents were not exactly facing each other (Bava Batra 60a; cf. v. 2).

!מה טובו אהליך יעקב; a reference to the Torah academies. [the word אהל in that sense dates back to Genesis 25,27 where Yaakov is described as יושב אהלים a dweller in tents.” It was also used in this sense by Noach when he blessed his son Shem (Genesis 9,27) We find it even more prominently as possessing this meaning in Exodus 33,7 “anyone desirous of finding the presence of G’d would go out to the Tent of Testimony.”

מה טובו אהליך יעקב, "How goodly are your tents O Jacob," etc. Bileam addresses both categories of Israelites in this verse. Concerning the average Israelite who studies Torah only occasionally, relatively briefly, Bileam spoke of the "tents of Jacob," i.e. temporary dwellings. Concerning the elite of the Israelites, the ones who make Torah the mainstay of their daily lives, Bileam spoke of the משכנות, the permanent residences. In the homes of the צדיקים Torah finds a permanent home.