Komentarz do Liczb 10:21

נשאי המקדש means, the bearers of the holy articles (not of the structure of the Sanctuary itself for this was the burden of the sons of Gershon and Merari; cf. v. 17).

Who were preceded. Meaning that Scripture uses abbreviated language. והקימו (they erected) either refers to those who erected, or it refers to the sons of Gershon and Merori who were mentioned previously. It is not possible to say that the Kehosites erected it before the arrival of the sons of Gershon and Merori. He adds that this was “when the cloud rested” and “the signal for making camp…” because without this it would have appeared that the sons of Gershon and Merori who traveled before the camp would encamp in any place that saw fit. But this is impossible because it is written “they camped by the word of Hashem” (9:18). The meaning of “by the time of their arrival” is “before they arrived,” because the intent of this statement is that at the time when they arrived the Mishkon was set up and they would immediately place the Ark and the Holy vessels inside.

והקימו את המשכן, “so that they would be able to erect the Tabernacle.” According to Rashi, the subjects in this verse are the members of the house of Gershon and Merari. There is a full stop here in Rashi’s commentary. When Rashi continues there with: “two army groups had already preceded them,” this does not refer to the ”Merarites and Gersonidides,”but refers to a different subject, namely the order in which the journeys proceeded. Rashi has to be understood as follows; “when did the members of the house of Gershon and Merari reerect the Tabernacle? After the first two army groups which had already preceded them and who in turn had preceded the Kehatites carrying the Holy Ark on their shoulders, had passed. The members of the house of Gershon and Merari had traveled as part of the first two army groups. When they observed that the cloud had stopped moving, this was their signal to reerect the Tabernacle. During that period the Kehatites arrived and found the Tabernacle ready to receive the Holy Ark.

והקימו את המשכן AND THEY SET UP THE TABERNACLE [BEFORE THEY CAME] — this means: The sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari who were in front of them (the Kohathites) travelling together with the two divisions, those of Judah and Reuben, set up the Tabernacle as soon as the cloud rested, and the sign for encamping became visible above the division of the camp of Judah (cf. Rashi on 9:17). Now when they encamped and whilst the sons of Kohath were coming after them with the two last divisions (Ephraim and Dan), the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari erected the Sanctuary. When the sons of Kohath arrived, they already found it in its proper place and they put into it the Ark, the table, the candelabrum and the altars. The following therefore is what the verse implies: והקימו, and they — i.e. those who had to erect the Tabernacle — erected it, עד before באם their arrival — the arrival of the sons of Kohath.

The departure of the two banners. Meaning that the sons of Gershon and Merori would travel before the camps. When the Torah writes “the banner of the camp of Yehudah traveled” (v.13) and afterwards it is written “and dismantled the Mishkon” (v. 17), Re’m explains that “the banner of the camp of Yehudah traveled” means that they prepared to travel but not that they actually traveled, as it is explained there in depth. If so, the sons of Merori and the sons of Gershon preceded the sons of Kehos by two banners. Before the banner of the camp of Yehudah traveled, and immediately after they saw the cloud depart, Aharon and his sons came in and dismantled the Paroches and covered the Ark with it. The sons of Gershon and the sons of Merori then dismantled the Mishkon and loaded it onto the wagons and traveled. However, the Ark and the Holy vessels in the load of the sons of Kehos would remain covered and placed upon poles until the banner of the camp of Reuven traveled.