The Purpose of Building
the Bet Hamikdash
Adapted from Likkutei
Sichot, Vol. IV, p. 1346-1347;
Vol. XI, Terumah
A Difference
of Opinion between the Rambam and the Ramban
In Hilchot Bet HaBechirah,
after stating the mitzvah to construct a
Sanctuary, the Rambam writes:[1]
We
must make utensils for the Sanctuary: an altar for...
the sacrifices, a ramp to ascend the altars...,
a washbasin with a pedestal, an altar for the incense
offering, a menorah, and a table [for the
showbread].
By mentioning the utensils
in this manner, the Rambam underscores a
theme which he mentions in Sefer HaMitzvot[2] — that the mitzvah to construct
a Sanctuary also includes fashioning all the utensils
necessary to perform the various different elements
of sacrificial worship required in the Bet Hamikdash.
There is no separate mitzvah to fashion any
of these utensils.
In his Hasagos to Sefer
HaMitzvos,[3] the Ramban differs and explains
that the construction of the Bet Hamikdash
should be considered as one mitzvah, and
the fashioning of the utensils as separate mitzvos.
To quote:
The
utensils are not part of the structures. Rather,
they are two mitzvos, which are not dependent
on each other. We may offer sacrifices in the Beis
[HaMikdash] although it is lacking utensils.[4]
What is the Purpose of the
Bet Hamikdash:
Sacrificial Worship or Revealing G·d’s Presence
The difference of opinion
between these two authorities is, conceivably, representative
of a divergence of approach regarding a matter
of greater scope. In Sefer Hamitzvot,[5]
the Rambam describes the mitzvah of
building the Bet Hamikdash as a command
to “make a house for service where sacrifices
will be offered;” i.e., he places an emphasis on
the Bet Hamikdash as being the center for
the sacrificial worship of G-d. Without the
utensils necessary for this service, the sacrifices
could not be offered. Therefore, the mitzvah
of building the Beis HaMikdash also includes
fashioning the utensils necessary for this worship.
This concept is also reflected
in the Mishneh Torah,[6]
where the Rambam begins his discussion of
the mitzvah of constructing the Beis
HaMikdash as follows: “It is a positive commandment
to construct a house for G-d, prepared for
sacrifices to be offered within.” The mitzvah
of building the Sanctuary is complete when it is
“prepared for sacrifices to be offered within.”[7]
The Ramban, by contrast,
sees the construction of the Bet Hamikdash
as a commandment with a self-contained goal — building
a sanctuary for the manifestation of G-d’s
Presence. Thus in his Commentary to the Torah,[8]
he writes: “[G-d’s] essential purpose in the
Sanctuary was [the construction of] a resting place
for the Divine Presence.”
In this conception, sacrificial
worship represents an additional service that is
not intrinsically related to the existence of the
Bet Hamikdash. Accordingly, it is appropriate
that the fashioning of the different utensils necessary
for sacrificial worship be considered as mitzvos
in their own right.
A Resolution of the Differences:
The Purpose of the Bet Hamikdash in Man’s Eyes
and Its Purpose in the Eyes of G-d
This conception of the differences
between the Rambam and the Ramban
cannot, however, be accepted without further explanation.
For the manifestation of G-d’s Presence as
a goal of the Bet Hamikdash is alluded to
in the very verse[9] which the Rambam cites[10] as the prooftext for the commandment to build the
Bet Hamikdash: “And you shall make Me a
Sanctuary and I shall dwell within.” Moreover, the
Rambam describes the mitzvah of building
the Beis HaMikdash[11]
in Hilchos Beis HaBechirah,[12] as constructing “a house for G-d,”
indicating that preparing a structure in which G-d’s
Presence is manifest is the primary purpose of the
construction of the Bet Hamikdash.
Conversely, we are forced
to say that the Ramban appreciated the establishment
of a centralized place of worship as a fundamental
goal which is fulfilled by the construction of the
Bet Hamikdash. For there are passages from
the Torah which clearly indicate this connection,
emphasizing that G-d’s choice of “a place
for His name to dwell” is associated with the command
— “there you will bring... your burnt offerings,
your sacrifices....”[13]
Therefore, it must be explained
that the purposes emphasized by the Rambam
and the Ramban are not to the exclusion of
the other. The difference between their perspectives
stems from the choice of the dimension which they
choose to stress. The Rambam speaks of the
Bet Hamikdash in terms of the mitzvos
to be fulfilled by man in relating to G-d.
Hence, he emphasizes the dimension of sacrificial
worship. The Ramban, by contrast, focuses
on “[G-d’s] essential purpose in the
Sanctuary.” Therefore, he places the emphasis on
the manifestation of G-d’s Presence.
In the Era of the Redemption
Both these purposes, the manifestation
of G-d’s Presence and man’s sacrificial worship,
will reach their utmost level of fulfillment in
the Third Bet Hamikdash in the Era of the
Redemption. For this will be “the Sanctuary of G-d,
established by Your hands,”[14]
and “there, we will offer to You our obligatory
sacrifices... with love, in accord with the command
of Your will.”[15]
May our study of the different
elements of the Bet Hamikdash herald the
time when we will rejoice in its construction. And
may this take place in the immediate future.
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