Daily Chumash & Rashi Parshas Vayakhel Pikudei – Chamishi: The Eiphod and Choshen (Thursday, 23rd Adar)

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Chamishi when connected to Vayakhel

  1. The Eiphod:
  • He made the Eiphod from gold, Turquoise-Ticheiles wool, Argamon-Purple wool, scarlet wool, and twisted linen. Gold strings were cut from thin sheets of gold and woven with the Turquoise-Ticheiles wool, Argamon-Purple wool, scarlet wool, and twisted linen. He made two shoulder straps, one by each end, and a belt which was likewise made of the same materials stated above.
  • The Avnie Shoham: He placed the two Shoham stones into their gold settings and inscribed on them the name of the tribes of Israel. He placed the stones on the shoulder straps of the Eiphod, one per strap, as a remembrance.

 

  1. The Choshen:
  • He made the Choshen from gold, Turquoise-Ticheiles wool, Argamon-Purple wool, scarlet wool, and twisted linen. The Choshen was square, folded over, a Zeres in its length and width. It was filled with four rows of stones. The first row contained the following stones: Odem, Pitdah, and Barekes. The second row contained the following stones: Nofech, Sapir, and Yahalom. The third row contained the following stones: Leshem, Shevo, and Achlamah. The fourth row contained the following stones: Tarshish, Shoham, and Yashfeh. The stones were placed within gold settings. They had the names of the tribes inscribed on them, one tribe per stone for a total of 12 tribes and stones.
  • The chains and rings that attach the Choshen to the Eiphod: They made two gold chains on the Choshen. They made two gold settings and two gold rings and placed the rings on the two [top] corners of the Choshen. They attached the chains to these two rings. The other end of the chains was attached to the gold settings and then attached to the shoulder straps of the Eiphod. They made another two gold rings for the bottom corners of the Choshen, and placed them in the interior of the Choshen. They made two rings on the bottom end of the shoulder straps of the Eiphod, symmetric to the bottom rings of the Choshen. They placed a Techeiles-Turquoise woolen string through the two sets of rings, and attached the Choshen to the Eiphod belt so that it not move.

 

Item

Materials Used

Features

Stones

Inscription

Attachment Details

Eiphod

Gold, Turquoise-Ticheiles wool, Argamon-Purple wool, scarlet wool, twisted linen

Gold strings woven with wool and linen, two shoulder straps, belt made of same materials

 

 

 

Avnie Shoham

Shoham stones, gold settings

Two Shoham stones placed into gold settings

Shoham

Name of the tribes of Israel

Placed on shoulder straps of Eiphod, one per strap, as remembrance

Choshen

Gold, Turquoise-Ticheiles wool, Argamon-Purple wool, scarlet wool, twisted linen

Square, folded over, Zeres in length and width, filled with four rows of stones

1st row: Odem, Pitdah, Barekes; 2nd row: Nofech, Sapir, Yahalom; 3rd row: Leshem, Shevo, Achlamah; 4th row: Tarshish, Shoham, Yashfeh

Names of the tribes inscribed, one tribe per stone, total 12

Stones placed within gold settings

Chains and Rings (Choshen to Eiphod)

Gold, Techeiles-Turquoise wool

Two gold chains, two gold settings, four gold rings (two top corners, two bottom corners), two rings on shoulder straps

 

 

Chains attached to rings and settings, attached to shoulder straps; woolen string through rings, Choshen attached to Eiphod belt

39:1 — The Packing Cloths

Q31. Why does the verse mention turquoise, purple, and scarlet wool but not linen?

A: To show that בִּגְדֵי הַשְּׂרָד are not priestly garments, since priestly garments require linen.

 

Q32. What are בִּגְדֵי הַשְּׂרָד according to Rashi?

A: The packing cloths used to cover the holy vessels during travel.

About The Author

Rabbi Yaakov Goldstein is a 6th generation descendent of the famous Chief Rabbi of Izhmir, Rav Yehoshua Avraham Krispin, who authored a number of Sefarim, and was a colleague of Rav Chaim Falagi, and father in-law of the Pesach Hadvir. He currently lives with his wife Shayna, and twelve children K”H, in Tzfas, Israel. Rabbi Goldstein received Semicha from Rabbi Schneur Zalman Labkowski of the Tomchei Temimim headquarters in 2005 and served as a chaplain in the Lotar/Kalatz and K9 unit of the IDF from years 2005-2008. He is also a certified Shochet, and has performed Hashgacha work in slaughterhouses. Rabbi Goldstein is the director of Shulchanaruchharav.com, the world’s leading web-based Halacha database, and is the director of the Home Study Semicha Program, a self-study web-based Semicha program. He is a prolific author of over 50 Sefarim studied by a wide range of readers throughout the world, which is used regularly in Semicha programs around the globe. He is a world renowned Posek, answering questions to a web-based market, and serves as a local Posek, Rav, and Lecturer, in the Tzemach Tzedek community Shul in Tzefas, Israel. His many classes can be heard both from his website, Vimeo and YouTube channel. Students can join live to classes given in the Tzemach Tzedek Shul, through the “בית חבד צפת Chabad Tsfat” YouTube channel.