And you shall command the children of Israel, and they shall take to you pure olive oil, crushed for lighting, to kindle the lamps continually…Aaron and his sons shall set it up before the L-rd from evening to morning; [it shall be] an everlasting statute for their generations, from the children of Israel.

The menorah of the Temple evokes the image of a tree—a tree of life, a tree of light and a tree of fire, while the oil with which it was kindled represents the constancy of the light. In the painting, rays emanate from a menorah which looks like a cosmic tree in an enchanted forest. The amber golden hues hint to the olive oil which fed the menorah, enabling it to radiate light. This clear oil, pressed to create light, burned continuously in the Temple. In memory of the Temple menorah, all synagogues keep a light, the ner tamid (the eternal flame), constantly lit.

Many generations after the destruction of the Temple, the prophet Zechariah saw a vision of a menorah. It was flanked on either side by olive trees feeding it directly with oil, while the voice of an angel explained that the Temple would be rebuilt, "Not by might, not by power but by the spirit of G‑d".

Even after the Temple was destroyed the menorah remains a symbol of bringing this "spirit of light" to the world. Notice in the painting how the light of the menorah illuminates the pathway–a pathway that has remained open as an everlasting statute unto the generations.