מוסר אויף מלכים א 7:36

Since Joseph was elevated to the position of king and rode in the מרכבת המשנה, this is a reference to the שר מצרים, the celestial representative of Egypt, who is the most highly placed of all the celestial representatives of the seventy gentile nations. Our sages in Ketuvot 112 have said that Egypt is second only to ארץ ישראל, hence "the second best chariot" is the vehicle suited for the angel representing Egypt in the Heavens. Even though Joseph rose greatly after having been elevated from the status of a slave to that of a temporal king, he did not rise sufficiently for his מרכבה to equal the level of that of his father until the Holy Spirit returned to Jacob. This is alluded to in אלה תולדות יעקב יוסף, that when Jacob was re-united with Joseph, the cherubs representing the male and female (in all their innocence) (cf. Kings I 7,36) were able to unite through the covenant of circumcision in the emanation of יסוד. Although Jacob and family resided in Egypt, they did not feel themselves in exile as long as Joseph ruled. Once a new King arose, as per Exodus 1,8, who reportedly "did not know Joseph," the situation changed. The mystical dimension of Jacob as "one" and of Joseph as "one," means that all twelve tribes are inextricably linked to both Jacob and Joseph. The letter א contains the secret of this unity.

This is why the Torah says: והאדם ידע את חוה אשתו, "man knew his wife Eve." We find a similar description of the union of Elkanan and his wife Chanah, a holy union which resulted in the birth of the prophet Samuel (Samuel I 1,19). Just as the emanation יסוד is the link between the "junior" emanations תפארת and מלכות, through the covenant of circumcision, so “כתר represents the link between the "senior" emanations חכמה and בינה. The inseparable bond between G–d, Torah and Israel is forged in this manner. I have written on these concepts elsewhere at greater length, and will come back to them later.

This is the reason the Midrash quotes only the half of the verse which speaks about Israel building a Sanctuary for G–d, i.e. hearkening to His voice. The remaining difficulty is that since this verse speaks about the construction of the Tabernacle, why does the Torah not describe it as such and prefers to call it מקדש? We know that our sages (Eyruvin 2) have said that the terms משכן and מקדש are used interchangeably. We are nonetheless entitled to know why this is so. In view of what we have said the interchangeable nature of these two terms is now quite easily apparent. The sanctity of the people of Israel is dependent upon the construction of the Temple. When it exists, the sanctity of the pairing of G–d's uniqueness and Israel's uniqueness as symbolised by the two cherubs who face each other on the lid of the Holy Ark, and who assume a position of mutual love similar to that of man and woman, is preserved (cf. Baba Batra 99 on the significance of the positions of the cherubs). Originally, the Sanctuary was called משכן because it was only a temporary, collapsible structure. Even the so-called permanent Temple built by Solomon was still referred to as משכן, because it was subject to being destroyed sooner or later. At that time, G–d's children, Israel, were expelled from their father's table. In the future, when the Temple will be rebuilt, it will be known only as מקדש, to signify that it will be an enduring structure, never again to be destroyed.