출애굽기 37:1의 주석

ויעש בצלאל AND BEZALEL MADE [THE ARK] — Because he gave himself over to the work more whole-heartedly than the other wise men it is called after his name (his name alone is associated with the act) (Midrash Tanchuma, Vayakhel 10).

Because he extended himself for the work . . . I.e., throughout the section it is written, “He made,” but it is not written “Betzalel” as it does about the ark. This is because they [the other items] do not have as much sanctity as the ark, so Betzalel did not wish to exert himself as much in making them. Instead, Betzalel showed Oholiav and the other disciples [what to do], and they made them. But the ark possessed great sanctity, so Betzalel personally exerted himself over it and extended himself more for the work.

Kap. 37. V. 1. ויעש בצלאל. Während bei den anderen Gegenständen Bezalel sich mehr oder minder auf eine anordnende und leitende Tätigkeit beschränkt haben dürfte, war der ארון, das Hauptobjekt, dem eigentlich die ganze heilige Wohnung errichtet wurde, sein unmittelbares Werk.

ויעש בצלאל את הארון, “Betzalel constructed the Ark.” It was the first of the furnishings of the Tabernacle. This corresponds to what we read in Psalms 119,130: and פתח דבריך יאיר מבין פתיים, “even the preamble to the words You inscribed give light.” David referred to the “light” G–d had created on the first day prior to proceeding to creating the three dimensional universe. This is what the Holy Ark represented in the Tabernacle as the Torah it contained has been defined by Solomon in Proverbs 6,23 as: כי נר מצוה ותורה אור, “for the individual commandment is a lamp, whereas the Torah as a whole represents light itself.” The reason why you do not find Betzalel’s name associated with any of the furnishings of the Tabernacle other than the Holy Ark, is that in connection with that item Betzalel had demonstrated the degree of holy spirit which G–d had endowed him with. Moses had suggested to Betzalel to construct the Holy Ark as the first item to be made for the Tabernacle, whereupon Betzalel upon hearing this questioned it by saying to him: “are you sure? Does one not build a house before making the furniture for it?” Moses then remembered that he had forgotten the order in which G–d had told him to proceed. Our sages kept this story alive by pointing out that the meaning of Betzalel’s name בצל-אל is: ”in the shadow of G–d,” i.e. he must have been nearby when G–d instructed Moses. (Compare Talmud, tractate B’rachot folio 55)

עצי שטים, “acacia wood.” It was so named because the Israelites would commit grave sins at a location by that name. Using this type of wood was meant to help atone for that sin by the people.